Chapter 168: Mid-Stage Foundation Building

The Netherworld of Ghosts already had over forty ghost guards, more than a dozen of whom had reached the peak of the Qi Cultivation stage and were on the verge of becoming ghost generals. Today, with another two hundred-plus ghost guards obtained from the Ghost Princess, Su Che believed that nearly three hundred ghost guards competing to devour each other would surely give rise to many more ghost generals. Following Su Che’s orders, the Netherworld Ghost Emperor issued a command, and another battle of devouring among ghosts ensued…

In less than an hour, the results were clear. Twenty-seven ghost generals had been born, leaving over seventy ghost guards still unadvanced. Adding the sixteen ghost generals obtained from the Ghost Princess, the total number of ghost generals reached forty-three. Su Che ordered that all these ghost generals also devour each other to further enhance their strength…

The last ten ghost generals remained as Su Che’s personal guard force to protect him. Each of them possessed the strength equivalent to mid-stage Foundation Building. However, there were no suitable ghost weapons or talismans available for them at the moment, so their true strength still lagged behind that of human cultivators at the same level.

“Ghost weapons are quite rare; usually only ghost kings are qualified to use them,” Lao He explained after researching relevant information. “So equipping all of them with ghost weapons isn’t an easy task.”

“It doesn’t matter. Even so, the combined strength of these ten ghost generals is comparable to that of ten human cultivators at the early Foundation Building stage.”

Su Che was delighted. “Once I reach mid-stage Foundation Building, along with you, the Snake Woman, and the Little Dragon… the combat strength of the Immortal Prison Team will be unmatched among those below the Golden Core stage. Fighting against three or five cultivators at the late Foundation Building stage won’t be a problem either.”

Su Che couldn’t help but imagine himself dueling an opponent at the late Foundation Building stage on a combat platform… At that moment, with just a gesture, he could summon ten ghost servants and several spirit pets, all of whom were above the Foundation Building stage. The opponent would surely be terrified!

Oh, and there was also the divine skill he had just acquired—Soul Seizing!

At this moment, Su Che was extremely excited, eager to head to the Competition Peak immediately to challenge some of the true disciples…

“That’s right, master. If any other foolish true disciple dares to provoke us again, we should teach them a good lesson!”

Lao He, even more violent, shouted, “Who knows? If you defeat several true disciples in a row, you might even be promoted to a true disciple without going through the internal competition, thanks to an exception from the elders’ council.”

Su Che chuckled inwardly, adjusted his mindset, and said just two words: “Retreat and cultivate!”

Outside the cave dwelling, a sign indicating seclusion was hung high, as he was on the verge of reaching the mid-stage of the Foundation Establishment realm. Su Che’s mental state had already surpassed what was required for this stage, making his progress through it extremely smooth. If the barriers between realms were like mountains blocking a cultivator’s path, then Su Che, wielding a war axe of the Witch Clan and transformed into a giant, could shatter mountains and rocks with a single swing, his advance unstoppable! After a month of seclusion, not only did he successfully advance, but his cultivation at the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment was also firmly established. On the day he emerged, as per tradition, his first task was to go to the Mysterious Golden Hall to report his progress to his master. After receiving a few words of praise and guidance from the Venerable Mysterious One, as he descended the mountain, it was quite coincidental that Su Che encountered Yu Qing, who was climbing up the path. “Senior brother!” Su Che greeted him joyfully. “When did you return?” “I just landed on the path, and the first person I met was you,” Yu Qing said with a smile. “I’ve completed the exchange task for the Wuji Sect and need to report to my master first.” While speaking, Yu Qing took a close look and nodded. “It seems I need to work harder, otherwise, I’ll soon be overtaken by you.” Now, both brothers were at the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment. Su Che smiled silently. Yu Qing then asked, “Three months ago, I heard you were wanted by the demonic sect. But these days, I heard that the warrant was revoked… What’s going on?” “It’s a long story. You go and see your master first. I’ll wait for you in the Spirit Herb Garden. We can talk about it later.” Su Che replied. “Okay.” Yu Qing nodded and continued climbing up the path. No matter how high one’s cultivation reached, as long as one remained a disciple of the Venerable Mysterious One, they could only climb this path on foot, not fly. Su Che went to the Spirit Herb Garden but didn’t look for Linglong first; instead, he visited his secret cave dwelling. In just half an hour, he transplanted all the more than 300 high-grade spirit herbs from the cave into the Spirit Treasure Box. Then, he sowed some seeds of top-quality spirit herbs inside the cave. A hundred years later, these seeds would grow into more high-grade spirit herbs, but Su Che would no longer come here to harvest them. “This blessing should continue,” he thought silently. “Perhaps in a few hundred years, another lucky disciple of Mysterious Peak will accidentally discover this secret herb garden. With these herbs, his fate might also change…”

