He began to attain enlightenment from the Demonic Sect.

Chapter 16 Let's Escape

Before they could catch their breath, the two hurriedly picked up the two storage bags on the ground, wanting nothing more than to leave this awful place as quickly as possible.

However, just as they turned to leave...

A talisman flew out from the thick evil mist, transforming into a flaming blade as it slashed through the air.

As soon as Zhao Tietou became alert, he instinctively lunged to the side.

But the flaming blade came too fast, and his legs were a beat too slow. They were severed cleanly, and before blood could even gush out, the cuts were scorched black.

"what!"

He let out a miserable howl and fell heavily onto the snow, the pain excruciating.

Wei the Cripple wasn't so lucky.

When the flaming blade struck, he had no time to react and was sliced ​​in two at the waist.

The flames spread across the broken surface, sizzling as they burned the flesh.

"Help...help me..."

Wei the Cripple's eyes widened, his half-crippled body lying on the ground, he tremblingly raised one hand and stretched it out with difficulty toward the fellow villager, his eyes filled with fear.

Zhao Tietou had no time to care about him anymore; he was rolling around in the snow, screaming in agony, clutching his two charred, severed legs.

Through the blurred vision, a slender figure emerged slowly from the evil mist.

"Huang Quan!"

Upon seeing who it was, Zhao Tietou gritted his teeth and said hatefully:

"How dare you scheme against me!"

Huang Quan held a jade pendant for warding off evil spirits in his hand, his eyes gleaming as he looked down at the two men, his tone cold as he said:

"Didn't you plot against me? After killing them, I'll be the next one to die, won't I?"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Tietou paused, speechless.

indeed.

Whether it was to prevent the news from reaching An Mingjun, the head of the Danfang garrison, or to reduce his share of the provisions, he would not let Huang Quan live.

Seeing that he acquiesced, Huang Quan sneered, turned his gaze to the dying Wei the Cripple, and said in a cold voice:

"If you really kill me, he will kill you without hesitation and take everything for himself!"

"Well……"

Wei the Cripple still stared wide-eyed, unable to speak clearly, only glaring at Huang Quan with resentment.

Until the light in his pupils completely faded, the hand that had been stretched out in mid-air finally fell limply to the ground.

Zhao Tietou stared intently through gritted teeth, still remaining silent.

Huang Quan was filled with intense hatred. His face suddenly contorted into a ferocious expression, and he roared hoarsely:

"If you had just been a little more observant and taken a closer look at whether that person was really Du Jianyuan, we wouldn't be in this mess now!"

"One's got a head of steel, the other's a cripple... I shouldn't have chosen to team up with you two idiots in the first place!"

Having said that, he no longer held back and directly threw out two Fiery Talismans.

"Useless trash! You won't get out of here alive!"

Zhao Tietou let out a roar like a trapped beast, and a mid-grade talisman slipped from his sleeve. He poured the last bit of his remaining magic power into it and threw it out with all his might.

Upon seeing this, Huang Quan's expression changed drastically, and he immediately turned and lunged to the side.

"boom!"

The two Fiery Talismans collided violently with the mid-grade talisman in mid-air, and the flames that erupted instantly expanded, engulfing the area within several feet.

The snow melted in the heatwave, and the surrounding bamboo crackled and popped.

Huang Quan was only at the first level of Qi Refining, so he couldn't withstand such power. He could only frantically tear off his burning clothes and fall into the snow, rolling around desperately.

Fortunately, he held the amulet tightly in his hand and poured all his magical power into it, which barely saved his life.

"Damn idiot..."

Huang Quan gritted his teeth and struggled to his feet from the snow. He had multiple burns all over his body, and dark red blood seeped from under his charred skin.

To ensure absolute safety, he spent all his savings to buy four mid-grade Flame Blade Talismans and ten Fiery Talismans, just in case someone managed to escape.

Now, Zhao Tietou and Wei Quezi, who were involved in the abacus, are indeed dead, and three more unrelated lives have been lost as well.

But the most crucial person never showed up!

"This is the epitome of cowardice! And the epitome of cold-blooded selfishness!"

Huang Quan gritted his teeth, his hatred growing stronger, and his face became extremely ferocious and distorted.

He had already begged so much, but Du Jianyuan still had no intention of helping personally, nor did he take the job seriously. He simply passed it on to someone else.

