Chapter 228: The Snipe and the Clam, Confronting Bai Zhi

“I have a shameless request,” Fu Lin lowered his gaze to Leng Yuyuan, whose head rested on his chest. “Uncle Wei, I beg you… help me kill Leng Yuyuan and end my predicament.”

Wei Tu, hiding in the shadows near the Cold Crystal Platform, froze for a moment, surprise flashing across his face.

“Isn’t Leng Yuyuan your Dao companion? Why do you want her dead?” he asked.

Though killing Leng Yuyuan wouldn’t be difficult for him, he wasn’t eager to add a late-stage Golden Core enemy.

Leng Yuyuan was Venerable Master Ningyan’s niece—and her reverse scale.

Wei Tu had already noticed this back at Xieshan Ridge.

If that weren’t the case, a mere Foundation Establishment cultivator like Leng Yuyuan would’ve long been abandoned in the Blood Slaughter Sea. How could she have crossed it and reached the seventh gate, the Cold Crystal Platform?

Fu Lin gave a bitter smile and explained, “Uncle Wei, are you familiar with the concept of a furnace in the demonic path? Right now, I’m Leng Yuyuan’s furnace.”

“When the Great Void Realm ends, this witch from the Hehuan Sect will drain me completely to break through to the Golden Core Realm.”

He didn’t elaborate further. He didn’t want to expose such a humiliating wound.

Becoming Leng Yuyuan’s furnace was already disgraceful enough.

“If I kill her now, I could do it. But if Venerable Master Ningyan descends from the Cold Crystal Platform to avenge her…”

“I could still escape, but Fu Lin—you might not.”

“Besides, you’re not alone in the demonic realm. You still have a younger brother and sister.”

Wei Tu didn’t outright reject him. Remembering the favor of Fu Lin delivering two letters years ago, he patiently laid out the risks.

And what he said was true.

If Venerable Master Ningyan really descended to pursue vengeance, Wei Tu could rely on his hidden cards to escape the Great Void Realm.

But Fu Lin? He wouldn’t make it.

Wei Tu wasn’t going to risk his life for a junior.

And Fu Lin’s request revealed a certain coldness in his heart—if Leng Yuyuan died, his younger siblings left behind in the demonic domain would be in grave danger.

Fu Lin was the eldest of the infamous “Fu Clan Three Demons.” His younger brother and sister were second and third in the Fu family line.

Fu Lin’s face stiffened. He didn’t know how to respond.

To abandon his siblings for his own survival… yes, he had considered it.

After all, it had been over a hundred years. His siblings, taken with him when he defected to the demonic sect, had yet to reach Foundation Establishment and had only about a dozen years of life left.

But now that Wei Tu had laid his intentions bare, he couldn’t shamelessly admit it.

Back then, his father Fu Zhizhou had abandoned his wife and children, refusing to lead him into cultivation.

So when he left Zheng Kingdom and joined a demonic sect, he brought his siblings along.

At the time, he’d hoped to achieve success, to make his father regret his choices… to realize what a terrible mistake he’d made.

But now, he had become the very person he once despised.

“Fu Lin… have you really become a true demonic cultivator after joining the Myriad Spirits Sect? So heartless?” he questioned himself.

If he could choose, of course, he’d want his siblings to die naturally of old age, not be dragged into his mess and killed because of him.

Just then, Wei Tu’s divine sense, channeled through the Seven-Colored Phantom Moth, spoke again.

But instead of making the decision for Fu Lin, Wei Tu gave him a choice.

“Back then, I was indebted to you for delivering those two letters. I was lucky to escape the war between righteous and demonic paths.”

“Those two favors cannot go unrepaid.”

“I’m giving you a second-grade high-grade magic tool and two third-grade talismans. These three items are enough to kill Leng Yuyuan.”

As his voice fell, the Seven-Colored Phantom Moth flapped its wings and flew off Fu Lin’s shoulder, vanishing in the blink of an eye.

