Chapter 24: Breath Tornado

A huge blade of light flashed, and the thick fog parted before closing again.

But the sight seen in that brief moment was enough to inspire terror.

What exactly was this thick fog? Why were wandering souls rampant in broad daylight?

Where did so many ghosts come from? Even if the entire population of Xiaolin Town had transformed into vengeful spirits, there couldn't possibly be this many, almost filling the field of vision!

Of course, everyone now understood that with such a dense concentration of wandering souls, it was likely that Xiaolin Town... was completely devoid of living people!

One of the seven large towns under the jurisdiction of Maple Forest City had been lost.

At this moment, it was still Wei Yan's calm voice that rang out first, suppressing the chaos: "Those skilled in Fire-elemental Dao techniques, establish a fire line fifty paces outside the team as a warning. Everyone else, eliminate the wandering souls within the warning line as quickly as possible!"

The Five Elements Dao techniques were the most basic, and there were many cultivators skilled in Fire. Following Wei Yan's order, bursts of flame ignited fifty paces outside the team. Then, guided by Wei Yan's adjutant, these flames instantly connected, forming a circular fire line.

Outside the fire circle, the ghosts temporarily retreated. But the wandering souls trapped inside the fire circle instantly became violent.

At this moment, Li Jianqiu suddenly sheathed his longsword, which was wreathed in flames, and formed a hand seal in front of his chin, before decisively slashing it diagonally to his side. Two burning swords of flame appeared in his hands.

The dual swords moved like dragons, instantly plunging him into the ghost swarm. One sword extinguished ghosts, two swords shattered souls.

At the same time, a sword light turned a circle in an instant, and countless ghosts gradually annihilated. As the sword light subsided, Jiang Wang's lithe figure was revealed.

The Purple Qi Comes East Sword Art, the first killing technique!

Everyone was shocked, not expecting that this cultivator who had not yet formed his Dao vortex could purely use swordsmanship to extinguish souls, and even do so more efficiently than many of them.

As soon as Jiang Wang moved, Zhao Rucheng also rose, his longsword flashing like lightning, cutting a path through the ghosts.

He didn't seem to put in much effort on ordinary days, but his use of the Purple Qi Comes East Sword Art was not much worse than Jiang Wang's.

Among the group, only Du Yehou and Ling He looked at each other in dismay. Their expertise in mundane martial arts was indeed of little use against supernatural enemies like ghosts. Purely stimulating their blood qi could kill a few ghosts, but how much blood qi could they stimulate against so many wandering souls?

In fact, Jiang Wang had not kept the Purple Qi Comes East Sword Art a secret from them, but Du Yehou firmly believed in his fists and did not rely on external objects, so he had no interest in swordsmanship. And Ling He... probably due to his talent, his progress was slow, and he had not yet mastered the killing technique for practical use.

Back then, as the only one among them whose efforts were no less than Jiang Wang's, his combat power was built on sweat.

The situation on the field seemed good, but discerning people knew it was already critical.

So far, only ordinary wandering souls had appeared. Xiaolin Town was now gathering so many ghosts for some reason, and there were bound to be evil spirits, vengeful ghosts, and perhaps even ghost generals!

This was beyond what this team could handle. The best course of action was to quickly disengage from the battle.

But as they advanced, they had already lost their sense of direction in the thick fog. The fire circle was surrounded by layers of ghosts, making a breakthrough easier said than done.

Wei Yan stepped out of the fire circle, allowing the ghosts to swarm and bite at him. His seemingly mottled and worn armor lightly shook, and the ghosts that had almost clung to him dispersed.

But there was no joy on his face. Instead, he stepped back into the fire circle and said in a deep voice, "Does anyone have a knack for Wind-elemental Dao techniques? Try to dispel this fog!"

Although he was asking everyone, his gaze fell on Wang Changxiang.

Compared to the Five Elements Dao techniques of Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth, Wind-elemental Dao techniques were relatively uncommon, but Wang Changxiang was a master of this path.

