209: Poisoning

Ghost Sand was executed, and the camp was destroyed.

Chen Linsheng quickly cleaned up the battlefield, securing the important material evidence—the Sand-Patterned Token, the ledger, and several secret letters found in Ghost Sand's tent—close to his person. Li Qinger suppressed her nausea and searched among the corpses for any survivors who might carry intelligence, eventually finding only two peripheral members of the Sand Shadow Bandits who were severely injured and unconscious; she bound them after performing simple hemostasis.

“This place is not suitable for a long stay.” Chen Linsheng looked around the messy camp; the smell of blood and burnt flesh lingering in the air was spreading with the wind. “Since the White Lotus Sect members were in contact with Ghost Sand, I fear they have backup plans. Take the captives and retreat quickly!”

The group dared not delay. Zhao Tiezhu picked up a captive in each hand, Chen Linsheng and Zhou Tong opened the way in front, Li Qinger supported from the middle, and A Ying brought up the rear. The team quickly evacuated the oasis, rushing toward the direction of the canyon they had come from.

The night was as dark as ink, with no light from the stars or moon. The sound of the wind in Devil City wailed behind them, as if countless wronged souls were seeing them off.

They ran for over twenty miles in one breath until the sky began to brighten slightly, and only then did the group stop to rest in a leeward rocky hollow.

Li Qinger immediately treated the wounds of the injured. Zhao Tiezhu's left shoulder had been grazed by a stray arrow during the earlier melee; the wound wasn't deep, but the arrow was poisoned, and it had already turned a greenish-black. Zhou Tong also had a saber wound on his arm. Li Qinger's techniques were skilled as she cleaned, applied medicine, and bandaged the wounds, then took out two pale green Detoxification Pills from her rattan box for the two to swallow.

“The poison in Tiezhu's wound is ‘Black Scorpion Tail,’ which is consistent with my previous estimation. Senior Brother Zhou's saber wound is not poisoned, but we must guard against Tetanus.” Li Qinger's voice was calm, but fine beads of sweat seeped from her forehead; the continuous fighting and healing had clearly taken a significant toll on her.

Chen Linsheng handed over a water skin. Li Qinger took it and had a small sip, then her body suddenly swayed slightly, and her face turned even paler.

“Qinger?” Chen Linsheng noticed something was wrong.

Li Qinger shook her head and forced a smile. “It’s nothing, perhaps just some exhaustion...” Before she finished her sentence, she suddenly coughed up a mouthful of dark red blood. The blood splattered on the sandy ground, actually making a faint “hissing” sound and releasing a trace of black gas!

“You’ve been poisoned?!” Zhou Tong blurted out. He remembered that during the melee earlier, Li Qinger had lunged to push him away, blocking a poisoned sleeve arrow shot from a tricky angle for him. The situation was chaotic then, and he only thought the arrow had been deflected by Li Qinger's clever technique, never imagining she had actually been hit!

Li Qinger slumped to the ground, her breathing suddenly becoming erratic, and an ominous greenish-gray layer quickly rose over her face. She swiftly took several silver needles from her bosom and pierced them into several major acupoints on her chest like lightning, temporarily suppressing the spread of the poison, though her fingertips had already begun to tremble slightly.

“It’s ‘Heart-Corroding Bone-Eroding Powder’...” Her voice was weak, yet she still maintained the calmness of a physician. “A secret poison of the White Lotus Sect. Within three days, the victim's heart Meridians gradually rot, and their bones and muscles turn soft. Without a unique antidote, they will eventually turn into a pool of pus and blood... I have already taken a universal Detoxification Pill, but it can only delay it, not eradicate it.”

Chen Linsheng knelt down, held her cold wrist, and sent a strand of Hunyuan Qi and Blood inside. He felt several strands of cold, sinister, and foreign energy frantically eroding her Meridians; wherever they passed, the Qi and blood stagnated, and the vitality dimmed. He tried to drive them out with the aura of the Great Sun True Flame, but the poison was extremely stubborn, like maggots on a bone. As soon as the power of the True Flame made contact, the toxicity would craftily disperse into even finer Meridians, making it difficult to eradicate.

“Is there a cure?” Chen Linsheng asked in a deep voice, a cold light flickering in his eyes.

Li Qinger closed her eyes for a moment and slowly said, “I need three main ingredients to concoct the antidote: ‘Red Sun Fruit,’ ‘Ice Soul Lotus Heart,’ and ‘Thousand-Year Earth Marrow Milk.’ Red Sun Fruit is extremely Yang and can restrain the cold nature of the poison; Ice Soul Lotus Heart clears the mind and protects the Meridians, keeping the spiritual terrace clear; Earth Marrow Milk harmonizes the medicinal properties and repairs damage... but all three are rare treasures, and in such a short time...”

