32: The dead return, shocking intelligence

That voice.

That damned, slightly lazy tone.

Zhao Linger's entire body stiffened, as if struck by a bolt of Nine Heavens divine lightning, her Divine Soul solidifying.

Her hand, reaching for her Storage Pouch, stopped mid-air.

Slowly, extremely stiffly, like a Puppet rusted for a thousand years, she turned her head, inch by inch.

Time, at this moment, was infinitely stretched.

The roars of Yao Beasts in the grotto, the clashing of Puppets, the boiling of the blood pool... everything transformed into a silent background, rapidly receding.

In her world, only that face remained.

A perfectly intact face, even with a hint of playful amusement.

It was Lin Gou.

The Qingyun Sect Disciple uniform he wore was impossibly clean; forget the gruesome wound from a blood claw, there wasn't even a single wrinkle.

He was completely unharmed.

He gently winked his right eye at her, his gaze conveying a silent message: “Cooperate with me, it's our turn to perform.”

An illusion!

This must be an illusion!

It was her excessive grief, her lost composure, that had attracted a Heart Demon!

Zhao Linger's lips lost their color and trembled slightly, her clear, cold eyes now filled with a scattered, unfocused look.

She had personally watched him being torn limb from limb by Black Fiend's claw!

She had personally watched him suffer the Soul-searching Technique, bleeding from all seven orifices, his Divine Soul annihilated!

She had personally watched his cold corpse being thrown into the blood pool, which could dissolve all things!

How could a person survive under such circumstances?

And how could he appear behind her so silently, completely unharmed?!

【Oh, Senior Sister's expression, it seems my triumphant return has stunned her.】

【My acting still needs practice. This expression, a mix of shock and cuteness, is too adorable, it might make me break character.】

Lin Gou ranted wildly in his mind, but his face remained impassive, even adopting a profound, mysterious air.

He didn't have time to explain to Zhao Linger.

Because Black Fiend opposite him, his body's blood-red glow had intensified to its Peak, and a terrifying pressure, far exceeding the Qi Refinement Stage, was erupting from him!

He had reached the final critical moment of his Breakthrough!

“Now!”

Lin Gou no longer concealed himself, stepping out from the shadows behind Zhao Linger.

His powerful roar, like a thunderclap tearing through the darkness, violently exploded throughout the entire grotto!

“Black Fiend Devil Head! When you Cultivate the Blood God Cultivation Technique, every time you Breakthrough, your spiritual energy must first gather at the 'Tanzhong' pseudo-acupuncture point, beneath your third left rib!”

“This point is your death gate!”

This sharp shout, like a poisoned steel needle, pierced with unparalleled precision into the ears of Black Fiend, who was concentrating all his efforts on his Breakthrough!

Buzz—!

Black Fiend's body trembled violently, as if struck by lightning!

The terrifying aura that was rapidly escalating on him, as if gripped tightly by an invisible hand, suddenly paused!

His face, flushed red from the impending Breakthrough, instantly drained of color, becoming ashen white!

His bloodshot eyes glared fixedly at the source of the voice.

When he saw the person standing beside Zhao Linger, composed and at ease, as if strolling in his own backyard... the expression on his face instantly transformed from shock to extreme, as-if-seeing-a-ghost terror!

“You... you...”

His voice became shrill and distorted from excessive shock, like a gander whose neck had been squeezed.

“You can't still be alive!”

“I clearly already...”

He had clearly personally searched this guy's Soul!

He had clearly personally thrown his corpse into the blood pool!

The blood pool could dissolve even bone fragments; how could a dead man crawl out?!

And even reveal the greatest secret of his Cultivation Technique with a single word!

This secret, apart from himself, no second person under the Nine Heavens knew!

This was not resurrection!

This was a vengeful ghost come for his life!

It was a Demonic God that had crawled out of Hell!

“How do you know my weak point?!”

Black Fiend let out a shriek of utter horror, his Dao Heart completely collapsing at this moment!

