Nine Dragons Saint Ancestor

Chapter 166: 166 Poisoning?

”Yun Xiao, there’s no use in denying it,” sneered Xuan Zhi. ”Bi Luo and I saw with our own eyes how you murdered Guan Hu. Even if you appeal to the Elders, you won’t escape the crime of killing a fellow Sect member!”

Xuan Zhi’s face lit up with a cold smile of satisfaction—the first since he’d known Yun Xiao—it was usually Yun Xiao who made him end up with a dusty and humiliated face.

”Fine then, let’s bring this matter to the Elders and let them decide how it should be judged.”

However, as Xuan Zhi’s voice fell, Yun Xiao’s eyes lit up. He seized the opportunity to speak since he knew the Sect Elders, including those from the Jade Pot Sect, were not unreasonable. There might be a glimmer of hope then.

Of course, Yun Xiao was not counting on Fu Du or other members from the Poison Vein. That old geezer would love nothing more than to see him fall into worse troubles only to be used as a guinea pig for poison trials again. What Yun Xiao was really banking on was the favorably impressionable Great Elder, Lu Zhan.

Yun Xiao believed that after his recent rescue of Song Tian, the Great Elder must have developed some interest in him. Knowing Lu Zhan’s personality, he didn’t seem like one who couldn’t differentiate right from wrong.

The incident today—the so-called ”act of violence” that Xuan Zhi and Bi Luo claimed to have witnessed—could easily be scrutinized to reveal the actual truth if examined carefully. After all, the peculiar death of Guan Hu, bleeding from all orifices, was definitely caused by severe poisoning.

Hearing Yun Xiao’s statements, Xuan Zhi was momentarily stunned, but then he heard Bi Luo next to him sneer, ”Such a trivial matter, why bother the Elders? As a senior brother, I can decide this myself!”

It seemed Bi Luo wasn’t foolish either; such an obvious frame-up would hardly fool the Elders, so he wouldn’t risk it.

In Bi Luo’s eyes, these conflicts among Outer Disciples were indeed minor issues usually handled by Inner Sect Disciples like him.

Take the triennial entrance assessment for Outer Disciples, wasn’t it overseen by Mo Qing and Yin Huan? In fact, the Sect didn’t hold the talents from the Outer Sect in high regard, unless someone extraordinarily talented like the early days Mo Qing emerged that would personally involve the Elders.

Yun Xiao had indeed been prominent in the previous two rounds of the Outer Sect’s competition, but precisely because of that, Xuan Zhi was desperate to eliminate him, even using Guan Hu’s life as bait—an absolute ruthless move.

”Yun Xiao, your nature is cruel and you’ve slain fellow Sect members. Today, I shall represent the Jade Pot Sect in cleansing our ranks, claiming your life for the one you took!”

Bi Luo also understood that Yun Xiao came from a mere Shang Family with nothing of value on him. Since he had already refined the precious Stone Heart Marrow, it was about time to take his life as well.

Hearing Bi Luo’s words, Xuan Zhi merely smirked and stepped aside, fully aware that this opponent far surpassed the Guan brothers and even those ranked within the top two of the Mortal List, Feng Hang and Shen Xiao. Bi Luo was significantly stronger.

Locked by Bi Luo’s overpowering Meridian Qi, Yun Xiao felt nearly breathless; the crushing force was too intense, beyond his ability to withstand.

No matter how proficient Yun Xiao’s techniques were or how abundant his past life’s battle experience was, when the disparity in Meridian Qi reached its limits, he couldn’t cope, just like Bi Luo right now.

For Bi Luo, eliminating an Outer Disciple weighed nothing on his conscience. He had not acted against Yun Xiao previously, merely lacking an appropriate excuse—but now Xuan Zhi had perfectly crafted that reason for him.

True to Bi Luo’s words, with the ”crime” of killing a fellow Sect member laid upon him, even if their plot was somewhat clumsy, as long as Yun Xiao was killed, the Sect Elders would not trouble him, the Inner Sect genius, over a dead man.

Thus, Bi Luo showed no mercy in his strike—this ignorant youth truly deserved more than death.

Whoosh...

A formidable blast of Meridian Qi turned Yun Xiao’s face pale, but fortunately, his reactions and speed were extremely quick, allowing him to narrowly dodge this lethal blow, which considerably soured Bi Luo’s expression.

Given Bi Luo’s cultivation several realms higher, he had assumed that one strike would suffice to fatally wound Yun Xiao, breaking his bones. Yet, this young man’s movement technique was so peculiar that the attack didn’t even scratch him.

If it were not for the presence of others, like Prince Xuan Zhi of the Empire, Bi Luo might not have minded, but now, his prestige was at stake, fueling the fury in his heart.

”Kid,” Bi Luo said, ”stop struggling. You won’t leave this courtyard alive today!”