That afternoon, Su Che and Yu Qing drank tea and chatted until late at night. These days, both brothers had experienced quite remarkable things…
The next day, Su Che flew to Xuan Yuan Peak and activated a communication jade talisman.
Fifteen minutes later, Ning Lu, a true disciple of Xuan Yuan Peak, arrived before Su Che on a flying sword.
The two hovered in midair and began to talk.
“Mid-stage Foundation Building?”
Ning Lu was shocked and said strangely, “If I remember correctly, you’re still eighteen years old in terms of bone age, right?”
“Sister, you’re joking,” Su Che said with a light smile. “It’s only been half a year since we last saw each other—I can’t suddenly turn eighty.”
“Your progress in cultivation is monstrous!”
Ning Lu remained her straightforward and energetic self. “It infuriates me! When I was your age, I hadn’t even reached Foundation Building yet.”
“Sister, let’s not talk about this,” Su Che waved his hand and changed the subject. “I came to see you to lift the restriction on my friend.”
Of course, Su Che wouldn’t forget that Fei Yun was still waiting for him in Fei Yun Lake Market, thousands of miles away, to rescue her.
“Okay!”
Ning Lu was decisive. She quickly activated another communication jade talisman, and soon a cultivator at the Golden Core stage flew down from Xuan Yuan Peak.
“Come, let’s go to Fei Yun Lake Market with me.”
Although this person was a Golden Core elder, Ning Lu spoke to him in a completely rude manner.
Su Che hurried forward to greet him, “Su Che, a disciple of Xuan Ji Peak, salutes Uncle Feng.”
The identity badge around his waist revealed his Dao name: Elder Feng Yang of Xuan Yuan Peak. He looked very young, with extremely handsome features and a short stature. At first glance, one might mistake him for a woman in men’s clothes.
However, don’t underestimate him just because he looked like a woman—he was at mid-stage Golden Core, and his overall strength was surely no weaker than Meng Liu, the Demon Lady of the Illusion Demon Sect.
After a brief introduction, Su Che learned that Elder Feng Yang was Ning Lu’s uncle. But from their conversation, it seemed like they were sisters—very casual, very…
In short, it gave Su Che a strange feeling, as if Elder Feng Yang had a strong feminine vibe and didn’t act like a man at all.
But that wasn’t important. What mattered was that he was highly skilled in restriction techniques. Even without meeting Fei Yun and only based on Su Che’s general description, he determined that this kind of restriction could be lifted!

Indeed, it was true. In less than twenty minutes, the three of them arrived at Feiyun Lake Market. It took only another ten minutes to find the shop where Fei Yun was, and the restriction within her was completely removed.
“Is five thousand spirit stones too much for the diagnosis? You’re not short of money, right?”
Ning Lu boldly demanded payment from Su Che in front of the “doctor” and the “patient”.
“It’s not too much!”
Su Che paid readily.
“You take three thousand, I’ll take two thousand.”
To his surprise, Ning Lu took two thousand spirit stones for herself.
Elder Feng Yang, without hesitation, put away the spirit stones, gave Su Che a slight nod, and immediately left the room.
“Come to me if you need anything else. I’m leaving now.”
Ning Lu winked at Su Che and called out before leaving, “I’m rooting for you!”
After the two left, Fei Yun softly said, “I’ve seen Senior Sister Ning Lu from Xuan Yuan Peak a few times, but that elder seemed like a girl…”
So, those two came in a hurry to remove the restriction from Fei Yun’s body and left just as quickly. Su Che didn’t even have time to introduce their identities to her.
Su Che smiled and asked, “Now that the restriction is gone, what are your plans?”
“I don’t have any plans,” Fei Yun sighed lightly. “At least for the next few years, I don’t want to return to my sect. By the way, has Senior Sister Zhen Zhen been rescued?”
“I don’t know,” Su Che shook his head. “I haven’t inquired about it.”
“Oh.”
Fei Yun gave him a complex look before silently lowering her head again.
After a brief hesitation, Su Che said, “Shouldn’t that emotion thread also be removed? Keeping it like this is unfair to you.”
“It’s too late.”
Fei Yun raised her head and smiled bitterly. “That emotion thread must be removed within a year, and it’s already been three years…”
Su Che was stunned and quickly asked, “How is that possible? Does that mean the thread will stay in my body forever?”
Fei Yun shook her head and replied, “That thread has long disappeared, which is why it can’t be removed… It won’t affect you at all; it only affects me…”
Hearing this, Su Che felt a little relieved but still worried for her. He asked, “Then why didn’t you tell me earlier?”
“Does it matter whether I tell you early or late?”
Fei Yun’s eyes moistened as she whispered, “During that critical year, I was trapped in the Illusion Demon Sect. How could I have found you to remove the thread?”
“This whole situation is…”
At this point, Su Che was speechless.

After waiting for a moment, he asked again, not giving up: “Is there no other way?”
“There is one, but it’s not much different from none,” Fei Yun explained. “Unless my cultivation reaches the Golden Core stage, and I can use my own magical power, I won’t be able to completely neutralize the effects of the Love Thread.”
“That’s fine too,” Su Che nodded. “Having a goal to strive for is not bad either.”