The Emperor's Domineering Favor, the Evil Consort's Unparalleled Reign

I heard that Cheng Dongye died in the war between humans and ghosts a long time ago. How could I have seen the real Cheng Dongye in the cave in Dongye Mountain?!

A burst of spiritual light accompanied an old man with white hair and beard, shooting towards Ying Li and Yi Bicheng. The two men were shocked and had no time to react before the old man was already in front of them!

"Uh!" Ying Li groaned subconsciously and took a few steps back, but he didn't feel any harm at all.

With a "whoosh!", the white-haired old man's body passed through Ying Li's body and rushed towards the other side! This happened repeatedly for a long time, the old man blankly repeating the same action, without stopping for a long time.

“It’s a spiritual consciousness. This old man’s body has perished after death, but his spiritual consciousness remains. I just don’t know if he is Cheng Dongye, the patriarch of Winter Night Manor!” Ying Li said, his eyes showing more respect as he looked at the old man. Although Cheng Bo and the others were somewhat pretentious, Cheng Dongye was indeed a true Spirit Gathering Master.

"Girl, look there!" Yi Bicheng pointed to a large circular array not far away, her face filled with shock and fear. There was a huge, circular black pit not far away, covered in runes. Upon closer inspection, the runes were somewhat similar to those Ying Li had just created. Could this also be a malfunctioning array?

Ying Li looked in the direction Yi Bicheng was pointing, and her eyelids twitched. It was indeed a malfunctioning array. There was such a huge malfunctioning array on Dongye Mountain. If the spirit guide inside were to appear, even the entire Dongye Mountain would probably be reduced to dust.

“Girl, this old man must be Cheng Dongye. Although he is now only a wisp of spiritual consciousness, his spiritual power is still in the stage of opening the Spirit Lord. Can you see that he is circulating in this cave? The spiritual power in his body is constantly weakening, while the great formation is also rapidly strengthening, as if it is suppressing the spiritual guide inside, preventing the other party from breaking out of the spirit-disrupting formation!” The bewitching man saw the scene in front of him in the bone ring and understood a bit.

Just as Ying Li was reacting, a sudden gust of wind swept through the cave, and another white figure appeared. Another old man sped past, and his appearance was somewhat similar to Cheng Dongye's. He too was circling the circular array, his spiritual energy constantly weakening, while the array itself was rapidly strengthening.

"Could this be Cheng Ye?" Ying Li asked. Before the alluring man could answer, a cacophony of fighting sounds erupted both inside and outside the cave, creating a deafening din.

Ying Li looked at the circular black array, and saw monster heads continuously emerging from it. They slowly burst out of the array, staring menacingly at Ying Li and Yi Bicheng standing in the cave. These were undoubtedly the monsters she and Yi Bicheng had fought recently, only now each monster wielded a black Xuan Iron sword, making them far more powerful than the ones they had encountered earlier!

The fighting outside the cave suddenly stopped. A cold wind blew by, and a group of people had already entered the cave. Ying Li and Yi Bicheng were caught between pursuers in front and tigers behind, and there was no way to escape.

The monster that Ying Li had just captured to be used as a spirit guide was far too weak for Cheng Bo. It might be able to deal with ordinary people, but it was basically useless against Cheng Bo. Therefore, it was not difficult for Ying Li to guess that Cheng Bo's arrival was only a momentary event.

As expected, Cheng Bo and the others blocked the cave entrance, looking at Ying Li and Yi Bicheng with smug expressions. For some reason, the monster stopped attacking when it saw Cheng Bo and the others arrive, as if waiting for some command.

"Cheng Bo, what exactly do you want? What is your purpose in forcing us to this point?!" Yi Bicheng pulled Ying Li aside, with the Northern Red Plum Fan standing behind them, and coldly addressed Cheng Bo.

Cheng Bo spread his hands, looking at the two white spiritual lights in the cave, a shadow forming in his eyes. "As you can see, it's naturally to release the spirit guide of this malfunctioning array. Could it be that you didn't know this even after you got into this cave?"

"I estimate this is where Cheng Dongye died in the battle between humans and ghosts. He used the unkillable ghosts as spiritual guides to set up a spirit-dispelling array, suppressing them with his life's spiritual power. Later generations have followed suit, and even Cheng Ye's generation continues to suppress these spiritual guides. As for why there are only two spiritual consciousnesses here, it's probably because over time, those consciousnesses have dissipated. Cheng Bo invites others to Dongye Manor every year to gather spiritual herbs, probably to use another kind of blood curse to weaken the power of the spirit-dispelling array!" Ying Li's eyes turned cold as he spoke all his guesses.

She had sensed something was wrong earlier. The stench of blood in the cave was too strong, especially around the outer edge of the circular array. Although there were no corpses, the smell of blood was particularly strong and fresh. The runes on the outer edge were wrapped in layers of another strange pattern, using fresh blood as a guide to draw blood into the array and disrupt its harmony and stability.

The beginner's book of spirits briefly mentioned two pages of blood curses, but because they were too bloody, it didn't go into much detail. Now that I think about it again, what Cheng Bo did was undoubtedly a blood curse!