Before she could finish, she suddenly opened her eyes, looked at Chen Linsheng, and whispered, “Senior Brother Chen, in the hidden compartment of my rattan box, there is a ‘turtle breath pellet.’ If things become impossible... please let me take it. It can induce a state of suspended animation for seven days, delaying the poison's onset, which might provide a slim chance of survival...”

“What nonsense are you talking!” Zhao Tiezhu said urgently. “Even if I have to search through all of Northern Xinjiang, I’ll find the medicine for you!”

Chen Linsheng pressed Li Qinger's shoulder, his gaze firm. “Nothing will happen to you. Since we brought you out, we will bring you back.”

He stood up and said to Zhou Tong, “You and Tiezhu protect Qinger here and set up a concealment. I will go nearby to find some herbs to temporarily suppress the poison. A Ying, you...”

Before he could finish, A Ying, who had been silently standing guard at the entrance of the rocky hollow, suddenly turned her head. Her grayish-white eyes looked toward the southeast, and she silently raised the longbow in her hand!

Almost at the same time, Chen Linsheng sensed it too—

Over a dozen cold, obscure, and malicious auras were circling around at extreme speed! Two of the auras were particularly powerful, having shockingly reached the Jiaojin Realm, and the Cultivation Techniques they practiced were extremely sinister, originating from the same source as the White Lotus Sect members encountered before, but several times more pure!

“On guard!” Chen Linsheng barked, instantly shielding Li Qinger behind him.

The next moment, around the rocky hollow, a sinister wind rose abruptly!

The originally thin morning light seemed to be snuffed out by an invisible hand, and the area within a hundred feet suddenly fell into a bizarre gloom. Gray-black mist seeped out from the sandy ground and rock crevices, quickly filling the air. Within the mist, the faint sounds of shrill crying and murmuring could be heard, disturbing one's mind.

“Yin Fiend Spirit-Trapping Formation...” Li Qinger's weak voice carried a hint of alarm. “A Formation that only official Deacons of the White Lotus Sect can set up... It can suppress Qi and blood, generate illusions, and trap and kill those within...”

The mist surged, and more than ten figures loomed within it. The two leaders were both dressed in black robes embroidered with pale lotus patterns, their faces hidden in the shadows of their hoods, revealing only the lower half of their pale faces. The one on the left was tall and thin, holding a White Bone Banner with black gas swirling around the surface; the one on the right was short and stout, holding a curved black short blade in each hand, the blades flowing with dark red blood-light.

Behind the two, twelve white-robed cultists stood in specific positions, each holding Talismans or bone implements, chanting incantations to maintain the Formation's operation.

“Tsk tsk... I didn't expect that trash Ghost Sand to actually fall by your hands.” The tall, thin Deacon's voice was shrill, like metal scraping against metal. “But that's fine; it saves the sect the trouble of cleaning up. Hand over the items on Ghost Sand, as well as the Great Sun Burning Heaven Physique Legacy, and perhaps we can let you die a quick death.”

The short, stout Deacon licked his lips, his gaze greedily sweeping over Chen Linsheng. “The Sect Leader is very interested in that Great Sun True Flame... Kid, if you are willing to cripple your own cultivation and offer the flame seed, this seat can make the decision to leave your corpse intact.”

Chen Linsheng's face was cold, his internal Hunyuan Qi and Blood already quietly circulating to the Peak, and the spark of True Flame within his heart fire flickered brightly. He whispered, “Zhou Tong, Tiezhu, protect Qinger well. Try to stay in place and do not take the initiative to attack. A Ying, find an Opportunity to break the Formation.”

“A deathbed struggle.” The tall, thin Deacon sneered and waved the bone banner. “Activate the Formation!”

“Wooo—!!”

The gray-black mist suddenly became several times thicker! Countless distorted ghost shadows pounced from the mist, letting out silent shrieks as they directly attacked everyone's spiritual terrace! At the same time, a heavy and cold pressure squeezed from all directions, as if they had fallen into the deep sea; the circulation of Qi and blood immediately became sluggish, and even breathing became difficult.

Zhao Tiezhu roared, raising his shield to protect Li Qinger. The pale gold Qi membrane of his Golden Robe Skill lit up, but it flickered unsteadily under the erosion of the Yin Fiend Qi. Zhou Tong gritted his teeth and threw out several explosive copper coins, which detonated in the mist, but they only caused the ghost shadows to briefly dissipate before more swarmed in. Li Qinger forced her sickly body to scatter a handful of evil-dispelling powder; the powder collided with the Yin Fiend Qi, making a “sizzling” sound and barely clearing a small space.

