Chapter 639

Chapter 639: Capturing the Time Phantom

Deep within the mining area, five figures wielded market lanterns as they explosively mined.

Silence enveloped them as large sections of stone walls collapsed, and a gust of wind blew away the yellow sand, revealing various ores.

Whenever ores appeared, the lights would quickly scan the area to collect them. Li Hui sat in meditation, allowing the five Ghost Emperors to do their work.

The market lanterns in the Ghost Emperors’ hands were purchased from the black market, with a range of twenty zhang, far superior to the chain mail gloves and ordinary mining tools. Within that range, they could unleash attacks at will, while the market lanterns provided for miners in private mines could only illuminate six zhang—there was a vast difference!

As the hundred ghosts roamed the night, the other Ghost Emperors set out to search for mining seedlings and time phantoms. With two days left in his vacation, Li Hui’s trip into the private mine was perfectly timed to end tomorrow.

Two hours later, the five Ghost Emperors filled their lanterns but felt somewhat unsatisfied.

Wood Spirit among the Five Ghosts giggled, “Hehe, this market lantern doesn’t do the job! We became heavenly ghosts, and we can compete with cultivators at the Hongfa Stage. If we had a more powerful lantern, we could clear a hundred zhang with ease.”

“My lord, the lanterns are full. Do you have any other commands?” a small mountain child bowed respectfully.

“Good, mountain child, stay here and fill this private mine’s lantern halfway. The other four ghosts will go out to search for mining seedlings and time phantoms. Don’t underestimate anything unusual you encounter.”

“Understood!” the Five Ghosts complied.

Li Hui continued his meditation to cultivate the spirit-refining technique.

The previous exceptional Divine Bird Technique no longer effectively condensed his soul. He had recently grasped a marvelous method from Li Gui that allowed his spiritual sense to transform at will; he needed time to strengthen this insight.

Three hours passed, and suddenly the Transmission Talisman called out, “My lord, hurry! I’ve discovered something strange.”

Li Hui got up, his form flickering as he rushed to Wood Spirit’s cave within a dozen breaths.

Before he could stabilize himself, he saw a ripple spread through Bai Ze’s divine eye. He quickly pulled Wood Spirit back until they exited the cave, where the ripple dissipated, followed by a chilling sensation.

Wood Spirit, a bit slow to react and filled with trepidation, said, “Was that thing very powerful? Earlier, there was nothing in the cave, but suddenly a purple glowing mass appeared. Thank goodness you came quickly; otherwise…”

Before she finished, Li Hui pulled Wood Spirit back again, just as a purple-glowing mass burst from the cave in pursuit.

“Ah…” Wood Spirit screamed. This time, the ripple spread rapidly, sweeping across her arm. Instantly, her arm withered, devoid of life.

With a sharp sound, Li Hui severed Wood Spirit’s arm, watching it quickly turn to black ash. Meanwhile, the mass in the air swiftly transformed into a three-zhang-long arm.

This arm was knobby and shot toward Wood Spirit.

“Heavens! What on earth is that?” Wood Spirit cried as she flew back. Li Hui frowned and said, “This must be the time phantom I was looking for. I didn’t expect it to be so troublesome. It is a soul trapped in time and space, which by chance became a ghostly entity, further evolving into a ghost fetus.”

“A ghost fetus? Then there must be a ghost mother. But if it’s so fierce, does that mean…”

“Exactly, you hit upon it. The ghost fetus absorbed the ghost mother. In fact, it is trapped in other timelines, relying on devouring ores to survive. However, without blood food, it risks becoming a stillborn. That’s why it frantically searches for blood food while miners connect time and space. It’s starving to an extreme, far more powerful than all the starving ghosts and dying specters, devouring anything, including other ghostly beings. I truly suspect this ghost could one day become a glutton.”

“A glutton? Isn’t that a Dragon offspring?” Wood Spirit surmised, retreating again. She waved her hands, making the ground and walls sprout vines, hoping to use them to block the ghostly hand. However, it was useless; the time phantom that had transformed into a ghostly hand was not tangible and passed through unaffected.

Li Hui suddenly stopped, his eyes flashing red as he said, “I mean a ghost glutton. This thing is likely a specialty of the Extreme Huan Continent, never documented in any texts. Gather everyone; help me seal this time phantom. We need to study its origins and uses thoroughly.”

“Is there a way to seal it?” Wood Spirit asked as she used the Transmission Talisman to summon the hundred ghosts.

“We need a container. Let’s use a market bear; additionally, we must seal at least ten agile Ghost Emperors within mining tools to keep it constantly disturbed.” Li Hui took out a talisman brush and swiftly sketched the Time-Flowing Talisman in the air.

This talisman could only linger for a breath, yet it drew in threads of time force, like threads wrapping around the ghostly hand, slowing its speed significantly.

Li Hui began his preparations, retrieving the best-preserved East Pearl from the Crystal Palace treasures. He held the talisman brush and inscribed runes around the East Pearl, treating it as a decree to create.

Once completed, the hundred ghosts had gathered around him.

He selected ten agile ghost emperors to infuse into mining implements. These implements, though seemingly crude, bore the Way principles of the Extreme Huan Continent’s territory and were useless in the outer world, yet they could disturb the time force in the Extreme Huan.

The key was still the market bear, used for storing items.

Li Hui carefully placed the East Pearl onto the bear cub’s forehead. Unfortunately, the bear cub proved too fragile compared to the East Pearl. It shattered with a loud crash, unable to bear the weight of such a treasure.

After several failed attempts, Li Hui had no choice but to take out a market lantern, slicing open his wrist to release chaotic blood. He dipped the talisman brush in his blood and wrote to establish a stable talisman base for the pearl.

This time, it didn’t disappoint; he successfully transferred the East Pearl into the market lantern. Once the lantern’s light enveloped it, it immediately drew the ghostly hand inside.

“Success!” the ghosts cheered.

Li Hui shook his head and said, “This should be the lowest tier of time phantom. Wood Spirit’s arm isn’t a suitable blood food. Once the time phantom devours enough miners, it will surely change, and…”

“And what?” Wood Spirit asked curiously.

“And when the time phantom devours another time phantom, it might merge into something terrifying.” Li Hui ordered, “Continue searching the mining area.”

“Yes…” the ghosts complied.

The next day, as they were nearing the end of mining for the day, they finally discovered a mining seedling.

Though it was only a single seedling, its quality surpassed even emerald, rendering it a rare jade fat form. Bringing it back could immediately elevate their status, allowing the market lantern to collect it.

When Li Hui boarded the cage to return to the surface, he brought back a harvest that was quite impressive.

This haul wasn’t enough to invite jealousy and didn’t even place him in the top ten, perfectly matching the strength of a ninth-level miner. However, the ores he brought to the black market caused a minor sensation.

Apart from the market lantern, the hundred ghosts had filled over three hundred bear cubs during their mining. Some even suspected they were high-tier miners above level twenty who desperately needed money, but after investigations revealed nothing, it showed how careful the other party was.

While buying supplies, Li Hui couldn’t help but mutter, “So expensive! The materials for talisman-making related to time force are sky-high. This small town is insufficient for me; I must go to a mega city with over a billion people. Goodness, I’ll bear with it for now; I’ll use all my earnings to purchase the best market lantern, the top-notch one.”

What he didn’t know was that yesterday a guest had arrived at his home—Bai Xiaolu’s twelfth sister. This twelfth sister had married well but faced trouble due to having only a few children, causing her husband to despise her. After some hardship, she fled with her child to find her sister.