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墨書 Inktalez
Human Sacrifice
"I'm sorry, I've finished." I tossed the bone in my hand to the ground, licked my fingers, and with a sudden wave of my hand, Dao Qi wrapped around the knife in the Fat Steward's hand, slicing through the air in a strange arc before appearing in my grasp.
Behind me, the Thin Steward's eyes widened as a gash opened on his neck, his head severed cleanly at the shoulders.
I stood amidst the wind and snow, watching as disciples of the Azure Cloud Sect traveled in groups not far away.
Some had already dug up several precious ten-year Snow Ginseng from their Medicine Baskets, while others unloaded their baskets to peek at how much others had gathered.
Every month, the Azure Cloud Sect reported a few missing or dead individuals, most of whom were casualties during the herb-gathering conference. True life-and-death battles within the sect were rare.
Thus, the herb-gathering conference of the Azure Cloud Sect was essentially a trial for the Outer Sect Disciples.
Over the past two years, I had located each member on the Outer Sect Top Ten list one by one and memorized their appearances.
When Elder Hong assigned me to Xiong Wanjun's team, besides Xiong Wanjun, there were two other experts from the Outer Sect Top Ten: one named Nangong Xie and the other Qing Shi.
Nangong Xie ranked ninth on the Outer Sect's power list. He was skilled in poison and known for his treachery; among the experts of the Outer Sect Top Ten, he was the least favored. His strength was at the late stage of Purple Qi Eastward Boundary. Qing Shi, however, ranked third and had a somewhat melancholic demeanor. He carried a scroll on his back at all times, rumored to be the last descendant of an ancient family. His Cultivation Method was extraordinarily peculiar; since he began cultivating, he had never tasted defeat.
At this moment, I followed closely behind Qing Shi, wearing a half-black, half-white mask.
The young man walked without digging for spirit herbs or secretly observing others' Medicine Baskets; he occasionally paused to gaze at the falling snow as if lost in thought, exuding a sense of solitude.
For a moment, I even considered letting him go. But he had agreed to join Xiong Wanjun's team with intentions to kill me; now that he was alone, it was an opportunity too rare to miss.
As he walked onto a snow-covered glacier, Qing Shi stopped and coldly said, "This Brother has been following me all this way. What exactly does that mean?"
I replied, "I'm considering whether or not to kill you."
Qing Shi turned around, his expression devoid of joy or sorrow. He said, "Many have wanted to kill me, but none have succeeded in the end."
"Then I must give it a try," I said.
Qing Shi furrowed his brows slightly, his brow protruding and looking somewhat melancholic. He asked, "Who are you, and why do you want to kill me?"
I did not answer. With a Lingfeng Step, I dashed towards him at incredible speed, thrusting my blade towards his Heart.
Qing Shi did not dodge or evade; I pierced him with my knife, yet his expression remained unchanged. I thought to myself that this was bad and quickly ducked down and rolled aside as a black Black Blade sliced through the air behind me, shattering the ice where I had just stood.
I pushed against the icy surface and slid backward as several more black Black Blades struck the ice in sequence.
Qing Shi stood on the snow not far away, watching me. The scroll behind him fluttered and flew into his hands. The scroll contained nine flying daggers; eight of them had left only traces, while one remained like an ink splatter within the scroll.
Chanting a spell, Qing Shi activated the traces of the flying daggers in the scroll. I saw black trajectories surge from beneath the ice at my feet. I suddenly pushed off the ice and leaped into the air as eight black arcs shot out from the ice towards me. In a moment of desperation, I hurled my knife at Qing Shi.
Seeing this, Qing Shi quickly dodged to the side, and my knife plunged into the snow.
The eight black arcs that were aimed at me veered off course and flew into Qing Shi's scroll.
"At first glance, your power seems to be merely at the Entry-Level Realm. I didn't expect you to be a hidden master. I thought I could take your life with a single strike, but it appears you don't have any decent Daoist Arts. In the end, you'll still die by my hand," Qing Shi said, his expression as calm as a still pond as he analyzed the situation.
He brought his right hand's index finger and thumb together, raising them in front of his chest while muttering incantations. Suddenly, his Daoist Robe began to swell, and he grew to an astonishing height of over twenty meters. I was taken aback; I had never seen such Daoist Arts before. Despite being only at the late stage of the Purple Qi Coming from the East Realm, he resembled a deity.
Qing Shi took a step toward me, and I quickly jumped aside, causing the entire icy surface to shatter. I furrowed my brow, unable to believe what I was witnessing.
Suddenly, I heard a tremendous rush of wind. Looking up, I saw a fist larger than my entire body coming down toward me. I threw a punch in response, but it flew past me like an arrow released from a bow, crashing into the snow. Qing Shi snorted and threw another punch at the snow pile where I had landed, causing it to explode and scatter everywhere.