In his mental chaos, the spiritual energy within him, which was on the verge of breaking through its Bottleneck, instantly spiraled out of control, like a wild horse unbridled, wildly surging through his Meridians!

“Pfft!”

He spewed out a mouthful of dark blood, his aura instantly weakening significantly.

Although Zhao Linger was still in immense shock, she was, after all, a favored Genius, and her combat instincts were ingrained in her bones!

The moment Lin Gou shouted that sentence, her body instinctively reacted!

This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!

“Go!”

She let out a clear shout, no longer holding anything back.

The White Rainbow Flying Sword emitted a clear, melodious hum, tracing a tragically beautiful arc in the air, piercing towards Black Fiend's third left rib with several times its previous speed, carrying all her spiritual energy with unparalleled precision!

“No!”

Black Fiend was terrified, and in his haste, could only barely muster a wisp of chaotic spiritual energy to form a blood-red shield, thin as a cicada's wing, in front of his chest.

Crack!

The shield shattered like thin ice under the sun.

The Flying Sword, its momentum undiminished, plunged fiercely into Black Fiend's chest with a squelching sound!

“Ah—!”

Black Fiend let out a bloodcurdling scream, his body flying backward as if struck by a battering ram, crashing heavily against the distant stone wall, dislodging countless gravel.

A gruesome bloody hole burst open on his chest, blood gushing out.

The powerful aura that was about to Breakthrough to the Foundation Establishment Stage rapidly dissipated like a punctured balloon.

The Breakthrough was forcibly interrupted!

Severely wounded!

Just one sentence, one instant, completely reversed the situation!

Zhang Wei, who was fighting desperately with the Puppets, was dumbfounded. He had forgotten to swing his broadaxe, staring blankly at Lin Gou, who walked with a leisurely pace.

His mind had completely turned into mush.

However, Lin Gou's performance had just begun.

He looked at the severely wounded Black Fiend, a calm smile on his face.

He slowly took out several yellow Talismans from his in my arms, as if they were useless scraps of paper.

These were the second-grade explosive Talismans rewarded by the System earlier, not very powerful, but abundant in quantity.

“Not only do I know your weak point.”

Lin Gou leisurely flicked the Talismans with his fingertip, his voice not loud, but it struck Black Fiend's heart again like a heavy hammer.

“I also know that the Formation core of your blood pool array is located at the third stone brick beneath your left foot.”

Upon hearing this, Black Fiend's pupils suddenly contracted to the size of a needlepoint!

He subconsciously looked down at his feet.

Indeed, there was an inconspicuous stone brick there.

It was a secret backup he had specially set up to facilitate his control of the grand Formation, extremely hidden!

How could he know?!

This thought sent a chill down his spine, as if he had fallen into an ice cave, even his Soul trembled.

“Go.”

Lin Gou flicked his finger, his tone as flat as if he were commanding his own dog.

Several Talismans transformed into streaks of yellow light, arcing in a cunning trajectory, bypassing the still-stunned Yao Beasts and Puppets, landing with unparalleled precision on the stone brick beneath Black Fiend's left foot.

In Black Fiend's eyes, for the first and last time, a genuine emotion called “despair” appeared.

Boom—!

A loud explosion!

The Talismans exploded violently at the designated location!

The stone brick, which served as the Formation core, was blasted to smithereens!

A chain reaction occurred instantly!

The entire blood pool grand Formation, like a stack of building blocks whose core had been removed, violently shook, then began to collapse!

The huge blood-red net covering the grotto let out a mournful wail of unbearable strain, shattering inch by inch, dissipating into a sky full of bloody light.

The boiling blood pool also seemed to lose all its power, rapidly falling into dead silence.

And the violent energy generated by the collapse of the grand Formation completely backfired onto Black Fiend, the Formation master!

“Pfft—!”

Black Fiend spewed out another large mouthful of black blood, his entire being seemingly drained of all vitality, his aura plummeting at a visible speed.

From the Peak of Qi Refining Stage 9, he directly fell to Qi Refining Stage 7, and was still continuously declining.

