The fairy forced me to marry into her family, so I retorted by throwing myself into the Pool of Fate

The skeletal figure extended a finger and tapped lightly on the sword case.

Click.

A thin crack appeared on the surface of the sword case, which then exploded with a loud bang, scattering wood fragments everywhere.

Thirty-six silver rays shot out from the debris, tracing dazzling paths in the post-rain sunlight.

The exact same scene.

The market fell silent instantly.

The image of those thirty-six silver needles piercing the skeleton's body was still vivid in my mind, and the agonizing screams seemed to still echo in my ears.

Now again?

Everyone's hearts skipped a beat, and their eyes all fell on the thirty-six streaks of silver light.

This time, however, the skeleton did not give the silver needles a chance to get close.

It raised its right hand, its five fingers spread wide, and the thirty-six silver lights seemed to have hit an invisible wall, stopping in mid-air.

Immediately afterwards, the white skeleton clenched its five fingers, and the thirty-six rays of silver light suddenly shrank, transforming into thirty-six silver needles as thin as cow hair, which obediently fell into its palm.

It glanced down at the silver needle in its palm, then closed its five fingers, and the silver needle disappeared.

……

……

Li Ping stood in the courtyard, looking up at the spot where the sword box had shattered in mid-air, lost in thought.

When the skeleton returned, Li Ping knew something was wrong.

He made a quick decision, turned around and walked into the house, preparing to call Mu Ming and Mu Junyi to run away.

But as soon as he took a step, the storage bag at his waist jolted violently.

Immediately afterwards, a beam of silver light burst out of the storage bag, bursting through the opening and shooting into the sky.

Li Ping looked down and saw that the storage bag had been torn open, and its contents had spilled all over the floor.

He didn't bother to pick it up, turned around and chased after it outside, only to see the sword box already flying into the air, heading straight for the white skeleton.

Then, he watched helplessly as the skeleton shattered the sword box with a single finger and took away the thirty-six silver needles.

Li Ping's heart was bleeding.

That set of Formless Banners is one of his strongest trump cards at present. It can be formed instantly and is quite powerful.

After purchasing the sword box and placing it inside, he never showed it to anyone, except for the time he used it once when he killed the bandits at sea.

I never expected it would be taken away like this today.

Moreover, what took it away was a being that resembled a Purple Mansion.

Li Ping stood there, his expression shifting between light and dark.

"Never mind, consider it a loss to avoid further trouble."

Li Ping comforted himself with this thought and turned to walk into the house.

Although it hurts to lose the Formless Array Flag, I'm still alive.

This deal is a good one.

Just as he was about to take a step, a whooshing sound came from behind him.

Li Ping's heart skipped a beat, and he turned around abruptly, only to see a white skeleton standing three steps in front of him.

Black boots, green robe, and two eerie green flames flickering slowly on the skull.

Didn't they leave?

Why are you back again?

And they even came to me?

Li Ping's mind went blank, and he froze on the spot.

He didn't dare to move, not even blink, just stood there motionless, like an old monk in deep meditation.

The skeleton didn't move. It stood still, with two ghostly flames slowly rolling on its skull, scrutinizing Li Ping from head to toe.

The gaze held no murderous intent, but it also lacked any kindness.

It was as if they were looking at an interesting object, or as if they were confirming something.

A man and a skeleton, standing face to face.

The courtyard was extremely quiet; even the wind had stopped.

Li Ping's back was soaked with cold sweat.

With his Qi Refining Level 6 cultivation, he was nothing more than an ant in front of the skeleton; it could destroy him with a single breath.

For the skeleton, this stalemate was no challenge at all.

But for Li Ping, every breath felt like dancing on a knife's edge.

He barely dared to breathe, but his heart was pounding so hard it felt like it was going to jump out of his throat.

After a long time, the skeleton remained motionless.

Li Ping couldn't resist any longer and slightly raised his eyelids to glance at the white skeleton.

