In mere moments, the relatively calm Spirit Qi atop Taiji Peak became chaotic.

Boom—!

A dull, thunderous roar erupted from the base of the peak. It felt as if an earth dragon were turning over, shaking the entire mountain to its core.

Immediately after, a torrent of Yin Ghost Energy—so dense it was like liquid ink—roared and churned like a black dragon, shooting straight into the clouds!

In an instant, the daylight dimmed. A sinister wind howled.

Taiji Peak was swallowed by a chilling, deathly aura. Plants frosted over, rocks glazed with ice, and an ominous heaviness permeated the air. Wispy strands of black mist slithered like living vipers, devouring even the light they passed through.

Zhou Kai felt a piercing cold seep into his pores. Despite his achievements in body cultivation, he couldn’t help but shiver.

This Ghost Energy was pure, overbearing, and carried a pressure that weighed directly on the soul.

Fish Baibai showed no fear. Her eyes were fixed on the soaring plume of black energy.

“Junior Brother Zhou, look! This is the Extreme Yin Ghost Tide that erupts from the base of Taiji Peak! Sometimes it hits every few days, other times it bottles up for months before exploding.”

She paused, smacking her lips. “The Young Miss is truly formidable. She suppresses it within moments every time!”

Zhou Kai nodded, internally sweating.

No wonder I never see a soul on Taiji Peak besides Fish Baibai.

Cultivating in this ghostly hellscape? An ordinary cultivator would have their Yang energy drained dry in a day, damaging their foundation permanently. Anyone willing to stay here must be incredibly loyal… or brain-damaged.

Just as Zhou Kai’s thoughts raced, a figure shot up from the cave abode below, swift as a meteor, and hovered amidst the billowing Ghost Energy.

It was Li Youci!

But she was different. She radiated a heart-palpitating, violent aura. Her long hair billowed without wind, and her phoenix eyes were a shocking crimson, swirling with madness and ferocity. She resembled a savage beast ready to devour the world.

“Senior Sister Fish, what’s wrong with the Young Miss?” Zhou Kai asked, startled.

This was completely different from the arrogant noblewoman he knew. The aura she emitted now was purer and more terrifying than the Extreme Yin Ghost Energy itself.

Fish Baibai looked bored. “Just watch! It’s only starting!”

Before her words faded, another change occurred!

Hum—!

A streak of dark light shot up from below—it was the Dark Cloud Soul Chasing Sedan.

However, the sedan was no longer tranquil. Countless intricate runes on its chassis lit up, swirling with eerie light as its Aura Pressure spiked.

Around the sedan, black flames spontaneously ignited. The fire was pitch-black like ink, yet burned more fiercely than any magma.

The sedan circled once in the air, then, without hesitation, charged straight at the crazed Li Youci, carrying a sky-obscuring torrent of black fire.

Its momentum was fierce, its power overwhelming. It was clearly a full-force attack intended to crush her on the spot!

Li Youci threw her head back and let out an inhuman roar, her crimson eyes blazing with battle lust. She didn’t dodge. Instead, raging flames ignited around her body.

But her flames weren’t black; they were an eerily pale white! The white fire was chillingly cold, as if summoned from the Nine Nether Abyss to freeze souls.

Boom!

Black fire and white flames collided violently in mid-air.

For a moment, the sky above Taiji Peak was split in two. One half was a boiling ocean of ink-black inferno; the other was a soul-freezing blizzard of white ghost-fire.

Two utterly different, extreme forces clashed, tore at, and annihilated each other, sending visible ripples shockwaving in all directions.

Standing at a distance, Zhou Kai was shaken by the terrifying aftershocks, his Mana and Vitality churning uncontrollably. He clearly sensed that this wasn’t just a collision of Mana. Two vast, boundless Divine Senses were also engaged in a fierce wrestling match in the void.

Zhou Kai considered his own Divine Sense strong, but compared to these two, it felt as insignificant as a grain of sand in a desert.