"You overestimate yourself," he scoffed.
Just as he finished speaking, his expression changed dramatically. He tried to dodge, but it was too late; a long knife shot up from the snow behind him and pierced through his chest, flying downward into the ice below.
I leaped out of the water, feeling coldness pierce through me.
The massive figure that had covered Qing Shi vanished. He knelt on the ground, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth as he asked, "How did you see through it?"
"When you used illusion techniques, your aura betrayed you. A Daoist should be untouched by insects or snow; the snow didn't fall on you, leaving an opening," I replied.
Qing Shi looked at me with sorrowful eyes and said, "I am not afraid of death; it's just a pity that from now on, the Drawing Technique will be lost."
With one swift motion, I severed Qing Shi's head from his body and unfurled the scroll he had been holding. The back of this scroll contained obscure and difficult-to-understand incantations. Initially intending to burn it, I suddenly remembered that the Martial Dao Classic could quickly decipher any secret manual's original Dao Qi operating trajectory. So I decided to use its profound insights to comprehend the scroll.
The content of this scroll was called the Cosmic Painting Technique, an ancient Daoist Art that had long been lost. It was said that when cultivated to perfection, one could turn illusion into reality and create all things. The nine flying knives were Qing Shi's life-bound treasures crafted through this technique. However, practitioners of Cosmic Painting Technique often became too engrossed in their art and neglected physical training; when faced with true masters, they would typically be easily defeated. No matter how dazzling the Drawing Technique appeared, once its practitioner died, it would be of no use. Moreover, it was slower to execute than other Daoist Arts. Therefore, I did not intend to cultivate this Daoist Art; however, having grasped an ancient technique now added another means for me to wield in battle.
Qingshi and Nangong Xie walked in the same direction as they left Xiong Wanjun's group, so he was not far from here.
I submerged Qingshi's body into the icy river and headed in another direction.
At this moment, in the Snow Pine Forest, where snowflakes danced in the wind, Nangong Xie was quietly following a few Azure Cloud Disciples who had gathered Snow Ginseng. Leading them was a youth with a mole on his face, who held a White Mouse in his hand. The mouse's nose twitched as if it were sniffing something.
Suddenly, the mouse squeaked, and the Mole-faced Youth's face lit up with joy as he hurriedly placed the White Mouse on the ground. The White Mouse scampered across the snowy ground, its nose pressed to the earth as it sniffed around before dashing toward the base of a large tree.
The group followed closely and saw the White Mouse circling around a plant adorned with white flowers, occasionally digging at its roots. The Mole-faced Youth's eyes widened as he exclaimed, "Could this be the legendary Snow Ginseng King that has grown for a hundred years?"
Hearing this, the other youths displayed expressions of delight. They cautiously used a Medicine Spatula to clear away the frozen soil surrounding the Snow Ginseng, and within moments, they unearthed a Humanoid Snow Ginseng.
"Senior Brother, this Snow Ginseng is almost human-shaped; could it have become sentient?" one of the youths asked earnestly.
The Mole-faced Youth replied, "It is said that plants require at least eight hundred years to gain sentience, and they need to grow in areas rich in Spirit Energy. This snow mountain can only produce ginseng that has grown for about a hundred years at most. The one we found is likely around eighty years old. Even so, it is still a rare medicinal treasure. Even if we take it down from the snow mountain to Herb Valley, such treasures are not common."
He then wrapped the Snow Ginseng in red cloth and handed it to one of the youths. "This one is for you; keep it hidden close to your heart so no one else sees it."
"For me?" The youth asked incredulously.
The other youths chimed in, "Just take it from Senior Brother; he has a Spirit Seeking Mouse. Once we reach Herb Valley, he will surely help us find even better treasures."
"Okay!" The youth could hardly contain his excitement as he nodded vigorously.
"Let's go," said the Mole-faced Youth, picking up the Spirit Seeking Mouse and moving forward.
However, he had only taken a few steps when he retreated, for Nangong Xie was looking greedily at the Spirit Seeking Mouse in his hand.
Mole-faced Youth frowned and asked, "Nangong Xie, what do you want?"
Nangong Xie replied, "What do you think? Hand over that Snow Ginseng from earlier, and give me the Spirit Seeking Mouse. Then I can let you all go."
"Don't forget we are from the same sect. Stealing from fellow disciples—if I tell Elder Hong, can you bear the consequences?" Mole-faced Youth said.
"Nobody else knows but me, so I can bear it," Nangong Xie chuckled, his voice as venomous as a snake.
"Why waste words with someone like him? Let's just take him down together," one of the youths said as he stepped forward with his sword drawn, and the others followed suit.
