xuān xīn zhōng chà yì ， rán ér biǎo miàn shàng què méi yǒu xiǎn lù chū sī háo yì yàng ， luò T hòu ， jiù jìng jìng de zhàn lì yú yī páng 。.***
轩心中诧异，然而表面上却没有显露出丝毫异样，落T后，就静静的站立于一旁。.***
Lin Xuan was surprised, but he showed no outward signs of it. After landing, he stood quietly to one side.
luó tiān rén pǒ yǒu xiē yì wài de kàn le tā yī yǎn ， liǎn shàng què lù chū le gèng wéi gōng jìng de shén sè ， zhè wèi qián bèi hǎo shēn de chéng fǔ ， ràng tā xīn zhōng de yī xiē xiǎo niàn tou yě zì dòng xī miè le 。
罗天仁颇有些意外的看了他一眼，脸上却露出了更为恭敬的神色，这位前辈好深的城府，让他心中的一些小念头也自动熄灭了。
Ro Tianren looked at him with some surprise, but his expression turned even more respectful. This senior had a deep understanding and made Lin Xuan's small thoughts automatically dissipate.
xiān zhuǎn guò tóu ， chōng lín xuān gào zuì yī shēng ， rán hòu zài huái zhōng ， qǔ guò yī zhāng chuán yīn fú ， ná dào zuǐ biān dī yǔ jǐ jù hòu ， xiù páo yī fú ， huà wèi huǒ guāng mò rù le dì biǎo zhī zhōng 。
先转过头，冲林轩告罪一声，然后在怀中，取过一张传音符，拿到嘴边低语几句后，袖袍一拂，化为火光没入了地表之中。
First, he turned around and apologized to Lin Xuan. Then, from his pocket, he took out a sound transmission talisman and whispered something into it before waving his sleeves, turning into fiery light that sank into the ground.
duǎn duǎn shù miǎo zhī hòu ， cóng mǒu kǒu gǔ jǐng lǐ miàn ， fēi chū le shù gè rén lái ， yǒu nán yǒu nǚ ， dà yuē dōu zài èr sān shí suì nián jì ， kàn jiàn lǎo zhě yī xíng rén ， liǎn shàng wú bù xiǎn chū xīn xǐ yǐ jí de shén sè ， yī shēng huān hū ， fēn fēn yíng shàng lái le 。
短短数秒之后，从某口古井里面，飞出了数个人来，有男有女，大约都在二三十岁年纪，看见老者一行人，脸上无不显出欣喜以极的神色，一声欢呼，纷纷迎上来了。
A few seconds later, several people emerged from an ancient well on the left side of the stone wall. There were both men and women, roughly in their twenties or thirties. They all showed great joy upon seeing Ro Tianren's group and rushed to greet them.
luó tiān rén yě lù chū le xiào róng ， bù guò què hē chì le jǐ jù ， ràng mén rén dì zǐ men bú yào tài guò dé yì ， xiān huí dào dì dǐ xià miàn qù 。
罗天仁也露出了笑容，不过却呵斥了几句，让门人弟子们不要太过得意，先回到地底下面去。
Ro Tianren also smiled but sternly reminded his disciples not to be too elated and returned underground first.
“ qián bèi ， qǐng ， wō jū jiǎn lòu ， hái wàng bú yào jiè yì 。”
“前辈，请，蜗居简陋，还望不要介意。”
"Senior, please. My humble abode is simple, so don't mind it."
nà jǐ gè xīn lái de dì zǐ kàn jiàn mén zhǔ rú cǐ gōng jìng de duì dài yí gè shào nián ， bù yóu de shí fēn yà rán ， fēn fēn yòng shén shí yī sǎo lín xuān ， què liǎn sè dà biàn 。
那几个新来的弟子看见门主如此恭敬的对待一个少年，不由得十分讶然，纷纷用神识一扫林轩，却脸色大变。
The new disciples were surprised to see such respect from the sect leader towards a young man. They used their spiritual senses to scan Lin Xuan, only to change their expressions drastically.
tā men jìng kàn bù chū duì fāng de shēn qiǎn 。
他们竟看不出对方的深浅。
They couldn’t discern his depth.
