256: Lei Xian

Little Stone looked at the Man with the Mustache who was called "Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord" and timidly spoke: "H-h-hello, Immortal..."

At that moment, another person emerged from deep within the rocky cavern. This person was also dressed in simple gray clothing, with a tall and slender build. He first called out towards the Hanfu Immortal who had brought Little Stone in: "Senior Brother, you're back."

On his back, he was conspicuously carrying a heavy, pitch-black iron coffin, secured to his body with thick chains. He nodded towards his Senior Brother and then walked directly out of the cavern, as if he had a task to attend to.

Seeing the eerie iron coffin, Little Stone shrank back in fear behind the Hanfu Immortal. The Hanfu Immortal gently patted the child's head and said to the Coffin-Bearer: "Alright, don't scare him. Go about your business. I'll 'handle' this child."

He deliberately used the word "handle," his tone casual, yet it sent a chill through Lu Jianchuan and Wei Ziqing, who were observing from the shadows.

After speaking, the Hanfu Immortal took Little Stone's hand and turned to walk towards another exit of the cavern, clearly heading elsewhere.

The Coffin-Bearer grunted an acknowledgment and was about to leave when the Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord on the stone bed suddenly spoke, his voice flat: "What about the person brought back earlier?"

The Coffin-Bearer stopped and respectfully replied: "Master, are you referring to that blind man? He has already been confined in the 'Quiet Room' in the Rear Cavern as you instructed."

The Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord gave a slight nod: "Good. Remember, 'feed' him regularly. Do not be negligent."

"Yes, Disciple understands. I will go prepare the 'feeding' now." The Coffin-Bearer acknowledged, then quickly left the cavern, carrying the heavy iron coffin.

The two groups went their separate ways. In the shadows, Wei Ziqing gave Lu Jianchuan a look, silently pointing in the direction the Hanfu Immortal had taken Little Stone, and then pointing deeper into the cavern—likely towards the so-called "Rear Cavern" where The Blind Man was imprisoned.

Lu Jianchuan instantly understood his meaning and decisively nodded. Without needing words, the two immediately split up to act.

Wei Ziqing slipped out of their hiding place like a ghost, silently tailing the Hanfu Immortal and Little Stone.

Lu Jianchuan took a deep breath, his gaze sharp as he focused on the depths of the cavern. He had to find and rescue the imprisoned blind man.

Seeing that the Coffin-Bearer had left, leaving only the seated Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord in the cavern, Lu Jianchuan knew the Opportunity was fleeting.

Without hesitation, he burst forth from his hiding place! His right fist, clad in silver armor, instantly gathered crackling, blinding electric currents. His entire body shot forward like a cannonball, his fist aimed directly at the Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord's unprotected back of the head!

He had been building up power for this strike, aiming to subdue the enemy in one blow, completely incapacitating him.

However, the Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord, who appeared to be sitting in meditation, reacted with astonishing speed the moment the fist's wind reached his body!

Without turning his head, his entire body bent backward sharply as if breaking, letting the lightning-wrapped heavy fist graze past the tip of his nose by a hair's breadth!

Lu Jianchuan's strike missed. The powerful momentum carried him forward several steps before he could stop, and he quickly turned to defend.

By then, the Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord had already calmly and steadily straightened up.

He slowly turned to face Lu Jianchuan, his voice betraying little surprise, only a hint of displeasure at being disturbed: "Who dares disturb the peace of my Immortal Cave?"

When his face fully turned to confront Lu Jianchuan, a sudden chill gripped Lu Jianchuan's heart!

The Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord's eyes were now completely different from their ordinary appearance glimpsed earlier.

At some point, his eye sockets had become densely packed with countless tiny, squirming pupils!

These pupils varied in size, some as fine as needle points, others like grains of rice, layered and crammed into the entire eye sockets. It was as if countless eyes had been forcibly compressed into two narrow spaces, all simultaneously reflecting Lu Jianchuan's figure. The sight was utterly bizarre and made one's scalp crawl.

