25 Soul Shaking Chain and Spirit Communication Technique
Translator: GGP
“Yes, Uncle Master!” This time, Liu Ming agreed very promptly.

“Very good. I might as well be thorough since I’m being kind. Here are two secret techniques suitable for Ghost Spirit Power, you may take them and cultivate them as well. This way, when you fight others, no one will suspect the methods you practice.” The fat elder saw that Liu Ming was sensible and revealed a satisfied expression. He then took out two scrolls from his sleeves and tossed them over.

“Thank you for your generous love, Uncle Master!” Liu Ming took the scrolls and bowed in gratitude.

“According to the sect rules, any techniques or secret arts obtained from the Scripture Pavilion must be sworn upon in the name of the heavenly path, and must not be passed on to a second person. Otherwise, at best your spiritual power will be stripped, and you will be imprisoned for life, and at worst, you will be executed and your life taken. This is our sect’s covenant with the heavenly path, take your oath on it now.” The fat elder nodded then his expression grew stern as he took out a strange ancient page enveloped in black qi, covered in blood-red text that looked incredibly mysterious.

Seeing this, Liu Ming hesitated for a moment before also agreeing outright.

“First drop a drop of your essence blood on it, then I’ll say a phrase, and you just need to chant along with this object,” said the fat elder while he threw the page in front of him and muttered an incantation with a single hand gesture.

At once the page transformed into a cloud of black qi floating in mid-air, and from it, there faintly came sobbing and howling sounds of ghosts and wolves, as well as strands of a bloody scent that seeped out, nauseating to smell…

After the time it took to drink a cup of tea, a flash of white light appeared on the wall, and the fat elder and Liu Ming appeared in front of Shi Chuan and the others.

“Uncle Master Ruan, we appreciate your efforts this time,” Shi Chuan said with a smile, immediately thanking the fat elder.

“Since I am responsible for guarding the Scripture Pavilion, it’s only right for me to give some guidance to the juniors. Now that the matter is settled, you all should leave quickly. I need to have a long sleep again,” the fat elder said, waving his hands impatiently. A swirl of white light then enveloped him, and he disappeared before everyone’s eyes.

“Let’s go, Uncle Master Ruan cultivates in a peculiar manner, spending much of the year in slumber,” Shi Chuan said, not surprised by this, and led Liu Ming and the others out of the loft.

By this time, the sky outside had already darkened.

Consequently, Shi Chuan once again conjured a cloud of grey mist and led the group flying towards Jiuying Mountain.

During the casual conversation on the way, Liu Ming also learned that the technique chosen by Wan Xiaoqian was the ‘Yin Kui Gong,’ a method particularly favored by another branch of Jiuying. He couldn’t help but inwardly smile bitterly at the news.

It seemed that only his circumstances were a bit special, but whether it was fortune or misfortune was yet to be seen.

In that situation, however, he couldn’t have made a second choice anyway.

Uncle Master Ruan had practically coerced him into choosing the ‘Ming Bone Formula,’ and if he had refused, he would have likely offended the elder, who might have found another excuse to force him to cultivate the method.

With the elder being a highly esteemed Spirit Master within the sect, and he just an ordinary disciple, how could he possibly defy the elder’s will?

It would be better to show some sense and take the initiative instead.

Regardless of the reason Uncle Master wanted him to cultivate the Ming Bone Formula, as long as the technique truly had the benefits it was said to possess, it would naturally be a good thing for him at the moment.

As for the future, he would take it one step at a time.

Liu Ming thought such thoughts lightly in his mind.

When Shi Chuan and the others inquired which technique Liu Ming had chosen, his response was naturally the “Ghost Spirit Power.”

This surprised Shi Chuan and the others, who questioned why, and Liu Ming naturally attributed the entire reason to the fat elder.

He said that Uncle Master Ruan saw that his spiritual power was strong and found it more suitable for him to cultivate Ghost Spirit Power.

Shi Chuan obviously knew that strong mental power had a synergistic effect on cultivating Ghost Spirit Power and, though somewhat astonished, ultimately expressed his understanding.

After learning the reason, Xue Shan and Wan Xiaoqian initially showed enviable expressions, but after Shi Chuan explained the downsides of Liu Ming cultivating this technique, both of them became somewhat speechless.

On one hand was a slightly faster cultivation speed but with the issue of subsequent techniques to consider, while on the other, the cultivation speed was normal but with seemingly no worries about future techniques. It certainly was a troublesome choice to make.

“It’s a pity you didn’t enter the Corpse Refining branch; otherwise, you wouldn’t have to worry so much,” Shi Chuan said with slight regret.

“No matter, if it comes to that, I’ll just accumulate more contribution points and find a way to exchange for the relevant subsequent techniques,” Liu Ming said confidently.

“That’s the only way then. As long as it’s not the unique techniques of the Corpse Refining branch, it should still be possible to exchange for the general spells,” Shi Chuan said, nodding slightly.

Thus, after talking, the group returned to Jiuying Mountain and Shi Chuan sent each of them back to their residences.

Upon returning to his courtyard, Liu Ming tidied up a bit and, feeling hungry, took out some dry rations to eat. Then he collapsed onto his bed.

The entire day’s spirit opening ceremony, followed by the subsequent busyness, had exhausted him both physically and mentally. Unable to stay awake any longer, he fell into a deep sleep.

