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Chapter 578 Unyielding to the Death, Loyal and Unwavering
Xiaomeng knew that in those erotic dreams, the master would undress—but only take off his clothes. Now he was even peeling off his skin?
An ordinary maid would probably faint from fright at the sight of this.

But Xiaomeng is not an ordinary person; she is not human at all.

So this scene... Xiaomeng was even more excited.

Is the master playing some trendy game?

I have traveled from west to east, and throughout history, yet I still know very little.

The other maids were helping the master change his clothes—but halfway through molting, Master Xu felt something behind him, as if it wanted to serve him…peel off his skin?!

However, since Xu Yuan had already begun to molt, he shed the infection and his condition returned to its peak.

"Xiao Meng, step back!" the master shouted.

The thing behind him was clearly unwilling, muttering as it shrank back.

Xu Yuan twisted his body and finally emerged from that layer of old skin.

Feeling light and carefree, Master Xu turned around, intending to examine this layer of skin to see if it possessed any special abilities, and then stood up on its own!
Xu Yuan's eyes immediately drooped, his face full of helplessness, and he said, "Stop fooling around, come out quickly."

The skin, however, opened its arms and moved its legs awkwardly toward Xu Yuan.

Xu Yuan snapped unhappily, "Xiao Meng!"

On that skin, the face that looked exactly like Xu Yuan's suddenly contorted, and the two arms waved violently a few times, appearing somewhat anxious.

Then a series of tinkling sounds filled the carriage.

Xiaomeng emphasized to the master that it wasn't her.

But there was still a hint of unease in the music.

"Not you?" Xu Yuan asked, puzzled. "Then it is..."

That thin layer of skin, waving its arms wildly as if it had no sense of direction, like a headless fly, spun around a few times before crashing into the carriage wall and falling to the ground.

Still not quiet, it suddenly thrashed about on the floor a few times.

Finally, seemingly resigned to his fate, he just lay there.

Xu Yuan asked in confusion, "Is it a yellow-bodied warbler?"

The music inside the carriage tinkled and chimed.

Xiao Meng praised him repeatedly, saying, "Master is so clever, he guessed it right away!"

Xu Yuan was too lazy to argue with her. How dare Huang Shenying? Wasn't it you who instigated her behind the scenes?

But Xu Yuan also discovered some strange things.

As this layer of skin lay on the floor, the tear on its back that had rubbed off miraculously healed itself!
Although traces are still visible, it is indeed sealed off.

Moreover, Xu Yuan suddenly realized, "Is the Yellow-bodied Oriole unable to get out? Is that why it's frantically running around everywhere?"

The Yellow-bodied Nightingale can pass through all matter and spirit.

But now... he's trapped by his own skin?
Is this the power of this skin?

Xu Yuan pressed his hand on the skin, and with a gentle force, the gap on the back reopened.

Plop-plop—

The yellow-bodied warbler suddenly darted out, frantically darting around the carriage in a panic, emitting a mournful cry.

They were clearly terrified.

Xu Yuan then laughed and said, "You've learned your lesson this time for being naughty, haven't you?"

The yellow-bodied warbler wouldn't listen at all and kept chirping and flying around the carriage.

Xu Yuan took out the birdcage, aimed at a spot in mid-air, and trapped the yellow-bodied warbler inside.

Click——

The small door of the birdcage closed, and the yellow-bodied warbler couldn't get out. But it actually calmed down inside the cage.

With the troublemaker gone, Xu Yuan put the birdcage aside and carefully examined the skin.

With his hands pressed on it just now, Xu Yuan had actually figured it out pretty well.

Now, after a closer look, I realized that the skin's ability was "sealing."

Once you're inside, you can't get out.

It can suppress all abilities.

To get out, one either needs to be released from the outside or must use extraordinary strength to forcefully break through this layer of skin.

Xu Yuan estimated that it would require at least a third-rate level of skill.

Xu Yuan curled his lip, feeling that this ability seemed somewhat useless—"I'm only a fourth-rate official now, but this skin can't withstand a third-rate one, and I don't need this skin to seal off a typical fourth-rate person..."

But then, Xu Yuan thought of another possibility and muttered to himself, "The greatest use of this skin is not imprisonment, but... prohibition!"
For example, that drop of Xuanhuang Dragon Blood from before.

I dare not take it, because the moment I touch the blood, the Dragon King of the Canal will sense it.

He will then know that in this glorious world, there is a daring little thief plotting against Him.

