Minglong

Chapter 459 A Hundred Ghosts in Spring~
Wow…

Below the dock, the river surged, and a dark green poisonous fog rose from the outside. Hundreds of insect disciples from the insect den moved through the fog, accompanied by the rustling sounds of snakes and insects crawling. In an instant, the entire river channel was transformed into a deadly place fraught with danger.

Xie Jinhuan stood protectively in front of Zisu, his gaze lingering on the surrounding scum, fixed on the two figures on the roof ridge outside the hall.

One of them was quite muscular, holding a knife in his right hand and a chain claw in his left; the other was tall and slender, holding a long black spear.

The two men appeared imposing, but they did not exude any living aura; they looked more like puppets.

Xie Jinhuan frowned slightly, searching for the puppeteer lurking in the shadows, but to his surprise, the cloaked figure with the gun spoke first, one hand behind his back:

"Mao Chunniang, the demon general of the Underworld Cult, has long admired Young Master Xie's name, but this is the first time we have met. It is an honor to meet you."

"Mao Chun Niang..."

Xie Jinhuan heard a man's voice, but the tone was clearly that of a woman. She was surprised and said:
"Are you the rabbit spirit of the Underworld Cult?"

The burly man with the knife next to him then spoke in a rough voice:

"I am only human, possessing some bloodline talent. I invited Young Master Xie here today on the orders of the sect leader to recruit Young Master Xie into the Underworld God Sect. Please forgive any neglect."

?

Lin Zisu turned her head left and right, somewhat confused, and leaned closer to ask in a low voice:

"Is this a lich, speaking through puppets?"

Xie Jinhuan nodded slightly, realizing that this was the puppeteer talking to him in the dark. Normally, controlling a puppet requires strong spiritual power and must be done nearby. However, Xie Jinhuan carefully scanned the surroundings but did not find any trace of the rabbit spirit inside or outside Baichongwu.

Fortunately, he didn't come alone; he brought quite a few cheat codes. Just as he was secretly searching, the coal ball in the sky, which had already been upgraded, displayed the supernatural power of 'seeing evil spirits in the world,' and issued a notification in the sky:

"Coo coo...coo..."

It means—southeast, very, very far...

And the ghost that had been following him like a shadow appeared silently beside him, looking up towards the southeast:

"This rabbit spirit's bloodline talent surpasses even the divine soul; its true form may be in the Chilong Cave."

Upon hearing this, Xie Jinhuan felt that this was a bit outrageous.

The Chilong Cave is more than a thousand miles away from here. Even if he accurately pinpoints its location and follows the network cable to get there, the rabbit spirit will have already escaped. The saying "a cunning rabbit has three burrows" is no joke.

However, the rabbit spirit's current hiding place should be a key stronghold of the Underworld God Cult. Anyway, we'll definitely go to the Chilong Cave, so it won't hurt to try our luck there.

Seeing the other party come out in a puppet to 'recruit' him, Xie Jinhuan asked in return:

"You mean, you want me to abandon the promising future of the righteous path and join your soon-to-be-destroyed Underworld God Cult?"

Mao Chunniang's response was quite sincere:
"This world is dead. You are the one who has the ability to change the world. Even if you don't join now, you will still try to change it when you establish your own sect and become the founder. Instead of taking a detour for decades, why not change your stance as soon as possible? With your strength and the sect leader's strategies, there is nothing in this world that you cannot accomplish."

Xie Jinhuan laughed when he heard this and responded directly:

"Even if this world becomes a stagnant pool, how to change it is a matter for the entire righteous path to discuss and decide. Cultivators cannot act arbitrarily."

"Even if I want to change the world one day, the entire righteous path will not agree. I will sacrifice evil paths to improve my cultivation and then defeat everyone in the righteous path, instead of stealing cultivation by sacrificing innocent people like the Corpse Ancestor."

"No matter what the Corpse Ancestor's original intention was, his methods were unforgivable. What is most hateful is that the Corpse Ancestor abandoned the bottom line of humanity and went to extremes. Before he could accomplish his goal, he caused half of the people in the world to die in vain. His sins were in the present generation but his merits were not for future generations."

"Even the Corpse Ancestor is beneath my notice. Your sect leader is nothing more than a sect leader with only a few remaining defeated soldiers. How dare you try to recruit me?"

Mao Chunniang shook her head:
"I'm only here to deliver a message. As for whether the sect leader has the ability to change the world, Young Master Xie will know on the Dragon Boat Festival."

Dragon Boat Festival...

May is approaching, and there are only seven days left until the Dragon Boat Festival...

