Chapter 591: Delivering Death

The night was deep and heavy.

Fei Shentong, clad in black robes and a black cloth over his face, arrived at Poison Dragon Slope.

He glanced at Dongfeng, a flicker of disdain crossing his face.

That mere Lu Feng? One of his paper men could handle him.

The real threat to the Fei family now was Fang Xing.

"I've already stepped down as patriarch. Whether it's the ambush on the Qiao family's caravan or this destruction of Poison Dragon Slope—if it leaks, I alone will bear the blame…"

The righteous path values face and decorum, but only a little.

All they need is an excuse.

If the truth leaks, Fei Shentong has already stepped down—that's the perfect excuse!

Even if no one believes it, it doesn't matter.

He reached the edge of the ten-thousand-mu bamboo sea, his eyes cold.

"Go!"

One by one, paper men landed, each clad in paper armor, wielding paper bows, knives, swords—each capable of battling Qi-Condensation cultivators.

The Qiao family's caravan was ambushed this way, then slaughtered without a trace.

One by one, strange paper men resembling young boys and girls entered the bamboo grove—suddenly, a hissing sound arose.

Puff!

A cloud of black poison mist emerged; the paper men within lasted only moments before being corroded, emitting piercing screams.

Hiss!

Accompanied by the sound of snakes, a black serpent thicker than a water barrel surfaced, its vertical pupils fixed on Fei Shentong, its aura unfathomably deep.

"Qi-Condensation Ninth Layer?"

Fei Shentong gasped: "A black serpent at Qi-Condensation Ninth Layer? This Poison Dragon Slope hides its depths well…"

Yet deep inside, he felt even more relieved he'd decided to destroy Poison Dragon Slope before his death.

Otherwise, who knew how far it might have grown?

"Go!"

He slapped his flying rat pouch; more paper men appeared.

Among them were paper wolves, paper tigers, paper eagles—dense and countless, forming an army.

A shocking aura surged skyward, forming a formation.

Though the black serpent was Qi-Condensation Ninth Layer, origami arts were famed for enabling the weak to overcome the strong if one didn't care about life!

Fei Shentong had already sacrificed his life for this power—he'd killed Qi-Condensation Ninth Layer Qiao Wuyong, so what was one mere beast?

Puff! Puff!

Paper men nocked arrows; colorful projectiles rained down, piercing the black serpent's scales, leaving deep wounds.

"Sssss!"

The black serpent, in pain, retreated into the bamboo grove.

"Don't think you can escape!"

Fei Shentong sneered, ready to pursue.

Suddenly!

His vision brightened—he saw four paper men carrying a paper palanquin flying out.

"Bold bandits! How dare you invade my bamboo grove and injure my sacred island guardian beast!"

Fang Xing uttered a soft command; a "Natural Healing" spell settled upon the black serpent.

Its wounds vanished instantly; it coiled its body and hissed at Fei Shentong, as if cursing him…

"Fang Xing…"

Seeing the true target, Fei Shentong grew even more excited, raising his hand.

Shhh! Shhh!

Paper shurikens, paper knives, paper arrows materialized—dense as rain, crashing down.

But Fang Xing merely whistled, pulling the stopper from his waist flask.

Dozens of frost-white ants emerged, flapping wings, soaring into the air, spewing freezing mist, forming walls of ice.

The paper weapons froze midair, then shattered into countless icy shards…

"Huh? This is insect control? Such vicious cold insects… Wait—you haven't even practiced origami arts?"

Fei Shentong's eyes turned red.

He finally understood: Fang Xing's strength lay entirely in beast taming and insect control; aside from those four paper palanquin bearers, there wasn't a trace of origami cultivation!

"Hah! Origami arts shorten your lifespan… Who'd bother with that?"

Fang Xing smiled, a sly twist to his lips: "Why are you so frantic? Let me guess… aren't you that dying Fei Shentong?"

Fei Shentong froze—he hadn't expected to be recognized so directly.

He tore off his face cloth and sneered: "So what? You haven't cultivated origami arts—today is your death day!"

Fei Shentong deeply resented it—why did only he suffer shortened life, now facing death?

While Fang Xing looked young and vibrant?

"Enough talk!"

Fang Xing yawned: "Fine… since you've come all this way to deliver your life…"

His eyes flashed emerald; a wooden spike appeared in his hand, flicked lightly.

Puff!

The spike became a green streak, piercing through three layers of paper shields, paper armor, and magical defenses, embedding itself in Fei Shentong's chest.

"You—?"

Fei Shentong was stunned: "Foundation Establishment?"

"Huh?"

Fang Xing clapped his hands; the paper palanquin immediately moved, racing toward a spot dozens of zhang away.

Rip!

The impaled Fei Shentong became expressionless, transforming into a paper man with a hole through its chest, slowly drifting to the ground.

—Paper substitute body! Dozens of zhang away, Fei Shentong fled desperately, coughing blood: "Impossible! How could he break through to Foundation Establishment?"

Even with a Foundation Establishment artifact, breakthrough isn't guaranteed.

Otherwise, Foundation Establishment cultivators live over two hundred years; the Fei family used to trade Dragon King Ginseng Essence for one such artifact every sixty years—so even accounting for combat losses, they should have more than one Foundation Establishment cultivator.