At the same time, a jade box appeared out of thin air, landing in Fu Lin’s hands.

“Thank you, Uncle Wei,” Fu Lin said, heart filled with joy. He quickly offered his thanks.

But this time, there was no reply.

The Golden Core divine sense that had covered him had silently withdrawn.

The jade box had a restrictive seal.

Leng Yuyuan, still resting against him, hadn’t sensed anything.

“Thankfully, I sent those two letters to Wei Yan back then,” Fu Lin thought to himself, inserting his divine sense into the box to see what treasures Wei Tu had left.

What he saw stunned him.

Inside were two glowing golden jade talismans and a thin green needle.

“A letter too?” Fu Lin paused in confusion when he saw the letter lying beneath the talismans.

…

The green needle, naturally, was the second-grade high-grade offensive magic tool “Cuiyun Needle” that Wei Tu had previously swapped out.

As for the two talismans—

One was a low-grade offensive talisman personally crafted by Wei Tu.

The other was a high-grade defensive talisman, one of the relics left behind by True Lord Shentu.

These three treasures more than repaid Fu Lin’s two-letter favor.

If Fu Lin used them wisely, he could not only kill Leng Yuyuan but might even escape Venerable Master Ningyan with his life.

After gathering intel from Fu Lin, Wei Tu concealed his aura and retreated far from the valley entrance of Xieshan Ridge.

He kept away from the direct path between the Blood Slaughter Sea and Xieshan Ridge, releasing two Seven-Colored Phantom Moths to monitor Jia Tianlong’s movements while he waited for a shift in the situation within the Great Void Realm.

This time, Jia Tianlong dared to lie in wait for Gui Luo and the others. He must have some powerful secret technique or trump card.

There was no need for Wei Tu to invite trouble now.

There were only so many people in the Great Void Realm. To Gui Luo and his group, both he and Jia Tianlong were already considered “dead men.”

Wei Tu didn’t think Gui Luo and the others would carefully comb through every inch between the Blood Slaughter Sea and Xieshan Ridge on their way back.

Even the most cautious cultivators had oversights—flaws in their assumptions.

Time passed, day by day.

Wei Tu was extremely patient. While lying low, he took the opportunity to cultivate the Greenwood Concealment Technique.

—Back at the Five Poison Swamp, Bao Siyan had used this very technique to safely pass through that perilous trial unharmed.

Compared to other concealment arts, the Greenwood Concealment Technique truly had its own merits.

Two months later—

A beautiful woman in white, her dress disheveled and a smear of blood at the corner of her mouth, came fleeing in panic from the direction of the Blood Slaughter Sea, flying straight toward the valley mouth of Xieshan Ridge.

“Bai Zhi? Why is she the first one out? And she looks like she’s been defeated—being hunted?” Wei Tu furrowed his brow in confusion.

Among the two groups—Gui Luo’s and True Monarch Wanhai’s—Bai Zhi, a dual cultivator of body and spell from the Heavenly Maiden Sect, was undoubtedly one of the top three in combat power.

In the later trials—especially the Cold Crystal Platform and the inner domain of the Great Void Realm—she would hold terrain advantage, allowing her to unleash the full power of her body cultivation.

Logically, Bai Zhi shouldn't be the first one eliminated.

“Could it be she encountered some great crisis inside the Cold Crystal Platform or inner domain, but had the ability to escape first?” Wei Tu shifted his thinking and speculated.

“Let’s see how Jia Tianlong deals with her. Let the dogs bite each other.” A faint smirk crept onto Wei Tu’s lips.

Though he knew the Heavenly Maiden Sect and the Chisong Jia Clan had secretly allied, he didn’t believe that alliance was solid.

Demonic cultivators were, by nature, treacherous.

Under his surveillance, Jia Tianlong had already secretly activated his magic weapon when he saw Bai Zhi approaching. He didn’t expose himself, nor did he move to greet this so-called ally.

