The origins of Evil Soul Masters are unknown. The only certainty is that no nation or sect has zero tolerance for them. The Spirit Hall is the most powerful among them. Any appearance of an Evil Soul Master can be reported to the Spirit Hall, which will spare no effort to hunt them down, possibly even deploying Title Douluos.
Unlike ordinary Soul Masters, Evil Soul Masters cultivate in a different, even extremely cruel, way. Ordinary Soul Masters level up through combat, practicing their Martial Soul, and increasing their Soul Power. However, Evil Soul Masters enhance their strength by taking the lives of others.
Compared to ordinary Soul Masters, their cultivation method is much faster and more efficient. Within the Evil Soul Master community, some have even reached the Title Douluo level through this method.
However, because their cultivation method is so cruel, most Evil Soul Masters become like walking corpses after cultivation due to the infiltration of evil energy into their bodies. Furthermore, their souls may become nourishment for other Evil Soul Masters after death, while their corpses become weapons.
Some evil spirit masters, upon reaching a certain level, gain the ability to manipulate corpses and cause them to explode, with power comparable to advanced spirit skills like Ice Explosion.
Because their training methods are extremely cruel, and their actions are inherently criminal, the profession of evil spirit master is boycotted by various countries.
Almost every country has issued a kill order against evil spirit masters. While this boycott has indeed reduced their activity, their presence is still occasionally witnessed, and these individuals are often far more powerful than ordinary spirit masters.
At midday, the sun shone brightly, blindingly bright.
A young man walked steadily along the ancient path bathed in the setting sun. The young man was dressed in a black robe, with an ancient black sword at his waist. He had long, straight, glossy black hair, sharply angled eyebrows, long, narrow, piercing black eyes, thin, slightly pursed lips, and a sharply defined profile. His tall, slender yet not rugged physique made him resemble an eagle in the night—cold, aloof, and imposing, exuding an aura of dominance.
This young man was none other than Qian Xunji in disguise. Due to the unique nature of his martial spirit, it was unsuitable to display it in public, so he obtained a secret method from Qian Daoliu to change his appearance, adopting the alias Qin Jian to travel the continent.
At first, he was somewhat unaccustomed to his current appearance, but over time he grew used to it.
In the past year, Qian Xunji had visited many secret realms and dangerous places, witnessing the wickedness of human nature and experiencing the coldness of human relationships. This made him increasingly aware of the kind of world he lived in: a world where the strong were respected and the weak were preyed upon. Having been tempered by blood and fire, Qian Xunji's temperament had become increasingly mature and reserved.
Now, he was a level 78 Soul Saint.
In a secret realm, he obtained the ancient black sword he possessed, along with a sword manual called Azure Lotus. So, while comprehending sword intent, he traveled the continent, battling various powerful Soul Masters. Qian Xunji's strength rapidly increased.
"Jiang Family Village,"
Qian Xunji murmured, looking at the three large characters "Jiang Family Village" on the plaque at the village entrance. He then quickly searched his memory for information about Jiang Family Village.
It seemed to be just an obscure little village, but it appeared quite wealthy. Because it was located on the border of two great empires, the villagers could exchange goods and rent out their houses for income, making a considerable profit.
Qian Xunji crossed the village gate, glancing around occasionally, and slowly and unsteadily walked deeper into the village. But the atmosphere in the village was eerily quiet.
Logically, it was midday, and springtime; the villagers should have been working in the fields by now. But the streets were deserted, strangely so. A faint, inexplicable stench wafted through the air.
As Qian Xunji rounded a corner, the stench of blood almost assaulted his senses, making him want to vomit. Even with Qian Xunji's strong willpower, he nearly couldn't hold back his vomit.
What met his eyes were corpses strewn everywhere.
One, two, five, ten—at least dozens!
His legs almost involuntarily took a few steps forward. Looking closely, he saw that the faces of the corpses were all wide-open, their eyes filled with fear and horror, as if they had suffered immense fright before death. Their expressions were incredibly ferocious and terrifying, and combined with the scene, it unconsciously gave one a chilling feeling.
Strangely, although their deaths were gruesome, there wasn't a single wound on their bodies; there wasn't a single visible injury.
Qian Xunji's figure flashed, instantly appearing in front of a corpse. He reached out and unbuttoned the collar of one of the corpses, revealing two bloody fang marks.
Seeing this, everything became clear.
Withdrawing his hands, Qian Xunji slowly stood up, then his dark eyes swept over the scattered limbs around him, his gaze turning cold and menacing. No wonder he sensed such a dense aura of death earlier; it turned out that the entire village had perished. The corpses of the whole village, piled together with their lingering resentment, naturally created a heavy death aura.
Sucking human blood—this method of murder was highly unusual and rare, making it easy to identify. It
was almost certainly the work of an evil spirit master. "These damned parasites again!"
Qian Xunji was consumed by rage. His pupils had turned golden, his anger almost tangible. His handsome, sword-like eyebrows furrowed tightly, a deep resentment rising within him, threatening to explode if he didn't vent it.
As a transmigrator, he wasn't like other transmigrators who could turn a blind eye to human life, merely sighing and then falling silent. He was a living, breathing person; his blood was still hot and flowing through his veins. He couldn't remain indifferent to such a tragedy unfolding before his eyes.
Suddenly, as if he heard something, his spiritual energy surged forth, and soon, he discovered the clues. Beside a collapsed house, hidden by layers of dense forest, lay a dry well, which had quietly appeared.
Qian Xunji quickly moved to the well to investigate. At the bottom of the well lay a child, about five or six years old, trembling uncontrollably. The small body clenched its fists tightly, covering its mouth to stifle any sound, while cold sweat dripped from its forehead, drop by drop.
Had Qian Xunji not possessed such powerful spiritual energy, he wouldn't have noticed the presence of this child. The evil spirit master had likely left in a hurry, without having time to check.
He reached out his hands to the helpless child groveling at the bottom of the well. The child slowly raised his head. What did he see? At that moment, Qian Xunji became a ray of light in his darkness, and later, a summer that warmed his entire winter.
"Come, child, I'll take you to kill someone." These were Qian Xunji's words to the child, and also a promise.
For many years afterward, the child never forgot Qian Xunji's words to him that day.