Aspiring to the Immortal Path
chapter-665

Once the Nether Gate disappeared, Tang Jie heaved a sigh of relief. His vision grew blurry, and he almost fell over.

While the battle had been short, it had been just as dangerous as any other before it, and the slightest misstep would have resulted in his demise.

He hadn't expected there to be such a terrifying and dangerous existence in the Nether Domain. Sure enough, the Great Stellar Chiliocosm was brimming with experts, and one could never afford to be careless. If his reaction had been just a little slower, that ghost hand would have reaped his soul.

That ghost was also quite unlucky. It was probably some Titan of the Nether Realm, and it had probably sensed Sun Shuming opening the Nether Gate and used its Withering Yin Vines to stabilize it, trying to use the Gate to invade the living world. As for why its original body didn't enter, he didn't know, but there had to be some restriction that only allowed it to send over a hand. Its luck was clearly poor, for Tang Jie had unexpectedly returned, so rather than getting a chance to stroll about the mortal world, it had ended up leaving Tang Jie a hand.

These were only theories, but Tang Jie had gotten the general picture right. Putting aside the rage and fury of that Nether Domain Titan, Tang Jie was currently standing next to that ghost hand, hesitant about what to do.

A hand that could resist a blow from the Ten Extinctions Blade had to be a treasure.

But there was nothing in the book about such a thing, and the ghost guard needed only the soul and not the bone, so he would need to study how to use it himself. Thus, after some thought, he put it away in the diagram.

Looking around at the area, he found it to be a scene of devastation, that ghost hand's palm slam having destroyed all the ghosts.

Ghosts had too much ghost energy to all be moved into the Mountain River State Diagram, as the excess Yin energy was detrimental to life. Thus, Tang Jie selected the best of the ghost remains to throw into the diagram.

There were also some corpses with more value than most: the fiend kings.

In a corner of this place, Tang Jie found a pile of fiend king corpses.

These former illustrious individuals had died to a pack of nameless ghosts. Their eyes were wide open in shock, unwilling to accept their fate.

Most of them had died after exhausting all their Yang energy, so their bodies were like shriveled-up mummies.

Corpses like these no longer had any value to speak of, and could only be thrown into the diagram world to serve as fertilizer. But since he was here anyway, Tang Jie decided to search the corpses, for he hadn't seen the Umbra Cactus Flower anywhere.

When inspecting the Greenscale Ghost Serpent, Tang Jie noticed that there seemed to be something in its body. Tang Jie shook the corpse, and a bottle rolled out. This bottle was made of a special kind of jade designed to hold rare spirit herbs. There was a small space inside that could resist spell arts and prevent damage to the contents.

Tang Jie picked it up and removed the lid. He saw jade water within, and a white flower bobbing on the surface.

Tang Jie chuckled and put the bottle away.

Alas, he found no sign of Sun Shuming's corpse. But after some searching, he did find some scraps of his clothing and his brush.

Tang Jie gathered them up. Meanwhile, the Mother Cloud puppet came over, holding Yiyi.

The slam from the ghost hand had ruined the just-repaired formations again, particularly those on the back. But thanks to them, it was able to protect Yiyi.

In previous dangerous battles, Tang Jie would first send Yiyi into the diagram, but this matter had come too abruptly, giving Yiyi a close brush with death.

This matter reminded Tang Jie that Yiyi, who was only at the initial phase of Transformation, was no longer keeping up with him. He had to make her get stronger fast.

But sprites weren't good at cultivation and had higher demands when it came to natural resources, so Tang Jie didn't understand how to make her stronger.

If only they were back in the Blood River Domain.

The inter-domain trade's profits definitely could have given Yiyi a big boost.

But now, he could only dream of them.

Of course, those resources wouldn't go to waste. He was sure that Xu Miaoran would make good use of them. Perhaps when he returned to the Rosecloud Domain, he would find that Xu Miaoran had already surpassed him.

Thinking of Xu Miaoran made Tang Jie feel gloomy once more.

Although he now had the Withering Yin Vine, this wasn't the only material he needed for the teleportation formation. There were many other rare materials, like the Dragonbone Spirit Sesame. For now, going back remained a dream.

"Right, what's your current state?" Tang Jie asked the puppet.

After killing all those ghosts and absorbing their souls, the ghost guard must have experienced a massive boost in power.

The puppet replied, "I feel great. I think I need some time to digest this power. Once I've completely absorbed them, I should have advanced a level."

"At the very least, it seems like you have an easier time talking," Tang Jie said with a smile. Looking at Yiyi, he added, "Thank you for saving Yiyi. This alone has proved your value."

The puppet's eyes flashed, but it said nothing.

Seeing that there was nothing else to do here, Tang Jie headed into the diagram. He found a scenic place in the world, dug a hole, placed Sun Shuming's clothes and brush within, and erected a gravestone. In this way, he showed his respect for a hero of the country.

Tang Jie was about to leave when a spirit flew past him.

Startled, Tang Jie blurted out, "Little Three?"

What had flown past him was that small ghost he had tamed back in the Martial Lord's hidden realm, Little Three (TN: Previously seen in Chapters 305 and 310).

Because of the various taboos the Rosecloud Domain had against ghosts, he had never been able to let this ghost out. Tang Jie had tried to see if he could raise it, but he found that nothing he did worked, and the Ghost Classic had no record of such a ghost.