…

At the valley mouth of Xieshan Ridge.

Within the underground cave.

“How strange. The first to escape is Bai Zhi?” Jia Tianlong was also surprised to see her.

Having worked with Bai Zhi for a long time, he knew her strength even better than Wei Tu.

In a direct fight against Gui Luo, she wouldn’t necessarily be at a disadvantage. With the secret arts of the Heavenly Maiden Sect, she might even turn the tables on him.

“What happened inside the inner domain of the Great Void Realm?” Jia Tianlong couldn't make sense of it.

“But now she’s seriously wounded. This is my chance.” His eyes gleamed with killing intent as he prepared to strike.

Great power meant great gain.

From what he could tell, Bai Zhi wasn’t just injured. She had also been afflicted by the Seven-Star Begonia spiritual poison in the inner domain.

“Who?” Suddenly, Bai Zhi sensed a wave of killing intent aimed at her from the valley entrance.

Her head snapped up, her eyes cautiously scanning the surroundings as both her hands began to glow with a faint white light.

Jia Tianlong froze in his hiding spot. He thought he was well-concealed—how had she sensed him?

“Maybe her spiritual senses are just that sharp,” he reassured himself.

Since he’d been exposed, Jia Tianlong no longer bothered to hide. He summoned a pale golden monk’s staff, burst out from the cave, and charged straight at Bai Zhi.

They were both seasoned veterans. Even if he tried to explain himself, she wouldn’t believe him. There was only one path left—to fight and settle it.

—He didn’t have many years left. Any other path was no better than death.

“It’s you, Jia Tianlong?” Bai Zhi was visibly stunned to see him still alive.

But even in her shock, she didn’t forget to counterattack. With a sharp shout—”Fractured Life Hand”—light exploded from her jade-like palms.

Just like when Si Qing had once fought Wei Tu.

Only, Bai Zhi’s hands were even sturdier than Si Qing’s. Even against Jia Tianlong’s third-grade magic weapon, she showed no sign of weakness.

After exchanging a dozen blows—

The elderly Jia Tianlong was forced into retreat, and his chest was ripped open by Bai Zhi, blood streaming out.

But though clearly at a disadvantage, Jia Tianlong didn’t seem disheartened. On the contrary, he grew more aggressive and battle-hardened.

In their clash, he had already confirmed that Bai Zhi’s cultivation was being eroded by spiritual poison, weakening her continuously.

“We must end this quickly.” Bai Zhi narrowed her eyes at him.

She didn’t fear Jia Tianlong himself. But with pursuers behind her, she dared not linger.

“Daoist Jia, what grudge do you hold against me? Why block my path?” she asked while suppressing the poison in her body with secret arts.

“This does you no good.”

She truly didn’t understand what Jia Tianlong hoped to gain. With little time left to live, ambushing her would achieve nothing.

Worse, it could spell disaster for the Chisong Jia Clan.

After all, a century ago when the Chisong Jia Clan defected from Zheng Kingdom, it was the Heavenly Maiden Sect that took them in and protected them.

“This matter… forgive me, but I can’t explain.” Jia Tianlong licked his lips and chuckled darkly.

No way would he reveal that the Chisong Jia Clan possessed the secret Snake-Crane Life Exchange Art.

That technique could extend a cultivator’s life by one hundred years—but required a very specific condition: two cultivators of the same realm, each with over two hundred years of lifespan, had to be refined through a unique secret method into a snake-crane life core.

His current realm was late-stage Golden Core. But late-stage Golden Core cultivators were almost always renowned individuals.

Whether rogue or sect-affiliated, none were easy to deal with.

If not for the rare opportunity provided by the Great Void Realm, he wouldn’t have dared make a move.

And with one more century of life, Jia Tianlong just might have a shot at breaking through to Nascent Soul and becoming a true Venerable Master.

