Demon Sword Sect’s Undercover
Chapter 179 - 179 178 Follow-up Matters Additional update for 3500 votes

179: Chapter 178: Follow-up Matters [Additional update for 3500 votes] 179: Chapter 178: Follow-up Matters [Additional update for 3500 votes] On the wall, many familiar faces.

Wang Mian, tattered and battered, felt a strange exhilaration after the fierce battle,

“Senior Brother, did Uncle Yu bring you here?”

Hou Niao waved his hand nonchalantly, “Yeah, an old acquaintance.

He said he wanted to invite me for a meal, but who’s got time for that?

Checking on the brothers is more important.”

Xiang Zhiwen glared at this braggart, knowing Uncle Yu never invited anyone to dine, regardless of their relationship.

“Junior Brother Hou, how is the situation at West Mang Mountain?

Were there any losses?”

Hou Niao’s expression darkened, “Seven gone, including Senior Brothers Jing Shan and Cheng He.”

Xiang Zhiwen was startled.

The losses at their fortress here were limited, no deaths, and the few injuries were manageable.

But he hadn’t expected West Mang Mountain to have suffered so much more…

Hou Niao sighed, “That’s how it is.

Besides the endless numbers, there were many Wandering Souls and ghastly ghosts, and even soul-devouring specters.

The uncles were not around…”

He appeared indifferent on the surface but felt guilty inside.

After all, as Uncle Yu had said, it had something to do with him, and he did not deny this.

But life and death in the Cultivation World aren’t reasoned like this.

I’ve slain Soul Ghosts, and then you blame me for your misfortunes at their hands?

Such reckoning would be utterly confused; could I then trace blame back through history, all the way to the ancient ancestors?

A matter is a matter, the crux still lies in one’s shortcomings.

Deciding to undertake Cultivation trials in West Mang Mountain was a bit rash, coupled with arrogance, lack of caution, insufficient defenses, and the mindset that ‘I am invincible, and no one dares to provoke me.

Even if I slay you, you should just take it.’ With such an attitude, it’s only a matter of time before one faces repercussions, if not today then surely tomorrow.

The true person responsible is only one, Uncle Zheng.

He failed in his duty as a host.

“What about Yinyue Castle here?

Did the other fortresses suffer any losses?”

Xiang Zhiwen replied, “The other fortresses had no major issues, just symbolic attacks.

Only Yinyue Castle here saw fierce action.

But we had the most people gathered here: me, Tu Xiu, Wang Mian, and Yazi, and later Uncle Yu sent over seven Senior Brothers from Miao Gao Town.

More brothers and sisters joined afterwards, and our defense was quite successful, thanks to your warning.”

Hou Niao looked towards the wall, seeing nothing but ruin, charred wood everywhere blown about by the mountain winds.

The mortals’ faces were dark but their spirits seemed good.

Having gone through such a battle, the residents of Yinyue Castle were no longer so afraid of the so-called Soul Ghosts, knowing they had some capacity to resist.

It’s often the case that the unknown brings the greatest fear, but once you truly face and fight it, you find it’s not much to worry about after all.

Xiang Zhiwen gathered everyone together, “Uncle Yu has ordered that a truce has been reached with West Mang Mountain, and the brothers from Miao Gao Town have already withdrawn.

However, our mission is not yet complete; there are surely still lost and isolated Soul Ghosts in the vicinity that haven’t all moved on, so the fortress will need to be vigilant at night.

Furthermore, we patrols are starting a month-long soul cleansing mission, aiming to clear out the areas beyond West Mang Mountain.

Now, I’ll assign the respective areas for everyone.”

This was a necessary task, one the patrols couldn’t shirk, aiming to minimize the aftermath of the incident as much as possible.

Ten patrols, plus several cultivators from the Town Government lineage, began the search immediately; to find these frantic stragglers, two things were key: timing and the night.

The sooner the better, since these isolated Soul Ghosts were unfamiliar with the new environment.

