He muttered complaints about Zhang Dabiao's carelessness, reminding him of the explicit instructions to be cautious of the蛊毒 (gu poison) before they left. Yet, despite his words, his hands were busy. Seeing that Zhang Dabiao was struggling to support Wang Defa alone, he stepped forward to help.
Unexpectedly, Zhang Dabiao, with quick reflexes, pushed him aside. Caught off guard, he stumbled and fell to the ground. With a look of confusion and surprise on his face, he looked at Zhang Dabiao. Before he could even ask why, Zhang Dabiao spoke first to explain.
"Don't touch him, look at his arm."
Following Zhang Dabiao's pointed direction, he saw that Wang Defa's wide left sleeve seemed to be stuffed with something, making it bulge. His exposed left hand was also a purplish-black color, swollen to the point where it looked like it might split open. A thin layer of skin gleamed with oil, and within it, something seemed to be moving.
"The three-eyed red toad emerged from the ground and didn't attack us. It just flew past his arm, and this happened. It's best not to move him."
Seeing this, he didn't say anything more. He brushed the dirt off his backside and, while running into the cave, shouted for Senior Wu for help.
Wu Yun frowned as she looked at Wang Defa's swollen, unrecognizable arm. She casually picked up some grass from the ground and poked Wang Defa's exposed arm.
The moment the grass touched his skin, it rapidly changed, then withered and turned yellow. Immediately after, a grotesque face suddenly appeared on his skin, and Wu Yun casually waved a stream of white smoke to repel the malevolent face.
"How is it? Senior, can he still be saved?" Zhang Dabiao asked Wu Yun, looking worriedly at Wang Defa, whose arm had swollen to the thickness of his thigh.
"This is a variant of the ghost蛊 (gu), the Black Silk Resentment蛊 (gu). It is refined by combining a dead person's hair with the蛊 (gu). This蛊 (gu) is incurable; he can only wait for death."
Wu Yun's voice sounded somewhat dejected. After dealing with the ghost, the black-robed figure, she had been eager to question Yue'er thoroughly. Why did she have ghost powder, and how did she know so much about巫蛊 (witchcraft and poison)? Because there were things even she, the saintess of the Wu Gu tribe, didn't know, yet Yue'er was intimately familiar with them, as if reciting a treasured list.
The outcome, as expected, given Yue'er's temperament, was that she would reveal nothing.
Wu Yun glanced indifferently in Yue'er's direction and delivered the death sentence to Wang Defa. "Unless she makes a move, I have no way to save him."
"This... is there no other way?" he asked persistently, unwilling to give up.
Yue'er's personality was too unpredictable. At times, she was mature and steady, remaining unfazed even when mountains collapsed before her. At other times, she became fickle and suspicious, changing her mind from one moment to the next, which was quite troublesome.
Wu Yun shook her head without speaking and walked to a corner, muttering something to herself. She seemed quite provoked by Yue'er, but he couldn't understand why she was dragging Wang Tie into it when she was the one feeling provoked.
"You have a good relationship with Yue'er, go and beg her! Otherwise, Old Wang will be in trouble," Zhang Dabiao said before he could speak.
"Why don't you go? You don't have a bad relationship with her either!" he muttered.
"I have a family. Besides, besides not laying a hand on you, who does she not lay a hand on? Your brother here wants to live a few more years, and I haven't left any heirs for the Zhang family yet. I don't want to die so soon. This difficult task should be left to you!" Zhang Dabiao directly gave him a reason he couldn't refuse, speaking in a pitiful tone. He didn't know why he was so afraid of Yue'er.
Life was at stake, and there was no time to delay.
He walked up to Yue'er. Before he could speak, he saw her raise her delicate hand and casually toss a porcelain bottle. He caught it in a hurry, looking at her with confusion.
"Cut open his wrist and smear the powder on the wound..." Having received the antidote, he said a word of thanks.
He picked up a simple stove and lit it. Zhang Dabiao brought over a stone, then used his mountain-splitting saber to prop up Wang Defa's arm on it. With a turn of the blade, he sliced open Wang Defa's wrist.
The expected gush of blood did not erupt. The cut skin and flesh peeled back. The muscle tissue, which should have been bright red, had turned black. Strands of something resembling hair were writhing furiously.
The moment the wound split open, it lunged towards Zhang Dabiao, who was wielding the knife. Due to the stove, it recoiled slightly. On the wound, it would intermittently weave into a human face, then transform into the shape of a toad, looking utterly disgusting. Sudan Novel Network.
He knew how potent this thing was. He suspended the porcelain bottle and poured its contents around Wang Defa's arm, simultaneously drawing it towards the fire. The bottle contained a black, oil-like substance, colorless and odorless, but it held immense allure for those black, hair-like蛊 (gu) worms.
As soon as the bottle was opened, they began to writhe, following the liquid towards the live stove. Upon contact with the fire, they were instantly ignited, releasing a large amount of black smoke and a pungent, eye-stinging odor.
After more than ten minutes, no more black threads emerged from Wang Defa's wrist. Blood began to flow from the wound, though it remained severely swollen. However, it was much better compared to before.
Zhang Dabiao bandaged his wound, forcibly gave him some water, and then laid him flat on the ground.
Out of the ten people who entered the mountain, only he, Zhang Dabiao, Wu Yun, and Yue'er remained relatively intact. Gui Jianchou had lost a finger, and Wang Defa had been poisoned by the蛊 (gu). If not for Yue'er, they would have all succumbed to the ghost蛊 (gu) in the black robe.
As for Gui Jianchou's subordinates, only Wang Tie was unharmed. Even though he was afflicted by Wu Yun's illusionary蛊 (gu), he endured it himself through his physical strength, without Wu Yun needing to lift the curse.
Therefore, he was taken away by Wu Yun for research. The occasional screams that emanated from him were chilling, and he couldn't imagine what gruesome things Wu Yun was doing to him.
"We're really unlucky. We're only halfway through the journey, and half the people are incapacitated. How are we going to rescue them later?" Zhang Dabiao kicked the still-unconscious Gui Jianchou, venting his anger.
He stopped Zhang Dabiao from continuing his outburst. It wasn't Gui Jianchou's fault. He usually dealt with ordinary malevolent spirits and ghosts, which he handled with ease.
When suddenly forced to confront unknown malevolent entities, he naturally appeared unable to adapt. While he understood, the road ahead still had to be traversed.
"If that's the case, then only the two of us can go," he said with a headache.
"It seems that's the only way? None of these guys are worry-free. They were shouting loudly when they came, but in the end, they're all more useless than the last."
Ignoring Zhang Dabiao, who continued to vent, he approached Yue'er. "Thank you very much this time. If you hadn't insisted on coming, we would all have fallen victim to the ghost蛊 (gu) in the black robe."
Yue'er looked him up and down twice, then closed her eyes and said, "No need for so many thanks. I am merely fulfilling the ten-year pact."
Hearing her mention the ten-year pact again, he felt a headache coming on. To this day, he still didn't know what the ten-year pact she spoke of was. What exactly had his father and the Fifth Prince agreed upon back then?
Just as he was about to ask her what the ten-year pact was, the howling of the mountain spirits could be heard again from outside the cave. Simultaneously, the duck-like voice of the ghost in the black robe also came from outside.
"If you want to deal with me, you're still too young. Hurry up and get out here, I've come to get revenge!"