Wang Changxiang didn't hesitate. He immediately pointed his fingers across his front, clearing the surrounding ghosts with wind blades. Then, his hands moved like butterflies weaving through flowers, changing hand seals. Finally, he brought his hands together in front of his lips, with his index and middle fingers connected, and his thumb, ring, and little fingers touching each other. He opened his mouth and exhaled through the triangular area formed by his middle and ring fingers.

That soft breath passed through the finger area and suddenly intensified, spinning and growing at a visible speed, directly crashing into the thick fog. It was like a violent dragon roaring in the heavy mist.

Wind-elemental Dao technique, the Breath Tornado!

This wind was no ordinary wind; it was the Ming Shu Wind of the East, one of the Eight Winds.

The Ming Shu Wind means that all things are made clear. Its use here was perfectly timed.

Such a powerful Dao technique was not something everyone could master, even among sixth-rank cultivators. Wang Changxiang being able to wield this technique before opening the Gate of Heaven and Earth was extraordinary.

Wang Changxiang's face was pale after completing the Dao technique, clearly indicating that the technique was a significant burden on him. He barely stood firm, "The rest is up to you."

Wherever the roaring tornado passed, the thick fog was dispelled. For the first time since entering Xiaolin Town, everyone could see the place clearly.

Candied haws hung by the wall, a rice shop connected to a soy sauce workshop, and the flags of a restaurant still fluttered in the wind.

Everything seemed unchanged – if not for the addition of those wandering souls.

The wandering souls within the fire circle had been swept away, but the wandering souls outside still swarmed and lingered. They instinctively feared the flames, but also instinctively couldn't bear to part with these vitality-rich living people.

"Damn it!"

This exclamation rang the alarm. Everyone saw that the roaring tornado had just passed, and the distant thick fog was gathering again. This fog could not even be completely dispelled by the Breath Tornado.

"Let's take this opportunity to retreat first," Li Jianqiu suggested in a deep voice, holding his flaming swords.

In the gap created by the Breath Tornado, everyone could judge the direction they had come from. With the strength of this group, and without the appearance of ghost generals, they had a good chance of retreating safely while fighting.

Wei Yan, holding his sword, stared at the approaching fog, seemingly deep in thought.

His adjutant became anxious, "Sir, the situation in Xiaolin Town is beyond our capabilities! We have to mobilize the army. Moreover, everyone in Xiaolin Town is dead, there's no point in us staying here. Why don't we..."

Wei Yan interrupted him, "The ghosts we've seen so far are all ordinary wandering souls, not even one with a clear mind. You have to understand, there are so many ghosts here, it's not normal."

Wang Changxiang frowned, "There are no cultivators specializing in ghost control in the entire Maple Forest City. This matter should be handled by the City Guard. Once the army arrives, their killing aura will disperse these wandering souls."

"The Qingjiang water race is behaving strangely, and the City Guard has gone to suppress them. By the time they return... it may be too late," Wei Yan revealed a weighty piece of information.

The Qingjiang was a large river that ran through the entire Qinghe County. The Green Willow River outside Maple Forest City was one of its tributaries. But the Qingjiang water race had long established an alliance with the Zhuang court, so why would they suddenly behave strangely?

Jiang Wang pondered in his heart. Only "strange behavior" indicated that the Qingjiang water race was showing restraint. But a major event involving the entire Qinghe County's water system could not be ignored by the authorities, so the mobilization of city guards was justified.

The Heart-Swallowing Man-Demon had appeared... the Qingjiang water race was behaving strangely... and hundreds of ghosts roamed Xiaolin Town in broad daylight. These events seemed unrelated, but there was an invisible hand linking them together.

"Something's wrong," Wei Yan shook his head, having made a decision, "Everyone follow me and charge forward. I won't stop, and no one else can stop! Those who fall behind are at their own fate!"

Without waiting for anyone to dissuade him, as soon as he finished speaking, he stepped out of the fire circle, leading the charge towards the depths of Xiaolin Town.

As his adjutant, Zhao Lang naturally followed without hesitation. Then came Li Jianqiu and Wang Changxiang. They were all veterans who knew that strength could not be divided at a time like this, even if they didn't agree with Wei Yan's decision.

Finally, the entire team quickly mobilized, with Wei Yan as the arrow, plunging fiercely into the depths of Xiaolin Town!