“Then go die.” Bai Zhi sneered coldly, her eyes flashing with killing intent.

The moment the words left her mouth, she shot forward like a sharp arrow, heading straight toward Jia Tianlong.

She was so fast that even most Golden Core cultivators couldn’t track her movement—only afterimages could be seen.

Jia Tianlong didn’t panic. Calmly, he pulled out a golden talisman and activated it. In an instant, a solid golden shield enveloped him completely.

“A fourth-grade talisman?” Wei Tu, watching from nearby, was stunned.

He hadn’t expected Jia Tianlong to have a fourth-grade defensive talisman as a trump card.

After all, now that he had reached the Golden Core Realm, Jia Tianlong’s status as the patriarch of the Chisong Jia Clan was barely different from that of an average Golden Core rogue cultivator.

He was just another “poor ghost” at the Golden Core level.

“Good thing I tipped off Bai Zhi and let her detect Jia Tianlong hiding at the valley mouth. Otherwise, if he had struck first, he’d have had too much of an advantage,” Wei Tu thought to himself.

Earlier, Bai Zhi’s sudden awareness of killing intent had actually been a nudge from him—through his Seven-Colored Phantom Moth.

If the two of them could weaken each other, he could wait in hiding and reap the spoils afterward.

“What a great opportunity!” Bai Zhi saw the fourth-grade talisman but didn’t panic. Instead, a hint of delight flashed across her face.

After feigning a few attacks, she suddenly twisted her body and fled deeper into Xieshan Ridge.

Although high-grade talismans could sometimes reverse the tide in battle, their sheer power often made them difficult for lower-realm cultivators to control perfectly.

As a result, although Jia Tianlong’s defense skyrocketed after activating the talisman, his speed had significantly dropped.

In just an instant, Bai Zhi—having burst forth with a secret technique—had already fled nearly a li into the ridge.

If not for the ridge’s unique terrain, she would’ve long vanished without a trace.

“Heh! You’ve already been poisoned by the spiritual toxin. Even if you escape into the ridge, you won’t make it far.” Jia Tianlong sneered and dismissed his fourth-grade talisman, giving chase.

However—

The moment Jia Tianlong deactivated the talisman, a crescent-moon-shaped magic weapon suddenly shot up from the ground, piercing cleanly through his upper body.

“No!” Jia Tianlong howled. His body split at the torso, and he fell from the air in a spray of blood.

“You... you're so vicious…”

Even as his head hit the ground, he still had a few breaths left. His cloudy gaze locked on Bai Zhi, who had turned back from deeper within the valley, and he gasped weakly.

He hadn’t expected Bai Zhi—despite being poisoned—to bait him into dropping the talisman and then ambush him.

“Old fool. Could’ve just died of old age peacefully, but you insisted on crossing me. With those few petty tricks of yours, maybe you’d be a big shot in Zheng Kingdom’s orthodox sects, but in the demonic path, you’re no better than a three-year-old brat.”

Bai Zhi’s face showed nothing but disdain. She threw out a few mocking lines, then stepped toward the valley to reclaim her life-bound treasure and whatever Jia Tianlong had left behind.

But—

Right at that moment.

A sharp eagle cry rang through the sky. A golden spirit eagle swooped down from above and snatched Jia Tianlong’s corpse in a flash.

The fourth-grade talisman and the pale gold monk’s staff he had just used were also wrapped in spiritual light and carried off by the spirit eagle.

“Wind-Cleaving Eagle?!” Bai Zhi immediately recognized the species—it was a Wind-Cleaving Eagle. She knew very well that the Blood God Sect cultivators possessed such spirit beasts.

“How dare you! Robbing me of my spoils!” Her face twisted in fury. Her delicate hands, once soft and fair, were now a bloody jade red.

Right now, her hatred for this Wind-Cleaving Eagle surpassed even her hatred for Jia Tianlong, who had ambushed her.

