Chapter 76 Battle Against Ghosts

Qi Huan roared until he was hoarse; the exasperation in his voice could be heard from far away.

Chen Mu, on the other hand, paced forward leisurely with his arms crossed, though his Face showed even deeper confusion.

"Help? Help with what? Chief Qi, aren't you doing quite well?"

"I don't think this Ghostly Creature will be able to break through your precious armor anytime soon. If you add a bit more effort, you might even be able to counter-kill it."

"With my meager cultivation, wouldn't rushing in rashly just cause trouble for you?"

Chen Mu said, his Face full of mockery.

"Chen Mu... you..."

Qi Huan turned back and glared, but the Ghostly Creature seized the opportunity to smash a claw fiercely into his back; the armor immediately let out a groan of unbearable stress, and its light dimmed a little more.

He could no longer care about his Face, almost screaming.

"Chen Mu! Stop spouting nonsense; I am tactically pinning it down! I am buying time for you. Can't you see that this monster has had all its aggression focused on me?"

Chen Mu looked suddenly enlightened.

"So Chief Qi was using tactical pinning? Hey, pinning it down to the point where you can only take the opponent's attacks with your Face—your tactics are quite fancy!"

Qi Huan was choked by the retort and almost got hit by a gust of cold wind from the Ghostly Creature, forcing him to hurry and defend.

When he spoke again, his tone was still stubborn, but it softened a bit, carrying obvious anxiety.

"Stop talking nonsense! Chen Mu, I know you have skills. I just took advantage of it and drove a Soul-Breaking Nail into its body so it cannot fully etherealize. It is slowly forcing the nail out. Hurry up! Give me a hand."

Chen Mu continued to watch the show.

"Oh? As expected of someone from the Prefecture, your resources are rich. You even have treasures like the Soul-Breaking Nail. But I see your armor is also a treasure; I estimate it shouldn't be a problem to hold on for another hour or so."

"How about this: you keep pinning it down, and I'll go check if Liu Ziming's leg injury is better, and grab some breakfast. When dawn comes and the Yang Qi rises, maybe this Ghostly Creature will just dissipate on its own."

Chen Mu mocked, and after speaking, he actually turned around, making a gesture to leave.

Qi Huan was completely broken, speaking without thinking.

"Chen Mu, dammit, you really dare to leave? I'm telling you, if you refuse to help, before I die, I will use a secret method to send a message to the Prefecture, saying that you, Chen Mu, colluded with the Ghostly Creature to kill me. I'll drag you down with me before I die!"

He said this hurriedly and viciously, carrying a threat of desperation, but it also exposed that he was at the end of his rope.

"Oh?"

Chen Mu laughed even more heartily, this time directly stepping out the door.

"Since that's the case, I definitely can't help. Anyway, since I'm going to be framed by you, I might as well run away now; maybe I can save my life."

"Chief Qi, keep fighting; I'll be off now!"

"Don't!"

Seeing Chen Mu really walking out, Qi Huan's voice cracked from shouting.

At this moment, what Face? What dignity? In the Face of life and death, it's all nonsense!

"Chen Mu, Brother Chen, it was me, your brother, who was wrong. How could I frame you? You are my savior!"

"As long as you are willing to act, I, Qi Huan, swear that I will never betray you in this life. If I violate this oath, may I be struck by lightning and die a horrible death!"

Chen Mu raised an eyebrow and touched his chin, seemingly weighing the truth of these words.

The Ghostly Creature clawed again, and Qi Huan immediately spat out a mouthful of blood. His aura had withered to the extreme. He could no longer care about any scheming and used his last strength to roar.

"Chen Mu, Big Brother Chen! Just help me once. In the future, whether in Yunmeng City or the Prefecture Demon Suppression Division, I will follow your lead."

This shout was truly sincere and miserable.

From "bastard" to "Brother Chen," to "Big Brother Chen," and from threat to begging, the speed of Qi Huan's attitude change was a textbook example of being able to bend and stretch.

Chen Mu finally turned around, with a hint of reluctance on his Face.

