Chapter 173: Demonic Qilin Blood Poison: The Crimson Serpent Elixir!
Shi Hao asked, “How did the Ghost Extreme Sect and those barbarian soldiers find this place? They even knew about the Sui Marquis Pearl.”
He paused, then added, “And those soldiers clearly knew about the Black Blood Crimson Serpent. That’s why they brought that metal-winged ape, a creature specifically designed to counter it.”
Madam Demonic Vine shook her head and sighed, “It’s a long story, and we don’t have time for that now.”
Shi Hao thought, She was quite talkative before, but now she’s being evasive. There must be something she’s hiding.
This old woman, a former Daoist turned demonic cultivator, who also knew how to cultivate the Black Blood Crimson Serpent, might have connections to the Ghost Extreme Sect.
Madam Demonic Vine looked at them, “You have the Sui Marquis Pearl. Those people outside won’t let you leave. Only I can help you escape. Let’s make a deal.”
“I assume you came here for immortal ingredients. What do you need?”
Shi Hao said, “We need an Azure Sky Vermilion Fruit and a Soul Severing Dew.”
Madam Demonic Vine chuckled, “That’s easy! Although the ingredients in the upper levels were destroyed, I still have some Vermilion Fruit and Soul Severing Dew here.”
She waved her hand, and a stone drawer slid out from the wall, “Here’s the Vermilion Fruit.”
She waved her hand again, and another drawer opened, “And the Soul Severing Dew.”
Shi Hao, instead of looking at the ingredients, looked at her intently, “What do you want in return?”
Madam Demonic Vine said, “I’ll collapse the passage above and summon the Black Blood Crimson Serpent. Then, I need you to…” she lowered her voice.
As Du Yuejiao leaned closer to listen, Shi Hao suddenly grabbed her waist and leaped back, pulling her with him.
He flew towards the back of the cavern.
Madam Demonic Vine sneered, “Clever boy, but too late!” She struck out with her palm.
Shi Hao felt an invisible wall appear before them.
And from the ground beneath them, a thin, dark tendril snaked upwards, coiling around their legs.
The cavern was dark, the only light coming from the Sui Marquis Pearl.
Shi Hao tucked the pearl into his robe, struck out with his palm, and with a loud crash, he and Du Yuejiao were thrown backwards.
Du Yuejiao, caught off guard, didn’t understand why he had suddenly grabbed her, flown backwards, and then attacked the seemingly empty air.
The impact, the force of the unseen barrier pushing against them, startled her.
Madam Demonic Vine’s power was far greater than Huang Facai’s.
She was a fourth-rank expert!
As they were thrown back, the dark tendril wrapped around their legs.
Shi Hao quickly took out the Sui Marquis Pearl and shone its light downwards, revealing a shadowy, snake-like form.
The tendril recoiled from the pearl’s light.
Madam Demonic Vine, however, reached out, and an invisible force pulled Shi Hao towards her, into her grasp.
“Brother Shi!” Du Yuejiao cried out.
Madam Demonic Vine, still seated cross-legged, had seized Shi Hao’s acupoints, a sinister smile on her face, “I told you, it’s too late.”
Du Yuejiao, gripping her sword, said angrily, “What do you want?”
Madam Demonic Vine snatched the Sui Marquis Pearl from Shi Hao’s hand and chuckled, “Don’t worry, you’re both still useful. Obey me, and I’ll let you go.” She touched the wall beside her, and a rumbling sound echoed from above.
The cavern shook, and Du Yuejiao stumbled, losing her balance.
Madam Demonic Vine listened intently, then let out a sharp whistle.
Du Yuejiao, afraid for Shi Hao’s safety, didn’t dare to attack. A section of the wall suddenly collapsed, and two glowing orbs, the size of lanterns, appeared, approaching rapidly.
Du Yuejiao’s eyes widened as she saw the gaping maw of the Black Blood Crimson Serpent.
Its massive head loomed before her, its fangs bared, ready to strike. Terror filled her, and she almost screamed.
Madam Demonic Vine began chanting, her voice a strange, guttural sound.
The Black Blood Crimson Serpent thrashed and writhed, dust and debris raining down on Du Yuejiao.
She watched in horror as the serpent’s skin tore open, its skull emerging from the bloody mess.
Although snakes shed their skin, this wasn’t a normal molting. It was as if the serpent was discarding its entire body, its skeleton emerging from within.
The gruesome sight was like something from a nightmare.
The serpent, clearly in agony, couldn’t stop.
As Madam Demonic Vine continued her chanting, the serpent’s skull fully emerged, its jaws wide open, revealing rows of sharp teeth.
Madam Demonic Vine chuckled, “Girl, go inside.”
