The Great Monk of Punishing Evil weaved and dodged within the encirclement of ghastly spirits, yet his heart remained calm.
Suddenly, he slammed the Zen staff in his hand firmly into the ground.
In an instant, a surge of immense energy radiated outwards in all directions, centered on the Zen staff.
"Buddha's Light Illuminates All!"
This energy wave covered an area of over fifty meters.
At this moment, the vast majority of the ghastly spirits were within the range of this energy.
Ling Tian could instantly hear the pained wails of the ghastly spirits. Within seconds, dozens of these spirits turned to dust and vanished!
The energy released from the Zen staff contained vast righteousness. The Yin energy of the ghastly spirits was no match for this righteousness.
As these spirits were annihilated, a large amount of intangible energy converged above the Great Monk of Punishing Evil from where they had disappeared, and was then absorbed by the monk!
At this point, the Zen staff in the Great Monk of Punishing Evil's hand had lost its luster. The "Buddha's Light Illuminates All" he had just unleashed was undoubtedly a powerful ultimate move. As a result, this incredibly potent move had expended all the energy stored within the artifact.
It seemed it would take a long time for this artifact to recover its original functionality.
However, at this moment, the Great Monk of Punishing Evil suddenly released his grip, formed hand seals, and sat down cross-legged, entering a state of meditation!
Ling Tian, being an expert, immediately understood. This fellow was about to break through. After eliminating so many ghastly spirits and absorbing so much energy from them, the Great Monk of Punishing Evil had reached the critical point for a breakthrough.
Breaking through at this location was not a wise decision, but there was no other choice.
Whether for cultivators or martial artists, breakthroughs were extremely dangerous moments. If interrupted at such a time, at best, one could suffer qi deviation and have their cultivation ruined; at worst, they could die on the spot.
Yet, the Great Monk of Punishing Evil was breaking through on the riverbank. Beside him was a large Yin Gathering Array and a significant amount of Yin energy. On the other side, in the river, there were still some stragglers.
Ling Tian let out a wry smile. He took out his shovel, dug into the ground, and retrieved a piece of obsidian.
As this piece of obsidian was removed, the Yin Gathering Array, which had been operating intensely, immediately stopped.
Ling Tian took out his Crimson Flame Sword and sat down on a rock more than ten meters away from the Great Monk. He intended to personally guard the Great Monk during his breakthrough.
Although they had known each other for less than a day, the two men felt a deep mutual appreciation and got along very well.
Friendship was a truly mysterious thing. Some people could spend decades together without becoming friends, while others, sharing common aspirations, could become confidantes upon their first meeting.
A few hours later, dawn broke. The entire Han Tan Village was still shrouded in a hazy, chilling mist.
The Great Monk of Punishing Evil remained seated cross-legged, like a statue, not even showing signs of breathing.
Beside him sat Ling Tian, also like a statue.
Finally, as dusk approached and the sun began to set, the Great Monk of Punishing Evil opened his eyes. He immediately saw Ling Tian sitting by his side, guarding him, and felt immensely grateful.
Upon seeing this, Ling Tian quickly stood up.
"Master Punishing Evil, how do you feel now?"
"Amitabha, Brother Ling Tian, I am truly grateful to you. Thank you for guarding me, and thank you for luring those ghastly spirits for me. I have already broken through, advancing by three realms..."
Breaking through three realms consecutively was an extraordinary feat, and indeed, it was.
The Vajra Subduing Demon Scripture, while immensely powerful, was extremely difficult to cultivate.
If the Great Monk of Punishing Evil were to follow his current cultivation method, traveling the world to find evil spirits and monsters, and then killing them one by one to absorb their intangible energy for advancement, it would take approximately thirty years to advance three realms, even under very favorable conditions!
But he never expected to encounter Ling Tian and his ingenious tactic of setting up a Yin Gathering Array to lure and eliminate the ghastly spirits in one go.
The efficiency of this slaughter was incredibly high. This breakthrough had saved him decades of time! Most of the elders in his sect had not cultivated as quickly as he had.
After all, those uncles and senior martial brothers had reached sixty or seventy years old by the time they broke through three realms. At that age, with declining physical strength, venturing into combat carried considerable risk.
It was also difficult for them to achieve further breakthroughs. But now, the Great Monk of Punishing Evil, not yet thirty years old, had achieved such a breakthrough and possessed such strength. This meant his future was bright, and it was not impossible for him to break through two or three more realms before the age of sixty!
The Great Monk of Punishing Evil was truly indebted to Ling Tian, especially since Ling Tian had agreed to guard him without a second thought. This favor was immense.
"Brother Punishing Evil, I am overjoyed that you have broken through. The stronger you become, the more effectively we can deal with the matter of Han Tan Town.
How about this: you rest for two days to consolidate your cultivation. Once you are familiar with your new strength, we will then devise a plan to completely resolve the issues of Han Tan Town."
"Alright, we will do as you say, Brother!
By the way, Brother Ling Tian, I have a humble request. Can your array still be used?"
"Of course, it can be used. I merely removed one of the array's eyes, which caused the array to cease functioning. As long as I replace the array eye, the Yin Gathering Array will be reactivated..."
"That's wonderful! Brother Ling Tian, could you reactivate the array again and lure some ghastly spirits or similar beings?
Now that I have broken through three realms, I can utilize some of my sect's martial arts and mystical techniques.
Although I am well-versed in the methods of using those techniques, I have not yet practiced them. I am unsure how effective these techniques truly are...
Could you help me lure some ghastly spirits over so I can test my moves on them?"
"Master, your idea is sound. It is precisely what should be done.
It's getting late now. Let's return to the house for some food and rest. After we've replenished our energy, I will summon some ghastly spirits for you at midnight!"
"Excellent!"
The dinner that day was particularly sumptuous. This was food Ling Tian had retrieved from his spiritual realm space. The Great Monk, unaware of its origin, assumed Ling Tian had arranged for it to be delivered from outside.
He ate a full four pounds of braised beef, over ten large flatbreads, and drank three liters of milk.
Ling Tian watched him eat with his eyes rolling back, thinking he was like a starving ghost reincarnated.