It devoured almost any poison and had recently taken a liking to Corpse Poison, which conveniently helped the poison mutate.
After playing with Xiaolv for a bit, Zou Feng took a bath, had a quick bite to eat, and made his way down to the houseâs basement.
In the basement, there was another Demon Beast. A living one.
It was the very Celestial Eye Cloud Pattern Deer Zou Feng had been coveting.
According to Yuwen Shuo, all one had to do was arouse the Celestial Eye Cloud Pattern Deerâs desires and maintain close proximity to it. Their spirit would then be pulled into an Illusion Realm, making their Cultivation twice as effective for half the effort.
Naturally, Zou Feng had to try it for himself. He had already taken the time to travel to the Nanling Mountain Range and capture one.
He and Tian Yun now used this deer for their Cultivation almost every day.
Tian Yun was there now, sitting cross-legged beside the Celestial Eye Cloud Pattern Deer. Her eyes were closed, and she was in the middle of intense Cultivation, her body drenched in sweat.
As for how to arouse the Celestial Eye Cloud Pattern Deerâs desires, that was laughably easy for Zou Feng, who possessed the Great Universal Hand. He had already taken care of it for Tian Yun beforehand.
After a long wait, Tian Yun finally completed her Cultivation session and exhaled a long, turbid breath.
"Sister Yun," Zou Feng finally spoke, "it looks like your Cultivation went well this time."
Tian Yun wiped the sweat from her forehead and nodded with a beaming smile. "I was stuck at the Half-Step Gang Qi Realm for so long, unable to break through."
"I never thought that after breaking through, I would feel almost no resistance in the Gang Qi Realm. Master really wasnât lying!"
"And itâs all thanks to you, my dear Zou..."
At this, Tian Yun glanced at the listless Celestial Eye Cloud Pattern Deer beside her. "Itâs just... Iâm afraid this deer wonât last much longer."
Although the Celestial Eye Cloud Pattern Deer was a great boon to Cultivation, provoking its Evil Eye to create the Illusion Realm took a massive toll on its body. It would die before long.
This was why, even for someone with Yuwen Shuoâs family resources, this method couldnât be used for routine Cultivation.
Zou Feng said, "It canât be helped. The weak are prey for the strong. Weâll just give it a quick death later."
In fact, Zou Feng had already prepared a large vat of Spirit Wine, just waiting to make Evil Eye Soaked Wine with the deerâs eye.
His progress on the Drunken Immortal Moon Gazing Step had been lagging the most, so it was high time he gave it a boost.
After nightfall, Zou Feng returned to the small courtyard where he had treated the heavily made-up woman, ready to wait for his next client.
Tian Yun, however, was on the verge of a breakthrough with her Cultivation Skill, so she hadnât come with him this time.
Zou Feng usually only stayed here until Midnight. If no clients had appeared by then, he would leave.
In his line of work, it wasnât possible to have clients every single night.
Recently, however, his reputation had begun to spread, and business was getting better and better.
As for how clients found the place, it was either through referrals from regulars or because Zou Feng had bribed some riffraff from the Jianghu to spread the word in secret.
Sitting on a wooden stool in the pavilion, Zou Feng took out a Poison Skill Secret Manual and began to study it intently.
He had no intention of cultivating this particular skill, as it wouldnât be of much help to him, but it was still useful for studying the Poison Dao.
He studied like this for about an hour when a series of knocks came from the courtyard gate: nine light taps, followed by one heavy one.
"Come in!"
The door was pushed open, and a man staggered in drunkenly. His face was deathly pale, his eyes were sunken, and he looked as if he had been completely hollowed out by vice. A single feather was stuck in his bound-up hair.
Zou Feng sized him up but couldnât quite place his Grade.
âBut heâs definitely practicing an Evil Skill.â
"So, youâre this âWandering Dragon Masterâ?" the feathered man asked, swaggering impolitely into the pavilion and plopping down opposite Zou Feng.
Zou Feng put away the Poison Skill Secret Manual. "That would be me. Are you here to have a poison removed?"
The feathered man chuckled. "Thatâs right. Can you tell what poison Iâm suffering from?"
After a moment of careful observation, Zou Feng said thoughtfully, "If Iâm not mistaken, youâve been afflicted with some kind of Snake Poison."
The feathered manâs eyebrow shot up, a look of interest on his face. "Go on."
"But you must have taken this poison voluntarily. Most likely to heighten your senses, to make things more... fun."
Now the feathered man looked genuinely surprised. "And why would I want to heighten my senses?"
