Chapter 100: Arriving at the Sub-Hall, Establishing Authority
Early the next morning, the ten-person team gathered at the main gates of Spirit Hall.
Ming Xin, who had been ordered by Lin Beiya to reflect overnight, also arrived on time—clearly showing he had no intention of missing this mission.
"Lord Beiya."
"Mm. Don't act alone on the road. Consider this a chance to broaden your horizons."
"Yes, sir."
After giving Ming Xin a brief instruction, Lin Beiya scanned the group and said:
"Then let's depart."
With each passing night, the people of the Tianshuang Principality faced an increasing risk of falling into the hands of evil soul masters. Because of this, Lin Beiya rented a soul-beast carriage and rushed toward their destination at top speed.
The Tianshuang Principality belonged to the Heaven Dou Empire, sitting northeast of Spirit City. A branch of Spirit Hall was also located within its borders.
Naturally, evil soul masters wouldn't dare commit crimes inside the city, but the surrounding villages were constantly harassed by these villains.
This was one of the fundamental flaws of an empire built by noble factions: since those villages paid no taxes, they fell outside the empire's protection.
The Tianshuang Principality, being subordinate, wouldn't bother with thankless tasks either. Their response to evil soul masters was mostly for show—sending out a team of soul masters to intimidate them, nothing more.
To truly eliminate these criminals, one still had to rely on Spirit Hall.
However, a single sub-hall simply didn't have enough manpower to cover the entire surrounding region.
Thus, Lin Beiya's mission was to assist the sub-hall in wiping out scattered groups of evil soul masters nearby.
"Boss, these evil soul masters probably slipped over from the western region of Heaven Dou Empire, right?"
"Most likely. Many elders have already led teams to the west. Plenty of evil soul masters probably fled after hearing the news."
Lin Beiya wasn't surprised that Yu Quan knew so much. After all, Yu Quan's grandfather was a Platinum Bishop—knowing internal matters was perfectly normal.
"Let's first go to the branch hall and ask where Evil Soul Masters are most frequently active in the surrounding area. The Tianshuang Empire is vast, and searching without a specific range would be too exhausting."
After a moment of thought, Lin Beiya made a decision. Given the mixed strength levels within their team, he had no intention of splitting up.
The cruelty of evil soul masters needed no explanation—they were all desperate, bloodthirsty criminals.
Most of the squad members were participating in this kind of mission for the first time, so extra caution was necessary.
Two days later, the soul-beast carriage finally reached the Tianshuang Principality. Though they passed through several villages along the way, they found no signs of evil soul masters.
Upon arriving at the Tianshuang City sub-hall, Lin Beiya immediately presented the order personally issued by Bibi Dong. The group was quickly escorted inside.
Sub-hall masters of Spirit Hall were all Soul Emperor–level Purple-robed Bishops.
Tianshuang's sub-hall was no exception. Soon after entering, they were greeted by the sub-hall master—a white-haired elder wearing reading spectacles.
After seeing the handwritten order directly issued by Bibi Dong, the elder did not dare underestimate this group of unfamiliar youths.
Though not the lowest in Spirit Hall's hierarchy, as a Purple-robed Bishop, he had naturally heard of Lin Beiya's reputation.
"Old man Yin Wei welcomes all of you."
"Greetings, Hall Master Yin. Our teacher sent us to assist the sub-hall in eliminating the evil soul masters causing trouble. May I ask if you know the areas where they appear?"
Yin Wei nodded. The written order explained everything clearly, and the sub-hall had indeed already deployed all their available manpower. Lin Beiya's arrival truly eased their manpower crisis.
"Little Brother Lin, take your group to rest in the sub-hall for now. Tomorrow, I'll have someone deliver a detailed map of the Tianshuang region. The areas with frequent evil soul master activity will be marked."
"Very well. Thank you, Hall Master Yin."
Lin Beiya didn't refuse the offer. In truth, aside from the physically trained Lin Beiya and Shi Nuo, even the strongest among them—Ye Lüsu—looked exhausted after two days of travel. A full night of rest was the best choice.
After all, what awaited them next would likely be battles to the death.
Night passed without incident. As promised, Yin Wei delivered the map of the Tianshuang region. Most of the red-marked areas lay further east—no wonder the team had seen no traces along their route.
It was understandable. Evil soul masters wouldn't be stupid enough to cause trouble on the main roads leading to the various principalities from Spirit Hall.
Yin Wei assigned a Soul Ancestor member of the sub-hall to serve as their guide. After breakfast, the group followed the Soul Ancestor toward the east gate of Tianshuang City.
"Hmph. The main hall is getting more ridiculous by the day. We request reinforcements, and they send a bunch of kids."
"Hm?"
The moment the Soul Ancestor said this, everyone frowned. The short-tempered Wei Xu and Lei Ying even clenched their fists, ready to teach him a lesson.
But instead of showing fear, the Soul Ancestor's displeasure only deepened.
In his eyes, these were just a few kids—dealing with them would be effortless.
He didn't harbor ill intentions, though. He simply wanted to vent his dissatisfaction and warn these youths not to get themselves killed. Their opponents were evil soul masters who killed without hesitation.
Before Wei Xu or Lei Ying could reach him, the Soul Ancestor's expression suddenly changed. The disdain vanished, replaced by terror.
His body froze completely. He couldn't move a muscle.
Looking past Wei Xu and Lei Ying, his eyes met Lin Beiya's cold gaze—and at that instant, sweat appeared on his forehead like a burst spring.
"H-How… how is this possible… j-just one look…"
He mistakenly thought Lin Beiya had immobilized him with just eye contact.
In reality, Lin Beiya had used telekinesis power to restrain him, supplemented by soul power pressure, causing that illusion.
"Spare us the unnecessary nonsense. The Pope sent us here for a reason. If you have complaints, feel free to take them to Spirit City."
"Right now—do your job and guide us."
Once Lin Beiya withdrew his telekinesis and suppressive aura, the Soul Ancestor regained control of his body.
But the first thing he did was gasp for air, clearly shaken by the overwhelming pressure Lin Beiya had just exerted.
No longer daring to belittle them, he realized the leader of this group possessed an aura even more oppressive than Hall Master Yin's.
"I-I understand… my apologies just now. I… I only feared you might lose your lives…"
"It's fine. The misunderstanding is cleared. Lead the way. The sooner we deal with those scum, the sooner we return to Spirit City."
Seeing the tension ease, Ye Lüsu quickly stepped in to smooth things over. Fighting among themselves before even encountering the enemy was hardly ideal.
The Soul Ancestor gave him a grateful look, then hurried to the front of the group to fulfill his role as guide.
As he passed Lin Beiya, he glanced at him with reverence, then forced a flattering smile—only to receive no response.
Feeling awkward, he cursed himself silently and quickly switched to explaining the current situation to lighten the mood.
"The sub-hall has already dispatched nearly twenty teams. We've captured or killed close to ten evil soul masters."
"Currently, the only remaining areas with active evil soul masters are the easternmost villages of Tianshuang City. That area borders the Salikel Principality and is nearly outside our jurisdiction."
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End of Chapter