But now, all I have to do is let this layer of skin out of my pocket, and I can collect this drop of Xuanhuang Dragon Blood, and then completely sever the Grand Canal Dragon King's connection to this drop of blood!
For example, if you encounter a troublesome creature like the Yellow-bodied Warbler and have no effective means to subdue it, you can temporarily keep it inside.

Putting everything else aside, Xu Yuan couldn't help but get excited just thinking about the Xuanhuang Dragon Blood.

If there is another chance, collect the Xuanhuang Dragon Blood, and then put the skin dragon inside as well, so that the skin dragon can refine the Xuanhuang Dragon Blood within this layer of skin...

This would isolate the Grand Canal Dragon King's senses!

Similarly, even without the third-rate "Dragon Transformation Method," a leather dragon can still be promoted to third-rate status.

This ability seems to come from... the sword sheath?
Xu Yuan guessed.

This infection mainly originated from the six sword-serving corpses of the Left Sword King.

And the bait to refine the Left Sword King.

Like the previous Stone Stele, the evil spirit Zuo Jianwang lacked a complete soul, making Xu Yuan's next plan impossible to implement.

However, after Xu Yuan refined the Left Sword King into the sword pellet, he also obtained all of the evil spirit's memories.

They learned that the Mountain Lord had passed down to the Left Sword King a method specifically designed to counter life cultivators, called the "Life-Fighting Technique."

It is not actually a true "law".

Rather, it is a collection of several methods specifically designed to deal with life cultivation.

Not only are there methods to steal one's destiny, but there are also methods specifically designed to kill cultivators with different destinies.

However, one's destiny is ever-changing, and those who cultivate their destiny possess different destinies.

In this method, the techniques for hunting down cultivators of destiny must be arranged according to different destinies.

For example, the target cultivator possesses a strong destiny, making it a hunting method.

However, if the person cultivating their destiny possesses a meticulously planned destiny, then that's a different approach.

Because there are so many types of destiny, this method cannot be effective for all destiny cultivators.

Currently, methods for eliminating five types of cultivators have been roughly summarized.

As one's cultivation level improves, one will acquire new destinies. However, generally speaking, although the number of destinies increases, the most powerful and reliable destinies for a cultivator are only one or two.

Everything else is secondary.

Therefore, it can be targeted.

This "life-or-death" method made Xu Yuan's face turn cold, and he thought to himself, "Life cultivators are hated..."

This life-or-death method involves a wide variety of techniques.

It is clearly not the work of one person or one organization that researched and summarized it.

Instead, it was compiled and summarized from different sources.

The power of life cultivation in its later stages is so strong that the other cultivators of the seven major sects, though they don't say it, are secretly trying to find ways to counter it.

The method that Zuo Jianwang used this time was called "Hundred Ghosts Stealing Life".

The six sword-serving corpses of the Left Sword King underwent some complex "modifications" by the Mountain Lord to meet the requirements of this method.

A normal "Hundred Ghosts Stealing Life" requires at least five Yin Generals who have reached the fifth rank.

The ghost soldiers were no good; their skill level was insufficient, and their bodies were not strong enough to withstand such transformation.

Lord Xu sighed inwardly at how fate cultivators were targeted by cultivators all over the world... and then, inhumanly, he began to think: "I must get my hands on this life-risking technique."

"If we encounter other cultivators with destinies in the future, we can use this method to give them a surprise!"

Xu Yuan took in Zuo Jianwang, and his original plan was to use Zuo Jianwang's identity to secretly collude with the Mountain Lord's forces.

They worked together from within and without to destroy the Dragon King's village.

However, Zuo Jianwang did not have a complete soul. After the bait was refined, Zuo Jianwang completely disappeared, and this "identity" could no longer be used.

The Dragon King doesn't trust Xu Yuan and is wary of him, but Lord Xu doesn't trust the Dragon King either.

We're all in the same boat.

Xu Yuan put away the mask and had already come up with a new plan.

When dawn broke, Xu Yuan got out of the carriage, but the carriage was swaying and rocking.

A reminder to the master: My bird hasn't been released yet.

Xu Yuan opened the cage, and the yellow-bodied warbler flew out—Xiao Meng was clinging to him again, swaying and jingling, begging the master for the birdcage.

"Alright, here you go."

Xiao Meng happily rings her bell.

As Xu Yuan got out of the car, Da Fu lowered his head and approached him sheepishly.

It acted like a big yellow dog from the village entrance, sniffing around the food stall, as if trying to determine whether the master had done anything wrong in the carriage.

Xu Yuan patted its head and rarely praised it, saying, "You did a good job last night."

