Dark-gray floating robes bred from the demonic torture of mournful ghosts, Desolate Heart Ghosts didn't have a tangible form and could overwhelm their foes by taking control of their fears and insecurities before consuming their souls.
In their thirst for the lives they'd been so cruelly stripped off, Desolate Heart Ghosts hunted souls with a consummate passion, never stopping the chase for life till Demon Slayers or Lianist Monks put them down—for good this time.
The average Desolate Heart Ghost could feast on Nascent Souls. The strongest of them all could devour Void Tribulants, and once over 100,000 ghosts merged into a Desolate Ghost Tide, then even the best of Supreme Clarity realm experts had to fear for their lives.
At Supreme Clarity, Tusha wasn't. But thanks to Xinzi feeding her hundreds of Soul Nurturing Divine Pills, her Soul Force had long eclipsed the Supreme Clarity level. The other girls didn't have the same fortune. And as their blades cut through the Shentu loyalists' lives, their souls tingled, stirred by the onslaught of 150,000 Desolate Heart Ghosts.
'The creation of Desolation Heart Ghosts is a long and tedious process. The enemy came prepared and must have devoted months of hard work plus massive human and material capital to complete this project.' Tusha appraised the enemy's trump card. But before she could create a soul force shield to protect her sisters, a shrill laugh boomed from all corners, and the ballooning figure of the 14th elder appeared above the Infernal Nun.
"Hehehe! I am your opponent!" In a flash, the 14th elder's cultivation rose by a full realm—going all the way to the late stage of Supreme Clarity. The Crippling Mist infestation weakened at a rapid pace, enabling his cultivation to approach the peak of Supreme Clarity with great strides.
By now, the last of the Shentu loyalists had been rounded up and dismembered by the Liberation Temple's troops. But fueled by vast demonic powers, the 14th elder couldn't care less, and with a maniacal slasher smile, slammed the Void-Shredding Claw into his right hand.
The limb burst into purple flames, the flesh and bones becoming ashes as the claw attached itself to the 14th elder's wrist. His aura broke through another barrier, and under Tusha's bellicose gaze, the 14th elder reached the peak of Supreme Clarity!
"You seem to be mistaken about the nature of our territory. Each citizen of Colorful Wing Supercity is an outstanding warrior in their own right," Tusha said, and with an uncompromising stance, swung her battle-ax at the 14th elder.
Meanwhile, Chun Xu scanned the surroundings.
'Junior sister, as strong as they seem at first glance, Desolate Heart Ghosts have one fatal weakness: their anchor. Each ghost's existence is tied to an anchor. Destroy the anchor, and the ghost perishes in an explosion of spectral energies.
Anchors are both time-consuming and outrageously expensive—costing ten million spirit stones on average. The Shentu imperial clan doesn't have the resources to build 150,000 anchors. That would take a level of wealth that, in the Eastern Continent, even the Zhenwu clan doesn't possess. They had to settle for the 2,000 we see in those cloaked demonic practitioners' hands. But by tying an average of 75 ghosts to each anchor, the enemy turned them into a pack of brittle artifacts unable to resist the slightest pressure.
Now, we just have to destroy the skull anchors, and the Desolate Heart Ghosts will return to the grave.'
This was easier said than done. Not only would they have to go through the Desolation Tide, but they'd also need to break through the defenses of the 2,000 Heart-Wrenching Cult disciples.
Cultivation-wise, they weren't a threat, but each came equipped with a variety of talismans and formations that made direct confrontation an unsavory prospect.
'The White-Winged Demons will resist the ghosts. A'Zhi, A'Zhu and Zi Feng will lead the charge, confronting the cultists' defenses to give Dong Ling, Yan Le, the Cow Demonesses and I an opening to destroy the skull.' As always, Chun Xu came up with plans, and as her words echoed in the Liberation Temple forces' minds, the ghost army reached its prey, refusing to give the troops time to discuss strategies.
They didn't panic, instantly getting into their respective positions, and kicking off Chun Xu's plan.
The Desolate Ghost Tide opened its gargantuan maw; foul spectral energies spilled over the scene, rattling the nerves of the Liberation Temple's gals. Still, they didn't lose their composure, shifting according to Chun Xu's directive, and opening the way for the White-Winged Demons to lead the resistance.
They did so without delay.
The 80,000 elite troops, those that Xinzi focused his efforts on, didn't have a single expert under the peak of the Nascent Soul realm—with the strongest soldiers reaching the peak of the Void Tribulant realm. Add to that their terrifying bloodline, and these troops' combined might would send most experts under the Immortal realm packing.
"The Choir of Sublime Exaltation," Xin Zhong ordered, and under his command, the 80,000 elites joined their hands in a prayer sign. Mystical Dao chants poured out of their lips, casting a translucent barrier whose mere presence sent the Desolate Heart Ghosts into a frenzy.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Shrill and strident screams boomed from the Desolate Ghost Tide, sinking the area into a nightmarish atmosphere that threatened to send all those that listened to it into mass suicide.
But faced with that traumatic scream, the Choir of Sublime Exaltation held strong. Better, as the notes manifested as celestial clouds and radiant vibrations, the terrible atmosphere conjured by the Desolation Tide shifted to a peaceful, soothing and enchanting scenery that caused even the Desolate Heart Ghosts to pause and question the value of their rage.
"First Commandment: Heart Liberation!" Xin Zhong ordered, and alongside his 80,000 subordinates, stretched his hand out. Jets of mesmerizing white flames poured out, flooding the Desolation Tide with waves of celestial energies—energies that seemed blessed by the Heavenly Dao.
Instantly, the ghosts felt their fury wane. All their animosity, their will to fight and feast on souls, shrank at a rapid pace, making the 2,000 Heart-Wrenching cultists gawk in disbelief.
"Quick, we have to revitalize their rage! Stir the anchors and twist their souls! If we don't act fast, the battle is lost!" The cultists' leader alerted his subordinates, and instantly, they poured their energies into the gray soul anchors. But building on the opportunity offered by the White-Winged Demons, Zi Feng and the Zhi-Zhu twins got to work, in tandem dispatching 36,000 divine puppets that blitzed through the sky, reaching the 2,000 cultists in the blink of an eye.
100,000 talismans emerged from the cultists' chests, followed by the same number of onyx mirrors that shone with fiendish light.
