Chapter 1025: White Poison Master Visits

Entering the Grand Library, Zhang Xuan shook his head helplessly.

It wasn't that he wanted to impersonate the founding ancestor of the Poison Hall; given the circumstances, there was truly no other option. Otherwise, Elder Xu would very likely have committed suicide, and the Poison Hall would have become irreconcilably hostile, leaving no room for maneuver. Although it was a bit of a bluff, it could resolve all the problems he faced and wouldn't delay his reading, effectively killing two birds with one stone.

Of course, the success of his disguise was still largely thanks to the Vicious. Using King Purpleleaf's disguise button, he concealed the murderous aura within his body. Only then was he able to successfully emit the aura of a human expert, preventing Ruo Qingyuan and the others from suspecting him. Otherwise, if the Vicious's aura were released, even an idiot would know he was a member of the Spirit race. Let alone deterring them, he might not even be able to speak before being exposed.

However, the disguise button's effect was still far inferior to the books left by Master Kong. It could hide him from poison masters, but deceiving master teachers wouldn't be so easy.

"I don't know how long I can keep this up," he thought. "I should read first!"

Although he had bluffed them for the time being, many things wouldn't stand up to scrutiny. The best course of action now was to read as quickly as possible. As long as he could find a way to resolve Wei Ruyan's situation, he could leave immediately without needing to deal with them further.

With this thought, he didn't hesitate, quickly walking up to the fourth floor.

The books on this floor were significantly fewer than those on the first three, but they were much more profound. Those who had left these books had generally reached the peak of Four-Star, Five-Star, or even higher levels. He scanned along the rows of bookshelves, imprinting the books into his mind and turning them into his own knowledge. As he read more and more, his understanding of the poison master profession deepened.

In less than an hour, he finished reading this entire floor and continued towards the fifth floor.

The books here were only accessible to Five-Star Poison Masters, and their quantity was significantly reduced. He spent less than half an hour recording all of them.

"Still nothing?"

Having finished all the books on the fifth floor, there was still no significant information about the Innate Poison Body. Zhang Xuan couldn't help but feel a little anxious. This Grand Library only had seven floors, and he had already gone through more than half of its contents, yet he still had no clue. Could it be that the solution for the Innate Poison Body wasn't even available here? If that were truly the case, it would be disastrous! Wei Ruyan's condition, although not yet completely deteriorated, could not possibly endure a prolonged search for a higher-level Poison Hall.

"Let's finish the last two floors before deciding..."

Knowing that anxiety was useless, Zhang Xuan rubbed his temples and continued to ascend.

This floor had fewer than ten thousand books. He slowly moved along the bookshelves, and had almost finished memorizing them. Just as he was about to go to the last floor to observe, he heard the door creak open, and a figure walked in.

It was an old man around sixty, with a snow-white beard and piercing eyes. His attire was very ordinary, and he wasn't wearing a poison master badge, making his specific rank unclear. Shaking his head, he didn't pay much attention. Just as he was about to continue upwards, the Vicious's voice echoed in his mind.

"Master," the Vicious said, "this person's strength is even higher than Ruo Qingyuan's. He has probably reached Saint 4-dan..."

"Saint 4-dan, a Seven-Star Poison Master?" Zhang Xuan murmured in surprise.

Zhang Xuan was startled. Wasn't Hall Master Ruo Qingyuan the strongest in the Hongyuan Poison Hall, only at the peak of Saint 3-dan? How could a Saint 4-dan expert suddenly appear? With such strength, he was no less inferior even compared to King Purpleleaf.

"Yes, although he hides it well, he can't hide it from me!" the Vicious secretly transmitted. Having devoured King Waterleaf's primordial spirit, its strength had recovered somewhat. Observing now, even the old man nearby hadn't noticed its presence.

"What does a Saint 4-dan expert want, coming here so quietly?" Zhang Xuan wondered. Frowning, Zhang Xuan's vigilance greatly increased. Just as he was about to release King Purpleleaf and his many puppets to strike first and deal with the situation, he suddenly thought of something and stopped.

Such a high-level expert appearing here surely wasn't just to read books, and even less likely to be strolling around; he must be here for him. Since he didn't act directly but pushed the door open and came in, he probably wasn't here to cause trouble, but had grown suspicious and wanted to test him. If he was only testing and not attacking, there was no need to bring out King Purpleleaf. Otherwise, if the commotion grew too large, not only would his previous disguise be useless, but damaging the books on the seventh floor would only cause more delays.

"A Saint 4-dan expert possesses a primordial spirit," Zhang Xuan mused, "He won't be as easy to fool as before..."

It was best if he didn't have to fight, but trying to fool such an expert would certainly be harder than before. Claiming to have the Innate Poison Soul Body was effective against Ruo Qingyuan and the others, as long as he didn't die from poison, they wouldn't dare to doubt him. However, for a primordial spirit expert, this trick wouldn't be very effective. Possessing a primordial spirit meant they could fully examine souls. He only gained this ability through the fusion of his soul with Wei Ruyan's; he wasn't a true Poison Soul Body. If examined, loopholes would easily be discovered.

Unless... he could make the other party not use their primordial spirit to investigate!

What should he do?

While he was pondering, the old man who had entered behind him was also intently observing him. The person before him indeed had only a Transcendent Mortal cultivation level, showing nothing special. His appearance was rather ordinary, even a little sneaky. He truly wondered why Ruo Qingyuan and the others were so easily fooled into believing he possessed the soul of the founding ancestor.

