Why Am I a Priestess When I Reach the Maximum Level? - [Vol. 6] Chapter 36

[Vol. 6] Chapter 36: A Long-Awaited Disgust

Brushing away her vague premonition of a small trouble, Violet stopped thinking about any potential complications. She turned and walked directly toward the snake beast that Ling Feng and Bai’er had subdued together.

The two of them had already reached the snake beast while Violet was healing the bald man, and it seemed they were attempting to communicate with it.

It appeared, in some sense, to be quite effective.

“So, what’s the situation? Is the [Yokai Controlling Sect] behind this? Where did those guys go?”

At least within the range of Violet’s senses, the only suspicious presence from beginning to end had been this snake beast.

Ling Feng nodded.

“It’s confirmed. The person controlling this snake beast comes from the same faction that was responsible for embedding the spiritual flesh in the Prefect’s place before. See for yourself.”

She raised her hand and pulled aside the ragged clothing of the snake beast girl, which had stopped struggling but now wore a blank expression, as if it had lost its ability to react to the outside world.

At the private junction of her human body and snake tail, a place only girls could see, there was a clear pattern that had just appeared after being smeared with a special liquid.

It looked like a kind of rune or a connected, special design. Though Violet hadn’t seen anything like it before, she could sense from the subtle aura emanating from it that it was likely a magical tattoo related to enslavement and control.

“This is the [Yokai-Suppressing Seal]. It was originally applied to the body, but over time, its effects have penetrated deeper into the Yokai’s form and evolved into this kind of shape.”

“Monsters fully controlled by the [Yokai Controlling Sect] usually bear such distinctive marks. It serves as both proof and their common method of taming Yokai. It’s despicable and has long been despised by the cultivation world.”

“I feel like I’ve seen something like this before…”

Muttering softly, Violet placed her holy staff on the snake beast’s shoulder and activated [Information Detection].

Soon, the details of the snake beast’s situation were presented to her in a more direct way.

Hmm… in a sense, this snake beast was already dead.

The situation of the snake beast was somewhat similar to Leila and Rene, who were once blood slaves and used as reserve food, or more accurately, it could be described as something akin to a puppet created through alchemy.

The spiritual essence and consciousness, the very core of its soul, had long since vanished. Only the specific spiritual energy and combat instincts remained, preserved and refined by the [Yokai Controlling Sect] through some special method, turning it into a weapon now easily controlled.

Such despicable methods.

A faint sense of long-forgotten disgust stirred in Violet’s heart.

She didn’t mind normal combat and fighting. Using spirit beasts in battle was also a reasonable tactic. She might not resort to using brute force to tame them herself, but she didn’t care to interfere with such things either.

However, she couldn’t tolerate the idea of annihilating a sentient being’s will, twisting its essence, and completely transforming it into something else. This kind of behavior, which insulted life itself, couldn’t be justified as a method of combat. It was purely about humiliation, plundering, and cruelty for pleasure, an utterly despicable means with no bottom line.

If the [Yokai Controlling Sect] controlled and manipulated Yokai in this way, then it would be better to eliminate such a sect as soon as possible.

If the people of the [Ancient Spirit Realm] couldn’t do it, the priestess wouldn’t mind becoming a righteous avenger herself.

“Violet, can this snake… be saved?”

With a glance at Ling Feng’s slightly flickering beautiful eyes, Violet immediately sensed that the question probably carried a lot of hidden meaning.

As for whether it could be saved… of course, it could.

Although the soul had dissipated, which made it troublesome, the snake beast’s physical body still existed. It was not like [Cheese Mochi], whose soul and body were completely gone, or [Vast Dream] where existence itself was erased. As long as high-level resurrection magic, such as [Time Reversal], was used, it should be possible to return it to its original state.

However, such a method was so terrifying and unbelievable that it was even more outlandish than ordinary resurrection magic. If she were alone with the snake beast at this moment, perhaps Violet would have attempted it out of pity. But now, clearly, it was not the right time.

“Regarding the soul, I suppose only true immortals or gods can achieve such a resurrection,” she said.