nán dào zhè wèi shì níng dān qī de gāo shǒu me ？
难道这位是凝丹期的高手么？
Could this be someone at the Condensation Core stage?
chū yú duì gāo rén de jìng wèi ， yí gè gè biàn dé lǎo shí qǐ lái ， lián huà dōu bù gǎn duō yán 。
出于对高人的敬畏，一个个变得老实起来，连话都不敢多言。
Out of reverence for high-ranking individuals, they became more obedient and even less talkative.
zhè suǒ yǒu de yī qiè ， lín xuān quán dōu jìn shōu yǎn dǐ ， què yī jiù méi yǒu shén me biǎo shì ， shén sè dàn rán de diǎn diǎn tóu ， shēn shàng qīng guāng yì qǐ ， gēn zhe nà xiē zhāo yáng mén xiū shì ， fēi rù le gǔ jǐng lǐ 。
这所有的一切，林轩全都尽收眼底，却依旧没有什么表示，神色淡然的点点头，身上青光一起，跟着那些朝阳门修士，飞入了古井里。
All of this was observed by Lin Xuan, who showed no reaction. He nodded calmly as green light enveloped him before following the other sect members into the ancient well.
gǔ jǐng dà yuē yǒu qī bā zhàng shēn 。 ér zài zuǒ cè dì shí bì shàng 。 yǒu yí gè kě gōng yī rén jìn chū dì dòng kǒu 。 lǐ miàn zé shì xiàng xià qīng xié dì shí tī 。 xiǎn de shāo wēi yīn sēn le yī xiē 。
古井大约有七八丈深。而在左侧地石壁上。有一个可供一人进出地洞口。里面则是向下倾斜地石梯。显得稍微阴森了一些。
The well was about seven or eight zhang deep. On the left side of the stone wall, there was a small cave that could accommodate one person. Inside were descending stone steps that seemed slightly ominous.
lín xuān méi tóu yī tiāo 。 suí jí què háo bù yóu yù dì zuān le jìn qù 。 suǒ wèi yì gāo rén dǎn dà 。 suī rán shì lái dào le duì fāng dì dì pán 。 kě zhāo yáng mén zhè diǎn shí lì 。 lín xuān hái bú huì fàng zài yǎn lǐ 。
林轩眉头一挑。随即却毫不犹豫地钻了进去。所谓艺高人胆大。虽然是来到了对方地地盘。可朝阳门这点实力。林轩还不会放在眼里。
Lin Xuan raised his eyebrows but without hesitation, entered the cave. With great skill comes great courage; although he had arrived in their territory, Lin Xuan didn't take them seriously.
hé kuàng zì jǐ duì tā men yǒu ēn 。 luó tiān rén yī kàn yě shì cōng míng rén 。 yīng gāi bú huì tū fā qí xiǎng 。 duì zì jǐ bù lì 。
何况自己对他们有恩。罗天仁一看也是聪明人。应该不会突发奇想。对自己不利。
Moreover, he owed them a favor. Ro Tianren was smart and wouldn’t suddenly do something harmful to him.
jǐ gè nián qīng dì zǐ zài qián miàn yǐn lù 。 měi gè rén dì shǒu lǐ 。 dōu ná zhe yī kē quán tou dà xiǎo dì yè míng zhū 。 fā chū yōu àn dì guāng máng 。 jiāng fāng yuán shù zhàng zhī dì zhào liàng 。
几个年轻弟子在前面引路。每个人地手里。都拿着一颗拳头大小地夜明珠。发出幽暗地光芒。将方圆数丈之地照亮。
Several young disciples led the way, each holding a fist-sized night pearl that emitted dim light, illuminating the area around them.
zhè shí jiē hěn zhǎng 。 zú zú wǎng qián zǒu le yuē bǎi yú zhàng dì jù lí 。 cái zhōng yú kàn dào le liàng guāng 。 lín xuān wēi wēi yǒu xiē chà yì 。 ér nà luó tiān rén zé líng lì yǐ jí 。 bù děng lín xuān xiāng xún 。 yǐ qiǎng xiān jiě shì ：“ qián bèi bù yòng jīng yí 。 jiàng mén pài jiàn dào rú cǐ shēn chù 。 shì wèi le fáng zhǐ nà xiē guǐ hún yòng shén shí sōu suǒ 。”
这石阶很长。足足往前走了约百余丈地距离。才终于看到了亮光。林轩微微有些诧异。而那罗天仁则伶俐以极。不等林轩相询。已抢先解释：“前辈不用惊疑。将门派建到如此深处。是为了防止那些鬼魂用神识搜索。”
The stone steps were long, and after walking about a hundred zhang, they finally saw a bright light. Lin Xuan was slightly surprised, but Ro Tianren was quick to explain: "Senior, don't worry. Building the sect here is to prevent ghost souls from using their spiritual senses to search."
