Chapter 136: The Demonic Trace Reappears, the Conspiracy Emerges
Ye Li stayed at Hidden Mist Villa for over a month. After arranging matters at Youge, she prepared to depart for her next destination. Before leaving, she inspected Youge's newly established intelligence transmission system. This system, which she had specifically instructed Lin Feng to build, utilized a modified communication array, capable of transmitting important intelligence to every corner of the spirit world in a fraction of a second.
On the morning she was about to leave, an emergency communication talisman streaked across the sky and landed precisely within the receiving array at Hidden Mist Villa. The disciple guarding the array immediately presented the talisman to Ye Li.
The communication talisman came from Youge's branch in Zhongzhou Tianshu City. It was written on the highest-grade red talisman paper, signifying an extremely urgent situation. Ye Li's consciousness penetrated the talisman, and his expression suddenly became solemn.
The information contained in the communication talisman was shocking: three days prior, a bizarre attack occurred in Tianshu City. Seven talented cultivators who had performed exceptionally well at the Thousand Territory Pride Conference mysteriously disappeared on the same day, including Monk Huiming from the Western Buddhist Kingdom and Young Master Jinpeng from the Southern Wilderness Demon Territory. Even more disturbing, a faint lingering demonic aura was detected at the scene, remarkably similar to the aura of the "Dark Pupil" organization encountered previously in the Primordial Secret Realm.
"Can't you hold it back anymore?" Ye Li's eyes flashed coldly. She immediately changed her schedule and decided to go to Tianshu City to investigate the matter herself.
Driving the Liuguang Boat, Ye Li rushed to Tianshu City at the fastest speed. Along the way, she continued to receive intelligence from various Youge branches, and the situation was more serious than she had imagined.
Besides Tianshu City, similar cases of genius disappearances have occurred in places like the Xinggong in Dongzhou, the Vajra Temple in the Western Regions, and the Myriad Demons Valley in the Southern Wilds. All of the missing individuals were young prodigies who had risen to prominence at the Thousand Territory Pride Conference, and the same residual demonic energy was found at the scene.
What made Ye Li even more alert was that these events occurred very close in time, which was obviously a carefully planned coordinated action.
Three days later, Ye Li arrived at Tianshu City. This city, one of the most prosperous in the spirit world, was shrouded in a tense atmosphere. Inspections at the city gates were exceptionally strict, and the number of patrols on the streets was several times greater than usual.
Without disturbing anyone, Ye Li quietly came to Youge's secret base in Tianshu City - a calligraphy and painting shop called "Mo Yun Zhai".
The shop owner was a well-mannered middle-aged scholar. When he saw Ye Li, he immediately led her to the secret room in the backyard.
"Master, you're finally here!" The shopkeeper said nervously, "The situation is not good."
He pulled out a photo stone and activated it to reveal the recent scene of Tianshu City. The scene showed that masters from various factions were being frequently mobilized, and the atmosphere in the city was tense.
"Of the seven missing geniuses, three are direct descendants of prominent families in the city, and two are important heirs of major sects," the shopkeeper reported. "Now, all the major families and sects are putting pressure on the City Lord's Mansion to solve the case as soon as possible."
Ye Li carefully examined the image in the image stone, and suddenly her eyes fixed: "Stop! Zoom in on this corner."
The picture is frozen in the shadow of an alleyway, where there is a very faint black mark, shaped like a twisted eye.
"This is... the mark of Dark Eyes!" Ye Li recognized the symbol. "They are demonstrating to all forces."
At that moment, another emergency communication talisman arrived. This time, the information was even more shocking: three disciples of Jiuxiao Tiangong who were training outside had also been attacked, two seriously injured, and one missing. The attacker's technique was imbued with a strong demonic energy, identical to the one used by the perpetrators of missing geniuses across the country.
"They even dared to touch the Jiuxiao Palace..." Ye Li felt an ominous premonition. This was no longer a simple provocation, but a premeditated large-scale action.
She immediately contacted Envoy Yunying at the Jiuxiao Palace through a special channel. The call was quickly connected, and Envoy Yunying's image appeared before her, her expression equally solemn.
