Chapter 732: This is also a mount

Woo-woo-woo!

The horn sounded. Although the soldiers on the large ship were quite terrified to see Bai Suzhen transform into a snake demon, they still ran in an orderly fashion, drawing their weapons from afar and nocking arrows to their bows, aiming directly at the small boat. They waited only for the order to turn the two people on the small boat into sieves.

"It's actually a snake demon!?"

Standing on that tall, multi-storied ship was a man draped in purple-red robes, possessing an eerie temperament, wearing a high crown, and with his face veiled in purple gauze. His long, narrow eyes narrowed, filled with excitement and greed.

Beside the man in purple was a strange beast, similar to a crane but with three red-crowned crane heads and standing over two zhang tall. There was a saddle on its back; it was likely the man in purple's land transport.

"A giant python that has attained such cultivation is a truly great tonic. This one alone is worth a hundred thousand small snakes. If I swallow it, my internal energy will surely advance by leaps and bounds. Even if I can't compare to my master, I fear I won't be far off. By then, it will be time for someone else to sit in this National Master's seat."

This man in purple was the head disciple under the National Master and practiced the same cultivation art as the National Master, so he could also absorb the essence of snakes to improve his energy. He had been ordered to capture an assassin, but he had not expected the assassin to be a snake demon, which delighted him beyond measure. His gaze swept over the surrounding officers and soldiers, and murderous intent surged in his eyes.

He wanted to swallow the snake demon's essence alone; the news could not be leaked, so the soldiers on this ship could not be left alive. Although it was a bit troublesome, he had no choice but to do so.

The man in purple looked down from his high position as the small boat approached. His gaze swept over Bai Suzhen, and a trace of satisfaction appeared in his eyes. His voice was feminine and soft, his tone carrying a hint of disdain: "I am acting under the orders of the National Master to apprehend the assassin. If you two are willing to surrender, there is still a glimmer of hope. Otherwise... hmph... I will make you wish you were dead."

His tone was full of threats.

As for the two people on the boat...

"Hey, stop looking at me like that."

Bai Suzhen was being scrutinized by Yu Liancheng's unbridled gaze and felt very uncomfortable. She felt as if the other's gaze had substance, rubbing and climbing over her body, and her fair, tender skin felt as if it were about to break out in goosebumps.

"The love of beauty is universal; do not take offense, do not take offense."

Yu Liancheng smiled slightly, his gaze still looking at Xiaobai without any concealment.

To be fair, having lived for more than half his life, this was truly the first time he had seen a snake demon.

Moreover, the current half-human, half-snake Bai Suzhen had a bit more enchanting wildness than her human form.

Hearing this, Bai Suzhen's face turned slightly red. After all, in her memory, whenever humans saw a snake body, they would immediately be scared out of their wits and flee in a panic.

How could anyone be like this, not only showing no fear but also staring incessantly?

But soon, the murderous look on Bai Suzhen's pretty face grew heavier. Her snake tail swept out violently, kicking up a fierce gale, and ripples rose across the entire water surface: "You can look if you want, but what are you touching for!"

"Curiosity is universal; do not take offense, do not take offense."

Yu Liancheng dodged, reluctantly withdrawing his right hand. It had to be said that this snake body felt very cool to the touch; it must be very refreshing to touch in the summer.

Seeing the man and snake who completely disregarded him, the man in purple was furious and shouted sharply: "Fire arrows and kill them!"

"

Amidst the "peng-peng" sounds of bowstrings vibrating, hundreds of archers drew their bows and fired in unison. In the continuous sound of wind-breaking, arrow after arrow tore through the air, emitting sharp whistles, dense and overwhelming as they pressed down toward the small boat. As for the man, he was not in a hurry; in the hand he held behind his back, several golden, shimmering Talismans were held between his fingers.

Bai Suzhen looked at the sky full of arrows and snorted coldly. She flicked her snake tail toward the water surface, and a wall of water five or six zhang high suddenly exploded from the river, blocking the arrows one after another. Her snake tail swept across the air again, whipping up a gale, and the surrounding boats were swept by the strong wind, the soldiers falling into the river against their will.

Compared to this snake demon that had attained cultivation, ordinary soldiers were indeed very weak.

"Let me handle it."

Yu Liancheng reached out and pressed his hand on Bai Suzhen's fragrant shoulder: "They are just ordinary soldiers, doing their jobs for a wage."

"What do you want to do?"

"Gift them a great dream." Yu Liancheng smiled slightly, poured himself a cup of Peach Blossom Brew, and then tossed the wine pot toward the sky.

With a "bang," the wine pot shattered, but the wine inside did not scatter; instead, it was instantly evaporated, turning into a faint, misty wine fragrance that diffused in all directions, covering the entire river surface along the current.