Last night, Dafu diligently stood guard and patrolled outside the car, and did not cause any trouble for Xiaomeng.

After being praised by Fan Zhezi, Dafu became arrogant and proudly raised its head, barking twice.

Xu Yuan said, "Work hard, and when we get back to Champa, I'll find you a whole bunch of wives."

Dafu shuddered, realizing that Fanzhezi might have overestimated him.

I... I might not be able to handle it.

But after circling around the fowl twice, it couldn't help but ponder: if it were to marry another fowl, which one should it choose?

There are quite a few older sisters in and around Champa who are really kind to me...

Or should we not marry in Champa, but wait until we reach Beidu and marry someone from Beidu...?

Xu Yuan put away the carriage and then drove around the village.

Strange footprints were left on the paths inside and outside the village.

These are clearly the demon soldiers.

Last night, they must have been unable to resist their craving for blood and food, and crawled out of their hiding places to wander around the village. It's just a pity that every door is decorated with door gods.

They probably didn't get anything.

Xu Yuan followed one of the footprints and tracked it to the overgrown weeds at the foot of a mountain outside the village.

The grass here grows as tall as a person, covering a vast area of ​​dozens of acres.

Xu Yuan opened the "Wangming" book and immediately smiled: "I've found you."

……

As the sun rose, the Dragon King Temple reappeared on the land of the village.

Granny Liu held up a bundle of incense and lit it.

Amidst the rising smoke, the Dragon King Temple once again entered that state of isolation from the void.

The Dragon King was awakened by the incense.

Eyes opened all around.

Granny Liu knelt on the ground and reported: "Your Majesty, the Mountain Lord is being aggressive and has already dug twelve ditches, which have polluted much of our water."

A series of strange, cacophonous sounds erupted, many of them shrill. The Dragon King was enraged.

Granny Liu listened attentively.

The Dragon King threw a tantrum before getting down to business.

As she listened, Granny Liu replied, "Yes...yes...I understand, I'll go and make the arrangements right away."

"Xu Yuan captured Zuo Jianwang yesterday, and has now formed a deadly feud with Lord Shanjun."

"Your Majesty's move was brilliant."

"Xu Yuan thought he had gotten the better deal, but in reality, we had forced him into a corner, leaving him no choice but to join forces with us."

"If we let another group of demon soldiers in today, they will surely fight Xu Yuan to the death!"

"Xu Yuan is quite strong, enough to test the true strength of Lord Mountain."

Granny Liu was completely convinced, praised him repeatedly, kowtowed, and left.

There are still many things that she needs to arrange immediately.

After she left, the Dragon King Temple did not immediately return to the mortal world.

The countless eyes in the void blinked.

A continuous stream of indistinct, fragmented noises arose, seemingly the sound of someone muttering to themselves.

It had endured for a century, and even its subordinates, Granny Liu and Chen Wu, were not entirely trusted.

……

Many people died in the village yesterday, and today most of the funerals begin.

But the village had nothing; they didn't even have any black cloth to set up a mourning hall for a funeral.

Yesterday, the villagers discussed it all afternoon, and this morning, the village chief led the families of the deceased to the temple with offerings.

Due to limited resources, the village cannot hold large-scale weddings or funerals.

But with so many deaths this time, it wouldn't be right to make the facilities too simple.

After a prayer, the village chief led the villagers to offer sacrifices, and a voice reached their ears.

Everyone present, including the village chief, felt a few fish whiskers quietly sprouting in their ears.

They couldn't understand the chaotic noise before, but now they understood it immediately.

So they were completely unaware of the changes in themselves, and instead looked on with gratitude: "The Dragon King is so considerate of us, ordering the peddler to make a special trip to deliver things to us..."

Xu Yuan was unaware of these things, nor were Granny Liu and Chen Wu.

……

By noon, Xu Yuan had gathered all the remaining demon soldiers.

More than a hundred animals were captured and brought to the village, but they were all brutally slaughtered by Zuo Jianwang yesterday, leaving only about fifty.

These demon soldiers all came out last night.

If you meet someone in the village, you'll naturally let each other know where the other is hiding.

Once Xu Yuan found one group, he could follow the clues to find others.

No one in the hunchbacked man's family had died; he was just living a normal life.

When those families held events, he would go and offer a small gift, and then get a meal for free.

In the morning, he went to the fields to do some farm work. Looking at the rice ears in his own field, each one was full and plump, and the contents seemed to be bursting out of the husks at any moment. He couldn't hold back his joy.

