The ice swords were merely a feint. Using the Illusory Form Step, Wang Yu had already closed in on the cultivator controlling the bowl-shaped magical instrument. With a flick of his sleeve, he released a large amount of green, viscous poison.
It was the poison he had extracted from the corpses of the Rot-Poison Wasps. The quantity wasn't large, but it was enough for two or three battles.
The sudden poison immediately began corroding the alms bowl.
The magical instrument failed.
His left fist, wreathed in a small ice storm, struck out ferociously. The cultivator reacted extremely quickly, spitting out a silkworm-like gu insect from his mouth.
In the blink of an eye, it exploded, forming a silken cocoon shield that wrapped around Wang Yu's left fist. However, under the force approaching the second grade, it didn't slow the punch in the slightest.
*BOOM—*
The seventh-level Qi Refining cultivator, struck with full force, exploded like tofu. His organs were pulverized, bones shattered, transforming into a mist of blood and gore.
Wang Yu had gone straight for the kill.
"You're a Savage Ghost Peak disciple?!!"
The other man was terrified. Savage Ghost disciples were known for their powerful physiques, nearly invincible within a *zhang* of themselves against those of the same level. But for a fifth-level Qi Refining cultivator to instantly kill a seventh-level with one punch was simply outrageous.
It was like facing a peak first-grade body refiner.
"Golden Snake Gu, strangle him!"
Meeting on a narrow path, the brave wins. Even with his companion dead, he didn't give up. Instead, he continued to drive his life-bound gu insect, hoping to gain an advantage while Wang Yu's old force was spent and new force hadn't yet arisen.
Unexpectedly, the many ice swords that had been deflected and broken had already reformed into six thick ice walls, closing in on him.
The elongated golden snake phantom quickly retracted to defend, its tail lashing out to push two of the ice walls apart slightly. Seizing this chance to retreat,
an iron chain shot up from the ground. With a serpent-like flexibility, it wrapped around his legs.
Under the power of the magical instrument, his entire body was upended and flung directly into the closing ice walls. The situation deteriorated rapidly.
The Gu Poison disciple swiftly took out a bronze bell, trying to protect himself. But he saw the iron chain split off another strand, actually entangling the bronze bell he had summoned. This time, the ice walls closed completely.
The Ice Coffin Curse took form. Wang Yu's hand seals changed.
"Kill!"
Countless ice spikes grew and pierced inward. In an instant, the man was turned into a bloody sieve. His vitality rapidly faded. The Golden Snake Gu stationed between his eyebrows let out an unwilling hiss before falling, frozen into an ice block, devoid of life.
He had won, but Wang Yu's expression didn't improve. Killing two ordinary late-stage Qi Refining cultivators changed nothing. The real challenge had always been the group led by Liu Jinxian, not any single individual.
He collected the corpses and took their storage pouches.
The spiritual energy fluctuations from the battle immediately caught Liu Jinxian's attention. The mixed auras of three cultivators clashing clearly indicated it wasn't a fight against Direbone Lions or wasp swarms.
Therefore, she rode a giant, buzzing mosquito beast and flew over.
The moment she saw Wang Yu, her brow furrowed deeply.
"Was it you who killed my Gu Poison Peak disciples?!!"
Wang Yu looked up. His body, transformed by the [Corpse Demon Secret Art], had pitch-black sclera and幽绿 (ghostly green) pupils, radiating a sinister aura that clearly marked him as no good guy.
"Yes.
"They insisted on seizing the territory I secured. They sought death themselves. What of it if I killed them?"
"Good, very good. In this situation, with only fifth-level Qi Refining cultivation, you still dare to act. Do you think you can defeat me?"
"Not at all."
The fact that she hadn't attacked immediately meant there was still room for maneuver. Wang Yu's eyes shifted, and he said:
"I greatly admire Senior Sister Liu's talent and spirit. I had intended to pledge my allegiance, but my realm is too low. Approaching rashly might not earn me much regard. Those two simply crossed my path at the wrong time."