This somewhat vague answer caused the young girl to furrow her brow for a moment, but she quickly nodded and sighed helplessly.

“Yes, only a true immortal can do such a thing… I’m sorry, I’m asking too much. This kind of situation always reminds me of some past events… Forget it.”

“Lady…”

Ling Feng gently patted Bai’er’s shoulder, her face showing a reassuring smile.

“I’m fine. After all, it’s not without hope. Although she’s missing right now, I still have plenty of time… As long as I keep waiting, eventually I will find her. Don’t worry.”

Ling Feng took out a small, treasure-like box, opened the lid, and the black snake beast that had been nailed to the wall quickly shrank, swirling into the box before being neatly closed again under Violet’s slightly raised brows.

“Let’s go. We must act immediately. Since the [Yokai Controlling Sect] has been stalling us with this snake beast and still hasn’t shown itself, they’ve probably already found another way to approach the holy beast Qilin… Time waits for no one.”

The three women returned to their group and briefly described the current situation. The captains quickly made a decision and began leading everyone toward the canyon ahead.

“This is the place. The hole appeared suddenly here, and the space should be deep beneath our feet.”

In the middle of the canyon, Murong Yun stopped, crouched down, and patted a part of the hard stone wall that looked no different from the surrounding area.

Due to the canyon’s terrain, the group couldn’t gather together in this spot, so only a few captains like Zhu Chengye and the two women, Violet and Ling Feng, who displayed remarkable strength, could communicate directly with him.

The scholar in plain clothes tapped the stone wall with his jade ruler, producing a dull “ding ding” sound, furrowing his brows slightly.

“This doesn’t make sense, Yun. This place is solid. From the sound, it should be at least a yard thick. How could it be the entrance to a passage?”

“No, there’s something beneath it.”

The black-haired girl’s firm statement immediately caused everyone to pay attention. After all, as an “Eternal Life Realm,” her recent act of saving a poison-stricken person with her powers had earned her unanimous recognition and respect. What she said now carried significant weight.

“Senior Violet…”

“I give up, I’ve said a thousand times not to call me Senior Violet… never mind, anyway, if you want to go down, you’ll need to find a way to open or directly break through this [Tidal Stone] blocking the entrance,” Violet said with a mischievous smile.

“By the way, it’s at least five meters thick.”

“Five… five meters thick… Tidal Stone?”

Zhu Chengye twitched his mouth, and the others also showed distressed expressions.

The Tidal Stone was incredibly hard, and in terms of strength, it could probably rival one of the toughest metal, titanium, from earth. Although Violet had sensed the situation on the other side through SP scan, to be honest, trying to forcefully break through such a thickness of stone…

They would likely need to use seventh or even eighth-tier attack magic.

“But if that’s the case, how did the [Yokai Controlling Sect] get down? If they haven’t reached this point yet, the existence of the snake beast wouldn’t make sense,” Zhu Chengye questioned.

“Well, I think it might be…”

Ling Feng was about to say something, but for some unknown reason, the ground beneath everyone’s feet suddenly began to tremble violently!

“Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom!!!!!!”

Accompanied by this deafening roar and shaking, rocks of varying sizes started falling from the black, endless cliffs on both sides of the canyon, crashing down near the group, who were trapped in a narrow gap barely one meter wide.

“What’s going on!? Could it be another trap from the [Yokai Controlling Sect]?”

“No! Chengye, it’s an earthquake!!!”

With no time to process the cause, Murong Yun’s excellent wilderness survival experience kicked in. He immediately raised his head and shouted with all his strength toward the back.

“Everyone, retreat to outside the canyon immediately!!!!!!”

“We… we won’t make it in time!”

“Everyone be careful, the ground is splitting!”

“Ahhhh! Help!!!”

The deafening sound and violent shaking, accompanied by the tumbling rubble, buried the only passage connecting the inner and outer areas of the [Tidal Deep Valley] in just over ten seconds, leaving nothing but ruins.

Those people who were in there disappeared without a trace.