As Han Ming was forced into combat, Sun Lingtong took a quick step, piercing through space to land directly in the storage room.
"Phoenix Soul Blood Fragrance Pill!"
"Foundation Establishment Pill!"
"Rejuvenation Pill!"
"Returning Essence Pill!"
“Hehehe…” Sun Lingtong shook his small chubby hand, adorned with a bracelet on his lotus-root-like wrist.
The bracelet emitted light.
This storage artifact was incredibly powerful, and under its glow, all the pills disappeared from their original spots.
Outside, sword light crisscrossed, and ghostly shadows flitted around.
Han Ming’s expression remained cold and impassive as she struggled to escape her opponent.
This stalemate was exactly the type of battle she wanted to avoid.
Suddenly, she let out a cold snort and unleashed the Nine Turns Soul Devouring Art!
The sword cultivator faltered for a moment.
Simultaneously, a flying sword shot toward Han Ming’s heart.
Without dodging, Han Ming launched a flying shuttle from her sleeve.
The shuttle, a foot long, grayish-blue like stone and covered with spikes, moved swiftly, piercing the sword cultivator’s body.
At the same time, the flying sword pierced through Han Ming’s heart.
Though it seemed like a double defeat, Han Ming revealed a sinister smile.
Her cultivation talent, Ghost Corpse Qi, made her suitable for both soul and corpse cultivation methods.
She joined the Soul Devouring Sect, focusing on the Nine Turns Soul Devouring Art, while secretly practicing the corpse-cultivating technique—the Immortal Corpse Transformation Method.
She had successfully transformed her internal organs into corpse flesh, making her impervious to ordinary mortal weaknesses.
Even with her corpse heart pierced, it didn’t matter.
The situation was different for her opponent.
Han Ming’s shuttle was no ordinary weapon—it was a Soul Capturing Shuttle, perfectly compatible with the Nine Turns Soul Devouring Art!
After striking the sword cultivator, the shuttle exerted a powerful suction force, drawing out part of his soul.
The sword cultivator’s face turned pale, his body trembling as he suffered critical damage in an instant.
"Even if you're a peak foundation establishment cultivator, you're just a rogue cultivator. How can you possibly oppose a major sect of the Demonic Gate?"
Han Ming smiled cruelly. "Die for me!"
In the next moment, the sword cultivator threw out a Void Traversing Talisman.
The talisman activated a spatial ripple, instantly teleporting the sword cultivator away.
Han Ming sneered, her bloodlust unquenched after failing to kill her target.
Just as she prepared to storm into the storage room, she received a message.
Sun Lingtong had already swept the storage room clean and escaped.
Sun Lingtong’s voice transmitted to her, “I’ve got everything; let’s go!”
Han Ming couldn’t hold back her murderous intent.
“Heh, letting such an opportunity slip by—what a waste!”
She set her sights on the alchemy chamber and charged toward it.
She held a deep grudge against Sun Lie.
Previously, in her attempt to acquire a Phoenix Soul Blood Fragrance Pill, she fought him fiercely, gaining nothing.
Instead, she ended up as a fugitive in Fire Persimmon Immortal City, hiding for over a year.
She had attempted many times to obtain her goal, all in vain.
Bang!
Han Ming smashed through the door, attacking Sun Lie.
Sun Lie had heard the commotion outside, but, unable to stop mid-refinement, he could not escape.
“It’s you!” Sun Lie saw Han Ming and could only muster his strength, standing his ground and putting up a desperate defense.
Operating at less than forty percent of his power, he was no match for Han Ming and was quickly struck down.
Bang.
Sun Lie was flung backward, crashing into the wall, his seven orifices bleeding as he slumped to the ground.
“Die for me!” Han Ming cackled, her fingers sharp, exuding a chilling, gray-green Ghost Qi as she clawed at Sun Lie’s head.
Boom!
Suddenly, the Purple Sun Furnace burst open, and a bolt of lightning shot out.
This unexpected event caught Han Ming off guard.
She hadn’t anticipated that the furnace was refining not pills, but a genius youth!
Inside the furnace, Meng Chong heard the noise and realized the Purple Sun Courtyard was under attack.
Having recently survived an assassination attempt, he was already on guard after secretly leaving the City Lord’s Manor to come to the courtyard.