A low shout issued from Bi Luo’s mouth, and soon after, streaks and wisps of green aura began to appear between his fingers. Sensing the eeriness of this aura, Yun Xiao, who had just narrowly escaped death, had his expression darken considerably once more.

This person was the Second Senior Brother of the Poison Vein in the Jade Pot Sect’s Inner Sect, and Yun Xiao had every reason to believe that each of Bi Luo’s attacks contained a potent toxin that ordinary people could hardly withstand. Therefore, he had no desire whatsoever to let those green threads touch him.

But was it something Yun Xiao could just think about and achieve? The green threads that attacked from Bi Luo’s hands seemed to have already locked onto his aura, following him relentlessly to whichever direction he dodged, leaving him no escape.

”Not good!”

After Yun Xiao took a leap to one side, his heart sank immediately, for he suddenly discovered one of the green threads had already wrapped around his right calf and began climbing upward.

Once this first green thread made contact with Yun Xiao’s body, it seemed as if ten other green threads had found a breakthrough. In just a few breaths’ time, Yun Xiao’s entire body was tightly enveloped by ten green threads.

”Whew...”

Seeing this scene, Xuan Zhi, who had been watching the battle, couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief. It was because, in recent times, Yun Xiao’s unpredictable methods had been unceasingly emerging, and he truly feared that even after Bi Luo made his move, this youngster might conjure some trick to escape.

Now it seemed that no matter how many tricks Yun Xiao had, there was ultimately a limit to the disparity in strength, and at least in Xuan Zhi’s view, this Second Senior Brother of the Inner Sect of the Jade Pot Sect had far surpassed that limit.

Xuan Zhi himself had some understanding of Bi Luo’s Poison Vein Skill, and seeing Yun Xiao completely covered by the green venomous threads, he knew that this fight was effectively finished.

Even Bi Luo, himself thought this way. The Poison Vein Skill wasn’t very effective against cultivators of the same rank or stronger, but it was doubly effective against those who were slightly weaker.

Furthermore, Yun Xiao’s strength, being at the late stage of the Meridian Gathering Realm, was incomparably inferior to Bi Luo. If under such circumstances Yun Xiao could survive amidst this devastating poison, then Bi Luo really would have to view him in a new light.

But what both Bi Luo and Xuan Zhi did not know was that at some point in time, Fu Du, the venerable Spiritual Rank Meridian Refining Master and teacher of the Second Senior Brother of the Inner Sect’s Poison Vein, had thought the same.

However, what happened later left even the Jade Pot Sect’s Second Elder in stunned disbelief. The numerous potent toxins that had been inflicted on Yun Xiao didn’t seem to harm this enigmatic youth in the slightest, right until the poison from the Three-legged Ice Crystal Toad.

These details were unknown to Bi Luo because of certain reasons, who was unaware of Yun Xiao’s immunity to a hundred poisons, and even less so was the Royal Family’s Third Prince, Xuan Zhi.

So, when those green threads entangled Yun Xiao, Bi Luo also stopped his movements, feeling that just to kill Yun Xiao with a single palm strike would be too lenient for the boy.

Bi Luo was extremely aware of the virulence of his own poisons. He believed that once the poisons activated in Yun Xiao, he would experience the utmost agony, and this pain would persist for one full time before ending.

For someone who didn’t regard himself highly at all, how could Bi Luo possibly have any shred of compassion? He simply wanted to see this ignorant youngster suffer immensely before dying.

But what both Bi Luo and Xuan Zhi did not know was that, at the moment those green threads wrapped around him, the Ancient Dragon Taming Technique that Yun Xiao was cultivating started to operate wildly.

This operation appeared to have activated the golden snake worm that had always resided inside Yun Xiao’s body. In a particular state, the toxins invading Yun Xiao’s body were now being drawn towards the golden snake worm under the influence of the Ancient Dragon Taming Technique.

Bit by bit, streak by streak, the green venom was devoured by the golden snake worm, making its golden radiance start to shine brighter. It was unclear whether this change was good or bad for Yun Xiao.

The fact was just as such: Even the potent toxins from the Spiritual Rank Meridian Refining Master Fu Du could not harm Yun Xiao in the slightest, much less the venom that Bi Luo was using now compared to that from the Seven-Colored Immortal Spider or the Black Demon Poison.

Regrettably, both Bi Luo and Xuan Zhi were unaware of what was happening inside Yun Xiao’s body. They were waiting to hear this poorly-dressed youth scream in agony, perhaps even begging for mercy. Such would satisfy their perverse desires immensely.

Because of this, Bi Luo missed the best opportunity to kill Yun Xiao. After a few moments had passed, they did not witness the moment of Yun Xiao’s agony; instead, an unwelcome visitor whom they really did not want to see appeared to them.

The golden snake worm inside Yun Xiao continued to covertly consume the venom, yet at the doorstep of this courtyard, a graceful figure had appeared unknowingly, dressed in black, even more unnoticeable than Bi Luo just now.