Chapter 665: Nemesis

Mr. Paper was chanting the general outline of the Burial Scripture, but his pronunciation differed from an ordinary person's. His cadence carried an indescribable flavor, as if he had grasped the true essence of life and death, scorning all things and holding no respect for the heavens.

I could understand him at first, but the incantations spilling from his lips gradually grew obscure and difficult to decipher, his pace steadily quickening.

Having no idea what he was saying, I could only force myself to memorize a few of the pronunciations.

Characters from the Burial Scripture were carved into the walls of Jianghu Cancer Research Hospital, and Mr. Paper had personally set up the feng shui grand formation here. It wasn't hard to deduce that he had read the Burial Scripture; he had most likely stolen his feng shui layout directly from it.

I stood outside the passageway, watching quietly as questions surfaced in my mind.

If the Burial Scripture had always been kept in Qingtu Temple, where did Mr. Paper get his copy? I had seen the Burial Scripture runes he carved on the walls; they were occasionally missing strokes. Evidently, the Burial Scripture he studied was only a fragment.

'An incomplete Burial Scripture was enough to create the Two-Faced Buddha's number one feng shui master? I have to keep this book safe. If it gets exposed, I'll probably become the prey of every sect out there.' I sighed inwardly, feeling a deep sense of regret. The contents of the Burial Scripture were too complex. I couldn't even understand the text, let alone practice its feng shui arts.

'What I need most right now is time. The Live Show broadcasts once every three days. I can't waste my remaining time on these trivial matters. I need to improve my strength as quickly as possible.' Daoist master Wan would be arriving in Jiangcheng in a day or two. When he got here, I would be able to ask him to clarify my questions regarding cultivation and the sects.

While I was deep in thought, the sandbox in front of Mr. Paper began to change. It was originally an Insect Coffin used to store White Worm larvae, but after I torched it, only their corpses remained.

What shocked me now were those very corpses. Under Mr. Paper's urging, the insects I assumed had burned to death were coming back to life.

Their charred shells cracked open, revealing insect eggs as fine as silver sand inside.

'Even a massive fire couldn't burn them to death?' Daoist master Wan had only told me that the White Worm was one of the Three Corpses and Nine Worms; he never mentioned that mortal fire was harmless to them. As I continued to observe, I gradually realized something was wrong.

Mr. Paper seemed to be using a special method from the Burial Scripture to forcefully revive the dying White Worms.

He swept the charred corpses to the side, leaving only a thin layer of "silver sand" in the sandbox.

"I was the one who bred you. Now, offer up your final lives for my sake," he said. He forced a drop of blood from his fingertip. I saw it clearly this time: Mr. Paper's blood was different from an ordinary person's. It wasn't crimson, but a bizarre pale shade.

'Could it be that he also exchanged blood with the Uncorrupted Bone?' Before I could ponder further, the sandbox suddenly emitted a brilliant light. Mr. Paper's blood seemed to be the key to unlocking the grand formation. Thousands of talismans were briefly activated, and the runes originally carved into the walls echoed in resonance. A grand formation as intricate as a starry sky shrouded the entirety of Jianghu Cancer Research Hospital.

A trace of anguish flashed across Mr. Paper's face. "Twenty years of blood and sweat, destroyed in a single day. Five Great Upper Sects, I will remember this grudge."

His hands fluttered as he continuously tapped several nodes. Then, with an upward sweep of his hand, the White Worms that had caught the scent of the blood on his fingertips clustered together, forming a silver sphere in his palm.

"With the Ksitigarbha Sutra in my possession, I can bury anyone in this world."

A look of reluctance flashed in his eyes, but it was quickly replaced by vicious resentment. "Stay here forever! I will bury you all alive!"

He suddenly clenched his fingers, crushing the silver sphere in his palm.

As the silver light dissipated, the runes along the walls dimmed one by one. Taking his position as the center, deep cracks rapidly spiderwebbed outward!

Chunks of stone plummeted from the ceiling as the ground violently shook. The entire building seemed on the verge of collapse.

'This guy wants to bury the sect cultivators and the Uncorrupted Bone underground together!' I was appalled by his ruthless tactics, but deeply relieved that I had followed him out.

The self-destruction of the feng shui grand formation caused a severe backlash, heavily aggravating Mr. Paper's existing injuries.

Hunched over and clutching his chest, he forcefully overturned the sandbox. He glanced around before suddenly striding toward Chen Jiuge's corpse.

"Chen Jiuge's consciousness has seized the Uncorrupted Bone. Bringing his physical body back will serve as an acceptable explanation for the Buddha." He dragged Chen Jiuge's body away without searching it for items and headed for the stairs.

Floor tiles shattered, and cracks densely webbed across the walls. The building was coming down. With no time to notify the sect members, I stuck close to Mr. Paper and bolted for the surface.

Heavily injured and burdened by Chen Jiuge's corpse, he moved very slowly.

'Mr. Paper is the Two-Faced Buddha's number one feng shui master. Eliminating him would be tantamount to cutting off one of the Two-Faced Buddha's arms.' The gaze beneath my mask turned icy. My killing intent had been roused.

I readied myself to strike several times along the way, but Mr. Paper was far too bizarre an existence. Without absolute certainty, I didn't dare act rashly. After all, I would only get one chance.

It wasn't until we walked out of the emergency stairwell and were just about to leave the Third Ward that I found the perfect opportunity.

Mr. Paper had left a way out for himself. He unlocked an equipment room at the end of the corridor. Its window wasn't completely sealed; the wooden boards covering it had merely been pieced together, not nailed shut.

