Chapter 1560: Strange Poison

In moments of danger, the Stone Toad instinctively employed a life-saving illusionary technique, scattering spiritual illusion seeds to feign its escape.

Unfamiliar with the Stone Toad's true nature, the strange-faced man inadvertently miscalculated.

The gray-robed man's newfound smile froze on his face as he watched the Stone Toad fall into his master's grasp, only to instantly transform into a flower seed, turning his joy to despair.

At that moment, the Radiant Bell shimmered once more.

Qin Sang simply caused the Radiant Bell to flicker, momentarily dispelling the immediate danger.

The strange-faced man's expression remained unreadable, but his eyes swiveled to fix on Qin Sang. His eyeballs, as red and bloodshot as the centipede-like mark on his face, gleamed menacingly.

Qin Sang felt a prick of discomfort upon seeing the strange-faced man's true appearance. It was hard to imagine what a dignified late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator could have done to disfigure himself so.

As the radiant light fell, the Stone Toad's form was once again illuminated. Caught between two formidable Nascent Soul cultivators like a wolf before and a tiger behind, it was small, helpless, and could only flee in another direction.

Lu Zhang, initially startled, then grew delighted, praising the turn of events with a loud exclamation.

Having received an early warning from Qin Sang, he had prepared himself before the strange-faced man detected anything amiss. He immediately twisted his body and swiftly closed in on the Stone Toad.

The strange-faced man's gaze swept past Qin Sang, a flicker of something unusual in his eyes. He then abruptly spat out a blood-red sword, which instantly transformed into a streak of crimson light.

Whoosh!

A strong scent of blood diffused through the air.

The blood-red sword shimmered into existence behind the Stone Toad, its tip aimed directly at it, its speed showing no signs of diminishing. From the strange-faced man's aggressive posture, it was clear he intended to destroy the Stone Toad outright!

This was a purely malicious and self-defeating act.

Not only was Lu Zhang enraged, but the gray-robed man was equally astonished. They had merely lost the initial advantage; the ultimate owner of the treasure was still uncertain. Yet, his master, at the slightest provocation, chose to destroy the Stone Toad, even at the cost of his own vital essence.

The command ringing in his ears left no room for further thought.

The gray-robed man quickly produced a five-colored whip.

This was a short, vibrantly colored whip, similar to his Five-Colored Venomous Spider. It was entirely crafted from interconnected bone segments.

Crack!

The gray-robed man snapped his five-colored whip, sending a whip-shadow lashing out like lightning towards Lu Zhang.

Wherever the whip-shadow passed, the surrounding miasma was frenetically absorbed as if drawn into a void-funnel. The entire space was nearly cleared of miasma, only for more to rush in from outside.

Meanwhile, the whip-shadow itself grew increasingly corporeal.

If struck, Lu Zhang would undoubtedly be overwhelmed.

Fortunately, Qin Sang finally had a free moment.

A sharp blade-light slashed towards the whip-shadow.

The gray-robed man's cultivation was only a step away from the mid-stage, and still a level below Qin Sang's clone. Even with the aid of the advantageous environment, he could at best only barely bridge that gap.

The temperature plummeted.

Snowflakes began to dance in the air.

A loud crackling sound echoed throughout the underground space.

The Snow-Treading Divine Blade unleashed its might, slashing rapidly through the air. The whip-shadow writhed like a snake, but each twist was met by a timely blade-light interception, keeping it out of reach of Lu Zhang.

Lu Zhang kept his gaze fixed ahead.

The Stone Toad was vital for Lu Zhang's cultivation and hard-won; he couldn't possibly stand by and watch it be destroyed.

Lu Zhang's arm twitched, and the jade bangle on his wrist flew off, spinning rapidly. It transformed into a perfect white halo in the air, unerringly enveloping the blood-red sword.

Circle after circle of illusory bangle-shadows rapidly contracted inwards, each imbued with binding and suppressive power, pressing in on the blood-red sword at the center.

The crimson light on the blood-red sword's surface began to dissipate, yet its core remained unmoved.

A series of 'thump-thump-thump' sounds rang out.