The Dragon Boat Festival is the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, a day when the yang energy of heaven and earth is at its peak and is about to turn into yin energy...

Xie Jinhuan felt that there must be some explanation for this timing; it didn't seem like a fabrication. He frowned and said:

"What exactly is Sikong Tianyuan trying to do?"

Mao Chunniang raised her hook-and-sickle spear and pointed it at the two of them:
“Young Master Xie can find me himself; I doubt I can withstand any form of torture.”

?

Xie Jinhuan thought this mischievous rabbit was a bit cheeky. He was certain the rabbit spirit was hiding in the Chilong Cave, but it hadn't revealed itself yet. He simply nodded slightly, took out a short sword from under his cloak, and flicked his wrist:

chap——

The short sword immediately bounced off and transformed into a nine-foot-long spear, gleaming with a sinister and cold light under the moonlight and dim lamplight!
"You don't have much time left. Hide in the rabbit hole for the next few days and prepare for your funeral. I'll be there soon."

After saying this, Xie Jinhuan picked up his gun and slowly walked forward, exiting the hall.

To prevent the naive Zisu from making any mistakes, Ye Hongshang stood by and helped look after her.

But soon, Ye Hongshang understood why Wanyi's mother was suppressing Zisu in various ways!

Sa——

Xie Jinhuan's steps seemed slow but were actually fast. The moment he stepped out of the hall, his figure had already turned into a blur. His nine-foot-long spear, wrapped in a tornado, pierced through the dark green mist in the blink of an eye and approached the two people standing side by side.

Meanwhile, Mao Chunniang controlled the puppets from a thousand miles away, and their reactions were no different from those of someone actually there. The two puppets cooperated seamlessly, with almost no delay.

The moment Xie Jinhuan made his move, the burly man, knife in hand, rushed forward to meet him. With his massive, dragon-like arm, he cleaved Xie Jinhuan's spear that was aimed directly at the center of the attack with a single blow, while his left hand simultaneously reached out with a claw to entangle Xie Jinhuan's feet.

The gunman's attack speed was so fast it was almost like blinking; almost as soon as he moved, the spearhead had already outpaced the thrown grappling hook and stabbed towards Xie Jinhuan's waist and abdomen.

Boom——

The moment the three made their move, debris flew everywhere in the dock, and hundreds of disciples were caught in the turmoil, like ants caught in a storm.

However, Zhang Nanhua's arrangement for these disciples to come was not simply to show his support and boost his reputation.

The Gu Poison Sect excels in poison techniques and soul-binding spells. Against a peak martial artist like Xie Jinhuan, poison and Gu are almost ineffective, but soul-binding spells can provide a counter.

At this moment, the hundreds of disciples hidden on the outskirts almost simultaneously raised their hands and formed hand seals. Under Zhang Nanhua's control, their invisible spiritual power condensed into one, locking onto Xie Jinhuan, who was entangled by the two. A sound was heard:

"Om-"

The ear-piercing vibrations instantly transformed the emerald green sea of ​​mist into surging waves, causing even the river surface below to tremble violently.

Xie Jinhuan initially paid no attention to the two puppets and the bunch of ants. He slowly drew his spear, purely wanting to show off his spear skills and let Zisu see it clearly, so as to deceive her into looking at him with eyes full of stars.

But when hundreds of ants attacked him with their combined divine soul spells, his movements slowed instantly, and he realized that a large number of ants could also kill a person.

Seeing that the influence of the soul-soul spell was too great, Xie Jinhuan, in order to prevent things from going too far, held the spear in his right hand and made a hand seal with his left hand. Blazing true fire rose from all directions, trying to disperse the poisonous rats on the outside first.

But Mao Chunniang was incredibly oblivious to his surroundings. Not only did she bring her puppet into the arena, but she also tried to stop him from showing off his skills to the little girl. Seeing that he was about to cast a spell, the burly man immediately let out a loud shout:
"Roar--!"

Boom——

The sound was deafening, and even the surrounding churning sea of ​​fog was blasted into a vacuum ring.

Xie Jinhuan was facing the attack head-on. At first, he thought it was the Lion's Roar, but when the impact came, he realized that the puppet could actually use the 'Ghost Cry Curse' of the Witch Cult. The moment he was hit, his mind went blank and the spell was interrupted.

"Hey?"

Xie Jinhuan realized that this rabbit spirit was quite capable. Afraid of being laughed at by Zisu for being able to fight even a puppet to a standstill, he stopped pretending and raised his spear, intending to dismember the two puppets. But at that moment, the surrounding spiritual tremors suddenly weakened a bit.

Then, from the depths of the fog, incoherent words gradually began to emerge:
"Senior brother, I'm so hot!"

