Chapter 134: Desire of Beauty

After the white-robed woman was shattered, the five cultivators swiftly dispersed to search the surrounding spirit fields for Mind-Focusing Grass, intent on finding it as quickly as possible.

Killing a Mountain Spirit is no easy task, especially one nurtured by the five great evil cultivators within this medicinal garden.

As expected, moments later, the fragmented woman reformed, her aura now even more chilling, and her expression shifted from a smile to one filled with resentment.

“Oh, how cruel your heart must be,” she whispered hauntingly, materializing instantly beside Lu Zhaotian, akin to teleportation.

Without wasting any words at the sudden appearance of the Mountain Spirit, Lu Zhaotian raised his sword immediately.

Sword light flashed, emanating overwhelming killing intent.

Perhaps deeply affected by their previous encounter, upon seeing Lu Zhaotian lift his sword, the Mountain Spirit woman unexpectedly dissipated into mist and reappeared elsewhere.

She then extended her delicate hand towards Sun Ji’s back.

Sun Ji, already injured and poisoned, wore a grim expression, realizing that the entity saw him as the weakest link.

“Unaware of your impending doom, creature.”

Sun Ji swiftly retrieved a paper talisman from his waistband, igniting it between two fingers. With his other hand, he grabbed a handful of seeds from his bag of holding and scattered them forward. Instantly, the seeds took root, sprouting into a dense array of bamboo swords that lunged indiscriminately towards the white-robed woman. Each bamboo sword infused with Sun Ji’s spiritual energy promised severe consequences if struck.

Seeing this onslaught, the white-robed woman dispersed her form and retreated back into the mist. The multitude of bamboo swords embedded themselves in the ground, forming a circular barrier.

Just then, the surrounding mist surged once more.

The pitch-black Hua She reappeared.

Before Sun Ji could fully recover from his brief relief, he was under attack again.

“Watch out!” Wang Tianji, standing closest to Sun Ji, managed only a quick warning.

Thud!

A dark shadow collided with Sun Ji’s back, its serpent tail coiling around his neck instantly. Black qi tightened, threatening to suffocate him rapidly.

In this perilous moment, a ferocious refined corpse suddenly darted forward, seizing Hua She with its withered hands. It was none other than ‘Shidi’, controlled by the dried-up old ghost. After being nurtured by the Mass Grave Mound’s malevolent qi, ‘Shidi’ had grown a full coat of black fur, emanating an overwhelming aura. Although not as formidable as a corpse refined with the Iron Body Art, it posed a significant threat to Hua She.

The corpse fiend’s aura invaded, causing Hua She to momentarily falter.

A furious roar echoed next!

With brute force, the corpse puppet stretched Hua She’s serpent body taut, allowing Sun Ji to swiftly escape from its coils. Enraged at being restrained, Hua She flapped its wings, and surprisingly, the human face spoke:

“Fool! Let go!”

An invisible sound wave radiated from its mouth.

The refined corpse staggered, showing signs of weakening its grip.

“Be cautious, this creature can attack divine souls!” warned the grim-faced dried-up old ghost, who controlled the corpse. No one anticipated that Hua She possessed such capabilities.

“You beast!”

Sun Ji, flushed and coughing violently after narrowly escaping death, glared at the restrained Hua She with surging killing intent. He swiftly retrieved a small black sphere from his bag of holding and hurled it towards Hua She.

“Detonate!”

Boom!

A fierce explosion erupted, creating a scorching inferno that condensed into a spherical wave, distorting the entire area. Both Hua She and the ‘Shidi’ refined corpse were engulfed within. The expanding energy circle dispersed the surrounding mist, leaving behind extensive damage; most of the medicinal herbs in the spirit field were destroyed, and a massive crater was blasted into the ground.

As the energy dissipated, Hua She crashed to the ground, charred all over. The ‘Shidi’ refined corpse fared even worse, its black fur singed away, causing its malevolent qi to diminish significantly, reducing its strength back to early Qi Refining stage.