He immediately called out to Sun Lie, seeking to leave the furnace and join the battle.
But Sun Lie stopped him, “Once alchemy begins, it can’t be interrupted. Meng Chong, you’re currently in the process of leaking spiritual power."
"If you leave the furnace without adequate medicinal nourishment or external pressure, your spirit, energy, and essence will drain rapidly."
"You’ll not only lose all your cultivation but exhaust your foundation, leaving you worse than a cripple!”
Meng Chong realized the severity of the situation and hesitated.
But hearing Sun Lie’s coughing and Han Ming’s sneering threat to kill him, Meng Chong couldn’t hold back any longer.
A surge of hot-blooded courage overcame him, and his Wild Sprint Thunderclap innate talent was unconsciously activated.
Crackling electricity erupted around him.
With glaring eyes, Meng Chong smashed open the furnace door, charging out like a ferocious tiger.
Fast, incredibly fast!
Han Ming turned, glimpsing what looked like a roaring thunder tiger charging at her.
Despite being at the qi refining stage and having recently dispersed much of his cultivation, Meng Chong was only at qi refining stage three, whereas Han Ming was at peak foundation establishment!
Sensing Meng Chong’s aura and seeing her enemy Sun Lie within reach, Han Ming ruthlessly ignored Meng Chong and continued her attack on Sun Lie, relying on her defenses to withstand Meng Chong’s assault.
Boom!
In the next moment, a blinding bolt of lightning struck Han Ming’s back.
Her Yin soul power shattered under the force of the lightning, and the pure Yang energy surged through her body, wreaking havoc.
In a single breath, her corpse-transformed organs were damaged!
Han Ming coughed up a mouthful of gray-green blood, her attack on Sun Lie crumbling.
Her experience in battle made her quickly realize the danger.
She no longer cared about killing her target and immediately used a Void Traversing Talisman to escape.
“Where do you think you’re going?!” Meng Chong roared.
Han Ming’s body retained his lightning energy, allowing him to track her closely.
However, the Void Traversing Talisman she used wasn’t of high quality, and its teleportation range was no more than six miles.
This remained within Meng Chong’s sensing range.
As he prepared to pursue, Sun Lie stopped him. “Don’t bother!”
Meng Chong paused, realizing that saving Sun Lie was the priority.
He hurried to Sun Lie’s side, but his lack of medical knowledge left him flustered.
While he excelled in battle, saving lives was beyond his expertise.
Han Ming, grievously wounded, struggled to steady her breathing as she used her talisman to escape the battlefield.
Sun Lingtong had already retreated early on.
Ning Zhuo stayed behind briefly, abandoning part of his mechanical constructs to secure a smooth retreat.
The foundation establishment cultivator who had targeted him earlier was now a corpse hanging on his Dangling Death Whip.
The three of them regrouped as planned midway.
Han Ming glanced at the corpse on the Dangling Death Whip and at the Mysterious Puppet Master, who bore no signs of having fought, and felt a chill in her heart.
Encased in a shroud of Ghost Qi, her aura was fierce, showing no signs of her recent severe injury.
Han Ming said coldly, “Let’s part here. Give me the Phoenix Soul Blood Fragrance Pills and a third of the other pills.”
Ning Zhuo frowned immediately. “A third? My contribution was far greater than yours.”
Han Ming sneered, “But it was I who severely injured Sun Lie and held off Meng Chong!”
“Especially Meng Chong—he may only be at qi refining stage three, but he’s a genius with supreme talent! Could your mechanical constructs withstand him?”
Ning Zhuo snorted in silence.
“Enough arguing! This mission was a great success; let’s celebrate.” Sun Lingtong chuckled, tossing a pill bottle to Han Ming. “The Phoenix Soul Blood Fragrance Pills are all in here.”
Han Ming immediately uncorked the bottle to check it, but a black mist sprayed out, hitting her face.
Instantly, her aura dissipated, her soul was sealed, and she nearly collapsed on the spot.
Her expression turned from disbelief to anger. “Sun Lingtong, you tricked me!”
Thud, thud, thud.
In the next instant, three Dangling Death Whips struck her silently, piercing her body, then coiling around her like snakes, binding her tightly.
Ning Zhuo’s voice echoed coldly, “Splitting the spoils between two is better than sharing with three.”