The moment the Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord turned to question him, the collar of his garment at the back of his neck suddenly tore open. A giant centipede head, thick as an arm and colored dark red-purple, abruptly emerged! This centipede was completely different from the slender one that had transformed from the Hanfu Immortal's arm—far more ferocious. As its mouthparts opened and closed, it shot a stream of foul-smelling, ink-green venom directly at Lu Jianchuan!

Lu Jianchuan pushed off with his feet, swiftly dodging to the side. The venom grazed the edge of his armor, splattering on the rock wall behind him, immediately corroding it with a hiss and white smoke. He casually grabbed a few pieces of loose rock from the nearby wall and, without looking, hurled them with all his might at the Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord's face!

The Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord's eyes, filled with fragmented pupils, shifted slightly. His body made small, precise, and swift evasive movements as if predicting the attacks, and all the rocks missed. His abnormal eye structure clearly granted him far superior dynamic visual tracking and ultra-wide-spectrum perception; any subtle movement was difficult to escape his "gaze."

At the same time, the giant centipede that had emerged from the Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord's spine let out a sharp, piercing shriek. With this shriek, the ground seemed to come alive. Countless scorpions, Centipedes, venomous spiders, and other colorful poisonous insects surged frantically from rock crevices and soil, swarming towards Lu Jianchuan's feet like a black tide!

Lu Jianchuan leaped into the air, avoiding the first wave of the insect tide. While mid-air, his right fist already slammed down fiercely towards the ground!

"Boom—!"

A dazzling ring of blue electric current erupted from his point of impact, instantly sweeping across the ground for several meters in all directions. Amidst crackling explosions, the swarming tide of poisonous insects was scorched in patches by the high-voltage electricity, filling the air with a burnt, foul stench.

"Oh, so you're a Gu breeder too?" Lu Jianchuan shouted, his body moving again. He dodged another venom spray from the giant centipede and charged straight towards the Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord himself!

Relying on his terrifying dynamic vision, the Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord calmly shifted his steps, always managing to evade Lu Jianchuan's swift punches and kicks by a hair's breadth.

The giant centipede on his back acted like a third arm, sometimes spraying venom to interfere, sometimes lunging forward suddenly, its sharp mouthparts biting fiercely at Lu Jianchuan's joints or neck!

Lu Jianchuan's punch aimed at the opponent's abdomen was dodged. He then tilted his head to avoid venom, followed by a low sweep that was nimbly jumped over.

The centipede seized the Opportunity, lunging to bite again with lightning speed! This time, Lu Jianchuan neither dodged nor evaded. His left hand shot out like lightning, firmly grabbing a section of the giant centipede's body just below its head!

The centipede struggled violently, its mouthparts frantically opening and closing, trying to bite back. Lu Jianchuan exerted force with his left hand, attempting to tear the monster directly out of the Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord's body. Simultaneously, his right fist, charged with lightning, slammed towards the Immortal Lord, who was slightly slowed due to the centipede being restrained!

In that split second, the Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord made an extremely decisive, even ruthless, reaction—his back muscles writhed grotesquely as he actively severed the connection with the giant centipede, allowing it to be torn out by Lu Jianchuan! At the same time, he used the momentum to swiftly retreat, creating distance.

Lu Jianchuan's left hand felt suddenly lighter, having completely torn the still-frantically thrashing, severed-headed centipede from the opponent's body. Without hesitation, his left hand's five fingers clenched violently, channeling raging electric currents into the centipede's remaining form!

"Zzzzzt—Pop!"

Blinding electric light danced across the centipede's surface, charring it black and twisting it. After a few violent convulsions, it stiffened completely and ceased moving.

Lu Jianchuan shook off the charred centipede carcass from his hand, the electric light on his armored fist slowly fading. He looked up, warily eyeing his opponent.

The Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord raised a hand, lightly touching the skin on the back of his neck that had torn and rapidly healed. His tone actually carried a note of appreciation and inquiry:

"What pure and violent power... harnessing thunder, commanding heavenly might. For a Mortal body to wield such great power, you have already touched the edge of the 'Dao.'"

"This power is enough for you to be revered as 'Thunder God,' 'Thunder Immortal,' receiving the incense offerings of the masses."