Compared to Jia Tianlong, the eagle’s owner was clearly even more despicable.

Still, though seething with rage, Bai Zhi didn’t let it cloud her judgment. She didn’t rush forward to block the Wind-Cleaving Eagle and reclaim Jia Tianlong’s treasures.

First, the pursuers behind her were close. If she got tangled up with “Wei Tu” here, the consequences could be dire.

Second, only the Wind-Cleaving Eagle had appeared—its master had yet to show themselves. Their cultivation and strength were unknown.

“Withdraw for now!” Seeing that the eagle’s owner hadn’t revealed themselves even after her furious outburst, Bai Zhi glared hatefully back, retracted her moonblade weapon with a secret art, and sped toward the opposite end of Xieshan Ridge.

One incense stick’s time passed.

Once Bai Zhi had already flown deep into the ridge, Wei Tu finally revealed himself near the valley mouth.

His expression was thoughtful as he watched her retreating silhouette from afar. After some consideration, he also flew into Xieshan Ridge.

Halfway through the ridge’s passage—

Bai Zhi sensed someone pursuing her. She turned and saw the green-robed male cultivator—Wei Tu in disguise—following her. Her brows shot up coldly.

“You’ve got guts, Daoist. Just a measly early-stage Golden Core, and you dare snatch my spoils?”

“Hand over that fourth-grade talisman, and I might spare your life.” She bluffed.

She wasn’t surprised to see him appear now.

After all, hadn’t Jia Tianlong also seemingly come back from the dead?

“Really?” Wei Tu looked amused. A playful smirk tugged at the corner of his lips.

Bai Zhi saw the expression and knew instantly—he was mocking her.

Her expression darkened. “Even seriously injured, I’m not someone a mere early-stage Golden Core can trample. That fourth-grade talisman—fine, keep it. But if you walk away with everything in his storage bag, that’s going too far.”

Wei Tu immediately understood what she was implying.

She was proposing a split—hand over some of Jia Tianlong’s treasures from his storage pouch.

Otherwise, even if it cost her life, Bai Zhi would still fight him to the bitter end.

“Daoist friend, you have a point.” Wei Tu pretended to consider, then nodded seriously.

“It’s just that there’s a mana imprint in Jia Tianlong’s storage pouch. With my current cultivation, I can’t break it open in a short time. Once we get out of this Shedding Mountain Ridge, I’ll hand it over to Daoist Bai. How about that?” Wei Tu spoke in a negotiating tone.

Earlier, during the fight between Bai Zhi and Jia Tianlong, both had revealed their names. So calling her “Daoist Bai” now didn’t seem abrupt and wouldn’t expose Fu Lin’s identity as an undercover.

However, the appearance of the Sky-Rending Eagle—

Wei Tu wasn’t sure if Bai Zhi had access to his information and might recognize his identity because of that eagle.

After all, back at Cicada Cry Cliff, he had already been targeted by demonic cultivators due to the Sky-Rending Eagle.

Of course, at this moment, Wei Tu no longer feared Bai Zhi recognizing him.

—Previously, with the inheritance left by Master Shentu, he already had enough confidence to survive even under the hand of Gui Luo, the Demon Lord. Now, with the addition of the fourth-tier talisman from Jia Tianlong, his chances of survival were even greater.

As his voice fell—

Bai Zhi slightly nodded her head, thinking it made sense. She no longer pressed Wei Tu and focused on hurrying through Shedding Mountain Ridge.

Earlier, those words she’d spoken were just a shot in the dark—hoping to gain something if possible.

But now Wei Tu spoke again.

“Earlier, I noticed Daoist Bai fled in a rush, your robe was in disarray. May I ask what kind of danger you encountered inside the Inner Domain of the Great Void Realm?” Wei Tu inquired.

