Chapter 62: You Are a Devil

The further they went, the color of the thick fog gradually turned from white to green, carrying a faint sweet, fishy smell.

This indicated that the toxicity here had reached a terrifying level.

Strange plants began to appear around them, with flowers resembling human faces swaying in the mist.

On the ground, one could occasionally see skeletons—some of Yao Beasts, some of Martial Artists—which had become fragile under the erosion of time.

Chu Chang and Senior Sister Lin Ruoxue pushed their true Qi protective shields to the limit to resist the pervasive toxins all around.

"Wait."

After traveling about two miles, Chu Chang suddenly pressed on Senior Sister Lin Ruoxue's shoulder, his figure suddenly freezing on a horizontal dead tree.

Senior Sister Lin Ruoxue followed Chu Chang's gaze.

In the white fog ahead, there were faint fluctuations of mana.

Accompanying these fluctuations was a strange, "rustling" sound, similar to countless beetles gnawing on bones.

The sound was dense, making one's scalp numb.

Chu Chang focused his vision, piercing through the layers of green mist, and finally saw the scene ahead clearly.

It was a rocky valley formed by countless boulders piled up in disarray, exactly the edge of the rocky ridge the shopkeeper had mentioned.

At this moment, in this valley, two groups of people were fighting fiercely.

One side had over a dozen people, all dressed in black, with a blood-red lotus embroidered on their clothes.

They were extremely ruthless, surrounded by black Qi, controlling black iron Puppets that exuded a foul stench, as well as blood-thirsty poisonous insects that filled the sky.

"It's the people from the Demonic Path Blood Evil Sect." Senior Sister Lin Ruoxue transmitted her voice in a low tone, her tone carrying a hint of disgust and vigilance.

The Blood Evil Sect was a local Demonic Path force in the depths of the Black Wind Valley. The Cultivators within were skilled in corpse refining, insect driving, and blood-path Cultivation Techniques, and their methods were extremely cruel.

Fighting against the Blood Evil Sect was another group of rugged Martial Artists wearing animal skin clothing. They were clearly a bandit force from the outskirts of the Black Wind Valley. Judging by their attire, they were from the Black Tiger Stronghold.

The Black Tiger Stronghold had more people, about thirty or so, but in front of those strange and unpredictable Demonic Path methods of the Blood Evil Sect, they appeared a bit stretched and were already at a disadvantage.

"Scum of the Blood Evil Sect! This traitor Zhao Meng was discovered by our Black Tiger Stronghold first. You rats in the gutter actually dare to interfere!"

On the Black Tiger Stronghold side, a burly middle-aged man as big as an iron tower, holding a pair of bronze hammers, was waving his weapon frantically, smashing a black iron Puppet that pounced on him into pieces, roaring repeatedly.

This iron-tower man's true Qi was boiling, and every hammer swing brought about sharp sonic booms. His strength had reached the Peak of the Qi Refining Realm. He was none other than the second leader of the Black Tiger Stronghold, Iron Bone Hammer Hu Li.

And on the Blood Evil Sect side.

A youth with a pale complexion, without a trace of blood, as if he had just climbed out of a coffin, was sitting on a chair made of piled-up white skeletons.

He was toying with a blood-red jade bottle in his hand, looking at the frantically struggling Hu Li, his mouth curling into a cruel, mocking smile: "Hu Li, if you are sensible, take your people and get out of the Mist Forest immediately. My Young Lord has taken a liking to the item that Zhao Meng stole. If you continue to be ignorant, I don't mind refining you all into 'Blood Corpses'. It just so happens that my darlings haven't eaten their fill today."

This pale youth was a deacon of the Blood Evil Sect, named "White Bone Envoy" Yin Jiu. His strength was also at the Peak of the Qi Refining Realm, but his Demonic Technique and endless insidious methods made Hu Li wary.

Chu Chang and Senior Sister Lin Ruoxue were lying behind a boulder not far away, watching all this from a high vantage point.

"Senior Sister, see that direction?"

Chu Chang suddenly pointed to a hidden cave behind the battlefield.

The entrance to the cave was extremely narrow and covered by a pile of loose stones and dead vines.

If it weren't for Chu Chang's keen Divine Sense, it would be extremely difficult to discover.

At this moment, at the gap in the cave entrance, a faint strand of pure Yang true Qi was slightly fluctuating.

Clearly, Zhao Meng was hiding in that cave, using the fighting outside to gasp for breath.

"When two tigers fight, we are just the fisherman closing the net."

Chu Chang sneered, "However, we must let them consume some more. Especially that Yin Jiu from the Blood Evil Sect; the blood-colored jade bottle in his hand gives me a very uncomfortable feeling."

Senior Sister Lin Ruoxue nodded slightly: "I'll listen to you."

Just as the two were discussing, the situation on the field changed suddenly.

Hu Li of the Black Tiger Stronghold saw his brothers falling into pools of blood one by one, being gnawed into dried corpses by those blood-sucking poisonous insects, and his eyes turned red instantly.

