IS Chapter 122

Ye Ge’s expression changed slightly.

Humans have three souls. The first is the celestial soul, the second is the terrestrial soul, and the third is the vital soul. If all three souls are present, it constitutes a complete person.

The thread of divine soul connecting them had unknowingly transformed into a chain of interlocking links. One end of the chain was fastened to Shen Xinge, and the other to Ye Ge, with light flowing over it.

Above, below, and behind Ye Ge’s divine soul, incredibly mysterious diagrams of the Eight Trigrams formations manifested from the void, each respectively imprisoning his celestial, terrestrial, and vital souls!

Shen Xinge formed a hand seal, his two fingers pointing upwards towards the sky before his chest, his blue Daoist robe gently swaying. Behind him, formations and talismans slowly rotated.

“Ye Ge, tell me.” The young man’s voice was calm and serene, “Can you still return now?”

Ye Ge glanced at the formation diagrams.

His actions to reinforce the boundary finally ceased. His divine soul struggled towards Shen Xinge’s body, attempting to return, but failing. Then, he struggled outwards, intending to break free from the constraints of the Eight Trigrams formation diagrams. The chains and formation diagrams trembled slightly due to his actions, but ultimately remained steadfast.

*How could this be?* He specialized in divine soul techniques for hundreds of years, how could he be trapped instead! Could it be that he had exhausted too much power in his divine soul to activate the boundary?

Ye Ge’s face turned ashen as he urged his power, gathering a Dharma seal in his palm.

Seeing him plotting to break free from the restraints, he sneered, “So this was premeditated. The Hongmeng Sect has truly good methods.”

“We wouldn’t dare. It’s a single person’s actions, unrelated to my sect.” Shen Xinge said, “I just dare to ask, True Man, whose methods are these in the end?”

Ye Ge remained silent, and the others did not speak either. Clearly, this was a long-standing grievance, far more than just the matter of the Ghost Realm.

In the end, Shen Jingzhen called out, “…Xin Ge?”

“It’s me, Master.” Shen Xinge said, “It is this disciple’s unfilialness that has caused Master so much worry over the years.”

The crowd vaguely recalled that Shen Xinge of the Hongmeng Sect was the head disciple of the sect leader, taught by his side since childhood. Unexpectedly, a sudden change occurred, and his path of cultivation went awry, stopping at the age of six and never growing up again.

When the news spread, everyone sighed that nothing in the world is perfect, and excessive intelligence is bound to be detrimental. They all thought that Shen Xinge would become a discarded disciple and his promising future would be cut short. But Shen Jingzhen did not give up, still only recognized him as his personal disciple, and wholeheartedly protected and taught him.

Those present who had been masters also knew that teaching a six-year-old child was several times more difficult than teaching disciples aged fifteen or sixteen whose minds had matured. For Shen Xinge’s sake, Shen Jingzhen never accepted another disciple in his life.

Now, recalling the past and hearing Shen Xinge say “many years,” it turned out that the cause of everything had been sown at that time.

Shen Jingzhen closed his eyes deeply, thousands of words gathering in his heart, unable to be spoken.

“So you weren’t mentally impaired, were you?”

“A gentleman conceals his abilities, waiting for the opportune moment. Master taught me by example, and I have surpassed my teacher.” Shen Xinge pursed his lips and smiled slightly, “However, I never deceived Master. I deceived myself. This intellect was sealed by me back then, and today is the first time I have unlocked it.”

“…” Everyone was speechless.

In that case, Sect Leader Shen concealed his cultivation realm, deceiving everyone. And his disciple was even more astonishing, even deceiving himself. Truly, like master, like disciple, one more capable than the other of great things.

Shen Jingzhen’s eyes were already red-rimmed. He suddenly looked at Ye Ge: “Ye Ge! What grievance do you have with my sect that you would attack a child!”

Ye Ge did not answer, only wholeheartedly resisted Shen Xinge, trying to break free from the restraints. He was in a disadvantageous position, but Shen Xinge was handling it with ease, still firmly trapping Ye Ge’s divine soul.

“A hundred years ago, the grandmaster fell on the path to ascension. A few decades later, the grand-uncle also fell. Twenty years ago, the last Human Immortal of the Hongmeng Sect also fell. From then on, I knew that Master had been paying attention to some news, the path to ascension, the Supreme Purity Mountain, things like that.”

“There must be someone who doesn’t want Master to know that news. And there must be someone who is guarding against you, Master.”