His injuries, coupled with the backlash of spiritual energy, made him unable to even stand steadily, and he slumped weakly to the ground, gasping for air like a dead fish out of water.

It's over.

Everything is over.

The situation, in just a few dozen breaths, was completely reversed.

The arrogant Devil Head who had previously regarded the three as ants, now became a true stray dog.

And the one who caused all this was the Alchemist he considered a “waste,” the one he had personally “killed.”

“Senior Brother Zhang, those three Demonic Wolves on the left are yours. Finish them quickly.”

Lin Gou's voice was calm and steady, as if he were the true commander of this team.

“Senior Sister, this old Devil Head is already crippled. Go take his head.”

“The remaining Puppets and Yao Beasts are nothing to fear.”

Lin Gou's voice was calm and steady, as if he were the true commander of this team.

His words seemed to possess a strange magical power.

Zhao Linger and Zhang Wei subconsciously acted according to his instructions.

Zhang Wei roared, suppressing the myriad thoughts in his heart, and swung his broadaxe, charging towards the few out-of-control, somewhat chaotic demonic Yao Beasts.

Zhao Linger took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the shock and questions that were almost overflowing in her heart. A cold light flashed in her beautiful eyes, and gripping her Flying Sword, she walked step by step towards the slumped Black Fiend.

“You... who exactly are you...”

Black Fiend looked at the approaching Zhao Linger, then at Lin Gou, who was calmly giving orders from a distance, his eyes filled with endless fear and venom.

His answer was Zhao Linger's cold and merciless sword.

Pfft.

A large, good head flew into the air, then rolled to the ground, still frozen with that unwillingness and fear.

As Black Fiend's head rolled to the ground, the suffocating evil aura within the entire grotto seemed to be instantly drained away.

The remaining Puppets and demonic Yao Beasts lost control, turning into a disorganized mess.

Zhao Linger and Zhang Wei joined forces and quickly cleared them out.

The battle was over.

The strong smell of blood still permeated the air, mixed with three heavy breaths.

Zhang Wei leaned on his broadaxe, gasping for air. He looked at Black Fiend's corpse on the ground, then at Junior Brother Lin, who stood beside him with a composed expression, as if he had just gone on an outing. His Adam's apple bobbed, and he couldn't utter a single word.

He felt his perception had been completely overturned.

Zhao Linger put away her Flying Sword. Her face was still pale, but her crimson beautiful eyes never left Lin Gou for a moment.

Her gaze was extremely complex.

There was shock, doubt, lingering fear, and even a hint of... dependence that she herself hadn't noticed.

“The remaining Puppets and Yao Beasts are nothing to fear.”

Lin Gou's calm voice broke the eerie silence.

He seemed to be the true commander of this team.

“Senior Brother Zhang, are your injuries serious?”

“Senior Sister Zhao, we should gather evidence and leave this place as soon as possible.”

His words seemed to possess a strange magical power, making the other two subconsciously begin to obey.

They took Black Fiend's head, whose eyes were still wide open in death.

And from the secret room that Lin Gou pointed out based on his “memory,” they unearthed mountains of ironclad evidence.

On the way back, the atmosphere was eerily quiet... Qingyun Sect, Mission Hall.

When the head of Black Fiend, the Peak Qi Refining Stage 9 Demonic Cultivator, was placed before the deacon.

The entire Mission Hall instantly fell silent.

Everyone looked at Lin Gou and the other two as if they were monsters.

And when Lin Gou reported his “deduced” intelligence to the Sect's higher-ups through the deacon, the real storm had just begun.

In the Council Hall.

Several Foundation Establishment Stage Elders, rarely seen on ordinary days, were now staring solemnly at the humble Inner Sect Disciple below.

“Lin Gou.”

The white-haired Elder at the head of the table spoke in a deep voice.

“Tell us again, how did you deduce from Black Fiend's Cultivation Technique and Immortal Cave layout that there is a vast Demonic Path organization called the ‘Blood Fiend Alliance’ behind him?”

All eyes focused on Lin Gou.