After first delivering a stream of flattering praise and explaining his reasons, he turned his verbal spear towards Gu Zhengshun, ready to launch an attack!
"Senior Sister Liu, aren't you curious why Gu Zhengshun is turtling in the lower thirty levels without putting up any resistance?"
Liu Jinxian's eyebrow twitched.
"Oh?
"You mean to say he has another plan? That he isn't actually cowering under my pressure?"
"Exactly."
Wang Yu nodded in affirmation, using rhetoric to guide Liu Jinxian to think for herself: "Senior Sister, do you truly believe the disciple of a Core Formation elder is that simple? There must be a greater interest beneath this Profound Bone Mountain, one larger than the Profound Essence Flowers, that makes him give up so easily.
"Otherwise, what was the point of him going to such lengths to obtain this Mountain Master Token? To be a pig?!!"
This reasoning was more logical and fit the backstabbing atmosphere among demonic cultivators. It was highly possible.
Only...
Liu Jinxian suddenly laughed.
"So what? You killed my Gu Poison Peak disciples, which means you scorn my authority. You're seeking death!"
With a cold snort, Liu Jinxian urged her mosquito beast forward in an attack.
Wang Yu quickly retreated, his heart cold. This Liu Jinxian was even more domineering than he had thought.
Then again, being outside the sect,
if he had nearly three hundred cultivators at his command, he could probably do whatever he wanted too. With Gu Zhengshun's strength being what it was, a strong assault by Liu Jinxian wouldn't cost her much.
Naturally, she cared more about her own prestige.
It seemed a fight was inevitable. He had to let her taste both soft and hard approaches to establish a basis for negotiation.
Having identified the core issue, Wang Yu spoke quickly.
"If Senior Sister wishes to fight, I will oblige.
"If I lose, these two levels are yours. But there are still five years ahead. Senior Sister should be constantly vigilant, careful of the dangers posed by wild beasts and demons."
"You dare threaten me?"
Not waiting for her reaction, Wang Yu initiated the hand seals first.
*Whoosh, whoosh—*
He started with the Ice Sword Technique again. The Perfected mid-grade spell immediately revealed its quality to Liu Jinxian. Different origins bred different levels of discernment. She said in surprise:
"A Perfected mid-grade spell? Not bad comprehension. Pity your realm is lacking."
Having said that, she opened her mouth and exhaled a stream of pale pink smoke.
The cloyingly sweet scent assaulted him. Wang Yu immediately held his breath, but tendrils of the poisonous smoke still curled around him, causing numerous illusions to appear before his eyes.
The mosquito beast also buzzed its wings and charged, its long, narrow proboscis spraying a volley of blood needles that collided with the ice swords, annihilating each other mid-air.
This was a Gu Beast—using gu insects to control a demonic beast's body, building a nest inside it or utilizing the gu's effects to create a symbiotic mutation, producing unique Gu Beasts.
Their status was similar to cultivators who practiced beast-taming arts.
Most importantly, this mosquito beast was also at the eighth level of Qi Refining. The Ice Sword Technique had achieved nothing. Relying on his spiritual sense perception, Wang Yu threw a fierce punch, meeting the Gu Beast head-on.
The moment the two forces collided, the giant insect was sent flying skyward like a kite with its string cut.
The power of the second-grade Strength Corpse arm was terrifying!
The chitinous armor on its body was almost completely shattered. On the verge of death, Liu Jinxian hurriedly shouted.
"Stop!"
Wang Yu actually didn't pursue, watching as Liu Jinxian spat out a mouthful of bloody mist. Upon contact, the wounds on the Gu Beast rapidly healed.
In moments,
it shed a layer of mucus-covered, wounded shell, recovering to its original state.
Only then did Liu Jinxian breathe a sigh of relief, looking at Wang Yu's clearly abnormal left hand with a hint of wariness.
**(End of Chapter)**