lín xuān diǎn diǎn tóu 。 méi yǒu shuō shén me 。
林轩点点头。没有说什么。
Lin Xuan nodded without saying anything.
zǒu xià shí jiē yǐ hòu ， yǎn qián huò rán kāi lǎng ， zhè shì yí gè jù dà de dì xià dòng xué ， ér qiě míng xiǎn bú shì tiān rán jiù yǒu ， ér shì xiū shì shī zhǎn dà shén tōng ， wā jué chū lái 。
走下石阶以后，眼前豁然开朗，这是一个巨大的地下洞穴，而且明显不是天然就有，而是修士施展大神通，挖掘出来。
After descending the stone steps, the area opened up into a large underground cave. It wasn’t naturally formed; it had been dug by cultivators using great divine techniques. There were many marks of chiseling and hacking on the ceiling and walls, making it look crude. However, around the huge cave, there were many stone houses built with earth-based仙术 (divine techniques), providing temporary accommodation for cultivators.
tóu dǐng yǔ sì zhōu de bì shàng ， dōu yǒu bù shǎo dāo kǎn fǔ xuē de hén jì ， xiǎn de cū lòu yǐ jí ， bù guò zài zhè jù dà dì dòng de sì zhōu ， dǎo shì yòng tǔ xì xiān shù jiàn zào le bù shǎo shí wū ， kě gōng xiū shì men zàn shí shǐ yòng 。
头顶与四周的壁上，都有不少刀砍斧削的痕迹，显得粗陋以极，不过在这巨大地洞的四周，倒是用土系仙术建造了不少石屋，可供修士们暂时使用。
Ro Tianren led Lin Xuan to the largest stone house, where he respectfully invited him to sit down. Lin Xuan didn’t refuse and sat in the middle chair.
luó tiān rén jiāng lín xuān dài dào zuì dà de yī jiān shí wū lǐ miàn ， gōng jìng de qíng tā shàng zuò ， lín xuān dào yě bìng bù tuī tuō ， zài zhèng zhōng de yī zhāng yǐ zi shàng zuò le xià lái 。
罗天仁将林轩带到最大的一间石屋里面，恭敬的情他上座，林轩倒也并不推托，在正中的一张椅子上做了下来。
Two young maids dressed in green served tea. Lin Xuan glanced at them; both were fair-faced but lacked any spiritual energy, just ordinary humans.
liǎng gè qīng yī nǚ bì fèng shàng xiāng míng ， lín xuān piǎo le yī yǎn ， liǎng nǚ jiē róng yán xiù lì ， rán ér què méi yǒu sī háo líng qì ， bù guò shì fán rén ér yǐ 。
两个青衣女婢奉上香茗，林轩瞟了一眼，两女皆容颜秀丽，然而却没有丝毫灵气，不过是凡人而已。
Since they had already wasted so much time, Lin Xuan decided not to rush. After sipping some tea, he spoke calmly: "Ro Sect Leader, we are now back on your turf. How is the situation in Youzhou? Could you elaborate?"
fǎn zhèng yě dān gē le zhè me jiǔ ， lín xuān gān cuì bù zài zháo jí ， pǐn le yī huì er chá hòu ， cái shén sè dàn rán de kāi kǒu ：“ luó mén zhǔ ， rú jīn yǐ huí dào le nǐ de dì tóu ， yōu zhōu rú jīn de xíng shì jiū jìng rú hé ， nǐ kě fǒu xiáng xì shuō shuō ？”
反正也耽搁了这么久，林轩干脆不再着急，品了一会儿茶后，才神色淡然的开口：“罗门主，如今已回到了你的地头，幽州如今的形势究竟如何，你可否详细说说？”
"Senior, please don't be courteous. You saved my sect, and I will speak freely. However, things aren't as bad as they seem."
