The Wild Doctor and the Fair Beauty

’If I kill this man, that Poisonous Insect will be masterless!’

The thought suddenly surfaced in Jiang Xinghai’s mind. Without further hesitation, he deliberately aimed his attack at the Imperial Butterfly.

His full-powered strike, however, was aimed at Qiao Zhongkui.

"Hmph? How dare you, you scoundrel!"

Qiao Zhongkui noticed Jiang Xinghai’s intention. His life-bound Poisonous Insect absolutely could not come to harm!

However, he had gravely misjudged Jiang Xinghai’s true intentions.

Just as Qiao Zhongkui diverted his attention to defend his life-bound Poisonous Insect—

The deep blue light Jiang Xinghai had unleashed suddenly wheeled around in midair. Like a meteor in the night sky, it instantly streaked toward Qiao Zhongkui.

"What!"

Qiao Zhongkui’s expression changed drastically. Before he could react, the blue light made contact with his body.

An immense power surged from the blue light into his body, instantly tearing through his flesh and rushing straight for his soul.

"You nameless brat!"

Qiao Zhongkui let out a bloodcurdling scream, but the power inside his body did not lessen in the slightest.

Instead, as if it had found its source, it began to continuously devour his life force.

After all, Jiang Xinghai was already at the late stage of the Celestial Destiny Realm!

Under the might of his vast Inner Strength, Qiao Zhongkui’s body trembled like a withered leaf, threatening to crumble at any moment.

The hovering Imperial Butterfly, sensing its master’s peril, suddenly beat its wings and soared into the air.

Wisps of golden light emanated from its body, attempting to resist Jiang Xinghai’s Inner Strength.

But in the face of Jiang Xinghai’s immense power, it was helpless.

"No..."

Qiao Zhongkui cried out in despair. His body was gradually breaking apart under the force, yet he was still relentlessly trying to awaken the Gu Slaves.

Even in death, he would take someone down with him!

"You’re a spent force!" Jiang Xinghai said coldly.

CRACK... CRACK... CRACK...

Suddenly, a heart-stopping cracking sound came from the one hundred and eight rice vats that held the Gu Slaves.

SCREEE!!!

The shrieking of the Imperial Butterfly suddenly intensified as it seemed to want to return to Qiao Zhongkui’s body.

’Now’s my chance!’

Jiang Xinghai’s eyes and hands were swift. He surged forward, shooting a drop of blood from his fingertip into the Imperial Butterfly.

Then, with his strongest attack, he utterly obliterated Qiao Zhongkui’s body.

The Imperial Butterfly, as if having lost its soul, lay listlessly in Jiang Xinghai’s palm. It absorbed the drop of blood and gradually fell into a deep slumber.

And the one hundred and eight rice vats, which had been cracking and on the verge of bursting open, fell deathly silent.

Jiang Xinghai staggered to the ground, his heart still pounding as he surveyed the scene.

Fortunately, he had slain Qiao Zhongkui at the critical moment.

He had not only stopped the Imperial Butterfly from sacrificing itself to save Qiao Zhongkui, but also prevented the awakening of the Gu Slaves in the one hundred and eight rice vats.

"Haaa..."

He sat down cross-legged, swallowed several Gathering Essence Pills, and began to rapidly recover his strength.

It was a narrow victory.

At the critical moment, Jiang Xinghai had been forced to push his cultivation, allowing him to slay Qiao Zhongkui—a master at the Great Perfection of the late Celestial Destiny Realm. This effectively prevented the awakening of the Gu Slaves and contributed to social stability.

This battle also played a crucial role in Jiang Xinghai’s growth.

Furthermore, he had reaped a handsome reward: subduing an Imperial Butterfly on the verge of its final evolution!

Water can float a boat, but it can also sink it.

Everything has two sides.

With the death of its master, the Imperial Butterfly had become a masterless creature. Now that he had subdued it, he had a way to purify its malevolent energy and turn it into a powerful asset.

「One hour later.」

Jiang Xinghai had recovered seventy percent of his strength.

Looking at the one hundred and eight rice vats before him, he felt a headache coming on.

As far as he knew, when the master controlling the Gu Slaves died, the slaves themselves should not have been able to survive.

But when he swept his Divine Sense over them, he could still feel the auras within the one hundred and eight rice vats.

He had to devise a foolproof plan to completely annihilate these Gu Slaves.

Otherwise, if they were discovered by some Gu Master with nefarious intentions, they would likely become a plague upon the world.

CLANG!

Suddenly, the sound of a bronze circular plate being lifted came from the cellar entrance.

It was followed by an urgent call, "Young Master Jiang! Young Master Jiang, are you in there?!"

"Lao Deng?"

Jiang Xinghai recognized the voice. It was Lao Deng, the man who had recently brought him back from Myanmar.

"Young Master Jiang!"

Lao Deng jumped down first. He was relieved to see Jiang Xinghai unharmed.

But when he saw the rice vats, his expression changed drastically. "Young Master Jiang, that putrid stench is coming from the vats. Could they be the legendary... Gu Slaves?"

"Correct. They must be erased from this world," Jiang Xinghai said, slowly getting to his feet.

"We’ll have to use Hot Weapons!"

Lao Deng supplied the answer. "I once heard General Zhong mention Gu Slaves. She said the only way to completely destroy them is with Hot Weapons."

"Speaking of my Second Senior Sister," Jiang Xinghai’s expression darkened, "didn’t I tell you not to come looking for me?"

He had deliberately parted ways with Lao Deng earlier to avoid involving his Second Senior Sister, Zhong Yunman, who was in the War Department.

"General Zhong said that if anyone dares to bully you, she’ll annihilate them."

That was Lao Deng’s only explanation. He looked timidly at Jiang Xinghai.