Starting from his vigorous old age, he began to conquer Liaozhai.

The five-colored poisonous light spread along with the Evil-Sniffing Longsword, reaching Cao Xiong's wrist.

The entry "Copper Skin and Iron Bones" constantly emits golden light, but it cannot be immune to the damage from the five-colored poisonous light.

As soon as the five-colored poisonous light touched Cao Xiong's wrist, Cao Xiong first felt an itch, followed by an indescribable pain. The torment that penetrated to the bone made his hands instantly powerless.

Cao Xiong used his divine sense to control the storage bag and took out the antidote pill that Nie Xiaoqian had given him when they last met.

The effects of the five-colored poisonous light corroding the wrist instantly disappeared upon consuming the elixir.

"This is a wonderful thing. Nie Xiaoqian truly is my lucky star," Cao Xiong exclaimed excitedly.

Since the five-colored poisonous light could not harm him, Cao Xiong simply ignored it.

He wielded the Evil-Sniffing Blade and charged straight at the Poison King, slashing at him.

"Roar~"

The Poison King roared in anger.

Countless blue venomous snakes, scorpions, geckos, toads, centipedes... suddenly appeared in the blood pool.

Under the control of the Poison King, these poisonous insects rushed towards Cao Xiong and engulfed his body in the blink of an eye.

Although these poisonous insects have mutated, becoming more aggressive and venomous, they are still unable to penetrate Cao Xiong's skin.

Cao Xiong channeled his inner energy, blasting away all the poisonous insects covering his body.

"Sword Drawing Technique~"

Cao Xiong's body shot into the sky, unleashing his secret technique once again.

The Poison King was surrounded by five-colored poisonous light, and his usually calm eyes finally showed a slight ripple.

Although his hands were withered, his bones were unusually large, and his fingernails were jet black and hooked.

The blood-red patterns all over his body seemed to come alive, writhing and making his face appear even more ferocious and terrifying.

The long sword, imbued with immense internal force, slashed down. The Poison King crossed his arms, attempting to block Cao Xiong's secret technique with his sharp fingernails.

"Swish~"

The fingernail scraped against the long knife, making a grating sound.

Cao Xiong used all of his internal energy in this move.

Although the long sword was blocked by the Poison King using a clever technique, it failed to strike the Poison King's body.

Even the Poison King couldn't resist this powerful force; his legs were pressed down, forcing him to kneel on the ground.

Cao Xiong pressed his advantage, slamming his calf into the Poison King's face.

"Bang!"

This blow sent the Poison King flying again, blood even spilling from the corner of his mouth.

"The sea of ​​suffering has run dry."

Cao Xiong unleashed a move from the Maha Knife Technique, causing golden light to emanate from the surface of the Evil-Smelling Longsword.

Faintly, one could hear a high monk chanting, the sound of Buddhist chants emanating from the long sword.

"Roar~"

The Poison King seemed to be terrified of this move, his face showing undisguised horror.

The Poison King immediately stood up and retreated, spitting out a column of mist.

The column of mist, like an iron rod, crashed straight into the Evil-Smelling Longsword.

Under the impact, Cao Xiong's figure was forced backward, leaving a shallow ditch in his feet.

"Roar~"

Seeing that this move was effective against Cao Xiong, the Poison King continued to inhale and exhale, releasing six columns of mist in succession.

The column of mist split into thick arrows that shot towards Cao Xiong, creating an effect like a volley of arrows in mid-air.

Instead of retreating, Cao Xiong advanced, circulating his internal energy. The skill "Copper Skin and Iron Bones" seemed to sense Cao Xiong's emotions and continued to exert its effects.

Having withstood the impact of six pillars of mist in succession, Cao Xiong felt as if his internal organs were about to be shattered.

"The sea of ​​suffering has run dry."

Cao Xiong unleashed the Maha Knife Technique once again.

Having already suffered a loss with this tactic, the Poison King naturally wouldn't choose to confront it head-on again.

He once again displayed his speed, his figure disappearing in a blur.

When he reappeared, he was already thirty meters away.

Knowing he was no match for Cao Xiong, the Poison King, though not very bright, knew that if he didn't run now, his life would be in danger.

After releasing another five-colored poisonous light and a pillar of mist, the Poison King turned and fled into the distance.

"Don't leave!"

Just then, Cao Man arrived and wielded his giant axe to forcefully intercept the Poison King.

Cao Xiong was not about to let such a good opportunity slip by. He used his full strength to perform the "Leaf-Picking Step" and came behind the Poison King.

The long sword, carrying golden light and murmuring Buddhist chants, struck the Poison King in the back.

"Ah~"

This blow ripped open the Poison King's back, and it was clear he was doomed.

"Sword Drawing Technique~"

Cao Xiong swung his longsword again and chopped off the Poison King's head.

[Defeat the Plague Corpse King, Fragment +1]

"Finally killed him!"

Cao Xiong breathed a sigh of relief, remembering the poisonous insects that had crawled out of the blood pool.

He knew that those poisonous insects were most likely not the source or channel for the spread of the corpse plague.

But since it was left behind by the person who built the Blood Pool, leaving it unattended could likely cause trouble.

Just now, while Cao Xiong was fighting the Poison King, many poisonous insects had already escaped or hidden themselves.

These venomous insects are not as easy to find as humans.

The largest venomous snake, the green snake, is only twenty or thirty centimeters long, while the smallest scorpion is smaller than a finger.

There's simply no way to search for them.

After a moment's thought, Cao Xiong looked at Cao Man and said, "Burn Zhengjia Village immediately. If you encounter any blue poisonous snakes, scorpions, toads, geckos, or centipedes, kill them all."

"Yes, sir!" Cao Man took out a tinderbox from his pocket, walked to a random house, and lit it.

Cao Xiong then reinserted the Evil-Smelling Blade into the blood pool to absorb the blood energy.

After absorbing the blood essence for just a short while, he could clearly feel that the ferocity of the Evil-Sniffing Longsword was much stronger than before.

Before long, Li Cheng and his men arrived with government troops and joined the arsonists.

The raging fire spread through the thick fog.

The thick smoke mixed with fog created a strong sense of suffocation.

Only after the blood in the pool completely disappeared, turning into a clear, stagnant pool, did Cao Xiong retract his Evil-Sniffing Longsword.

As the fire grew larger, the three flag officers, Yu Tong, Liu Mingzi, and Sha Huizi, led their soldiers to kill all the other plague-infested corpses.

The cleanup of the plague-infested corpses went much more smoothly than Cao Xiong had imagined. Unfortunately, they were unable to find the person who created the plague.

Judging from the five poisonous insects, including the blue snake and scorpion, it is highly likely that the poisonous cultivator Zangpo Long under the command of the Tree Demon Granny was responsible.

He knew this was just the beginning; as long as the culprit who created the plague could not be found, Guobei County would not return to stability.

Cao Xiong, along with the officials, soldiers, and constables of Guobei County, waited until the fire was extinguished the next day before returning to the Hundred Household Office.

Zhang He and the other military doctors took away the two plague-infested corpses that they had already cut in half, preparing to return to Guobei County to continue their research.

Cao Xiong approached Zhang He and handed him the last antidote pill. "This is an antidote pill made by a cultivator. It should also be effective against the corpse plague."

Zhang He's eyes gleamed as he took the antidote pill from Cao Xiong's hand. "Thank you, Commander. I will certainly handle this antidote pill properly and make sure it plays its proper role."

After returning to Guobei County, Cao Xiong went straight back to his barracks to practice martial arts.

Now that he has civil officials like Zhou Yuan under his command, he no longer needs to personally handle the post-war issues.