Demon Taming: Start by synthesizing a Lantern Ghost with Divine and Demonic Talents

Chapter 75, Section 74: The Array Spirit (Seeking monthly votes!)
Dark clouds hung heavy over the Forest of Decaying Trees, blocking out all sunlight. The forest was filled with withered, black tree trunks, stubbornly standing despite their apparent decay. Swamps and swamps covered the ground, constantly emitting wisps of miasma. The entire space was deathly silent, filled with a sinister atmosphere—truly befitting its reputation as a ferocious place within the Ghost Mist Canyon.

This mission was a rare assignment-based team collaboration task.

Li Chunfeng was usually cautious and would typically choose second-tier team missions, which offered generous rewards and were not too dangerous.

He only occasionally takes on a few Tier 3 missions that are relatively easy for him to handle.

However, this mission was proactively assigned by the 'Spirit of the Canyon City'.

He was just an ordinary citizen, and he was quite puzzled when he received the notification.

'Array Spirits' are a unique feature of the Earthly Realm.

Various imperial academies, Taoist palaces, Taoist colleges, major forces, and renowned research institutions are all developing their own 'array spirits'.

Nowadays, the application technology of 'Array Spirits' is already very sophisticated in the Earthly Realm, involving many important fields such as virtual networks, public transportation, and regional defense. The people of the Earthly Realm cannot do without the presence of 'Array Spirits' in their daily lives.

The 'array spirits' within the cities of the Ghost Realm naturally originate from the Celestial Court.

The Celestial Court, by pooling the power of many forces, created a spirit from the remnants of an ancient Zhou Tian Star Array. Named the 'Zhou Tian Array Spirit,' it is of the ninth rank and possesses extremely high computational capabilities and intelligence.

The array spirits within the various cities of the Ghost Realm are all avatars of the 'Zhou Tian Array Spirit'.

Even if the computational power of the Canyon City's array spirit is not as good as that of the main body, it is impossible for it to issue missions that send people to their deaths.

Conversely, if the array spirit takes the initiative to come to him, it at least proves that he has caught the array spirit's eye.

When selecting a candidate for a mission, the spirit will consider multiple factors, including the overall strength and qualities of each person in the mission hall, to determine if you are qualified to accept the mission.

In terms of pure cultivation level, Li Chunfeng was naturally not qualified to take on this mission, but his workload in recent months had been off the charts, and his completion rate had been consistently extremely high, making him comparable to a large second-tier team on his own. He also had quite a few third-tier missions.

Thanks to the trainee inspector token, his mission evaluations were always quite high.

Perhaps these factors led to his overall score being raised in the Spirit Array's calculation system, which is why he was assigned this task as well.

Of course.

He was still young and did not work in any government department, nor had he served in the military.

He can choose to accept or reject this task, but he cannot reveal the details of the task before it is completed, otherwise he will be subject to military law.

Despite the extremely demanding conditions, Li Chunfeng still eagerly came over, naturally because the rewards for this mission were exceptionally generous.

"A magical artifact embryo, 100,000 battle merits, and third-tier spiritual materials."

These three things alone are enough to motivate 99% of the cultivators in Canyon City.

The abyssal energy emanating from Li Chunfeng is growing increasingly dense, indicating that he is about to undergo the abyssal tribulation.

If we can obtain the Emperor's Elixir before the third Abyss Tribulation, then our chances of becoming a god in this Abyss Tribulation will undoubtedly be much greater.

Outside, the sun had just set, but below the canyon, darkness had fallen much earlier. From the outside, the entire Rotten Wood Forest appeared desolate in the last rays of the sun, with gusts of eerie wind blowing through the woods. As the sky grew darker, swarms of lantern ghosts rose from all corners of the jungle.

Li Chunfeng crouched in the darkness, not making any sudden movements.

The nine-lived cat demon remained nestled in the crook of his neck, its long tail curled up. The white cloud spirit peeked out from his sleeve, its eyes darting around.

