Just now, John Foster's words had already reached William Carter's ears. Although he was furious that this old bald donkey had actually used him to settle a personal grudge, the two of them were, after all, on the same front for now. Edward Parker was unlikely to be so easy to deal with. It was not as if he could simply say, "I am an innocent person deceived by this old bald donkey," and expect William Carter to be let off as a blameless bystander.

Seeing how this old Daoist could ruthlessly slaughter tens of thousands of Yuan soldiers and then set fire to John Foster's temple, killing all his disciples, it was clear just how cold-hearted and ruthless this so-called Daoist, one of the Ten Demons of the world, truly was.

Although this old Daoist spouted nonsense, seemingly upholding the Han orthodoxy, when it came to his own life, William Carter felt that a little bit of treachery was no big deal. At worst, he could kill some more Yuan soldiers and generals in the future to atone for his sins.

Moreover, this old demon Daoist was already several hundred years old; whether he was a true Han was impossible to verify. Perhaps he was a direct descendant of the Liao or Jin dynasties from centuries ago, or even a barbarian from Western Xia—who could say?

Although his martial arts had greatly improved, William Carter was still a level below the likes of Edward Parker and John Foster. All around, water dragons danced wildly in the sky, a chill filled the air, and countless vengeful spirits formed a net that covered the heavens and earth, layer upon layer. William Carter saw that John Foster was already at a disadvantage. With a flick of his left index finger, a dark red sword light shot straight into the sky; his right hand formed a claw, countless emerald lightning arcs leaping between his five fingers. With a casual wave, the surging blade of thunder and lightning followed right after the crimson sword light, howling forth.

The first was the Crimson Flame Sword Light technique that John Foster had just taught him; the second was Xiang Yu's lifelong ultimate skill, the Jade Flame Yin Thunder Blade, which was far more fierce and domineering than the Crimson Flame Sword Light.

Edward Parker was caught off guard that William Carter could recover so quickly. First, he slapped away the incoming Crimson Flame Sword Light, then braced himself to withstand the Jade Flame Yin Thunder Blade. Amidst the chaos, he even had time to lash out with his whip, dispersing John Foster's Foster's Radiance.

John Foster knew well how formidable Edward Parker was, so he had always maintained a solid defense, not daring to attack rashly. Now, with William Carter sharing the pressure, the James Foster's Power burst forth with a roar. His whole body turned into a beam of golden light, parting the clouds and waves, breaking through the layers of water clouds protecting Edward Parker, and his vajra staff thrust straight at Edward Parker's abdomen.

Edward Parker smiled faintly, completely ignoring John Foster's earth-shattering attack. With a long laugh, his entire body was shrouded in rolling black mist. Before John Foster could even strike, his spiritual sense sensed something was wrong. Confident in the boundless power of the James Foster, John Foster felt no fear and increased his strength by another thirty percent, pressing the attack.

Fierce energy shot in all directions. After breaking through the black mist and water clouds, John Foster realized too late that he had been tricked. Within the swirling black mist, there was nothing at all—Edward Parker had already escaped to who knows where, his whereabouts completely vanished.

Not only that, but even the black-robed ghost general, who had been absorbing vengeful spirits to complete the Doumu Mysterious Spirit Incantation, let out a roar and burrowed into the ground. The rest of the ghost soldiers and generals, driven by some unknown force, suddenly let out sharp cries and surged toward William Carter and John Foster like a tidal wave.

John Foster, with his profound martial arts and deep magical power, naturally had no fear of these ghost soldiers and generals. But although William Carter had suddenly gained strength, breaking through the gates of life and death and making great progress, his skills in exorcising and cursing ghosts had not improved much. Such techniques required step-by-step cultivation; there was no shortcut to instant mastery.

The talismans in William Carter's hand were not very effective against these fierce ghosts, and their power was too weak. The newly learned Crimson Flame Sword Light technique consumed a great deal of true energy and mental power, so it could not be used frequently. The Jade Flame Yin Thunder Blade, though a peerless martial art of unrivaled power, was excellent for killing people—leaving corpses strewn across the field, breaking through enemy lines, and slaying generals—but was of little use against ghosts.

Countless wronged souls and evil spirits, with many hands and feet, crawled up toward him. William Carter could only fight back with fists and feet, resisting with all his might. Struggling back and forth in the chaos, fortunately, his true energy was abundant and his spirit strong. These vengeful spirits could not invade his body; their mere tearing and biting could do nothing to this young Daoist.

John Foster, though deeply skilled, was still overwhelmed by the sheer number of ghost soldiers and generals. Edward Parker had spent countless effort gathering these fierce spirits to cultivate the Doumu Mysterious Spirit Incantation. John Foster could not kill them all at once and was soon beset on all sides.

With ten thousand ghosts pressing down on him, William Carter was truly suffering. Yet even he did not realize that, faced with such a vast horde of fierce spirits and evil ghosts, he was still able to push them all away. This strength was already beyond that of ordinary people. As he continued to exert his power, the image of Xiang Yu that shrouded his body also bristled with rage, muscles bulging, and the dense, chilling aura grew ever stronger.

Awooo! Awooo! Awooo awooo!

In the midst of battle, William Carter, now fully unleashed, no longer felt any fear. With his inner strength surging, the fierce spirits and evil ghosts that had been pinning him to the ground were all shaken off. The true energy coursing ever faster through his body made William Carter move as swiftly as a galloping horse, charging across the battlefield as if there were no ghosts at all. Often, before the ghost soldiers and generals could even approach, they were blown away by the forceful wind generated by the energy around William Carter's body.

After a night of fierce battle, dawn began to break. The roosters in Qing Shan Village had already started to crow. The sun was rising in the east, and the midnight wind and rain had long since stopped. The ghost soldiers and generals that had entangled them all night also turned into black smoke and burrowed into the ground.