Upon smelling the wine, the soldiers became muddled and swayed, as if they had drunk fine wine. They felt their vision blur, and suddenly, it was as if they had returned to the best moments of their lives, unconsciously immersing themselves in it. Sounds of thuds were incessant as the soldiers fainted one by one, their mouths seemingly still carrying a trace of nostalgia.

Bai Suzhen had previously drunk a cup of Peach Blossom Brew and naturally knew the power of this Peach Blossom Brew, but even so, she could not help but be startled. When she looked at Yu Liancheng again, there was an extra layer of vigilance, and she decided never to drink a cup of this guy's wine again.

"What an eerie spell. This person is likely not easy to deal with, plus that snake demon that has attained cultivation..." The man in purple was also about to fall into the heavy illusions, but he did have cultivation after all; he bit his tongue hard and sobered up.

A sharp glint flashed in his eyes, and he threw the Talismans he had been holding behind his back at Yu Liancheng and the other. These Talismans were immensely powerful and could easily blast a large crater into a city wall.

After using the Talismans, the man in purple did not wait to think; he flipped onto the Three-Headed Crane, pulled the reins, and the Three-Headed Crane let out a strange cry, suddenly stomping through the multi-storied ship and running toward the mountain forest.

Boom, boom!

Yu Liancheng opened a Qi wall, blocking the Talismans.

"Little Daoist, you are not allowed to leave."

Bai Suzhen leaped onto the shore. She only had some memory fragments in her mind, and this Daoist seemed to know something, so she naturally could not let him leave easily.

She swept her tail, and a blue stone the size of a millstone on the shore flew out, carrying irresistible force, smashing toward the little Daoist.

The man in purple did not look back at all, but one of the Three-Headed Crane's heads turned around, and its sharp crane beak pecked, turning the blue stone into countless fragments.

But the immense force on the blue stone was no small matter, actually causing the Three-Headed Crane to stumble and slow down.

It was also at this moment that Bai Suzhen had closed the distance between them to within five zhang, and was getting closer and closer.

"Heh, snake demon, you've fallen for it."

The man in purple suddenly turned around, a cold sneer curling his lips, and his hands formed seals in succession. With the man as the center, an Array with a diameter of about ten zhang suddenly appeared on the ground. Countless chains composed of tiny runes emerged from the Array, instantly binding Bai Suzhen's snake tail, arms, and slender waist.

Bai Suzhen channeled her demon power and struggled violently, but she could not break free at all; instead, she felt her whole body becoming increasingly weak.

"Heh, a demon is a demon, truly stupid." The man in purple looked at Bai Suzhen and revealed a triumphant smile. Although he had run away earlier, it was partly to make his opponent lower their guard, thinking he had been scared out of his wits, and partly to secretly activate the Array disk and set up a simple Suppressing Demon Array.

This snake demon had indeed fallen for it.

"Now, only one is left, much easier to deal with..."

As the man in purple was thinking this, he suddenly paused slightly, because Yu Liancheng had stepped into the Array at some point, yet he was completely unaffected and moved freely. Could this guy not be a Demon? But even if he wasn't a Demon, it shouldn't be this easy. Immediately after, he saw the other person wave his hand casually, and the chains composed of tiny runes instantly shattered.

Bai Suzhen had not yet recovered from the injuries sustained during the assassination, and now that her demon power was being drained by the Array, her delicate body went limp, and with a soft "ying-ning," she fell into Yu Liancheng's arms.

Yu Liancheng laughed: "Look, I touched your snake tail out of curiosity first, and you wanted to hit me. I am more generous; you can lean on me or touch me however you like, it's all fine."

"I, I didn't." Bai Suzhen braced her body and tried to push Yu Liancheng away.

"Don't be polite, I already said I am very generous." Yu Liancheng wrapped his arm firmly around Bai Suzhen's slender waist. Through the thin white gauze dress, he could clearly feel the exquisiteness and smoothness of her waist; this was a genuine "water-snake waist."

Bai Suzhen's pretty face flushed slightly, and she was about to break free when she heard Yu Liancheng say: "Alright, don't be naughty, I'll heal your wounds." The hand on her waist became hot and rolling, and a warm current surged in, making her whole body feel warm and incomparably comfortable, to the point where she didn't even want to move her hands.

It was so comfortable that she let out an irrepressible, lazy moan from her red lips.

When she realized it was inappropriate, she hurriedly covered her mouth with her hand, her face turning even redder, and even her crystal-clear earlobes had a hint of a blush.

"You are not a monster, you are a human?!" The man in purple looked at Yu Liancheng in disbelief.

"That's right, when did I ever say I was a monster?" Yu Liancheng looked at the man in purple with confusion.

The man in purple coldly scolded, "As a human, you dare to collude with the monster kind; I shall sentence you to death."

Yu Liancheng said in surprise, "Isn't the one you are riding a monster? Are you planning to sentence yourself to death as well?"