“But Master is already the leader of a sect, upright and honorable. It is not easy to find fault with Master, or find an opportunity to attack. Moreover, it would alarm others.”

Shen Jingzhen: “So, they attacked you?”

“It can’t be considered an attack. At that time, I didn’t understand very well. Looking back now, it was precautionary.” Shen Xinge said, “They wanted to plant a chess piece by your side, Master. They wanted a pair of eyes to watch where you were investigating, what you wanted to do, and also to watch the Hongmeng Sect’s every move. When necessary, this chess piece could be used. In another ten or twenty years, when my cultivation had improved, it would be even more useful.”

“Therefore, it would definitely be me. The grand-uncles all had accomplished cultivation, and the other senior brothers and sisters were not as close to you, Master. At that time, I was six years old, and my divine soul was not very stable. It would not be noticed if he tampered with it inside.”

As he spoke, Shen Xinge looked at his six-year-old body. As Ye Ge’s resistance grew more intense, a bizarre mark appeared on the surface of his body, flickering with an ominous light.

Someone understood that mark.

“It seems to be used for spirit possession. Planted in another person’s divine soul, it can possess their body.” The old man said, “But a person’s divine soul is created by heaven, and even they themselves find it difficult to control. This level of divine soul magic should not exist in the human realm.”

“Someone planted this in my divine soul. Coincidentally, I discovered it.” Shen Xinge said.

“I understand that this is not a good thing. I also understand that I cannot tell Master. The more you know about many things, the more dangerous it becomes. If I told Master, Master would be as dangerous as I am. If the mark on my body was removed, more people would be planted with it.”

“So, I sealed my intellect. I sealed it the moment the mark was planted. Only in this way could he not see anything amiss. He would think that his methods had damaged my divine soul.”

Saying this, Shen Xinge smiled, that smile was exactly the same as when he had just shown off his cultivation realm to Ye Zhuo.

“From then on, I was a child who would never grow up again. My Master never accepted any other personal disciples, and I was still by Master’s side.”

“But from then on, no one would take me to listen to or see any important matters of the sect. No one would let me go to any dangerous places either. Even if I saw some things, I wouldn’t understand them. The person possessing me would get nothing. He could only see some insignificant things through my eyes. However, it was still better than nothing. Ye Ge, am I right?”

“Master, you actually sensed something vaguely, right? From then on, you never continued to investigate, and your cultivation realm has remained at the Tribulation Transcending stage since then.”

“And I have been waiting.”

“I want to wait until that person completely possesses my body. On that day, I will know who he is, what he wants to do, and what methods he intends to use on the Hongmeng Sect.”

“Then, I will hold him back. He will never be able to return.”

Saying this, Shen Xinge smiled and stared directly at Ye Ge: “Your name is Ye Ge, my name is Xin Ge. Names have fate. Our names both have the character ‘Ge’. Wouldn’t it be easier and more hidden for you to possess my divine soul?”

“For more than ten years, you have used my body as a cabinet to hide jade. Now, let my heart be the cabinet to trap you, how about it?”

Ye Ge’s divine soul erupted with a brilliant glow, wanting to break free from the restraints in one fell swoop!

Shen Xinge’s hand seals changed swiftly, and in an instant, he also struck a mysterious great seal towards Ye Ge!

After the collision, both of their divine souls dimmed. Ye Ge’s divine soul wavered, and his expression towards Shen Xinge was also greatly horrified.

Shen Xinge, however, raised an extremely happy smile: “The Dharma seal you carved in contains the Dao of divine souls. How well have I comprehended it? Ye Ge, I have really been waiting for this moment for many years.”

Ye Ge sneered and said sullenly, “Little Daoist Priest is young and promising, Sect Leader Shen is truly discerning.”

“Ye Ge! Don’t you have even a trace of guilt in your heart?” Shen Jingzhen roared. He had heard the whole story. At this time, his eyes were bloodshot, and the hand holding the Daoist sword trembled uncontrollably. None of those present had ever seen the Sect Leader of Hongmeng in such a state of discomposure.

“For the sake of the spiritual veins, for the sake of ascension, how many sects have you destroyed openly and secretly over the past hundred years, and how many lives have you stained? For the sake of planting a dispensable chess piece, you forced a six-year-old child to sever his path of cultivation and seal his intellect for more than ten years! He should be as old as Yi Zhen of the Sword Sect! He has a clear and intelligent mind, he should be cultivating and seeking enlightenment, traveling the world! Ye Ge, you have harmed him by trapping him by my side for more than ten years, only able to be an ignorant and ignorant infant!”