Just as he was about to speak and inquire, he saw the person not far away suddenly dart forward, charging head-first towards a row of bookshelves.

"Hmm!" The old man frowned. Could it be that he noticed his special nature and was trying to escape out of fear? If that were the case, it would be bad! Moreover, judging by his speed, if he truly collided with it, all the books on the entire bookshelf could be destroyed by him! These were books painstakingly collected by countless poison masters of the Poison Hall. How could they be destroyed by someone right before his eyes!

His face darkened, and his true qi circulated. He extended his hand forward, about to grab the fellow, but then saw him suddenly stop, sit cross-legged on the ground, and seemingly enter a meditative state.

Cultivating... The old man was bewildered. Just moments ago, he was dashing wildly, seemingly intending to crash into the bookshelf, and the next moment, he sat down to cultivate... The contrast was too stark, too unreliable!

This old man was precisely Poison Master Bai Ting, who had just arrived from the headquarters. After learning that this trickster was in the Grand Library, he had Ruo Qingyuan and the others wait outside, and entered by himself. He was just thinking how to begin speaking to the other party when he heard the person sitting not far away speak in a faint voice.

"What do you see?"

Looking around and finding no one else, Poison Master Bai Ting, bewildered, pointed to himself: "Me?"

The person in front didn't answer, but merely nodded.

"Besides books, there doesn't seem to be anything else!" Not knowing what the other party meant, Poison Master Bai Ting hesitated before saying. This was the Grand Library. All he could see were bookshelves and books. What else could there be besides these two?

"Alas!" The person in front sighed, his tone carrying a sense of desolation, seemingly filled with disappointment: "I thought a Seven-Star pinnacle Poison Master, a Saint 4-dan expert, would have different insights. But it seems... you're just like everyone else."

"You, you... know my strength?"

His pupils contracted, and Poison Master Bai Ting was startled. He had concealed his strength and wasn't wearing his rank badge. Outwardly, he looked no different from an ordinary Six-Star Poison Master. The other party, with his back turned, had blurted out his rank... making him somewhat disbelieving.

"Only Saint 4-dan," the middle-aged man scoffed, "What's there not to see?"

He snorted. The middle-aged man in front, with his eyes closed, "looked" towards the bookshelves not far away. "These are not mere books; they are knowledge. It's just a pity... that later generations distorted my legacy through hearsay, making it ambiguous!"

"Your legacy?" Poison Master Bai Ting frowned.

"Indeed!" He nodded, and the middle-aged man sighed again: "Do you know why you've reached the peak of Seven-Star cultivation yet still cannot break through? The Silkworm Star Art, while not a weak cultivation method, unfortunately caused problems with the accompanying medication. Your Primordial Spirit Acupoint is sealed shut like iron, and you've been unable to open it. What a pity!"

"You, you... know I cultivate the Silkworm Star Art?"

His body stiffened, and Poison Master Bai Ting couldn't believe it. He had originally intended to test the other party, but before he could even speak, he heard this, and his eyes widened in fright. The Silkworm Star Art he cultivated was created by an Eight-Star Poison Master, and he had accidentally obtained it during his youthful trials. He had thought that with such a powerful cultivation method, breaking through to Eight-Star Poison Master would be just around the corner, never dreaming he would be stuck at the peak of Seven-Star for hundreds of years. As for the reason for being trapped, it was exactly as the other party had said: when he first cultivated it, the accompanying poison had gone wrong, damaging his foundation and sealing his Primordial Spirit Acupoint shut, which he couldn't open no matter how hard he tried. If he couldn't do it in his youth, and now only a little over a hundred years remained until his lifespan limit, there was probably no hope of breaking through in this life!

This was his deepest privacy; even the accompanying Sea Poison Master wasn't aware of it. Yet the person before him had revealed it with a single sentence, without even looking... He felt a chill throughout his body, and his heart almost leaped out of his throat in fright. To see all this at a glance, could it be... that he truly was the founding ancestor? Otherwise, even an Eight-Star Poison Master wouldn't have such insight!

"The Silkworm Star Art, which breathes like a silkworm, illuminating the starry sky!" the middle-aged man continued. "Using poison for nourishment and stars as a medium, its original intention was for qi to form threads that travel throughout the body. But you spread the 'silk' throughout your entire body, completely sealing your Primordial Spirit Acupoint... It would be strange if you could break through!"

"I..." Cold sweat streamed down his forehead, and Poison Master Bai Ting was speechless. With just one look, not only did he state his cultivation level, but he also revealed the core of his cultivation problems with a single sentence. Furthermore, he exposed the flaws of the Silkworm Star Art and the issues that arose in his cultivation... This could no longer be explained by mere insight; one must have an extremely deep understanding and profound research into the poison master profession to achieve this! Even the Hall Master of his own branch couldn't possibly achieve this!

"Don't be nervous," the middle-aged man continued. "Mistakes in using poison, actually... don't fundamentally harm you. For you to be in your current situation, with such a major misconception in your cultivation, someone must have betrayed you!"

"You..." His scalp tingled with shock, and Poison Master Bai Ting's eyes widened so much they seemed about to pop out. He no longer had his previous composure and the demeanor of a Seven-Star Poison Master, unable to help but blurt out, "You, how did you know?"