Book 5: Chapter 63: The little insect

Book 5: Chapter 63: The little insect

Guan Zheng was frozen in a thin layer of ice, but how could he be willing to resign himself? Since he wasnt able to move, he directly closed his eyes and poured his remaining strength into his willpower.Visit no(v)eLb(i)n.com for the best novel reading experience

The wound on his chest had remained open this whole time. Despite being frozen, it didnt stop bleeding. Instead, it seemed to have gotten worse as his skin started curling outwards.

A closer look revealed a dense swarm of red little insects crawling out from his skin, flesh, blood vessels and from within his body! They were the color of blood which made it seem like blood was flowing out slowly.

He threatened to turn Ah Wu into a Gu Person, but he was one himself! This persons fixation on Gu techniques had taken him to such a step. He was a Gu genius, yet also a Gu madman!

Those small insects seemed to contain a large amount of heat. The moment they appeared, they started melting tiny holes in the inner layer of the ice. As they surged outwards, the ice block became like a sieve, and then soon after like patterned glass. It became extremely brittle, and Guan Zheng just needed to struggle for the glass to shatter.

Seeing this, Duan Jin hurriedly poured spirit power into the Yin Eye, trying to add another layer of ice. However, Ruan Zhan stopped her. In his opinion, the four-way formation and the several exchanges had sufficiently exhausted Guan Zhengs strength. He actually even used a blood Gu to deal with Duan Jins Yin Eye. He was clearly an arrow at the end of its flight. It was time to destroy Guan Zheng according to his plan!

Guan Zhengs witchcraft was too strong. Killing his physical body wasnt enough to eliminate him. If he wasnt completely dealt with, there was a constant threat of his soul finding another host. He would become the next Si Ma Nan!

Besides, he needed to accomplish Witch Doctor Ah Bais wish.

Crack.

A large crack appeared in the ice which then split apart. Guan Zheng leapt out from within!

His face was so pale that it was completely bloodless. He was also no longer able to think clearly after a night of continuous battle. The attacks of the four-way formation and the Ying Eye alternated between hot and cold. Ah Wus death and the use of forbidden spells Guan Zheng normally didnt use for the sake of victory had left his willpower and stamina drained. Now there was only one thought in his mind: escape!

He looked around. Even his expression was a little disordered. However, he still judged that the eastern side was the weakest link. Thus, he rushed over madly. His malevolent face and the wound on his chest leaking blood and Gu insects stunned Xiao Xia. Only when Wan Li tugged at her did she remember she had a job to do.

She hurriedly took out the worn embroidered pouch from the bottom of the incense burner and handed it to Wan Li.

Wan Li held the pouch high and shouted at the fast-approaching Guan Zheng. Witch Doctor Ah Bais sacred object is here. You are forbidden to approach!

Guan Zheng didnt bother with this move at all and continued running. Wan Li cried out twice more but was still ignored. Seeing that Guan Zheng was about to reach them, Wan Li hurriedly grabbed the talisman-wrapped bat with one hand while throwing the pouch towards Guan Zheng!

You can have your masters remnants back!

Guan Zheng subconsciously caught it. He stopped abruptly. He felt there was a hard, thumb-sized object inside the pouch and was a little puzzled. He was still able to think at this moment. Not knowing what Wan Li was playing at, he didnt dare open the pouch carelessly.

He looked up and saw Wan Lis mocking smile and Xiao Xias doubtful expression. A sense of arrogance suddenly rose in his heart. Had he, Guan Zheng, ever been afraid of anyone after Witch Doctor Ah Bai passed away? Even that all-powerful husband of his master had to speak nicely to him! He was a divine child with divine gifts. He was a genius of the Gu arts. Was he going to be so cowardly just because he fell into a trap tonight?

Thinking of this, he tore open the pouch and took out an object.

It was a small bamboo tube, and its color was a little yellow because of its age. This was the most common object within the mountains. What was unusual was the wooden stopper that sealed it, covered in witchs script.

The bamboo tube in his hand didnt make any strange movements, but he suddenly felt a sort of fear. He felt a cold feeling in his palm that seeped into his heart.

Acting mysterious! He snorted coldly, suppressing the uneasiness in his heart. Recalling how they had scared him in the Octagonal building with a fake remnant of his master, he felt they must be trying to scare him again.

He waved his hand, easing Guan Zhengs pain.

