Stop it, Taoist, Your Fight almost Ruins the DAO!

"One of the puppet paper figures I had patrolling the front hall has died. How can the cultivators of Fengyun County respond so swiftly?"

"What do we do now? The formation is at a critical moment; do we stop and go kill those people first?"

The mysterious figure paused at these words and replied.

"No need. My squad of paper figures have already struck with all their might to hold those people off, and I\'ve sent Xiao Bai with the last troop of paper figures as well. We must hurry, to avoid any complications with a protracted night."

"I don\'t know why, but I feel somewhat uneasy. We should complete the attraction formation as soon as possible."

Having said that, the woman in white swept her jade-like arm, and a paper figure over three meters tall suddenly appeared by her side.

Next to the towering paper figure were more than twenty paper figures just over a meter tall.

She took out her red scissors and a piece of red paper, and in an instant, she swiftly snipped out a pair of crimson eyes and affixed them onto the head of the towering paper figure.

Two red beams of light shone from the face of the towering paper figure, resembling red searchlights.

The woman in white looked at the multitude of paper figures in front of her and after a moment of thought, to be on the safe side, she imbued the edges of their blades with potent poison.

"Slay all living things within the mist, paper ghosts!"

The woman dressed in white roared softly through the fog, issuing commands to the towering paper figure.

After a series of spells, the towering paper figure fully awakened and burst into an impressive and intimidating ghostly aura. It knelt on one knee, signaling submission to the woman in white before it.

"As you wish, my master."

It surveyed its surroundings as if sensing something, then strode forward leading the team of paper figures toward the front hall.

Seeing this, the mysterious figure couldn\'t help but reveal a slightly relieved smile, "Hong Jian, your paper cutting magic has become even more exquisite."

"This giant paper ghost is tough and resilient; even I would not necessarily be able to subdue it within the time it takes to drink a cup of tea."

"No wonder the Great Protector values you so much, to the point of planting a soul-controlling sigil within you with the spirit-binding technique."

Upon hearing this, the woman in white\'s face darkened: "It is indeed so."

"Hurry up with the formation."

As a single ghost in this ancient wilderness house, she was accidently discovered by the Great Protector of the Corpse God Sect. Noticing her astuteness and exceptional talent, unlike those dull ghosts whose minds were eroded by the Yin Qi and who knew only to eat and kill, he used the spirit-binding technique to bring her to the Corpse God Sect.

Within the sect, she received guidance on more advanced magical techniques, not just relying on innate spells and fighting on instinct as before.

But at the same time, she also lost her freedom, her life and death now in the hands of others.

After all, one cannot have all the advantages in the world -- to want this and that, yet still want more.

The same goes for ghosts.

Every gift from fate is secretly marked with a price.

In the process of growth, while gaining some things, one will also lose others.

This is the Heavenly Dao.

"Fortunately, if this mission is successful and we can bring back the left arm of the Corpse God, the Great Protector will remove my slave mark and will also pass on to me the art of seizing spirits and stabilizing gods. By then....."

"As long as it\'s a success, even if all the paper figures I\'ve amassed over the years go up in flames, it will be worth it."

The woman in white gathered her scattered thoughts, shook her greenish-black hair sitting atop her head, and refocused intently on the great task of setting up the formation.

It was close to completion, just a little more time.

...

...

Meanwhile, the first squad of paper figures had already begun confronting Yi Chen and the others face-to-face.

Thanks to Yi Chen\'s prior warning, the group was not too flustered and fought steadily and securely.

Lin Baihu and Yi Chen took the forefront like two boulders in a stream, blocking the onslaught of the paper figure squad.

Abbess Shuiyue, Lotus Master, and Daoist Qingxu were mending any gaps in the rear, fending off the paper figures attempting sneak attacks from the sides.

Their five-person team became increasingly in sync as the battle progressed.

The number of paper figures visibly dwindled.

"Haha, splendid!"

Lin Baihu laughed heartily as he beheaded a paper figure with his sword and then kicked another attempting to sneak up on him flying far away.

From the corner of his eye, Yi Chen saw clearly the savage kick aimed at the figure\'s vitals.

However, this kick was of no real use, it merely pushed back the paper effigy, which, with a roll, once again charged forward carrying a large saber, showing no fear of death.

After all, a paper effigy isn\'t a real human, and doesn\'t have such obvious weaknesses.