At that glance, the white skeleton suddenly moved.

Li Ping's heart tightened, and he subconsciously tried to circulate his magic power.

But the skeleton was faster; it raised its right hand and pointed its finger in the air.

Streaks of silver light flew out from its palm and landed on the ground at Li Ping's feet.

Thirty-six silver needles were neatly stuck in the ground, gleaming with a faint, cold light.

Li Ping looked down at the set of array flags, his pupils suddenly contracting.

Didn't it take it away?

Why did you return it?

And judging from its appearance, it's completely intact, not even a single needle is missing.

Countless question marks popped into Li Ping's mind, and he subconsciously looked up at the white skeleton.

The skeleton didn't look at him. It withdrew its hand, pushed off the ground, and rose into the air with its black boots, flying out of the courtyard in the blink of an eye.

Li Ping stood still, looking down at the Formless Array Flag at his feet, and remained silent for a long time.

They confiscated it?

Instead, it was returned?

What does this mean?

He crouched down and carefully examined the battle flags.

The silver needles had transformed into battle flags; all thirty-six flags were present, not one missing.

The array patterns were intact, and the magical energy fluctuations were normal, exactly the same as before.

The skeleton simply took it out of the sword case and then returned it to him.

Why?

Li Ping couldn't understand it.

Mu Fangxu's array flags transformed into silver needles, piercing thirty-six vital points of the white bone skeleton, almost killing it.

Its reaction was to put away the silver needles, angrily scan the market, and then summon its sword case.

But instead of taking away its own battle flag, it personally returned it.

This discrimination is too obvious.

Just then, the gate to the courtyard was pushed open.

Mu Fangxu strode in.

He was taken aback when he saw Li Ping squatting on the ground, then breathed a sigh of relief.

"Are you alright?"

Mu Fangxu walked to Li Ping's side, glanced at him, and only relaxed a little after confirming that he was not injured.

Li Ping shook his head and remained silent.

Mu Fangxu glanced at the set of array flags on the ground, then looked up at the direction where the skeletal skeleton had disappeared, and asked, "Did that skeletal skeleton come here?"

Li Ping pointed to the Formless Array Flag on the ground, his tone somewhat strange: "He seems to have come to return this."

Upon hearing this, Mu Fangxu's pupils contracted slightly.

He looked down at the set of battle flags, his eyes full of doubt.

The two couldn't figure out the skeleton's intentions, so they put them aside for the time being.

Afterwards, Li Ping put away the battle flags, looked at Mu Fangxu, and asked, "What's the next step?"

Mu Fangxu looked up at the sky.

The sky after the rain was gray and hazy, with dark clouds still hanging over us, making it hard to breathe.

He sighed and said, "The whereabouts of the skeletons are unpredictable; for now, we can only take it one step at a time."

He didn't speak with much confidence, but Li Ping knew it was the best answer he could give.

The skeleton's strength far exceeded their understanding; in the face of such an existence, any plan was futile.

Being alive is already a blessing.

After the skeleton left, the cultivators in the market gradually recovered from their shock.

Some people began to clean up the mess, some gathered together to discuss it, and many more chose to leave the market overnight, fearing that the skeletons might return.

But three days passed, and the skeleton did not return.

On the fourth day, there was nothing either.

The fifth day was still calm and peaceful.

The panic in the market gradually subsided.

Although many people left, even more stayed, because life goes on.

After enduring several days of anxiety and fear, the cultivators finally breathed a sigh of relief when they saw that the skeleton showed no signs of returning.

……

……

The seawater was dark, like ink spilled between heaven and earth.

All around was silent; no fish leaped in the sea, no birds flew in the sky, and even the sea breeze seemed to slow its pace here.

This desolate sea is none other than the Great Black Sea, which strikes fear into the hearts of countless cultivators.

On the sea, a scholar-like man stood with his hands behind his back.

He had fair skin, a square face, and wore a faded blue robe. He had no magical artifacts in his hands and no magical power emanating from his body. He looked like an ordinary scholar.