Guan Zheng lay prone on the floor. At that instant, he suddenly felt some regret. Had the people he previously tortured also felt such pain? He thought helplessly, subconsciously grabbing the feet in front of him. He slowly raised his head, meeting Ruan Zhans bottomless gaze.

I dont understand. He said weakly. This ismy insect. When I was youngI found it after unimaginable effort. Why would it harm me?! My insectminemine.

Nothing belongs to you. Ruan Zhan felt pity in his heart but his face was still indifferent. Everything in the world is free. You can only win things over, and not force them! Unfortunately, you never understood this!

That insectonly recognizes one master. Its not like other peopleits mine! Ah. The temporary relief was gone. Guan Zheng rolled and screamed witlessly.

Ruan Zhan let out a long sigh and raised the bloodwood sword. He muttered, Let me end your suffering!

When the bloodwood sword fell, Wan Li covered Xiao Xias eyes. Nothing was left behind by the pool! No traces were left in the forest. It was as if nothing had happened. Yet the three who returned to the octagonal building had very complicated emotions. There was the weariness after a fierce battle, and the sense of relief and loss of completing a task. There was also solemness after reflecting on the whole event!

When Guan Zheng died, it was almost daybreak. Duan Jin had already vanished when they looked for her. She had probably slipped away when Ruan Zhan dispelled the formation.

Ruan Zhan felt he owed her something. He decided he would repay her when he got the chance. Although she had held back when the formation first started, she had ultimately helped them. Trapping Guan Zheng had been of her own initiative.

The broken tree that took Ah Wus place in the north had suddenly burnt up the moment Guan Zheng died, along with Ah Wus corpse. The wind swept the ashes into the pool, as if arranged by Ah Wu. As for Guan Zheng, after the bloodwood sword killed him, his corpse slowly shriveled. In the end it turned into a section of withered wood half a meter long. After Ruan Zhan confirmed not even his soul remained, he buried it next to the pool.

Perhaps this could count as fulfilling one of Ah Wus wishes!

Her momentary lapse of judgment due to jealousy had harmed countless people, but she had also paid a huge price for it. The reason why she wore those embroidered wedding shoes the whole time might be because she had fantasized about being Guan Zhengs bride. Now that her ashes were buried so close to the withered wood that symbolized Guan Zheng, hopefully she would feel happy!

After all, she was someone both pitiful and hateful like Guan Zheng. Neither knew how to properly pursue what they wanted, and only knew to use extreme methods to take them. Guan Zhengs methods were just more horrifying and cruel!

In the end, Xiao Xia couldnt understand how two people could form such enmity and cause such a huge disaster just because they loved someone!

According to Ah Wu, Guan Zheng had started refining evil Gu after their master died. Many of them had been forbidden techniques of their ancestors that would cause heavenly retribution if cultivated. He had even refined himself into a Gu person. Psychologically speaking, he could already be classified as insane.

This could explain why he kept killing people. The more evil, the more powerful the Gu, the more lives needed to raise it. To avoid suffering the Gus backlash, he had to continuously kill others. Even if there wasnt anyone he wanted to kill, he needed to feed innocents to the Gu.

But the ones he mostly killed were unfilial descendants who bullied their parents. This might be due to the guilt in his heart towards his own parents, a sort of perverse projection of self-punishment. He had vented his anger on his parents after the wedding. Perhaps he blamed them for being an outcast all his life, which was why he killed them out of anger.

He must have regretted his actions afterwords. He wasnt someone utterly heinous after all. This was the reason for his many contradictory actions afterwards.

He took on the identity of Guan Zheng to approach Xiao Xia, hoping to use her as a substitute for the fictional existence in his heart. At the same time, he lived an extremely lonely life, hoping for someone to understand his past and mentality. Therefore, once he found out about Ruan Zhan, he purposefully set things up so they would discover his thoughts and past.

Perhaps Si Ma Nan had bad intentions, wanting to sit back on the mountain and watch the tigers fight, and ended up using Guan Zheng. Ruan Zhan coincidentally wanted to investigate Si Ma Nan, which ended up causing the whole affair.

Guan Zheng wanted others to understand him before killing them for his own gratification. Unfortunately, he provoked someone he shouldnt have provoked. When his inflated sense of self encountered Ruan Zhan putting his life on the line, the final outcome was his annihilation!

Now, tell me about the vision from Witch Doctor Ah Bai and that terrifying little insect! Wan Li pointed at Xiao Xia, then at Ruan Zhan, Come and tell me about that smelly talisman. Ive been serving as a blind vanguard for you guys this whole time. I knew nothing about anything!