'Invisibility through thought!'

The longer he squats, the less noticeable his presence becomes.

At this moment, in a grove of trees about three miles outside the agreed-upon location, a man in gray was flying low in the air on a sword. His flying sword was of extremely high grade, and when he flew, the sword light was dim and invisible, and he moved nimbly among the giant trees with extremely smooth and fluid movements.

Finally, he leaped onto the branch of a dark locust tree that would take ten people to encircle, lay prone, and remained motionless without making a sound.

Li Chunfeng saw it clearly and felt a chill in his heart. "Flying on a sword requires at least the Divine Embryo Realm cultivation level."

Before long, another figure appeared.

They stopped about ten feet in front of the locust tree where the gray-clad man had stopped. There was a crystal-clear stream that meandered through the woods. The water sometimes splashed against the rocks, making a melodious gurgling sound.

The burly man, with his back to the man in gray, was squatting by the stream, bringing his mouth close to the water and drinking it in large gulps, looking extremely pleased with himself.

"A martial arts master? They can even drink the water from Ghost Mist Canyon... How uncouth." The gray-clad man curled his lip.

The burly man, with two swords tucked behind his back, exuded a bold and unrestrained air, embodying the spirit of a hero who would drink and sing, unaware of the fleeting nature of life. After drinking the water, he even washed his face, completely oblivious to the fact that the stream had soaked his clothes and the front of his shirt.

The man in gray remained motionless, his aura growing increasingly faint, almost imperceptible.

Even his divine senses contracted on their own, and his gaze shifted away from the burly man.

Because he knew that the expert in front of him was no ordinary person. Although his blood and qi were restrained, in his perception, he was still like a condensed sun, whose blood and qi alone could easily dilute any approaching spiritual thoughts.

Even just focusing your gaze on such a martial arts master can raise your guard.

Before the autumn wind stirs, the cicadas sense it; a sudden, unpredictable attack leads to death without warning.

Despite his arrogance—being one of the top ten graduating students of Biyou Palace Academy and ranking sixteenth on the Earthly Fiend List—Xu Changliu had to suppress his pride and act cautiously upon arriving in the chaotic Ghost Realm.

He was trying to figure out the big man's identity.

Suddenly, a warning signal arose in his mind, and the figure of the burly man vanished from his perception for a moment.

An ordinary person would likely have overlooked it, thinking they were being overly sensitive. Xu Changliu, however, reacted decisively, remaining calm under pressure. He drew a rune in the air with his finger, and in the next instant, a blade fell fiercely, striking a wooden stake. The stake silently shattered into dust, and Xu Changliu had vanished. "A substitution technique, not bad."

The big man was just testing the waters and didn't make any further moves.

Xu Changliu's figure appeared ten meters behind him. "Your speed is impressive. I almost couldn't keep up."

"Your expression doesn't suggest you're caught off guard."

The burly man didn't care. "Feng Yang, a Blood Refining Ninth-Level Martial Master."

He then took out a token.

"Xu Changliu, a cultivator at the third stage of the Divine Embryo Refinement." They both took out their mission tokens and confirmed that they were teammates.

Feng Yang nodded in acknowledgment, which was considered a preliminary acceptance of this temporary teammate.

"There are five teammates on this trip. Haven't the others arrived yet?"

"Perhaps it has already arrived."

As they spoke, the two of them turned to look at the water.

A puff of transparent liquid rose from the water, slowly coalescing into a human shape on the shore. The figure gradually became clearer, transforming into the image of a young man dressed in a flying bear suit.

"What a brilliant water escape technique."

Then, on a rotten tree not far away, a tender bud suddenly sprouted, and in an instant, the bud formed a strange flower bud. As soon as the flower bloomed, a woman wearing a straw hat jumped out of the bud.

The other three exchanged glances and were all amazed by this ingenious escape technique.

"Where is the other person?"

"Aim~"

A cat's meow sent a chill down Feng Yang's spine, and he nearly drew his sword. "Such powerful demonic energy!"

