Red Heart Patrols the Sky

Xiaolin Town. Zhao Rucheng and Du Yehu had lost their combat abilities, and since Ling He was carrying Zhao Rucheng on his back, on the way back to the central palace position, Jiang Wang was the only one who could take action. Fortunately, by that time, his confrontations with the wandering souls had become much more skilled, and his Purple Qi Eastward sword had grown increasingly adept through the unceasing battles.

There was no need to worry about physical strength. Since returning from Tangshe Town, his Meridian Rush Practice had amassed over seventy Path Origin. Although using one meant one less until the creation of Dao Spirals, each Path Origin could give him enough feedback to withstand the intensity of such battles when push came to shove. In fact, these Path Origins were the ace up his sleeve for the decision of the four of them to tackle the break in the Sun Palace position, only they did not anticipate Zhao Rucheng's sudden danger, nor Du Yehu's decisive action.

"Hey, don't all look so down," Zhao Rucheng couldn't help but speak up after a while, "It's just excessive depletion of vital energies, not something that can't be remedied."

"What remedy?" Before Du Yehu could utter a word, Ling He was the one who got excited first, shaking Zhao Rucheng's arm while still supporting him, "Quickly tell us."

While clearing out wandering souls, Jiang Wang couldn't help but give him a glance, really wanting to hit him with his sword. This little brat, if he had a way, why didn't he say it earlier, instead of frustrating everyone.

"Hey hey hey, your shaking is making my handsome head dizzy," Zhao Rucheng managed to soothe his 'temporary mount' before continuing, "As it happens, I know of someone who recently paid a high price for a Consolidating Core Pill from Yun Country and is looking to resell it. This pill works wonders for nourishing vital energies and stabilizing foundations. Some young nobles even take a Consolidating Core Pill before opening their meridians so that the True Spirit in their Dao meridians becomes more agile afterward! Not to mention Brother Yehu's mere excessive depletion of vital energies."

"The only question is..." He even curled his lips, "if certain people are willing to buy it."

There was a pause from Du Yehu before he responded in a deep voice, "I have no money."

"You could take out a loan with me. It's standard business practice, nine for thirteen in return," Zhao Rucheng said with a smile.

"Usury is fine, Brother Yehu likes usury," Du Yehu said, seemingly naively smiling.

"Enough, enough," Jiang Wang had a line of sweat on his forehead. Everyone doing the usury business in Fenglin City knew that Du Yehu was infamous for not repaying his debts. In Du Yehu's words, those doing the usury business were no good anyway, and if he could swindle some drinking money from them, all the better. Had he not been born into the Dao Institute, he would have been dumped into the moat long ago.

"Little Five, who is the person? How much silver will it take to purchase it?"

Jiang Wang had already secretly resolved that no matter how much the person asked for, he was going to find a way to gather the necessary funds.

"The guy who bought the Consolidating Core Pill is actually surnamed Zhao. What a coincidence, right?" Zhao Rucheng feigned a sigh of exhaustion, "Even more coincidental is that he is someone from my own manor. How exceedingly coincidental!"

Jiang Wang took a deep breath, reminding himself that the heavily injured Brother Five could easily be beaten to death. That restrained his urge to hit him.

This brat had taken a roundabout way for so long, implying that he had a Consolidating Core Pill in his house that could remedy Du Yehu's loss. Such a simple message had kept a few brothers on tenterhooks for the length of burning half an incense stick.

Even someone as broad-minded as Ling He was grinding his teeth in irritation.

However, with this guarantee, everyone felt much more at ease. As they were talking, they had already returned to the central palace position.

Li Jianqiu and Zhao Lang were already there, discussing something with Wang Changxiang. Also present were several other disciples, all looking worse for wear. Wei Yan, on the other hand, had gone to assist at the Meridian Palace position, which was the only formation point yet to be breached.

"Disciple Jiang performed well," Li Jianqiu casually greeted him.

Wang Changxiang also nodded to him.

"Modestly speaking, it was all thanks to the outbursts from Brother Yehu and Ru Cheng," Jiang Wang said with a wry smile.

Before several of the main forces, he modestly shifted the credit. The most crucial thing at this stage was to ensure their successful meridian opening. The reason why he didn't mention Ling He was that the states of Du Yehu and Zhao Rucheng were more persuasive.

Ling He was not bothered by this at all.

Li Jianqiu and the others were seasoned veterans and could tell at a glance the state Du Yehu was in, and they were secretly astonished by the strength of his vital energies.

"Once Wei Yan returns, we'll head straight into the central palace," said Wang Changxiang, "During this brave suppression of evil, everyone's performance was commendable. Fenglin City will not forget your contributions, nor will the Dao Institute forget your meritorious deeds."

"Exactly!" As he was speaking, Wei Yan emerged from the thick fog, followed by three Dao Institute disciples. Two other disciples had not appeared, seemingly having met with misfortune.