To pull the boards down, he tossed Chen Jiuge's corpse to his feet and grabbed the edges of the wood with both hands.

His back was facing me, entirely defenseless.

I stepped silently out of the shadows. I didn't use my Judging Eye, nor did I mobilize my true qi or Yin energy. Moving as calmly and comfortably as if I were returning to my own home, I slowly entered the equipment room.

My fingers plucked a Scalpel from the clutter on a nearby desk. Without making a single sound, I crept toward him.

One step, two steps... Staring dead at the center of his back, I slowly raised my hand, gripped the rusty Scalpel, and decisively plunged the blade toward Mr. Paper's heart.

The entire process took less than five seconds. It wasn't until the blade whistled through the air that Mr. Paper realized with extreme horror that someone was standing right behind him!

"Bang!" He hastily spun around, wielding the wooden board from the window. My Scalpel had only pierced two or three centimeters into his flesh before the board knocked it away.

"Who are you?!" Mr. Paper—the master strategist whose feng shui arts were unrivaled in all of Jiangcheng—stared at me in absolute shock. His mouth hung wide open, his lips trembled, and his stiff, coffin-like face twisted in disbelief.

From Mr. Paper's perspective, it was indeed a terrifying scene. Here in an empty ward, a masked stranger wielding a Scalpel had silently appeared right behind him.

"Speak! Who are you?!"

I was wearing a mask, so I had no fear of Mr. Paper recognizing me. Since my initial strike had failed, I immediately closed the distance to engage him in melee combat.

Feng shui masters could manipulate the earth's ley lines and dragon qi to create formations, but their own bodies were incredibly frail. I knew he could seal souls within paper figures, so I refused to give him a single second to chant his incantations, choosing the most savage and brutal method to tear him apart!

Without uttering a word, I continuously slashed my blade, aiming every strike straight for his vitals.

Mr. Paper had been wounded by Xu Yan, and had just suffered the backlash of the grand formation. He was currently at his absolute weakest.

'Take advantage of his weakness and claim his life!' My Scalpel swings were too restricted and kept getting parried by the wooden board. I simply tossed the blade aside, engaged my Crushing Fist, and closed in for bare-handed combat.

How could the heavily injured Mr. Paper possibly be a match for me? Not daring to fight back and tossing aside all dignity, he vaulted out the window and fled toward the hospital exterior, stumbling and scrambling. He didn't even bother to take Chen Jiuge's corpse with him.

'Trying to run?' I spared a brief glance at Chen Jiuge's corpse before decisively giving chase.

"There is no enmity between us! Why won't you let this go?!" Mr. Paper cried out, looking completely haggard as he continuously scattered paper figures. Malevolent spirits were sealed within the paper dolls; he was trying to use them to block my path and buy himself time to escape.

'Yin-Yang Ghost Art!' I threw my yin aperture wide open, channeling my remaining Yin energy to release the Desire Ghost and the others from my Ghost Ring to join the pursuit.

"You're a Ghost Cultivator?" Witnessing me utilize ghost arts, Mr. Paper's gaze darkened. He figured it out after a brief moment of thought. Pulling out the white paper that sealed Wang Shi, he shrieked, "You're the one who created this Yang Talisman Yin Spirit! You lured the sect cultivators into Jianghu Cancer Research Hospital!"

Cultivators were naturally intelligent, and as a master of feng shui, Mr. Paper was a standout even among their ranks. With just a few minor clues, he had successfully deduced the truth.

I kept my mouth shut. I wasn't intentionally ignoring him; I simply didn't want to expose my voice.

Taking my silence as an admission, the rage in Mr. Paper's chest almost caused him to explode. His twenty years of painstaking effort had been ruined by my hands!

"Despicable! Shameless!" Mr. Paper's speed gradually plummeted. His injuries were far too severe. Eventually, he lost the strength to even hurl insults, simply ducking his head and running forward as hard as he could.

About ten seconds later, the paper kite Mr. Paper had sent out earlier flew back to him. He hardly even glanced at it before seeming to understand the message it carried. He immediately changed direction, darting into the dense forest.

'Does he have backup waiting?' Panic flared in my heart. Unfortunately, Mr. Paper carried far too many sealed paper figures on him. Every time I closed the distance, a fresh batch of dolls would fly out to block my path.

By now, I was entirely surrounded by a large circle of eerie, giggling paper dolls!

'Get lost!' My talismans had been completely depleted last night; my only option now was to forcefully charge through them.

Mr. Paper was also running on fumes. To save his own life, he even threw out the white paper sealing Wang Shi.

I had no time to save Wang Shi. I pursued with everything I had until we reached the woods on the outskirts of the hospital.

I understood the idiom: do not enter when encountering a forest. Activating my Judging Eye, I had just begun to slow my pace when a flash of cold light swept past my eyes, forcefully halting my steps in their tracks.

'Someone really is waiting in ambush.' I stopped my pursuit, regulating my breathing as I stared straight ahead.

"Mr. Paper, how did you end up looking so pathetic?" The voice drifted out from an unknown direction. It sounded sinister and frivolous, and it felt somewhat familiar.

I traced the source of the voice, my gaze slowly freezing over. My hands clenched into fists, my knuckles popping and cracking from the force.

A man with a build similar to mine unhurriedly stepped out from behind a large tree. He showed absolutely no intention of helping Mr. Paper up. Instead, he snapped his head toward me, his eyes locking onto my figure like a venomous snake spotting its prey.

At the exact same time, I stared at his face—one half handsome, the other heavily scarred—and gritted my teeth.

"Lu Xing!"