He slept for who knows how long, only aware that when he opened his eyes again, the sun was directly overhead.

After lazing about and yawning, he got up and walked out to the small courtyard outside the house.

There was a well there, previously dug by the residing disciples themselves.

Liu Ming casually drew a bucket of well water with the bucket by the well, and after taking a couple of sips with his hands, he immediately felt the water was extraordinarily sweet and a cool sensation penetrated straight into his heart.

Feeling invigorated by this, he simply plunged his head into the bucket to thoroughly wash his face, before feeling refreshed and heading back into the house to sit down at a yellow wooden table.

After pondering for a moment, he took out the two scrolls given to him by the plump elder from his bosom, placed them on the table, and began to carefully examine them one by one.

“Soul Refining Chain” “Spirit Communication Formula”

One was a spell for drawing out spectral souls to refine them into chains for combat, the other was a formula that could communicate with spirits and command them.

These two secret techniques indeed matched well with the Ghostly Spirit Technique.

Liu Ming read on, contemplating in his mind.

But as soon as he began to look at the official methods of cultivation recorded on the scrolls, his brows couldn’t help but furrow.

The two techniques evidently required the strength of early and middle-stage Spirit Apprentices to start cultivating them.

It seemed that until he had cultivated the first two levels of the Dark Bone Formula, he should not entertain the thought of practicing these two secret techniques.

A touch of frustration crossed Liu Ming’s mind, and he could only start by silently memorizing the cultivation formulas written on them.

With his powerful spirit coupled with his gift for multitasking, this naturally wasn’t too difficult a task.

Two hours later, he had completely imprinted the incantations in his mind, ensuring that he would not forget a single word if he recalled and recited them from time to time.

Liu Ming exhaled deeply, carefully put away the two scrolls back into his bosom, and took out the brocade book that contained the Dark Bone Formula, ready to study it in depth.

Just then, there was a sudden knock on the courtyard door, and Xue Shan’s carefree voice came through:

“Senior Brother Bai, are you inside? Junior Sister Wan and I have come over.”

Liu Ming was slightly startled, but he quickly put the brocade book away and got up to walk outside.

Standing in front of the half-closed wooden gate outside the small courtyard were indeed three people.

Two of them were Xue Shan and Wan Xiaoqian, while the other was a forty-something man with a horse-like face, with just a few inches of hair, donned in the attire of an outer sect disciple.

“Younger Brother Xue, Junior Sister Wan, what brings you here? And who might this be…”

Liu Ming quickly approached, pulled the door open, and asked with some confusion.

“Hehe, let me introduce you. This is my cousin Xue Yuanhai, who joined our sect more than twenty years ago as an outer sect disciple,” Xue Shan said with a wide grin, pointing to the horse-faced man behind him.

“So you’re Brother Xue, my apologies for not recognizing you,” Liu Ming said with a slight start, but he immediately recovered and greeted with cupped hands.

“Not at all! As long as one is a Spirit Apprentice, we outer sect disciples generally address each other as ‘Senior Brother.’ In the future, I’ll be relying on you all within the sect,” Xue Yuanhai quickly returned the greeting, all smiles.

“Cousin Yuanhai, you are my elder brother, I can’t let you call me ‘Senior Brother.’ However, Senior Brother Bai and Junior Sister Xue, you two can address him as you please,” Xue Shan explained on the side.

“Hehe, since Brother Xue is Younger Brother Xue’s elder, Junior Sister Wan and I naturally cannot be disrespectful. Let’s just call him Brother Xue,” Liu Ming said with a light smile.

Wan Xiaoqian also nodded in agreement at his side.

“Since that’s the case, I, Xue Yuanhai, shall address you two as ‘Junior Sister Wan’ and ‘Senior Brother Bai,'” Xue Yuanhai demurred for a few more moments before reluctantly agreeing.

“Senior Brother Bai, my cousin is an outer sect disciple of the Jiuying sect, and he is very familiar with everything in the mountains. Although Senior Brother Shi did explain some of the sect matters to us yesterday, the time was so short that some explanations were not detailed enough. This time, I’ve found Junior Sister Wan and Senior Brother Bai to come together and listen to Brother Xue’s detailed explanations of the sect’s taboos. This way, we can avoid making some of the common mistakes that newcomers make,” Xue Shan said grinningly.

“Younger Brother, you are really thoughtful. Brother Xue, please come in,” Liu Ming said, his eyes lighting up as he stepped aside to invite the three in.

A short time later, the four of them went into the house and sat down around the table.

More than an hour later, Xue Shan and Wan Xiaoqian left with somewhat somber expressions.

Liu Ming kept up a smiling face as he saw them out of the courtyard, only for his smile to disappear as soon as he returned to the house.

“I didn’t expect the treatment difference between direct disciples and common disciples to be so great, nor did I anticipate the intense competition among core disciples, where even one’s life could be at risk. It seems that just standing one’s ground within the sect is not an easy task. However, to obtain sufficient resources for cultivation, securing a spot as a core disciple is something I must strive for,” Liu Ming muttered to himself, lost in thought.

“Enough, I should first focus on cultivating the first and second layers of the Dark Bone Formula. To vie for a core disciple position, I need at least the cultivation of a middle-stage Spirit Apprentice, which is the minimum qualification. Once I have strength, I can then ensure my safety within the sect,” he sighed deeply after a while, seemingly having come to a resolution.