"Mole-faced Youth, although you are a top expert in the Outer Sect, there are so many of us. I became a Purple Qi Coming from the East Realm two years ago. Now that you are unarmed, I'm not afraid of you," Nangong Xie declared.
"Oh really? Then come and try to kill me," Nangong Xie challenged.
Upon hearing that both Mole-faced Youth and Nangong Xie were top experts in the Outer Sect, the youths' expressions grew serious. They surrounded Nangong Xie, who merely wore a wicked smile, seemingly unafraid.
Suddenly, one youth lunged at Nangong Xie's back with his sword. Like he had eyes on the back of his head, Nangong Xie easily dodged. He reached out to grab the attacking youth by the neck, but the youth retreated just in time, leaving a few streaks of blood on his neck. The other youths quickly drew their swords and slashed at Nangong Xie. Dao Qi swirled around him as he pushed one youth away while the others aimed their swords at his chest. Nangong Xie ducked back and hid behind a Snow Pine tree as the youths chased after him but found no trace of him.
"Hmph, let this coward escape," one youth said triumphantly.
Suddenly, all the youths felt a chill around their necks, as if something had licked them. They turned around to see Nangong Xie's tongue retracting; it was five or six meters long, swinging in the air like a snake. The boys felt a shiver run down their spines, goosebumps rising on their skin.
"You pervert!" shouted a handsome youth angrily.
Nangong Xie chuckled, and his tongue shot out like a serpent, coiling around the Mole-faced Youth's neck. In an instant, he was pulled toward Nangong Xie. The Mole-faced Youth swung his Medicine Spatula at Nangong Xie's tongue, which immediately withdrew as Nangong Xie slapped the Mole-faced Youth's chest.
The Mole-faced Youth's face turned red with rage. He grasped an Incantation and began chanting, gathering Dao Qi in his palm. Snowflakes danced around him, and his Daoist Robe billowed without wind. However, he suddenly coughed and spat blood.
"Senior brother, what happened to you?" asked the younger boy, referred to as his junior.
The Mole-faced Youth pushed the boy away, feeling a tingling discomfort in his neck. His palm was darkened, and the other boys who had been licked on the back of their necks were also bleeding from their noses, collapsing weakly to the ground with wide eyes filled with fury.
The Mole-faced Youth handed the Spirit Seeking Mouse to the boy, urging him to run. The boy grabbed the Spirit Seeking Mouse and dashed toward the forest's edge. Suddenly, Nangong Xie's tongue pierced through his skull with a loud thud; the boy fell straight to the ground, dead on the spot.
Nangong Xie smirked as he took the Snow Ginseng and Spirit Seeking Mouse from the boy's arms. Just then, he sensed something unusual behind him and coldly said, "Who is it?"
With a whoosh, his tongue shot through the flying snow toward my face. I stood beside a Snow Pine tree wearing a black-and-white mask and reached out to grab his tongue.
Nangong Xie's tongue suddenly elongated, prying open my mask to reveal my face.
I swiftly swung my knife and severed his tongue. Nangong Xie let out a shriek as his tongue retracted into his mouth, leaving only a large portion behind.
"Yang Hao, I have no enmity with you; why do you want to kill me?" Nangong Xie asked with slurred speech.
I said, "These people have no grievances with you, just as I had none with you before I disappeared from Xiong Wanjun's team."
"It was Elder Hong's intention to kill you; I had no plans to do so," Nangong Xie replied.
I snorted, my fists crackling with Dao Qi. However, a barely perceptible cold smile appeared in Nangong Xie's eyes. A layer of yellow light enveloped my fist as I struck out, sending Nangong Xie flying backward.
Nangong Xie widened his eyes in disbelief and exclaimed, "You were poisoned! How can you still use Daoist Arts and remain unharmed?"
The Seven-Colored Elixir left by Medicine King Sun Simiao rendered me immune to all poisons, so Nangong Xie's toxin had no effect on me. He had fallen victim to my Mountain Split Technique, his bones shattered.
Seeing that I remained silent as I approached him, Nangong Xie's eyes filled with terror. "Don't kill me! I'm not actually from the Azure Cloud Sect; we can cooperate! I'm the Young Master of the Serpent Cult; please don't kill me!"
"Serpent Cult?" Upon seeing me stop, Nangong Xie quickly nodded.
"Then I have even more reason to kill you!" With a single punch, I smashed Nangong Xie's head into the mud and snow, flattening it like a pancake. In his last moments, he managed to crush the Spirit Seeking Mouse he held in his hand.
I took the ginseng wrapped in red cloth and indeed found a copy of the Serpent Cult's Spirit Serpent Poison Technique in Nangong Xie's possession.
I picked up the mask from the ground and without a moment's pause, hurried toward the other side of the snowy mountain.
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