Lei Dong decided to wait patiently, pulling out a jade slip to re-examine the Yugui Jue (Ghost Control Art). Although cultivators at the Qi Refining stage could learn and use this art, it was exceedingly complex and difficult to grasp, so Lei Dong was unwilling to waste any time.

Time slipped by, and the weather gradually turned gloomy. The moment the sun set, Lei Dong felt a chilling wave of frigid energy sweep over him, causing him to shiver violently. Fortunately, the primary cultivation technique he practiced was the Xuanyin Jing (Profound Yin Scripture), which was inherently Yin in nature. Thus, the influx of Yin energy against his body wasn't overly distressing; instead, the True Yin Qi within his Dantian became even more active than usual.

A thought sparked: If he cultivated the Xuanyin Jing in a place where Yin energy was at its absolute peak, would the results be even better?

Of course, he couldn't experiment wildly right now. Once he entered meditative stillness by sealing his apertures, he wouldn't know what would happen if he were torn apart by a pack of fierce ghosts. The thought of fierce ghosts made Lei Dong grip his small, dark-green sword tighter, his vigilance increasing. His gaze swept around the area: piles of upturned earth, withered branches and dead leaves, overgrown weeds, and nameless, low-grade tombstones everywhere. Under the long passage of geological change, more and more coffins lay exposed halfway, further decaying after prolonged exposure to the sun and rain. In the distance, a few wisps of spectral fire drifted, and the cold wind howled with increasing ferocity, sounding like the cries of ghosts and wolves. It looked manageable during the day, but as night descended, the surroundings grew increasingly sinister and terrifying.

Fortunately, the architectural style of the Yin Sha Sect was mostly ferocious and cruel. Having been in the sect for nearly five months, Lei Dong had moved from initial terror to a certain degree of numbness. Now, while a flicker of apprehension remained, it was overshadowed by a subtle, rising excitement. After all, everything was ready; only the souls were needed. More importantly, souls had grades. What if he encountered a top-tier Spirit Ghost? Wouldn't that be a massive windfall? It felt much like the thrill he experienced when occasionally buying a lottery ticket in his previous life. Admittedly, the chance of capturing a mid-grade Spirit Ghost was hardly greater than winning the jackpot, but that faint sense of anticipation was identical.

After a considerable wait, looking left and right yielded no lingering souls. Lei Dong had no choice but to shuffle forward cautiously, beginning his search along the periphery of this mass grave. One hour passed, then two. It was already midnight. Even with his cultivation of True Yin Qi, Lei Dong’s bones were nearly frozen stiff by the spectral wind. Just as he hesitated about whether to venture deeper, a dense wave of Yin energy, mixed with a howling draft, rushed toward him.

In a flash, Lei Dong channeled his True Qi, leaped, and shot seven or eight meters to the side. Focusing his gaze, he indeed saw a semi-transparent, hazy soul, seemingly present and absent, miss its mark and bare its fangs in a fierce display toward him. But in the blink of an eye, it lunged at Lei Dong again.

Lei Dong took a deep breath, calming his emotions. He did not immediately attempt to capture the soul but instead quickly retreated. After all, this was the outer perimeter of the mass grave; if another soul appeared, he would be thrown into chaos. He decided to adopt a monster-pulling tactic from online games, leading it to a safer location before slowly grinding it down.

Although the soul wasn't slow, Lei Dong’s physique, improved by the Bone Cleansing and Marrow Washing process, was no joke; he was slightly faster than it. The soul, having finally sensed human Yang energy, only needed to consume this human, draining his essence and blood, to grow stronger. It was not about to let him go easily.

The chase continued for three or four li. The soul was practically maddened; every time it was about to catch him, Lei Dong would slip away smoothly from its grasp.

Just as the soul grew impatient and was about to abandon the prey, Lei Dong stopped. In his right hand, he held the ghostly green short sword, and in his left, he cradled a Soul Nurturing Pagoda, his gaze fixed on the soul with a hint of expectation. Without capturing it, he couldn't confirm the soul's quality. Only after trapping it within the Pagoda could he use the special method to determine its grade.

