Chapter 314: Black Serpent

Chapter 314: Black Serpent

The crimson fire blazed fiercely in the fields, the piled-up straw crackling in the flames. Under the pitch-black night, the burning blood-red flames illuminated the eerily silent, deserted village. Dark blood flowed quietly on the ground.

In the center stood a dark stone platform covered in dark red runes. Many men and women, dressed in Daoist robes, kneeled upon it. Sharp dharma weapons had pierced through their throats, and they lay collapsed on the sacrificial altar.

A chilling wind blew, creating a mournful wail. Nine piles of bones, varying in size, were neatly arranged around the area, most of them fragmented. In the middle, a cultivator clad in black sat cross-legged, his eyes closed in deep concentration.

Suddenly, he opened his eyes, mana light flickering within its depths. His skin was slightly tanned, his hair disheveled, revealing him to be a man of Mount Yue. He stood up, humming a song, and picked up a black gourd, glancing at the moon. He murmured softly, "The moon is at its zenith, the yin energy is at its peak... Perfect!"

He then gently lifted the black gourd, which was covered in numerous runes that began to glow with a blood-red light. He shook it lightly as his mana flowed freely, and shouted, "Collect!"

Immediately, black and blood-red qi rose from the piles of bones, emitting a cacophony of sharp, mournful screams. The qi interwove in the air like threads, like homing swallows, all of it wafting toward the sacrificial altar and into the small opening of the gourd.

"Good... good!"

The black-robed cultivator waited for an hour until the resentment qi and blood qi were fully collected into his gourd. The piles of bones had now withered, crackling as they disintegrated. The blood-red light on the gourd grew increasingly intense.

He finally stopped in satisfaction and said, "Over three thousand people, six Embryonic Breathing Realm cultivators. This batch should please the sect master!"

Smiling contentedly, he looked at the ground and, after some thought, cast a spell. The blood on the ground began to move as it seemed to come to life, quickly forming large characters on the ground—The killer is Jiang Yan.

He examined his work closely, squeezing out a laugh from his throat. His black robe fluttered though there was no wind, and he cackled, "The sect master's method is indeed flawless!"

As he marveled, an indistinct voice emerged from beside him.

"It truly is a good method!"

"Who's there?" he asked as he looked up abruptly and in shock, seeing a young face appear beside him, smirking and staring intently right at him with vermillion lips.

The youth sneered, "Chi Zhiyun has indeed made a good plan... The Azure Pond Sect collects the resentment qi and blood qi while I, Jiang Yan, take the blame..?"

Looking up again, the black serpent had vanished. The black-robed cultivator's heart skipped a beat, his spiritual sense searching all around him as he said respectfully, "Master Jiang, our Dao lineage are similar, both derived from the immortal talisman and curse... I have long admired you..."

But before he could finish begging for mercy, a sinister voice hissed in his ear, "Where is the Answers to a Beggar’s Questions Under the Mulberry Tree?"

"I... I do not know!"

Hearing the name of the secret technique, Answers to a Beggar’s Questions Under the Mulberry Tree, terror almost overflowed from the cultivator's face. He stammered, "N-Not only the Purple Mansion Realms of the three sects and seven gates... but even the Pristine Water is..."

"Silence!"

The black serpent's scales bristled, its eyes bulging as it scolded, "How dare you speak that name out loud? Are you mad? This is not Duanmu Kui's territory... You dare utter that name in Azure Chi Devil Gate's territory?"

"Y-Y-Yes!" the black-robed cultivator stammered, continuing, "E-Even... the True Monarch personally went to Mount Wu. There truly is nothing there! If I'm lying I'll be struck by five thunders and never reincarnate!"

"Hahahahaha... you are quite clever."

The black serpent's voice carried a snake-like hiss, sinister and eerie. "In this day and age, what good are oaths? Since the True Monarch himself came, could he not have divined the truth, or perhaps searched souls and seized spirits?" the snake hissed.

The black-robed cultivator's immortal foundation was operating at full capacity, barely holding off the skeletal attacks. His eyes were bloodshot, blood vessels clearly visible as he stammered, "S-Senior, do not deceive me... Duanmu Kui met the immortals. His fate is so chaotic that even if there were an opportunity, who would dare to calculate it?! The grace of immortals is vast, and their might is like a prison. Even the True Monarch would not dare to probe! As for searching souls and seizing spirits... Duanmu Kui failed his breakthrough and has become a Locust Shade Ghost. Where could you search for his soul!"

The black serpent fell silent, its voice full of resentment as it hissed, "You have cultivated on Mount Wu for many years. Have you ever seen this secret technique?"

"Never..."

The black serpent said nothing more. The cultivator knew this meant trouble, sensing Jiang Boqing's murderous intent. Trapped by Jiang Yan's skeletal spell, he knew he could not escape. Gritting his teeth, he shouted, "I beseech the profound light true talisman, this wicked ghost and demon, disrupting my path... I humbly request the profound light to..."

Before he could finish reciting the shamanic incantation, the black serpent laughed wildly and darted like lightning toward his neck. Its voice hissed and echoed in their surroundings.

"What do you think you are doing?!"