Chapter 117: Ya Zi

Just moments ago, everything happened so swiftly that it was like a hare darting and a falcon swooping—extremely fast.

In the blink of an eye, Zheng Jun was already dead, leaving the reincarnators on both sides stunned.

“Come on, seriously? Zheng Jun actually died just like that? He was only one step away from becoming a true cultivator! And with his innate divination ability, how could he not foresee this death tribulation? Or maybe that was just a clone?”

Xue Linglong’s eyes flickered, silently stepping back a few paces.

Wu Ming’s thunder techniques were particularly effective against her. Just standing there, she felt extremely uncomfortable.

And in that split second just now, she even sensed a far more terrifying aura from Wu Ming. If Zheng Jun’s death was real, then that aura must have been the culprit!

The unknown is the most terrifying. Before figuring out the situation, she had no intention of confronting Wu Ming at all.

“Impossible, right? A senior member of the Blood Oath Alliance actually died just like that?”

Xu Ziquan and Li Suihan, her companions, also found it hard to believe, but the aura they sensed from Zheng Jun earlier was definitely real.

But how could such a powerful reincarnator perish in a single move at Wu Ming’s hands?

Cold sweat immediately broke out on their foreheads, and they felt terrified by the thoughts they had entertained before.

Only Gong Yunshang vaguely guessed that Wu Ming’s change might be related to the demon pill from last night, but she couldn’t figure it out no matter how hard she tried.

“I’ll take care of the Yellow-Furred Monster. The rest of you handle the others. No problem, right?”

At this point, there was no need to ask for opinions anymore. Wu Ming immediately declared.

“No problem at all!”

Gong Yunshang and the others were intimidated and immediately nodded, surrounding Xue Linglong tightly.

“Hehe…I’m not good at fighting, please be gentle with me, everyone!”

Xue Linglong’s clever eyes darted around, speaking as if pitifully.

“Beware of her Soul-Confusing Technique!”

Gong Yunshang’s eyes flickered, her face showing a hint of anger as she coldly warned.

“How could I use such methods?”

Xue Linglong pouted as if wronged, but behind her, nine illusory blood-red tails extended, each bearing faint images of anguished and struggling human faces.

“The Demon Spirit Body!”

The overwhelming spiritual pressure, laced with demonic energy, instantly caused Xu Ziquan and the others’ expressions to shift repeatedly.

At the same time, their fear toward Wu Ming grew even stronger.

Such an overwhelmingly powerful senior member of the Blood Oath Alliance was killed as easily as a dog—what level of cultivation had he reached?

“Attack!”

Soon, they found out.

Facing the Yellow-Furred Monster, Wu Ming stepped in celestial formations, rode the winds and controlled thunder, each strike terrifyingly powerful—perhaps even a land-based Immortal would not be much stronger.

“Top-grade cultivation method! What he cultivates must definitely be a top-grade method from the Main Shrine, and it’s even a thunder technique!”

Xu Ziquan caught a glimpse and saw Wu Ming like an ancient Thunder God descending, wielding heavenly punishments across the nine heavens. His heart immediately screamed in jealousy.

His jealousy made him hesitate, nearly getting struck by Xue Linglong’s demonic tail, causing him to tumble to the ground in panic.

“Unrestricted mastery—this is truly what a thunder technique should be!”

During the battle with the Yellow-Furred Monster, Wu Ming continuously refined the Five Thunder Palm. A great joy and sense of fulfillment suddenly arose from the depths of his heart.

“A true cultivator manifests laws with every move. If that’s the case, why be restricted to palm techniques?”

As this realization surfaced, Wu Ming instantly soared into the air like a circling eagle. His fingers curved like hooks, transforming into sharp claws striking downward.

“Thirteen Heavenly Eagle Strikes!”

Zi la! (Crackling sound)

A flash of bluish-white electricity lit up. In an instant, thirteen thunderbolts were simultaneously generated, accompanying the claw strike, forming a massive electric claw descending!

“Cursed!”

The Yellow-Furred Monster let out a deafening roar as waves of sinister black demonic energy surged from its body, coalescing into a formidable defensive barrier.

Unfortunately for him, his dense black demonic aura instantly dissipated upon encountering the lightning, practically crumbling without any resistance.

A claw of electric light, carrying an unstoppable force, tore through the gray mist, leaving a massive wound on his body.

The threat of death forced the Yellow-Furred Monster to abandon his duty for the first time, revealing his true demonic form—a weasel several feet long, his tail flipping upward!

Bo!

A yellow mist emerged, carrying defiling power and a foul stench, rapidly spreading.

“Hehe…Please excuse my early departure!”

In the nearby battlefield, Xue Linglong giggled, her nine tails spreading out, creating nine illusions, each lifelike, instantly dashing in all directions and vanishing without a trace.

“She actually escaped. What decisiveness!”

Xu Ziquan and the others were furious but helpless. They slaughtered the remaining minor demons before seeing Wu Ming calmly walk out, beside him the corpse of a massive yellow weasel, charred beyond recognition.

“Fellow Daoist Wu Ming’s thunder technique is astounding. I truly admire it!”

Gong Yunshang sincerely said. That yellow mist just now was practically the Yellow-Furred Monster’s innate divine ability.

Yet under such circumstances, Wu Ming still managed to kill the desperate fleeing monster. Compared to that, the three of them had surrounded one opponent but still let him escape, appearing clumsy and inefficient. The thought made them feel ashamed.

