Chapter 37: A Serious Beating

"ARGHHHHHH..."

The next moment, Yang Yanpeng let out a furious roar. His palms, having completed the Flower Hand flourish, blurred into a flurry of afterimages, raining down on Zou Feng.

This was a move unique to the complete Five Poison Palm—Ten Thousand Poisons Facing the Sect!

"Just... DIE, DIE, DIE!!"

Shouting could boost one’s momentum and, more importantly, temporarily banish fear.

Zou Feng had no interest in getting hit by this move. It would be tantamount to getting groped all over by a madman.

So, with a quick shift of his feet, he began to sway and weave as if he were drunk.

But this seemingly chaotic, drunken stumbling was exquisitely precise, allowing him to dodge every single one of Yang Yanpeng’s palm strikes.

Yang Yanpeng’s Ten Thousand Poisons Facing the Sect ended up facing nothing but empty air.

’I can’t hit him?’

’Why can’t I hit him!?’

A cold sweat broke out on Yang Yanpeng’s brow. He continued his assault, but his expression was already showing signs of desperation, as if he were about to burst into tears.

Naturally, such a high-intensity barrage of palm strikes couldn’t be maintained for long.

Sensing his strength about to give out, Yang Yanpeng hastily retracted his palms and retreated three steps to catch his breath.

If he didn’t, he felt like his lungs would explode.

"That’s it?"

"So this is the complete Five Poison Palm? Nothing special!"

Zou Feng grew even more disappointed, then raised his own palms.

As his ten fingers twisted, they let out a series of distinct, terrifying cracks.

"Well then, it’s my turn!"

Before his voice had even faded, Zou Feng swept forward like a hurricane.

His palms also blurred into afterimages as they hammered toward Yang Yanpeng.

However, if Yang Yanpeng’s strikes were as dense as a shower of poisonous rain...

...then Zou Feng’s Palm Technique was a tidal wave of poison!

Of course, Zou Feng didn’t know "Ten Thousand Poisons Facing the Sect."

But by fusing the Palm Techniques of Cui Xin, Broken Face, and Broken Pill with his Five Poison Pile Skill, his Five Poison Palm had long since evolved into a style all its own.

He couldn’t be bothered to give this flurry of attacks some flashy name.

It was simple and direct—a serious, poisonous beatdown!

"ORORORORO..." Zou Feng treated Yang Yanpeng like a durable punching bag, unleashing his full power and venting his frustrations.

Yang Yanpeng was like a small boat tossed about in a stormy sea, completely at the mercy of the waves.

His screams were more bloodcurdling than a pig being slaughtered for the New Year festival.

After venting for a while, a look of pleasure finally appeared on Zou Feng’s face.

’Ah, that feels good! So refreshing!’

’Since I started practicing the Five Poison Skill, this is the first time it’s actually felt this good.’

But he hadn’t delivered a killing blow just yet. After all, there was still something very important he needed Yang Yanpeng’s cooperation for.

Of course, another reason Yang Yanpeng was still alive was his excellent poison resistance.

Having already endured the side effects for some time, he had naturally built up a certain tolerance.

Looking at Yang Yanpeng now, he was trembling as he leaned against a corner of the wall. His clothes were in tatters, his body was covered in bruises, and his head was swollen like a pig’s.

Yet he was still screaming and crying his eyes out, making an unbearable racket.

"Noisy!"

Annoyed by the din, Zou Feng struck again.

A bright red middle finger abruptly filled Yang Yanpeng’s vision.

It came to a stop, pressed against the point between his eyebrows.

Throughout the process, Yang Yanpeng had used every last bit of his remaining strength to wave his hands in terror, trying to swat Zou Feng’s finger away.

But somehow, Zou Feng’s Chaos Finger completely ignored his attempts to block it and struck its mark.

Once struck, Yang Yanpeng’s entire body trembled. Then, he froze, unable to move, and his screams cut off abruptly.

With a look of disappointment, Zou Feng reached out again and lifted him up as if he were grabbing a small chick.