“…Master, please calm down.” Shen Xinge said softly, “I wasn’t very ignorant, was I? It’s quite good by Master’s side, and I’m almost done cultivating to the Tribulation—”

“Shut up!”

Shen Xinge silently shut up.

He even mentioned Yi Zhen’s name. The Second Elder of the Sword Sect listened to it with a heartfelt feeling. He turned to look at his disciple beside him, as upright as a pine and bamboo, who was already taller than himself, and then breathed a sigh of relief.

He only had this one disciple in his life, picked up from a pile of dead people since he was a child, although he hadn’t taught him much. Putting himself in his shoes, if Yi Zhen had encountered all of this, it would truly be heartbreaking. The main sect’s actions were so inhumane.

Ye Zhuo had been quietly observing the situation. At this time, he spoke at the right time: “The nineteen assassins of the Guanhua Cave seem to have also had their divine souls controlled by True Man Ye Ge and refined into puppets.”

“Ye Ge! Where did your divine soul cultivation method come from?” Shen Jingzhen pressed Ye Ge, “The Heavenly Dao of my realm is limited, and it has always been difficult to cultivate divine soul techniques! Did you obtain your cultivation method from the Upper Realm? What exactly did you trade with the Immortal Realm?”

Shen Jingzhen was aggressive, but after all, he couldn’t bear to harm Shen Xinge’s body. All the questions were just a little louder. Ye Ge did not show much embarrassment.

“Your distinguished disciple has outstanding talent and deep cunning. This time, this old man has made a misstep. But my sect’s actions, as I said just now, are all unavoidable.” Ye Ge raised his eyes and looked at everyone, “If the path to immortality is cut off and the dream of longevity awakens, I think you all would not be willing, right?”

Shen Jingzhen laughed loudly: “So that’s it! Now that things have come to this point, why don’t you make things clearer! The Immortal Realm promises your sect ascension, and what does your sect promise the Immortal Realm? It’s all the flesh and blood of the human realm, the lifelines of the living!”

Ye Ge did not speak, and re-formed the hand seals, continuing to mend the boundary. It seemed that True Man Ye Ge had no hope of escaping, and had made up his mind to leave himself and everyone else in the Ghost Realm. He was also willing to abandon his own body and stay in Shen Xinge’s body for the rest of his life.

“Master, why bother getting angry? Strike again and kill me.” Shen Xinge smiled slightly.

“My master and I have a relationship as teacher and disciple in this life, and I have no regrets. Xin Ge’s actions, regardless of age, all come from his heart, and he had long expected everything today. Master, you kill me, I will die in the right place, and you will have nothing to be ashamed of.”

Now that their divine souls were connected, they would live together if they lived, and die together if they died. If he killed him with one palm, he and Ye Ge would both be annihilated, and the main sect’s True Men would have died four out of six. The general trend was over, and they could no longer cause any trouble.

When Shen Xinge sealed his intellect, he was waiting for this day—the day when he would reveal everything to the world, and take those who were Fly camp dog, who were spying on the Hongmeng Sect, to die together.

Today, everyone was holding the handle of the Supreme Purity Mountain and was trapped in the Ghost Realm, which was a godsend. Ye Ge possessed him, causing trouble, which was the timing of the heavens.

Ye Ge had to mend the boundary, so all three souls came, and he also consumed most of his divine soul power, and was restrained by him, which was the advantage of the location.

Palace Master Wei Sheng provoked Ye Ge to use his full strength, Second Palace Master Ye brought up his old affairs, and Master also pressed him step by step, asking about the collusion between the Supreme Purity Mountain and the Immortal Realm in front of everyone, which could barely be considered the harmony of people.

As for why it was “barely”, Shen Xinge thought, maybe it was because the six-year-old him didn’t have enough cultivation, didn’t have enough schemes, and couldn’t beat the old fox who was powerful in the past. The best he could do was to die together with Ye Ge, destined to make his master sad.

Thinking of his master being old and helpless, and even having no one to support the coffin in the end, Shen Xinge felt very sad.

And if he died, his good friend Daoist Ye might also feel a little sad, which was not impossible.

But he still had to urge his master to kill him and end everything.

Shen Jingzhen closed his eyes, as if to cover up the bloodshot eyes. How could the relationship between teacher and disciple in one life be so easily ended?

“Your master can’t do it.” Ye Zhuo’s voice sounded faintly, “How about I kill you?”

“?”

Now Shen Xinge felt even sadder.