Master?!
Zhang Kui frowned, retreated a few steps, holding the Greatsword in front of his chest, and watched the two vigilantly.
Careless,
Lacking Jianghu experience, being bewitched by the Banshee, never expected to encounter this kind of situation.
However, the two in front of him paid him no mind.
Lian's voice trembled slightly,
"Master, you… why?"
The black-robed monk sighed calmly,
"Two hundred years of Tao Cultivation, immortality is hopeless, thought I had seen through life and death, at the moment of spiritual extinction, only to find I still desired to live after all."
His face was constantly changing like melting mud, one moment a scholar, the next a young girl, even his voice kept changing.
"A trace of my Spiritual Wisdom was infused into the lotus pond, reborn as a mud demon, poorly qualified, and the future is bleak, had no choice but to use the 'Infinite Heart Observation Skill' to enter the demonic path, hoping for a slim chance."
"You should leave, this appearance of mine, you probably don't want to see either."
Lian bowed her head in silence.
Zhang Kui also remained silent, his face cold.
He felt a significant threat from this demon monk, thought he had an ally, but now it seems he'll have to deal with it later.
However, at this moment, Lian suddenly raised her head.
"Master, back then when my Spiritual Wisdom first emerged, and my demon nature was hard to tame, you did not kill me, but took me in. Do you remember the teachings you gave me?"
The black-robed monk remained silent.
Lian continued, "You said all beings are equal, only through purity and compassion can one find liberation."
"If it was right back then, what are you doing now?"
"If it was wrong, then what has my hundreds of years of perseverance and cultivation been for?"
Lian's face was full of determination and solemnity,
She knelt on her knees, making a grand salute,
"Please Master, enlighten your disciple!"
The black-robed monk remained silent for a long while, then his entire body began to convulse like an epileptic fit, his face's expressions continuously changing, becoming increasingly frantic.
"I know, Master knows, but Master..."
"Die, no, I don't want to die!"
"Mortals busy themselves in vain, destined to die, why not help me advance on the Great Path..."
"Kill, kill, kill..."
Lian stood up, a trace of sadness flashed in her eyes, then suddenly two emerald green long swords appeared in her hands.
Zhang Kui sneered sinisterly, and his Greatsword suddenly ignited with a blood-red Gang Evil, "Talk all you want, still need to fight!"
The black-robed monk's voice kept changing, finally turning into a beast-like roar, with black mud wriggling on his face, leaving only a pair of blood-red eyes.
Whoosh!
His figure abruptly transformed, splitting from one into two, two into four... In just a few seconds, he split into over a hundred clones, heavily surrounding Zhang Kui and Lian.
The battle erupted almost instantly.
Bam!
The ground burst, Zhang Kui disappeared from his original spot, suddenly reappeared up front, piercing through one clone with a sword, then turning to punch another clone's head to pieces.
But immediately after, he was hit in the chest by another clone, shooting away like a cannonball, crashing into an old house.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
A dozen clones simultaneously rushed forward to pummel him, dust spreading everywhere, continuous crashing sounds.
On the other side, Lian was also having a rough time.
Her dual swords flew up and down, occasionally releasing from her hands to spin rapidly around her body, almost forming a ball of light, as countless shadowy figures collided like a whirlwind.
"Roar!"
The collapsed old house exploded with a crash, Zhang Kui's arms burned with Gang Evil, ripping through several clones like a fierce tiger, spreading stinking mud all over the ground.
These clones, though strong in attack power, couldn't endure hits well. After Zhang Kui took down seven or eight, another group split from those besieging Lian and rushed at him.
Zhang Kui spat out a mouthful of blood, laughed heartily,
"Come on!"
Lian's pressure lightened suddenly, she quickly reminded,
"Beware of the true body shifting!"
However, it was already too late.
Zhang Kui suddenly felt chills up his spine, a clone behind him suddenly revealed blood-red eyes, a large black stinking hand striking out fiercely, accompanied by a phosphorescent glow.
Poof!
Zhang Kui immediately felt his insides being stirred, vomiting a mouthful of fresh blood as he flew away.
The evil monk, seizing the advantage, followed closely behind.
Unexpectedly, blood dripping from his mouth, Zhang Kui forcibly turned mid-air, sneering as he scattered bloodstained talismans all over.
"Sealing, Sealing, Sealing!"
"Exorcism, Exorcism, Exorcism!"
In an instant, several Sealing Talismans stuck onto the evil monk's body with a swoosh, as if an invisible giant hand instantly pinned him down, then Evil-breaking Talismans pierced in like sharp swords...
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Over a dozen consecutive explosions, mixed with screams of men and women, black mud splattered everywhere.
Zhang Kui spun and rolled on the ground, kneeled on one knee, staring forward as he spat a mouthful of stagnant blood.
Unfortunately, they were just basic Talismans, the damage to the evil monk was limited.
Once a clone rushed up, the true body quickly wriggled and fully mended in an instant.
Nevertheless, Zhang Kui remained unfazed, because his sole task was merely to create a breathing opportunity for Lian.
This evil skill is indeed formidable, the clones shapechange, each possessing significant attack power, combined with the evil monk's muddy true body, making it more difficult to kill.
But on the scene, there was one who thoroughly understood the 'Infinite Heart Observation Skill', Lian.