“Netherfire versus Soulfire! The Young Miss’s signature move!” Fish Baibai cheered, pumping her small fist.

Li Youci bathed in the soaring Extreme Yin Ghost Energy, absorbing it to fuel her pale white flames. Relying on this geographical advantage, she gradually began to suppress the black fire of the sedan!

Just as Li Youci was about to gain dominance, the Dark Cloud Soul Chasing Sedan trembled violently. The black fire surged, forcing Li Youci’s white flames back.

Then, under Zhou Kai’s astonished gaze, the tightly closed sedan curtain slowly parted.

A jade-white, slender hand rested on the doorframe.

A figure stepped out.

Identical black dress. Identical face. Identical flowing hair.

It was Li Youci.

Two Li Youcis?!

Zhou Kai felt a chill run down his spine. What is going on? Clones? An illusion?

He instinctively spread his Divine Sense to investigate. However, the moment it extended, it was instantly crushed by a vast, boundless torrent of mental pressure!

Pfft!

Zhou Kai grunted, feeling a sharp pain between his eyebrows. It was only a wisp of probe, so no real harm was done, but he was horrified. The Divine Sense Intensity of these two women was unimaginable.

“Senior Sister Fish, what the hell is happening?” Zhou Kai hissed.

Fish Baibai pointed at the crimson-eyed, frenzied Li Youci in the air.

“That one… you can think of it as the Young Miss’s ‘Ghost Body.’ It is a part of her own soul that she separated. It has form but lacks consciousness or emotions. All its actions are controlled by the Young Miss’s True Body.”

She pointed at the calm figure who had just stepped out of the sedan.

“That one is the True Body. Whenever the ghost tide erupts, the Young Miss commands her Ghost Body to come out and feed on the energy. Because the energy is chaotic and violent, the Ghost Body goes a bit crazy during the feeding frenzy.”

Zhou Kai instantly understood.

Nurturing a Ghost!

Li Youci was nurturing a ghost—but the ghost was a piece of her own soul! No wonder she lived here! She was a living person walking the path of Ghost Cultivation by weaponizing her own spirit!

Zhou Kai finally understood what Fish Baibai meant by “fifty percent strength.” One True Body, one Ghost Body. Combined, they were Li Youci’s full power.

In the sky, the battle intensified.

The Ghost Body drove the pale white Soulfire, wildly colliding with the pitch-black Netherfire released by the True Body. Although the Ghost Body was mindless, the boost from the Extreme Yin environment made its combat power world-shaking.

Black and white fires tangled, erupting with heaven-destroying might.

Zhou Kai watched in shock. This level of battle far exceeded the Foundation Establishment Realm. This was infinitely close to—or perhaps had already reached—the combat level of a Golden Core cultivator!

This bizarre “internal conflict” lasted for the time it takes an incense stick to burn.

In the end, the True Body proved superior.

Li Youci’s True Body formed hand seals. The Netherfire around her surged into a massive vortex.

“Come back… to me!” she shouted, pointing a jade finger.

The Netherfire vortex sucked the Ghost Body and the pale white Soulfire into its maw with irresistible force.

Roar—!

The Ghost Body let out an unwilling scream but was powerless to resist. Under the refining of the Netherfire, the violent aura dissipated. The madness in its eyes faded, replaced by a dull, wooden stare.

Then, the Ghost Body transformed into a stream of light and flew directly into Li Youci’s chest, disappearing.

The sky calmed. The ghost tide, having lost its catalyst, settled down.

Li Youci hovered in the air, took out her Mysterious Nether Precious Mirror, and vacuumed up the remaining stray ghost energy, refining it into pure fuel.

Done.

She swayed slightly, then descended silently to the peak, landing before Zhou Kai and Fish Baibai.

Zhou Kai opened his mouth to speak, but froze.

Li Youci’s clear, cold phoenix eyes were fixed directly on him. The gaze was icy, piercing, and barely concealed a flicker of intense annoyance.

Zhou Kai’s back went cold.

What did I do? Where did I offend her this time?