"Yin Jiu, I'll take your life!"

Hu Li roared, his muscles instantly bulging, and a layer of bronze metallic luster faintly appeared on his skin.

He had unleashed the Black Tiger Stronghold's town-guarding Cultivation Technique, the 'Iron Bone Art', and his defense and strength were instantly raised to the Peak.

He kicked the ground hard, his whole body like a cannonball out of the chamber, tearing through the heavy fog, holding high the pair of bronze hammers weighing a thousand pounds, and smashed towards Yin Jiu on the white bone chair with the force of splitting mountains and rocks.

Before the hammers arrived, the terrifying wind had already shattered the skeletons under Yin Jiu into powder.

Facing this earth-shattering blow, Yin Jiu's pale face showed no fear, but instead, a strange smile appeared.

"Stupid brute."

Yin Jiu snorted coldly, his body leaning back strangely, as if he had no bones, and turned into a streak of pitch-black blood light, instantly sliding off the white bone chair.

"Boom!"

Hu Li's hammers smashed heavily onto the empty white bone chair.

The terrifying true Qi erupted at this moment.

The hard rocky ground was smashed into a huge pit with a diameter of several meters, and countless gravels shot out in all directions like hidden weapons.

However, before Hu Li could retract his hammers.

"Hiss!!"

A shrill sound of breaking wind suddenly sounded behind him.

Yin Jiu's figure had appeared behind Hu Li like a ghost, his withered right hand, like an eagle's claw, with its five fingernails pitch-black as ink, flashing with a ghostly green poisonous light, grabbing fiercely at the back of Hu Li's head.

"Die for this Envoy!"

Hu Li also had rich combat experience. At the moment the crisis arrived, his body shrank violently, using a "lazy donkey roll" move, narrowly avoiding the vital point.

But Yin Jiu's claw still tore open his protective true Qi on his back, leaving five bloodstains as deep as bone on his back.

What was even more terrifying was that the blood flowing from the wound turned into a strange black color in an instant, and accompanied by a pungent stench, it quickly spread to Hu Li's whole body.

"Poison!"

Hu Li's expression changed drastically, and he hurriedly circulated his true Qi to suppress the toxin, but as a result, his strength was greatly reduced.

"Haha! After being hit by my 'Corpse Poison Claw', within a short time, your whole body will turn into pus!" Yin Jiu laughed strangely, unrelenting, his figure flashing, and the sky was filled with black claw shadows, suppressing Hu Li tightly.

The remaining bandits of the Black Tiger Stronghold, seeing their second leader defeated, were immediately in chaos.

"Retreat! Retreat quickly!"

Some clever bandits began to retreat.

However, how could the Disciples of the Blood Evil Sect miss this opportunity to beat a dog in the water? They drove the Puppets and poisonous insects, unfolding a bloody one-sided massacre in the thick fog.

"That's it now!"

Just as the scene was in extreme chaos and everyone's attention was attracted by this fierce battle, the eyes of Chu Chang, who was hidden in the dark, shone brightly.

"Senior Sister, I will go deal with Zhao Meng and take back the secret treasure! You stay here. Once they determine a winner, or if they discover something is wrong, immediately use ice-type Dao methods to seal the battlefield. Do not let a single person leave this valley alive!"

"Okay, be careful." Senior Sister Lin Ruoxue looked solemn, tightening her grip on her long sword.

Chu Chang took a deep breath, his body sticking to the ground, like a silent shadow, and under the cover of the thick fog and boulders, he quickly sneaked towards the hidden cave.

His speed was to the extreme, and he did not bring up a trace of wind or spiritual power fluctuations.

At this time, the battle in the valley was nearing its end.

Hu Li, under the attack of the toxin and Yin Jiu's bombardment, had completely turned into a bloody man. He only had one bronze hammer left, panting, his eyes filled with unwillingness and despair.

And the Blood Evil Sect Disciples were grinning as they harvested the lives of the remaining bandits.

No one noticed that a true god of death had already quietly sneaked into the cave that concerned everyone's fate.

The interior of the cave was dark, damp, and filled with a thick smell of mold and the fishy stench of rotten blood.

The further they went, the narrower the space became, only allowing one person to barely pass.

Chu Chang held an iron sword, his Aura converged to the limit.

Every step he took landed precisely on the dry ground, without making a single sound.

In his Divine Sense perception, that weak but highly explosive spiritual power source was just behind a turn ahead.

Zhao Meng!

This traitor of the Divine Sword Sect, although seriously injured and driven to a desperate situation, was after all a former elite Disciple of the Divine Sword Sect, and his strength in his Peak period was by no means inferior to Senior Sister Lin Ruoxue. A lean camel is still bigger than a horse; a trapped beast on a dead end often unleashes the most lethal counterattack.

Chu Chang did not have the slightest carelessness.

He slowly turned the corner.

The front suddenly opened up, a stone chamber about several meters wide.

