Chapter 892 - 890: Scripture of Ten Thousand Poisons

Chapter 892: Chapter 890: Scripture of Ten Thousand Poisons

"Damn it, I can’t hold on much longer," Luo Yao cursed.

His expression was incredibly grim as the Immortal Light Shield around his body flickered, on the verge of collapse. As someone only at the Early Stage of Golden Immortal, his own strength had long since been depleted; he was relying entirely on a single treasure to survive.

A pocket-sized, fist-sized cauldron rested upon his knees, projecting the protective shield around him. However, more than half of the eighteen ancient runes carved into its surface had already shattered.

"I wonder if that person passed the message to my junior brother," he thought anxiously. "I’m relying entirely on him now."

The Token he had sent out could pinpoint his location, but since it was an Identity Token, giving it away meant he could no longer sense Xu Yang’s approach. He was left in a state of helpless anxiety. The liquid filling the pool was a highly corrosive concoction of venom and miasma. His strength was simply too weak.

Suddenly, the dead-silent pool violently churned. The disturbance originated from the bottom, sending ripples racing across the surface.

BUZZ!

The immortal light around Luo Yao trembled. His expression drastically changed. As if facing a mortal enemy, he stared intently out of the cave, completely on edge.

SPLASH!

A sudden wave washed over the area. Luo Yao’s eyes widened in alarm as a dark silhouette emerged into his line of sight. Looking closely, he realized it was a grotesque fish covered in jagged scales and sporting a mouth full of razor-sharp teeth.

He let out a heavy sigh of relief, his heart having nearly leaped out of his chest. It had been terrifying.

"Thank goodness. I haven’t been discovered," he thought.

CRACK!

Another ancient rune on the small cauldron shattered. Luo Yao instantly tensed up, his face falling. The monstrous fish had spotted him, its eyes gleaming with a vicious, predatory light.

"Damn it!" Luo Yao gritted his teeth, ready to risk it all in a desperate fight.

SWISH!

A piercing sound suddenly tore down from above, followed by a brilliant flash of sword light that cleaved straight to the bottom of the pool. Before the monstrous fish could even react, it was shredded into pieces. The sword light then expanded, its oppressive force twisting the surrounding water currents as a figure abruptly descended.

"Found you."

Luo Yao froze for a split second before violently lunging forward, hurling the small cauldron from his hands without hesitation.

BOOM!

The cauldron detonated at the bottom of the pool. Dozens of pills mixed into the explosion, instantly dyeing the pool water into a horrifying kaleidoscope of toxic colors.

"Hmph." The black-clad figure scoffed coldly and soared upward with lightning speed.

WHOOSH!

A fierce, surging power erupted from his body like a raging tornado. Wherever it passed, it swept up the water and the toxic pills, blasting them outward in every direction.

THUD!

Luo Yao let out a cry of pain as he tumbled wretchedly onto the shore of the pool, coughing up a mouthful of fresh blood. Two other people were waiting on the bank. There were three black-clad men in total: two at the Early Stage of Golden Immortal and one at the Middle Stage of Golden Immortal.

"You certainly made us work to find you. You’re quite good at hiding." Duan Lei’s face was livid. Searching for Luo Yao had cost them a significant amount of time.

"Let’s just kill him," one of the men suggested.

"There’s no rush," Duan Lei mused, staring down at Luo Yao. "This guy seems to know quite a bit about the path of poison. He might still be of some use. Hand over the Scripture of Ten Thousand Poisons."

Luo Yao spat out a mouthful of bloody froth and laughed bitterly. "Even if you get the Scripture of Ten Thousand Poisons, it won’t do you any good. When it comes to poison, you only know the absolute bare minimum."

"So, you’re saying you understand it well?" A sharp glint flashed through Duan Lei’s eyes.

"Of course." A proud look appeared on Luo Yao’s face. "My cultivation might be weak, but when it comes to poison, few can compare to me."

"Heh," Duan Lei sneered, pulling out a blood-red pill. "In that case, eat this first."

Luo Yao’s expression shifted. "What kind of pill is that?"

"One that controls your life," Duan Lei said with a chilling, teeth-baring grin.

"Fuck!" Luo Yao’s face grew increasingly pale. He gritted his teeth, his eyes filling with total despair.

Right at this moment, an icy voice rang out.

"You’ve got a lot of nerve, daring to control my senior brother’s life."

The chilling tone fell over the forest like a hail of ice blades, making the three men from Blood Marsh feel as if they had been plunged into a freezing abyss. Their Primordial Spirits ground to a sudden halt.

"Who’s there? Show yourself!" The three men instantly went on high alert.

Luo Yao shuddered, a look of wild ecstasy bursting across his face. "Junior Brother, you’re finally here!" he roared with excitement. "Hurry up and save me!" The stress of hiding had nearly driven him mad. "Hahaha! You three scumbags, my junior brother is here! Just wait to die!"