Li Chunfeng, carrying the howling nine-lives cat demon, jumped down from the tree. Compared to the flamboyant entrances of the others, his seemed rather ordinary.

"Oh, you're the fifth one."

Li Chunfeng nodded to Su Bai, not expecting to run into him on this mission.

"Let's get to know each other." Feng Yang gave the cat a meaningful look.

He started with himself again, introducing himself once more: "My name is Feng Yang, a martial artist at the ninth level of Blood Refinement, proficient in swordsmanship and movement techniques. I am the only martial artist on this trip, but if needed, I can lead the charge."

“I know you, Feng Yang, the Thunderbolt Saber, a direct disciple of Guan Yu, the Heavenly Saber Saint. I heard you studied the Saber Saint’s Thunder Prison Saber Scripture. I wonder what level you’ve reached?” Su Bai picked up where he left off and asked another question.

Feng Yang said, "I am of dull talent, and I have only mastered the Thunder Prison Blade Scripture to the sixth level so far."

Upon hearing this, everyone couldn't help but turn their heads.

Aside from Li Chunfeng, who was somewhat bewildered, the others had all heard of the Thunder Prison Blade Scripture. Furthermore, with the Blade Saint personally teaching them, and having mastered even the Heavenly Rank Blade Technique to the sixth level, Feng Yang's presence on this mission would increase the mission's success rate by thirty percent.

Su Bai cupped his hands to everyone and introduced himself: "I am Su Bai, a sixth-stage Divine Embryo cultivator, and my natal demonic pet is the Water-Avoiding Golden-Eyed Beast."

"Water-Avoiding Golden-Eyed Beast! Are you a member of the Su family of the East Sea?" Xu Changliu asked.

"That's right. I currently work at the Sky Patrol Division, just trying to make a living."

Xu Changliu nodded in greeting and introduced himself: "Xu Changliu, a student at the Biyou Palace Academy, a cultivator at the third stage of the Divine Embryo Refinement. My natal demonic pets are Sword Butterfly and Green Ox."

His status as a member of the Imperial Academy inevitably drew everyone's attention to him for a moment longer.

The only woman glanced at Li Chunfeng first, and after confirming that he did not intend to speak first, she gave a slight bow to everyone and said, "My name is Chi Xuancai, a cultivator at the third level of Divine Embryo Refinement, and my natal demon pet is the Illusionary Void Flower. My demon pet is not good at fighting, and I do not understand why it was chosen by the array spirit to carry out this mission."

Su Bai, being knowledgeable and experienced, said, "Fellow Daoist Chi is too modest. I have also heard of the Illusionary Void Flower. It is said that this flower is a rare spiritual flower belonging to both the wood and space attributes, possessing the miraculous effect of spatial teleportation, and is extremely difficult for people to obtain. Fellow Daoist Chi is truly fortunate to have managed to contract the Illusionary Void Flower as a demon pet."

The Way of Space!

Everyone recalled Chi Xuancai's entrance earlier. Feng Yang was fine, as he was focused on martial arts, but the other cultivators, including Li Chunfeng, couldn't help but feel envious.

Xu Changliu said, "With our friends from the Red River here, at least we have nothing to worry about."

Several people nodded together.

Chi Xuancai did not refuse, saying, "If we are in danger, I can guarantee that everyone will be safely evacuated back to Canyon City."

Only Li Chunfeng remained.

Although he was quite tall, his slender frame and youthful appearance were undeniable. The small patch of dark hair on his lips, clearly a newly grown mustache, added to his unexpectedly composed demeanor, while his entire being exuded youthfulness.

"Li Chunfeng, early stage of the Burning Lamp Realm, has just lit the Lamp of Life Soul. His natal demon pet is the Lantern Ghost."

Lantern Ghost?
Several of them suspected that there was something wrong with their ears.

Feng Yang couldn't help but look at the white cat in his arms again.

(End of this chapter)