Living In Another World With A Farm Chapter 8276: Main body _1

Zhao Hai’s fingers wove through a series of complex hand seals as he roared, "Lin!" Responding to his command, a massive mountain materialized abruptly in the heavens, crashing down with a thunderous boom. As the peak descended, Yan Bei and Zhao Wuji witnessed a gruesome sight: the slopes were blanketed in countless corpses. At the mountain's base, a vast sea of blood had pooled, creating a terrifying landscape of slaughter.

A suffocating killing intent surged as the mountain of corpses and sea of blood plummeted. The serpents manifested from black gas dissolved instantly upon contact with this macabre vision. Simultaneously, every loose brick, tile, stone, and door frame slammed into the earth, rendered motionless by the sheer pressure.

Turning his gaze toward the desiccated remains, Zhao Hai let out a cold laugh. "I understand now. You are nothing more than a puppet being manipulated by a hidden hand. Did you truly believe my only plan was to isolate you from your surroundings? You've underestimated me. In truth, I prepared another trap beforehand—I have poisoned you!"

As the mummified corpse processed Zhao Hai’s revelation, a look of profound shock flickered across its withered features. It likely never considered that someone would attempt to poison a mummy. Generally, toxins are ineffective against such entities or ghosts, as they are already comprised of deathly energy and lack living biology. Consequently, the idea that Zhao Hai would use poison had never crossed its mind.

Zhao Hai smiled at the dried husk and asked, "Are you surprised? No one has ever poisoned you before, but I am different. My toxin doesn't target the physical form; it attacks the soul. This makes it exceptionally potent against ghosts—perhaps even more so. Yet, you showed no reaction or concern at all. This proves you aren't a genuine ghost, but merely a puppet controlled by a master. Am I right?"

"I didn't expect you to deduce that much," the mummified corpse replied in a soft, grating voice that sounded bizarre to Yan Bei and the others. "But even if you know, what of it? Can you locate my true body? Hahaha! Little brat, my influence over this area may be restricted now, but you cannot keep me trapped forever. As long as my main body remains hidden, I will find a way to destroy you."

Maintaining his composure, Zhao Hai looked at the remains and countered, "Then let me take a guess. The formation I’ve deployed has completely severed this space from the outside world, meaning your true self cannot be elsewhere. You must still be within this Manor, correct?"

The mummy remained silent, staring back at Zhao Hai with a cold intensity. Zhao Hai continued his deduction: "This Manor served as the array core for the Spiritual Array Sect. If I’m not mistaken, this corpse belonged to the cultivator who originally guarded this core. Records say the Spiritual Array Sect was annihilated by an Almighty from the upper realm. The guardian should have perished then, and the array eye should have been shattered. If it weren't, this place wouldn't be so ruined. However, an item must exist that stabilizes the entire array eye—the control center. While my knowledge of the Spiritual Array Sect’s Cultivation methods is limited, their name suggests their arrays are far from ordinary. They integrated Yin spirits and ghosts into their formations to give the arrays a form of sentience. Thus, a ghost must reside within this array eye, likely fused with the stabilizing artifact. A common celestial device wouldn't suffice; it had to be high-quality. In this entire Manor, only one object fits that description: the mirror you've been holding. That ghost is merged with the mirror. It was likely wounded during the sect's destruction and needed ages to recover its control. That is why your grip on this place is currently weak—otherwise, a simple hand seal wouldn't have been enough to isolate you. Am I right?" Having finished his explanation, Zhao Hai’s gaze locked onto the Yin-Yang mirror.

Suddenly, a dark light erupted from the Yin-Yang mirror. A plume of black Qi rose, slowly coalescing into the form of a strange old figure. The entity was bizarrely split: one half was black and the other white, appearing as an old man on one side and an old woman on the other. It was a jarring sight.

Though unsettled by the creature's dual appearance, Zhao Hai remained calm. "You’ve finally shown your true face. Why? Do you actually believe you can defeat me now?"

The monstrosity sneered at him. "You are quite clever, and your assumptions are accurate. I was indeed crippled back then. If not for the fools who came here to die over the centuries, allowing my soul to mend, I wouldn't even be able to manifest. But even with limited control, I can still end you. Do not forget where we stand. I am the master of this array, and I will be the one to deal with you."

Zhao Hai smiled thinly. "You won't get that chance." The moment he spoke, a crimson light flared from the mummified corpse’s hand, instantly enveloping the Yin-Yang mirror. A look of pure terror flashed across the monster's face just before it vanished entirely.

With a casual gesture, the Yin-Yang mirror flew into Zhao Hai’s palm. After a brief inspection, he stowed it away. His eyes then shifted back to the mummy, noticing a ring on its finger. He summoned the ring to his hand and swept his spiritual energy through it to examine the contents.

The storage ring held few items: several Jade slips, a handful of magical weapons, and some medicinal pills. Unfortunately, the pills had been stored for so long that they had lost all their spiritual Qi, rendering them useless. However, the weapons and crystals were still valuable. Zhao Hai emptied the contents and turned to Yan Bei and Zhao Wuji. "Senior brothers, these are the only items in the cultivator's ring. Please, divide them amongst yourselves. I want to examine these Jade slips first."

Yan Bei and Zhao Wuji were stunned by how efficiently the formation core had been neutralized. They were well aware that without Zhao Hai, the situation would have been disastrous. Had he not identified the Yin-Yang mirror as the true culprit controlling the corpse, they never would have found a way to win.

As the two distributed the crystals and weapons, Zhao Hai scanned the Jade slips. Two contained Cultivation techniques, two focused on formation theory, and the final two detailed sect history and regulations. The history and formation slips held little interest for him, but the Cultivation techniques were highly valuable.

The information within the slips confirmed Zhao Hai’s theories. The Spiritual Array Sect earned its name by merging Yin spirits with magical arrays to bring them to life. These spirits were harvested from the souls of the sect's own faith slaves. Upon their death, their souls were bound to arrays, which then allowed the formations to function autonomously without constant input from a cultivator. This was the secret behind their legendary reputation.

However, the sect didn't always wait for natural deaths; they often slaughtered their followers specifically to refine their souls. Despite their name not sounding overtly villainous, their practices were indistinguishable from those of a demonic Sect.

Their path of Cultivation was also unique. To them, Dharma arrays were more than just tools; they were treated like a Dantian, a sea of consciousness, or a Dharma laksana. When a disciple condensed their first internal array, they would forge a life-bound Dharma artifact—an array disk—that mirrored the internal one. A Yin spirit would then be placed inside as an Artifact Spirit to be nurtured.

As they progressed to a second array, a second disk would be crafted. These two disks, and the spirits within them, would be merged into a single entity. Because the soul was the array, the merger of souls resulted in the merger of the arrays into a unified group. This process repeated with every breakthrough.

For these cultivators, advancement wasn't just about reaching a new realm, but about stacking levels of complexity. In the Dharma cultivation realm, they had to master nine arrays. Upon reaching the Dharma accumulation realm, another nine were added, followed by nine more in the Dharma usage realm. Ultimately, a master could wield eighty-one distinct Dharma arrays, each housing a unique and devastating spell. With eighty-one magical arrays synced in their hands, a disciple of the Spiritual Array Sect was a truly formidable opponent.