Duan Lei’s face turned livid. He glared at Luo Yao before warily scanning their surroundings.

SWISH!

Xu Yang appeared out of thin air. The moment he materialized, a terrifying oppressive aura instantly enveloped the void, crashing down on them like a divine mountain.

BAM! BAM! BAM!

The three men were struck as if by lightning. They screamed, spewing fresh blood as they were forced to their knees in unison.

"Xu Yang! It’s actually you!" Duan Lei’s eyes were bloodshot with sheer terror, his body trembling like a leaf.

It was Xu Yang. This guy’s junior brother was Xu Yang! They both hailed from the Northern Province.

"Damn it. We’re finished," Duan Lei thought, his eyes brimming with utter despair. What kind of strength did Xu Yang possess? He was comparable to the top three on the Dragon and Tiger List, boasting a combat prowess equivalent to the Late Stage of Golden Immortal. Let alone the three of them, even another full squad wouldn’t be enough to face him.

Xu Yang glanced at Luo Yao. Sensing his eldest senior brother’s condition, he couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief. Fortunately, he wasn’t too late. Though his senior brother looked utterly miserable, his life wasn’t in any immediate danger.

"Senior Brother, focus on recovering first," Xu Yang said, tossing over two pills.

"Alright." Luo Yao gnashed his teeth in hatred. "Don’t kill them yet. Leave them for me to properly torture later. Damn it, I’m so pissed off."

Xu Yang smiled faintly and turned his gaze back to the three men. "Blood Marsh?" he asked. "Start talking."

Forcing down his fear, Duan Lei replied coldly, "Xu Yang, falling into your hands is just my bad luck. If you want to kill me or slice me to pieces, just do it."

"Playing tough, are we?" Xu Yang flashed a wide grin. "Given your background, you should be very familiar with methods that make a person wish for death while being unable to die."

Suddenly, one of the men let out a muffled groan. His face flushed a violent crimson as a stream of blood trickled from his lips. He convulsed and collapsed to the ground. In just a few short breaths, his life force completely extinguished.

He had been incredibly decisive. The remaining two men shivered uncontrollably, evidently lacking the courage to take their own lives.

The corners of Xu Yang’s mouth curled up. With a mere thought—

SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!

Massive clusters of the Heaven-Locking Divine Chain materialized out of thin air, completely enveloping the two men.

"Oh no!" Duan Lei’s expression twisted drastically. A ruthless glint flared in his eyes as he attempted to end his own life, only to suddenly realize he couldn’t move a single muscle.

"So it’s hidden within the Primordial Spirit," Xu Yang noted. "What a pity."

He had quickly spotted their underhanded trick. This wasn’t the first time he had encountered such a method from Blood Marsh. Under the suppression of the Heaven Locking Will, which specifically targeted the Primordial Spirit, Duan Lei—whose peak strength was only at the Middle Stage of Golden Immortal—had zero ability to resist. Having hesitated a moment too long, he couldn’t even commit suicide now.

Concealed deep within both of their Primordial Spirits was a minuscule, thread-like blood rune.

Xu Yang frowned slightly. "I probably shouldn’t touch it. If an external force provokes it, this blood rune will detonate instantly."

"Ask away. I’ll tell you whatever I know," Duan Lei said defeatedly, seemingly accepting his fate. "Just give me a quick death afterward."

Xu Yang gave Duan Lei a deep look and replied, "Alright."

Dozens of breaths later.

Xu Yang waved his sleeve, thoroughly extinguishing Duan Lei and the other man’s life forces.

"Eldest Senior Brother, they had a Blood Marsh failsafe embedded in their Primordial Spirits. If touched, it would have immediately detonated." Keeping them alive for torture was simply unfeasible. No matter how much a person feared death, if they knew they were guaranteed to die and were going to be tortured on top of it, they would always choose suicide.

"It’s fine. Dead is dead," Luo Yao said, waving his hand weakly.

Xu Yang’s expression fluctuated. The information he had extracted was genuinely surprising.

The Scripture of Ten Thousand Poisons!

It was left behind by an old poison master who had perished many years ago. The master had been at the Late Stage of Golden Immortal but had achieved true mastery in the Dao of Poison. He had forged a terrifying reputation across the Eastern Continent, striking fear into the hearts of all who heard his name. The vast majority of Antidote Pills were completely useless against his concoctions.

The Scripture of Ten Thousand Poisons was his core cultivation technique. Furthermore, it detailed countless toxic substances, poison pills, and various lethal methods. On top of that, rumor had it that the old poison master had left behind some kind of treasure, and the clues to finding it were likely hidden within the scripture itself.

These men had only learned of this by pure chance. They had come here to investigate and unexpectedly bumped into Luo Yao. It was entirely coincidental; otherwise, it wouldn’t have just been a weak, three-man squad.