A Ying drew her bow and notched an arrow, firing a Demon-Breaking Arrow at the cultists maintaining the Formation. However, after the arrow entered the gray mist, its speed strangely slowed, its trajectory shifted, and it was eventually swatted away by the short, stout Deacon with a casual swing of his short blade.

“Within the Formation, I am the Dominator!” The short, stout Deacon grinned hideously. His body blurred, and he actually transformed into three afterimages that were hard to distinguish between real and fake, pouncing toward Chen Linsheng from different directions! The black short blades in his hands drew shrill arcs of light, the blade wind smelling of blood as it aimed for three vital points: the throat, the heart, and the Dantian!

A sharp glint flashed in Chen Linsheng's eyes. Although the Crane Ape Illusory Wind Steps were slowed by thirty percent under the Formation's suppression, they remained exquisite. His body was like a willow catkin in the wind, sliding through the gap between two blade lights in a split second, while simultaneously striking with his right fingers in a Blazing Sun Hunyuan Palm toward the third afterimage!

“Boom!”

The crimson-gold palm force collided with the black short blade, and the Yin Fiend Qi clashed violently with the True Flame power, producing a “hissing” sound like boiling water being poured on snow. The short, stout Deacon groaned and retreated two steps, his short blade actually scorched with faint white marks. An expression of shock appeared in his eyes: “Such pure Yang power!”

Seeing this, the tall, thin Deacon repeatedly shook his bone banner, and the ghost shadows in the mist condensed into several pitch-black chains that coiled toward Chen Linsheng's limbs like venomous snakes. Runes flickered on the chains, which could actually absorb Qi and blood! At the same time, the other cultists chanted in unison, and the pressure of the Formation increased again. A thin layer of frost had already formed on the surface of Zhao Tiezhu's shield, Zhou Tong's movements became increasingly sluggish, and Li Qinger even bled from the corner of her mouth as the poison began to fight back under the stimulation of the Yin Fiend!

“Senior Brother Chen... don't worry about me...” Li Qinger's breath was dying, yet she still tried to push away Zhao Tiezhu, who was protecting her. “You all... go quickly...”

Chen Linsheng caught a glimpse of her greenish-gray face and her resolute eyes, and an uncontrollable rage exploded from the bottom of his heart!

The Sand Shadow Bandits, who pillaged merchants and slaughtered the innocent for private gain, were detestable! The White Lotus Sect, who snatched legacies and practiced evil arts, deserved to be killed even more! Now, this group of cowards who hid their heads and tails actually dared to set up a Formation to surround and kill them, wounding his companion, snatching his Opportunity, and cutting off his path to life!

Did they really think he, Chen Linsheng, was a soft persimmon that anyone could squeeze?!

“Roar—!!!”

A long howl pierced through the clouds and cracked the rocks! The aura around Chen Linsheng's entire body erupted!

Within the heart fire vortex, that spark of Great Sun True Flame burned with unprecedented brightness! Crimson-gold light radiated from his body, actually burning the invading Yin Fiend chains until they snapped inch by inch! His Hunyuan Qi and Blood were like a river bursting its banks, surging and roaring in his Meridians. The Five Viscera Absorbing Essence Art was pushed to its limit, and the Five Elements Origin Qi rotated, providing him with an endless source of power!

The suppression of the Yin Fiend Spirit-Trapping Formation was, at this moment, forcibly broken open with a gap by this extremely Yang, extremely firm, and unified Hunyuan aura!

“What?!” The tall, thin Deacon's face changed drastically. “How could he...”

Chen Linsheng gave him no time to think. He stomped his feet on the ground, his body soaring into the air like a cannonball, temporarily escaping the core suppression area of the Formation! While in the air, he joined his palms together and then suddenly split them apart—

“Blazing Sun Hunyuan Palm: Twin Suns Patrol the Heavens!”

Two crimson-gold, scorching palm prints, like two miniature suns, billowed out from his palms! One palm blasted toward the tall, thin Deacon and the several cultists behind him, while the other palm lunged straight for the southeast corner of the Formation—right where a node of the Yin Fiend Qi circulation was located!

“Arrogant!” the tall, thin Deacon barked. He waved his bone banner frantically, and countless ghost shadows gathered into a massive black shield to block in front of him. The short, stout Deacon also rushed back to help, his twin blades crossing to slash at the other palm print.

However, they underestimated Chen Linsheng's determination and power at this moment, and even more so, they underestimated the natural restraint of the Great Sun True Flame against Yin Fiend evil Qi!

“Boom—!!!”

The first palm print hit the black ghost shield like a hot knife through butter, melting through the ghost shield instantly! The palm print's remaining force did not diminish, slamming into the tall, thin Deacon's chest! He let out a blood-curdling scream as his sternum collapsed and his black robe charred. He spat out blood and flew backward, the bone banner in his hand breaking into several pieces!

