He Jijing stared in shock at Yan Shouyi before him. The young man radiated killing intent and malevolence, no less than the four of them who had just slaughtered the disciples of Longhu Mountain!
This brat was Yan Shouyi, the descendant of Lu Ban, and the son of Yan Chou!
He Jijing had no chance to speak, his throat already slit by Yan Shouyi's soul-cutting blade.
But He Jijing had no intention of giving up. With unconcealed unwillingness in his eyes, he reached for the poison pouch on his person.
However, in the next moment, He Jijing lost all sensation in his hands.
He looked down to see both his hands severed at the wrist, disappearing into the mountain of corpses he himself had piled up, lost within moments.
Wang Jiwan held a cleaver in both hands, blood still dripping from the blade, the very cleaver that had severed He Jijing's hands!
*Thump!*
He Jijing collapsed powerlessly to the ground, dying in such an abrupt manner.
Recalling how he had effortlessly killed dozens of Longhu Mountain disciples, even a Longhu Mountain elder, with his poisonous gas just moments ago, He Jijing was filled with deep regret.
After killing so many, how could he have capsized in a gutter, dying at the hands of a junior like Yan Shouyi?!
Alas, He Jijing could no longer reverse his fate, his pupils eventually dilating.
"He Jijing is dead!" Yan Shouyi shouted.
Everyone's gaze immediately shifted to Chen Tang, the owner of the human-skin drum.
Chen Tang held He Xiping's immortal rope, and after several failed attempts to strike the human-skin drum, he only came to his senses after He Jijing was already dead.
"Damn it!"
Chen Tang's face drained of color, and he was clearly flustered.
Liu Yiren appeared behind him, wielding a ghost-capturing staff, and with a sweeping blow, shattered both of Chen Tang's legs!
The immense force sent Chen Tang somersaulting through the air, landing on the ground in a heap!
Before Chen Tang could recover, a yellow shadow flashed past him, snatching the human-skin drum from his waist!
"Who?!" Chen Tang roared in fury.
Upon closer inspection, the creature that had snatched his human-skin drum was a scrawny yellow weasel!
Huang Sipi, with the human-skin drum in his mouth, cackled sinisterly. Zhao Yiyao stepped out from the side and beckoned to Huang Sipi, who then handed the human-skin drum over to Zhao Yiyao.
"Is this the terrifying human-skin drum?"
Without hesitation, Zhao Yiyao drew a dagger from her waist and plunged it fiercely into the human-skin drum!
From the cracks of the human-skin drum, countless dark wisps of qi surged out, transforming into tormented spirits that swarmed around Zhao Yiyao's head.
Heart-wrenching wails echoed from all directions.
"Those are the souls imprisoned by the human-skin drum," Agong said, frowning. "It's evident how many wicked deeds Chen Tang has committed over the years!"
With the human-skin drum destroyed, Chen Tang suffered a backlash, spitting up several mouthfuls of blood.
He glared at Yan Shouyi and the others with seething rage, cursing viciously, "You bunch of scoundrels, may you all die a terrible death!"
"We'll die a terrible death?" Long Feicheng roared with laughter. "Killing the two of you is acting on behalf of Heaven; the good karma we've accumulated is equivalent to doing dozens of good deeds!"
In a mere few seconds, He Jijing was killed, Chen Tang's human-skin drum was destroyed. These two individuals, ranked among the Seven Mansions of Xuanwu, were dealt with so cleanly and decisively.
He Xiping controlled the immortal rope, binding Chen Tang tightly and even gagging him.
The group gathered together, all breathing a sigh of relief.
While a sneak attack was despicable, it was incredibly effective. If they had confronted He Jijing and Chen Tang head-on, they would have certainly been no match for them.
But with everyone's cooperation, the two were caught completely off guard, allowing them to be dealt with so easily.
"Fortunately, it wasn't Lu Kui and Jiang Cheng'an left to guard the gate," Liu Yiren said with relief.
Lu Kui and Jiang Cheng'an possessed great individual combat prowess. He Jijing and Chen Tang, on the other hand, were not skilled fighters, which allowed the group to exploit a loophole.
