Ten Thousand Soul Banner: Deceased, do you have any unfulfilled wishes?-Chapter 1097 - 1093: The Treasure of Faith

Shen Siyuan’s knowing smile was because he had seen through Dou Dou’s little trick. This little one seemed brash with her big commotion, but actually hid a keen wit.

At the very moment the double hammers swung out, and the light surged, she suddenly lowered her stance, like an agile little mouse. Using the cover of light and shadows, she darted directly beneath the Black Light Spear, silently circling to the back of the Undead Knight.

She was originally a Yin Spirit Body, light as a feather, and borrowed the strong gust created by the Undead Knight’s charge, sticking like a bone-growing sore. The Bronze Double Hammer in her hands was raised high again, filled with Divine Fire and Buddha’s Light power.

Duoduo and Xiao Yue’s concerns had not yet materialized when a deafening boom suddenly came from the sky.

The ascending Divine Fire wrapped in dazzling golden light erupted fiercely, as if another brilliant sun exploded over the Netherworld, blinding eyes.

Dou Dou’s Heaven-reaching Giant Hammer indeed, without error, smashed into the back of the Undead Knight’s heart.

The Undead Knight was entirely focused on the momentum of his charge, utterly unprepared for the seemingly reckless little one to have such cunning movement technique, momentarily caught off guard, with amassed momentum collapsing like a breached dam.

More crucially, Dou Dou’s Divine Fire had long since evolved thanks to Incense Fire Wishing Power, becoming increasingly lively and fierce, its destructive power against Netherworld’s dross climbing exponentially.

Once the Divine Fire touched the Undead Knight’s black armor, it adhered like a bone-growing sore, furiously burning his body and Martial Arts Will.

The Undead Knight was engulfed in turbid black energy, desperately trying to dispel the Divine Fire, even contemplating severing his arm to survive, but the evolved Divine Fire seemed to have its own intelligence, spreading wildly along with his black energy, proving difficult to fully remove, causing him to let out a sharp ghostly screech.

It was this fleeting flaw that Shen Siyuan caught in an instant.

His gaze sharpened, hesitating no more, wielding the Five Elements Primordial Magnetic Sword to strike horizontally, its Five Elements Power intertwined with Earth Mother’s Primordial Magnetism, tracing a rainbow-like arc in the sky, carrying a formidable force straight towards the Undead Knight’s vital point.

Before striking, Shen Siyuan had already released a strand of Divine Thought, controlling the high-hanging Ten Thousand Soul Banner.

Though Dou Dou’s sneak attack succeeded, the aftermath from the Undead Knight left her worse for wear, her small body was sent rolling through the air.

Coincidentally, the Ten Thousand Soul Banner hovered above, the banner gently rippling, a soft golden light descending, capturing Dou Dou within, allowing her to recuperate and heal inside the banner.

The series of actions was seamless, from Dou Dou’s successful sneak attack, to the Undead Knight’s entrapment in a desperate situation, followed by Shen Siyuan’s finishing move and collection of Dou Dou, all within mere breaths, yet executed without flaw, fully showcasing an unruffled control over the entire situation.

"Duang~"

A thunderous collision sound exploded, the Undead Knight hastily raised his spear, barely blocking Shen Siyuan’s sword.

But before he could steady himself, a wild, unparalleled Thunder Power coursed through the spear shaft, bursting loudly, the crackling lightning clinging to his black armor, spreading wildly, instantly engulfing his entire body.

"Zila~"

The excruciating pain of the thunder burst caused the Undead Knight to let out a piercing ghostly wail, his skeleton horse bore the brunt, exploding into a rain of white bones, scattering everywhere.

He himself plummeted from the sky like a broken kite, black smoke billowing from his body, under the dual attack of Thunder Power and Divine Fire, the dark light surrounding him had long dimmed, even Incense Fire Wishing Power could easily penetrate, relentlessly burning his soul body.

Seizing the advantage, Shen Siyuan abruptly shifted direction in the air, the Five Elements Primordial Magnetic Sword enveloped in thousands of rays of light, dragging out a long, dazzling sword qi, like a meteor from above, stabbing straight down.

The Undead Knight at this point was already in dire straits.

Divine Fire was frantically burning his surface, with unbearable pain within his soul body.

Incense Fire Wishing Power was like a bone-growing sore, constantly eroding his surrounding dross.

Thunder Power completely obliterated his Martial Arts Will.

The threefold attacks combined, even with his sky-reaching Martial Arts, refined Will, he was utterly unable to retaliate now, could only watch helplessly as the sword qi carrying endless might loomed ever larger before his eyes.

"Puchi~"

The inevitable piercing sound echoed.

The seemingly invincible black armor on the Undead Knight was effortlessly pierced by the Five Elements Primordial Magnetic Sword, its fragments scattering everywhere.

