Only a moment later, most of the thousands of hungry ghosts were dead or injured, with countless more reduced to dust and mud.
“Oh, this hairpin is quite a treasure.”
Liu Ruhe uttered an “oh” and could not help but marvel at how powerful the hairpin was. A glint of greed flashed in her eyes as her gaze locked onto Nan Zhi.
...
Meanwhile, seeing the hungry ghosts so easily wiped out, the Golden-Winged Flying Centipede was naturally furious. It let out a sharp shriek, and its long, black armored shell writhed as it disregarded the Locust God’s majesty, charging like a crashing mountain straight toward Nan Zhi!
Nan Zhi lightly tapped her foot and rode the wind, agilely dodging the centipede’s thrashing antennae. Seeing how nimble she was and how she remained completely unscathed, the creature grew increasingly frustrated and let out another wave of furious shrieks:
“Hiss, hiss, hiss! Roar, roar!”
The Golden-Winged Flying Centipede thrashed its head, suddenly spitting out four thick water dragons. Eight pillars of water rose out of thin air, crashing heavily into the cave pillars supporting the secret realm:
“Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!”
Massive rocks continuously plummeted from above, each over ten zhang wide. As the Sun-Burning Stones crashed to the ground, the splattering dust and ash obscured everything, blurring her figure.
“Hiss, hiss, hiss, hiss!”
The centipede shook all over, as if laughing like a human. But before it could celebrate for long, it suddenly saw three figures emerge from the dust, charging straight toward it!
A glamour?!
The smoke and dust blocked the Golden-Winged Flying Centipede’s vision, preventing it from discerning which one was the real body, forcing it to rely on the blurry silhouettes.
Two of the shadows launched a pincer attack, one aiming for the Golden-Winged Flying Centipede’s jointed limbs, and the other charging toward its anus. The monster was instantly enraged, rearing its upper body as the debris on its back fell to the ground with a loud crash!
“Riiip—”
With a sharp tear, the Golden-Winged Flying Centipede spat out the thing in its mouth, only to find it was not a living human, but a paper figure with red cheeks, black eyes, and paper-white skin!
Though the paper figure looked incredibly fragile, it was exceptionally agile. Landing on the centipede’s back, it was like an ant on an elephant!
The latter struggled, its tail slamming at the paper figure that had slipped onto its body. Meanwhile, another shadow had crawled all over its body. The Golden-Winged Flying Centipede tore it apart, only to find it was yet another paper figure!
Another paper figure!
Where on earth was that damnable human!
The Golden-Winged Flying Centipede suddenly rotated its compound eyes and saw another figure abruptly appear in the dust, flying up its back at a forty-five-degree angle, as if climbing a mountain.
She was heading straight for the death point beneath its head!
The monster could not help but let out another long shriek, but that figure was too fast. It could not block her at all, only watching helplessly as the shadow vanished from its sight, and then—
Only to see the figure land lightly twelve inches below the Golden-Winged Flying Centipede’s eyes, right on the scales, pulling out a golden needle and stabbing downward with all her might!
But as expected, the scene of the giant insect crashing to the ground did not happen. The scales suddenly flew open, revealing a round, pitch-black insect eye.
“Pfft—”
A cloud of deep purple toxic mist spewed out, drenching the figure completely from head to toe.
This was indeed the Golden-Winged Flying Centipede’s death point; Ma San had not lied about that.
He had only hidden one thing.
This was actually another eye the insect had condensed after three hundred years of cultivation. The toxic mist it spewed was incredibly potent; even a Nascent Soul cultivator would suffer a great deal if they suddenly inhaled it.
Seeing the figure completely enveloped by the purple mist, “Liu Ruhe” trembled with excitement, barely able to contain it. But in the next second, her expression suddenly changed drastically.
Only to see the mist disperse, leaving behind nothing but a flat piece of white paper.
Meanwhile, the true green-robed female cultivator was flying far above. Her gaze was steady, her jet-black hair danced behind her, and a playful smile rose in her eyes.
Another damnable paper figure!
Just how many paper figures did this fellow have hidden on her!
A complete failure!
Incredibly cautious!
No rush, there was still a chance.
“Liu Ruhe’s” eyes grew sinister as she silently hid the scheming look on her face.
...
“This Golden-Winged Flying Centipede is indeed a bit difficult to deal with.”
Nan Zhi flew in midair, looking down at the rampaging giant insect, her heart completely untroubled:
She knew that bastard Ma San was not to be trusted.
And indeed, it was so.