It had been satisfying, sure...

But unfortunately, he had been hoping the complete Five Poison Palm would offer something different.

"Alright, now we can talk!"

"But I only want to know one thing. This ’Refinement’ you mentioned... what exactly is the method?"

Lifting Yang Yanpeng, he casually tossed him next to the large ceramic basin in the room.

It was obvious even to a fool that the basin filled with liquid, which Yang Yanpeng had specifically prepared, must be related to the Refinement process.

With that, Zou Feng slapped him across the face, snapping Yang Yanpeng out of the Dementia caused by the Chaos Finger.

"This young mas— Urk, I... if I tell you, can you guarantee you’ll let me go?"

Yang Yanpeng, who had been in despair, suddenly felt as if he had grasped a life-saving straw.

But then he thought about the possibility that he might be the one refined by Zou Feng...

’So, after all this trouble, after spending so much effort and paying such a high price... I’m the one who ends up as the Gu!?’

Zou Feng didn’t answer, just continued to stare at him blankly.

"As long as you... swear a Heart Demon Poison Oath, I’ll tell you the method!"

"Otherwise, even if you kill me, I won’t say a thing! You’re not going to let me go anyway..." Toward the end, Yang Yanpeng adopted an air of someone who had thrown all caution to the wind.

Yang Yanpeng knew this might be his only chance to survive.

After all, for a Martial Artist, the weight of a Heart Demon Poison Oath went without saying.

’I have to hold firm on this, no matter what!’

Unfortunately for him, he could never have known that Zou Feng was a "cheater"—he didn’t get Heart Demons from his practice at all.

Even if he did, someone else would bear the burden.

Therefore, Zou Feng could easily swear a false Heart Demon Poison Oath just to toy with Yang Yanpeng.

However... he could lie, but there was no need.

"I don’t understand. What gave you the illusion that you’re in any position to negotiate with me?" Zou Feng’s smile gradually turned cold.

"Perfect. I wasn’t done playing yet!"

"I just wonder how long a pampered little rich boy like you can hold out..."

Yang Yanpeng’s little scheme seemed well-thought-out, but he seemed to have forgotten that the man before him was a Poison Cultivator.

And when it came to torture, a Poison Cultivator who also knew a thing or two about medicine was a first-rate expert.

The phrase "make you regret you were ever born" was by no means an empty threat!

Watching Zou Feng approach with a sinister grin, Yang Yanpeng was once again terrified out of his wits.

"Wh... what are you going to do...?"

"Stay back... Wait, I... Actually, I..."

"Don’t come any closer! ARGHHHHH!!"

Once again, the room filled with screams like a pig being slaughtered.

In less than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Zou Feng had roughly extracted the information he wanted.

Pinching his nose, Zou Feng stood up.

Then, with a look of disgust, he kicked Yang Yanpeng aside.

After all, under the torment of excruciating pain, the man had long since soiled himself.

The stench was unbearable, so foul that not even the fragrance of the Five Poison Palm could mask it.

’So, to perform the Refinement of the Five Poison Palm’s Gu Poison, you really don’t have to kill the Gu...’

"So, Younger Brother Haoran, this is one of the reasons you were willing to be a turncoat, isn’t it?"

Zou Feng slowly turned his head to look at Xu Haoran, who was lying on the floor, feigning unconsciousness.

The man had been pretending to be out for a long time, hoping for a chance to escape as soon as Zou Feng left the room.

But Zou Feng never left, and he had seen through the act long ago...

"Brother Feng... I really didn’t know..."

His words were vague, but Zou Feng understood what he meant.

He was trying to say that if he had known how ridiculously strong Zou Feng was, he would have never betrayed him, not even on pain of death.

"No, you knew. You just didn’t believe it," Zou Feng said. "So, what’s it going to be? Are you going to cut off your own hands, or should I help you?"

To refine the Five Poison Gu, only the other person’s hands were needed.

After all, the hands were the very essence of the Five Poison Palm.