The Demon Lord of All Forms

Chapter 22 Dark Wood

"It's submerged wood."

Zhang Yuanying ignored Yang Zhen, looked at Yun Weiyang, and asked in a cold voice.

Yang Zhen then remembered and looked at Yun Weiyang with a somewhat embarrassed expression.

"Fellow Daoist Yun, we've heard that this female ghost possesses a piece of dark wood, a key ingredient in refining the Yuanming Pill. Our main purpose in entering the Ghost Fang Forest this time is to find it."

Scratching his head, Yang Zhen added, "Of course, since the female ghost was killed by you, the Yin Shen wood naturally belongs to you. However, the Yuanming Pill is related to the further advancement of our cultivation, so I implore you to share some of the Yin Shen wood with us. I also have some pills and spiritual materials that I can exchange with you."

As he spoke, Yang Zhen took out two bottles of pills, a cinnabar talisman, and a white sword from his storage bag, and presented them to Yun Weiyang with both hands.

Yun Weiyang looked at the things in front of her and waved her hand.

"The ebony is of no use to me. If I had any, I could give it to you, but I didn't find any ebony after I killed this female ghost."

Yang Zhen scratched his head: "Didn't this female ghost carry the ebony with her?"

Zhang Yuanying looked at Yun Weiyang with a furrowed brow. He was somewhat incredulous. He slowly drew his long sword from its sheath, which made a slight scraping sound.

Yun Weiyang glanced at Zhang Yuanying and gently shook the Soul-Startling Bell in her hand.

Ding!

The bell rang crisply, echoing through the dense forest.

Yang Zhen was stunned, his face blank; Zhang Yuanying's expression also changed slightly, his eyes became empty, his hand was still holding the hilt of the knife, but it seemed to be frozen by something, and he did not move.

Yun Weiyang appeared in front of Zhang Yuanying at some point, reached out and gently pushed the long sword at Zhang Yuanying's waist back into its sheath.

Click!

The long sword was sheathed.

Zhang Yuanying only then came to her senses, her expression turning ugly.

"Fellow Daoist Zhang," Yun Weiyang chuckled lightly, her tone gentle, "Don't get so worked up. Do you think I'd care about a mere piece of submerged wood?"

Yang Zhen quickly stepped forward and separated the two.

"Fellow Daoists, why get so worked up!" Yang Zhen smoothed things over. "Let's keep looking for the ebony wood; maybe that female ghost has hidden it."

Li Qinghe then took out a black iron compass from his sleeve. The compass was covered with dense runes, and a pointer in the center was trembling slightly.

"Before it gets dark, I think we should first find the female ghost's dwelling place and see if she placed the ebony there."

As Li Qinghe spoke, the pointer on the compass in her hand began to slowly rotate.

Yang Zhen nodded: "That's right! The female ghost didn't carry the ebony with her, so she must have left it at home."

Zhang Yuanying glanced at Yun Weiyang, then remained silent.

Li Qinghe, carrying a compass, slowly walked into the depths of the dense forest with Zhang Yuanying.

Yang Zhen looked at Yun Weiyang and spoke enthusiastically:

"Fellow Daoist Yun, this female ghost has been harming mortal cultivators for years, so she should have accumulated some treasures. Why don't we go together? We might be able to get other treasures. Besides, it's getting dark, and there's more than just this one ghost in the Ghost Fang Forest. Fellow Daoist, you're all alone, and even if you have magic treasures, it's still a bit dangerous. If the four of us are together, we can help each other if we encounter any danger."

With that, Yang Zhen took Yun Weiyang's arm and walked into the dense forest.

Yun Weiyang didn't object, letting Yang Zhen pull her along, and casually asked, "Ghost Fang Forest, are there other ghosts in this dense forest?"

"That's natural." Yang Zhen glanced at Yun Weiyang and explained, "During the day, the Ghost Fang Forest doesn't seem unusual, but once night falls, the ghostly mist surges within, transforming it into a ghostly domain filled with many powerful ghosts. If it weren't for Fellow Daoist Li having the Yinming Compass, we wouldn't dare enter the Ghost Fang Forest with our cultivation levels. With the Yinming Compass, we can roam the outer perimeter of the Ghost Fang Forest, kill some ordinary ghosts, obtain Yin Jade, and then exchange it for some spirit stones and materials at the market."

As he spoke, Yang Zhen looked at Yun Weiyang and said, "That female ghost just now had a cultivation level of about the Longevity Realm. The Yin Jade inside her body is worth at least fifty spirit stones. Fellow Daoist, would you like to..."

"Have you ever been deep into the Ghost Fang Forest?" Yun Weiyang interrupted Yang Zhen.

Yang Zhen looked at the backs of Zhang Yuanying and Li Qinghe ahead and shook his head.

"I didn't dare go. It's rumored that this Ghost Fang Forest is the corpse of a great ghost that escaped from the depths of the Netherworld. Deep in the forest, there is a Ghost King-level being, which is equivalent to a great cultivator of our human race who has survived the Heavenly Tribulation. With our cultivation level, if we really encounter such a being, it can drain our yang energy with just one glance."

Yun Weiyang listened with interest.

The Netherworld Demon King, the Ghost King—that's more in line with his impression of the cultivation world. It would be interesting to deal with such beings.

The four continued forward, passing through dense forests and around withered trees. The compass needle in Li Qinghe's hand spun fast and slow, leading them through the winding forest.

Finally, in front of a withered tree that was half broken, the compass needle stopped spinning.

"This is it," Li Qinghe said.

Zhang Yuanying stepped forward, drew his long sword, its blade wreathed in spiritual light, took a deep breath, and slashed out.

As the blade flashed, a deathly aura suddenly filled the withered tree, but it was immediately cleaved in two by Zhang Yuanying's longsword.

As the deathly aura dissipated, a crack appeared on the withered tree trunk, which widened to both sides, revealing a deep, dark passage.

The four exchanged a glance and filed in.

The passage was short; after walking only a dozen steps, a stone chamber appeared ahead. The chamber was quite large, with a main hall in the center and several smaller rooms carved out around it.

Inside the main hall, several skeletons lay scattered on the ground, while in the very center of the stone chamber, a piece of black ironwood was stuck in the ground, with a few tender green leaves adorning its top, making it stand out starkly in this deathly place.

"It's really here!"

Li Qinghe's eyes lit up, and she quickly stepped forward, looking at the dark wood with a delighted expression.

Zhang Yuanying examined the piece of ebony wood that had sprouted new leaves, a blush of excitement appearing on her pale face.

"This female ghost actually managed to make the submerged wood grow!" Zhang Yuanying's voice trembled slightly. "In about ten years, this piece of submerged wood will transform into a Yin Wood plant. When the Yin Wood bears fruit, we'll have a continuous supply of spirit stones!"

Zhang Yuanying became more and more excited as he spoke, his gaze sweeping over Yang Zhen and Li Qinghe before suddenly turning to Yun Weiyang, a hint of murderous intent flashing across his face.

But Yun Weiyang didn't look at the ebony wood at all. He was squatting in front of several skeletons in the corner of the stone chamber, his hand on the skeletons, looking thoughtful.

Yang Zhen also approached the ebony wood, a smile spreading across his face, clearly very happy.