Starting as pearl divers, they have endless jobs.

Chapter 141 Su Yuan of the Gu Saint Sect!
Because this ghostly bride was awakened prematurely, her intelligence is underdeveloped, and she now acts entirely based on the combat instincts that were imprinted into her body during the creation process.

While its attacks and defenses are precise and efficient, they lack the agility and adaptability of a true master.

To put it bluntly, it's a pre-programmed killing machine.

Therefore, as long as we figure out its behavior patterns, we will have a chance to take it down!
"Damn, you scared me."

Seeing that Chen Ye was unharmed, Cong Bo, who was not far away, finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Tao Yong roared in anger again, "Ling'er, tear him to pieces!"

He couldn't accept that his perfect creation couldn't even handle a mere ant in the Unobstructed Realm.

The ghost bride let out a shriek and lunged at Chen Ye again.

Its speed was extremely fast, and its claws swung around, leaving behind afterimages, completely sealing off all the space around Chen Ye where he could dodge.

Faced with this storm of attacks, Chen Ye did not confront them head-on.

With light, nimble steps, he spun around, always managing to evade the most deadly attacks at the most crucial moment with minimal cost.

Meanwhile, Chen Ye's longsword would seize every fleeting opportunity, slashing fiercely at the Ghost Bride's vitals from all sorts of unexpected angles.

In an instant, the small altar was filled with the glint of swords and the flash of claws, as well as the bursts of energy.

With the aid of his superhuman combat intuition and bloody vision, Chen Ye actually managed to fight a terrifying puppet whose strength far surpassed his own to a standstill!
Although he was constantly suppressed and had several wounds on his body, his eyes grew brighter and calmer.

"Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!" Tao Yong was so angry that his lungs felt like they were going to explode, looking at the stalemate on the altar.

His pride and joy, Ling'er, his future Inner Realm warrior, was actually entangled by a mere bug in the Unobstructed Realm!
This is simply a shame!
What worried him even more was that Cong Bo on the other side was like a mad bull, launching increasingly fierce attacks, completely adopting a life-or-death fighting style.

This guy is clearly trying to stall me and create an opportunity for that kid named Chen Ye.

No!

It can't go on like this!

A ruthless glint flashed in Tao Yong's eyes.

If this drags on any longer, and something really happens to Ling'er, he'll have nowhere to turn to cry.

Thinking of this, he held nothing back any longer, bit his tongue hard, and spat out a mouthful of blood.

The blood essence transformed into a blood arrow in mid-air, instantly piercing through the sword light that Cong Bo had used for defense.

puff!
Cong Bo felt a sharp pain in his chest, as if struck by lightning, and stumbled back several steps.

Tao Yong seized the opportunity to rush toward the altar, his eyes blazing with murderous intent.

He wanted to tear this little beast who dared to desecrate his perfect work to shreds with his own hands!
Cong Bo was shocked to see this and tried to stop him, but the surging blood and qi made him dizzy and powerless.

not good!

On the altar, Chen Ye also noticed the commotion behind him.

One ghost bride was already troublesome enough, but now there's another evil cultivator at the Sea Condensation Realm whose strength far surpasses his own.

Once caught in a pincer attack by these two, he would surely die!

"Damn it, I guess I'll have to cancel for now!"

Chen Ye made a quick decision, feinted an attack, and turned to jump off the altar to temporarily avoid the attack.

However, just as he was about to jump...

A butterfly with eerie, ghostly eyes on its wings appeared on the altar without warning.

The timing and location of this butterfly's appearance were too bizarre, as if it had appeared out of nowhere.

Chen Ye was suddenly startled.

It's a dream butterfly!

At the same time, a beautiful figure appeared silently at the entrance of the secret room, like a ghost.

The person who arrived was none other than Su Yuan.

She still had that innocent and adorable girlish look, with a round face, round eyes, and a faint smile at the corners of her mouth.

"It's you!"

Tao Yong, who was about to rush towards the altar, stopped abruptly the moment he saw Su Yuan and the Dream Butterfly, and then a look of fear appeared on his face.

"Gu...Gu Saint Sect members?"

He practically forced those words out through clenched teeth.

As a remnant of the Puppet Sect, Tao Yong, though acting in secrecy, still had some understanding of some top-tier forces that should absolutely not be provoked.

