Chapter 1137: Senior, why are you chasing me?

"Under suspicion, passive value +1."

"Under influence, passive value +1."

"Under scrutiny, passive value +1."

"Under speculation, passive value +1."

The information panel kept popping up notifications endlessly.

Without being under the control of San Yan Tong Mu, the passive value prompts had reached a peak frequency.

Xu Xiaoshou hadn't seen so many suspicious people in a long time.

The last few times he encountered situations like this were when he deceived the night guards using various disguises. Back then, the guards were extremely suspicious but restricted by his tricks, unable to make a move, and could only futilely contribute passive values.

In this regard, even Rao Yao Yao had to admit defeat.

Now, Xu Xiaoshou knew there was another such character.

Ever since meeting Tianren Wushuai, this guy had been continuously providing passive values, and now they were popping up nonstop.

No one would have imagined that beneath Tianren Wushuai's serene appearance and seemingly carefree demeanor lay such a suspicious soul.

Xu Xiaoshou had no idea what he was suspicious about.

Could it be that Tianren Wushuai had met Chen Ruye from Xu Yue Hui Gong?

And when that final teasing voice, representing his lack of control, rang out, Xu Xiaoshou knew that this suspicious soul was about to take action.

This situation felt all too familiar.

The night guards often couldn't hold back and chose to strike forcefully, even without orders from their superiors, like that time on Gu Yin Cliff.

Not just the night guards—suspicious people were always like that.

"You actually aren't hypnotized?"

Tianren Wushuai's voice was filled with shock and confusion, as if he hadn't expected anyone below the level of a semi-saint to retain their own will after facing San Yan Tong Mu.

But what Xu Xiaoshou saw wasn't that.

He saw Tianren Wushuai rise into the air along with his words and unleash a thunderous palm strike. It was a withered hand, incredibly gaunt, wrapped in gray-black, eerie energy. It appeared slow but was actually fast enough to leave afterimages, tearing through space and hurtling straight toward his own chest.

Xu Xiaoshou was prepared.

Almost simultaneously, endless eerie purple energy erupted from his body. He kicked Gu Qing'er away, and in his hand, he grasped a head-sized Chong Yin Zhi Yan, slamming it forward to clash with Tianren Wushuai.

"Sizzle..."

The purple energy and gray energy exploded at once.

The moment he raised his palm, Xu Xiaoshou sensed something was off.

Even though it was just a tiny detail, he knew his body better than anyone—his movements were slightly sluggish, which shouldn't have happened!

Was it due to the absolute domain's attributes? Before he could think further, even stranger things unfolded.

In the instant before their palms collided, the surrounding air burst, and space itself distorted.

Xu Xiaoshou clearly saw Tianren Wushuai's skinny, bony hand shatter the space around them, just as his own throne-level physical body could. His pupils contracted.

Chong Yin Zhi Yan didn't shift, and Tianren Wushuai showed no defense.

He simply struck it directly with his gray-black energy-wrapped hand, his gaze indifferent, as if the person before him was already a corpse.

"Boom!"

The massive explosion finally erupted.

In that moment, Xu Xiaoshou realized what was most wrong.

He instantly amped up the half-strength he had been using, out of concern for his identity, to full power, gritting his teeth so hard they nearly shattered.

Yet, it still felt like he was striking not an aging old man, but a void servant... no, a void general in human skin!

"Thud~"

Xu Xiaoshou spat out blood, his body shot away like a cannonball, and his right arm's sleeve and flesh exploded in an instant.

One second he was in the middle of the void passage; the next, after regaining his senses, he was embedded in the wall at the passage's end, his whole body trembling.

"This..."

Xu Xiaoshou was stunned.

He stared at his severed arm as the muscles writhed and regenerated.

He swore this was the first time since starting on the path of spiritual refinement that someone had beaten him in physical strength—Sang Lao and the void servants didn't count as human.

At the same time, the gray-black energy carrying decay invaded him, and he noticed the abnormalities spreading through his body.

Weakness...

A visible weakness!

Even with skills like "Endless Vitality" running, his life force was dissipating at a rate that defied the absolute domain's attributes of Sin One Hall.

The unobtrusive notification "Under influence" in the information panel, sandwiched between "suspicion" and "speculation," caught Xu Xiaoshou's attention.

Could this guy impose a weakness buff on people?

From the moment they met, nonstop?

Xu Xiaoshou felt a chill run down his spine.

"Who exactly is Tianren Wushuai?"

On the other side, Tianren Wushuai wasn't in much better shape.

He, too, had sensed something wrong just before their palms met and ramped up from one percent effort to full force.

Even after devouring the physical power of over a dozen void servants, when he clashed with the young man, Tianren Wushuai was sent flying, tracing an arc through the air before crashing into the opposite wall.

