The vast expanses of Wu Province were comprised of deep mountains and valleys.
Scattered like pearls among them were the cities of the human tribes.
Chu Xuan used these cities as references to locate the three battlefields.
He had once visited the Plains City, which lay closer to Jin Province in the west.
To its southeast lay the White Water City.
Yinma Plain was situated in the central region of Wu Province.
Chu Xuan headed southward.
Half a day later, he arrived at Yinma Plain.
Upon arrival, he marveled at the sight.
The five righteous sects of the Yu Kingdom had long been unable to control the Yin Evil Qi in various locales.
Such a battlefield, heavy with resentment and malevolence, naturally attracted many demonic cultivators.
To them, it was as if a mouse had stumbled into a rice barrel.
However, the battlefield was vast, and the demonic cultivators were few.
Thus, each tacitly claimed a territory without dispute.
Furthermore, Qi Refining demonic cultivators occupied the periphery of the battlefield.
Those at the Foundation Establishment stage were within the inner circle.
Like wells and rivers, they did not interfere with each other.
Chu Xuan, exuding the aura of Foundation Establishment, advanced unchallenged.
He soon reached the inner circle of the battlefield.
Before long, he noticed a skirmish ahead.
At first glance, it seemed a group was ganging up on three individuals.
Upon closer inspection.
It was indeed a female cultivator controlling five corpse puppets, besieging three cultivators!
The female cultivator handled them with ease.
The three cultivators struggled to break through but could not penetrate the defenses of the corpse puppets.
Chu Xuan glanced over and couldn't help but smile.
This female cultivator was his former junior sister, Li Xiaoman.
She was one of the few heirs of the Corpse Puppet Sect.
Xu Ming once invited her to explore the Ghost Palace for treasures, but she declined.
At that time, Chu Xuan thought Xu Ming was a fool, while Li Xiaoman knew how to seek fortune and avoid disaster.
Indeed, she had survived.
In the blink of an eye, two early Foundation Establishment cultivators fell at the hands of the corpse puppets.
The last one stood alone, hard-pressed to support himself, and was personally captured by Li Xiaoman with her Yin Evil Demon Claw, knocked out on the spot.
It seemed she intended to capture him alive, to refine a powerful corpse general.
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Chu Xuan had no desire to reveal himself in her presence.
The Extreme Yin Cave was in name only.
He and Li Xiaoman were only named senior brother and junior sister, without the substance of that relationship.
There was no need to meet and reminisce.
"Who's there?" Li Xiaoman was on high alert, scanning her surroundings.
Chu Xuan disguised his voice to sound like an old man, "Young lady, this place is now claimed by this old man. Leave."
A surge of late Foundation Establishment energy vibrated through the area immediately.
Startled, Li Xiaoman, with the Foundation Establishment cultivator in tow, quickly retreated, saying, "Senior, please proceed, I shall not contend."
She affixed a Swift Travel Talisman to herself, and in the blink of an eye, she had vanished without a trace, fearing Chu Xuan might pursue her.
Such cleverness is what allows one to survive the longest.
Unfortunately, Li Xiaoman's talents were mediocre.
Unless she stumbled upon a great fortune, she would likely never touch the path of the Golden Core.
Chu Xuan swept through the inner circle of the battlefield, his late Foundation Establishment aura unabashedly emanating.
Wherever he passed, other Foundation Establishment demonic cultivators fled at the sight of him.
Soon, he was the only one left.
He sought out the place where the aura of Yin Evil was the strongest, and with the Chain, he created a large pit and buried himself inside it.
Around him, he set up powerful mist and defensive formations.
He then sat down in meditation, harnessing the resentment of a million lost souls to condense his Netherworld Dao Foundation!
Humming vibrations filled the air as the massive Evil Qi, as if drawn by a force, surged toward the center of the battlefield.
In the blink of an eye, a massive vortex of energy formed, resembling a terrifying specter devouring the malevolence.
In fact, this was the cunning aspect of the Netherworld Secret Core technique.
The step of condensing the Netherworld Dao Foundation was disguised to appear as if a malevolent ghost was absorbing the resentful energies, thus deterring many curious cultivators.
Malevolent spirits and wandering ghosts, alike, had no physical form, yet their offensive capabilities were formidable.
And they struck directly at the soul!
Few Foundation Establishment cultivators could withstand such an attack.
The demonic cultivators, scattered throughout the Yinma Plain battlefield, felt a chill run down their spines upon seeing the massive, sky-reaching vortex of malevolent energy.
One by one, they fled towards the outskirts of the battlefield.
Demonic cultivators are adept at seeking advantages and avoiding disadvantages.
At the slightest hint of trouble, they fled faster than anyone.
After all, there were plenty of mortal battlefields.
At most, the scale of deathly mortal energies could not compare to this place.
It was better to go elsewhere to draw upon the Yin Evil Qi.
Why linger here, fraught with danger and risking their lives?
Soon, the Yinma Plain battlefield was deserted.
Only some crows and vultures dared to swoop down and feast on the rotting flesh.
Meanwhile, at the center of the battlefield, Chu Xuan was frenziedly absorbing the Evil Qi.
Beneath his crown chakra, an inch down, his Netherworld Dao Foundation gradually took shape.
One day, two days, three days...
Time passed day by day.
Until a month later, the cold, secluded Netherworld Dao Foundation was finally fully formed.
At this moment, Chu Xuan's spirit surged, doubling in strength.
The entire Yinma Plain was within his perception!
He suddenly opened his eyes, his expression one of delight.
The Netherworld Dao Foundation was established, and a hundred thousand souls were gathered.
It was time to return to Blue Star to condense the Netherworld Soul Core!
He immediately piloted the Green Shadow Shuttle to a safe location, and from there, he used the Blood Mirror to return to Blue Star.
On the rooftop of the luxurious Haotai Hotel, with the ocean's expanse as his backdrop, Chu Xuan took out the Myriad Souls Banner and slowly released the hundred thousand souls.
These souls had almost no aggressiveness and simply stood still, looking blank and foolish.
Chu Xuan then proceeded to follow the method of the Netherworld Soul Core, activating his Netherworld Dao Foundation to absorb these souls.
The souls, unable to resist, became part of the Netherworld Dao Foundation.
After absorbing over a hundred souls, he felt a throbbing pain in his mind.
He had to stop and completely refine these souls.
What followed was a repetitive process.
Absorb, refine, rest, then absorb again, refine again, and rest again...
In the path of cultivation, time is inconsequential.
The days spent condensing the Netherworld Soul Core passed exceedingly fast.
In the blink of an eye, a year had passed.
Half of the hundred thousand souls collected by Chu Xuan were gone.
The Netherworld Dao Foundation was gradually transforming towards the form of a smooth, round core.
Meanwhile, back at the Yinma Plain battlefield.
A figure, flying without aid, arrived above the battlefield.
Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment cultivators needed magic tools to fly.
Only those at the Golden Core level and above could fly unaided.
The demonic cultivators below, upon seeing this figure, were immediately shocked and hurriedly fled.
A Golden Core powerhouse had arrived, and whether for good or ill, fleeing was the best response!
If it was a righteous powerhouse, they would surely annihilate these demonic cultivators.
If it was a demonic grandmaster, the outcome could be even worse, perhaps casually using them to make blood pills or soul pills.
A cold snort resonated from the sky, sounding like thunder.
In an instant, all the fleeing demonic cultivators exploded into a mist of blood.