By the poolside.
Elder Hong's expression was grave as he slowly pulled on something, bringing up Ning Yao who was caught in a net of silver threads.
As Ning Yao got closer to the surface and became clearly visible to him, he saw her limbs were intact and, with a whisper of relief, allowed himself to relax slightly.
At that moment, he who had been pulling gently, finally dared to pull with force.
"Splash!"
When Ning Yao's slender neck emerged from the water, gasping for air, the two Meridians Channeling Cultivator leaders who had previously perceived danger and retreated, returned somewhat awkwardly.
"Elder Hong."
Xu Rui, the original owner of the silver net, smiled sheepishly and cupped his hands in a salute, saying with a face full of guilt: "I thought the Dark Giant Python would burst out to kill people, so I left in a hurry and forgot to inform you."
The man wearing a mask simply snickered and did not offer any explanations.
"You two sure are clever," Elder Hong said with a hollow laugh, glancing at them before his gaze returned to Ning Yao, who was still reeling from the shock.
He stroked his chin, pondering for a moment before saying, "Miss Ning, if you can truthfully tell me what you saw at the bottom of the pool, once I have verified that what you have said is true, I will use you to exchange for one of my Dark Ghosts that your Seven Great Families have imprisoned."
"I can also assure you that you will see your parents again, with your body untouched."
All eyes were on Ning Yao.
Ning Yao, who had been pulled up from the bottom of the pool, had her jet-black wet hair naturally draped over her shoulders. Her extreme rage made the delicate veins on her snowy neck all the more distinct and visible.
She was gasping violently within the silver net, her drenched and exquisite figure appearing so alluring.
Several Ghost Cultivators cast predatory glances at the most enticing parts of her body, making her feel indescribably uncomfortable all over.
Hearing Elder Hong's assurance, a hesitancy flickered in the depths of her still furious eyes.
"You know I will seek confirmation, so please do not lie to me," Elder Hong reminded her with a smile.
Ning Yao clenched her teeth and with a trembling voice, revealed the truth, "The Dark Giant Python you speak of was impaled and nailed to the bottom of the pool by this Phoenix Bone, its flesh and blood completely devoured, leaving behind only bones like those of the Phoenix Bone."
"The Phoenix Bone is currently still stuck in its skull. That odd man... Ouyang Duanhai is also at the bottom of the pool, awaiting something in front of the Phoenix Bone."
"Apart from him, Pang Jian is also alive, lurking in the dark depths of the pool!"
Without any concealment, Ning Yao shared everything she had seen.
She clearly understood that these people from the Dark Ghosts, having braved such dangers to wait until now, would certainly not give up easily.
That is to say, the people from the Dark Ghosts would inevitably go down eventually and would be able to tell whether she was speaking the truth at a glance.
Indeed.
After hearing her description and before Elder Hong even began to speak, Jin Yang took a deep breath and exclaimed, "The skeleton of the Dark Giant Python is also an extremely precious Spiritual Material. If that Dark Giant Python is not the lowest fourth level, as long as it has reached the fifth level, its massive skeleton would be worth a fortune!"
"As for Ouyang Duanhai..." Elder Hong's eyes slowly brightened as he smiled and nodded, "No matter how strange he has become, his original realm is still too low, I should be able to deal with him."
"This is what we'll do!" Looking at Xu Rui, Elder Hong instructed, "You, being at the Meridians Channeling Realm, can stay underwater for a longer period."
"You will be the first to dive into the pool. There's no need to sink to the very bottom, just being able to observe the situation on the pool floor is enough. If it's just as this girl described, come back up and tell us."
The returning Xu Rui, with a bitter expression, sighed, "I could arrange for a subordinate to do it."
"The pool is too deep, and those who haven't reached the Meridians Channeling Realm won't be able to hold their breath until they reach the bottom," Elder Hong shook his head firmly, insisting that Xu Rui go down.
Jin Yang frowned and also looked darkly at him.
Xu Rui, internally grumbling, couldn't refuse the two of them and reluctantly obeyed, sinking into the water and descending slowly.
...
At the bottom of the pool.
