Chapter 475: Unparalleled Ghost Art (1)

Pain pierced me to the bone like a jolt of electricity, followed immediately by numbness. My left leg swelled completely from ankle to calf.

'Snake venom?' I staggered back several steps, grabbing a shelf to steady myself. Right where I had just been standing lay an incredibly inconspicuous yellow-banded snake, barely over a dozen centimeters long and as thin as a chopstick. Its fangs had snapped off in my flesh, and its body was already twitching as though it wouldn't survive much longer either.

'When did this snake get in?' It had arrived without a sound, its scales blending perfectly with the tables and chairs. I hadn't sensed it at all.

'The carrying pole cracked three times just now. There are probably more venomous creatures in this room.' I forced myself to stay calm. Having the Plum Blossom Gu in my body rendered me immune to most Gu poisons, but it did little against snake venom. 'They must have planned this out well in advance. I doubt this is any ordinary snake venom, either.'

Now that the ambush had been exposed, the members of the Three Yin Sect dropped all pretense. Hordes of venomous snakes slithered into the shop through the door and windows. My scalp went numb at the sight. Dragging my swollen leg, I turned and bolted for the second floor.

'I have to leave.'

The venom seemed to contain a neurotoxin. The Plum Blossom Gu was temporarily suppressing it, keeping my life out of immediate danger, but my left leg was rapidly losing all feeling.

I hobbled up to the second floor and slammed the door shut. Without a second thought, before they could realize my plan, I threw open the window, grabbed the sill, and dropped.

I hit the ground in a roll, bleeding off the momentum, and limped out onto the street.

To my chilling dismay, Ting Tang Road was unnervingly deserted today. Barely anyone was walking on the sidewalks.

"Taxi!" I couldn't afford to waste a single second. Spotting a cab parked by the curb, I used my carrying pole as a crutch and hobbled over.

"Drive, step on it!" I yanked the door open, leaving no room for argument. I was just about to climb inside when the carrying pole in my hand let out another sharp crack.

'A warning? Something is wrong with this car?!' I immediately slammed the door shut. Through the window, I saw the driver inside. A thick black mist enshrouded his face, and his head lolled to the side as he bared his teeth in a grotesque grimace.

"What the hell is that?" I backed away, keeping my Judging Eye active to monitor my surroundings. It didn't take long to spot dark shadows flickering in the back alley. At least six or seven black-robed Daoists were hiding back there. They had brought an even bigger force than last time.

'Run!'

In my current state, there was no way I could take them in a head-on fight. If they pinned me down, it would be a fight to the death. I wasn't just carrying Qingtu Temple's Corpse Driving Secret Manual; I also had the Ghost Cultivator secret technique—the Yin-Yang Ghost Art. If I fell into the Three Yin Sect's hands, they would absolutely torture me for every secret I held.

Laws and morals meant absolutely nothing to these evil Daoists. They could easily command ghosts to interrogate me or threaten to have venomous insects and snakes devour my heart. Even if the police eventually found my corpse, the investigation would never lead back to them.

Ultimately, it all came down to a massive disparity in strength.

I kept my distance, avoiding the taxi entirely, but the driver acted as if he had lost his mind. He hit the gas and drove straight onto the sidewalk, trying to run me down.

'They're completely insane. The Three Yin Sect is disregarding all consequences just to eliminate me!' Evil sects normally stayed hidden from the world. If they caused too much of a commotion, righteous cultivators wouldn't just sit idly by; they would definitely come to Jiangcheng to investigate.

So now they were risking full exposure just to kill me and seize the true scriptures I possessed.

I scrambled out of the way in a miserable heap. The cab crashed forward like a steel beast, plowing through a decorative street tree before finally grinding to a halt.

The massive crash drew the attention of people inside the nearby shops. I scrambled across the street on all fours. A wave of dizziness washed through my mind. 'The venom is spreading. I need to get out of here right now and find a safe place to hide.'

I shot a glance back toward the Adult Shop. A Daoist had already stepped out of the back alley, wearing an effeminate smile that made him look like a venomous snake flicking its tongue.

'She Qian. It really is that bastard!'

This guy knew everything about me. Terrified to linger for even another second, I rushed to the side of the road and frantically waved my carrying pole.

A private car happened to be driving past. The driver slowed down, clearly not wanting to get involved in any trouble, but my situation was critical, and I wasn't about to let my only chance of escape slip by.