The second palm print accurately struck the Formation node! The three cultists maintaining the Formation here bore the brunt of it, being blown away by the scorching airwave before they could even scream, their bones and tendons snapping. The Formation's operation suddenly stalled, and the gray-black mist fluctuated violently, revealing a brief opening!

At the very moment the Formation loosened—

“Swish!”

A pitch-black arrow, as if it had been waiting for a long time, shot out silently from the shadows of the rocky hollow, moving faster than the eye could catch! The arrow was not aimed at any Deacon or cultist, but at another hidden node in the northwest corner of the Formation—A Ying had actually managed to figure out the other weak points of this Yin Fiend Spirit-Trapping Formation within that short time, relying on her extraordinary perception and archery talent!

“Thud!”

The arrow entered the ground, and a silver light exploded on the arrowhead. The Yin Fiend circulation at that node suddenly became chaotic!

The balance of the Formation was completely broken!

“Now!” Chen Linsheng landed and, without stopping, lunged straight for the heavily injured tall, thin Deacon! He would take his life while he was down!

The short, stout Deacon's eyes were nearly splitting as he tried to intervene, but Zhao Tiezhu recklessly charged forward, slamming his massive shield. Although he was shaken until he spat blood, he successfully blocked him for a moment. Zhou Tong also gritted his teeth and threw all his remaining hidden weapons to interfere with his movements.

The tall, thin Deacon had just struggled to get up when he saw a figure burning with crimson-gold flames already before him! Chen Linsheng's right fist was tightly clenched, and on the knuckles, the True Flame condensed and compressed, turning into a point of brilliant white that was blinding to the extreme!

“Mountain Burning Sea Suppressing Seal: Starfall!”

A punch, simple and direct, yet containing the will to suppress everything and the blaze to incinerate evil, crashed down!

“No—!!!” The tall, thin Deacon only had time to raise both arms to block.

“Crack... Boom!”

His arm bones shattered, and the fist force penetrated his body! The brilliant white True Flame power exploded inside him, instantly incinerating his Meridians and scorching through his internal organs! His entire body was like a set-alight rag doll, flying backward and slamming into the rock wall. By the time he slid down, he was already a charred corpse, with only small sparks flickering on his remains.

A Jiaojin Realm Deacon, dead!

“Old Bai!” The short, stout Deacon's heart turned cold with fear upon seeing this. He never expected that this team, which seemed like turtles in a jar, could explode with such terrifying power in a desperate situation, and even see through the Formation and kill one of them in such a short time!

Seeing Chen Linsheng's cold gaze already turning toward him, and catching a glimpse of that silent archer in the distance nocking another arrow with its cold tip pointed right at his brow, the short, stout Deacon dared not hesitate any longer.

“Blood Lotus Escape!”

He suddenly bit the tip of his tongue and spat out a mouthful of essence blood. The essence blood transformed into a bizarre blood-colored lotus in the air, enveloping his body. The lotus flashed with blood-light, and both the person and the flower suddenly blurred, turning into a blood shadow that broke through the remaining mist at an incredible speed, shooting toward the southeast horizon and vanishing without a trace in the blink of an eye.

It was actually an escape technique that burned essence blood and damaged one's Foundation!

With one leader dead and the other fled, the remaining White Lotus cultists immediately scattered like monkeys after their tree had fallen, fleeing in panic.

Chen Linsheng did not pursue them. The continuous outbursts, especially that final “Starfall” punch that condensed the True Flame Origin, had taken a huge toll on him. He forcibly suppressed his churning Qi and blood and the burning pain coming from his Meridians, quickly walking back into the rocky hollow.

Both Zhao Tiezhu and Zhou Tong were significantly injured, but their lives were not in danger. A Ying walked out from her hiding place, her face also somewhat pale; clearly, those two arrows earlier had cost her a lot.

As for Li Qinger, she had already fallen unconscious, the greenish-gray air on her face thickening, and her breath as weak as a flickering candle in the wind.

Chen Linsheng leaned over and once again checked her with his Hunyuan Qi and Blood, his expression becoming increasingly heavy. Under the stimulation of the Yin Fiend Qi and the churning of her Qi and blood during the fierce battle, the toxicity of the Heart-Corroding Bone-Eroding Powder had already penetrated deep into her organs and was slowly eroding her heart Meridians. Even with the silver needles sealing her acupoints and the turtle breath pellet delaying it, she probably wouldn't last much longer.

He had to find the antidote as soon as possible, or find a way to temporarily and completely suppress the poison.

His gaze swept over the mess on the ground, eventually landing on the charred corpse of the tall, thin Deacon, his eyes narrowing slightly.

Perhaps... these White Lotus Sect Deacons would be carrying something useful?

He stood up and walked toward the remains.