Game Merchants Starting from the Ninja World.

Chapter 446 A Chinese Ghost Story: The Scholar's Side Story

"It's not a combat...trap?"

Akainu's arm revealed a Flame Demon tattoo, and he hesitated, considering whether or not to make a move.

Can polluting organisms communicate?

Of course you can. The Underworld Wanderer and the Vampire Baron who were killed back then both had conversations with the player.

However, most players will refuse to communicate and instead resort to brute force to break the corrupted monsters into game items.

However, given the current situation, the Tree Demon boss is too powerful, and without engaging with dark monsters and gathering intelligence, they will find it difficult to complete their mission.

and so……

"Let's go in and take a look; maybe we can find something?"

Orochimaru stared intently at the old woman who greeted them, sensing a strange aura emanating from her, but not a significant threat.

Moreover, he has excellent survival skills and can quickly escape when encountering danger.

Therefore, they are not afraid of what appears to be a trap.

"snort……"

After exchanging glances, Akainu, Smoker, and Borsalino all agreed to Orochimaru's proposal.

Iron Fist Garp?

As long as he follows the team and acts like a brute, there's no need to waste his brainpower on things involving operational planning.

One by one, the crowd stepped across the threshold.

The old woman maintained a welcoming posture until they all entered the Ning residence. Then, like a puppet being manipulated, she straightened up, her mouth splitting into a grin, and tightly closed the door.

"Master Ning, it's in the innermost room. Please follow me..."

The old woman moved with a light, ethereal gait, quickly leading the way in a strange, swaying manner.

Orochimaru turned his head to the side.

Then they saw the necromancer snake that had been released earlier hanging on a thick peach tree in the center of the courtyard, on an outstretched branch.

Its internal flesh and necromantic energy were drained, leaving it looking exactly like a snake.

"I'm sorry, but Master Ning doesn't like outsiders peeping into his house."

The old woman didn't turn around, but she noticed Orochimaru's gaze and began to explain.

Orochimaru grinned, licking his chin, and said, "It's alright."

Ning Mansion is very large.

The old woman led them through two spacious courtyards, each as large as a football field, and then through two passageways, before slowly stopping outside a gate locked with iron chains.

Upon reaching the innermost courtyard,

The surrounding temperature suddenly dropped, and the icy, bone-chilling demonic aura was so thick that it would be drawn into the lungs with every breath.

"call……"

Smoker took a deep breath, inhaled the full smoke of his cigar, and exhaled a purplish-red cloud of vapor.

The poisonous fog, like a thin film, covered the naval alliance squad, repelling the dense demonic energy.

【Neurotoxic Fog Lv.max】

A super toxin capable of eroding the nervous system of living organisms; just a wisp of it could kill a powerful prehistoric Tyrannosaurus Rex.

At the same time, according to Smoker's ideas, he will stimulate nerve function with toxins to enhance himself and his teammates.

"A very good poison..."

Agility and spirit attributes were temporarily enhanced.

Orochimaru's old habit of collecting things started to resurface. He glanced greedily at Smoker before quickly looking away.

If I were to ambush and kill Smoker, and turn him into a necromancy, I should be able to become the captain of the undead army.

However, he also knew that now was not the time for infighting, so he suppressed the turmoil in his heart.

Splash...

The old woman unlocked the chains, and the mottled courtyard gate slowly opened.

Compared to the grand courtyards we had passed through before, this courtyard was narrow, with bare old trees and decaying walls.

[The Demon-Clad Scholar] sat in the center of the courtyard.

Judging from his appearance, he was probably close to seventy years old and not wearing a mask.

His dry, gray hair resembled an old tree in autumn; one could see the deep furrows on his scalp through the sparse, dry strands.

His entire face resembled a withered peach tree, devoid of any vitality, with layers of wrinkled skin that almost buried his eyes.

They knew the other party was a demon-robed scholar because the old man was wearing a robe that was exactly the same as the demon-robed scholar's.

Even though he looked like he was on his last legs,

However, everyone in the naval alliance squad was sweating profusely.

The overwhelming demonic aura that enveloped the entire mansion emanated from this elderly man, no less powerful than that of the Abyss God in his prime.

only……

Although the Abyss God is powerful, it is a deformed life form created by a forced process and has no intelligence.

Even so, it took players from both worlds a tremendous amount of effort to hunt it down.

However, the [Master Ning] before us is a dark boss with intelligence, making the hunt much more difficult.

Even the strongest Orochimaru looked wary, lacking confidence that he could withstand the opponent's aura.

"Don't be nervous, guests from another world. As long as you don't reveal your murderous intent first, I won't make a move against you."

Like a soundly sleeping Master Ning, he raised his head, his cloudy gaze falling upon them.

"If you want to kill the Tree Demon Granny, I can cooperate with you."

Master Ning's scrutinizing gaze swept across the five people's faces.

really……

Orochimaru's eyes flickered. He dared to accept the old woman's invitation to step into the territory of the Demon Clothes Master because he guessed that these dark bosses were not all one family.

Now it seems that they are indeed in conflict.

"We're here to kill..."

Before Garp could finish speaking, Smoker covered his mouth.

The previous situation has clearly undergone a subtle change, and we cannot allow Vice Admiral Garp to directly provoke a battle.

Smoker explained, "We want to kill Granny Dryad, and if you can help us, cooperation is no problem."

The Tree Demon Granny is the final boss.

They came to this special space to kill the Demon-Clad Scholar and weaken the Tree Demon Granny's power.

However, if the demon-clad cultivator is willing to help, then that's a different story. With the assistance of a dark gold-level boss, the hunt will definitely go very smoothly.

As for what happens next...

If the Demon Clothes Master hasn't left yet, it's not too late to kill him and loot the game items.

"It's obvious, as you can see, that I'm in a very difficult situation and cannot leave this mansion."

Master Ning rolled up his wide sleeves, revealing his withered, tree-like arms.

His arms were covered with countless holes, through which vines pierced the ground and reached the earth beneath his feet, extending all the way to the nearly dead old peach tree.

The naval alliance squads exchanged glances.

They were all assessing the true state of the demon-clad cultivator and the probability of killing him if they acted now.

In the end, they abandoned their plan to take action.

The fact that Master Ning could so readily expose his weaknesses suggests that he had probably already anticipated the possibility of an attack.

"Back then, I accidentally entered the haunted temple and barely escaped with my life, but the tree demon granny planted a demonic seed in my heart, which turned me into this ghostly figure."

"I need your help to collect two hundred Ghost Tree Hearts. This will allow me to temporarily seal the power of the Demon Seed, and then I can leave this peach tree and help you fight the Tree Demon Granny!"

[Triggering the "A Chinese Ghost Story (Scholar's Edition)" side quest]

Mission objective: Help the Demon-Clad Scholar collect two hundred Ghost Tree Hearts.

Task reward: ? ? ?

(End of this chapter)