Chapter 250: Advent of the Corpse Ghost

After joining the Evil Extermination Bureau, Lu Bai had made a point of reading materials about the Witch Race.

The Blood Poison Curse was a type of curse within Witchcraft that could rapidly cause one’s Blood Qi to decay and become depleted.

Previously, when Mo Tang had cultivated a six-foot Blood Qi flame, the Blood Poison Curse had cut its power in half, reducing its range to just three feet. The suppression was obvious.

Furthermore, after Ah Ming had destroyed the Lady Governor’s Lifebound Gu, the Blood Poison Curse’s power had been significantly reduced.

Now, Lu Bai was facing a Witch Race member at the peak of the Golden Core Realm, and the Blood Poison Curse’s effect on him was immense!

Just then, the Ancient Mirror seemed to sense something, and a slight tremor ran through Lu Bai’s chest.

The eerie green halo that had been binding him instantly shattered.

Even the remnants of the Curse Power inside Lu Bai’s body vanished without a trace!

RUMBLE!

In the blink of an eye, Lu Bai’s Blood Qi surged back, roaring like a torrential river.

“Hm?”

From the darkness, Wuguluo let out a soft exclamation of surprise, his face a mask of astonishment.

He had sensed an utterly terrifying power suddenly awaken within Lu Bai, instantly shattering his Curse.

It was an almost illogical, overwhelming suppression!

‘This kid has a treasure on him!’

Wuguluo narrowed his eyes and licked his lips. The shadow of an insect flickered within his pupils, gradually sharpening into focus.

Then, the Gu Insect crawled right out of his eye!

It was a dark-gold Gu Insect. After crawling from Wuguluo’s left eye, it took flight, buzzing as it sped toward Lu Bai in mid-air.

At the same time, Wuguluo pulled a porcelain jar from his Storage Pouch. He lifted the lid, and with a loud buzzing, a dense swarm of golden lights flew out!

As if under some guidance, these golden lights followed closely behind the dark-gold Gu Insect, coalescing into a golden cloud that flew toward Lu Bai!

SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!

Having shaken off the Blood Poison Curse, Lu Bai’s Blood Qi surged. He unleashed his Sword Stance, Sword Qi flying everywhere. Even fighting one against three, he still held the upper hand.

In the blink of an eye, he cut down another paper effigy!

Just then, the golden cloud swarmed toward him, a dense mass emitting a blood-curdling buzz.

‘What kind of venomous insects are these?’

Lu Bai frowned slightly. He poured his Blood Qi into the Cyan Cloud Sword, and the erupting Sword Qi transformed into a rain of fire that poured down upon the golden cloud.

The golden cloud seemed to sense the danger of the fiery rain and desperately tried to evade, but it was still caught in the downpour.

SIZZLE!

Amidst puffs of green smoke, many of the golden lights plummeted from the sky.

Fire was a clear counter to most venomous insects.

In an instant, the golden cloud was halved in size!

The other two paper effigies seized the opportunity to charge him. Lu Bai met them with his sword and, in the ensuing clash, managed to cut down another one.

The rest of the golden cloud swarmed in, not toward Lu Bai, but onto his Cyan Cloud Sword, instantly blanketing the entire blade.

Lu Bai channeled his Blood Qi and made the blade vibrate. The five-layered Blood Prohibition Light erupted, unleashing waves of Sword Qi that shredded even more of the venomous insects!

Wuguluo, hiding in the darkness, winced at the sight.

Although the other venomous insects weren’t his Lifebound Gu, he had still spent many years raising them.

In a single battle, Lu Bai had already destroyed half of them.

When the Crimson Gold Sword Qi struck the dark-gold Gu Insect, it rang out with a sharp CLANG and sent a shower of sparks flying.

The Lifebound Gu was completely unharmed!

Wuguluo breathed a sigh of relief.

“Hm?”

Lu Bai was inwardly shocked.

‘What kind of Gu Insect can withstand the edge of the Cyan Cloud Sword?’

“Heh heh.”

A cold laugh echoed from the corner.

