Chapter Forty-Nine: Encirclement

"Ah... that's better..."
The Elder of Bone Burial devoured the wild boar, and the wounds within his body were somewhat soothed; his entire aura grew noticeably stronger.
"One single beast isn't enough."
"I must continue!"
Deeply aware of his perilous predicament, the Elder of Bone Burial's expression was grim.
"If I consume a few more of these monsters, not only will my injuries heal, but even my cultivation realm will recover somewhat. By then, I will no longer need to fear these cultivators!"
Beset on all sides by the cultivators of the Azure Palace, the Elder of Bone Burial moved with utmost caution, his face shadowed with deep concern.
His figure darted through the endless mountain ranges, always searching for demonic beasts.
Though he knew that devouring monsters was far less effective than consuming cultivators—and would leave impurities in his form—he had no other choice at this point.
He ceaselessly hunted for beasts, striking with concealed force, killing them, swallowing their vital blood, and using it to mend his wounds.
Relying on high-grade spells, the Elder of Bone Burial concealed himself well. With each passing moment, whenever he spotted a beast, his strikes were merciless.
...
"This Golden-Horned Boar is a first-rank high-tier beast, power comparable to a cultivator at the ninth level of Qi Refinement. It would be troublesome to kill for now; I'll spare it."
...
"This Wind-Chasing Wolf is only first-rank low-tier, much easier to kill and perfect for me to devour."
...
"And this Velvet-Antler Deer, first-rank mid-tier, gentle in nature—the most nourishing of all."
...
Like a ghost haunting the mountains, the Elder of Bone Burial wandered ceaselessly, searching for every beast he could consume.
As he devoured more and more, his aura surged ever higher.
"Once I swallow this Green-Eyed Serpent, my cultivation realm should return to the Foundation Establishment stage!"
On a secluded mountain path, the Elder of Bone Burial grasped a jade-green demonic serpent in his hand, emitting a sinister cackle.
Just as he began to channel his spell, preparing to form the seals to devour the Green-Eyed Serpent, a tracking spell discovered his presence.
A streak of rainbow light flashed from above, illuminating him directly.
"The body-snatcher is here!"
A cultivator from the Azure Palace, following the arc of light, spotted the hidden Elder of Bone Burial and shouted instinctively.
In the blink of an eye, Xiang Yunqian arrived with a group of disciples.

"Take him! Don't let him consume the Green-Eyed Serpent!"
Xiang Yunqian saw that the Elder of Bone Burial's aura was even more powerful than before, realizing he had restored his strength through some sinister art by devouring monsters. Her face turned ashen.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
As her command rang out, the Azure Palace disciples poured their spiritual energy into the formation.
Under Xiang Yunqian's direction, the intricate and profound spell array conjured a storm of terrifying thunderbolts.
These thunderclaps, like crazed azure dragons, carried the force of annihilation and crashed down upon the Elder of Bone Burial, threatening to utterly destroy him.
"Hmph, only now do you realize where I am? Too late!"
Seeing this, the Elder of Bone Burial's face darkened, but with swift reflexes he swallowed the Green-Eyed Serpent whole.
In that moment, his aura exploded upward once more, as if shattering a barrier, and finally reached its peak.
His cultivation was restored to the Foundation Establishment stage!
"Kekeke... At last, I've returned to the Foundation Establishment realm!"
"You cultivators, prepare to die!"
Controlling the burly body of the Azure Palace man, the Elder of Bone Burial's face twisted into a savage grin.
His fingers formed seals, channeling spiritual power like converging streams into a protective barrier.
Crack—
Thunder crashed and the barrier shattered instantly, but it had managed to blunt much of the bolts' destructive force.
With a casual wave, the Elder of Bone Burial condensed a spear of spiritual energy, shattering the remaining thunderbolts.
"Now, it's my turn to hunt you..."
He licked his lips, his expression growing ever more violent.
In a flash, he appeared before Xiang Yunqian and said coldly, "Prepare to die!"
As he spoke, a host of ghostly skulls manifested around him.
Each skull wore a twisted sneer, blotting out the sky as they surged toward the Azure Palace cultivators in relentless waves.
Twisting among this terrifying tide of ghostly apparitions were wraiths, slithering from the void—distorted, immaterial, saturated with chilling yin energy that made their cries pierce the soul.
Ah! Ah! Ah!
In the midst of those dreadful howls, the spiritual senses of the Azure Palace cultivators were grievously wounded, and they screamed in agony.
They stood like fools, dazed and motionless, their life force rapidly withering, as if being devoured.
As the wave of ghosts swept through, the ancient green trees of the mountains withered to yellow husks, life force sucked away, and even the surrounding monsters were left as dried husks.

Seizing the moment as the Azure Palace cultivators reeled from the wraiths' assault, the host of ghosts pressed their attack, seeking to annihilate the Azure Palace entirely.
"Spirit, blood, unite!"
Seeing her disciples all afflicted, Xiang Yunqian's face was grim, but she desperately activated the formation, gathering her disciples' spiritual senses and vitality to resist the onslaught of the undead.
At the same time, she used the array to call down thunderbolts again, hoping to shatter the ghosts and wraiths.
But the Elder of Bone Burial's cultivation was simply too high.
The ghosts and wraiths he summoned seemed indestructible; no matter how many bolts Xiang Yunqian conjured, they could not be dispersed.
"Heh, all of you—just die!"
"You dared to hunt me, so be prepared to meet your end!"
The Elder of Bone Burial's face was twisted with cruelty as he unleashed a terrifying spiritual assault, intent on shattering Xiang Yunqian's spirit entirely.
But at that moment of crisis—
"All disciples, heed my command—cast the Immortal's Ashes!"
With all her strength, Xiang Yunqian used the array to break her disciples' stupor, returning them to clarity.
She quickly ordered everyone to cast out the ashes from the sacrificial incense.
"Tch! At death's door and still clinging to this nonsense about Immortal's Ashes saving you? What a farce."
The Elder of Bone Burial sneered and laughed wildly at the order.
Through his possession, he was already familiar with the Azure Palace's history and past events.
But to him, it was all fabrication.
What sect did not claim a celestial ancestor in its past?
The Azure Palace's old tales only made the Elder of Bone Burial want to laugh.
Some ancient banished immortal personally intervening to save these mere Qi Refinement disciples at their darkest hour?
Some ancient immortal guiding them across the sea?
As he saw it, only fools believed such things.
After thousands of years of bitter cultivation, he had never seen an immortal and refused to believe such beings existed.
Especially those said to have merged with the Way of Heaven—surely just wild boasts, not to be believed at all.
He figured that the burly man he had possessed must have been thoroughly brainwashed to buy into such nonsense.
So, when he saw Xiang Yunqian leading her people to scatter the sacrificial ashes, the Elder of Bone Burial only smirked in disdain.