The Gu Saint Sect is undoubtedly one of them.

Although this sect is located in a remote corner and its actions are both righteous and wicked, with unpredictable and bizarre methods, its strength and foundation are in no way inferior to the famous sects of today.

He couldn't understand how he could have attracted the attention of the Gu Saint Sect by simply crafting a puppet in a remote and impoverished area like Yu Huo County.

Su Yuan completely ignored him; her attention was entirely focused on the ghostly bride.

"Interesting, very interesting," she murmured to herself, looking at the puppet.

"Using the pure Yin soul as a guide, gathering countless resentful energies to form a body, and then using secret techniques to refine it... Tsk tsk, the methods of this Puppet Sect are indeed quite sophisticated."

Her appearance instantly made the situation on the battlefield unpredictable.

Chen Ye was completely bewildered.

He couldn't understand how Su Yuan had suddenly appeared here.

What he didn't know was that Su Yuan had already followed him when he was investigating the Black Buddha Temple.

The idea she gave Yun Heqing in the tavern was to have him use the Qi Observation Technique to keep an eye on Chen Ye and immediately inform her if he made any move.

Yun Heqing faithfully fulfilled this duty, and then he actually waited for Chen Ye to take action.

Then Su Yuan secretly followed behind, saving herself the trouble of investigating.

Of course, to do this, you need to have superb skills in concealing your aura.

Su Yuan truly possessed this ability, after all, she had taken quite a few valuable items with her when she left the sect.

For example, she carried several Gu worms with her, which could conceal her aura and even make experts in the Concentration Realm unaware of them.

"Your Excellency, our Puppet Sect and your Gu Saint Sect have always kept to themselves and never interfered with each other."

Just then, Tao Yong took a deep breath, suppressing his fear, and said in a deep voice, "Today's matter is a grudge between me and the Demon Slayer Division. Please do not interfere."

"I will reward you handsomely once I have accomplished this!"

He tried to bring up the sect, reason with them, and offer them substantial benefits, hoping they would back down.

However, Su Yuan seemed not to hear her and continued to admire the puppet, making continuous clicking sounds of praise.

This feeling of being completely ignored made Tao Yong's face turn extremely ugly.

He knew that things were unlikely to end well today.

On one side is the perfect work that I have devoted half my life to and is about to complete.

On the other side is the mysterious and unpredictable Gu Saint Sect, which should never be easily provoked.

How to do?
beat?
Although he was arrogant, he wasn't so presumptuous as to think he could simultaneously deal with Cong Bo, a cultivator at the Sea Condensation Realm, a strangely powerful successor of the Gu Saint Sect, and a slippery kid.

Moreover, although this girl from the Gu Saint Sect looked young, the faint yet dangerous aura emanating from her made him feel a sense of unease.

Heaven knows how many kinds of strange Gu worms she harbors.

Are we just going to give up like this?

He was unwilling to give up!
He had spent half his life planning for this Ling'er, killing countless people, and was on the verge of success. Giving up now would be worse than death for him.

"Does Your Excellency truly intend to be my enemy?" Tao Yong asked through gritted teeth, his voice hoarse.

Su Yuan finally reacted.

She slowly turned her head, a hint of doubt appearing in her round, seemingly innocent eyes.

"Puppet Sect?"

Then she smiled slightly, revealing a lovely smile.

"A remnant of an evil sect that was wiped out long ago dares to make demands in front of me?"

Tao Yong's face instantly turned a deep purplish-red. "You..."

He realized that he couldn't reason with this little girl at all.

Because the other party's logic is completely arbitrary and doesn't follow common sense at all.

"Also, I've taken a liking to this puppet." Su Yuan pointed to the ghostly bride on the altar and said in an unquestionable tone.

"And you, you can get out now."

"Since you've taken such good care of it, I'll spare your life today."

Upon hearing this, Tao Yong completely lost his composure.

You stole my treasure and expect me to be grateful and get out of here?
How can there be such a truth in the world!

"Too deceiving!"

"So what if you're from the Gu Saint Sect? You're all going to die today!"

Before he finished speaking, his murderous aura surged again, and he transformed into a blood-red shadow, actually lunging towards Su Yuan.

