After the gaze of the Han cultivator shifted away, Chu Xuan finally relaxed the grip on his clenched right hand. His sixth sense was particularly sharp, perceiving the other's stare immediately.
However, since the cultivator neither followed nor harbored any murderous intent, Chu Xuan felt no need to act. "He knows his place," he thought.
Leaving the teahouse, Chu Xuan quickly located Chen Ge at a stall. A gloomy aura surrounded Bao, who stood beside Chen Ge, conspicuous among the Qi Refining stage cultivators present, yet no one dared to provoke him.
The presence of this corpse general deterred all but the foolhardy from causing any trouble for Chen Ge, who was now quite pleased with himself. He had visited this unnamed market several times before, but never treated it as well as today.
Upon seeing Chu Xuan, Chen Ge quickly rose and whispered, "Uncle Master."
Chu Xuan nodded slightly, glancing over the stall to see that most items had been sold. "I'll leave the rest to you. I'm heading back to my cave abode now. After everything is sold, he will escort you to my abode," he casually motioned towards Bao.
"Yes!" Chen Ge nodded earnestly.
Chu Xuan left the nameless market, circled a few times to ensure no one was following, and then soared into the sky with his flying sword, returning to the Water Curtain Cave. Upon arriving, he immediately activated the Blood Mirror to travel to the zombie planet.
In the past, traversing between worlds required waiting for the Blood Mirror's energy to replenish. However, with his increasingly substantial resources, Chu Xuan could now expedite the energy recharge using spiritual stones.
At the Haotai Hotel rooftop, Chu Xuan spread out the Illustrated Guide to Demonic Arrays and studied them meticulously. His talent in formation arts was average—neither poor nor exceptional—but his willingness to dedicate effort to this craft had earned him considerable proficiency.
Previously, he had slain Huikong and acquired a book from Huikong's storage bag, the Foundation Establishment Stage Array Formations Detailed Analysis. This book contained only partial arrays for the Foundation Establishment stage, primarily from the Divine Star Sect and Golden Dragon Temple, marked by a strong orthodox sect influence, which Chu Xuan found inapplicable.
However, formation arts were universally applicable; understanding one could unlock others. By studying deeply, he unearthed many subtleties.
Now, revisiting the Illustrated Guide to Demonic Arrays with his prior knowledge surfacing, he quickly gained new insights.
"So that's it... This is the secret to nurturing evil array. The first step is to kill the beings within it. The second step is to combine the resentment of the beings with Yin Qi to cultivate Yin Evil Qi. I already have the formation for the second step, only the first is missing."
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Chu Xuan followed the diagrams and soon selected the formation best suited for his needs: the Soul Capturing Array. This array, a premium Qi Refining stage formation, was typically inscribed on surfaces of magical tools like copper bells or chimes. Upon sounding, it could captivate the soul, seizing the initiative in battle.
Chu Xuan planned to integrate the Soul Capturing Array with the Nurturing Evil Array. Within this range, the souls of living beings would be extracted, leading to their death.
The resultant resentment and Yin Qi would amalgamate, forming Yin Evil Qi. These souls, transformed under the influence of Yin Evil Qi into ghosts, would gradually strengthen. Over time, these ghosts would bolster his Myriad Souls Banner—a win-win indeed. He wins twice!
Without hesitation, Chu Xuan entered the nascent Yin Evil Soul Capturing Formation, harvesting the fledgling ghosts into his Myriad Souls Banner, then dismantling the formation to replan its position.
With East Lake City now largely free of zombies, he chose not to set the formation there. Instead, after circling the area with his Heavenly Star flying sword, he selected Two Dragons City near East Lake City.
In the southern region of Two Dragons City lay a human forbidden zone, a paradise for killer bees. Under the queen bee's command, they relentlessly hunted all living things in the area.
Any human who strayed into their territory was quickly reduced to bones, leaving scarcely any remains. The survivors' camps around Two Dragons City, terrified of this place, had long since relocated further away. Yet, what was a fearsome wasteland to survivors was a treasure trove to Chu Xuan.
"Killer bees... excellent!" Chu Xuan mused. "The queen should be prolific. I hope she can produce enough killer bees before being slain by the formation."
Chu Xuan cast all his formation flags, swiftly enveloping the southern area of Two Dragons City with an invisible barrier. The range of his new formation now spanned 100 square kilometers, covering an entire district of Two Dragons City, far surpassing the scope of the previous Yin Evil Soul Snatching Array.
"Let's call it the Soul-Capturing Evil-Nurturing Array," he decided, opting for a straightforward combination of the terms for soul-capturing and nurturing evil. After all, it was a traditional way among formation predecessors to name their creations.
Once activated, the array began to emit a terrifying Yin Qi. Chu Xuan tossed the ghosts from his Myriad Souls Banner into it. The killer bees within the formation's range quickly became disoriented, plummeting to the ground where they died swiftly.
Their weak souls were rapidly extracted by the array. The resentment and Yin Qi generated from their sudden deaths swiftly interacted, condensing into a formidable Yin Evil Qi.
The stronger killer bees were slain by the ghosts, turning the area into a veritable ghost realm. Everywhere lay the souls of killer bees; everywhere roamed the ghosts. In time, a vast harvest of Yin Evil Qi would be ready.
Chen Ge quietly waited outside at the Water Curtain Cave until the mist cleared, revealing a pathway. He hurried in and immediately saw Chu Xuan standing by a small lake.
"Uncle Master Chu, as you commanded, all the items have been sold," he reported. "Here are all the earnings." Chen Ge respectfully handed over a storage bag.
Chu Xuan inspected it. Over two thousand small spiritual stones piled up like a small mountain—he had estimated a maximum of thirteen hundred. The selling price had far exceeded his expectations. It seemed that the cultivators were indeed desperate to enhance their power, resorting to any means necessary, even demonic methods.
"Good, according to our agreement, these two hundred small spiritual stones are yours," Chu Xuan said, flicking his hand.
"Thank you, Uncle Master Chu!" Chen Ge was tearfully grateful. Two hundred small spiritual stones! He would have to toil day and night for many days to earn such an amount, yet now he had acquired it in a single day! Indeed, he had chosen the right person to follow.
"Go now, I will need you again," Chu Xuan said with a slight smile.
"Yes! Command me to my death, Uncle Master Chu!" Chen Ge responded, overwhelmingly excited.