Lin Gou was already secretly overjoyed.

【How did I deduce it? Of course, I had an open-book exam and just copied the answer!】

On the surface, however, he showed a perfectly appropriate hint of contemplation and apprehension, speaking neither subserviently nor arrogantly:

“Reporting to Elder, this Disciple once read an ancient book called ‘Miscellaneous Records of Exotic Flames’ in the Pill Pavilion, which recorded a Demonic Technique similar to blood sacrifice, but its Formation nodes had three differences. This Disciple boldly speculates that what Black Fiend used might only be an incomplete or weakened version...”

“As for the ‘Blood Fiend Alliance’...”

Lin Gou paused, as if organizing his words.

“This Disciple discovered that the warning Formation outside Black Fiend's Immortal Cave subtly echoed the spiritual energy flow of the blood sacrifice grand Formation, like the prototype of some kind of mother-child Formation. This Disciple is dull-witted, but dares to guess that perhaps somewhere, there is an even larger ‘mother Formation’ remotely controlling or supporting this place.”

His words were well-reasoned and flawless.

He perfectly packaged the conclusions he obtained from Black Fiend's memory as his own Genius deductions.

“And this Disciple also deduced that the next stronghold the ‘Blood Fiend Alliance’ needs to be wary of is very likely in... Black Wind Swamp, five hundred li from our Sect!”

Upon hearing this, everyone in the hall was astonished!

Even the Sect Master, who had been meditating with his eyes closed, suddenly opened his eyes, which gleamed with sharp light!

Black Wind Swamp!

That was a forbidden zone that even Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivators considered dangerous!

The value of this intelligence was immeasurable!

Finally, the Sect's higher-ups announced on the spot.

In this mission, Lin Gou took the first credit!

The rewards were so generous that all Inner Sect Disciples were envious and furious.

Massive amounts of Sect Contribution Points surged into Lin Gou's identity jade token like a tide, the numbers on it jumping wildly, directly propelling him to the top ten on the Contribution Ranking.

Various rare Medicinal Pills, High Grade Magical Artifacts, and... the qualification to enter the third floor of the Scripture Pavilion and choose any Cultivation Technique!

Lin Gou's name, overnight, became a true legend within the Qingyun Sect's Inner Sect!

No longer just a lucky Alchemy Room Disciple.

But a resourceful, unfathomable... hero!

...Night, the moonlight was cool as water.

Outside Lin Gou's Immortal Cave, a faint knocking sound was heard.

He opened the door.

Under the moonlight, Zhao Linger stood there quietly in a moon-white long dress, her clear and cold demeanor seeming to merge with the moonlight.

“Junior Brother Lin.”

She spoke softly, no emotion discernible in her voice.

“May I... come in for a talk?”

Lin Gou silently invited her into the Immortal Cave.

The first thing Zhao Linger did was take out several Talismans from her Storage Pouch and, with extremely skilled movements, set up a sound-insulating barrier around the Immortal Cave.

A flash of spiritual light quickly passed, completely isolating the small Immortal Cave from the outside world.

After doing all this, she slowly turned around.

Her beautiful eyes, clear as autumn water, stared fixedly at Lin Gou without blinking.

Inside the Immortal Cave, there was a deathly silence.

Only the oil lamp on the table, its flame silently flickering, cast their shadows long and short on the wall.

Time, at this moment, seemed to freeze.

After a long while.

Zhao Linger finally spoke again, her voice very soft, but with an uncontrollable tremor from the depths of her Soul.

“In Black Wind Cave, I personally saw...”

“Your life force was completely severed.”

“Under Soul-searching, even Immortals cannot save you.”

She took a step forward, her beautiful eyes filled with extreme bewilderment and inquiry.

“Now, you can tell me.”

“You didn't die.”

“How did you do it?”

She paused, as if feeling that this question was not profound enough, then immediately asked the ultimate question that truly kept her awake at night, her voice as light as a dream:

“Or rather...”

“Junior Brother Lin Gou...”

“Are you... still human?”