To prevent Bai Zhi from concealing the truth—

Wei Tu added, “I only wish to leave the Great Void Realm alive. I care little for treasure. If pursuers show up, perhaps I can join forces with Daoist Bai—it’s not out of the question.”

“The enemy of my enemy is my friend.”

“It was Gui Luo, the Demon Lord,” Bai Zhi answered bluntly. “That Gui Luo is a Nascent Soul avatar. After entering the Inner Domain of the Great Void Realm, he used a demonic ghost technique, first devouring the junior brother of True Monarch Wanhai, ‘Zhou Hang’… then chased after me. That’s how I managed to escape.”

She deliberately left out the part about being poisoned by the Seven-Star Begonia spiritual toxin.

“Gui Luo? A Nascent Soul avatar?”

Wei Tu latched onto these two keywords and couldn’t help but feel glad that the Daoist Sword-Wielding Scroll had transported him to the stone cavern beneath the Blood Slaughter Sea. Otherwise, no matter how great his abilities were now, he likely wouldn’t have survived.

Even Master Shentu’s ghost infant from years past was already difficult to deal with, let alone Gui Luo’s Nascent Soul avatar.

“That female cultivator traveling with me—does Daoist Bai know if she’s dead or alive?” Wei Tu thought of Bao Siyan and asked.

“Her?” Bai Zhi glanced at Wei Tu and smiled faintly, “She pledged loyalty to Gui Luo at Cold Crystal Platform. Now she’s Gui Luo’s personal slave girl. That’s why Gui Luo spared her.”

“Still, that could be her good fortune.”

“To become a Nascent Soul cultivator’s slave girl—many would dream of such a stroke of luck.”

Bai Zhi assumed Bao Siyan was someone close to Wei Tu, so her words carried a mocking tone.

Of course, she also understood that teaming up with Wei Tu in the Great Void Realm was mutually beneficial.

But demonic cultivators had always been erratic and unruly. In such a perilous environment, she couldn’t keep her sharp tongue in check.

“If there’s a chance, I’ll try to rescue Daoist Bao,” Wei Tu thought inwardly.

So long as the green hills remain, there’ll always be firewood to burn.

Back at Cicada Cry Cliff, he had already considered defecting to the demonic path.

Now, if Bao Siyan chose to become Gui Luo’s servant to survive, he wouldn’t look down on her for it.

…

Wei Tu and Bai Zhi had pretty good luck.

After two months of travel, the two of them made it out of Shedding Mountain Ridge without encountering Gui Luo.

“Jia Tianlong was near the end of his lifespan. There weren’t many treasures left in his storage pouch. I’ll give all of them to Daoist Bai,” Wei Tu said when they reached the valley exit, keeping his promise and sharing the spoils from killing Jia Tianlong.

A total of seven items.

Three pill bottles and four magical tools.

Among the tools were a “yellow jade token” and a bronze mirror with a blood-red surface.

These two items exuded an ancient aura, brimming with spiritual light—clearly extraordinary.

Seeing this, Bai Zhi was pleased. She activated her mana and took the seven treasures.

At this point, she wasn’t worried that Wei Tu would try anything sneaky. With his early Golden Core strength, he couldn’t catch her off guard.

Her physical cultivation alone was already at late stage third-tier. Normal cultivators had no way to ambush her.

Only—

Just as her mana touched the seven treasures, she suddenly sensed a familiar spiritual toxin. It surged through her mana and invaded her spiritual body.

“Spiritual toxin from the Inner Domain of the Great Void Realm?” Bai Zhi was stunned and quickly withdrew her mana, retreating several dozen meters in a flash.

Back in the Inner Domain, it was this very toxin that allowed Gui Luo to exploit a weakness and severely wound her.

She hadn’t expected to encounter this same toxin again from Wei Tu’s hand.

No matter how she racked her brain, she couldn’t figure out how Wei Tu had come into contact with such poison.

Because—

From beginning to end—

Wei Tu never entered the Inner Domain.