The countless pupils crammed into his eye sockets shifted slightly, as if reassessing Lu Jianchuan. "Power, wealth, status, longevity... within reach before such power. Both you and I have transcended the mundane. We should be fellow Daoists, jointly pursuing the great endeavor of the Immortal Dao. Why must we fight and kill each other here?"

Hearing the other directly equate this protective power with desires for power and pleasure deepened Lu Jianchuan's disgust. He sneered coldly: "Hah, different paths do not make for common plans. I have no interest in your so-called 'Immortal Dao.'"

"Stubborn and unyielding." The Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord shook his head, a flash of pity and arrogance passing through his countless pupils.

"You are still trapped by Mortal sentiments, unable to see the true 'greater trend.' Those toiling masses, their lives brief as mayflies, their wisdom obscured like cattle and sheep."

"The meaning of their existence, for beings like us, is merely as abundant, easily obtained 'resources' or 'consumables.'"

"Survival of the fittest. The weak should naturally pave the way for the progress of the strong. This is the ultimate principle of heaven and earth."

"For them to be selected as 'Immortal Seedlings' or used for testing medicines or refining techniques is already the greatest value their lowly lives can contribute."

These words completely ignited Lu Jianchuan's fury. He stepped forward, his voice low with anger:

"Resources? Consumables? Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord, if I'm not mistaken, your so-called noble 'Immortal body' originally 'evolved' from a human form, didn't it? You were once no different from them! Why, after gaining power, is the first thing you do to degrade the very race you once belonged to as mere grass?"

The Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord's face twisted for an instant, as if a sore spot had been touched, before being covered by even stronger arrogance: "Evolution? Perhaps."

"But the noble Bloodline flowing within this lord is that of ancient Immortal deities! Destined to tower above all living beings! How can this be compared to those common Mortals who rely on scattered Opportunities and luckily obtain a bit of strange power? They are inherently lowly from the root, born to be trampled upon, to be used!"

"Bloodline? Nobility?" Lu Jianchuan laughed in extreme anger, shaking his head, his eyes turning cold and sharp. "I understand. From the very beginning, you've stopped seeing yourself as human. The 'Immortal' you pursue is nothing but a monster that has abandoned humanity and takes pleasure in trampling its own kind."

"Humanity? That is the shackle the weak impose upon themselves!" The Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord scoffed, countless pupils in his eyes simultaneously revealing disdain.

"Clinging to the Mortal world, harboring womanly compassion—how can one sever worldly ties and seek the true fruit of Immortal Dao? Someone like you, even with the power of thunder, will ultimately vanish into the long river of time like those Mortals, turning to dust! Ridiculous, lamentable!"

From deep within the cave, a teeth-grating, rustling sound rapidly approached.

A giant centipede, even more massive than before, with a jet-black, glossy carapace and emitting a nauseating stench, shot out like lightning, heading straight for the Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord's back!

"Urgh—!"

The Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord let out a low roar mixed with pain and pleasure. He didn't dodge or evade; instead, he slightly hunched his back. The newly appeared giant centipede's head, sharp as a drill, violently pierced into the center of his back and frantically burrowed inward!

The horrifying sounds of bone shattering and flesh squeezing echoed. The Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord's body trembled violently, yet his face bore a look of nearly maddened resolve.

"To exterminate an ungrateful 'Thunder Immortal' like you... forcing me to use this 'Immortal Gu' that hasn't been fully nurtured yet! The cost is high, but you will undoubtedly die here today!"

Lu Jianchuan's pupils contracted sharply. He clearly saw that as the giant centipede completely burrowed into the Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord's body, sections of twisted, pale-white human vertebrae were forcibly pushed out and expelled from the Hundred-Eyed Immortal Lord's back, accompanied by viscous plasma, falling into the dust!

In their place, the ferocious body of the giant centipede completely occupied the position of the spine. Its segments fused with the remnants of the Immortal Lord's vertebrae, its carapace forcibly adhering to the muscles and skin of his back, slightly squirming as if it had become his new, living "spine"!