After having lunch at home, the hunchbacked man felt even more energetic.

"It is all thanks to the Dragon King's blessing that we have favorable weather and bountiful harvests every year."

He didn't rest, but carried his fishing net and basket on his back and went to fish in the "little river" by the village.

"We must catch as many big fish as possible to offer to the Dragon King."

He reached the riverbank, barefoot, rolled up his trousers, and waded into the water, casting his fishing net out—

Wow!

I can already see a large group of fish in the net!
"Hahaha……"

The hunchbacked man laughed loudly, but before he could reel in the net, the fish suddenly swelled and grew larger with a loud bang, and one of them even transformed into a giant python four zhang long!
The evil spirit had six huge eye-shaped patterns growing on its scaly skin from the back of its head downwards.

Six sinister and terrifying demons poked their heads out from these patterns!
It howled and screamed, spewing foul odors.

These demons and giant pythons seemed to be one, with seven hideous heads on one body.

They stirred up huge waves, which slammed the hunchbacked man onto the riverbank.

"Ah—!" the hunchbacked man screamed in terror, scrambling and crawling towards the village: "Dragon King, save me! There's a water monster..."

This time, a battalion of five hundred demon soldiers arrived. After infiltrating the mountain village, they immediately broke the protective spells on their bodies and returned to their original forms.

Then the "Demon Serpent King" flicked its tail.

A huge black shadow swept across the sky, and the hunchbacked man screamed in agony as he was instantly smashed to pieces!
But in reality, the Demon Serpent King's thick tail didn't move at all.

However, a massive soul entity was swept out from its body.

It has six other demon heads, and in fact, six spirit bodies.

The hunchbacked man felt as if he had been "shattered to pieces," but in reality, his soul was extracted directly from his body and smashed to pieces.

Its body was intact.

But among the long string of evil ghost heads behind the Ghost Serpent King's neck, there was one covered in sharp, malevolent horns and branded with seven copper coins on its face. It opened its mouth and sucked the hunchbacked man's broken soul into its mouth.

The Demon Serpent King then spoke in human language, saying, "The souls of the people in this village are too light."

They've probably all been drained dry by the Dragon King!

Its massive body came ashore, followed by five hundred well-ordered demon soldiers.

These are the most elite demon soldiers under the command of the Mountain Lord.

But as soon as they landed, several groups of demon soldiers sensed the soaring demonic aura of the Ghost Serpent King and rushed out from their hiding places.

Suddenly, a demon soldier darted out from the side, the fastest and most eager, and knelt down before the Ghost Serpent King with a thud, kowtowing and crying out, "Right King, you've finally arrived!"

It raised its arms to the sky and shouted, "The Right King has arrived, and so has hope!"

A hint of satisfaction flashed in the eyes of the Demon Serpent King.

Several other groups of demon soldiers rushed over, kneeling before the Demon Serpent King and weeping, "We thought the Mountain Lord had abandoned us, waaaaah..."

But the first demon soldier to charge out suddenly jumped up, pointing at the other demon soldiers and cursing, "You damned traitors!"

It then raised a slender claw at the Demon Serpent King with righteous indignation: "Your Majesty, I must expose these scoundrels! They must have all sided with that dog of an official, Xu Yuan!"

The Ghost Serpent King's eyes held a chilling intent, and a torrent of energy surged forth, engulfing the demon soldiers!
"Hmm? So that's how it was?!"

The remaining demon soldiers were terrified out of their wits!
They kowtowed repeatedly on the ground, creating small craters in the riverside path with each thud.

"Absolutely not, Your Highness! You must not be swayed by this villain!"

The demon soldiers all glared angrily at the young demon general who had first stepped forward.

Many people recognize him; his name is "Guanqing," and he is an evil spirit transformed from a stork in the mountains.

The two wings on its head stick out diagonally, and have already transformed into demon horns.

Originally, it had a fleshy pouch under its beak, which it used to store the fish it caught.

It originally served as a squad leader of fifty demon soldiers in that battalion.

He used to seem stupid and naive, but looking at him again today:
With a pointed mouth and monkey-like cheeks, he's definitely not a kind person!
The stork, however, used its slender claws to tear at its own body—its original feathers, after becoming demonic, had transformed into a feathered robe covering its body, and tearing it open revealed its plucked, chicken-skin-like body underneath.

His body was covered in horrific wounds!

"That corrupt official tortured his subordinates severely, forcing them to surrender! Then they infiltrated Lord Right's command as his inside agents!"
But my subordinate refused to comply even unto death, and then, by chance, I possessed a cunning technique that allowed me to fake my death, which is why that corrupt official spared me!

