C202 Ghoul Glyph Sect

The tree was robust and its hollow interior surprisingly spacious.

Qin Yun's flesh was desiccated, his body withered like a mummy at the feet of the crone.

Her face was adorned with bizarre, colorful runes resembling earthworms and venomous insects, a sight both vibrant and fearsome.

Any cultivator from the Quietus Continent would instantly know she hailed from the Ghoul Glyph Sect.

Indeed, only the Ghoul Glyph Sect would inscribe such symbols across their bodies.

"Grandma Chiu, I was ambushed and taken by your Ghoul Glyph Sect on my way home. I've been held captive here, with no contact whatsoever with Yu Yuan," Qin Yun's scholarly Yin God form said weakly to the frail, haggard woman. "I truly don't know his whereabouts."

Qin Yun harbored both hatred and fear for Chiu Wan.

He was well aware that Chiu Wan frequently scoured the Profound Sky Continent, scouting for potential disciples to recruit into the Ghoul Glyph Sect's fold.

Though the sect's influence in the northern Quietus Continent was less than that of the Blood God Cult or the Red Devil Sect, they were still formidable.

It was Chiu Wan, in the late stages of the Yin God Stage, who had joined forces with two other sect elders to grievously wound and capture him. They had forcibly separated his Yin God from his body and confined it, seeking information about the events at the Fallen Moon Forbidden Area.

Somehow, the Ghoul Glyph Sect had learned that an ancient formation within the Fallen Moon Forbidden Area was under the control of an obscure young man from Darkmoon City.

The young man, Yu Yuan, appeared to have a close connection with Qin Yun.

It was this association that led to Qin Yun's unwarranted capture after a stealthy assault.

The Seven Divine Sect was a dominant power within the Rainier Empire, yet it paled in comparison to the Ghoul Glyph Sect's might on the Quietus Continent.

Notorious for their disregard for rules and ethics, much like the Blood God Cult, the Ghoul Glyph Sect's reputation was far from stellar.

Chiu Wan was indifferent to Qin Yun's status and unconcerned with the Rainier Empire's stance. When she struck, her ruthlessness knew no bounds.

"Heh, Qin Yun, oh Qin Yun, your four Azure Yang Arrows have already turned against you. Are you still going to play tough?"

Chiu Wan cackled eerily, her fingers like gnarled chicken claws as she lightly touched one of the Azure Yang Arrows. "Yu Yuan is nothing but a lucky nobody from Darkmoon City, no kin of yours. Why bother protecting him? And he's tampered with your Azure Yang Arrows. You're a sect master; how can you stand such disgrace?"

Her claw-like fingers tightened abruptly as she spoke.

The Azure Yang Arrow in her grasp was suddenly engulfed in a fierce white flame.

Bizarre runes, writhing like locusts, spiders, snakes, and lizards, surged with spiritual energy and swarmed over the Azure Yang Arrow.

"I'll lend you a hand," Chiu Wan huffed.

As the Azure Yang Arrow was consumed by fire, wisps of smoke curled from the ethereal head of Qin Yun's Yin God.

Qin Yun issued a desolate cry.

...

Meanwhile.

Yu Yuan, standing at the threshold of the Fallen Moon Forbidden Area and the Rainier Empire, jolted as his expression contorted.

He sharply sensed that somewhere in the direction of the Rainier Empire, a thread of his own consciousness and soul was being scorched.

A stabbing pain shot through his brow.

Suddenly, he envisioned lizards, venomous snakes, spiders, and scorpions vividly lunging and biting at him.

These spectral vermin, though merely phantoms, emitted a chilling aura capable of soul-devouring.

The pain in his brow worsened abruptly, his mind thrown into turmoil, as if cursed or bewitched, plunging him into a maze of illusions.

"Ghoul Glyph Sect!"

He bit his tongue sharply, using the pain to snap back to clarity.

In his past life, he had spent years on the Quietus Continent and knew the Ghoul Glyph Sect inside out.

The sect, known for breeding a menagerie of toxic creatures and distilling their essence into secret talismans, had been his close ally in his quest to concoct poison pills.

The Ghoul Glyph Sect had covertly supplied him with a multitude of rare, meticulously cultivated venomous insects.

He had crafted an astonishing number of pellets that not only enhanced the poisonous insects but also intensified their venom to a terrifying degree.

On the Quietus Continent, the Ghoul Glyph Sect's power was initially inferior, unable to rival the likes of the Red Devil Sect and the Blood God Cult, let alone stand in comparison with the Demon Palace and the Devil Palace.

However, his presence and the multitude of pellets he concocted provided the Ghoul Glyph Sect with an immense boost, catapulting their strength forward in a remarkably short time.

The sect could now be considered on equal footing with the Red Devil Sect and the Blood God Cult, and it was largely his doing.

"Talk about shooting myself in the foot—I never imagined the Ghoul Glyph Sect would have the audacity to strike at me in this lifetime!"

Yu Yuan seethed with rage as he sensed the ghoul glyphs, etched by the essence of poisonous insects, come to life in his mind, and the Ghoul Glyph Sect's "Dark Ghoul Secret Curse" being cast upon him. "Could it be that the Sect Master of the Seven Divine Sect has betrayed me in secret?"

With this thought, he intended to unleash his killing intent, stirring the soul consciousness within Azure Yang Town and causing the four Azure Yang Arrows to detonate on the spot.

This would leave Qin Yun either dead or gravely wounded.

The medium for the Ghoul Glyph Sect's secret curse was one of the Azure Yang Arrows, which relied on the connection between the arrow's imbued consciousness and his own existence.

The curse would be broken once the Azure Yang Arrow was destroyed and the residual consciousness within it vanished.

Yet, as he was about to act, he caught sight of another scene.

Qin Yun's Yin God lay discarded in a tree hollow, his withered body tossed aside carelessly.

The Yin God, resembling an aged scholar, was dissolving, clearly suffering soul damage from the scorching effects of the Azure Yang Arrow.

In that moment, he realized that Qin Yun was a victim too.

Qin Yun hadn't betrayed him; he had been captured and targeted by the Ghoul Glyph Sect's disciples using one of the Azure Yang Arrows and their "Dark Ghoul Secret Curse."

"Sect Master Qin, my apologies."

With a heavy heart, Yu Yuan took a seat at the entrance of the forbidden area, as the malevolent spirits of the poisonous insects persisted in wreaking havoc deep within his mind.

With a focused and tranquil mind, Yu Yuan's Heavenly Soul emitted a wave of mournful emotion. In the midst of this sorrow, it transformed into a tiny figure, not a Yang God, forever bound to the sea of his soul consciousness—a mere wisp of a soul, incapable of becoming as corporeal as the Yang God.

Yet, this diminutive figure, having been bestowed with strands of pure soul power within the Soul Transformation Pool, had also become imbued with a fierce sword intent.

"Chi!" The tiny figure morphed into a sharp little sword.

This radiant sword shone brilliantly, manifesting solely within his soul consciousness. With a swift motion, the luminous blade struck at the venomous insects that had mysteriously appeared there. More precisely, it targeted the dark ghoul glyphs that took the shape of these poisonous insects.

"Ah!" Far away, within a tree hollow, Chiu Wan of the Ghoul Glyph Sect let out a sudden, ghastly shriek.

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