The scholar gazed at the dark seawater at his feet, his eyes calm and indifferent, revealing no emotion whatsoever.

After a long while, a streak of light flew in from the horizon.

The light was incredibly fast, and it landed in front of the scholar in just a few breaths.

The light dissipated, revealing the figure of a white skeleton.

Black boots, green robe, and two emerald flames flickering gently on the skull.

It was the skeleton that left from Xikou Market.

Upon seeing the scholar, the skeleton immediately knelt on one knee, clasped its hands in a fist salute, and adopted an extremely respectful posture.

"Wen... Marquis Wen."

If the cultivators in the market were to witness this scene, they would be even more horrified than if they had seen a ghost.

The skeletal figure that caused such chaos in the marketplace was now bowing and scraping before a scholar.

But the scholar seemed to take it all for granted.

He didn't even lift his eyelids, still staring at the sea below.

Why did you leave early?

The skeletal figure trembled slightly and replied, "I was awakened by someone, and had no choice."

Upon hearing this, the scholar finally reacted.

He slowly lowered his head, his gaze falling on the white skeleton.

The scholar frowned slightly when he saw the layer of flesh and blood on its neck.

"You used blood food?"

The skeletal figure seemed to have heard something extremely terrifying, and began to tremble all over.

"I woke up feeling groggy... No... It wasn't intentional..."

Before he could finish speaking, the scholar slapped him across the face.

Snapped.

A crisp sound exploded on the silent sea.

The white skeleton was whipped and tumbled away, sliding more than ten feet across the sea, splashing up a large spray of water.

It lay curled up on the sea surface, its bones creaking and cracking.

Two ghostly flames flickered wildly within the skull, sometimes bright, sometimes dim, as if they might go out at any moment.

The scholar withdrew his hands, placing them behind his back again, and stared expressionlessly at the struggling skeleton.

"This will not be repeated."

As soon as he finished speaking, the pain in the skeleton's body miraculously disappeared.

The two nearly extinguished ghostly flames stabilized again and regained their normal glow.

The skeletal figure rose from the sea and knelt down again.

"Thank you for your mercy, Marquis Wen."

The scholar ignored him and continued, "How did you wake up?"

The skeletal skeleton raised its right hand, its withered white finger bones spreading out.

In the palm of his hand, thirty-six silver needles lay quietly, gleaming with a faint, cold light.

"Gongshu Yan's Formless Formation Banners."

Upon hearing the name, the scholar finally became somewhat interested.

He reached out and picked up a silver needle, examining it closely.

The silver needles are as fine as cow's hair, entirely silver-white, and covered with dense patterns.

The patterns are so fine that they are almost invisible unless you have very good eyesight.

The scholar looked at it for a moment, then a slight smile appeared on his lips.

"Old man Gongshu."

After a moment's hesitation, the scholar withdrew his gaze and said, "The rest of the preparations are complete. Stay here and recover."

Upon hearing this, the ghostly fire within the skeleton's skull suddenly blazed brightly.

"We will never forget the kindness of Marquis Wen in saving us."

The scholar waved his hand, signaling it to step back.

The skeletal figure stood up but didn't leave, looking as if it wanted to say something but hesitated.

The scholar frowned slightly and asked, "Is there anything else?"

The skeletal figure paused, as if organizing its thoughts.

After a moment, it spoke: "In the market, there is a man named Li Ping who possesses the skills of Gongshu Yan."

"Oh?"

The scholar raised an eyebrow and suddenly laughed.

"Even old man Gongshu can't sit still anymore, shall we begin?"

"Interesting, very interesting."

He clapped his hands and chuckled twice, then waved his hand dismissively.

An invisible force enveloped him and the skeleton at the same time.

The next instant, the two disappeared simultaneously from the sea.

The sea breeze blew, and the sea returned to calm.

The dark sea remained lifeless, as if no one had ever been there.