He had thought it through clearly. In today's situation, the only way to get Ling'er out of danger was to strike first and eliminate this biggest variable with lightning speed!

Once we kill this witch from the Gu Saint Sect, Cong Bo and that kid will be much easier to deal with.

"Out of control."

Su Yuan looked at Tao Yong rushing towards her, her face still bearing that harmless smile.

She didn't even move, she simply raised her hand slightly. *Buzz!*
The Dream Butterfly hovering above her head suddenly had a bright, ghostly eye on its wing.

An even more powerful hypnotic force instantly enveloped Tao Yong.

Tao Yong's body suddenly froze, and a look of confusion appeared in his eyes.

Although his spirit was strong and he quickly broke free, that brief moment was enough.

Suddenly, hundreds or even thousands of tiny, jet-black flying ants, each the size of a grain of rice, flew out from Su Yuan's sleeve.

These flying ants quickly gathered in the air, forming a black cloud that surged towards Tao Yong.

"Soul-devouring ants?" Tao Yong's expression changed drastically.

He recognized this Gu worm; it was one of the most vicious Gu worms in the Gu Saint Sect, specifically designed to devour the souls of cultivators, making it extremely wicked.

He dared not delay and immediately activated all his blood and evil energy to form a thick protective aura around his body.

However, these soul-devouring ants completely ignored his protective aura and crashed directly into him.

Chi Chi Chi.

A sickening corrosive sound rang out.

Tao Yong's protective aura was visibly thinning as the Soul-Devouring Ants gnawed at him.

"Damn it!"

Tao Yong was terrified and quickly retreated, while simultaneously forming hand seals and striking out blood-red palm prints in an attempt to blast the insects away.

But those Soul-Eating Ants were incredibly agile, constantly changing their formation in the air, always managing to evade his attacks.

For a moment, he was overwhelmed and in a sorry state by a group of tiny insects.

At the same time that Su Yuan and Tao Yong started fighting.

On the other side, Cong Bo, having caught his breath, also got up from the ground.

He glanced at the strange insects, wisely refraining from approaching them, and instead focused his attention on another battleground.

Abbot Liaochen was still locked in combat with more than a dozen demon-slaying captains.

"Damn it, I'll kill you, you bald monk, first!"

A fierce glint flashed in Cong Bo's eyes. He grabbed the ghost-headed broadsword and charged forward with a roar.

Abbot Liaochen was already struggling, and when he saw Cong Bo, this menacing figure, rushing over, he was terrified.

"Senior brother, save me!" he cried out in a piercing scream.

However, Tao Yong is currently in dire straits himself, barely able to save himself, so he has no time to care about him.

"die!"

Cong Bo's ghost-head broadsword, with the force of a thunderbolt, came crashing down.

In his haste, Abbot Liaochen could only raise his arms to block.

Click!

Abbot Liaochen's arms were severed from the root by this one strike.

Without pausing, the blood-red blade cleaved down from the top of his head.

puff!

The seemingly kind-faced but actually vicious old monk was cleaved in two by Cong Bo.

Blood and entrails were spilled all over the ground.

"You bunch of good-for-nothings, what are you looking at? Get up and help!"

Cong Bo killed Chen with a single stroke, glanced at the captains beside him, and cursed irritably.

"Yes Yes!"

The captains snapped out of their daze and quickly formed a battle formation, surrounding the altar to cooperate with Chen Ye in dealing with the ghostly bride.

The entire battle in the secret chamber was completely reversed the moment Su Yuan appeared.

"Junior brother!"

Seeing Liao Chen cleaved in two by Cong Bo's blade, Tao Yong's eyes widened in fury, and he let out a grief-stricken roar.

Although he and Liao Chen were called fellow disciples, they grew up together in the sect since childhood, and their relationship was better than that of blood brothers.

Seeing his junior brother die tragically before his eyes, the anger and murderous intent in his heart almost set the entire secret chamber ablaze.

But he had no time to spare; Su Yuan's methods were even more bizarre and troublesome than he had imagined.

Those elusive Soul-Eating Ants are like maggots clinging to your bones; you can't shake them off no matter what you do.

He had to spend most of his energy fighting off the insects that were eating him.