"With a formidable enemy at hand, wake up..."

"I can't help it..."

"Who's going to take off my pants...?"

……

Damn it? !
Xie Jinhuan shuddered, and memories of old man Lü Yan's past flashed through his mind...

The sudden chaos distracted not only Xie Jinhuan but also Mao Chunniang, who began to scan her surroundings.

However, the cultivators of Hundred Insect Valley who were hiding on the outskirts turned into madmen and pounced on their fellow disciples, grabbing them and refusing to let go, forcibly demanding things with their hands and mouths.

Some disciples with strong wills, even those who could initially maintain their spells, lost their composure when their fellow disciples grabbed them and began groping them indiscriminately. Their expressions turned panicked, then their eyes lit up with excitement as they joined in...

As the sect leader, Zhang Nanhua should have been at the core of the sect, but instead of trying to save the poisoned disciples, he reacted the most, clinging to a pillar at the entrance of the main hall and rubbing against it like a sow...

Mao Chunniang, a disciple of Sikong Tianyuan, could tell from the situation that she had been poisoned by an unknown aphrodisiac, and her tone revealed deep surprise:
"What a ruthless poison technique! You call yourself a righteous hero, yet you resort to using aphrodisiacs during a fight..."

chap——

The long spear, like a crescent moon, swept away the head of the chattering puppet before the spear could even be seen clearly.

Xie Jinhuan had no time to deal with the two broken puppets at this moment. He quickly retreated outside the hall, hoping that the Great Immortal Zisu would quickly stop his supernatural powers to avoid causing a strange tale in the martial arts world!
But he soon discovered a problem:
In the past, when Wanyi Yuehua poisoned him, she would give him the antidote first to prevent the large-scale fog from affecting her teammates. However, Zisu obviously didn't give him the small pill just now.

Xie Jinhuan believed that his body had not been affected by the poisonous fog, but his body was indeed acting strangely. A large white moon with eleven wings flashed in his mind, his whole body was burning hot and his Dao heart was hard. Even when he looked at Zhang Nanhua, who was hugging the pillar and rubbing against the tree, he felt that she was a graceful and elegant lady with a goatee...

hiss--!
Xie Jinhuan felt goosebumps all over his body. He quickly steadied himself to avoid accidentally killing everyone present, and looked around:
"Perilla? Perilla?!"

"Ok?"

Lin Zisu had already used the poisonous rat's signature skill, hiding in the shadows and secretly using the Gu poison sect's ultimate technique, 'Hundred Ghosts Plague'.

The fully formed Hundred Ghosts Plague spreads an overwhelming black and green poisonous mist, within which hundreds of ghosts roam, disturbing the mind and making it difficult to defend against, resulting in immense destructive power.

However, since raising ghost children was banned, this technique has become a concealment ability, which can only be used by poison masters to hide themselves and is difficult to use to kill opponents of the same or higher realms.

Zisu started learning the Gu poison techniques last year. With her imaginative little brain, how could she stick to the rules and practice according to the routine?

According to Zisu's understanding, the core concept of the plague is to disrupt the opponent while simultaneously poisoning them!

The idea that poisoning is no longer used without the imps, and that it's instead used for stealth or creating fog of war, completely misinterprets the original intention of the founder.

Lin Zisu, a dignified "Poisonous Hand Medicine Girl," could not possibly follow suit and ruin the legacy of her ancestor. Since the little devil could not be used, she would instead focus on "poison."

She had been criticized by her aunt and grandmaster for blending into the poisonous fog in a way that was "as inseparable as glue," but she did not give up and continued to seriously think about how to improve it.

The profession of poison master has a huge gap between the upper and lower limits. After all, its lethality does not depend on cultivation level, but only on creativity and technique. A cultivator with average creativity, even if he enters the super grade, is just a poison rat running away with his head in his hands.

As long as one possesses a potent poison that mortals cannot comprehend and can consistently administer it, the lethality is virtually limitless. After all, given the same materials, Lin Zisu's Burning Immortal Gu and the Burning Immortal Gu made by Ancestor Sikong are no different and can both instantly bring down Ah Huan.

However, while Ancestor Sikong could use a thousand different techniques to reliably deliver the Immortal Burning Gu into his opponent's body, Lin Zisu could not do that.

For this reason, Lin Zisu had been researching how to perfectly administer poison. After several months of experimentation, she successfully transformed her own poisonous mist into a colorless and odorless form, making it seem as if she hadn't used it at all.

But that's far from enough. The hardest part of overcoming the strong with the weak is not being able to see them, but rather bypassing the passive physical protection of high-level cultivators.