Du Yuejiao looked back, her voice trembling, “What?”
Madam Demonic Vine said, “Go inside. There’s a pearl inside. Take it.” Her voice turned cold, “If you don’t obey, I’ll kill him.”
Du Yuejiao’s scalp tingled with fear, but seeing Shi Hao in the old woman’s grasp, she had no choice.
She gripped her sword and cautiously approached the serpent’s gaping maw.
The serpent’s skull, a ghastly white, stained with blood and bits of flesh, was a repulsive sight.
Du Yuejiao, a pampered young lady, forced herself to step into the bloody maw, her heart pounding, tears welling up in her eyes.
“Hurry!” Madam Demonic Vine barked, “Or I’ll kill him now!”
Du Yuejiao continued forward. At the back of the serpent’s throat, she saw a pulsating, green orb, more like a lump of flesh than a pearl, its appearance grotesque and terrifying.
“Take it,” Madam Demonic Vine said, her eyes gleaming, her gaze fixed on Du Yuejiao’s back.
As Du Yuejiao reached for the orb, a crash echoed from behind her, followed by Madam Demonic Vine’s angry shout, “You brat!”
She turned and saw Shi Hao rushing towards her.
He had been motionless since Madam Demonic Vine seized his acupoints.
But he had been secretly circulating both his Daoist and demonic energies, preparing.
As Du Yuejiao entered the serpent’s mouth, he watched Madam Demonic Vine, noticing the greedy look in her eyes.
She wasn’t looking at the green orb in the serpent’s throat, but at Du Yuejiao.
She wanted more than just the Black Blood Crimson Serpent’s inner core. She wanted Du Yuejiao as well.
He acted decisively, his body contorting, his acupoints slipping from her grasp… the bone-shrinking technique from the Nine Yin Demonic Transformations.
He lunged forward, and Madam Demonic Vine, alert, struck his back with her palm.
His sudden movement, however, had shifted his vital points away from her grasp.
And since her goal was to capture Du Yuejiao, not kill him, she had held back, her palm strike, although powerful, not a fatal blow.
With her fourth-rank cultivation, even with his combined Daoist and demonic energies protecting him, he wouldn’t have survived a full-powered attack.
The impact threw him forward, but his dual cultivation allowed him to withstand the blow, although his internal organs were jolted.
Even Madam Demonic Vine was surprised… Although she had held back, her strike had been equivalent to a fifth-rank attack.
How had this boy survived?
Shi Hao reached Du Yuejiao and grabbed her.
A shriek echoed from behind them, and the green orb in the serpent’s throat exploded, spraying blood.
He quickly turned, shielding Du Yuejiao, but the blood splattered on him, seeping into his skin.
This surprised him.
If Madam Demonic Vine could make the orb explode, why had she sent Du Yuejiao to retrieve it?
She had simply needed her to be in that specific location?
He instantly pushed Du Yuejiao away.
“Brother Shi?” Du Yuejiao cried out, reaching for him.
“You brat!” Madam Demonic Vine shouted, grabbing Du Yuejiao, pulling her away from Shi Hao.
Du Yuejiao, her body flung backwards, landed beside Madam Demonic Vine, who gripped her shoulder.
Holding the girl captive, Madam Demonic Vine shouted at Shi Hao, “Come back here, or I’ll…”
Shi Hao, ignoring her, jumped through the serpent’s skeletal remains and escaped through the tunnel.
Madam Demonic Vine, stunned that he had abandoned his lover and fled, cursed, “Damn it!”
Du Yuejiao was also shocked. He had left her?
“Well, girl, aren’t you going to carry me?” Madam Demonic Vine said.
Du Yuejiao’s anger flared, “Carry yourself!”
“Think carefully, girl,” Madam Demonic Vine snorted, “He’s been poisoned by the serpent’s blood. Only the Sui Marquis Pearl can save him. If you don’t come with me, he’ll die a slow and painful death.”
Du Yuejiao’s concern for Shi Hao resurfaced. She said, turning to the old woman, “Carry you? Can’t you walk yourself?”
Madam Demonic Vine said, exasperated, “Are you stupid? If I could walk, would I be asking you to carry me?” It turned out she was crippled.
Du Yuejiao sighed. She was trapped. She couldn’t defeat this old woman, and she needed the Sui Marquis Pearl to save Shi Hao.
She reluctantly bent down and let the old woman climb onto her back, then set off in pursuit. As she ran, she thought, He had to escape. If we both stayed, she would have killed us both. And now that he’s gone, she needs me to catch him, and she also needs me as a hostage.
This realization eased her resentment, replaced by a growing worry for his safety.
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