Chapter 664: Two Defenses, One Offense
Yang Haoran hadn't gone into detail with Xu Meijing about the Yun Chuan City incident before. Now that the topic had come up, he decided to take a moment to explain everything to her in full.
After listening to Yang Haoran's account, Xu Meijing understood what had transpired. Seeing how cautious and prudent Yang Haoran was, her worry diminished considerably.
Unconsciously, Yang Haoran and Xu Meijing had spent an hour in the quiet room. Though Yang Haoran truly didn't want to leave, he had no choice. Given the current situation, he couldn't afford to be away from Lecheng for too long.
Carrying the Ghost Arts Xu Meijing had given him, and a lingering reluctance to part from her, he tore through space, leaving Ancheng and hurrying back to Lecheng.
Though he had been gone for several hours, Lecheng appeared outwardly unchanged from when he had departed. He didn't head for the Death God Temple, instead returning directly to the villa.
While mobile phones were now mere decorations, all his Night Watchers carried Death God Pendants he had personally enchanted. If they encountered danger, he would sense it instantly.
As of yet, he hadn't detected any reaction from the Death God Pendants he had imbued, meaning that, at least for now, his Night Watchers were safe and hadn't run into any trouble.
Since they were safe, there was no need for him to go to the Death God Temple; after all, he had more important matters to attend to at present.
Yang Haoran inquired with Xiujuan, but she didn't know where Ye Zhiqiu had gone, so he didn't press the matter.
Although Ye Zhiqiu was now following him, Yang Haoran couldn't completely restrict his personal freedom. Besides, he knew Ye Zhiqiu's temperament well; even if he wanted to control him, he might not be able to. Choosing to suppress him with violence would only backfire.
In any case, Ye Zhiqiu's injuries had mostly healed, so Yang Haoran wasn't overly worried. After all, the fellow's strength wasn't weak, especially after his Demon Weapon had advanced to four markings, making him even more formidable.
Moreover, Ye Zhiqiu also carried a Death God Pendant, so if he encountered danger, Yang Haoran would know immediately.
Ignoring Ye Zhiqiu, Yang Haoran gave a few instructions to Xiujuan before shutting himself in his study. Since he needed to constantly monitor the outside world, he didn't set up any forbidden barriers, merely closing the study door.
Inside the study, Yang Haoran first took out the Ghost Arts Xu Meijing had given him.
Xu Meijing's handwriting was exquisite, neat and clean, truly a pleasure to behold.
Not only was her calligraphy excellent, but her drawn hand seals were also quite good; although they couldn't compare to a professional's in terms of fine detail, they certainly didn't give off a sloppy impression.
In stark contrast, the two Ghost Arts Yang Haoran had given Xu Meijing earlier not only featured ugly handwriting and drawings but also showed multiple corrections and smudges. Compared to the Ghost Arts Xu Meijing had given him, they were truly chalk and cheese, a night-and-day difference.
Looking at Xu Meijing’s beautiful script and the clean, tidy papers, Yang Haoran couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed.
However, after he thoroughly examined the Ghost Art, the expression on his face turned peculiar.
Xu Meijing hadn’t prominently displayed the name of this Ghost Art in her writing, and during their earlier encounter in Ancheng, he had only glanced at it, so he hadn't truly understood it.
But now, as he carefully read through the Ghost Art, the textual descriptions revealed to his surprise that this Ghost Art was remarkably similar to the Ghost Fiend Soul Chain Huo Laoban had used that day.
Sure enough, when Yang Haoran read to the very end, he discovered a note Xu Meijing had left, and that note contained the Ghost Art's name: Ghost Fiend Soul Chain!
With so many Ghost Arts on the second floor of the Ghost Art Pavilion, Xu Meijing's choice of this particular one truly struck Yang Haoran as quite a coincidence.
Gazing at the Ghost Fiend Soul Chain, Yang Haoran couldn't help but think of Huo Laoban. He didn't know if Huo Laoban had resolved the Yun Chuan City troubles and returned to New Sun City yet.
However, he certainly knew the power of this Ghost Fiend Soul Chain; after all, he had witnessed it firsthand that day.
While he hadn't anticipated Xu Meijing would choose this Ghost Art, now that she had, he naturally had to cultivate it.