“ qián bèi kè qì le ， nǐ duì bǐ mén yǒu jiù mìng zhī ēn ， wǎn bèi zì rán shì zhī wú bù yán ， zhǐ shì rú jīn zhè yōu zhōu ， āi ……” shuō dào zhè lǐ ， tā shēn shēn de tàn le kǒu qì ， biǎo qíng chén zhòng wú bǐ 。
“前辈客气了，你对鄙门有救命之恩，晚辈自然是知无不言，只是如今这幽州，唉……”说到这里，他深深的叹了口气，表情沉重无比。
Lin Xuan's heart sank. He had already guessed this much during his journey.
kàn dào tā zhè fān mú yàng ， lín xuān de xīn yě zhí wǎng xià chén ， qí shí huí lái de lù shàng ， yě duō shǎo liào dào le jǐ fēn 。
看到他这番模样，林轩的心也直往下沉，其实回来的路上，也多少料到了几分。
"Has Youzhou fallen into the hands of ghost souls?" Lin Xuan couldn’t believe it. According to common sense, ghost souls shouldn’t have that kind of power unless both sides were foolish and let these monsters take advantage.
“ nán dào yōu zhōu yǐ jīng luò rù le yīn hún zhī shǒu ？” lín xuān yǒu diǎn bù néng zhì xìn de kāi kǒu ， àn zhào cháng lǐ ， yīn hún yīng gāi méi yǒu zhè ge shí lì ， chú fēi shì zhèng mó shuāng fāng ， bù shí dà tǐ ， bàng xiāng zhēng ， ràng zhè xiē yì lèi guài wù cóng zhōng dé lì 。
“难道幽州已经落入了阴魂之手？”林轩有点不能置信的开口，按照常理，阴魂应该没有这个实力，除非是正魔双方，不识大体，蚌相争，让这些异类怪物从中得利。
"Youzhou has fallen?" Ro Tianren was taken aback, shaking his head: "Senior, you misunderstand. The situation isn't as dire."
“ yōu zhōu xiàn luò ？” luó tiān rén tīng le ， bù yóu de biǎo qíng yī dāi ， yáo le yáo tóu ：“ qián bèi wù huì le ， shì qíng hái méi yǒu zhè me yán zhòng 。”
“幽州陷落？”罗天仁听了，不由得表情一呆，摇了摇头：“前辈误会了，事情还没有这么严重。”
Lin Xuan's heart dropped further. He almost thought he would be forced to flee again. He couldn’t help but say irritably: "Then why the serious expression? Tell me how things stand now; don't dilly-dally."
lín xuān xīn zhōng là xià le yī kuài shí tóu ， chà diǎn yǐ wéi ， zì jǐ yòu yào bèi pò pǎo lù ， bù yóu de yǒu diǎn fǎn gǎn de kāi kǒu ：“ nà nǐ zuò chū zhè fù biǎo qíng gàn shén me ， rú jīn xíng shì rú hé ， bié tuō tuō lā lā de ， kuài shuō 。”
林轩心中落下了一块石头，差点以为，自己又要被迫跑路，不由得有点反感的开口：“那你做出这副表情干什么，如今形势如何，别拖拖拉拉的，快说。”
Seeing this senior high-ranking figure getting angry, Ro Tianren was startled and stopped his pretense. He cleared his throat and spoke with a讨好的 tone.
jiàn lín xuān zhè wèi qián bèi gāo rén fā nù ， luó tiān rén xià le yī tiào ， bù gǎn zài jiǎo qíng ， shāo shāo zhěng lǐ le yī xià sī lù ， jiù yǔ dài tǎo hǎo de kāi kǒu le 。
见林轩这位前辈高人发怒，罗天仁吓了一跳，不敢再矫情，稍稍整理了一下思路，就语带讨好的开口了。
"Senior, what kind of situation do you want to know about? Should I start from the invasion by ghost souls?"
“ qián bèi ， bù zhī nǐ xiǎng liǎo jiě shén me lèi xíng de qíng kuàng ， hái shì xiàng ràng wǎn bèi cóng yīn hún rù qīn kāi shǐ ， yī lù shuō qǐ ？”
“前辈，不知你想了解什么类型的情况，还是像让晚辈从阴魂入侵开始，一路说起？”
"Hmm, let's start from the beginning!" Lin Xuan was satisfied this time, his expression easing as he encouraged him.
