Under the combined attack of the five Ghost Soldiers, the weaker Shade Souls dissipated into nothingness.
After a dozen seconds, having eliminated over a hundred Shade Souls, the energy of the five Ghost Soldiers was finally exhausted, and they turned into black mist and vanished.
Leo waved his right hand again, and ten Jade Plaques floated in front of him.
Seeing this, the gaunt old man’s face darkened. If another ten Ghost Soldiers appeared, he would lose many of the Shade Souls he had painstakingly captured.
Shade Souls were his trump card; unless absolutely necessary, he preferred not to lose them easily.
“Fellow cultivator, please wait. You must be the lord of Clearwind Town, recently invited to the capital by the emperor of Martial Dynasty?” The gaunt old man controlled the Shade Souls to stop attacking and suddenly spoke.
Leo was slightly taken aback. “You know me?”
“I don’t know you personally, but seeing you use the Talisman Activation Technique to draw a fourth-level ghost-expelling talisman earlier gave me a clue.”
“I heard that you once defeated the young master of Runecarver Sect in a talisman duel at Falling Blossom Palace. Is that true?” The gaunt old man stared at Leo and asked.
Leo nodded. “That’s correct.”
“Truly a hero among the young! Very well, this time I will give you face and spare these two monks.” The gaunt old man’s eyes flickered as he spoke.
This surprised Leo.
Brooks and the four men in black were also astonished.
“Elder Blackwood, this kid only knows how to draw a few ghost-expelling talismans. With the five of us working together, he won’t escape death!” The short, stout man was unwilling to accept Elder Blackwood’s decision to back down and spoke hastily.
Elder Blackwood glanced at the short, stout man without explanation and tossed the Shade Soul disc into the air.
The Shade Soul disc rapidly expanded in mid-air.
With a flash, Elder Blackwood landed on the enlarged Shade Soul disc.
Seeing this, the short, stout man’s face turned grim. He glared fiercely at Leo before flashing onto the Shade Soul disc as well.
The other three men in black, though reluctant, also flashed onto the Shade Soul disc.
Whoosh…!
The Shade Soul disc turned into a black streak of light and flew out of Starlight Grove.
“Elder Blackwood, why did you spare those two monks and that kid? Are we really afraid of him?” After flying a considerable distance, the short, stout man asked in a deep voice, puzzled.
Elder Blackwood’s eyes gleamed coldly. “That kid isn’t simple. He managed to defeat Gilberto. Can you? In my opinion, even if the five of us joined forces, we might not be able to defeat him.”
“You’re overestimating him. With you here and us four assisting, we could even take on a high-level Spirit Saint,” the short, stout man said defiantly.
“Heh, I know you’re unwilling. Even if we defeat him, we would suffer significant losses. Why do something so thankless?” Elder Blackwood’s lips curled into a sinister smile.
Noticing Elder Blackwood’s expression, the short, stout man and the other three men in black exchanged glances.
“What do you mean?” The tall, thin man holding a soul-reaping spear asked in confusion.
“That kid humiliated Gilberto. Given Gilberto’s nature, revenge is inevitable. Moreover, that kid’s Starfall Shop conflicts with Runecarver Sect’s interests, so Runecarver Sect will definitely target him,” Elder Blackwood said with a sinister expression.
This made the four men in black light up simultaneously.
Yin Shadow Gate, Runecarver Sect, and Diamond Fortress were three major sects constantly vying against each other, hoping for the other’s downfall.
“When the snipe and clam fight, the fisherman benefits. Besides, we already have the Mystic Clearfruit. Whether those two monks live or die isn’t particularly important.”
“Heh heh, Elder is wise,” the short, stout man said with a relieved smile.
After they left, Leo turned his gaze to Brooks.
Brooks’ expression had relaxed significantly by now.
“Thank you for saving our lives,” Brooks said respectfully, holding the white-browed old monk with one hand and saluting Leo with the other.
Leo smiled. “No need to be polite, Master Brooks. We’ve met before; otherwise, I might not have intervened.”
Brooks was taken aback and carefully examined Leo but couldn’t recall where they had met.
Leo continued, “We once hunted the Gold Horned Kirin Leopard together.”
“You… you’re that one-eyed…” Brooks finally recognized Leo.
“The one-eyed look was just a disguise,” Leo said with a smile.
“I am ashamed. This is the second time you’ve saved me,” Brooks said gratefully.
Leo glanced at the white-browed old monk in Brooks’ arms and asked, “Why were you being pursued by Yin Shadow Gate?”
“Mr. Bloomer, my junior brothers Mindy and Mica Hart discovered Mystic Clearfruit in a valley while training in Starlight Grove.”
“Since Mystic Clearfruit was guarded by a quasi-Demon King beast, they invited Master Xander for help. I accompanied Master Xander.”
“After a fierce battle, we finally killed the quasi-Demon King beast but were ambushed by Yin Shadow Gate.”
“Master Xander was severely injured due to overexertion during the battle. My junior brothers were killed. I barely escaped with Master Xander using my flying spiritual weapon.”
Brooks recounted everything in detail. Speaking of his junior brothers’ deaths filled his face with both anger and sorrow.
“If not for your timely rescue, Mr. Bloomer, my uncle-master and I would have perished here.”
After hearing the whole story, Leo nodded. “Perhaps this is what Buddhists call fate.”
“Amitabha,” Brooks chanted respectfully.
“Cough… cough…”
During their conversation, the white-browed old monk in Brooks’ arms groaned in pain and coughed up some black blood. His condition worsened.
Upon closer inspection, tiny black flames seemed to dance on the black blood.
“Uncle-master, what’s wrong?” Brooks asked anxiously.
The white-browed old monk’s face contorted in pain, black energy swirling around his forehead.
Leo’s gaze shifted to see a black palm print on the old monk’s chest.
“What happened with this palm print?” Leo asked.
Brooks quickly explained, “Uncle-master was struck by Elder Blackwood’s Shade Soul Palm. The palm force fills his dantian with ghostly fire, preventing him from using his spiritual power.”
Hearing this, Leo pondered for a moment before deciding to help further.
Reaching into his Storage Sack, Leo took out a pill bottle containing an ice-crystal clear pill.