“The Blood Curse requires lives. Those who went missing or died on Dongye Mountain in the past were probably killed by Cheng Bo! The bandits of Chenjia Village took the blame for Cheng Bo. This year is probably the year the magic array is broken, so he destroyed Chenjia Village completely.” Seeing that Cheng Bo did not confirm or deny, Ying Li knew that what she said was true.

Cheng Bo also revealed an appreciative smile, looking at the steward behind him, seemingly very satisfied that he had brought Ying Li into Winter Night Manor.

"What do you need that spirit guide for?" Yi Bicheng asked the most crucial question. Cheng Bo snorted coldly, and his spiritual power suddenly surged. "You talk too much!"

After saying that, the group of monsters, along with Cheng Bo and the others, attacked Ying Li and Yi Bicheng!

Ying Li and Yi Bicheng were startled and quickly moved towards the center. Unexpectedly, Yi Bicheng stepped into the malfunction array. His face turned ashen, and a tingling sensation kept coming from his feet.

At the same time, Cheng Bo was overjoyed and struck the malfunctioning array with his right hand. With a loud "boom", the two spiritual consciousnesses gradually dissipated as Cheng Bo continued to strike the malfunctioning array, and finally disappeared into the cave. There was no longer any spiritual power to bind the malfunctioning array.

"Not good!" Ying Li grabbed Yi Bicheng, who was sinking deeper and deeper, and forcefully pulled him away from the malfunctioning array. Just as Ying Li saved him, a black wolf suddenly appeared in the center of the malfunctioning array. It stood on blood-red clouds and looked at the people in the cave. Its face was ferocious and bloodthirsty. Its yellowish eyes kept scanning Cheng Bo and the others. Salty saliva dripped from its mouth, and the fur on its back stood up, as if it could attack at any moment.

Upon seeing the black wolf, the monster bowed down in submission, gripping the black iron sword, its chilling aura intensifying.

"Spirit Guide Wolf Hunter, your master now is me, Cheng Bo, the current master of Winter Night Manor. I am the one who guided you out of the Spirit Loss Array. From now on, you will obey my orders and fight and die for me! My first order as your master is to kill the woman and the boy in front of you!" Cheng Bo's face was filled with a bloodthirsty laugh. He had spent fifteen years killing countless people and suffering countless losses before he could release the Spirit Guide today.

If the spirit guide in the malfunctioning array is taken by the new master, all the past will be wiped out, and the spirit will become the new master's lackey, willing to go through fire and water for him. This is probably why Cheng Bo wants to release the spirit guide.

As long as he can use this spiritual guide, he will surely be able to make Winter Night Manor surpass the glory created by his predecessors, and no one will ever look down on him again!

Cold sweat poured down Ying Li and Yi Bicheng's faces; they were now certain to die! Yi Bicheng gripped Ying Li's hand tightly. They were sworn brothers, and now he and Ying Li were dying here together. Their only regret was that they couldn't go out to save the woman. He felt a pang of sorrow, but no fear.

Ying Li, too, was preoccupied with Yin Huan, her gratitude unrepayed, yet she never imagined she would die here. "To die without even knowing your name seems rather unjust," Ying Li quipped, trying to sound cheerful.

The alluring man remained silent. How could Ying Li possibly die here?! No, she absolutely cannot die!

"howl!"

"Ugh!"

The cave reeked of blood. Everyone, including the monsters, was stunned. Suddenly, the wolf became enraged and bit down hard on Cheng Bo's throat! Blood sprayed all over the mountain wall. Cheng Bo's neck was in the wolf's mouth. His body swayed in the air, limp and falling. Blood bubbles kept coming out of his mouth, and his eyes were wide open. Finally, the wolf suddenly flung him, and his neck snapped. He fell to the ground, lifeless.

Everyone, including the steward, held their breath. Even the spirit mage who created the Winter Night Manor illusion was trembling with fear. Such a spirit summoning technique was something even a hundred spirit mages like him couldn't subdue. No one dared to move. Ying Li and Yi Bicheng stood at a distance, watching the suddenly defecting wolf-hunting spirit summoning technique with indescribable surprise.

The wolf leaped and shrank until it was only the size of an adult tiger. It glanced at Ying Li, then lay down at his feet, appearing docile.

The situation took a complete 360-degree turn; the wolf hunter actually recognized Ying Li as its master!

It was absolutely shocking! Ying Li was equally caught off guard. She looked at Yi Bicheng, who, while surprised, suddenly thought, "Girl, you set up the Disillusionment Array outside, and then saw the Blood Curse inside this cave. In the chaos just now, you and I were in the center of the Disillusionment Array. Naturally, the wolf hunters would treat you as their master. Cheng Bo planned everything, but he never expected that the person he wanted to kill would become the master of the wolf hunters. He himself died at the hands of the wolf hunters he released. How ironic!"

"Now, girl, you've become the master of this wolf hunt. What do you want now?" Yi Bicheng's eyes sharpened as he coldly looked at the person in the cave. His voice was filled with coldness and frost. These people had committed heinous crimes, and in the end, they only got what they deserved!

Ying Li looked at the wolf at her feet, then glanced at the villains from the mountain village blocking the cave entrance. A slight smile appeared on her lips. She bent down and gently stroked the wolf's head, saying calmly, "I want the entire Winter Night Mountain to disappear from now on."