Reborn As A Ghost: Time To Build My Undead Army!-Chapter 1705: The Realms Of Murim

-----

"Alright, your next and last quest for the day is this... I want you to hunt down any Martial Beast nearby, using only your Phantasmal Fist. The beast must remain intact, as you’ve learned the true power of these fists lies in the soul. You will strike their soul and force it to leave their body, leaving behind a pristine, untouched corpse," Maria explained. "Bring me one in this method, and don’t try anything cheap—I will know."

[Your Sect Master has granted you a Training Quest: {Hunt Any Martial Beast Exclusively Using the Phantasmal Fist}!]

[Your Sect Master, Maria, has decided to help you further refine your abilities and mastery over the Phantasmal Fist, the foundation of the Ghostly Fist Technique. Practicing alone won’t get you far, as these Martial Arts require real combat—life and death—to truly flourish.]

[Rewards]: [Spectral Ghostly Fist Art: First Form – Phantasmal Fist Comprehension] [+300 Attack Stat] [+100 KI Stat]

[Time Limit]: [12 Hours]

Everyone saw the message and cheered in unison. However, Maria wasn’t going to let them go alone, only to be targeted by other Martial Artists. She swiftly spread the Spectral Mist Formation, not just around the city but across the entire mountain.

This made the mountain a safe space for anyone to roam and hunt freely. She explained this to her disciples, who were overjoyed.

The world outside the great cities and sects of Murim was hostile. People had to watch out not only for Martial Artists, bandits, or barbarians, but also for nature itself, which was wild and unpredictable.

Martial Beasts—creatures that awakened Ki within their bodies and cultivated through unique methods—were powerful. No mortal could fight most of them, except for the smallest.

But this was exactly why they had to face them. Maria also considered that hunting a single beast might be too much for each disciple, so she allowed them to cooperate. Still, they had to use only the Phantasmal Fist, or the kill would not count.

"Alright!" Maria nodded. "I think I’m done here for the day. With this task, everyone will be busy... Ah, right, White Mist Immortal, let’s go give your little secluded domain a visit, shall we?"

"Ugh..." the Immortal groaned. "To the victor go the spoils... I suppose. I would technically have just died, so being here is... more than the dark void of death."

"Yeah, yeah! You’re finally beginning to understand your place here, Doggy," Partner said, patting his head with a teasing, cocky smile.

"Stop calling me Doggy... I am not a damn dog!" roared the White Mist Immortal, barking angrily.

"If you aren’t a dog, then why are you barking? Geez," Maria rolled her eyes. "Come on, let’s go."

Maria and a few members of her family flew into the skies, piercing the white clouds above. They arrived at a mystical place where the density of Ki had grown heavier and stronger, creating an oppressive atmosphere.

"Woah, what is this place?" Nyx gasped in disbelief as she saw the landscape.

It was an endless, beautiful sea of white clouds, flowing like an ocean. Tornadoes spun here and there, typhoons raged, thunderstorms crackled, and in the distance they could even see floating islands.

"You were able to get here without any backlash?!" the White Mist Immortal was shocked. "This is... the Low Heaven, the first layer of the Three Heavenly Realms above the Mortal Realm. As you can tell, the atmosphere here is much heavier. Immortal, Spiritual, and Heavenly Ki flow in vast quantities. So much that most Cultivators and Martial Artists would die here, overloaded with energy and power—exploding."

"Woah, they explode! That would be painful—wait a second, will I explode?!" Alma panicked, covering herself with her Dream Aura.

"Calm down, you would have already exploded if you couldn’t withstand it," Yoomyung said. "The bare minimum to roam this place for a few hours is reaching the Core Establishment Realm."

"I-I would’ve already exploded...?" Alma was shocked.

"Alma, that wouldn’t have happened even if you weren’t able to. My Void Aura protects everyone here," Maria said. "You just can’t easily see it unless I wish to. It also makes surprise attacks useless."

"Woah! I see, I can feel it now that you mentioned it, Maria," Alma said happily. "Thank you for always worrying about me... I love you!"

Alma hugged Maria sweetly, making the Elders and the White Mist Immortal cringe at such shameless affection.

"Hehe, alright," Maria nodded, kissing her forehead. "Ahem! Let’s get serious, shall we?"

"A-Ahh! I’m so sorry..." Alma apologized, blushing as red as a tomato.

The Elders and the Immortal glared at her in disbelief, unable to comprehend how such a clumsy-looking girl with barely any self-awareness had defeated the powerhouse of the Beggars Sect—a Golden Core Expert. They had seen her diligently practicing the Phantasmal Fist alongside the other disciples, barely acknowledging the Elders at all.

"Anyway, you Immortals create some kind of special Realm, right?" Maria asked. "I’ve heard it’s different from the Divine Realms of Gods or the Spiritual Realms of Divine Spirits in other worlds, which are usually tied to the soul. I have something in between, named the Soul Realm... and another Realm inside my shadows. I call it the Shadow Realm, but I mostly use it to store my troops and the living people I rescue or capture."

"We’ve witnessed that place firsthand, and we also visited the Soul Realm briefly. They’re both incredible yet highly unstable," Wu Lieng said. "However, the large quantities of Soul Essence and Shadow Mana helped us cultivate and meditate, strengthening our physiques and martial arts."

"Oh really?" Maria wondered. "I had no idea you did that."

"To be fair, I would rather never go there again," Kim Hua said respectfully.

"Hohoho! The youngsters were very scared of that place, but I honestly found it quite relaxing!" Wu Lieng laughed, stroking his long white beard.

"So... you already possess two Realms of your own?!" the White Mist Immortal asked. "Then why do you even want mine? That’s just greedy!"

"You said it yourself—’to the victor go the spoils,’" Maria shrugged. "Don’t tell me you wouldn’t steal mine if you had defeated me."

"...Fair enough," the White Mist Immortal groaned, nodding angrily as he began to explain. "Let me tell you now. Immortal Domains are special mystical spaces created by gathering and refining our Martial Intent and Spiritual Consciousness with Heavenly Ki at the moment of ascension. Our Golden Cores explode into a bubble made of this energy, and then the Immortal can choose to harbor the Domain inside themselves or carry it outside. Both have their pros and cons..."

-----