In the early morning within the Flying Spirit Mountains, all was silent. Dawn was breaking, and the night was about to retreat. The first light of dawn slowly awakened the sleeping creatures. The air was crisp and cool, and a morning breeze swept through, creating a serene and refreshing atmosphere, painting a scene of clear skies and gentle winds.

  Behind the mountains of the Flying Spirit Gate, the waters that had been stirred into thousands of waves by Li Lin's palm strike the previous day now bore a soft mist. With the waterfall upstream continuing to pour down, the water surface had recovered, and the surrounding mountains were coated with a layer of soft milky white. The thick mist rendered everything obscure and mystical.

  The Flying Spirit Mountain was always picturesque, especially so at this clear dawn. However, the people from the Ghost Martial Sect outside the Flying Spirit Gate seemed to have no leisure to appreciate the scenery. They had spent the night in panic and now were so tense that any small sound could startle them into sweating coldly.

  “Huff…”

  In the secret room on the back mountain, Li Lin exhaled a turbid breath from his mouth and opened his eyes to cease his cultivation. It was clear from his aura that a night of refinement had greatly advanced his cultivation level.

  Feeling the true qi inside him at this moment, Li Lin was extremely satisfied. Swallowing that Eightfold Martial General, the amount he had refined was indeed very rare. If he continued in one go, the effect would undoubtedly be better, but Li Lin was helpless as there were still many things to be done today.

  “It should be about time. Next, it will depend on Ye Fei's peculiar abilities. The last step is crucial. If successful, it would save me a lot of trouble in the future.” Li Lin murmured to himself before tidying up and walking out of the cave secret room.

  Inside a stone chamber of the Flying Spirit Gate branch, the screams still continued relentlessly. The mournful wails were utterly genuine, penetrating to the bone—definitely not ordinary.

  However, at this moment in the chamber, amidst the screams, Dai Gangzi's horrific face showed a trace of joy.

  “Sst!”

  Just then, a sudden gleam flashed in Dai Gangzi's eyes, and a mighty true qi burst forth from his body, causing the surrounding space to ripple rapidly. The iron hooks on his shoulders shattered inch by inch.

  “Sst… sst…”

  Inside Dai Gangzi's body, blood sprayed out from his skin all around, covering the stone walls with a massive mist of blood, where one could see countless tiny blood-red ants shattered into pieces.

  “Die, all of you.” In an instant, Dai Gangzi thought, and from his seven apertures, countless bone-eating blood ants sprayed out like fresh blood, violently striking the stone walls into a mist of blood.

  The true qi around his body shook, and moments later, a stream of blood spewed from Dai Gangzi's mouth, also mixed with a large number of bone-eating blood ants, creating a horrific sight.

  Yet, at this moment, Dai Gangzi's body was even more horrifying to behold. His body was covered in bloodstains, and to describe him as flayed would not be enough. His skin flowed with streaks of blood, a sight too gruesome to bear. The only relatively intact part was his face, which Ouyang Lengji had intentionally left unharmed.

  “Dai Daozi, I will not let you go.” Looking around at the corpses of the bone-eating blood ants, Dai Gangzi's hatred soared, his eyes blazing with fire. Fortunately, the storage ring on his hand was still there, and he quickly took out a clean robe to wear, his mind peeking outside the stone chamber, his expression darkening as he slowly walked out.

  The corridor outside the chamber was unexpectedly long. Dai Gangzi was familiar with this place and walked out with an extremely light step.

  At this moment, Dai Gangzi dared not cause any disturbances. Several people here were not weaker than him. If discovered, he would absolutely be unable to escape.

  Stepping out of the corridor, Dai Gangzi secretly rejoiced at his luck in not being detected. Perhaps no one had expected the prohibitions on him to loosen. It was truly fortunate.

  Now, Dai Gangzi was even more cautious. Ahead of the corridor was a massive building. Dai Gangzi's mind slightly probed forward and he moved on, not daring to leap forward as such a disturbance would attract everyone's attention.

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  Passing through a large courtyard, Dai Gangzi's heart lightened. Crossing this courtyard would be the exit, and then he could escape.

  “Ouyang Sect Master, it really was tough on you. That Dai Gangzi and I share the same father but different mothers. He was just a bastard born from my father's second wife, always wanting to compete with me for the position of sect master. This time, I will completely remove him, and then no one will compete with me for the position of sect master again.” A voice came from the courtyard, causing Dai Gangzi to instantly conceal his presence and hold his breath, daring not to make any disturbances.

  The voice he was all too familiar with was that of his half-brother Dai Daozi.

  “Sect Master Dai, this is what I should do. By killing Dai Gangzi, you're giving us the territories of Jiuhua Mountain, Qianshan Gate, and Tianyi Gate. This is a joyful matter for all of us. Our cooperation between Flying Spirit Gate and Ghost Martial Sect will surely boost our power, and soon we will be able to annex other forces,” Ouyang Lengji's voice echoed.