“ ń ， cóng tóu xiáng shuō ba ！” lín xuān zhè huí jiào wéi mǎn yì ， shén sè yī huǎn de gǔ lì 。
“嗯，从头详说吧！”林轩这回较为满意，神色一缓的鼓励。
"Yes." Ro Tianren took a sip of tea and cleared his throat: "The invasion by ghost souls happened not long ago, just a year ago. At that time, I didn't know much; most of it was hearsay, but there shouldn’t be any mistakes."
“ shì 。” luó tiān rén hē le kǒu chá ， qīng le qīng sǎng zi ：“ yīn hún rù qīn ， shuō qǐ lái fā shēng de shí jiān jù lí xiàn zài yě bìng bù yuǎn ， yě jiù zài yī nián yǐ qián ， dāng shí de qíng kuàng wǎn bèi yě bù qīng chǔ ， dà duō shì yī xiē dào tīng tú shuō ， dàn yīng gāi méi yǒu shén me cuò wù 。”
“是。”罗天仁喝了口茶，清了清嗓子：“阴魂入侵，说起来发生的时间距离现在也并不远，也就在一年以前，当时的情况晚辈也不清楚，大多是一些道听途说，但应该没有什么错误。”
Lin Xuan raised an eyebrow. This person was indeed verbose, but he had the time, so he patiently listened.
lín xuān méi tóu yī tiāo ， zhè rén hái zhēn yǒu xiē luō suo ， hǎo zài zhè diǎn shí jiān zì jǐ hái shì yǒu de ， yě jiù nài zhe xìng zi tīng tā wǎng xià shuō 。
林轩眉头一挑，这人还真有些啰嗦，好在这点时间自己还是有的，也就耐着性子听他往下说。
"You know, when those ghost souls entered this world through spatial rifts a long time ago, they caused significant chaos. Later, our fellow cultivators put aside their differences and joined forces to defeat them. However, the ghost souls were still formidable and retreated to Ghost Valley. To deter them, we built Ghost Web City for surveillance..."
“ nín yě zhī dào ， dāng nián nà xiē yīn hún tōng guò kōng jiān fèng xì ， lái dào zhè yī jiè zhī shí ， céng jīng zào chéng le bù xiǎo de hào jié ， hòu lái wǒ xiū xiān jiè de gè wèi tóng dào ， juān qì qián xián ， lián shǒu cái jiāng duì fāng dǎ bài ， dàn nà xiē yīn hún de shí lì yě bù kě qīng rǔ ， hái shì tuì huí le yīn hún xiá gǔ ， wèi le zhèn shè duì fāng ， wǒ men xiū jiàn le guǐ luó chéng ， duì tā men jìn xíng jiān shì ……”
“您也知道，当年那些阴魂通过空间缝隙，来到这一界之时，曾经造成了不小的浩劫，后来我修仙界的各位同道，捐弃前嫌，联手才将对方打败，但那些阴魂的实力也不可轻辱，还是退回了阴魂峡谷，为了震慑对方，我们修建了鬼罗城，对牠们进行监视……”
"Despite a thousand years of peace, last year, those ghost souls suddenly attacked Ghost Web City relentlessly, sending out fierce ghosts and evil spirits to hunt down lone human cultivators. The worst part is that the largest commercial organization in Youzhou, Seven Extremes Heaven, was secretly controlled by ghost souls. Fortunately, some high-ranking officials kept this information secret until we had a chance to prepare, but it was too late..."