“That is my Gold-Devouring Gu, which I have raised for many years. Any Magical Treasure Weapon it touches will be chewed into scrap!”

As the sinister voice rang out, the dark-gold Gu Insect clung stubbornly to the Cyan Cloud Sword, while the other venomous insects fearlessly swarmed after it.

Lu Bai was about to repeat his earlier move and shake the insects off, but he discovered a distinct barrier between his Blood Qi and the Cyan Cloud Sword. He had lost control of the weapon!

The Blood Prohibition Light on the Cyan Cloud Sword was rapidly dimming.

The swarm of insects crawled along the blade, heading for Lu Bai’s hand.

Knowing he couldn’t be careless, Lu Bai let go of the sword, his mind racing.

‘Among this swarm of Gold-Devouring Gu, only the dark-gold one is truly dangerous. That must be his Lifebound Gu, which is why it can withstand the Cyan Cloud Sword’s edge. The others are no real threat.’

‘But the Gold-Devouring Gu has spent years devouring ores and metals, making it impervious to weapons, water, and fire. It’s incredibly tough; not even the Cyan Cloud Sword can break its defense.’

‘Although the Cyan Cloud Sword is an Unparalleled Treasure Artifact, it’s still only Tier Two, equivalent to a Magical Treasure of the Foundation Establishment Realm.’

‘This Witch’s Gold-Devouring Gu is equivalent to a Golden Core Realm treasure.’

After letting go of the Cyan Cloud Sword, Lu Bai paused for a fraction of a second before making a decision.

Using the Body Technique of his Fuyao Skill, Lu Bai dodged the last remaining paper effigy in mid-air and shot straight toward the Witch in the darkness!

‘A Lifebound Gu is connected to the Witch’s own bloodline.’

‘If I kill the Witch, the Lifebound Gu will die with him!’

“Such audacity!”

Wuguluo snorted coldly, then bit the tip of his tongue and spat out a mouthful of essence blood, waving his Magic Staff.

The blood-stained Magic Staff quickly traced a bizarre rune in mid-air, which then dispersed with a low boom.

Suddenly, Lu Bai’s vision blurred.

The Witch, who had been a short distance away, suddenly vanished.

The next moment, more than a dozen figures appeared around him in mid-air. They stood unsupported, each holding a Magic Staff and looking down at him with mocking expressions.

“A mere Innate Martial Artist dares to act so presumptuously before me!”

All dozen-plus figures spoke at once, making it impossible to tell which was real and which was fake.

‘An Illusion Technique?’

Lu Bai sneered inwardly and activated his Eye of Illusion.

The world before him changed in an instant.

The numerous figures faded away, leaving only a single one behind.

“Nowhere to run!”

Lu Bai locked onto the figure and unleashed his Body Technique, shooting toward him like a lightning bolt!

“What?!”

Wuguluo was flabbergasted to see Lu Bai charging straight for him.

Throughout their battle so far, he had found Lu Bai to be troublesome, but he had always felt the situation was under his control.

But now, the Illusion Technique he had unleashed using another of his Lifebound Gu had absolutely no effect on Lu Bai, throwing him into a panic.

In his panic, Wuguluo shot into the air and tried to flee, hoping to put some distance between himself and Lu Bai.

If he were caught in close quarters, with the frail physique of the Witch Race, even an Innate Martial Artist would have the power to kill him!

“ROAR!”

Just then, a deafening tiger’s roar exploded next to his ear.

Wuguluo’s entire body shuddered. His ears rang with a piercing pain, his mind buzzed, and his consciousness went blank for a moment, causing him to nearly plummet from the sky.

Because of his weak physique, the impact of the Silence Shocking Secret Technique was especially severe.

And there was still some distance between them.

If Lu Bai had been any closer, his roar could have made Wuguluo bleed from all seven orifices and pass out on the spot!

That momentary delay was all Lu Bai needed to close the distance. Like a Furious Vajra descending from the heavens, he raised his hand and threw a punch.

His fist descended with the immense momentum of a Mountain-Cracking Axe, bearing down on Wuguluo!

Seeing no way to dodge, Wuguluo could only instinctively raise his Magic Staff to block.