Breathing heavily on the ground, Sun Ji felt triumphant after this successful strike. However, the recent counterattacks had allowed the poison in his leg to spread further, reaching his thigh now, despite attempts to suppress it with detoxification pills.

“I kindly saved you, yet you dare to harm my refined corpse!” The dried-up old ghost’s face darkened visibly, anger blazing in his eyes.

“I had no choice just now!” Sun Ji panted, quickly explaining.

“Once we get out, I’ll make it up to you.”

The charred remains of Hua She on the ground began twisting again. Its burnt fur receded as its bloodline power surged, indicating a potential resurgence. Seeing this, both the dried-up old ghost and Sun Ji disregarded their damaged refined corpse and hastily summoned their magical artifacts for a finishing blow.

“Hiss…”

Hua She abruptly lifted his head, his humanoid face filled with venomous resentment.

Before he could react, a hand suddenly pressed down on his skull, exerting a savage force that crushed it like an iron vice. In the next moment, a potent divine soul attack struck him, causing his head to buzz loudly, his eyes rolling upwards.

Then, a magical sword infused with exceptionally pure spiritual energy swept across, cleanly severing Hua She’s neck and separating his head from his body.

It was Chen Luo who made the move.

He had been closely watching Hua She all along, intervening to prevent the dried-up old ghost and Sun Ji from destroying the creature’s brain.

‘Detected dead brain waves: Degradation Rate 33%. Read memory?’

Read!

A surge of energy flowed from Chen Luo’s palm into his arm and was quickly absorbed.

No obsession present.

This greatly disappointed Chen Luo. After absorbing the energy, he casually tossed Hua She’s head aside, watching it roll away.

Everything happened in the blink of an eye. By the time Sun Ji and the dried-up old ghost reacted, Chen Luo had already beheaded the creature, extracted its energy, and discarded the head. Such swift expertise left both observers momentarily stunned.

Could this be some peculiar interest of his?

“You two should swiftly recover; the Mountain Spirit woman is returning,” Chen Luo warned. Instantly regaining their composure, the dried-up old ghost recalled his ‘Shidi’ refined corpse into the corpse-nurturing bag and summoned the Iron Body Art corpse. Meanwhile, Sun Ji consumed a medicinal pill to replenish his expended spiritual energy. The black sphere earlier was a purchased talisman treasure, diminishing with each use.

“I treated you with sincerity, yet why have you betrayed me?”

The voice echoed softly, gradually shifting as the Mountain Spirit woman floated closer. From sorrowful resentment, her tone transformed into venomous hatred, chilling like frost!

The floating figure unexpectedly transformed from its ethereal ghostly state into a humanoid shape. As her white dress swayed, it revealed a decaying human skin beneath, densely layered with countless folds - each hiding untold lives within.

Witnessing this sight, both Sun Ji and the dried-up old ghost’s expressions drastically changed.

“An evil cultivator nurtured desire to feed their demonic power. In Guo Mountain County, there was a woman epitomizing beauty’s allure. This woman killed for skins, taking only the perfect parts from others to augment herself.”

Lu Zhaotian also approached.

Clearly, they all recognized the origin of this Mountain Spirit woman. She was a monstrous creation bred by the ‘Desire for Beauty’ of the five great evil cultivators.

“There’s no Mind-Focusing Grass here either; it must be further inside.”

Wang Tianji searched the entirety of the second layer’s medicinal garden, collecting some spirit medicines using threads of spiritual energy, but still found no trace of Mind-Focusing Grass.

“Let’s focus on dealing with this monster first. Unlike the scholar earlier, this woman is far more formidable. We need to take serious action; otherwise, forget about finding Mind-Focusing Grass, our survival itself could be at stake.”

Sensing the resurgence of power within the Mountain Spirit woman, the group’s expressions grew grim.

Standing at the edge, Chen Luo felt Hua She urgently warning him not to proceed towards the third garden. Whether due to incomplete intelligence or sheer terror, the thought repeatedly echoed in his mind:

‘The third garden is dangerous, extremely perilous.’