“You all go inside and destroy the node of this realm. Any problem?”

Wu Ming’s eyes swept over the group, pausing slightly on Xu Ziquan and Li Suihan, immediately making the two of them hold their breaths in fear: “Naturally…naturally no problem!”

After displaying his terrifying strength, he exuded an aura of life and death authority. If these two still dared to resist at this moment, he would kill them without hesitation.

Now seeing their cooperation, Wu Ming repressed his killing intent and began inspecting his spoils of war.

The Yellow-Furred Monster still exuded a stench, making him somewhat nauseous. He set it aside for now. Surprisingly, Zheng Jun’s body had many trinkets, but no real treasures, which left Wu Ming somewhat disappointed.

He had been quite interested in that set of Five Elements Spirit Armor that could be summoned instantly.

However, upon examination, he found that this mysterious magical artifact had already been completely destroyed under the combined assault of the dragon aura and thunder technique.

But there was no need to feel too regretful.

If not for taking advantage of Zheng Jun’s initial carelessness to kill him in one strike, with that person’s aura, he might have been able to fight Wu Ming and even reverse the battle’s outcome.

“Hmm, coins, turtle shells, yellow paper, and cinnabar… Could this person be a diviner?”

Wu Ming gathered the collected items and frowned, “How come there isn’t a single secret manual on him? He was even wearing a robe, though it’s already damaged…”

“Ah?”

After rummaging around a bit more, something caught Wu Ming’s attention.

It was an iron plaque the size of a child’s palm, carefully sewn into his belt. If not for Wu Ming’s thorough search, he might not have found it.

The plaque was pitch black. On its front side were intricate patterns forming the image of a Yazi.

According to legend, the Dragon has nine sons, and Ya Zi is one of them. He resembles a jackal and loves killing.

On the back were engraved the words “Da Zhou Bureau of Mysterious Affairs, Hundred-Household Zheng Jun,” along with a seal mark of ancient design, not appearing to be a forgery.

“Da Zhou Bureau of Mysterious Affairs? Hundred-Household?”

Clearly, this was definitely not something from the Ghost and Spirit World or the Main Shrine. Wu Ming’s expression became somewhat contemplative: “A government hound? Or perhaps a retainer of some feudal lord?”

Thinking carefully, this was actually normal.

After all, the Main Shrine had been open for so long; something must have seemed off to someone.

And rulers are always perceptive individuals. Even in times of chaos, they would allocate some resources specifically to investigate this phenomenon.

Whether Zheng Jun had originally been a government official or was recruited later didn’t matter anymore.

After all, a dead man is of no use. Even a genius, once dead, is no longer a genius.

“Not much gained… Well, if we don’t count the merits…”

At this point, Wu Ming finally had time to check the prompt messages from the Main Shrine that had appeared during the battle.

“Ah, killing that Daoist earned me 800 minor merits, the Yellow-Furred Monster gave 500, plus Hei Ya Daoist’s 200 and the side mission’s 200. In an instant, I’ve accumulated 1,700 minor merits!”

And this was just from side missions, not counting the rewards for completing the main task.

Even Wu Ming couldn’t help but feel that the Main Shrine truly lived up to its reputation—the greater the risk, the greater the reward indeed.

Hong long!

Shortly afterward, a tremor formed within the Yellow Wind Cave.

This so-called Hei Shan Realm node was essentially a place where spiritual energy gathered. To destroy it, there were simply too many methods.

“At last, we’ve completed our mission!”

Not long after, Xu Ziquan and Li Suihan emerged, their faces filled with joy: “So, what’s next?”

They had unconsciously accepted Wu Ming’s leadership.

“What’s next… naturally, we wait here to ambush the reinforcements!”

Wu Ming’s face bore a cold smile: “When the reinforcements originally sent to assist see the black smoke here, what do you think they’ll choose to do?”

“And since we still have strength left, after defeating this wave of reinforcements, we can immediately head to the Poisonous Dragon Pond to contact our allies there, building up a dominant force!”

In warfare, just like in a duel between masters, advantages are continuously accumulated until the final decisive victory.

Although Wu Ming couldn’t yet influence the central nodes, he was barely sufficient to serve as the force tipping the balance in the outer minor nodes.

“Destroying the Yellow Wind Cave has actually completed our mission for the Orthodox Sect. However, the Main Shrine won’t allow us to relax just yet…”

…

“Aaargh… Who dares come out and fight me?”

Half an hour later, looking at Feng Lin trapped within the formation array, unable to effectively fight back, the three outside looked at Wu Ming with deep admiration.

“Never would’ve thought this rough-looking brute would be so powerful…”

Wu Ming also felt a surge of emotion. The supernatural creatures dispatched to reinforce the Poisonous Dragon Pond, upon witnessing the chaos at Yellow Wind Cave, immediately panicked and retreated—only to stumble into an ambush, suffering devastating losses.

To their astonishment, this reincarnated brute had come back alongside the demons.

For unknown reasons, the nine-tailed fox spirit girl hadn’t contacted him, allowing him to walk straight into the trap.

This brute was also extremely formidable, even revealing his demonic form in the end, resembling a half-human, half-demon creature.

“When we’ve exhausted his strength, kill him!”

Wu Ming’s expression remained unchanged: “After this, we head to the Poisonous Dragon Pond and kill the General Qing Shan!”

Within the Black Mountains, a small force’s influence was continuously expanding, ambitiously striving to become the key factor determining the final outcome.