Chapter 1962: Blood Sacrifice

Zu An had never imagined the existence of Heart-Devouring Demonic Spiders before. Who would have thought that some of those people would be problematic?

His defensive formation could ward off powerful external enemies, but if the enemy was already inside, the formation would be useless.

Zu An grabbed Ji Dengtu and rushed back the way they came, urgently asking, "Which person is the problem? Or are they all compromised?"

"I don't know who exactly, but I overheard them talking while they were chasing me," Ji Dengtu replied, his expression equally grave.

"They were chasing *you* earlier?" Zu An recalled how, when he first encountered the group of "constables," they indeed seemed to be looking for someone.

"Yes. Xiao Xi hadn't returned, so I was worried about her and came to Copper Gong Mountain to search. I didn't find her, but instead, I stumbled upon those monsters killing people. I initially tried to save the constables, but I couldn't defeat the monsters." Ji Dengtu still felt a chill recalling the scene.

Zu An couldn't help but exclaim, "It's impressive that you survived encountering those monsters!" The Heart-Devouring Demonic Spider he had just seen was incredibly powerful, at least on par with a human Grandmaster. With its eerie abilities, even a human Great Grandmaster could easily be caught off guard and defeated.

Ji Dengtu proudly stated, "After all, I am the Second Master of the academy; I'm not that weak."

Zu An snorted, "Who told you to always look like a lecherous old man?"

Hearing this, Ji Dengtu's expression changed. "Quick, give me back that page from Teacher Bai's book! I reluctantly tore it from my beloved book just to warn you!"

Zu An unceremoniously pulled the page from his pocket and tossed it to him. "As soon as I saw this paper, I knew you were nearby. But why didn't you just tell me directly? Why make it so complicated? What if I hadn't understood your signal?"

"Those Heart-Devouring Demonic Spiders are so strange, and you were with them. Who knew if you had been parasitized? Luckily, I was clever enough to use something only you and I would recognize to verify whether you were the real you." Ji Dengtu carefully blew on the page as if it were a treasure, then took a book from his pocket and carefully slipped the page back inside.

Zu An said gravely, "Those Heart-Devouring Demonic Spiders are indeed bizarre. They can completely control a corpse, making it act as if it's alive."

"From a medical perspective, it's highly unlikely. Even if they have some special abilities, they shouldn't be able to read all of the host's memories. It's more probable they can only access memories from the past few days or things that are particularly deeply ingrained, like one's name or identity."

Zu An nodded in agreement. Ji Dengtu was a divine physician, so his judgment carried considerable weight. This was good news; otherwise, the Heart-Devouring Demonic Spiders would be truly invincible. If they could hide within a human body, who would ever know they were fake?

While they exchanged information, the two had already returned to their previous camp.

Zu An's face changed; the camp's formation had been destroyed!

Many branches lay broken around, and the bonfire, still emitting faint smoke, was scattered. A battle must have taken place here recently.

"Where's Xiao Xi??" Ji Dengtu asked anxiously upon seeing the scene.

Zu An didn't answer. Instead, he hurried to a nearby spot where a person lay in a pool of blood. Seeing the person's face, his expression immediately darkened.

"Hmm, this person looks familiar?" Ji Dengtu looked at the body with a hint of confusion.

Zu An said gravely, "His name is Sun Hai. He was the one who bravely protected Xiao Xi, ensuring her safety until I arrived."

"I remember now! He was a rogue cultivator who came to me for treatment after being severely injured years ago. But at the time, something had happened to me, and I was disheartened, so I didn't bother to save him. It was Xiao Xi who couldn't bear to see it, and secretly gave him medicine and treated his wounds, which saved his life." Ji Dengtu sighed deeply. This man had saved his daughter, and now he had met such a fate. Ji Dengtu couldn't help but feel a profound sense of lament.

Zu An knelt beside him to examine the body. "The wound is from a stab through the back of the heart. Just as you said, there's a Heart-Devouring Demonic Spider host among them." As he spoke, he channeled his true qi to examine the man's body, ensuring he hadn't been parasitized by a Heart-Devouring Demonic Spider.

Ji Dengtu paced frantically in the clearing. "Even he's dead! Where is Xiao Xi?"

Zu An didn't answer. Instead, he closed his eyes and spread out his divine sense. Suddenly, he felt something and dashed a hundred zhang to the south, reaching into a bush.

Just then, two swords thrust out, accompanied by a startled and frightened female voice: "Monster! I'll fight you to the death!"

Zu An flicked his wrist, and the two swords flew away.

At that moment, the people opposite finally recognized him and cried out in surprise and joy, "Libationer!"

Zu An had stopped in time to avoid harming them because he had already recognized them as the academy disciples Chang Tian and Mei Rou.

"Why are there only two of you? Where are the others?" he asked.

At that moment, Ji Dengtu also rushed over, asking urgently, "Xiao Xi! Where is Xiao Xi?"

Their eyes reddened. "It turns out Lu Bei was a monster in disguise! Brother Sun is dead, and Yao Fang is severely wounded. Both she and Miss Ji were taken away by Lu Bei."

"What?!" Ji Dengtu nearly fainted upon hearing this. His beloved daughter had been captured by a monster; the chances of her survival were slim.

"Lu Bei?" Zu An's mind stirred. He remembered that when he wanted to lead them out of the mountain, this person seemed to have found an excuse to stop them. However, he didn't easily trust the two. "Let me check if you're injured, and meanwhile, tell me exactly what happened."