"Ye Li, you've arrived just in time," Envoy Yun Ying said straight to the point. "The Heavenly Palace has confirmed that the forces that attacked our disciples are indeed the Shadow Demons. And according to the intelligence we have, they appear to be plotting a grand conspiracy against geniuses from all realms."
"Shadow Demon?" This was the first time Ye Li heard this name.
"This is a demonic organization even more ancient and mysterious than the Dark Eyes," Envoy Yunying explained. "Legend has it that they originated from the outer demons and have been secretly infiltrating the spirit world. The Dark Eyes are likely just a branch of their group."
She paused, then continued, "Even more worryingly, we suspect the Shadow Fiend is connected to your former enemy."
Ye Li's eyes sternly asked: "Is there any evidence?"
Envoy Yunying took out a memory crystal. "This was found at the attack site. Take a look."
Ye Li probed her consciousness into the memory crystal and was instantly shocked. The crystal recorded a blurry image. Although the face could not be seen clearly, the figure's temperament and the way the skills were operated were extremely similar to the Ling Hao in her memory!
"It's him..." Ye Li's voice was filled with suppressed anger. Although many years had passed, she would never forget the aura of the junior brother who betrayed her.
"We suspect the Shadow Demon is collecting the essence and souls of geniuses from every realm in order to activate an ancient forbidden formation," Emissary Yunying said. "This forbidden formation is likely related to the Eclipse Plan."
Ye Li pondered for a moment, and suddenly thought of a key question: "Why are they targeting Jiuxiao Tiangong?"
Envoy Yunying's expression grew even more serious. "We suspect their true target is Qin Yixuan, who is currently in seclusion."
This statement was like a bolt from the blue, causing Ye Li's heart to suddenly tighten. She immediately realized the seriousness of the situation. If the Shadow Demon really had set his sights on Qin Yixuan, then the situation at Jiuxiao Tiangong was probably even more dangerous than she had imagined.
After finishing the communication with the Yunying envoy, Ye Li immediately summoned all the core members of the Youge in Tianshu City.
"Activate the highest level of alert," Ye Li ordered. "Use all our intelligence networks. I want to quickly grasp all of Shadow Demon's movements in Zhongzhou."
In the days that followed, the vast intelligence machine of Youge was operating at full capacity. Countless intelligence gathered from all over the spirit world and was presented to Ye Li after analysis and compilation.
As the investigation deepened, a shocking conspiracy gradually surfaced.
The Shadow Demon Organization was indeed planning a large-scale operation targeting geniuses from all realms. Their goal was to simultaneously attack the genius monks from all realms at a specific time and collect their essence, blood, and soul.
Even more terrifying, intelligence from the Phantom Pavilion revealed that the Shadow Demons had already infiltrated several major sects and families. Some seemingly accidental events were actually carefully orchestrated conspiracies.
"Pavilion Master, this is important intelligence we discovered in the Western Regions." Lin Feng personally delivered a secret report, "The person in charge of the Shadow Demons in the Western Regions is most likely the head of the Vinaya Hall of the Vajra Temple—Master Liaochen!"
Ye Li took the report and read it carefully, his expression changing slightly. Master Liaochen was highly respected in the Western Buddhist Kingdom. If even he was a member of the Shadow Demon, then the extent of this organization's infiltration was terrifying.
At this moment, Ye Li suddenly sensed an unusual fluctuation coming from the Samsara Mirror. She immediately closed her eyes and concentrated, establishing a deeper connection with the Mirror.
With the help of the Samsara Mirror, she saw a horrifying scene: the essence, blood, and souls of countless talented monks were injected into a huge blood-colored magic circle. A vague figure was floating in the center of the magic circle, absorbing these powers.
And the aura of that figure is extremely similar to Ling Hao!
"So that's how it is..." Ye Li suddenly realized, "They are rebuilding Ling Hao's body!"
This discovery further escalated the severity of the entire incident. If Ling Hao was successfully resurrected, given his understanding of the Samsara Mirror, he would become Ye Li's greatest threat.
What made Ye Li even more worried was that she had seen a scene during the deduction that showed the Jiuxiao Palace under siege. Countless demonic shadows surrounded the palace, and the Xuannv Palace where Qin Yixuan was in seclusion was their main target.
"We must stop them!" Ye Li made up her mind.