Not to mention the Dream Butterfly hovering above Su Yuan's head, which would occasionally give him a mental shock, making him extremely annoyed and unable to unleash even 70% of his strength.

Just then, a clear voice suddenly rang in Chen Ye's ears.

“I’ll hold him off, you deal with the puppet.”

"Remember, don't smash its head; the puppet core inside is very useful to me."

It was Su Yuan's voice transmission.

Chen Ye's spirits lifted.

The two had cooperated once before at Black Wind Stronghold, so Chen Ye did not hesitate at all. He directly circulated his internal energy to the limit and swung his long sword in a dense and impenetrable manner, launching a fierce attack on the Ghost Bride.

At the same time, Tao Yong had already begun to consider retiring.

With my junior brother dead, the Demon Slayer Division is now free to act.

Most importantly, the witch from the Gu Saint Sect is unfathomably powerful; if the fight continues, I'm afraid I'll really die here.

As the saying goes, if you keep the green hills, you won't have to worry about running out of firewood.

As long as I can escape, with my own strength, where can't I make a comeback?
Although Ling'er is important, her own life is ultimately more important.

With this in mind, Tao Yong no longer hesitated.

He bit his tongue again, spitting out a mouthful of blood.

The blood essence instantly transformed into a cloud of blood mist in mid-air, enveloping his entire body.

Blood Escape Technique!
This is his trump card for saving his life. Once used, his speed will increase by more than ten times, but he will also suffer a great loss of energy afterward and need to recuperate for several years to recover.

But he can't care about that now.

However, just as he was preparing to use Blood Escape to escape.

"Want to leave? It's not that easy!"

With a wave of her hand, several more strangely shaped Gu worms flew out from her sleeve.

There are ice silkworms that are completely transparent, like ice crystals, and flying scorpions with wings on their backs.

As soon as these Gu worms appeared, they each displayed their supernatural powers.

The ice silkworm exhaled a breath of cold air, instantly freezing the cloud of blood mist.

The flying scorpion's stinger shot out a beam of dark light, piercing directly through the ice.

The Blood Escape Technique was instantly broken, and Tao Yong fell directly from the sky, a look of panic on his face.

Meanwhile, with the addition of Cong Bo and a dozen or so demon-slaying captains, Chen Ye's pressure was greatly reduced.

Cong Bo faced the attack head-on, using his ghost-headed broadsword to hold off the Ghost Bride.

The captains formed battle formations and harassed the puppets from the flanks, restricting their movements.

Chen Ye, meanwhile, kept circling around the Ghost Bride, searching for its weaknesses.

"It's now!"

The moment Cong Bo delivered a powerful slash that forced the Ghost Bride to stiffen slightly, Chen Ye seized this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!

His figure flashed behind the ghost bride in an instant, the long knife in his hand carrying a cold killing intent, directly slashing towards that fair and jade-like neck.

A soft sound.

Then a beautiful head flew out, tracing a graceful arc in the air before crashing heavily to the ground.

There was still a hint of confusion and bewilderment in those crimson eyes, as if they didn't understand why they were suddenly seeing their own bodies.

As the head was severed from his body, Tao Yong's body stiffened abruptly.

puff!
He spat out a mouthful of black, reversed blood, and the light in his eyes dimmed at a visible speed.

With his natal puppet destroyed, his soul also suffered a fatal backlash.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Su Yuan's Gu worms pounced on Tao Yong, instantly engulfing him completely.

The piercing screams quickly turned into the chilling sounds of gnawing.

In the blink of an eye, Tao Yong was devoured by those frenzied Gu worms until not even a bone fragment remained.

The sealed room fell silent, save for heavy breathing and the strong smell of blood.

Cong Bo looked at the mess on the ground, then glanced at the smiling girl not far away, and couldn't help but shiver. He then clasped his hands in a gesture of thanks from afar.

After all, this little girl is really too strange, it's best to stay away from her.

Then Cong Bo and his officers began to clean up the mess.

They rescued Miss Zhang from the pillar and carried the dozen or so mummified corpses outside one by one, preparing to cremate them along with the ruins of the temple.

Throughout the process, everyone tacitly walked around the altar where Su Yuan and Chen Ye were, as if it were some kind of forbidden zone.

(End of this chapter)