Chapter Twenty-Three: Treasures Gained on Black Wind Mountain

“My master is not at the temple right now, young sir. Please, you should return,” said the two black-robed Daoists. Hearing that Su Ye knew their master, a look of relief flashed across their faces.

“But I am actually your master’s enemy,” Su Ye’s expression suddenly turned cold. A streak of dark golden lightning gathered in his palm, condensing into a thunder seal that shot instantly toward one of the Daoists.

Though both Su Ye and the two Daoists were cultivators of the second realm, there was a vast gulf in their true strength. The Daoist, caught off guard by Su Ye’s sudden attack, had no time to react before the thunder seal struck his chest.

With a resounding explosion, the thunder seal burst open, unleashing a violent force that pierced straight through the Daoist’s torso. Terror filled his face, eyes wide as he looked at Su Ye one last time before collapsing stiffly to the ground.

“How dare you!” the remaining Daoist shouted in shock, retreating rapidly. He frantically drew upon his inner power, forming a blue-white spell seal in his palm—not to attack Su Ye, but to strike the ground below.

Su Ye’s brows knitted. After glancing at the Daoist, he hesitated not at all—another thunder seal formed in his palm, and in an instant, he had slain the second Daoist as well.

Although both Daoists had reached the second realm, Zhao Huaisheng had not taught them many combat spells, leaving them woefully lacking in battle prowess.

No sooner had Su Ye dispatched the two Daoists than a piercing wail echoed from Blackwind Mountain. A chilling gale swept down from the mountain’s summit, laden with dense ghostly energy, and before Su Ye’s eyes, it coalesced into a pitch-black apparition.

“A first-realm specter,” Su Ye mused, frowning slightly. This ghost possessed formidable strength, but its intelligence was sorely lacking.

It must have been imprisoned on Blackwind Mountain by Zhao Huaisheng. The blue-white seal the Daoist had cast was meant to release it. Unfortunately, the Daoist had underestimated Su Ye’s power—he had died before the specter even appeared.

The specter gave a furious howl and exhaled sharply at Su Ye. Instantly, the mountain’s yin energy was drawn together, forming a raging wind that swept toward Su Ye.

Su Ye swiftly formed a hand seal, gathering his inner force to raise a protective, earthen-yellow barrier around himself—the Guardian Earth Seal, a defensive technique from the Five Thunders of Yin-Yang.

As soon as the Guardian Earth Seal was in place, Su Ye drew out his talisman brush with a flick of his sleeve. Spiritual energy from Blackwind Mountain gathered at the brush’s tip, and with a few swift strokes, a net of exorcism talismans materialized, enveloping the specter.

The specter shrieked, its cries wretched and sharp, as the net shimmered with dark golden lightning. The lightning seared the ghost’s form, leaving burn marks as though branded by red-hot irons.

With the specter ensnared, Su Ye pressed his fingers together like a sword and tapped the ghost’s brow. The specter’s body convulsed violently, the net of talismans shrinking rapidly, refining it into wisps of yin energy that soon dissipated into the air.

Su Ye exhaled softly. He had hoped to retrieve Zhao Huaisheng’s legacy from Blackwind Mountain without incident, but had not expected to encounter a specter as strong as a first-realm cultivator.

“There should be nothing else on Blackwind Mountain now,” he murmured. Burning the Daoists’ corpses with a wave of his hand, he pressed further up the mountain.

Blackwind Temple.

Su Ye gazed at the sinister Daoist temple half-concealed among ancient trees. After a silent inspection, he strode inside.

This was the place where Zhao Huaisheng had once cultivated. The temple was not large, but lavishly constructed. Su Ye quickly examined the whole place and soon found Zhao Huaisheng’s quarters, but the item he sought was not there.

“His belongings are definitely in this room—but where has he hidden them?” Frowning, Su Ye combed through the chamber once more, and discovered a hidden chamber.

“This must be where Zhao Huaisheng practiced,” Su Ye thought, sensing the dense spiritual energy within. It was the most abundant place he had yet found, but as Zhao Huaisheng was a sinister cultivator who raised ghosts, the chamber was also saturated with yin and ghostly energy, which severely tainted the place for cultivation.

After a sigh, Su Ye began to inspect the items inside.

This was Zhao Huaisheng’s true lair—everything he used for cultivation was here.

“Twenty spirit stones—Zhao Huaisheng was indeed wealthy.”

Su Ye finished his search and found twenty spirit stones in all, though they were not the most valuable item in the chamber. That honor belonged to a meditation mat—a genuine magic artifact, graded and refined, able to gather spiritual energy and enhance one’s insight. It was a hundred times better than the one Su Ye had woven himself.

In addition to these, he also obtained a set of implements for ghost-raising and a compendium of Zhao Huaisheng’s sinister techniques—none of which were of use to Su Ye. Keeping them would only court trouble, so after leaving the chamber, he burned them all.

Blackwind Temple.

Standing outside the ornate temple, Su Ye’s brows drew together in a deep frown.

Though the temple’s spiritual energy remained abundant, it was marred by lingering yin energy left by Zhao Huaisheng. It was no place for him to cultivate.

Jinhua County teemed with sinister cultivators and ghosts. If Blackwind Temple was seized by such beings, it would soon breed a new menace.

After a long moment’s hesitation, a flame blossomed in Su Ye’s palm. He cast it into the temple, and it surged forth as a river of fire, consuming the structure.

Crackling and roaring, the flames enveloped the entire temple, incinerating not only the building but also most of the baleful energy Zhao Huaisheng had amassed.

“Given time, the mountain’s spiritual energy will gather anew. So long as no sinister cultivator disturbs the land, Blackwind Mountain could yet become a paradise for cultivation,” Su Ye sighed softly.

But he had no time to wait for the mountain’s transformation.