Pang Jian, who had been watching the movements above from a dark spot close to the rocky wall, immediately noticed Xu Rui's descent, saw him looking around and silently observing the scene below.
The closer to the Phoenix Bone, the brighter the pool water became, and vice versa.
Pang Jian, hiding in the dark, could see Xu Rui descending near the Phoenix Bone, but Xu Rui couldn't see him.
Moreover, Xu Rui did not wait to completely reach the pool floor before hurrying back to the surface.
Pang Jian understood that Xu Rui, who had gone into the water, must have come specifically for verification after learning about the situation at the pool's bottom from Ning Yao.
In the future, powerful individuals from the Dark Ghosts like Jin Yang would probably all dive into the depths of the pool.
The Phoenix Bone, the situation with the mysterious humanoid creature, and the Dark Ghosts about to enter in large numbers, stirred Pang Jian's mind, compelling him to carefully consider his options.
To retreat to the stone gate and leave the Black Water Pool, or to continue observing the situation, became a strategic decision he had to make.
As he was indecisive, he noticed many specks of starry bright light began to emerge from within the bone that the Phoenix Bone had impaled into the python's skull, gathering like fireflies.
The humanoid creature that had been patiently waiting, its eyes flashing a deep red, suddenly brightened several times, like two bloody lanterns under the water.
"It's coming!"
Seeing this, Pang Jian, who had intended to retreat, chose to take a risk and decided to stay and see what would unfold.
He threw the cloth bag he had snatched from Ning Yao towards the stone passage behind the stone gate and closed the stone gate a bit more, leaving only an unnoticeable slit.
Having done all this, he waited quietly at the bottom of the pool with the Dragon Pattern Spear in hand, ready for the coming change.
He had made up his mind.
If the situation worsened too much, he would immediately abandon his mission and escape using the stone passage.
...
Above the water's surface.
With a splash, Xu Rui emerged and, after catching his breath, waved and shouted at Hong Tai.
"The girl didn't lie, just as she said, the Dark Giant Python has indeed been stabbed by the Phoenix Bone!"
"At the bottom of the pool, there is only Ouyang Duanhai who has undergone a mutation. As for the lad named Pang Jian, I did not see him; he must be hiding somewhere."
Hong Tai's eyes lit up, and he laughed heartily at Jin Yang, saying, "Our long vigil wasn't in vain after all!"
Jin Yang's face bore no smile; instead, he looked at the gloved hand of the masked person and said, "I hope everything goes smoothly from here on."
Hong Tai coughed twice and said, "There shouldn't be any major problems. We just need to deal with Ouyang Duanhai to get our hands on the skeletal remains of the Dark Giant Python."
"You..."
He looked toward the masked person and was about to say their name when he suddenly remembered Ning Yao was beside them and he had made a promise, so he said, "Meridians Channeling Cultivator, able to stay underwater for a considerable length of time, follow me to kill Ouyang Duanhai."
After glancing at the others, he frowned and said, "The rest of you, patrol the outside and pay attention to the movements inside and outside the valley."
The Qi Refining Realm's Dark Ghost followers loudly agreed.
With a "plop" sound, Hong Tai, Jin Yang, and the person who always wore a mask — including Ning Yao, trapped in the silver net, and the python with black and white patterns — all plunged one after the other into the Black Water Pool.
In the blink of an eye, only a group of Qi Refining Realm cultivators remained at the edge of the Black Water Pool.
...
"A Dark Giant Python from the Fifth Realm killed by a segment of the Heaven Phoenix's Phoenix Bone. Evidently, that piece of Phoenix Bone, having chosen its target, would condense Phoenix Marrow from the flesh and blood of the Dark Giant Python."
Hidden in the shadows, unnoticed even by Hong Tai, the mysterious woman gazed pensively into the pool and said softly.
"These dim-witted Dark Ghosts, have they never considered why a Dark Giant Python would appear in this godforsaken place?"
"Can't they see that the Dark Giant Python was confined in the Black Water Pool? Have they never thought about how terrifying the entity must be to have captured the Dark Giant Python from the Eternal Darkness of the Fifth Realm?"