The man in purple snorted coldly, "This is my mount."

Yu Liancheng tightened his grip on Bai Suzhen's waist and said righteously, "This is my mount."

Bai Suzhen was both ashamed and angry; had this fellow intended to make her his mount from the very moment he picked her up?

The corner of the man in purple's eye twitched, and he roared, "Presumptuous!

"

"Oh? Who are you calling presumptuous?"

The next moment, Yu Liancheng appeared instantly beside the three-headed bird.

The three-headed bird let out a strange cry, its crane beaks piercing the sky, stabbing toward him like three sharp swords.

Yu Liancheng raised an eyebrow, and a vast, surging mental power materialized and charged out; the three-headed monster bird suddenly felt as if it were caught in an endless flood. It was torn to pieces by the rushing torrent, blood and viscera splattering—a sight too horrible to look at.

The man in purple reacted extremely quickly, spreading his arms and soaring into the air.

Unfortunately, he was still a beat too slow.

Yu Liancheng reached out and grabbed at him through the air, like a cloud dragon extending its claws. The man in purple's eyes widened instantly, as if gripped by an invisible giant hand by the throat, and he was lifted before Yu Liancheng.

The man in purple's eyes widened in disbelief.

With his top-tier cultivation of the current age, he had been captured by the opponent without even being able to launch a single move or offer any resistance.

Even his magic power was suppressed within his dantian because his meridians had been sealed, making it impossible to use; it was simply inconceivable.

Even his master, Taiyin Zhenren, likely did not possess such astonishing means.

"Should I kill you, or should I kill you?" Yu Liancheng smiled slightly.

The man in purple gritted his teeth and said with a show of bravado, "You... I am a disciple of the National Master. My master is not only a top-tier cultivator in the world but also on good terms with Jinguang Sect of the Profound Heart Orthodox Sect, and is one of the leaders of the righteous path in the world. If you harm me, I fear that even if you flee to the ends of the earth, you will not escape my master's pursuit. If you let me go today, I will owe you a favor, and from now on, we shall leave each other in peace."

Yu Liancheng laughed, "But right now, everyone on the boat is intoxicated in a dream of the void; who would know you were killed by me?"

The man in purple said hurriedly, "I have the 'Xuan Yin Seal' planted by my master on me. Once I am killed, this Xuan Yin Seal will transfer to you, and you will never be able to wash it off for all eternity. My master can sense the Xuan Yin Seal from thousands of miles away and will hunt you down to the ends of the earth. So, it is best if you let me go."

"Xuan Yin Seal? Oh, is this the thing you are talking about?"

Yu Liancheng made a grasping motion with his five fingers, generating a powerful suction. Amidst the man in purple's howling, a purple light shone brightly from his chest. A moment later, a mysterious seal flew out from his chest.

"How is this possible?!" The man in purple gasped for air, looking at the 'Xuan Yin Seal' held casually in Yu Liancheng's hand, shocked beyond imagination.

"Whether it is me or Xiaobai, we both have many questions we want to ask you. But I can guess that you won't be honest, so I will try another method."

Yu Liancheng turned his head and smiled at Bai Suzhen, "Xiaobai, may I borrow your Hairpin?"

"What are you going to do?" Although Bai Suzhen did not understand his intent, she still took off the Hairpin and handed it to Yu Liancheng.

"Just an experiment. Your memories were lost because of this Hairpin, so I suspect that besides absorbing magic power and true essence, it can also absorb a person's memories."

As he spoke, Yu Liancheng thrust the Jade Hairpin into the center of the man in purple's brow.

"Ah!

"

Chang'an.

Taiyin Temple.

Smoke curled up from a bronze tripod, filling the hall with fragrance. Everything around was extremely quiet; occasionally, the sound of an insect from outside the hall intruded, making it seem all the more lonely and vast.

A Daoist wearing Daoist robes was refining pills.

This Daoist had a very peculiar appearance; his frame was large, but he was unusually thin, as if he were bones wrapped in human skin. His skin was a greenish-black, and his face was equally ferocious and terrifying, resembling a wicked ghost.

No matter who saw such a face, they would likely think he was a Demon or evil spirit, rather than the Datang National Master, Taiyin Zhenjun.

Suddenly, Taiyin Zhenjun opened his eyes, a cold light shooting from his pupils: "The Xuan Yin Seal is Broken? What kind of expert has taken action?"

Before he could ponder further, a young Daoist boy ran in, panting slightly: "Abbot, His Majesty summons you to the palace, saying it is to discuss the 'Extreme Joy Banquet' in half a month."

"Understood."

Taiyin Zhenren rose to his full height.

When he stepped into the main hall, the face that had resembled a wicked ghost now had plump skin; with crane-white hair and a youthful complexion, his large sleeves fluttering, he looked like a true immortal, completely opposite to his appearance in the hall.