Their disorientation made them easier to locate.

Nighttime operations make it easier to search for these Soul Ghosts, as they tend to hide in shaded areas during the day when arriving in unfamiliar places, only coming out to move around at night.

While such tasks appeared simple, they were actually quite tedious and required extreme attention to detail; for Upper Cultivators with Divine Sense, it was a matter of a sweep of their senses, a mere thought away, but for the rest of them, they almost wished they could bulge their eyes to their utmost limit.

There were also Techniques specific for sensing the presence of Soul Ghosts, but none of these fiercely murderous Sword Cultivators on patrol, including Hou Niao, had cultivated them; their reasoning was simple, why expend a vast amount of time and energy on something that a wave of Divine Thought would resolve after reaching Tongxuan?

Whether they could reach Tongxuan, however, was another matter altogether.

Or Magic Artifacts, that was a more complicated issue; after all, Da Feng Plain was just a remote area within Shan Country, and whether it was talent or resources, it couldn’t compare to the truly vast regions, even a so-called Cultivation Family like Wang Mian’s fell short in these aspects, and was incomparable to the genuine prestigious houses.

Hou Niao felt exhausted after just one night’s work, not from his eyes, but from his heart; such tasks were not suitable for Sword Cultivators, who were in fact most suited to the female cultivators of the Anhe Daoist Sect, but sadly, they had gone back to Jin City for restful repose.

However, he was someone who valued techniques and methods, and if he wanted to as thoroughly as possible rid the area of Soul Ghosts while maintaining his own leisure and comfort, then…

“Can you help reach out to find some from the Demon Clan who are willing to aid us in our search for Soul Ghosts?”

Hou Niao approached a member of the weasel Demon Clan and made his request.

This little yellow weasel grinned at the request, “That shouldn’t be hard, in fact, we from the Demon Clan also don’t like Soul Ghosts invading our territory, just as we would become like walking corpses if we went to the West Mang Mountains!

Just spread the word, and you’re guaranteed to rally a myriad of demons!”

Once the little yellow weasel went to spread the word, Hou Niao hurriedly got in touch with Xiang Zhiwen to ensure he reined in the patrollers, to avoid any unfortunate misunderstandings;

One day later, there was activity outside the West Mang Mountain; huge numbers of Demon Beasts with their tribes converged, including herds of cattle, horses, deer, wolves, and more.

They utilized their innate advantages, possessing far greater senses of smell than humans.

Regardless of day or night, thousands upon thousands of them thundered across the landscape in unrest—nothing could hide from them!

The patrollers didn’t even need to lift a finger; wherever the beast herds passed, they trampled any Soul Ghosts into dust.

The trend continued to expand, gradually sweeping through all of Yinling excluding the West Mang Mountain, with far superior results compared to what their meager group of a dozen humans could achieve.

Scattered Soul Ghosts were forced out, tallying up to several hundreds within just a few days.

“This method isn’t bad, you’ve finally done something worthwhile,” Xiang Zhiwen expressed his satisfaction, as he himself was quite averse to such tasks, but duty demanded his involvement.

Yet Hou Niao was not content, “Are you suggesting I’ve never done anything worthwhile before, Senior Brother?

Such a comment truly chills my heart.”

Xiang Zhiwen gave a faint smile, feeling inwardly torn, knowing that those capable of getting things done could also stir up trouble, making it difficult for him to weigh his options.

His time to leave Yinling was drawing near, and he wondered who from Jin City would be dispatched here—or would the choice come from among their own ranks?

If someone from the outside were appointed, would his old subordinates accept them?

If someone from within was chosen, he had been certain the decision would be between Feng Yaochen and Li Jingxi, but now another figure often came to mind.

Aside from lacking in seniority, everything else about him was perfect; he knew clearly that if this person were in charge of Yinling, minor troubles would be incessant, but major issues would never arise—for the man himself was the biggest issue!

Truly a cause for concern.