“Hiss, hiss, hiss! Hiss, hiss, hiss, hiss... Hiss, hiss, hiss...”
The Golden-Winged Flying Centipede finally sensed that something was wrong. Vibrating the pair of green wings on its back, it intended to fight this female cultivator to the death in the air. But just as it soared a dozen zhang high, it suddenly felt its movements slow, its entire shell stiffening as if turned to stone—
Most importantly, the spiritual energy within its demon core was rapidly draining!
It was those paper figures!
What had they sprinkled on its body?!
The Golden-Winged Flying Centipede crashed heavily back to the earth, crushing the broken flesh and corpses of the hungry ghosts scattered all over the ground.
Its size was truly colossal; when it fell, the entire small secret realm seemed to tremble along with it.
“Hiss, hiss, hiss, hiss (submission)... Hiss, hiss, hiss, hiss (acknowledging master)...”
The monster finally felt the threat of death, letting out waves of pleading shrieks meant to curry favor, its pair of massive compound eyes blinking continuously:
“Hiss, hiss, hiss (Master)... Hiss, hiss (spare me)...”
“It’s the powder of the Mutated Spirit Swallowing Grass. You got off easy, then.”
Nan Zhi waited a bit longer. Once the Spirit Swallowing Grass took full effect, she flew down, stepped on the giant centipede’s head, pressed her hand against it, and whispered a few words:
“Don’t be in such a hurry. In a little while, I’ll send your master along with you.”
It was unclear if the centipede understood, but with its spiritual energy dissipating, it could only let out waves of unwilling, low growls.
“Lightning illuminates the world; demons turn to dust!”
The power of a Foundation Establishment stage Five Thunder Curse was naturally incomparable to one of the Qi Refinement stage. A bolt of lightning as thick as a water bucket gathered and materialized in midair.
White light flashed in all directions, and Nan Zhi’s long hair fluttered wildly from the faintly drifting electrical charge.
Green robes, black hair, and thick lightning gathered in her hand.
This was the beauty of absolute power, the ultimate beauty of holding the power over life and death!
“Rumble—”
A massive, dull roll of thunder sounded, echoing throughout the entire secret realm.
“Liu Ruhe’s” face filled with dread. The spider-like demon beasts fled in panic, the human-faced rabbits were terrified to the point of nearly dying of ruptured livers, giant fish hid at the bottom of the water, and bats and giant mosquitoes went into hiding and fled—
Deep beneath the water, a giant turtle poked out half of its head.
As the lightning struck the Golden-Winged Flying Centipede’s head, the giant insect’s half-upright body crashed down. The two antennae on its forehead snapped in half, emitting a charred aroma.
The Golden-Winged Flying Centipede’s body grew stiffer and stiffer, its tens of thousands of legs twitching in a chaotic frenzy, until they finally slowed and came to a complete halt.
Although this monster was invulnerable to blades and spears and possessed a hard shell, it had a weakness where its joints met.
All one had to do was sprinkle ground Spirit Swallowing Grass powder over it, and it would begin to disintegrate from the inside out.
Furthermore, lightning was the bane of all evil, and this creature was not agile enough to dodge.
Having taken a direct hit from lightning right on its death point, how could it possibly survive?
In a pleasant mood, Nan Zhi confirmed that one of the only two small red dots on the map had vanished before she safely descended. Probing with her divine sense, she indeed found a glowing spot beneath the Golden-Winged Flying Centipede’s head.
The centipede was dead, but its body had not yet stiffened.
She used her jade hairpin to sweep through the air. The centipede’s shell became as soft as tofu, and without any effort, a yellow demon core the size of a chicken egg appeared before Nan Zhi’s eyes.
A demon beast core of the second level of Foundation Establishment.
It looked a bit like an egg, but it felt as round and warm as jade.
Nan Zhi gripped the demon core and flew back to the altar. Without its core, the giant insect’s corpse petrified inch by inch, turning a dull, charred gray.
Ultimately, the creature transformed into a massive stone statue, devoid of any remaining life.
Nan Zhi put away the demon core, only to see “Liu Ruhe” suddenly approach, offering congratulations again and again:
“Splendid skill, splendid skill! You truly are worthy of being from the Demon Suppression Division. This old man was just sweating on your behalf, but I never expected...
Now that the spiritual energy in your body is depleted, you should properly adjust your internal breath. This old man will protect you—”
Before the words could fully leave her mouth, a sudden wave of divine sense pressure locked onto Nan Zhi, rendering her unable to move.
Rate on N.U.
