Chapter 597: Brain Eating Gu

Maximilian returned to the army camp settled around fifty kilometres away from the Baihu Stronghold. Naturally, his camp seemed the simplest among the grand camps of the five commanders, not to mention that his battalion’s camps were also at the edge of the camp.

As if he cared about these measly accommodations. He went straight inside his camp and lay down lazily on the bed.

"From the looks of it, the human army doesn’t seem to be at any advantage against the beasts," he murmured, his eyes narrowed in thought. "On the contrary, the beasts have a clear upper hand. They have more beasts that could rival the commanders. Not to mention their Clan Head, Vyomendra, who can fight against the War Marshal and the General in his base form. There is no way the Southern Legion can claim the Baihu Stronghold unless... the War Marshal has a trick up his sleeve."

He released a sigh, closing his eyes. "Let’s wait and watch."

A couple of hours later, his eyes shot open as he sensed someone trying to use their spiritual sense inside the camp.

Before the spiritual sense could reach him, he instantly moved into a lotus position.

’Trying to spy on your grandfather, Bai Chengsheng?’ Maximilian chuckled inwardly, somewhat amused.

A few seconds after the spiritual sense, its owner also arrived outside the camp, releasing a burst of Soulforce to announce his presence.

"Please, come in, War Marshal Bai," Maximilian said from the bed, his voice sounding strained and weak.

The curtains of the camp suddenly fluttered as Bai Chengsheng appeared inside, his fingers moving slowly through his beard.

Maximilian slowly opened his eyes, the faint glow of Soulforce around his body vanishing. He had just activated it when Bai Chengsheng spied on him.

"F-forgive me—cough-cough—for m-my lack of respect, War Marshal Bai," Maximilian murmured with coughs as his hand pressed against his chest. "I couldn’t greet you properly."

"No need for formalities, Commander Arthur," Bai Chengsheng shook his head, his voice laced with warmth. His old emerald eyes glowed faintly as he scanned Maximilian’s body. He could see a faint dark aura burning within his dantian. "Your injury is severe, Commander Arthur. Even your cultivation base has taken a hit."

"It was inevitable, War Marshal Bai," Maximilian replied, sadness lacing every syllable. "The formation was attacked at the critical point when I was about to unleash my ultimate attack."

"Such a pity," Bai Chengsheng sighed as if feeling his pain.

From his storage pouch, he took out a small jade box and swayed it forward. It moved through the air, landing in Maximilian’s hands.

"It contains a Soul Cleansing Pill. Although they are primarily used to stabilize one’s cultivation base after a breakthrough, they can also help heal a damaged dantian."

"S-Soul Cleansing Pill!?" Maximilian gasped, his eyes widening in shock. "That’s a very precious pill, War Marshal Bai. I dare not accept it."

"Keep it. Consider it an award for your performance in the battle," Bai Chengsheng replied, waving a dismissive hand. "The life of a commander is more precious to us than any pill. I hope you recover before the next battle."

"I shall not disappoint you," Maximilian declared with a deep, respectful bow.

Bai Chengsheng nodded. He turned around and was about to step out when he spoke again. "Oh right, I wanted to ask you something, Commander Arthur. Think of it as a curiosity of mine."

’Hehe~ This shrewd old coot. Finally showing his true intention,’ Maximilian chuckled inwardly in amusement as he replied, "Please ask away. I shall answer to the best of my abilities."

"Your sword. If I’m not wrong, it is an Epic-grade artifact, right?"

Maximilian’s brows flinched, his irises shaking at the sudden question. He immediately pulled himself together, regaining his composure.

"Yes, War Marshal Bai," he replied, his tone even. A bead of sweat trickled down his temple.

"Could you tell me where you found such a treasure?" Bai Chengsheng asked further, studying his expression with the intense gaze of his emerald eyes.

"I found it inside a cave belonging to a dead cultivator," Maximilian revealed, his eyes fixed on the floor below.

"Alright," Bai Chengsheng nodded, moving his fingers through his beard. "It is a priceless treasure. Take care of it."

"Yes, War Marshal Bai!"

He moved out of the tent with the same blurring speed with which he had appeared. After reaching several hundred metres away, he activated his spiritual sense again and peeked inside Maximilian’s tent.

He saw him release a sigh of relief before opening the jade box. He took out the pill from the box, placed it inside his mouth, and moved back into cultivation.

The corner of Bai Chengsheng’s lips raised slightly as he cancelled his spiritual sense and moved back to his camp.

---

"No wonder he is the leader of the Unorthodox Faction," Maximilian chuckled, finding his shrewdness like that of a toddler trying to trick his parents. He took the pill out of his mouth, which he had never swallowed, and scanned it using his Divine Sense.

There was a small egg at the core of the pill. It was hidden so well that no cultivator below the rank of Eternal Sage would be able to sense it.

Maximilian instantly recognized it.

"Egg of the Brain-eating Gu," he muttered, putting the pill back in the box, his jaw tightening in anger.

The Brain-eating Gu was a vicious centipede. Once it entered the victim’s body, it reached their brain, where the egg hatched and the centipede grew inside. With just the flick of a finger from the caster, they could command the centipede to eat the victim’s brain. Death by the Brain-eating Gu was considered one of the most painful deaths. Even the cultivators of the Demonic Faction and the literal Demons of the Upper Realm avoided using these insects due to the sheer negative karma they inflicted upon the caster.

"Bai Chengsheng... count your days," Maximilian muttered, veins bulging across his forehead. He wasn’t furious that Bai Chengsheng had tried to trick him into eating this insect. What angered him was that there was no apparent reason for Bai Chengsheng to use such a wicked method to try to kill Maximilian when they didn’t even have any bad blood between them.

If he was going this far just to kill someone he had barely met, how many people, and in what ways, must he have killed during the millennia he had lived?

"No wonder I felt such negative karma upon him," Maximilian scoffed, putting the jade box containing the pill into his storage pouch. "The only reason he still hasn’t succumbed to the Corruption of Death is because of his Demi-God Realm. He must be using around half of his Divine Soulforce to protect his mind from the voices of death."

He took a deep breath to calm his anger before declaring, "He will die a horrible death."

Moments later, Wukong also arrived at his camp and excitedly explained to him all the fun he had while facing the deadly strikes being unleashed from the walls of the Baihu Stronghold.

Maximilian listened to his whole story with an amused expression, even commenting in between to match his energy.

Once Wukong was done, Maximilian revealed in a calm expression, "Do you still remember our reason for joining the army of the humans in this war?"

"I do," Wukong replied with a nod. "We need to show both humans and beasts that neither side is correct or wrong. Both of them are battling for survival. Instead of a war, they should find a way which allows both races to share the resources. For that, we will slowly gain fame through battle. We will defeat the beasts but not kill them. The temporary victories will satisfy the humans while the mercy will impress the beasts. Once we have enough foothold among the important figures, we could try to arrange a meeting between them so both parties could reveal their demands."

"I’m shocked that you learned all of this so well," Maximilian released a low gasp, impressed by Wukong’s explanation. He remembered every last word that Maximilian had told him. But again, he was a Death Demon who had actually deciphered the arts of the dragons. He might not look like it, but his intelligence was nothing to scoff at. "However..."

Maximilian continued, the corner of his lips rising into a smirk. "There is a change in the plan."