The Duke of Illusion smiled, removed his gold-rimmed glasses, and placed them in the pocket of his white coat. He then took off the coat and hung it on a hanger by the operating table.
Having meticulously completed these actions, the Duke of Illusion said to Ye Ling, "Everything in here is my treasure. If you don't mind, would you accompany me to the reception room?"
"I would be very troubled if anything here were broken."
Ye Ling chuckled, "I generally respect the host's wishes. Lead the way."
"Thank you for your understanding, guest. To repay you, I will turn you into the most perfect specimen."
The Duke of Illusion bowed to Ye Ling and then walked to a wall, pressing a hidden mechanism.
A secret door appeared. The Duke of Illusion smiled at Ye Ling again, "Please follow me."
He then walked inside.
Watching the Duke of Illusion's retreating back, Ye Ling's lips curved slightly, a hint of amusement flashing in his eyes.
Demonic energy quietly merged into the floor, spreading throughout the entire ancient castle, forming a transparent barrier that completely isolated the castle from the outside.
After completing this, Ye Ling followed the Duke of Illusion into the secret door.
The secret door led to the castle's underground. The Duke of Illusion called it a reception room, but this basement bore no resemblance to a reception room.
This place looked more like a gladiatorial arena.
Weapons of various kinds were displayed on both sides of the arena, and the ground was covered with scratches and pits, indicating countless battles had taken place.
The Duke of Illusion walked into the arena and said to Ye Ling, "You can choose any weapon here at random; they are all prepared for you, guest."
"No need. I don't require any weapons to deal with you."
"You are truly confident, guest... I admire that." The Duke of Illusion smiled, clapped his hands, and a large number of evil spirits suddenly appeared in the empty seats surrounding the arena. They all stared blankly at the arena below, creating a chilling scene.
"Those are the spectators for this battle. Please don't mind them."
With that, the Duke of Illusion asked, "May I ask why you trespassed into Tianluo Ghost City and entered my residence?"
Ye Ling replied, "There's no particular reason. I merely wished to investigate some matters, and your mastery of souls has presented significant obstacles to my investigation. Therefore, I came to inquire."
"Of course, if you cooperate obediently from now on, you might not suffer too much."
"You are overconfident, guest."
The smile on the Duke of Illusion's lips turned cold. His hunched body suddenly straightened, the wrinkles on his face vanished, and he became young and handsome.
His entire stature increased considerably.
"In the past, I always brought people here to the arena for amusement. Their eyes always carried despair and fear, which always left me unsatisfied."
"You are the first guest to sneak into Tianluo Ghost City and actively seek me out, with eyes full of confidence. I hope you will not disappoint me."
The Duke of Illusion twisted his neck. One of his arms rapidly grew larger and longer, quickly transforming into a monster over ten meters long, with a gaping maw filled with sharp fangs in its palm!
An aura of eighth-grade cultivation erupted.
Seeing the monstrous form of the Duke of Illusion, Ye Ling's amusement intensified. "Flashy and impractical."
As his words fell, a black long sword materialized above the Duke of Illusion and then slashed down fiercely!
Ye Ling whispered, "Slash!"
*Ching!*
Without any surprise, the demonic energy sword severed the Duke of Illusion's arm. Blood spurted out, and the monster writhed and struggled on the ground, roaring in pain.
After writhing on the ground for a moment, the limb ceased to move.
The Duke of Illusion's smile froze. Realizing Ye Ling was not simple, his heart tightened.
However, before he could react, Ye Ling, who had been twenty meters away, suddenly appeared before him!
"You!"
The Duke of Illusion's expression changed drastically. He had no time to resist as the demonic energy surging around Ye Ling transformed into a giant claw, easily grasping the Duke of Illusion and lifting him into the air!
A powerful aura erupted from Ye Ling's body, crushing down on the Duke of Illusion and shaking his soul!
The giant claw tightened, and the Duke of Illusion's bones snapped!
"Ahhhhhh!"
The Duke of Illusion screamed, his mind in chaos!
He couldn't comprehend it. He clearly possessed eighth-grade cultivation, and in Tianluo Ghost City, his power was second only to the Tianluo Ghost King, his status almost equal to the Ghost King!
Even across China, few could defeat him!
He never imagined that his battle with Ye Ling would end before it even began!
The gap in their strength was too vast!
The Duke of Illusion couldn't fathom how strong Ye Ling truly was.
The moment he recalled his previous arrogant demeanor, his complete disregard for Ye Ling, he felt utterly ridiculous.
This wasn't his pride; Ye Ling had been playing him like a fool all along!
He had overstepped his bounds.
Self-inflicted humiliation.
"It's already over."
Ye Ling smiled lightly at the Duke of Illusion. The demonic claw holding him dispersed, allowing the Duke of Illusion to collapse onto the ground.
"You... Who exactly are you..."
The Duke of Illusion clutched the wound on his severed arm with one hand, staring at Ye Ling in terror, his body trembling violently.
In this world...
Did ninth-grade Crimson Immortals exist?
Ye Ling chuckled, "Who I am is not important. The victor is decided. Will you cooperate with me obediently?"
"You wish!"
Hearing Ye Ling's words, the Duke of Illusion's expression turned ferocious again. He manipulated the evil spirits seated around the arena, sending them swarming towards Ye Ling, while he himself seized the opportunity to flee backward.
Unfortunately, before the Duke of Illusion could escape a few steps, Ye Ling kicked him to the ground, sending him face-first into the dirt!
The wound on his severed arm dragged a long bloody streak across the ground, causing the Duke of Illusion unbearable pain and eliciting a scream.
At this moment, the surrounding evil spirits also pounced on Ye Ling, their mouths opening to tear at him.
Looking at these evil spirits, manipulated by the Duke of Illusion and denied eternal peace, Ye Ling spread his spiritual power. "Disperse, and reincarnate."
Ye Ling spoke softly. His spiritual power shattered all the marks the Duke of Illusion had placed on those evil spirits.
In an instant, the fierce-looking evil spirits regained their composure, their souls purified.
They all looked at Ye Ling with gratitude. After a silent thank you, they vanished from this world.
Soon, not a single evil spirit remained in the underground arena.
"No... impossible..."
The Duke of Illusion, seeing Ye Ling destroy his painstakingly built army of evil spirits in mere seconds, his expression contorted, his eyes filled with disbelief!
"You monster!"
The Duke of Illusion roared, all fighting spirit extinguished. He quickly sent a message to the Tianluo Ghost King for help.
But when he tried to contact the Tianluo Ghost King, he discovered that a barrier had appeared outside his ancient castle at some point, severing all contact with the outside world!
With his last shred of hope cut off by Ye Ling, the Duke of Illusion fell into complete despair!
Ye Ling walked up to the Duke of Illusion, grabbed his head, and his demonic energy invaded his soul. As expected, he found that all of the Duke of Illusion's memories were locked away by himself.
Even if outsiders killed him, they could not forcibly pry them open.
"Alas... why did you bring this upon yourself?"
Ye Ling sighed slightly upon seeing the Duke of Illusion's soul so tightly sealed.
Demonic energy permeated from his body, coiling around the Duke of Illusion.
Since soul-searching was impossible, Ye Ling had no choice but to resort to inhumane methods to obtain the information he desired...
Torture for interrogation was his old trade.