Zou Feng said, "Enough with the nonsense. You went to the trouble of bringing so many people here to die. I doubt a friendly chat will do any good."
Hearing this, the feathered manâs expression turned vicious. "Zou Long," he said sinisterly, "do you have any idea how many people youâve offended?"
The words had barely left his mouth when dozens of black-clad figures appeared silently on the three courtyard walls and the rooftop.
Their Qinggong was superb. While there didnât seem to be anyone in the Gang Qi Realm, they were all masters of the Inner Qi Realm.
With such a show of force, combined with the feathered manâs own unfathomable aura, it was clear this group had come prepared. They were determined to take down Zou Feng.
Seeing this, Zou Feng shook his head slightly. "How would I know how many people Iâve offended?"
"But I can certainly reduce that number right now..."
With that, Zou Feng snapped his fingers.
SNAP!
Most of the figures who had leaped onto the walls and roof suddenly began to tremble violently, then toppled down with bloodcurdling screams.
They hit the ground, blood streaming from their seven orifices, and died on the spot.
A moment ago, he had been surrounded by over thirty people. Now, with a single snap of his fingers, only five men struggling on the rooftop and the feather-haired man, his smile frozen on his face, remained.
This was far from the first time Zou Feng had assassins show up at his door. It would be absurd for him not to be prepared.
These men knew full well that if the "Wandering Dragon Master" could cure poisons, he must also be an expert at using them. They hadnât come unprepared.
But in the end, they had still gravely underestimated just how formidable Zou Fengâs methods were.
Against a prepared Poison Cultivator, the advantage of overwhelming numbers that Low Grade Martial Artists might otherwise have was rendered almost completely nonexistent.
Swallowing hard, the feathered man found his current situation to be rather awkward.
He was, of course, a Sixth Grade Martial Artist. He considered both the grade of his Cultivation Skill and his own Realm to be top-tier.
With more than thirty experts skilled in coordinated attacks, taking down Zou Feng should have been a sure thing.
After all, their intelligence from multiple sources had confirmed that Zou Feng hadnât even reached the Fifth Grade.
Yet now, looking at him, the manâs methods seemed even more inconceivable than some of the Fifth Grade masters he had encountered...
"Do you want to live?"
Zou Fengâs question shattered the tense silence.
The feathered man hesitated for a moment before listening to his heart and slowly nodding.
"Whatâs your name?"
The feathered man stammered, "Tu... Tu Zuohai..."
So this was the boss from the list heâd landed on after saving the heavily made-up woman the other night.
This boss could be useful. His strength was quite decent; it would be a waste to just kill him.
Though Tu Zuohai was now trembling like a frightened quail, Zou Fengâs initial judgment was correct: the manâs Evil Skill was quite formidable.
If he were to lash out and fight Zou Feng, he wouldnât be completely helpless.
But the scene Zou Feng had just created was too shocking, and Tu Zuohai wasnât exactly a man of unyielding will to begin with.
Thus, giving in to his fear, he truly didnât dare to fight Zou Feng again.
"So, itâs Brother Tu! Forgive my disrespect!"
"Er... Not at all..."
Zou Fengâs sudden change in attitude completely threw Tu Zuohai for a loop.
"Well then, Brother Tu, please see yourself out. This must all be a misunderstanding." Zou Feng gestured for him to leave.
Tu Zuohai assumed Zou Feng was toying with him, waiting for a moment of carelessness to strike.
But even as he cautiously backed out of the pavilion, Zou Feng showed no intention of making a move, simply watching him go with a smile.
Zou Feng even tossed out an antidote, curing the five men who were still struggling on the rooftop.
He did this for one reason only: he needed them to carry all the bodies away.
Even when he was half a mile from the small courtyard, Tu Zuohai still felt a sense of unreality.
No matter how he thought about it, he couldnât understand why the "Wandering Dragon Master" had let him go.
However, a man like Tu Zuohai wasnât about to feel grateful just because Zou Feng had spared him. He had no intention of burying the hatchet.
On the contrary, his hatred for Zou Feng only intensified. He immediately began scheming, wondering how he could find reinforcements and get his revenge.
He hadnât been scheming for long, however, when a barefoot woman descended from the sky. With a seemingly weightless, silent kick, she tapped the top of Tu Zuohaiâs head.
Even though Tu Zuohai had been distracted, the fact that he couldnât react in time was proof enough: this womanâs power far surpassed his own.
"You..."
Before the terrified word could fully leave his lips, Tu Zuohai felt Gang Qi roiling inside his skull.
Then, with a wet POP, his eyeballs burst from their sockets.