The moment the soul lunged, Lei Dong chanted something under his breath, flicked his wrist, and the small, dark-green sword shot out like an arrow. At such close range, the soul couldn't dodge in time and was struck squarely by the sword. The soul immediately trembled, hissing smoke pouring out, and it shrieked with piercing, sharp screams.

Though souls exist as pure spiritual energy and are difficult to harm with ordinary physical means, what kind of sect was the Yin Sha Sect? Even the dark-green short swords issued to new disciples possessed a counteracting effect against ghost entities. With this single strike, the soul suffered a grievous wound and instinctively felt it had hit solid iron; it immediately turned, intending to flee.

However, having finally lured out a ghost, how could Lei Dong let it slip away so easily? With a subtle tug of his fingers, the dark-green short sword whipped around in mid-air and slashed viciously toward the soul.

This small, dark-green sword was a flying-sword type magical artifact specifically prepared for newly admitted disciples of the Yin Sha Sect. Great effort had been spent not on maximizing its destructive power but on refining its controllability. Thus, even a newly initiated disciple like Lei Dong could master it after refining it for several days. Naturally, his technique was clumsy; the sword wobbled slightly as it flew, showing how taxing the manipulation was for Lei Dong. But against this soul, it was more than enough.

Hiss~ The small sword swept past the soul’s transparent spiritual body again. As ripples disturbed the air, it seemed almost split in two. With white light swirling, the soul’s form immediately became even more translucent. A gust of Yin wind swept past, twisting its body into a misty blur, making it difficult to maintain a cohesive form. Fearing it would disperse in the wind, Lei Dong urgently drove the Soul Nurturing Pagoda with his True Yin Qi, aiming its entrance at the soul while muttering incantations.

Following a strange fluctuation of energy, the soul seemed caught by an invisible net, shrinking into an unpredictably shifting ball of smoky mist before being sucked into the Soul Nurturing Pagoda. Lei Dong unhurriedly sealed the entrance before finally collapsing to the ground, slightly breathless, using breathing techniques to recover the severely depleted True Yin Qi.

Although the dark-green short sword and the Soul Nurturing Pagoda were both low-grade magical artifacts for novices, Lei Dong was only at the first layer of Qi Refining, and manipulating them was inevitably strenuous. This brief skirmish had consumed nearly all his True Yin Qi. After recovering a fraction of it, Lei Dong dared not linger there any longer, instead using the cover of night to return to Myriad Ghost City.

If he searched harder, he might find another soul. But Lei Dong did not dare to be reckless; having finally managed to transmigrate, he certainly didn't want to die senselessly due to carelessness.

Myriad Ghost City truly lived up to its name. At night, it was even livelier than during the day. Given Lei Dong’s status as a disciple of the Myriad Ghost Cave, he was not troubled. After finding an inn using the waist token for free accommodation, he immediately settled in to cultivate and meditate until dawn. However, the energy he lost was still only about 80% recovered. He couldn't help but sigh internally: poverty truly was the greatest original sin. If he had some true energy recovery pills on hand, taking one while meditating would have quickly restored his meager reserves completely. Alas, he only had one spirit stone left, which might be needed for something truly important; he couldn't afford to use it carelessly.

Only now did Lei Dong have the leisure to examine the soul captured last night. For the sake of caution, he had used equipment discarded by a senior disciple the night before.

He took out the Soul Nurturing Pagoda, which he had just begun to refine. Lei Dong used the specialized technique from the Yugui Jue to merge the Pagoda with his spirit, and to his surprise, the previously empty first level of the Pagoda now housed a misty soul, curled up motionlessly in a corner. Perhaps nourished slightly by the Pagoda, it appeared much more condensed than it had last night, when it seemed on the verge of dissipating at any moment.

The Soul Nurturing Pagoda was not only essential for capturing souls but also served as their dwelling and cultivation ground. Even if injured, the Pagoda could slowly nourish and restore them, as one of its primary materials was Soul Wood, which could sustain spirits.

Taking a deep breath, Lei Dong activated the Pagoda’s discernment function, beginning the quality appraisal of the captured soul. A faint luminescence shone upon it.

(New book for new readers. If brothers and sisters enjoy it, please help vote with recommendation tickets. Thank you.)