The brutal battle did not stop at the Sun Palace position. Aside from Wei Yan and Li Jianqiu who virtually resolved the battle at the Town position with no losses, the other teams each had casualties, with eleven dead, almost a 50% fatality rate! Almost every survivor was wounded. Even Zhao Lang nearly had his guts spilled, leaving a vicious wound on his abdomen.

If not for Wang Changxiang's timely coordination before taking his stand at the central palace, this team operation might not have been successful.

"If we make it back from this battle, I will be the first to commend everyone," Wei Yan said gravely.

"This battle's peril was beyond my expectation. But now, with Fenglin City's military might drained, you are the only ones who can stand in battle," he said, before unexpectedly bending over to bow, "On behalf of the spirits who've passed in vain in Xiaolin Town, on behalf of the common folk of Fenglin City, I thank you all for your bloodshed!"

"Brother Wei is being too serious," Li Jianqiu said.

Everyone stepped aside, unwilling to accept such a gesture.

"What are you talking about, General Wei? You're from Fenglin City, but aren't we also born and raised here?" It was Du Yehu who voiced his discontent, "Let's dispense with the hollow formalities, there's no time to delay!"

In such a weakened state, this fellow still didn't hide his boldness.

Wei Yan took a deep look at him, raised his sword, turned around, and said, "The disciple speaks the truth. Everyone, follow me in the charge! Let's see who this demon is, the one who has been poisoning our fellow villagers here!"

With the destruction of the Eight Palaces, the fog wall at the Central Palace's location had also lost its foundation, silently collapsing, no longer blocking their path. The dense fog, however, still did not disperse, constantly obscuring their vision.

Wei Yan took the lead, with Li Jianqiu and Wang Changxiang guarding the flanks, Zhao Lang, though wounded, still had his overall combat strength intact and took command at the rear. The whole party moved forward towards the Central Palace location, fully alert.

By now, there was no longer a need to talk about the dangers of Xiaolin Town. Having experienced the hardships of slaying Grudge Ghosts in the other eight palaces, everyone had an idea of the evil that awaited them at the Central Palace's location.

Those demons wreaking havoc in Xiaolin Town, if they harbored any schemes, would likely be at this central spot.

This party could be said to represent the hope of the younger generation of Fenglin City. If all were to perish here, it could be said that the Taoist Academy of Fenglin City would henceforth be without successors.

But not a single person spoke of retreating. Indeed, the path ahead was fraught with terrible danger, but this was their ancestral home!

They were born here, grew up here, studied here, and were willing to die here.

Aside from Zhao Rucheng and Du Yehu, three other disciples from the academy had also lost their ability to fight. Given the perils of Xiaolin Town, it was of course impossible to leave them behind. Therefore, Ling He continued to carry Zhao Rucheng within the group, and Huang Azhan, as Du Yehu's old drinking buddy, also protected him.

Unlike the nearly exhausted Du Yehu, Huang Azhan was bursting with vitality. In the previous battle, he was one of the few who remained unscathed, indicating he had some real strength, not just a flashy appearance.

As the team advanced, Huang Azhan suddenly stopped. He took a heavy sniff and said, "I smell a fragrance."

The team paused,

He continued, "It's the scent of a woman's rouge... no, it's body fragrance."

The people looked at each other.

He added, "It's a beautiful woman."

Du Yehu said irritably, "Do you have a dog's nose or what?"

"Ah! A gorgeous female ghost!" Zhao Rucheng suddenly got excited, "I told you there was one, didn't I? Brother Yehu, you owe me a romantic encounter!"

No one paid any mind to these two jokers, for they had arrived at the very center of Xiaolin Town and saw a giant swirling vortex in motion.

Beyond that, there was nothing else within the Central Palace.

The red-dressed woman, the white-haired old man, the black-robed cultivator seemed as if they had never appeared.

It wasn't just that they weren't there. There were no people, no animals, not even a brick or tile; aside from the endless dense fog, there was only this strange, solitary, large vortex.

"Where did the government office go? What the hell is this vortex?"

No one could answer that question. Only Wang Changxiang's eyes widened with shock and bewilderment!

"Brother Wang, do you recognize it?" asked Wei Yan, holding his sword at the ready, his voice deep.

But his question was quickly answered.

Because from the deep darkness at the center of the vortex, a pitch-black object slowly emerged.

Seeing pitch-black within darkness was quite an awkward description, but that was exactly the case.

That pitch-black thing within the darkness, as if it were the heart of the darkness, somehow allowed everyone to clearly discern its shape. As it rose bit by bit within the vortex, its full form gradually revealed itself to everyone.

It was a stone archway, not very grand in design, just a three-bay, four-pillar, seven-story layout. If one ignored that black substance, ignored the scene it appeared in, then it wouldn't seem different from any other archways people usually see.

But the plaque at the very center of the archway spoke volumes of its uniqueness.

On it were three characters that no one there recognized, but everyone understood their meaning at first glance.

—Ghost! Gate! Pass!