She immediately sent a warning to all the major forces in the spirit world through the Nether Pavilion's intelligence network. At the same time, she personally traveled to several locations that might become the Shadow Demon's next target to set up defenses.
The first stop was Dongzhou Star Palace, a place where young talents gathered and a likely target for Shadow Demon.
Ye Li drove the Flowing Light Boat as fast as she could to reach the Star Palace. When she arrived, traces of demonic energy had already appeared outside the Star Palace.
"It seems that I am still a step late." Ye Li's eyes turned cold and he immediately started searching with his spiritual sense.
In a hidden valley behind the Xing Palace, she discovered something unusual. Dozens of black-robed men had gathered there, setting up a strange magic array. Trapped in the center were several young Xing Palace disciples, their faces agonized, evidently having their essence and blood drained.
"Stop!" Ye Li shouted, and the Xuanbing Sword was unsheathed.
The black-robed men were clearly not expecting this sudden appearance, and their formation was thrown into disarray. The leading black-robed man shouted, "Who dares to disrupt the Shadow Demon's plans?"
Ye Li didn't waste any time talking to them and directly unleashed his newly created "Six Paths of Samsara Sword: Silent Asura Path". Wherever the sword flashed, everything was silent, even space seemed to wither.
The black-robed men were horrified to discover that their magic skills were completely ineffective against this strange sword intent. Wherever the sword light reached, the demonic energy dissipated, and life was cut off.
In just a few breaths, dozens of black-robed men were all killed. Ye Li rescued the trapped Xinggong disciples and learned more information from them.
It turns out that the Shadow Demon is indeed planning a large-scale operation against geniuses from all domains. Their goal is to launch simultaneous attacks on the night of the full moon in order to collect enough blood essence and soul.
"The night of the full moon...that's three days later!" Ye Li realized that time was running out.
She immediately passed this crucial information to all the major factions through the Youge intelligence network. At the same time, she decided to personally visit several key locations to take charge.
Over the next three days, Ye Li traveled across the Spirit Realm, thwarting the Shadow Demon's plots in Vajra Temple, Ten Thousand Demon Valley, and other places. With each encounter, she felt Ling Hao's presence more clearly.
"He is still alive..." The murderous intent in Ye Li's heart grew stronger and stronger.
In the final battle, she even faced off against one of Ling Hao's clones. Although it was only a clone, the strength it displayed had already reached the level of Nirvana.
"Senior Sister, I hope you are well." Ling Hao's clone laughed sinisterly, "We will be able to meet again soon."
Ye Li looked at him coldly: "This time, I won't give you another chance to betray me."
During the fierce battle, Ye Li finally confirmed an important piece of information: the Shadow Demon's true target was indeed Qin Yixuan, who was in seclusion in the Jiuxiao Palace. They wanted to use Qin Yixuan's Nine Heavens Mysterious Lady essence to complete Ling Hao's resurrection ritual.
The full moon night finally arrived.
That night, the entire spirit world was shrouded in a tense atmosphere. All major forces were on high alert to prevent a sudden attack from the Shadow Demon.
Ye Li, on the other hand, came to the outskirts of Jiuxiao Palace alone. She chose to wait here because her intuition told her that this would be the main battlefield for the decisive battle.
As expected, when the moonlight was at its brightest, countless demonic shadows surged towards the Nine Heavens Palace from all directions. Leading the way was Ling Hao's other clone and several elders of the Shadow Demon Organization.
"Ling Hao, your ambition ends here." Ye Li stood with a sword in his hand, his silver hair shining in the moonlight.
Ling Hao's clone laughed arrogantly: "Senior Sister, do you think you can stop me? I have been planning for this day for hundreds of years!"
As he spoke, a massive blood-red magic circle appeared above the Jiuxiao Heavenly Palace. Countless painful faces appeared within the magic circle, all of them geniuses from various realms who had disappeared in the past few days.
Ye Li's eyes turned cold, knowing the moment of decisive battle had arrived. She took a deep breath and adjusted her condition to her best. This battle was not only related to her feud with Ling Hao, but also to the safety of the entire spirit world.
Qin Yixuan, who was in seclusion far away in the Xuannv Palace, seemed to have sensed the changes in the outside world and began to emanate a strong sacred aura...
This battle concerning the fate of the spiritual world is about to begin.
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