Guan Qing then pointed to the other demon soldiers and said to the Ghost Serpent King, "If Your Majesty does not believe me, then take a look at these scoundrels!"

If they weren't covered in wounds like my subordinate, then they must have succumbed to that corrupt official's tyranny, defected to him, and wanted to become his spies!"

The Ghost Serpent King initially found it difficult to distinguish between the real and the fake, but when Guan Qing revealed his body covered in wounds, it was immediately moved: This is a loyal servant of my Xiaoyu Mountain!

After hearing what Guanqing said, it also felt that it made a lot of sense.

He immediately swept his cold eyes over the demon soldiers and shouted, "Take off your clothes!"

"Ah!" The demon soldiers turned ashen-faced!

They did indeed pledge allegiance to Xu Yuan.

But they assumed that the other demon soldiers must be the same.

I never expected there would actually be someone who would rather die than submit!
Do you have such virtues, or are you an evil spirit?
The demon soldiers stammered and refused to take off their clothes. The Demon Serpent King understood everything and shouted with a cold laugh, "Kill them all!"

The five hundred elite demon soldiers behind it rushed forward and, amidst screams, slaughtered the demon soldiers as easily as cutting melons and vegetables!
These demon soldiers, for reasons unknown, were first halved by the Left Sword King, and then completely wiped out by the Right Snake King...

Standing to the side, Guan Qing, his face beaming with satisfaction, exclaimed indignantly, "Traitors should be torn to pieces!"

The Ghost Serpent King looked at the Stork Green with eyes full of favor: "You are very good. From now on, you will stay by my side and serve me."

"Yes, thank you for your high regard, Right King." Guan Qing then further demonstrated his value: "Right King, I have already investigated this mountain village..."

Then he told her everything he knew about the mountain village, including the situation of Granny Liu and Chen Wu, like beans spilling from a bamboo tube.

The Demon Serpent King was even more satisfied.

He immediately ordered: "Where is the Commander of the Filthy Bats?"

"My subordinate is here!"

Then a great evil spirit immediately stepped out from the crowd.

Behind him stretched a huge bat-shaped shadow, and beneath the shadow, countless vengeful spirits seemed to writhe and whisper.

"Guanqing, lead the way. Go and arrest this old woman Liu and Chen Wu!"

"Yes!"

Guan Qing said, "Sir, we don't know who to arrest first. If we arrest Granny Liu, Chen Wu will probably run away. If we arrest Chen Wu, Granny Liu will definitely escape as well."

"This..." The Ghost Serpent King was not exactly a man of great wisdom or resourcefulness.

"How about," Guan Qing suggested, "I'll draw a map, mark the addresses of those two people, and then split into two groups to capture them at the same time."

"Alright!" The Ghost Serpent King immediately agreed and then summoned another commander, who took maps and went to capture the Dragon King's right and left henchmen in the village.

Guan Qing, on the contrary, was left with the Ghost Serpent King.

The Demon Serpent King said smugly, "Your plan is still missing a move. We should divide our forces into three groups!"

With a wave of its hand, four demon soldiers who were already prepared appeared.

Guan Qing looked puzzled.

But then they saw a ghostly head on the back of the Demon Serpent King, without eyes, nose, or ears, opening its single, eerie mouth and spitting out a breath.

A ball of light fell, spun around on the ground, and turned into a halo of light.

Black on the outside and purple on the inside, shimmering eerily, exuding a ghostly aura!

The Demon Serpent King muttered incantations, and suddenly his tail wrapped around the four demon soldiers, throwing them into the circle of light.

"go--"

The four demon soldiers quickly shrank to the size of mung beans and disappeared into the circle of light.

The halo then began to roll on the ground again, casting shimmering light wherever it passed, creating a curtain of light.

But that was everything that the four demon soldiers saw!
The Demon Serpent King said smugly, "This wild dragon king, did he really think he could escape the palm of our Mountain Lord?"

Guan Qing was secretly delighted: It wasn't for nothing that I did this!
The mountain lord is indeed more cunning.

These four demon soldiers must have gone directly into the Dragon King Temple and found out where the Dragon King was.

As for why they were able to accurately find the Dragon King's hiding place... the Mountain Lord initially let the big-bellied snake in and bestowed some "treasures" upon it, among which were items used for locating the location!

The mountain lord's target was the dragon king, and he meticulously plotted against him!

(End of this chapter)