Chapter 227: Gathering of Powerhouses

Soul Seizing Art is a spell derived from and modified from the Buddhist realm’s Soul Purifying Art. It allows one to attack an opponent’s soul in an instant, imprinting one’s own mark on it to force the opponent to obey commands.
Requirements: The user must possess greater mental strength than the target; otherwise, they will suffer backlash—ranging from stupidity to death.
……
After reading the records in the classics, Ye Feng and Lilith were almost certain that this was the technique being used. Firstly, the spell originated from Buddhist magic, and secondly, it demanded high mental strength, which Buddhist monks, with their mental strength often exceeding their cultivation levels, were well-suited for.
The opponent was a powerhouse at the level of a Six Calamities Immortal. With their superior mental strength, it was not unusual for them to control even those at the Spirit Immortal level.
At the same time, Ye Feng and Lilith also identified some weaknesses in this technique—the Soul Seizing Art was ineffective against those bound by contracts, as the power of the contract surpassed such spells, preventing the imprint from being successfully carved onto the soul.
In other words, Lilith and the two beasts would not be affected by this spell; only Ye Feng would be.
“What should we do now?” Ye Feng frowned slightly. Knowing where the opponent was yet being unable to act was infuriating.
“I won’t be controlled by him, but I don’t think I can snatch that key from him. His strength is far greater than mine,” Lilith said, shaking her head helplessly. “Even with those two little guys on your shoulders, we still have no chance of winning.”
Hearing Lilith’s lack of confidence, Ye Feng pondered for a while before raising his head. “What if we include Kastedio? How confident are you that we can get what we need?”
“With Kastedio fighting head-on, our chances of winning are less than 30%,” Lilith still shook her head. “But if it’s just about stealing the item, if Kastedio distracts him, I might have a way to ambush him, cut off his fingers, and steal his ring—our success rate would be around 50%.”
“Then forget it!” Ye Feng frowned. With such a low success rate, he wasn’t willing to take such a risk. “Let’s think of another plan!”
“What other plans are there?” Lilith also seemed troubled.
“Wait!” Ye Feng sighed lightly. “Under these circumstances, I can only wait for a stronger sect to take action first. It will likely be a fierce battle. Once their fight settles, we can try to steal it then.”
……

In the same hotel where Ye Feng was staying, two beautiful women were discussing something. One of them, dressed in a white long dress with a radiant smile, seemed somewhat otherworldly. The other was clad in silver armor, her dark red hair falling gently over it, giving her a heroic appearance. “Xiao Ying, that monk is a bit strange!” the woman in the white dress said, frowning slightly. “Why do you say that?” the armored woman asked curiously. “We’ve only been here for less than an hour—how did you spot something wrong with him so quickly?” “I asked the staff earlier. It seems everyone who approached them stayed in the apartments.” “Is that why?” the armored woman asked, intrigued. “That handsome guy named Dao Feng is also here! They’re investigating this too!” The woman in white closed her eyes, as if trying to sense something. “They’ve discovered that he’s a Demon Monk who practices soul-control magic!” “A Demon Monk?!” Hearing this term, the woman in silver armor quickly shifted from her indifferent expression to one full of excitement. “If he has soul-control magic, he’s not easy to deal with!” the woman in white frowned. “So what? His cultivation level isn’t as high as ours! He can’t control us at all,” the armored woman said proudly. “Soul-control magic isn’t directly related to cultivation level; it depends on the strength of one’s mental power,” the woman in white explained. “Although he’s only at the level of a Six-CalamityScattered Immortal, as long as his mental power exceeds yours, he can control you! I still don’t know what level his mental power has reached.” “That’s simple. With our strength and equipment, it won’t be hard to defeat even a Six-CalamityScattered Immortal. Either of us can take care of him, and then it will be over. The control will be lifted automatically.” The armored woman was clearly a battle fanatic. “Let’s not rush!” the woman in white shook her head. “We still haven’t figured out who spread the key to him in the first place. What their intentions are, whether they actually have the key—none of this is clear to us…” “It’s possible someone deliberately spread this rumor to lure us here and set up a scheme…”