In the center of the stone chamber, a man in tattered white clothes with messy hair was sitting in a disheveled manner on a boulder.

The man's left hand was missing a little finger, and the wound seemed to be newly cut, looking a bit hideous; beside him lay a heavy, bladeless sword that was completely black and exuded a heavy Aura.

At this moment, his face was as pale as paper, and there was still dried blood on the corners of his mouth.

His chest was heaving violently, and he was holding a piece of jade emitting a soft green light, frantically absorbing the spiritual power inside to heal his wounds.

That jade stone exuded an ancient Aura that made one's mind calm.

It was the lost secret treasure of the Divine Sword Sect, the mind-calming detoxification essence!

"Who?"

The moment Chu Chang appeared, Zhao Meng, who had originally kept his eyes closed, suddenly opened them.

Those were eyes full of beast-like madness and vigilance.

It had to be said that Zhao Meng's alertness was surprisingly high. Almost the moment Chu Chang stepped into the stone chamber, he sensed danger from the near-invisible air fluctuations.

"Die!"

Zhao Meng didn't have any nonsense, let alone ask who the person was.

He roared, his right hand suddenly slapped the ground, his whole person borrowed force to soar into the sky, and he took the opportunity to grasp the black heavy sword beside him.

"Pure Yang Earth-Splitting Slash!"

Brilliant golden flames instantly burned fiercely on the heavy sword. The heat that erupted at that moment actually instantly steamed the damp air in the stone chamber.

The heavy sword had no edge, but it was skillful without craft!

Zhao Meng, man and sword as one, with a forward-rushing crazy momentum, slashed down at Chu Chang.

The power of this sword was immense. Before the heavy sword fell, the terrifying wind had already pressed the ground under Chu Chang's feet to crack inch by inch.

"As expected of a former elite of the inner Sect, to be able to exert such strength even after being so seriously injured."

Chu Chang's eyes narrowed.

But he did not retreat at all.

"Clang!"

The iron sword left its scabbard.

Within Chu Chang, the strange true Qi that had fused with multiple attributes boiled in an instant. Although his true Qi was not as Yang-stiff and scorching as Zhao Meng's, it had an extra bit of indescribable sharpness and toughness.

"Die!"

Chu Chang used a sword technique he had recently realized.

The two swords collided in mid-air.

"Boom!"

A loud noise like a thunderbolt exploded in the narrow stone chamber.

The violent Sword Qi and flames turned into ripples of substance, crazily venting in all directions.

The hard stone walls were cut with countless spiderweb-like cracks, and countless gravels fell from the ceiling.

Chu Chang's figure swayed slightly, and he landed steadily on the ground.

As for Zhao Meng, he groaned, his whole body suffering a heavy blow, rolling in the air a few times in a disheveled manner, hitting a stone wall heavily, and then fell down.

"Puff!!"

He spat out another mouthful of blood, and the injury that he had finally suppressed exploded completely after this hard collision.

He stared at Chu Chang, looking at Chu Chang's ordinary but excessively young face, a glimmer of despair and disbelief flashed in his eyes: "You… Are you sent by the Divine Sword Sect? Impossible! When did the Divine Sword Sect produce a Prodigy like you? How old are you?!"

"Senior Brother Zhao, colluding with the Demonic Path, stealing the Sect's secret treasure, today is the time for you to pay the price."

Chu Chang's tone was indifferent, carrying his sword, walking towards Zhao Meng step by step.

"Hahahaha! Pay the price?"

Zhao Meng laughed shrilly, his laughter full of madness and unwillingness.

"Sect secret treasure? That's not a secret treasure at all, that's a deadly poison! Those high and mighty Elders of the Divine Sword Sect, what do they take us for? As pawns that can be discarded at any time!"

Zhao Meng looked crazy, he struggled to stand up, clutching the "mind-calming detoxification essence" tightly:

"Since you want this thing, then accompany me to the grave!"

He suddenly raised his right hand and slapped the green jade stone with one palm, trying to destroy it completely.

However, how could Chu Chang give him this opportunity?

"Swish!"

A golden sword light, several times faster than before, flashed and disappeared in the air.

It was too fast.

So fast that Zhao Meng's vision couldn't even keep up with the trajectory of this sword light.

"Pfft!"

A muffled sound.

Zhao Meng's raised right hand was neatly severed at the wrist. Blood gushed out, and the "mind-calming detoxification essence" fell to the ground along with the severed hand, making a crisp sound.

"Ah!!!"

Zhao Meng let out a miserable scream, holding his severed arm and retreating repeatedly.

Chu Chang flicked his finger, and a clever force sucked the jade stone and the severed hand into his own hand.

He carefully examined this "mind-calming detoxification essence", felt the extremely pure anti-toxin fluctuation within, and after confirming it was correct, he carefully put it into his Storage Pouch.

"You… You devil…"

Zhao Meng collapsed in the corner, and at this moment he had completely lost the power to resist, and could only look at Chu Chang with eyes of extreme fear.