CRACK!

The punch landed, snapping the Magic Staff in two.

Its momentum unabated, the fist continued downward.

BANG!

The punch slammed heavily into Wuguluo’s chest.

The single blow sent him flying over a hundred feet. He hit the ground with a thump, rolled over once, and lay motionless.

Lu Bai could see clearly that the man’s chest was deeply caved in.

That punch was enough to shatter the man’s internal organs; there was no way he could have survived!

The paper effigy that had been chasing Lu Bai suddenly froze in mid-air. Its flesh and blood dissolved, and it reverted to a simple paper cutout before fluttering to the ground.

Lu Bai breathed a sigh of relief. He was about to turn and retrieve his Cyan Cloud Sword when his gaze suddenly froze.

On the Cyan Cloud Sword, the swarm of Gold-Devouring Gu was still clinging to the blade, very much alive.

‘The Witch isn’t dead?’

A chill went down Lu Bai’s spine. He whipped around and dashed toward the spot where the Witch had fallen.

Just as he drew near, the Witch’s “corpse” suddenly twitched. An incredibly terrifying and sinister power erupted from within it, and a ghostly wind began to swirl!

“Heh heh heh…”

Wuguluo slowly pushed himself up from the ground. His body was wreathed in Ghost Qi, his face was contorted and savage, and his bloodshot eyes were bulging from their sockets. He looked exactly like a Fierce Ghost!

“Among my Lifebound Gu is a Ghost Gu, which I have fed with Ghost Souls and cultivated to this day. I never thought you would force me to this point.”

Wuguluo glared fixedly at Lu Bai, the Ghost Qi around him growing thicker. His voice was filled with indignation and resentment.

Lu Bai could clearly feel that Wuguluo no longer had any trace of life force.

Instead, he was more like a walking corpse—a being that was neither human nor ghost!

“You’re not human anymore,”

Lu Bai said, quickly calming himself as he recalled the records about the Witch Race’s Lifebound Gu from the Evil Extermination Bureau.

‘Ghost Gu are normally fed with Ghost Souls.’

‘As the Witch’s own Cultivation improves, the Ghost Gu also grows stronger, starting by devouring Yin Souls, then moving on to Little Ghosts, Great Ghosts, and even Fierce Ghosts.’

‘As a Lifebound Gu, the Ghost Gu allows a Witch to use abilities related to Ghost Souls and other evil spirits.’

‘Beyond that, there is an even more powerful Gu Technique.’

‘At the Golden Core Realm, if the Lifebound Gu turns on its master and devours the host’s soul, it is highly likely to undergo a metamorphosis!’

‘It’s like a Fierce Ghost reanimating a corpse, transforming into a Corpse Ghost!’

‘At that point, the original Witch is already dead. They enter a symbiotic state with the Ghost Gu, becoming a Corpse Ghost!’

Lu Bai’s expression was grave, but a bright light flashed in his eyes.

‘I’ve tried using the Soul Light of a Fierce Ghost to repair the final chapter of the Fuyao Skill, ‘Feathered Ascension to Immortality,’ but it never had any effect.’

‘I need a higher-grade Soul Light.’

‘And now, my chance has come!’

‘If I can kill this Corpse Ghost and turn it into Soul Light for the Ancient Mirror, I might just be able to fully repair the Fuyao Skill!’

‘The only problem is, a Corpse Ghost is equivalent to a Nascent Soul Realm expert and can unleash a Ghostly Fiend.’

‘In terms of Realm alone, it’s far beyond me.’

If not for a treasure like the Ancient Mirror, which had a clear suppressive effect on Ghost Souls and other evil spirits, Lu Bai wouldn’t even dare to try. He would have no choice but to turn and flee.

“Your time has come!”

Wuguluo glared viciously at Lu Bai, gnashing his teeth.

If it weren’t a matter of life and death, who would be willing to become a Corpse Ghost, forever sharing one body with a Gu Insect?

Having just transformed, he still retained his original memories.

But as time went on, those memories would gradually be absorbed by the Ghost Gu.

At that point, the one controlling this body would be the Ghost Gu he had raised for so many years.