The villainous bosses from their past lives have all been reborn.

The stars hang low and the moon sets; the mountains and fields are silent.

The mountain spring water rippled slightly, and a large number of men in black emerged from all directions in the darkness, surrounding the Liangshuipu post station.

"Wow, that was quite a commotion!"

Xun He appeared before him, but Yuan Xiu did not show much defensiveness. Looking through the broken wall, he saw overlapping figures outside the post station.

"When you come to see me, Sixth Brother, you can bring as many people as you want!"

Xun He was very polite and seemed completely unguarded. However, in his movements, he had Mad Tiger block the way between him and Yuan Xiu, in case Yuan Xiu suddenly attacked and captured him.

Compared to Yuan Cai, whose heart was in his throat, Yuan Xiu seemed oblivious to Xun He's wariness and continued chatting.

"Aren't they all members of the Demonic Cult outside?"

"Yes!"

"Is it controlled by your mystical techniques?"

"That's right!"

Faced with Yuan Xiu's question, Xun He showed no intention of hiding his abilities and honestly replied:

"My profound technique—[Spiritual Pressure]—according to the Demonic Sect, should be at the Dust Awakening level, capable of controlling a person's thoughts and emotions."

Upon hearing that the opponent's profound skill was only at the Dust Awakening level, Yuan Cai visibly relaxed.

Yuan Cai, in his usual carefree manner, said:

"Old Xun, we're all from the six northern states, why are you being so insistent?"

Yuan Cai, observing the commotion outside, was clearly somewhat apprehensive. However, knowing that the opponent's Xuan skill level was lower than his own, and with Yuan Xiu present, he grew bolder. Clearly, he wanted to persuade Xun He to "turn back before it's too late!"

"Anyway, you've only dealt with treacherous members of the evil cult, and you haven't done anything particularly serious. How about we make peace and go our separate ways?"

Xun He smiled and said:

"If everyone in the world were like Sanlang, then the world would be at peace."

Yuan Cai, puzzled, turned to look at Yuan Xiu and asked:

"What does he mean?"

"I'm praising you!"

"But why do I feel like there's something strange about what he said?"

"Sanlang, you've misunderstood. I did intend to make peace!"

The shadowy figures outside stopped moving once they reached the outskirts of the post station. Xun He, meanwhile, remained hidden behind Mad Tiger, never showing his face.

"We are all from the Six Northern Provinces. In our previous lives, the Six Northern Provinces were attacked by the barbarians of the Northern Kingdom. What did the officials in the court do, except for one or two? The affairs of the Six Northern Provinces must be resolved by the people of the Six Northern Provinces themselves."

Yuan Xiu nodded and said:

"That's exactly what I was thinking. Tell me, what are your thoughts?"

"You've all seen the alchemy furnace in Moyun Temple. The [Fire Pill] it produces can enhance life force. If we join forces, we can have as many [Fire Pills] as we need in the future."

Yuan Xiu smiled and asked:

"How many have you refined so far?"

"Not counting the one that Monk Xingyun ate, there were two!"

"Over the past few years, people have gone missing in the Northern Kingdom, numbering over a thousand. That's barely enough for you to refine three pills! You can't possibly have as many as you want, can you?"

Xun He did not shy away from this issue, but instead offered his own solution.

"war!"

"Relying solely on the six northern prefectures is insufficient to contend with the Northern Kingdom. Without the support of the imperial court, how can a major war be launched? Even if the imperial court knew this, after doing the math, they wouldn't do as you wish!"

"Once an eleventh realm expert emerges from the six northern states, then the problem will no longer exist."

Xun He's voice carried a hint of excitement and arrogance at his control of the situation as he said:

"Sixth Brother, as long as we are faster than the Demonic Sect, an eleventh-realm expert is enough to suppress them. Without the Demonic Sect, what are those northern barbarians to fear? At that time, we can persuade the court to agree to a war with the North, capture enough people, and refine the Fire Pill! In this way, the common people of the six northern states can be freed from the calamities of their past lives."

As he spoke, Xun He took out the box and said:

"To show my sincerity, I can give both of these fire pills to Liu Lang."

Xun He held out the box, exposing it to Yuan Xiu for the first time.

However, what awaited him was an invisible sword aura, like a scythe, which sliced ​​off his palm.

The wooden box fell to the ground along with Xun He's severed hand. Inside, however, was not the Fire Pill, but rather worms resembling fleshy sprouts.

The monster lay on the ground, its mouth wide open, revealing a dense array of sharp teeth, and it was roaring at Yuan Xiu.

Another sword aura flew out, slicing the fleshy monster in two.

Upon seeing this, Yuan Cai was startled and asked:

"What is this?"

"Gu worms".

Yuan Cai realized what was happening and said:

"He controls the members of the Demonic Sect using these Gu worms, no wonder Mad Tiger came back to life after dying. But our Six Northern Provinces don't produce Gu, so what's the deal with these Gu worms?"

"It's probably related to his mystical techniques!"

Yuan Xiu's guess drew a cold snort from Xun He. From the edges of the flesh on his severed hand, Gu worms emerged, intertwining to form tentacles resembling fleshy sprouts, struggling to crawl towards Xun He.

Upon seeing this, Yuan Xiu flicked his fingers together, and several sword energies flew out, severing his severed hand again and cutting it into several pieces.

Until the severed hand stopped moving altogether.

At that moment, Xun He roared and said:

"Kill them!"

The dark figures outside the post station rushed in, while Xun He himself, protected by Mad Tiger, kept retreating.

Faced with this situation, Yuan Cai asked:

"What should we do now?"

"The henchmen are yours, the rest are mine!"

"..."

As he spoke, Yuan Xiu leaped into the air and chased after Xun He.

The two sides soon left the post station and arrived at an open space in the mountains.

At this moment, Xun He's severed hand appeared very smooth, and the wound healed quickly.

Having widened the distance, Xun He's position changed again, and together with Mad Tiger, they formed a pincer movement against Yuan Xiu.

However, before taking action, Xun He still asked:

How did you figure out I was bluffing?

"If you truly care for the people of Jinzhou as you claim, then how could a high-ranking monk like Xingyun have become like that?"

Upon hearing this, Xun He became somewhat agitated and said:

"That was because he was greedy and couldn't resist the temptation of the Fire Elixir. He even started using the people of Jinzhou to refine elixirs behind my back. Even without the incident at Moyun Temple, I couldn't let him live."

Yuan Xiu looked at Xun He with a hint of mockery and said:

"So, you really are quite righteous!"

Upon hearing this sarcastic remark, Xun He regained his composure and said:

"The reason I acted that way just now was simply to ensure that the secret of the alchemy furnace wouldn't be revealed! Now that Liu Lang has revealed his strength, the situation has changed. As long as Liu Lang is willing to keep Yuan Cai in Jinzhou City, the cooperation I mentioned earlier can continue."

"That's my half-brother!"

"What do you mean?"

"You need to pay more!"

What do you want?

"First, tell me how that alchemy furnace came to be?"

Upon hearing this, Xun He's expression changed, and he coldly snorted:

"court death!"

Just as Xun He was about to command the Mad Tigers to attack, he saw Yuan Xiu's figure approaching at an extremely fast speed, appearing less than three feet in front of him in a moment.

Then came a Yin Demon Palm strike, which sent Xun He flying.

Looking at Xun He lying on the ground vomiting blood, Yuan Xiu said leisurely:

"You should at least try to negotiate a price!"

……