“ zhè wàn nián de shí jiān dōu píng ān guò qù le ， kě jiù zài yī nián qián ， nà xiē yīn hún tū rán qīng cháo ér chū ， wéi zhe guǐ luó chéng kuáng gōng bù yǐ ， bìng pài chū xiōng hún lì pò ， sì chù liè shā luò dān de rén lèi xiū shì ， yóu qí kě wù de shì ， wǒ yōu zhōu zuì dà de shāng méng zǔ zhī ， qī jué tiān jū rán bèi yīn hún àn zhōng kòng zhì ， xìng hǎo gāo céng lǐ miàn ， yě yǒu yī xiē tóng dào liáng xīn wèi mǐn ， jiāng zhè ge xiāo xī shì sǐ xiè lòu le chū lái ， cái ràng wǒ men rén lèi duō le yī xiē zhǔn bèi huǎn chōng de shí jiān ， rán ér wéi shí yǐ wǎn ……”
“这万年的时间都平安过去了，可就在一年前，那些阴魂突然倾巢而出，围着鬼罗城狂攻不已，并派出凶魂厉魄，四处猎杀落单的人类修士，尤其可恶的是，我幽州最大的商盟组织，七绝天居然被阴魂暗中控制，幸好高层里面，也有一些同道良心未泯，将这个消息誓死泄漏了出来，才让我们人类多了一些准备缓冲的时间，然而为时已晚……”
"Although Ghost Web City had nearly ten thousand cultivators and countless prohibitions laid down over generations, compared to the entire Ghost Valley's strength, they were still vastly inferior. After two months of defense, the city fell, and the battle was extremely brutal. Most of the cultivators died on the battlefield, including Red-haired Elder, who couldn’t escape despite the combined attack from three ghost emperors. His physical body was reduced to ashes, but his essence managed to flee."
“ guǐ luó chéng suī yǒu jìn wàn xiū shì ， hái yǒu lì dài suǒ bù xià lái de wú shù jìn zhì ， dàn yǔ zhěng gè yīn hún xiá gǔ de shí lì xiāng bǐ ， hái shì yuǎn yuǎn bù jí ， kǔ shǒu le liǎng yuè yǒu yú ， zuì hòu hái shì là le gè chéng pò rén wáng de xià chǎng ， jù shuō nà yī zhàn cǎn liè yǐ jí ， xiān xuè rǎn hóng le zhěng gè dà dì ， bǎi fēn zhī jiǔ shí yǐ shàng de xiū shì dāng chǎng zhàn sǐ ， shèn zhì lián hóng fā lǎo zǔ ， zài sān dà guǐ dì lián shǒu wéi gōng xià ， dōu bù néng xìng miǎn ， ròu shēn bèi dǎ dé huī fēi yān miè ， jǐn yǒu yuán yīng miǎn qiǎng chū qiào táo le chū lái 。”
“鬼罗城虽有近万修士，还有历代所布下来的无数禁制，但与整个阴魂峡谷的实力相比，还是远远不及，苦守了两月有余，最后还是落了个城破人亡的下场，据说那一战惨烈以极，鲜血染红了整个大地，百分之九十以上的修士当场战死，甚至连红发老祖，在三大鬼帝联手围攻下，都不能幸免，肉身被打得灰飞烟灭，仅有元婴勉强出鞘逃了出来。”
Lin Xuan was deeply moved by this account. He had been in the Ten Thousand Mountains when the ghost souls attacked, and although he suspected Ghost Web City would fall, he didn't expect such a devastating outcome.
Lin Xuan was surprised, but he showed no outward signs of it. After landing, he stood quietly to one side.
Ro Tianren looked at him with some surprise, but his expression turned even more respectful. This senior had a deep understanding and made Lin Xuan's small thoughts automatically dissipate.
First, he turned around and apologized to Lin Xuan. Then, from his pocket, he took out a sound transmission talisman and whispered something into it before waving his sleeves, turning into fiery light that sank into the ground.
A few seconds later, several people emerged from an ancient well on the left side of the stone wall. There were both men and women, roughly in their twenties or thirties. They all showed great joy upon seeing Ro Tianren's group and rushed to greet them.
Ro Tianren also smiled but sternly reminded his disciples not to be too elated and returned underground first.
"Senior, please. My humble abode is simple, so don't mind it."
The new disciples were surprised to see such respect from the sect leader towards a young man. They used their spiritual senses to scan Lin Xuan, only to change their expressions drastically.
They couldn’t discern his depth.
Could this be someone at the Condensation Core stage?
Out of reverence for high-ranking individuals, they became more obedient and even less talkative.
All of this was observed by Lin Xuan, who showed no reaction. He nodded calmly as green light enveloped him before following the other sect members into the ancient well.
The well was about seven or eight zhang deep. On the left side of the stone wall, there was a small cave that could accommodate one person. Inside were descending stone steps that seemed slightly ominous.