Chong Yin Zhi Yan was embedded in his palm, nearly destroying his entire hand.

The eerie energy invaded wildly but vanished quietly into the dark core, just like with the void servants, being swallowed up.

Suddenly, with a crack, under the influence of endless decay, Chong Yin Zhi Yan dimmed and shattered, dissolving into spiritual energy and disappearing.

In the distance, Xu Xiaoshou's pupils trembled as he finally understood what "danger" meant.

The aura of this evil god's power was something even Han Ye couldn't handle quickly—he had to transform into his ghost beast form to expel it.

What was going on with Tianren Wushuai?

How could his abilities reduce Chong Yin Zhi Yan to nothing so easily?

The scene fell silent.

Xu Xiaoshou's mind raced.

He didn't want to fight anymore; he wanted to escape.

The idea of turning Tianren Wushuai over to Ye Xiao to deal with, along with saving Gu Qing'er, vanished in an instant.

This was a monster that could fight a semi-saint!

He was top-tier in Taixu, perhaps not as strong as Mr. Yi Ren, but in terms of bizarre methods, he was even more formidable.

Xu Xiaoshou quickly assessed the orange-masked man's combat power.

"Under suspicion, passive value +1."

"Under influence, passive value +1."

"Under speculation, passive value +1."

The suspicious soul never stopped thinking.

Even though Tianren Wushuai appeared calm on the surface, Xu Xiaoshou could see the endless, tidal waves of thoughts hidden beneath his mask.

After a good while of recovery, swallowing several pills to cover it up, and almost fully healing his arm, Xu Xiaoshou looked up...

Tianren Wushuai was still dazed!

He stared at his severed palm, showing no emotion, though the information panel knew his thoughts never ceased.

Suddenly, Xu Xiaoshou smelled a foul odor from his own body.

After "Strength" reached the throne level, his precious body was pure and ethereal, emitting a faint fragrance—how could there be a stench?

"Something's wrong."

"Tianren Wushuai is way off."

"This guy might be even more terrifying than Ye Xiao—I can't mess with him!"

Xu Xiaoshou bolted, running at full speed without a care for Gu Qing'er's fate. He turned into a streak of lightning, fleeing like he was escaping death itself, plunging into the labyrinth's darkness.

"Chen... Ruye..."

Only when the distant figure had almost vanished from his spiritual sense did Tianren Wushuai slowly lift his head, murmuring haltingly.

In that strike, he had suffered three types of damage.

First, the physical attack from Chen Ruye's body, which was at least at the throne level!

Second, the sword intent damage—Chen Ruye was an ancient sword cultivator who used sword intent to slice his body during the attack, nearly severing his arm.

Third, the damage from Chong Yin Zhi Yan, which was negligible compared to the first two; perhaps because it was an energy attack, it was easily neutralized by his decaying body.

"Physical body, sword intent, evil technique?"

Tianren Wushuai shook his hand, and with a few cracks, the flesh regenerated, his severed palm restored in an instant.

Then, the pair of lifeless eyes hidden under his orange mask suddenly gleamed with sharpness!

"Where do you think you're going?"

Tianren Wushuai's hoarse voice carried a faint, perverse excitement as his body merged into the darkness.

He ignored Gu Qing'er completely, fixated on this new prey, chasing after Chen Ruye's desperate flight.

"You old fool, do you really think I'm afraid of you, Chen Ruye?"

Xu Xiaoshou roared wildly ahead, his words steady, but his heart panicked.

Not because of the pursuer behind him, but because he noticed his body growing weaker over time—not just the foul odor, but sweat starting to form under his arms.

How was that possible?

He was Xu Xiaoshou, damn it!

The infamous, murderous holy servant Xu Xiaoshou, who even made Rao Yao Yao tremble!

He dared to toy with a semi-saint like Jiang Buyi—how could he sweat from fear or tension?

Not just under his arms—everything luxurious on him began to decay.

His jade hairpin, accessories, necklace, rings... all spiritual items were losing their essence, just like his body losing life force.

Xu Xiaoshou suddenly felt irritable.

The repeated "Under influence" notifications in the information panel loomed larger and larger in his vision.

He let out a sudden "Ah!" and roared, as if venting.

His spirit awakened.

"Damn it!" Xu Xiaoshou cursed, nearly losing it.

He swore Tianren Wushuai wasn't using any illusions to control him.

But his spirit had awakened, proving that the bizarre "weakening" ability was affecting his mind and even his soul.

"Tianren Wushuai, Tianren Wushuai..."

Xu Xiaoshou muttered repeatedly, starting to understand.