As expected, Lian instantly forced back all the clones, pinching a Lotus Seal with one hand, scattered a string of aged prayer beads covered with patina.
"Appearances exist, and are non-existent, all you see is void, non-existent form has existence..."
Accompanied by solemn chanting, the prayer beads burst open, each bead shooting out like being attracted by a magnet, embedding into each clone, and the true body was hit by several more.
The screams rose and fell, and different faces appeared on those clones, twisted and howling crazily.
The demonic sounds invaded his mind, and Zhang Kui only felt irritable and nauseous, his vision darkened, almost making him fall.
The evil monk screamed repeatedly,
"Traitor, I left you the Magical Treasure, how dare you…"
"Lian, spare your master, I don't want to die..."
"Foolish child, the Heart Demon will backfire, and you too will have no foundation of the demon, why bother…"
"Death, don't think I will die!"
Lian turned a deaf ear, and the chanting became more grand.
There seemed to be two forces at the scene, constantly tugging at those Heart Demons, the strange black fog expanding and condensing.
Lian's eyes showed sorrow, a faint green blood was already flowing from the corner of her mouth, and a white lotus faintly appeared behind her, already starting to wither.
Zhang Kui's veins bulged on his face, enduring the immense pain all over his body, he slowly stood up and walked step by step toward the demon monk.
The other benefit of the Guiding Skill is its endurance, continuously healing injuries, and after rising to level two, the speed is faster.
Arriving in front of the evil monk, looking at his mad, fearful eyes, Zhang Kui grinned, revealing his bloody teeth, and struck with hands ignited with Gang Evil.
Bang!
It was as if an airbag burst, a gust of wind sweeping up on the scene, amidst the howls were screams of men and women, finally leaving only an aged sigh…
After the fierce wind passed, Zhang Kui slowly opened his eyes, coincidentally seeing a sliver of white in the sky.
Lian somehow walked over, a faint calm on her face.
"Brother Taoist, how about accompanying me for a while?"
Zhang Kui grinned, "Gladly."
Then, without any objection, he took hold of Lian.
Lian did not resist,
The two slowly left the old manor…
Lian's eyes were full of memories, as they walked and talked:
"Master was actually a very kind old monk, once saved a dying squirrel, chanting scriptures by its side all night..."
Zhang Kui chuckled,
"I also quite like those little things, used to put some sunflower seeds on the windowsill as a child, and they would come one by one to eat."
Lian smiled faintly, "You have a good nature, Brother Taoist what do you seek in your path?"
Zhang Kui scratched his head, "I never thought about it, proving the path by killing, wouldn't that make me crazy, let's just go with the flow…"
The two walked and talked, and unwittingly arrived at a ferry.
By this time, several cargo ships were sailing on the river, breakfast stalls steaming with white smoke, workers either sitting around eating heartily or shouting start work…
Lian stopped, looking at everything in front of her,
"Master said, for the Demon Race to achieve the path, they must first be human, experience all of mortal life, so I tried being human for a hundred years…"
"How does it feel?" Zhang Kui asked.
Lian's eyes showed a trace of confusion,
"Mortal lives are short, with joys and sorrows, but also petty struggles, incomprehensible, and unable to integrate."
Zhang Kui shook his head, "Mortals are weak, suffering in one way or another, joys and sorrows follow them, you are a Fairy, high above, of course you can't experience it."
"Perhaps…"
Lian's body was already beginning to fade, her eyes with a hint of bewilderment, "If there really is a next life, if I were human, what would it be like…"
Zhang Kui laughed heartily,
"Then I would surely become a bully, snatch you home to be my wife, no matter your wailing and lamenting would be useless."
Lian smiled faintly,
"Brother Taoist jokes again…"
Saying that, her figure had already disappeared, leaving only Zhang Kui standing by the river.
"Who says I'm joking!"
Zhang Kui shook his head, closed his eyes, and entered the system.
The evil monk was powerful, after defeating him gained two skill points, Zhang Kui unhesitatingly activated a skill.
Soul Capture (Level 1): Active Skill
Skill description: Capture fragmented souls, each time consuming 50 mana points.
Next level: Capture complete souls, each time consuming 100 mana points.
Zhang Kui suddenly opened his eyes, reaching out to grab,
"Soul Capture!"
Dots of white light began to gather from the air, finally turning into a faint lotus-shaped shadow in his palm.
Zhang Kui turned around, striding toward the town.
…
Two days later,
Yu Gaishan ordered a box of silver to be presented, gratefully bowing, "Thank you, Taoist Zhang, a small token…"
Having fully recovered from his injuries, Zhang Kui waved his hand grandly,
"Put it away, consider it a betrothal gift."
"Betrothal gift?!"
Yu Gaishan was bewildered.
Zhang Kui laughed heartily,
"Your concubine is already one month pregnant, father-in-law, take good care of my wife, I will come to claim her in eighteen years."
After speaking, he cupped his hands, turned away with Liu Mao'Er and his apprentice, leaving Yu Gaishan dumbfounded.
As they passed out of the yard, Zhang Kui suddenly turned back,
"By the way, remember, her name is Lian…"
Watching Zhang Kui's departing figure, Yu Gaishan finally understood, stroking his beard, he said:
"He wishes to marry, I don't mind, Yu Lian, good name, but…"
"What if it's a boy…"