Moreover, it had no combat power, so it couldn't be used in any battle, so there was no point in taking the risk to use it like the ghost guard. Over time, Tang Jie stopped having any expectations of it.

Later on, Tang Jie put the little ghost into the Mountain River State Diagram and let it be.

For many years now, the little ghost had been the same as ever, completely transparent and one foot high, like a child that never grew up.

The little ghost clearly didn't see Tang Jie, floating away at an incredible speed.

Tang Jie grew interested in its anxious demeanor and followed.

The little ghost would occasionally stop and look around as if searching for something, and then it would continue flying.

After a while, the little ghost stopped next to a stream and dove in.

Tang Jie followed, and then he froze.

Inside that stream was none other than the ghost hand he had thrown in earlier.

The little ghost came up to the ghost hand and oohed and aahed like it was some valuable treasure, and then it went over to the stump and sucked on it. Tendrils of black smoke emerged from the stump and were sucked into the little ghost's belly.

Its transparent belly grew larger and larger, and it was possible to see the black smoke coiled up within.

After sucking for a while, the little ghost seemed to have eaten its fill, and stopped. Rubbing its belly, it staggered like a drunkard, and then it collapsed next to the ghost hand and fell asleep.

This scene made Tang Jie fall into deep thought.

Tang Jie had done many experiments on the little ghost, but nothing had worked. Now, it seemed like what the little ghost really needed was the quintessence of ghosts. Ghosts were extremely rare in the Rosecloud Domain, and the ghost guard was artificial, different from real ghosts. It was no wonder Tang Jie had failed to raise it.

But this was the first time Tang Jie had heard of a ghost that ate only other ghosts, and he didn't know what it was good for.

The little ghost fell into a state of inactivity after sucking on the ghost energy, so Tang Jie decided to wait a few days and then come back. Thus, he found He Chong and gave him a few orders before leaving the diagram world.

Upon returning to that underground space, Tang Jie said to the ghost guard, "Numerous ghosts just died here, so this place is thick with Yin energy. Since you need to digest the energy in the Soul Refining Pearl, this place is perfect for you to cultivate. For now, we don't need to go anywhere, so we'll leave once you've advanced."

The puppet nodded and went off to cultivate. Tang Jie and Yiyi also began to cultivate in the Inkcloud Abyss.

When he had nothing to do, he would head into the diagram world to see how the little ghost was doing.

The little ghost was constantly feeding on the ghost hand, but nothing seemed to change about it except its ever-growing appetite. At first, a few tendrils were enough to fill its belly, but it was now able to keep sucking for quite a while before finally stopping.

As the little ghost drained away at the hand, the hand's condition worsened. At first, the ghost hand was so thick with ghost energy that ordinary people couldn't get close, and everything around the stream withered. But this ghost energy grew fainter by the day, and it was growing less and less intimidating.

Today, the little ghost was once more devouring the ghost hand's black energy.

It was clear that the ghost hand was almost out of black energy, which had become so faint that it was barely visible. Finally, nothing came out anymore.

There was a gust of wind, and the ghost hand dissolved into dust.

The little ghost looked at the powder and let a human-like sigh, after which it turned to leave.

"As expected, you've opened your mind. You've gone from the lowest and weakest ghost to the later phase of Mind Opening, growing six tiers! This top-class Titan's body parts were truly rich in nutrients," a voice said with a laugh.

Aghast, the little ghost raised its head and saw Tang Jie smiling at it.

The little ghost naturally recognized Tang Jie, but rather than showing affection, it backed away.

"Hm? A little skill has made you forget your master?" Tang Jie chuckled and reached for it.

The little ghost yowled and flew away, its body growing fainter. It was already practically transparent, and it was soon completely invisible.

"Stealth? Interesting," Tang Jie chuckled. He first used a detection spell, but he found nothing. He then used the Illuminating Eye, but even this failed to find anything. Finally, Tang Jie opened his vertical eye, and a golden ring appeared at his feet.

He finally saw that the little ghost was hiding behind a rock and warily looking at him.

"Good, good! I had to use my Celestial Eye and Realm of Insight in order to find you! This stealth ability is pretty good!" Tang Jie was delighted.

The little ghost had absorbed the bone marrow of a Nether Domain Titan. If it had only experienced a boost in strength, even reaching the Spirit Ring Tier, then Tang Jie wouldn't be that interested. After all, Tang Jie didn't really need a Spirit Ring helper at his current level of strength.

What Tang Jie needed wasn't a strong helper, but a special one, and this little ghost was very special indeed.

Even the Ghost Classic had no records of its existence, and as it could absorb a Titan's bone marrow, it must have had some special ability. And no matter what kind of special ability it had, Tang Jie was sure he could make good use of it.

Tang Jie reached out and picked the little ghost up.

The ghost struggled in Tang Jie's grip, but there was no way it could break free.

"Let me see what else you can do."

The little ghost seemed to understand what Tang Jie meant. As Tang Jie loosened his grip, the little ghost passed straight through his hand and fled.

"Passing through walls?" Tang Jie frowned. This skill had no value.

No, it wasn't as simple as passing through walls.

Walls were lifeless, so any ghost could pass through them.

He, on the other hand, was a living, breathing person, and he was rich in blood energy and Yang energy. A ghost that dared to pass through his body was seeking a second death. Even after absorbing the bone marrow of a Titan, a ghost still shouldn't have been able to do it!

Then what was this spell art?

A thought occurred to him, and Tang Jie muttered, "Could it be…"