The Five Elements Power, Primordial Magnetic Power, Thunder Power contained within the sword, along with the immense Incense Fire Wishing Power, simultaneously erupted at the moment of penetration.

This force was too wild, like thousands of thunders erupting inside, or like a volcanic eruption, unstoppable.

Don’t say he’s merely a ghostly dross conjured by martial arts will, even if a true divine presence were here, it would be hard to withstand such an accumulation of peak powers clashing.

The soul body of the Undead Knight shattered inch by inch amidst the explosive force, dispersing silently like weathered sand. Wisps of black smoke rose only to be instantly purified by the surrounding incense fire wishing power and divine fire.

A gust of Yin Wind blew past, and his soul body vanished without a trace, leaving behind only a set of cracked, damaged armor and a long spear with a broken tip and scorched shaft, lying silently in the black mud of the Netherworld, recounting the fierce battle that just occurred.

Shen Siyuan’s figure swayed, landing steadily atop the black mud of the Netherworld.

No sooner did he find his footing than Xiao Yue and Duoduo rushed over eagerly, overlooking the surrounding chaotic battlefield and ignoring the broken armor and spear on the ground, their hearts and eyes solely worried about Dou Dou.

"How is Dou Dou? Is she hurt?" Xiao Yue was the first to speak, with a faint tremble in her voice.

Duoduo also looked up with her little face, gazing earnestly at Shen Siyuan, though she didn’t speak, her face was filled with anxiety.

"She’s fine, really good," Shen Siyuan smiled comfortingly. "She just got a little bit shaken earlier, I’ve already placed her within the Ten Thousand Soul Banner for recuperation. She’ll recover very soon."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Yue and Duoduo visibly breathed a sigh of relief. With a glance at each other, they transformed into a gust of Yin Wind, and in an instant, dove into the Ten Thousand Soul Banner, leaving Shen Siyuan standing alone in place.

"They really are~"

A smile of relief appeared on Shen Siyuan’s face.

He looked down at the ground; the recent fierce battle had left a scene of devastation, with the black mud churning, ravines running through, and the broken armor and shattered spear lying quietly beside.

With a flip of his wrist, Shen Siyuan collected these two damaged items in their entirety.

He’s not someone with abundant resources; the materials of this armor and spear are surely extraordinary.

Even though they’re damaged now, keeping them for future smelting and reforging, or for disassembly and study, might still hold some value.

After doing all this, Shen Siyuan looked up to the sky and beckoned with his hand.

The Ten Thousand Soul Banner, which had been eclipsing the sky, began to rapidly shrink, finally transforming into a streak of light that landed steadily in Shen Siyuan’s palm.

In this short time, the massive amount of incense fire wishing power absorbed by the Ten Thousand Soul Banner had already poured out.

At this moment, the surface of the Netherworld was shrouded in a faint red-golden incense fire wishing power, with the air filled with a rich yet not overwhelming sandalwood aroma.

The gray, churning clouds in the sky melted rapidly like ice and snow meeting the sun, under the purification and erosion of the incense fire wishing power, dispersing to reveal the rare clear, starry night sky of the Netherworld.

The cold moonlight scattered down, intertwining with the red-golden incense fire on the ground, creating an unusual sense of tranquility and harmony.

Having witnessed the powerful purification effect of incense fire wishing power, Shen Siyuan didn’t plan to linger longer in the Netherworld.

He directly called out Duoduo, and let her send him back to the Mortal World, returning to Bin Hai.

What he needed to do next was to traverse every temple and Taoist temple, Mountain God temple in Qiong Province, collecting all accumulated incense fire wishing power within the land of Qiong Province.

The belief system in Qiong Province has always been uniquely characterized by a symbiosis of mountains and seas, with diverse integrations.

Here, the gods "Land Duke," "Mountain God," and "Ship God" are traditionally worshipped by the Li and Miao clans, protecting the peace of forests and fishing ports.

Also, since the Tang and Song dynasties, the introduction of Ma Zu Temple and Guan Emperor Temple have made their incense flourish along coastal counties, safeguarding the safety of fishermen at sea.

Moreover, the City God Temple, Xian Lady Temple, and the native totem beliefs such as "Ancestral Worship" of the Li Clan and "Pan King Belief" of the Miao Clan, spread across towns and rural areas, have never been interrupted through hundreds of years.

Thanks to the relatively closed geographical environment of the island, these belief heritages have scarcely been damaged by great war faints or cultural disjunctures, akin to the streams of Five Finger Mountain converging into the blue waves of the South Sea, silently accumulating an unimaginably vast incense fire wishing power over the centuries.

This includes the earnest prayers of fishermen before venturing out to sea, the heartfelt gengen of mountain people after harvest, and the people’s yearning for peace and smooth fortune.

Now, it’s time for him to harvest this "treasure of faith" unique to Qiong Province.