After all, he had once envied Huo Laoban's use of the Ghost Fiend Soul Chain, but now that he possessed it himself, he no longer needed to feel envious.
The Ghost Fiend Soul Chain was a Ghost Art of considerable destructive power. Once successfully activated, the caster could manipulate soul chains to attack their enemies. The stronger the caster's power, the thicker the condensed Ghost Fiend Soul Chains would become, the larger the ghostly heads would be, and their numbers would increase, making their destructive force even more astonishing.
Of course, if the caster deliberately chose not to unleash the Ghost Art to its fullest extent, that would be another matter entirely.
Because the tip of the Ghost Fiend Soul Chain was crowned with a terrifying ghostly head, this Ghost Art was also referred to as the Ghost Head Chain. However, this designation was rarely used by Underworld Officials, as it sounded a bit demeaning.
The Ghost Fiend Soul Chain was something Xu Meijing had chosen from the Ghost Art Pavilion, while the Ghost Arts Yang Haoran himself had brought out from within the pavilion were named Yin Qi Shield and Nether Ice Mirror.
Once the Yin Qi Shield was activated, the Yin Spirit Power within the caster's body would form an elliptical black shield around them, resembling an upright eggshell, enveloping and protecting the caster. Furthermore, Yin Qi would entwine around the shield's perimeter, warding off damage for the caster.
The greater the caster's power, the stronger the Yin Qi Shield's defense would be; as long as the shield remained unbroken, the caster's physical body would suffer no harm.
Without cultivating the Yin Qi Shield, one could still condense a shield on their body surface using Yin Spirit Power. The shape could even be decided according to one's preference; never mind an ellipse, even a rectangular shield would be fine.
However, a shield directly condensed from Yin Spirit Power, no matter how similar in appearance to the Yin Qi Shield, could not compare in defensive power. This was because Yin Spirit Power underwent a qualitative change when channeled through a Ghost Art, resulting in a different level of unleashed power. This held true for all Ghost Arts, whether defensive, offensive, or other special types, without exception.
For example, if Yang Haoran desired, he could also make his Yin Spirit Power condense into the form of the Ghost Fiend Soul Chain. But a Ghost Fiend Soul Chain condensed in this manner would merely be a paper tiger, utterly incapable of unleashing the true might of the Ghost Fiend Soul Chain, for it would not be the real Ghost Fiend Soul Chain.
True Ghost Arts could not be imitated. One required the corresponding incantations and hand seals, and only after successfully cultivating them could a genuine Ghost Art be unleashed.
Since this Yin Qi Shield was a mid-level Ghost Art, Yang Haoran figured its defensive power wouldn't be poor. It was just that the name was a bit rustic, perhaps because the creator of this Ghost Art wasn't very good at naming things, hence such a ridiculously unrefined name.
The Nether Ice Mirror was also a defensive Ghost Art. Once activated, it could not only defend against enemy attacks but even reflect them. Its sole drawback was its inability to provide omnidirectional, blind-spot-free protection to the caster. However, the ability to rebound an opponent's attacks was indeed a commendable feature.
With these three Ghost Arts, Yang Haoran's current weaknesses were remedied. Although three Ghost Arts weren't many, they could significantly boost his combat prowess, proving quite helpful for him in his current situation.
In the time that followed, Yang Haoran cultivated the Ghost Arts in his study while simultaneously monitoring all movements outside. He first focused on the Ghost Fiend Soul Chain he had received from Xu Meijing. Only after successfully cultivating this art did he prepare to cultivate the Yin Qi Shield and Nether Ice Mirror he had obtained.
With the corresponding incantations and hand seals, cultivating Ghost Arts became quite manageable, not as difficult as he had imagined. Thus, Yang Haoran proceeded smoothly, successfully cultivating all three Ghost Arts in just two short days.
However, this "successful cultivation" merely referred to theoretical success. Whether he had truly mastered all three Ghost Arts would still need to be proven through practical application.
Due to the limited space in the study, and considering how important the study was to Yang Haoran, he decided to test the three Ghost Arts in the courtyard to avoid causing damage. The courtyard offered ample space for his evaluations.
Just as he stepped into the courtyard, before he even had a chance to begin, he suddenly sensed something and his gaze darted towards the villa's main entrance.
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