He wasn't a novice in spiritual refinement anymore; he recognized this ability—it was "Tianren Wushuai"!

Not long ago, he had mocked the Yan Wang's nickname as ridiculous, and "Tianren Wushuai" as absurd.

Now, he realized he was the fool.

Tianren Wushuai had truly mastered "Tianren Wushuai," that force of misfortune and curses.

As for him, the so-called Chen Ruye from Xu Yue Hui Gong, he had strained and exhausted himself, but couldn't squeeze out even a hint of ghost beast power.

"Swoosh!"

From his "Perception," Tianren Wushuai's speed was incredibly fast—peak Taixu level.

As he was about to catch up, he stopped, then calmly reached out and pinched a golden-yellow talisman, infusing it with spiritual energy.

In that instant, Xu Xiaoshou's mind flashed with "disappear," but he thought of Ye Xiao and dismissed the idea.

With a "Buzz," something like a domain expanded, enveloping him.

"Ah." Xu Xiaoshou stopped, letting out a long sigh.

He felt this might be the quickest his identity had been exposed. Chen Ruye's role hadn't even solidified, and Xu Xiaoshou had to step in to clean up the mess—truly frustrating!

The surroundings changed.

No longer the labyrinth of Sin One Hall, it was now a vast, endless plain.

Lush green covered everything, like a perfect grassland, except without herds of cattle and sheep.

Daylight, sky, fresh greenery, wind... it formed a whole new world, a stark contrast to the gloom of Sin One Hall.

A brand-new space-time!

Xu Xiaoshou knew this wasn't Tianren Wushuai's ability; it was Yan Wang Shou Zuo Huang Quan's method, just as disgusting as Kong Yu Hen's space-time attributes.

"Senior, why are you chasing me?"

Xu Xiaoshou turned and said respectfully.

"Now you're calling me senior?" Tianren Wushuai approached slowly, his tone calm. "Weren't you treating me as an equal earlier, without any honorifics?"

Oh, so you're the petty type?

Xu Xiaoshou almost laughed in anger. Even Han Ye wasn't this petty.

He was a semi-saint, yet he had the grace to overlook things.

You're just narrow-minded to the extreme—nothing but a petty villain!

"Heh, well, I didn't know it was you, Senior Tianren, at first. What if someone was impersonating you?"

Xu Xiaoshou wiped his sweat and said, "To be honest, I heard of your great name back in Xu Yue Hui Gong, so I just tested you a bit. Now I know I was wrong."

"Why did you assume I was being impersonated right from the start?" Tianren Wushuai asked seriously.

Xu Xiaoshou was taken aback.

Damn, I was just saying that offhand—do you have to be so obsessive? Can't you give me a way out?

Can't you tell the point of my words is to warn you, "I have Xu Yue Hui Gong backing me—try laying a hand on me"?

"Heh."

Xu Xiaoshou shrugged with a smirk, not responding, and threw out another question. "Senior, why hold me back? We have no grudges, and you struck first—I only countered, right?"

Tianren Wushuai, clearly a master at controlling conversations, didn't answer and stared at the young man. "You're called Chen Ruye?"

"Uh." Xu Xiaoshou paused slightly and nodded. "Is there a problem with that?"

"You're from Xu Yue Hui Gong?" Tianren Wushuai pressed aggressively.

Xu Xiaoshou's brow twitched, sensing something was off.

This guy wants to control me?

But this tactic—I'm all too familiar with it; it's been used to death!

You're just showing off in front of an expert here!

"Senior, no need to try. Your San Yan Tong Mu won't work on me—I'm not going to be controlled." Xu Xiaoshou effortlessly steered the conversation in another direction, giving Tianren Wushuai what he thought was a motive.

But Tianren Wushuai didn't take the bait and continued, "When did Xu Yue Hui Gong produce someone like you? Chen Ruye... a physical throne, a sword dao throne... and mastering such a bizarre evil technique. I imagine most people would go mad from it easily?"

Xu Xiaoshou's heart tightened; he felt like he was facing a worthy opponent.

Tianren Wushuai's moves were all too familiar—psychological warfare. He used to do this because he couldn't beat his opponents outright and had to play dirty.

But what was up with this old man?

He's so strong, yet he sealed me in this special space and now just keeps pressing— what's his game?

Just for fun?

This is pure psychological perversion!

"What exactly are you getting at, Senior?" Xu Xiaoshou faced him directly, clenching his fist.

Tianren Wushuai's ghostly, sinister gaze fixed on him until it made Xu Xiaoshou's hair stand on end, then he spoke:

"The palace master of Xu Yue Hui Gong, Sha Sheng Luo—I met him once, representing Yan Wang to discuss a deal. Chen Ruye, do you know the outcome?"