"Hey, Chief Qi, what are you saying? You and I are colleagues and should support each other. Why talk about dying together earlier? It hurts our harmony."

As he spoke, he slowly drew the long sword from his waist.

The soul-slaying blade was still hidden in his sleeve; this was his trump card, and he would never expose it easily.

Seeing that Chen Mu was finally going to act, Qi Huan was so excited that tears were almost falling.

However, at this moment, a burst of killing intent, far colder and more violent than before, instantly shrouded Chen Mu.

"Kid, you really dared to come back. Heh... that's good; it saves me the trouble! But since you're here, stay here forever!"

The instant the Ghostly Creature finished the last word, its originally solid body suddenly became ethereal and transparent. In the next instant, it had crossed several zhang of space, aiming straight for Chen Mu's heart.

It actually cast aside Qi Huan, who was about to collapse, and instantly switched its primary kill target to Chen Mu, determined to kill the ant that had repeatedly ruined its good deeds in one fell swoop.

Chen Mu dared not be arrogant, and alarm bells rang in his heart.

This angry attack from the Ghostly Creature was several times faster and more powerful than when it attacked Qi Huan just now.

Obviously, it had completely regarded Chen Mu as a must-kill target, or had perceived some potential threat.

In the blink of an eye, Chen Mu suddenly activated the Divine Void Step under his feet, his figure splitting into three, flashing rapidly in different directions.

The Ghostly Creature was long accustomed to this, aiming straight for the center, ignoring the afterimages on both sides.

Seeing that the ghost claw had reached his chest, he suddenly turned back, the long sword at his waist suddenly unsheathed, and he blocked the ghost claw head-on.

This was not the Heaven-Slaying Sword Drawing Technique, nor was it any powerful Cultivation Technique; it was just the most ordinary block, but it was infused with the Protective Aura of the Middle Stage of the Dao Entry Realm.

"Clang!"

As weapons clashed, Chen Mu's arm shook violently, his hand split open, and his whole body was like being hit by a heavy blow, retreating seven or eight steps back.

Barely stabilizing his body, his Qi Sea was already churning, and feeling a sweet taste in his throat, he vomited a mouthful of blood.

Chen Mu kept his head down, his shoulders shrugging slightly, and his hand holding the sword was trembling, looking as if he were enduring great pain.

"Truly powerful."

His voice was hoarse, revealing despair and unwillingness.

Qi Huan, standing to the side, saw Chen Mu being knocked back and vomiting blood from a single blow, and his heart sank to the bottom.

While internally cursing Chen Mu as trash, he was also overcome with a sense of despair.

It was all over; this kid, Chen Mu, couldn't be counted on at all.

The Ghostly Creature seemed particularly satisfied with Chen Mu's reaction; what it wanted was the pleasure of crushing him.

It slowly raised a ghost claw, with black Qi lingering on its fingertips, and in the next moment, its figure became ethereal again, preparing to launch a fatal blow.

Just at the moment before its figure turned from ethereal to solid to launch the attack, Chen Mu, who had been keeping his head down and appearing seriously injured, had a startling cold light burst from his eyes.

Now!

Chen Mu stepped forward violently with the Divine Void Step, his three afterimages merging into one, raising his speed to the limit.

"Heaven-Slaying Sword Drawing Technique!"

He shouted angrily, but secretly drew the sharp soul-slaying blade from his sleeve.

In this sword strike, Chen Mu held nothing back, pushing the spiritual power and Sword Intent of the Heaven-Slaying Sword Drawing Technique to the limit.

He wanted the Ghostly Creature to believe that this was his last, most desperate, life-or-death strike.

As expected, a trace of mocking satisfaction appeared in the Ghostly Creature's eyes.

It did not dodge or evade, instead actively exposing its chest. At the moment the sword passed through, its body became ethereal and transparent again.

"Idiot! Such ordinary attacks are completely ineffective against me!"

The Ghostly Creature laughed wildly, its body rapidly turning from ethereal to solid, and taking advantage of the moment Chen Mu's defenses were wide open, it reached fiercely toward his Dantian.

"Die!"

This claw was fast and fierce, and it looked like it was about to rip Chen Mu open.