He casually placed a hand on each of their shoulders, letting his primeval qi examine their bodies. There were no signs of Heart-Devouring Demonic Spiders within them.

Chang Tian explained, "After the Libationer set up that grand formation, we all felt a sense of safety we hadn't experienced before. We hadn't rested properly for days due to constant fear, so after a while, sleepiness began to set in. However, dangers still lurked all around, so we dared not all sleep at once. We let a few girls rest first, while us men each guarded a direction."

Zu An nodded. It seemed they weren't hot-house flowers; they knew to stay vigilant even in such circumstances.

"Lu Bei suggested pairing with Sun Hai, saying he could look after him. We figured Lu Bei was the strongest normally, so it made sense for him to be with Sun Hai. I guarded the rear," Chang Tian gestured, indicating everyone's positions at the time.

Mei Rou added, "Yao Fang and I were with Miss Ji. Although she's young, she's very strong. Even though we said we'd sleep together, I noticed she kept her eyes open the whole time."

"Later, I couldn't resist the drowsiness and unconsciously drifted off to sleep."

"Not long after falling asleep, I heard a scream. When I woke up, Brother Sun was already in a pool of blood, and Chang Tian was also severely wounded. Miss Ji was protecting him and confronting Lu Bei," Mei Rou recounted, still shaken. "We didn't understand what was happening. Yao Fang usually had the best relationship with Lu Bei, so she stepped forward to question him, but she was struck by his sword, severely wounded, and instantly lost her ability to fight."

Chang Tian affirmed, "While I was on watch, I heard a strange sound from the front and went to investigate. Little did I know, Sun Hai had already been ambushed by Lu Bei. Without realizing it, I was also ambushed and severely wounded."

Zu An nodded inwardly. Lu Bei was indeed experienced; he first quietly dealt with the veteran Sun Hai. Although the other students were excellent among their peers, their experience in the martial world was lacking. Even after hearing something unusual, they were completely unprepared, allowing Lu Bei to take down most of them in a single encounter.

"Then how did you two survive??" Ji Dengtu questioned, his gaze scrutinizing. With his daughter's safety at stake, he regarded everyone as a suspect. So many of their companions had been incapacitated in one encounter; there was no way they could have been a match for that monster.

"Thanks to Miss Ji. A golden light suddenly erupted from her, like a flying sword, fighting against Lu Bei. It was then that we learned from her that Lu Bei was controlled by a monster," Mei Rou replied.

"Flying sword?" Ji Dengtu was stunned. He didn't recall his daughter possessing such an item.

"I gave it to her," Zu An thought to himself, relieved that he had, out of precaution, given Xiao Xi the flying sword talisman.

Ji Dengtu's expression became complicated. He had always thought Zu An had ill intentions toward Xiao Xi and wanted his daughter to stay far away from him. Now, however, he wished Zu An would give her more protective treasures.

"But that Lu... no, that *monster* was just too powerful. Xiao Xi's flying sword couldn't fully withstand it either." Chang Tian's face showed a hint of terror. "However, the monster suddenly stiffened, as if listening to some distant sound. Then it stopped fighting, directly sprayed a large amount of web-like substance, and carried away Yao Fang and Miss Ji, not even bothering with us."

Zu An thought, the Heart-Devouring Demonic Spider must have sensed the death of its companion. No wonder these two were able to survive.

"Which way did they go??" Ji Dengtu asked anxiously.

The two shook their heads vaguely. "Its movements were too strange. It leapt through the trees from various angles and vanished in an instant. We couldn't tell which direction it went."

"You couldn't see? Were you just running for your lives?!" Ji Dengtu exploded in anger.

The two's eyes reddened, but they couldn't refute him.

Zu An intervened, "The Heart-Devouring Demonic Spider is indeed very fast; it's normal that they couldn't see clearly. Don't worry, I've already sensed Xiao Xi's location."

"How do you know?" Ji Dengtu was both surprised and delighted. Hadn't they been together the whole time? Did Zu An have some kind of heavenly vision?

Zu An replied, "I placed a tracking talisman on Xiao Xi." Learning from his previous experience of searching for Ji Xiao Xi in the vast mountains, he had specially left a tracking talisman on her. The *Baopuzi Sutra* contained methods for talismans, and he had casually made some in recent days, not expecting them to be of such great use. Although he had been questioning them just now, he was actually sensing the talisman's location.

He left a formation for Mei Rou and the other disciple, telling them to wait there, then took Ji Dengtu and flew towards Shadow Moon Lake. Shadow Moon Lake was their original destination; he hadn't expected they would still end up going there.

"That monster is exceptionally cruel, Xiao Xi might..." Ji Dengtu's eyes reddened as he spoke, his voice trailing off.

Sensing that the usually carefree and lecherous old man's voice was now trembling with fear, Zu An comforted him, "Don't worry, I also gave Xiao Xi a few protective talismans. She should be fine for a while."

Ji Dengtu was immediately overjoyed. "Young man, you actually possess such abilities! If you can save Xiao Xi this time, I'll agree to her..."

Seeing him suddenly fall silent, Zu An paused. "Agree to what?"

"Agree to you two being friends. But you mustn't have any other intentions," Ji Dengtu warned.

Zu An: "..."

Above Shadow Moon Lake, a gigantic fissure hung in the air, resembling a vertical eye. Waves of purple mist emanated from it.

"Lu Bei" was prostrate on the ground, kneeling. "This humble one has prepared the blood sacrifice. I request the Great One to descend and deal with that terrifying human."