Chapter 612: The True Spirit Stolen! The Foundation of the Soul! A Third Lady Hu!? The White Fox Worships the Moon!

“True spirit?” Li Yanchu asked, curious.

“That’s right. Within a person’s primordial spirit, there exists a trace of true spirit, but very few know about it. Even among cultivators, it is a hidden secret.”

“No matter how powerful a Soul Snare or Soul-Searching Technique is, it cannot reach the level of true spirit. It resides deep within the soul! I can see it with my innate divine ability, but I cannot touch it. This little girl’s true spirit... it’s gone. Someone has taken it.”

Minghe’s expression was extremely grave.

This matter was indeed a massive whirlpool; she felt that if they investigated further, they might lose everything here.

“What is this true spirit used for?” Li Yanchu asked.

“This true spirit is the foundation of a person’s primordial spirit. Without it, the person’s soul and spirit will collapse. In the past, some demonic cultivators were able to extract true spirit, but it took thousands of murders to obtain even a single fragment. The efficiency was so low that before it could mature, the cultivator would be executed by the righteous sects and the government, and that cultivation method was completely eradicated.

“According to ancient texts, true spirit can also be used to refine immortality pills. When consumed, they allow the person to ascend in broad daylight, and it can stabilize the soul.”

Minghe spoke slowly.

“This little girl was deceived. According to her story, her mother should have already been dead when she returned home. She touched a corpse, which is why her hands were so cold. As for why her mother appeared alive... it was either an illusion or corpse-control magic, designed to make the little girl willingly complete the transaction and hand over her true spirit completely.”

Li Yanchu’s mind moved as he analyzed the situation.

“This transaction is strange. If it had been completed from the start, the little girl shouldn’t have seen Lady Hu again. Her final appearance must have a special purpose, to ensure the transaction was fully completed.”

Minghe glanced at him, surprised at how quickly Li Yanchu had untangled the threads of such a complicated situation.

“The Lady Hu we saw had a protective spiritual light of merit, without a trace of malice, yet she is deeply connected to a Land Immortal, enough that even Celestial Master Zhao of Mount Longhu turns pale at the mention of her.”

“But the moment we left, someone in the temple looking exactly like her tricked the little girl into a transaction and took her true spirit. This matter reeks of evil,” Minghe said.

“Exactly. The two Lady Hus we’ve seen so far aren’t even the ones we were originally searching for. According to Zhou Yushu’s account, the one involved in the trade at Shanhai Tower was an enchanting woman, different from the Lady Hu we encountered,” Li Yanchu said, his hand resting on the hilt of his sword as he glared toward the Fox Immortal Lady’s temple.

“Could there really be a third Lady Hu?”

Minghe’s eyes showed deep thought, while Li Yanchu’s expression turned icy.

After hearing the little girl’s story, both of them were filled with murderous intent. Such manipulation of a person’s mind was punishable by death. It was far worse than merely devouring people!

“Strange. I was hidden in the Fox Immortal Lady’s temple all afternoon, but I didn’t see any unusual behavior among the devotees, nor any divine manifestations. Why did trouble only arise after we left?” Li Yanchu said coldly.

Minghe fell silent. Li Yanchu continued, “Celestial Master Zhao said that Land Immortals are experts in divining and calculating heavenly secrets. Even thinking their name can alert them. It’s very likely that a hidden hand has been controlling this matter from start to finish.”

“That’s terrifying. If we’re facing a Land Immortal... perhaps we should flee. Maybe there’d still be a chance,” Minghe said, her expression changing.

At that moment, a dignified woman emerged from the Fox Immortal Lady’s temple, her face kind and serene, radiating divine power from the incense offerings.

𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

Li Yanchu and Minghe exchanged a glance, suppressing their presence.

The woman emerging from the temple was Lady Hu.

Yet the two of them were unsure; was this the Lady Hu who had been tested by the Four Great Yang Spirit experts, or the one in the temple who had deceived Tian Xiaoling and stolen her true spirit?

Li Yanchu pondered for a moment and decided to follow quietly to see what was happening.

Minghe followed right behind him.

Both of them had the means to conceal their presence, so the dignified, compassionate aura of the Fox Immortal Lady went completely unnoticed. They trailed her to a remote mountain outside the city.

It was a solitary peak, jutting up from the earth like a giant finger. The Fox Immortal Lady walked a few steps lightly, yet moved across the lone peak as if walking on flat ground. After a few more steps, she completely vanished from sight.

Li Yanchu and Minghe followed silently, observing her every move. Once she disappeared, they did not panic but instead used their divine abilities to trace her whereabouts.

However, there was no sign of her anywhere on the mountain.

As they searched the peak, Minghe suddenly pointed behind Li Yanchu, eyes wide with shock.

“Look!”

Li Yanchu turned, and on the summit of the solitary peak hung a full moon, its light cold and beautiful. But beneath the moon was a white fox, hands clasped together, praying to the moon.

In the soft, hazy moonlight, an invisible force seemed to spill down from above.

“A white fox worshipping the moon!” Minghe was astonished.

Li Yanchu was equally stunned. Could it be that the Fox Immortal Lady had manifested her true form here to cultivate?

He shifted on his toes, leaving several afterimages as he sped toward the mountain. The white fox was fully focused on worshipping the moon, absorbing the power of the moon. Each inhale and exhale followed proper Daoist cultivation techniques.

Li Yanchu and Minghe advanced, but the white fox suddenly opened its eyes. Those eyes with human-like shape flashed with murderous intent.

Minghe immediately let out a cold snort, chest tightening.

Li Yanchu, however, felt nothing physically and instead took out the Eight Trigrams Mirror, using it to observe the moon-worshipping white fox.

A clear image appeared in the mirror. The aura from this white fox was immense. If a high-level Daoist or Buddhist master encountered it, they could be enlightened.

Li Yanchu’s gaze turned icy as he studied the mirror. He had previously observed the Lady Hu he knew. That Lady Hu’s true body was also a white fox, but it was surrounded by an aura of merit and virtue, a pure, harmless mountain cultivator.

This fox, however, radiated a faint bloodthirsty aura, its resentment reaching the heavens. This was a predatory, murderous spirit.

“This is the Lady Hu who traded with Tian Xiaoling,” Li Yanchu said in a deep voice.

He did not approach this strange Lady Hu. Instead, he took out the Wind God Bow, an immensely powerful and imposing weapon.

Li Yanchu drew the string, releasing an aura of ancient, heavy authority. A dazzling, forceful arrow materialized.

Whoosh!

The piercing sound tore through the air; the arrow had already surpassed the speed of sound. Before the sound even registered, the arrow had reached the white fox’s neck.

Li Yanchu’s first strike was a killing blow.