Lin Xuan raised his eyebrows but without hesitation, entered the cave. With great skill comes great courage; although he had arrived in their territory, Lin Xuan didn't take them seriously.
Moreover, he owed them a favor. Ro Tianren was smart and wouldn’t suddenly do something harmful to him.
Several young disciples led the way, each holding a fist-sized night pearl that emitted dim light, illuminating the area around them.
The stone steps were long, and after walking about a hundred zhang, they finally saw a bright light. Lin Xuan was slightly surprised, but Ro Tianren was quick to explain: "Senior, don't worry. Building the sect here is to prevent ghost souls from using their spiritual senses to search."
Lin Xuan nodded without saying anything.
After descending the stone steps, the area opened up into a large underground cave. It wasn’t naturally formed; it had been dug by cultivators using great divine techniques. There were many marks of chiseling and hacking on the ceiling and walls, making it look crude. However, around the huge cave, there were many stone houses built with earth-based仙术 (divine techniques), providing temporary accommodation for cultivators.
Ro Tianren led Lin Xuan to the largest stone house, where he respectfully invited him to sit down. Lin Xuan didn’t refuse and sat in the middle chair.
Two young maids dressed in green served tea. Lin Xuan glanced at them; both were fair-faced but lacked any spiritual energy, just ordinary humans.
Since they had already wasted so much time, Lin Xuan decided not to rush. After sipping some tea, he spoke calmly: "Ro Sect Leader, we are now back on your turf. How is the situation in Youzhou? Could you elaborate?"
"Senior, please don't be courteous. You saved my sect, and I will speak freely. However, things aren't as bad as they seem."
Lin Xuan's heart sank. He had already guessed this much during his journey.
"Has Youzhou fallen into the hands of ghost souls?" Lin Xuan couldn’t believe it. According to common sense, ghost souls shouldn’t have that kind of power unless both sides were foolish and let these monsters take advantage.
"Youzhou has fallen?" Ro Tianren was taken aback, shaking his head: "Senior, you misunderstand. The situation isn't as dire."
Lin Xuan's heart dropped further. He almost thought he would be forced to flee again. He couldn’t help but say irritably: "Then why the serious expression? Tell me how things stand now; don't dilly-dally."
Seeing this senior high-ranking figure getting angry, Ro Tianren was startled and stopped his pretense. He cleared his throat and spoke with a讨好的 tone.
"Senior, what kind of situation do you want to know about? Should I start from the invasion by ghost souls?"
"Hmm, let's start from the beginning!" Lin Xuan was satisfied this time, his expression easing as he encouraged him.
"Yes." Ro Tianren took a sip of tea and cleared his throat: "The invasion by ghost souls happened not long ago, just a year ago. At that time, I didn't know much; most of it was hearsay, but there shouldn’t be any mistakes."
Lin Xuan raised an eyebrow. This person was indeed verbose, but he had the time, so he patiently listened.
"You know, when those ghost souls entered this world through spatial rifts a long time ago, they caused significant chaos. Later, our fellow cultivators put aside their differences and joined forces to defeat them. However, the ghost souls were still formidable and retreated to Ghost Valley. To deter them, we built Ghost Web City for surveillance..."
"Despite a thousand years of peace, last year, those ghost souls suddenly attacked Ghost Web City relentlessly, sending out fierce ghosts and evil spirits to hunt down lone human cultivators. The worst part is that the largest commercial organization in Youzhou, Seven Extremes Heaven, was secretly controlled by ghost souls. Fortunately, some high-ranking officials kept this information secret until we had a chance to prepare, but it was too late..."
"Although Ghost Web City had nearly ten thousand cultivators and countless prohibitions laid down over generations, compared to the entire Ghost Valley's strength, they were still vastly inferior. After two months of defense, the city fell, and the battle was extremely brutal. Most of the cultivators died on the battlefield, including Red-haired Elder, who couldn’t escape despite the combined attack from three ghost emperors. His physical body was reduced to ashes, but his essence managed to flee."
Lin Xuan was deeply moved by this account. He had been in the Ten Thousand Mountains when the ghost souls attacked, and although he suspected Ghost Web City would fall, he didn't expect such a devastating outcome.