Fortunately, he kept an eye on Cai Zhuling's movements and followed the energy to Zhu Huai's location, where he used a Fiery Talisman to burn him alive.

If that kid really escapes and tells Du Jianyuan about it, then he won't even have a chance to explain.

"Thank goodness... thank goodness they're all dead."

Huang Quan let out a long breath, forcing himself to calm down and repeatedly going over every detail.

"As long as I pretend I know nothing... Zhu Huai's death will only be seen as bad luck, that he was targeted and killed by someone else."

He picked up four storage bags scattered on the ground, then stripped clothes off a relatively intact corpse, changed into them, and prepared to leave.

Even if he didn't catch that big fish this time, the profits from these five small fish wouldn't be enough to make him lose money.

"call out!"

Suddenly, a faint whooshing sound rang in my ears.

Huang Quan had no time to react; his body suddenly stiffened.

Three slender bamboo leaves pierced his lumbar spine with unparalleled precision, like three red-hot iron nails that pierced through his dantian.

Crimson flames ignited within his body.

This fire was completely different from the talisman fire from before; it did not burn the skin or clothes, but scorched the muscles, bones, and internal organs inch by inch.

Yet, I couldn't feel any heat at all, only an endless chill that spread throughout my body.

"Sha, Sha Fire..."

Huang Quan's eyes widened, and he already knew in his heart who the real shrew was.

He gritted his teeth and slowly turned around.

Amidst the swirling, malevolent mist, Du Jianyuan emerged with composed steps, his eyes calm and indifferent.

Upon recognizing the person who approached, Huang Quan collapsed weakly into the snow, a weary yet relieved smile appearing on his face:

"You...you really are smart; you've been suspicious of me for a while now, haven't you?"

Du Jianyuan held a stack of Fiery Talismans in each hand, not taking another step closer, and nodded slightly.

"You're too impatient, Quan-ge."

"I have to be anxious!"

Huang Quan suddenly raised his voice, finally releasing the resentment that had been suppressed for over a decade, and roared:

"I was captured and brought to this Demon-Suppressing Sect when I was twelve years old. I spent five years gathering spirit bamboo before I could enter the Talisman Room, and then worked there for thirteen years... a full thirteen years! All I wanted was a cultivation technique!"

"Just one cultivation technique!"

He practically roared out the last few words, filled with hatred and indignation.

Du Jianyuan remained silent, simply watching calmly.

With things having come to this point, Huang Quan resigned himself to his fate.

He knew full well that Du Jianyuan was a man of clear principles, decisive in killing and quick to forgive, and would certainly not let him live. He only sneered:

"No matter how hard you try, you can't obtain the Qi Gathering Technique... You're doomed sooner or later!"

Du Jianyuan had assumed Huang Quan would mock him like the previous man, calling him a "yin fetus material" raised by An Mingjun. He hadn't expected it to be related to the Qi-gathering method, so he couldn't help but ask:

Why?

However, perhaps to retaliate against his indifferent attitude, Huang Quan stopped speaking and stared at him with his eyes, which were clouded by the evil fire, and a cold sneer on his face.

Du Jianyuan smiled as well, gently patting the storage bag at his waist, and said:

"Brother Quan, you set a trap to kill me, all you wanted was this thing... But I can tell you the truth, when Brother Falcon came last time, he thought I still had spirit stones on me, so he didn't give me any supplies."

"Even if you succeed today, what you get still can't buy a single righteous law."

"impossible!"

Huang Quan's voice was completely hoarse, and he gritted his teeth as he said:

"An Mingjun cares about you the most! After he became the head of the alchemy workshop, he even scrimped and saved to provide you with supplies!"

Upon hearing this, Du Jianyuan's heart stirred slightly. He slowly suppressed his smile and said calmly:

"Believe it or not, last time he only gave me a mid-grade protective soft armor, nothing else."

As he spoke, he slightly lifted his shirt to reveal the finely crafted soft armor underneath.

Huang Quan opened his mouth, but for a moment he didn't know what to say. His face twisted for a moment, looking like he was laughing, crying, or mocking himself.

A violent cough erupted from his chest, and dark red blood mixed with malevolent fire spilled from the corner of his mouth.

On his deathbed, Huang Quan looked up at Du Jianyuan and, with his last ounce of strength, said:

"You should... run away."