So Lin Zisu developed the "Penetrating Powder," a non-toxic substance that penetrates defensive techniques such as Qi, Vajra Zen, and Golden Light Mantra, carrying viral spores inside.

To compensate for the fact that being colorless and odorless makes it impossible to hide, Lin Zisu devised the "Invisibility Pill." Once swallowed, it can be hidden away, and even ghosts cannot find it, eliminating any future troubles!
Even the Corpse Ancestor would have to admit that this young man is truly formidable. With the entire Hundred Insect Valley currently in a frenzy, it's only because Lin Zisu remembered to 'poison them to the point of wishing they were dead' that she held back.

If he had really used his own potent poison, it's uncertain whether Xie Jinhuan would still be standing.

Seeing that her unorthodox methods were proving effective in practice, Lin Zisu was quite excited. Seeing Xie Jin cheering, she popped herself out from the unnoticed pile of medicinal herbs:

"How about that? I'm awesome, right? Huh?!"

Hula~
Xie Jinhuan saw Zisu and rushed forward, sheltering her in his arms as if he wanted to squeeze her into his own body:

"Wow, this is amazing! I'm getting a little agitated. Where's the antidote? I can't hold back anymore..."

Lin Zisu noticed the burning breath and realized that her teammate had also been infected. She immediately tried to get the antidote.

But with her arms restrained, her legs lifted off the ground, and her face pressed against Xie Jinhuan's chest, how could she retrieve anything? She could only say:

"It's on your waist. Let go, I'll help you get it... Hey? Don't touch it, or your auntie will break your leg..."

Xie Jinhuan's face was flushed, his mind filled with thoughts of picking him up and scalding him, but reason still made him suppress his distracting thoughts, and he only groped under the cloak with his hands.

To my surprise, I discovered that Zisu was indeed a young woman, with a slender waist that could be encircled by one hand, and her hips were starting to resemble Wanyi's, and they were so smooth to the touch...

If this were to happen with Wanyi...

blah blah blah...

Xie Jinhuan shook her head vigorously, and out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a large ghost in a red dress standing not far away, holding a crystal ball and recording. Her eyes widened in astonishment.

"You're still looking? Hurry, help me find it, I'm going crazy..."

Lin Zisu's embroidered shoes swayed in the air. She had been anxiously trying to find a solution, but upon hearing the sound, she turned to look at the empty hall.
"Are you hallucinating? Calm down, I'll find you... Ah~"

boo...

Ye Hongshang stood by and watched, not entirely because he enjoyed the spectacle, but to teach Zisu a lesson in her first real-world experience.

After all, poison masters are a double-edged sword; a slight mistake can result in widespread casualties among friendly forces, so no negligence is permissible.

Seeing Zisu groaning and crying, Xie Jinhuan could only manage to hear "I'll give it to you" before she couldn't resist and quietly took out a small pill and put it in Xie Jinhuan's mouth.

The pill melted instantly upon entering the mouth, and a cool sensation spread throughout the body.

Xie Jinhuan's bloodshot eyes instantly cleared, and he looked down at the flushed-faced Zisu Daxian, his expression stiffening slightly:
"Uh...sorry, I wasn't thinking straight just now..."

As he turned to look, he saw that the Hundred Insect Valley was in complete chaos, with poisonous rats rolling around everywhere. Xie Jinhuan's face turned pale and his scalp tingled. He quickly covered Zisu's eyes.

"How could you use such a drug? If word of this gets out in the martial arts world, you'll be known as a notorious witch of the Gu poison sect..."

"We can't kill innocent people indiscriminately. This method is quick and effective; as long as it knocks people down, that's enough..."

"..."

Xie Jinhuan felt that this was indeed not an indiscriminate killing of innocents, but once these poisonous rats woke up, they would probably wish they were already dead.

If someone from the righteous path comes to do something, they should either kill them or arrest them for interrogation. But to force hundreds of people to hold an uninhibited assembly would likely shock both the legitimate and criminal worlds if word got out.

To prevent the scene from deteriorating to an unbearable state and damaging the reputation of the Great Immortal Zisu, Xie Jinhuan, unusually, acted as a benevolent person, knocking out each person one by one with lightning speed, and then carrying Zisu away from this unclean place...

-

The text following it is not counted as points or 2.
I'm really struggling to stay awake. I rewrote this chapter twice, but it wasn't enough for 2 words, so I've combined it into one chapter. I'll take a day off tomorrow to adjust my sleep schedule.
Also, there's an event on the book's homepage where you can get titles like "Sweetheart Fairy" and "No-Onion Old Demon," so check it out!
(End of this chapter)