“I didn’t think much about it; I just wanted to find someone to fight!” Xiao Ying, dressed in armor, was clearly a violent-minded girl. “He’d better pray the key is in his hands. If not, I’ll turn him into a pig’s head right away.”
“You’ve been the sect leader for so long yet still advocate violence—this isn’t a good sign. Otherwise, all the new female disciples in our Flower Between Sect might end up like you.”
“Xiao Xue, you’re not much better than me. If all the new female disciples follow your example, we might as well rename our sect the Cold Sect!”
…
While the two were bickering, another room in the same inn presented a completely different scene.
“Elder, the opponent is quite strong. Let me handle this mission! If you guys go, it might bring trouble!” said a middle-aged man.
“Meng Shan, what’s the situation now?” asked an old man with white hair and beard, looking at him in surprise, hoping for more accurate information.
“It seems they can instantly control their enemies’ minds, forcing them to do their bidding.” Meng Shan also seemed to have noticed some abnormalities.
“Such things really happen?” The Elder was at a loss for words after hearing this.
Only two people from the Alchemy Sect had come this time: Meng Shan, who had just broken free from his seal, and Wei Yan, Wei Jie’s father. Both of them were already at the peak of the Alchemy Sect, so bringing along other subordinates wasn’t necessary. After all, those who came here to investigate this matter were mostly highly skilled individuals.
“What’s his cultivation level?” Wei Yan asked.
“Around the sixth rank of scattered immortal! He can be considered a top-tier fighter in the cultivation world as well.” Meng Shan shook his head helplessly. “He’s already controlled over a dozen people as his subordinates, with the strongest one being a fifth-calamity scattered immortal!”
“What’s your plan?” The Elder frowned after hearing this.
“Let’s wait and see. Right now, the most competitive faction here is the Flower Between Sect. They’ve also sent only two people— their sect leader and what seems to be the Holy Maiden. Both of them are at least as strong as me. I’m sure they’ve already noticed us.” Meng Shan’s expression grew solemn.
“Sigh, it’s my fault too. If it weren’t for our negligence, the key wouldn’t have been stolen. Now we don’t even have to travel thousands of miles to fight these madmen over an item.” The Elder sighed deeply.

“There’s nothing we can do. It’s already happened; complaining won’t help. All we can do is try our best to make amends for our mistakes!” Meng Shan also appeared somewhat helpless.
“I’m going to visit an old friend. You stay and think of a solution!” With that, Meng Shan left the room.
In fact, most hotel rooms have special isolation arrays to prevent eavesdropping. After all, this is the cultivation world, where mental scans can obtain a great deal of information under normal circumstances.
The isolation arrays in high-end hotels are created by true array masters, and many of them can even block the mental scans of cultivators at the third to sixth level of dispersion immortals. But since this is still just the cultivation world, such arrays are of little use against powerful beings at the spirit immortal level, whose capabilities far exceed what the cultivation world can handle. This is why Meng Shan and the Holy Maiden of the Flower Sect could easily spy into other people’s rooms.
“Meng Shan? How come you’re here?” Ye Feng was also surprised when he saw Meng Shan appear in front of him.
“The key from the Alchemy Sect was lost, so we must participate in this competition to get another one.” Meng Shan’s expression showed a hint of helplessness.
“So the rumors are true?!” Ye Feng knew that a sect that already had the key wasn’t eligible to compete for others. The presence of Meng Shan and the people from the Alchemy Sect here meant only one thing—they no longer had the key.
“BOSS, do you also want that key?” Meng Shan asked.
“That’s right. After all, it’s Perite’s treasure.” Ye Feng nodded. “It’s said there are many items from the heavens there. I want to take my chances and see if I can get a good opportunity.”
“Do you need my help?” Meng Shan asked.
“No need. Obtaining such things can’t be forced; it depends on fate. If it’s meant for you, it will be yours. If not, no amount of effort will help.” Ye Feng shook his head with a smile. “If I ever need your help, I won’t hesitate. Don’t worry!”
“That monk isn’t as simple as he seems. Be careful before taking action. Don’t fall for his tricks!” Meng Shan warned.
“We already know he’s a demon monk,” Ye Feng nodded. “You go back first. We’re ready to reap the benefits without taking unnecessary risks. Don’t worry!”

“That’s good, I’m going back now!” Meng Shan nodded and vanished in the blink of an eye.
“It seems really lively this time!” Ye Feng’s lips curled slightly as he murmured to himself…