The Ascension of Contracted Spirits

Chapter 478 - 218: Followers of Ye Hanjun_3

"Swords are drawn, crossbows tightened; a civil war could break out at any moment."

The sixth disciple, Bai Qin the Autopsist, gently moved her lips.

Ye Hanjun looked up at the waning moon above, a faint smile tugging at the corners of his mouth:

"Ying Mountain probably never imagined that the dark force he built with his own hands would end up in such a situation, did he?"

"He’s too overwhelmed to handle his own affairs." Bai Qin shook her head, "If it were Ying Qing and Ying Shui, they would undoubtedly be loyal to him."

"But as for Ying Xiu... this man only cares about his own interests. He’s likely to switch sides to Ying Liu, aiming for the maximum benefit."

"Hehe, no matter which side she chooses, with additional reinforcement, we will come out victorious."

Ye Hanjun smirked, a faint glint flashing in his pitch-black eyes.

It had been nearly a year since the Shadow Alliance attempted to assassinate the Canghai Pavilion.

Even though the Alliance Hierarch, Ying Mountain, had once suspected there were traitors in the alliance and killed a few to set an example,

Bai Qin, using her own tactics, removed every danger and remained intact unscathed.

With the rise of her power, she even gained the alias "Ying Hua". Alongside Ying Liu, Ying An, and Ying Ming, they formed the strongest quartet of Shadow Alliance’s 3rd Order. Externally known as "Willow’s Shadow and Flower’s Bloom", they ranked just below the 4th Order of "Scenic beauty / Beautiful landscape".

However, expect the unexpected, as they say.

Over the near year, the Shadow Alliance has experienced several major events.

The most unbelievable thing was evidently the Alliance Hierarch, Ying Mountain, exploding with anger due to a failed assassination attempt.

Ying Qing and Ying Shui were his capable subordinates. The death of two such strong individuals greatly shook the foundation of the Shadow Alliance.

Naturally, his authority was challenged, his power questioned.

To stabilize the situation as quickly as possible and prevent other dark forces from having insidious intentions such as "assimilation" or "undermining", Ying Mountain took a risky move. He tried to strengthen Contracted Spirit using secret methods to speed up its promotion to Perfection of Life Wheel.

He succeeded; the Evil Moon Owl advanced further. Indeed, it stood at an echelon level, like Perfection of Life Wheel, overlooking all the spirits of the 4th Order.

However, the ritual Ying Mountain used was too dark, too drastic, containing countless unpredictable negative effects.

Though the Evil Moon Owl had successfully evolved, it had lost its sanity and became a mad beast.

It went insane, nearly killing another Contracted Spirit - the Irritable Blood Leopard. Even Ying Mountain almost got killed in its frenzied state.

The end result was contract severance; the insane Evil Moon Owl escaped from the Shadow Alliance and disappeared.

When the contract broke, it rebounded, causing the only remaining spirit to suffer serious injuries.

The half-damaged Ying Mountain, in just one night, changed into an old man with white hair and a wandering soul. He lost his former flamboyance.

At this time, Ying Liu, who was ranked first in the second team of the Shadow Alliance, "Willow’s Shadow and Flower’s Bloom", unexpectedly advanced.

More surprisingly, his Contracted Spirit stepped up, pushing into the echelon of Small Achievement of Life Wheel, thus surpassing Ying Xiu, whose two Contracted Spirits belong to the Life Wheel Void Extraction.

"The old generation is declining, and the new generation is rising."

"It’s only normal for Ying Liu to harbor sinister thoughts and want to become the new Hierarch to replace Ying Mountain."

"Ying Xiu, stuck in the middle and leaning towards Ying Liu, aligns with the law of survival of the fittest."

Ye Hanjun chuckled lightly, shifting the topic:

"But... when the sandpiper and the clam fight each other, isn’t it the fisherman who benefits?"

"Ying Liu is trying to win you over, trying to win over Ying An and Ying Ming, considering you as his right-hand man. But is he aware... that you are only a hair’s breadth from the 4th Order?"