Clutching my carrying pole, I dashed straight for the car and desperately hammered on the window. "Hospital! I got bitten by a venomous snake, it's really bad! Please, you have to take me to the hospital right now!"

The driver was a white-collar worker around twenty-seven or twenty-eight. He just sat there, too scared to unlock the doors. Panic gnawed at me; I was half-tempted to smash the window with my carrying pole and force my way inside.

A moment later, the cab backed off the sidewalk. The black mist over the driver's face had grown even thicker. He stared at me with his jaw stretched unnaturally wide, fully exposing both rows of teeth and gums.

'He's possessed!' My expression twisted in horror. The cab driver was clearly gearing up to ram right into us.

At that critical moment, the car owner finally hit the unlock button. "Get in," he muttered nervously. "Which hospital?"

I didn't waste a second and dove into the passenger seat. "Drive! That cab driver behind us has gone insane! He's trying to kill me!"

"What are you even talking about? Didn't you say you got bit by a snake? Are we going to Central Hospital or First People's Hospital?" the driver asked, looking exasperated. He shot me a wary glance. Considering how bizarre I looked right now, anyone would be on edge.

"Just drive! Central Hospital! My life is on the line here!"

I kept urging him on. The driver was a decent guy; he could tell it was a real emergency and immediately floored the gas. He still didn't trust me completely, though, muttering under his breath, "Look, I've got a dashcam running. I'm just trying to do a good deed here. If something happens to you, you can't pin it on me."

"Don't worry, I won't. But can you go any faster? That cab behind us is catching up!"

"Buddy, you just got a snakebite. Do we really need to act like we're in an action movie?" The driver glanced in the rearview mirror and spotted the cab. When he saw the other driver's face, he paled. "What the hell is wrong with that guy's face? Can a human even make that kind of expression?"

The car sped down the road while I sat there with my heart in my throat. I was terrified that if we went too slow, the Three Yin Sect would catch up, but I was just as terrified that if we went too fast, Heaven's Will would target me and cause a crash.

'It's too chaotic out here. I won't be safe until I make it to No-Lights Road!' I punched the seat cushion in frustration. 'I should have realized it sooner. The Underworld Live Show made handing over the Dream Wing Gu an optional mission—that was their subtle way of warning me. They definitely knew Heaven's Will was going to target me and mark me for death, which is exactly why they created that mission. If I surrender the Dream Wing Gu, they'll offer me their protection and everyone wins. If I don't, they'll just sit back and watch me die.'

I had never once thought the Underworld Live Show was some benevolent charity. They were entirely driven by profit. The appearance of the Dream Wing Gu had ignited their greed, so they were using methods within their own rules to force my hand and make me trade it away.

'Is this Gu really that valuable?'

I still didn't fully understand its worth, but if it came down to choosing between my life and the Dream Wing Gu, I would choose my own life every single time.

"Man, step on it!"

"Buddy, we're in the middle of the fucking city! There are traffic cops everywhere!"

The driver was finally realizing how wrong this whole situation was. "I'm dropping you off at the hospital and then I'm out of here. Do not try to drag me into this!"

"Don't worry." I pulled out my phone and sent a WeChat message to Balding Uncle, telling him to wait for me at the entrance of Central Hospital. Then, as a small token of my gratitude, I discreetly shoved the luck talisman Blind Liu had given me underneath the passenger seat.

With my arrangements made, I glanced back out the window. Besides the cab trailing behind us, a black sedan was now speeding up on our left. It was the same car I had seen in the parking lot at Century New Garden.

'The Jiang family finally lost their patience. They're making their move!'

Activating my Judging Eye, I peered into the sedan. Through the tinted glass, She Qian flashed me a vicious smile. He was gripping a pair of drumsticks and had a Black Talisman pinched between his fingers, his lips moving in a rapid chant.

"The wide roads sever, the carriages flee, out of ten houses, nine turn their key. One final door is left unsecured; burn the incense, beat the drum, invite the Underworld Lord!"

The moment his chant finished, the already empty Ting Tang Road seemed to sink into a desolate, deathly silence. Dark clouds pressed low against the sky, and out of thin air, two figures—one dressed in black, the other in white—materialized right in the middle of the road.

The driver let out a terrified scream and slammed his foot on the brakes. But my eyes were already bloodshot, a deep crimson violently swirling in my pupils. I threw my foot over his and stomped on the gas pedal. "Fuck! Ram right through them!"