"Agong, Luo Ning, you two check He Jijing's corpse."
After speaking, Yan Shouyi approached Chen Tang.
Chen Tang's gaze towards Yan Shouyi was now filled with utter hatred. After all, the human-skin drum was Chen Tang's lifeline; without it, he was nothing!
Even if he survived, he would be hunted by his enemies in the martial world, meaning Chen Tang was ultimately doomed.
"Old He, loosen Chen Tang's mouth. I have a few questions for him," Yan Shouyi said.
He Xiping complied, loosening Chen Tang's mouth. Chen Tang immediately unleashed a torrent of foul curses, insulting Yan Shouyi's entire ancestral lineage.
Finally, without even waiting for Yan Shouyi to ask, Chen Tang sneered and said,
"You will all die. No one here will survive today!"
"This guy really needs a lesson!" Long Feicheng said, rubbing his wrists. "Yan Ge, step aside. I'll teach this guy a good lesson!"
Chen Tang laughed heartily. "You brat, you still don't know your fate even when death is at your doorstep!"
"Exploring Yin Dragon Claw Hand!"
"Ah—"
"Heh heh heh, how's that? Experienced my might, haven't you?" Long Feicheng said with a wicked grin.
Chen Tang curled up on the ground, cold sweat beading on his forehead, his body convulsing uncontrollably.
He realized that his past sins seemed insignificant compared to the depravity of the wretched individual before him.
In that instant, Chen Tang felt as if he had experienced the combined agony of being plunged into a sea of knives, a mountain of flames, and a cauldron of oil.
Chen Tang said weakly, "You will all die... you will all die... let's go to hell together!"
Even at this juncture, Chen Tang continued to speak this way, and Yan Shouyi sensed something was amiss.
He noticed that Chen Tang's eyes kept flickering towards He Jijing's corpse.
Yan Shouyi turned and said, "Agong, Luo Ning, He Jijing's corpse..."
Before he could finish, Luo Ning suddenly noticed something was wrong: "He Jijing's corpse is swelling!"
Everyone was startled. Looking closely, they saw He Jijing's abdomen inflating like a balloon, rapidly growing to the size of a woman in her tenth month of pregnancy, as if something was about to burst out!
Recalling Chen Tang's earlier words, Yan Shouyi made a decisive command: "Quick, everyone, into the dungeon!"
The group dared not delay and scrambled towards the dungeon!
After only a few steps, they heard an explosion behind them!
Turning back, they saw He Jijing's corpse erupting, even creating a deep green mushroom cloud!
The deep green gas began to spread. Chen Tang, who was left behind, was the first to be affected. He merely took a breath, his eyes widening in agony, struggling. In less than three seconds, Chen Tang died, his body rapidly decaying!!
"He Jijing's corpse is poisonous?!" Liu Yiren exclaimed in shock.
Luo Ning and Agong felt a chill of fear. If they had been a moment slower, they too might have inhaled He Jijing's poisonous gas and met the same fate as Chen Tang!
The corpses of the Longhu Mountain disciples outside the dungeon were soon enveloped by the toxic gas. They rapidly decayed, and even the surrounding plants withered quickly.
This demonstrated the terrifying potency of He Jijing's poison.
The group ran into the dungeon and, looking back, saw that the toxic gas had already reached the dungeon entrance. If they didn't quickly close the dungeon door, the gas would surely invade!
"Close the door!" Yan Shouyi gritted his teeth, making the decision.
The heavy gate of the Longhu Mountain dungeon was specially constructed. It was easy to open from the inside, but forcing it open from the outside would be a formidable task.
Once they closed this door, it meant cutting off their retreat. If they encountered Kang Jinlong and the others later, they would have only two options: fight, or die!
But if they didn't close the door, with the toxic gas in front of them, they were also heading for certain death!
He Xiping and Wang Jiwan, one on each side, exerted their combined strength to firmly close the heavy dungeon gate!
Yan Shouyi stood in the center of the gate, watching the exit gradually seal, his gaze resolute.
"There is no other path."
"We can only move forward."