  “That's for certain. I will do what I promised. Those territories have long been intended for your Flying Spirit Gate. It's a pity Dai Gangzi still thought those forces were destroyed by Flying Spirit Gate, but in fact, it was all our arrangement. This time, Dai Gangzi still wanted to compete with me for the position of sect master, so I will wipe out his forces completely, leaving him clueless even as a ghost, haha,” Dai Daozi's cold laughter resounded.

  “Dai Daozi…”

  Hearing this voice, Dai Gangzi clenched his fists tightly, his eyes flaring with fire.

  However, at this moment, Dai Gangzi did not realize that inside the grand hall, there was no sign of Dai Daozi. The voice of Dai Daozi was actually coming from the mouth of Ghost Shadow Rakshasa Ye Fei.

  Inside the grand hall, Ouyang Lengji, Huangfu Qisong, and others were present, each displaying a knowing smile.

  “Well, I'll just torture that Dai Gangzi for a few more days before killing him. Otherwise, Sect Master Dai, you can come with me now to see Dai Gangzi, to ease your mind,” Ouyang Lengji suggested.

  Inside the hall, Ghost Shadow Rakshasa Ye Fei smiled and said, “No need, I trust Flying Spirit Gate. I'm leaving now. This visit was just to ensure everything went smoothly. As long as Dai Gangzi is not dead, I will not feel at ease. Now, I bid you farewell.”

  The voice of Ghost Shadow Rakshasa Ye Fei at this moment was exactly that of Dai Daozi, creating a bizarre scene that greatly surprised Liu Yishou, Huangfu Qisong, and Kang Ziyun.

  “Then I will escort Sect Master Dai,” Ouyang Lengji's voice rang again.

  “Please…”

  Voices gradually faded into the distance, as if the people had left the grand hall.

  …

  Dai Gangzi's eyes were filled with extreme hatred, his body trembling as he listened to the distant voices of the crowd. After hesitating for a moment, he immediately headed down the mountain. Inside the grand hall, several Martial Master-level disciples of Flying Spirit Gate were present, but none had noticed Dai Gangzi descending the mountain.

  Moments later, inside the grand hall, Kang Ziyun raised an eyebrow and said to the people in the hall, “Alright, Dai Gangzi has gone down the mountain.”

  “Haha, Sect Master Ye’s voice-changing skill is truly unique. I’m impressed,” Huangfu Qisong immediately exclaimed to Ye Fei.

  “Sect Master Huangfu flatters me. I’ve only heard Dai Daozi’s voice a few times at the auction, and to perfectly mimic it is still far from sufficient. But with Dai Gangzi’s anger and worry, he probably couldn’t tell the difference. It should be enough to fool him,” Ghost Shadow Rakshasa Ye Fei laughed.

  “This Dai Gangzi has left the mountain, and we’ve also deactivated Elder Bai’s formation. Won’t it really let him escape?” Jiang Yuanguan expressed his concerns.

  “Don’t worry, if the sect master says he can’t escape, then this Dai Gangzi definitely can’t escape. The hardships Dai Gangzi has endured these past few days have greatly diminished his strength. It’s very unlikely for him to escape,” Ouyang Lengji assured.

  “This time, even Dai Gangzi himself would find it hard to believe,” Li Chizheng said with a laugh.

  “Dai Daozi, I will not let you go.” At the foot of the mountain, a disheveled figure was fleeing rapidly, Dai Gangzi’s eyes red with rage. He glanced back at the place he had just escaped from and was about to leap away when suddenly, a voice resounded…

  “Dai Gangzi, I didn’t expect you to actually escape. But unfortunately, your luck isn’t too good,” as these words fell, a massive white beast appeared in the airspace above Dai Gangzi.

  “It’s you…” Looking up at the beast that appeared instantly, Dai Gangzi's heart, initially filled with vengeful joy, was suddenly doused with a cold shock, his heart turning ice-cold.

  "You can't escape," Li Lin said lightly, arriving atop the Sky-winged Snow Lion.

  Seeing Li Lin, Dai Gangzi's complexion turned ashen. He knew that his chances of escaping were extremely slim, unsure if Green Fire Ghost and Elder Lushan might be nearby to aid him.

  "Quick, chase him. Don't let Dai Gangzi get away."

  "Whoosh whoosh..."

  In the distant mountains, several figures swiftly flew through the air, and in an instant, they appeared overhead. These were the urgently concerned faces of Ghost Shadow Rakshasa Ye Fei, Huangfu Qisong, Li Chizheng, Ouyang Lengji, Jiang Yuanguan, and Kang Ziyun. Only these six were currently capable of flight.

  "Greetings, Sect Master."

  Upon seeing Li Lin, the six hurriedly paid their respects, though inwardly they all smirked without showing any outward signs.

  "You six have failed in your duties. Go back and you will be punished. Fortunately, I discovered Dai Gangzi; otherwise, how could I explain this to Dai Daozi? Quick, capture him and bring him back," Li Lin scolded the six.

  "Yes, Sect Master," the six responded in a fluster.

  "You have no great enmity with me; let me go." Seeing Ouyang Lengji and the others arrive, Dai Gangzi's face grew even paler, his body wilted, the torments of the past few days making his life worse than death, even the thought was chilling.