She whispered to herself and communicated her will through her mind.
"Whoosh! Whoosh whoosh!"
The numerous "Spirit Evils" she had refined moved stealthily through the bushes, creeping toward the Black Water Pool unnoticed. Suddenly, they lunged at the Dark Ghost cultivators left on the outside.
Not one of the Qi Refining Realm's Dark Ghost cultivators escaped; all were possessed by the "Spirit Evils."
In a very short time, every Dark Ghost cultivator in the Qi Refining Realm stood blankly at the edge of the water, with vacant gazes, like lifeless statues, no longer conversing.
The woman who had remained out of sight for so long, enveloped by a faint mist of blood, gracefully floated over to the part of the Phoenix Bone protruding above the water.
She lightly stepped onto the Phoenix Bone and gazed down from above, watching as the figures of Hong Tai and the others became increasingly vague.
Even someone as powerful as she could not see clearly to the bottom of the pool. She didn't hurry to send those possessed by "Spirit Evils" down but patiently waited instead.
She feared not the Phoenix Marrow-tempted Ouyang Duanhai, nor the Marrow Cleansing Realm's Hong Tai, nor even the nascent Phoenix Marrow itself.
The only reason she dared not act rashly was that she was unsure if the true master who had captured the Dark Giant Python and "raised" it in the Black Water Pool was still present.
...
"They've finally arrived!"
Pang Jian, lurking in a dark corner at the bottom of the pool, watched as Xu Rui, Jin Yang, and the masked person, including Hong Tai who had pursued Zhou Qingchen, one by one made their appearance.
Seeing Hong Tai again, he felt a pang of regret for Zhou Qingchen, deeming that the commendable son of the Zhou Family had most likely fallen to Hong Tai's treachery.
"If I survive this, and if I ever get the chance, I will exterminate all the Dark Ghost cultivators involved in this matter," Pang Jian swore to himself, just as Zhou Qingchen had, submerged in the frigid waters of the pool.
Pang Jian hadn't interacted with many people over the years as he hunted in the mountains, trading his catches for necessities needed for the survival of him and his sister.
Since the anomaly occurred in the Solitude Mountain Range, Ning Yao had "hired" him for a bag of broken silver, and none of the family members he met since then had ever treated him with common courtesy, none considered him an equal… a person.
—— Except for that son of the Zhou Family.
Although Zhou Qingchen had his own motives, he had always treated Pang Jian with respect. He even reached out early, willing to welcome him into the Zhou Family, persisting even when Pang Jian declared his lack of talent.
For Pang Jian, Zhou Qingchen had even been willing to forsake the potential Spiritual Materials in the Unstable Ferry to help the grey ape regain freedom.
Pang Jian, clear about his debts and grudges, acknowledged only Zhou Qingchen as a true friend in this expedition to the Solitude Mountain Range.
He thought, now that the son of the Zhou Family had likely been harmed, the least he could do was to seek vengeance for him in the future.
At present, he didn't believe he had such capability.
While contemplating, Pang Jian, who was observing the descending figures, noticed the highly respected Jin Yang suddenly look toward the lower end of the Phoenix Bone, focusing on the glowing white specks within the bone.
Jin Yang seemed to have recalled something. His face suddenly filled with ecstatic and incredulous expressions.
Before reaching the bottom, Jin Yang pointed at the humanoid monster, signaling for Hong Tai and the other two leaders to help him kill it.
This distinguished Dark Ghost powerhouse appeared to know that the Phoenix Bone was about to undergo a transformation and recognized the origin of those mysterious specks of light.
With Jin Yang's frantic gesturing, Hong Tai and the two leaders also grasped what Jin Yang desired.
They hesitated for a moment, unsure whether to attack Ouyang Duanhai immediately, but then they saw Jin Yang already rushing toward the lower end of the Phoenix Bone.
Ouyang Duanhai, who had been still for a long time waiting for the Phoenix Marrow to form, fixed his blood-red eyes on Jin Yang in an instant.
He abruptly charged at Jin Yang.
It seemed, anyone daring to touch the Phoenix Marrow would be the first to die.
...