"Mere mudchickens and pottery dogs."

Like a hot knife slicing through butter, Lin Baihu\'s war saber, enhanced with talismanic inscriptions, was truly peerless in sharpness, piercing through the last charging paper effigy and its armor, leaving it thoroughly chilled. He lifted his saber, and softly whispered \'Gale\'.

A stream of green energy suddenly appeared on his war saber.

The moment the energy appeared, Lin Baihu\'s saber speed and strength instantly advanced to a new level.

As the paper effigy\'s chest was pierced, it still tried to swing its saber at Lin Baihu, but before the motion was completed, its body was already cleaved in two by Lin Baihu\'s upward slash.

Yi Chen\'s eyebrows knitted upon witnessing this scene.

Although Lin Baihu\'s mouth had been kissed by the light, he was indeed a master, with abundant combat experience and a myriad of techniques at his disposal.

Especially that last strike, it was truly stunning.

Even with his current strength, well.

It seems like after the transformation into Extreme Yang, he could still kill him, so no worries there.

"Amitabha, I had not expected Lin Baihu to also be a cultivator who has mastered both the law and the body, this humble monk admires you deeply," said Taoist Yi Chengzi, although his spirituality was awakened through heterodox methods and his aptitude was not particularly good, his discernment was extremely sharp, spotting at once the finesse of Lin Baihu\'s final move.

Law and body dual cultivation.

"You flatter me, you flatter me." Lin Baihu reciprocated with modest words, yet anyone could see the satisfaction gleaming in his eyes.

He cast a sidelong glance in Yi Chen\'s direction, and had it not been for the stimulus provided by the imposing stature of Taoist Yi Chengzi standing beside him, he wouldn\'t have revealed the new battle strategy he had recently developed.

He had a strong desire to win.

In his lifetime, Lin Baihu refused to be inferior to others, aiming to perfect himself through law and body dual cultivation and, in one vigorous effort, break through to the Qi Refinement Realm.

Among his peers of the same realm, he never wanted to be a notch below anyone at any time.

In the battle just now, Yi Chen had put considerable pressure on him, and he had seen it.

Yi Taoist\'s swordplay was nothing special, but his strength was truly immense.

Extremely powerful.

His attacks were as fast as lightning; the paper effigies surrounding him lost limbs or were severely injured with just a graze.

And then there was that peculiar deep purple true energy, which was profoundly potent.

"Taoist Yi Chengzi, what do you think of my final strike? I would appreciate your critique," said Lin Baihu as he sheathed his saber and smiled at Yi Chen.

"Skill without parallel, I concede to your superiority," Yi Chen nodded slightly, quietly adding to himself, under the transformation into Extreme Yang, it would take at least three moves before I could kill you, not bad.

However, even if Yi Chen thought he could hang Lin Baihu in the sky and beat him when at full strength, he would not show it.

Not only would he not show it, but he would also bolster Lin Baihu\'s esteem further.

That is the mark of a mature, seasoned member of society.

Without money or interests at stake, why bother to compete with others for transient superiority?

This Lin Baihu, looking scruffy with a middle-aged appearance, had not expected to remain oblivious to this layer of understanding; it truly was quite absurd.

At this thought, Yi Chen\'s mind raced, "Damn it, Lin Baihu can\'t possibly be only eighteen."

For a moment, he remembered the twelve-year-old Qi Goushi from the Evil Tiger Gang whom he had once let go.

Yi Chen gave Lin Baihu a once-over; scruffy-bearded, his face weathered, the very image of a middle-aged man.

"Impossible, absolutely impossible."

In an instant, Yi Chen discarded the thought from his mind.

By now, the first team of paper effigy squadrons had been entirely annihilated, and apart from Daoist Qingxu getting an unexpected shallow cut on his hand from one of the fearlessly charging paper effigies, everyone else was unharmed.

In this battle, they had won a complete victory.

Lin Baihu couldn\'t help but burst into hearty laughter.

"I laugh at the ones behind the scenes for their lack of wisdom."

"They only know how to lay ambushes; if they had poisoned their blades, we wouldn\'t have overcome these paper effigies so easily."

"Do my fellow Daoists agree?"

As the mist swirled, two streaks of red light hurtled towards them.

"Baihu, you\'d better stop talking," Daoist Qingxu said urgently.