Despite being a hasty strike from the strange-faced man, the blood-red sword's power was still astounding. It only showed signs of weakening after annihilating over a dozen bangle-shadows and after nearly half its blade had passed through the jade bangle's center.

Seizing this fleeting opportunity,

Lu Zhang took the chance to approach the Stone Toad, flicked his sleeve, and cast out a fine silver net, which spread through the air to ensnare it.

The Stone Toad continued its desperate flight, its body morphing into various forms. Unfortunately, it couldn't evade the light of the Radiant Bell and was on the verge of being captured by the net.

Qin Sang, however, felt that something was amiss.

Particularly, the strange-faced man's gaze, like that of a venomous snake, seemed to have been fixed on him all along, giving him an unsettling feeling.

Just then, the blood-red sword, unable to break free from the jade bangle's blockade, suddenly emitted a white glow from its center. Faintly visible within was the shadow of a jade beetle.

Qin Sang glanced over, his expression momentarily stunned.

This was a spirit insect he had never encountered.

There was no mention of such a spirit insect in any of the ancient texts he had studied.

However, seeing the jade beetle's wings, which were identical to those of the Corpse Flame Moths they had just slaughtered, he deduced there had to be a connection between the two.

"Careful!" Qin Sang shouted.

At that very instant,

The jade beetle spread its wings and hovered in mid-air. Its small eyes, as eerily crimson as the strange-faced man's, completely devoured his vital essence, then immediately expelled a milky-white, ethereal light.

The white light's target was not only the Stone Toad but also Lu Zhang himself!

This light did not possess an earth-shattering aura.

The jade beetle's appearance was, in fact, quite beautiful and endearing.

Yet, this seemingly innocuous combination concealed a terrifying danger.

Lu Zhang clasped his hands together, and the fine silver net rolled inwards, finally ensnaring the Stone Toad. He quickly retrieved the net and rapidly pulled back, but was still grazed by the edge of the white light.

Swish!

The white light reached him in an instant.

Thump!

Lu Zhang's dharma robe billowed, forming a protective layer of true essence, yet it astonishingly failed to prevent the white light from penetrating.

Lu Zhang's nose twitched, and his complexion abruptly paled.

Immediately afterward, a grayish-white aura swiftly spread across his face, draining it of color and making it clearly abnormal. His protective divine essence also violently vibrated, showing signs of dissipation.

Lu Zhang pressed his joined fingers against his chest multiple times, attempting to suppress the grayish-white aura, but it instantly surged back, even more ferociously.

What shocked Lu Zhang even more was that his entire body's vital energy and blood began to show signs of stagnation.

"Hahaha!"

The strange-faced man burst into maniacal laughter. "Excellent! Excellent! Even more potent than I anticipated! What a pity my Gu King isn't fully mature yet, otherwise, a single strike like that would have sent your soul straight to the Underworld!"

Amidst his wild laughter, the strange-faced man's five fingers contorted into claws, his skin grew coarse like tree bark, and his arm bizarrely elongated into a twisting vine. It lunged straight for Lu Zhang's forehead like a hawk preying on a rabbit.

If the strike landed, five bloody holes would undoubtedly appear on Lu Zhang's head.

It would be highly uncertain if his Nascent Soul could even escape in such a state.

In this critical moment, Lu Zhang pulled out a bottle of unknown pills, tilted his head back, and poured them all into his mouth, then squeezed out a distorted, prolonged cry from his throat.

Buzzing...

The green bell, previously entangled with the wooden bead, vibrated violently. It suddenly vanished from thin air, breaking free from the bead, and reappeared directly above Lu Zhang's head.

The green bell swayed, aimed itself at Lu Zhang, and abruptly descended.

Thump!

The wooden claw struck the green bell squarely.

With a resounding thud, layers of ripples spread across the green bell's surface. It proved incredibly sturdy and utterly unharmed, merely sent flying to crash against the nearby stone wall.

Lu Zhang's condition was unknown.

The strange-faced man narrowed his eyes. Instead of pursuing the green bell, he shifted his gaze to Qin Sang, his eyes glinting with greed as he hissed, "Such pure wood spirit aura!"