In truth, because Foundation Establishment breakthrough was so difficult, the Fei family had only one—Fei's ancestral patriarch—and when he died, the family would collapse.

"I am the Fei family's traitor!"

Though Fei Shentong fled instinctively, his heart was filled with sorrow.

What use was survival for a dying man?

And Fang Xing, now Foundation Establishment, would surely destroy the Fei family!

The thought pierced his heart like a knife.

Hiss!

In the night, another hissing sound came—not from the black serpent.

Fei Shentong halted, seeing two lantern-like flames in the darkness.

No mistake—this was the content!

Hiss!

As the flames drew near, he realized they were a pair of terrifying vertical pupils!

It was a mountain python far larger than the black serpent—over ten zhang long, no tiny claws on its belly, but two small bumps on its head.

Wild Shape—Mountain Python Form!

A terrifying aura, nearing Foundation Establishment Mid-Level, washed over Fei Shentong, making him gasp for breath.

Fang Xing's Wild Shape core template had two forms: aquatic as a small dragon, terrestrial as a python!

Now on land, it was naturally the mountain python form!

And since his Druid level had risen, the python's cultivation was no weaker than a Foundation Establishment Mid-Level cultivator—possibly even stronger.

"Another Foundation Establishment beast?"

Fei Shentong had seen the water dragon, but couldn't link this mountain python to the one that killed the Fei patriarch.

He could only desperately summon his last reserve of paper men.

These weren't childlike figures—they were men, women, old, young.

A few faces looked strangely familiar to Fang Xing.

"These paper men… are they special soul-paper constructs? Fei Shentong truly dares to do anything…"

Puff!

He spat out a stream of poison mist, instantly corroding several paper men.

Then, a startling sight appeared.

After the paper men burned, faint firefly-like lights emerged from them.

Within each glow, a paper face twisted in agony, screaming and wailing…

"Huh?"

Fang Xing saw one of the living souls—it was Qiao Wuyong!

"So you were the one who wiped out the Qiao family caravan? Why? Your Fei family lacks Dao Foundation spiritual items… Qiao Wuyong was just about to forge his Dao Foundation… Did you seize his Dao Foundation opportunity?"

Fang Xing flicked his tongue, emitting a human voice.

"How do you know my family lacks Dao Foundation spiritual items?"

Fei Shentong's expression changed: "No… you can speak? No… your voice… it's you?!"

His eyes bulged as if to burst; he tried to say more, but then saw Fang Xing flick his tail.

Boom!

Sand and stones sprayed outward; a deep pit appeared on the spot, along with some dark red stains.

As for Fei Shentong, he had vanished without a trace.

Without their master's control, the ordinary paper dolls froze in place, but the living soul paper dolls went mad, scrambling for the bloody flesh fragments, as if trying to cram them into their mouths—yet they couldn't fit a single piece, ending up smeared with crimson blood across their faces…

'The living soul paper dolls… turned on their master?'

Fang Xing certainly wouldn't spare them—he spat another blast of poison fire, sending each living soul paper doll to the afterlife.

Whoosh!

He reverted to human form and gathered up the ordinary paper dolls one by one.

Though he wasn't the original user and his power was greatly reduced, he still possessed the strength of a Foundation Establishment beginner to mid-stage cultivator.

After Fang Xing departed, Lü Feng barely arrived atop Dongfeng, staring at the massive pit and the ash-filled sky, shuddering involuntarily…

…

Within a ten-thousand-mu bamboo sea.

"Pfft… broke bastard!"

Fang Xing opened Fei Shentong's flying rat pouch—besides a stack of paper dolls and paper money, he found nothing else, and felt thoroughly cursed.

But upon reflection, it made a strange kind of sense.

After all, Fei Shentong's lifespan was nearly spent, his vital energy withered; even if given ten Dao Foundation spiritual items, he was doomed to never achieve the Dao Foundation.

So that Dao Foundation spiritual item was most likely given to the Fei family.

'Ninety-nine percent it's with Fei Wu!'

Fei Shentong's massacre of the Qiao family caravan—Fei Wu, the new head, must have known!

'A single trip, one Dao Foundation item—this deal's worth it… Besides, when I later announce my breakthrough to Dao Foundation, I can use this as an excuse?'

Fang Xing's mind stirred; he waited a moment longer, spun a few lies, and sent Lü Feng packing, then transformed into an owl and flew toward the Fei family estate.

…

The Fei family mansion on the edge of Qingli Marsh.

The family head's reception hall.

"Shentong… should be at Poison Dragon Slope by now, right?"

A single lamp flickered; Fei Wu, the new head, hadn't slept yet, gazing toward Poison Dragon Slope: "Shentong… the family won't forget you. As for your other requests—forget them. I'm still young; I'll break through to Foundation Establishment ninth stage before the sixty-year limit, then ascend to Dao Foundation and revive the Fei family!"

"Heh… if Fei Shentong heard that, he'd be deeply moved."

A mocking laugh suddenly echoed.

"Who? Who's there?"

Fei Wu froze in terror, then felt a power far beyond Foundation Establishment settle upon him—his face turned utterly despairing: "A Dao Foundation cultivator?!"

(End of Chapter)