Chapter 86: Rage

After about half a censer’s time, the male disciple dug up a black jar from beneath the earth.

“Sister Linglong, look!”

The male disciple carried the black jar over to where Linglong and Luoyu stood.

“What is it?” Linglong asked.

The male disciple said: “I don’t know!”

Qi Refining cultivators can indeed use spiritual sense to probe.

But since they’re only Qi Refining, their spiritual sense is weak—it cannot penetrate sealed objects, only seep through gaps.

For example, observing the interior of a house from outside means extending spiritual sense through the house’s cracks.

Likewise, examining another’s cultivation base or body involves slipping spiritual sense through gaps in their clothing.

But now, this pitch-black jar was sealed shut with earth, with no gaps at all.

So neither the male disciple nor Luoyu or Linglong could see what was inside!

“Give it to me!” Linglong took the jar herself and shook it.

“What is it?” Luoyu asked.

The male disciple beside them looked equally curious.

Linglong shook her head: “I don’t know, but it’s heavy—I can feel something inside!”

“I have a guess!”

Linglong drew a deep breath, her face shadowed with unease: “Could it be that he killed Yang Xu and sealed Yang Xu’s head inside this jar, waiting for us to open it and scare us?”

“And give us a warning!”

Luoyu shuddered and stepped back.

“Almost certainly!” The male disciple eagerly agreed, flattering Linglong.

But Linglong extended her hand and returned the black jar to the male disciple: “Brother, you open it.”

“I’m just a girl—I’m scared of this kind of thing!”

“If it really is Yang Xu’s head, I won’t be able to sleep at night!”

As she spoke, Linglong’s tone suddenly turned very gentle.

Seeing his senior sister treat him this way, the male disciple’s heart surged with excitement. Without hesitation, he grabbed the jar, drew his small sword, and dug away the earth sealing the jar’s mouth.

So what if it’s a head?

Heh… women are like this—afraid of everything.

I’m a man—I’m not afraid of anything!

A large opening was dug through the soil on top of the jar.

A foul stench rose from within.

“So stinking—” The male disciple had barely spoken when a golden venomous snake shot out of the hole, zipping straight onto his face!

Zzz… zzz… zzz…

Three more venomous snakes followed immediately.

“Ahh…”

The male disciple collapsed in agony, clutching his face and screaming: “Damn it… so painful… snakes… venomous snakes!”

Qing…

Linglong’s face turned pale as she drew her sword and slashed swiftly—four strokes, and all four snakes were cut to pieces.

But it was too late.

Three of the snakes had bitten his face; one bit his hand.

In moments, his face swelled, flushed, and ballooned like a pig’s head.

His arm went numb and motionless.

“Sister… poison… poison poison…”

“I’ve been poisoned…”

“Antidote…”

His face swollen beyond recognition, the male disciple could barely speak.

Antidote?

How would Linglong have an antidote?

Even if she did, she wouldn’t give it to him!

Within a few breaths, the male disciple’s entire body went numb; he collapsed onto the ground.

He wasn’t dead yet—but he couldn’t move.

He couldn’t speak.

Only his screams grew louder.

After a while, even his screams faded.

“Dead?” Linglong, drenched in cold sweat, looked at Luoyu.

Luoyu shook her head: “Not yet—just lost the strength to scream, or perhaps the poison has numbed his tongue and throat!”

“That damned thing!” Linglong gnashed her teeth: “Don’t let me meet him again—if I do, I’ll kill him!”

“I’ll catch a few venomous snakes and make them bite him to death!”

“A hundred! A thousand! Ten thousand!”

As she spoke, Linglong returned to the tree branch where the clothes hung.

She wanted to see if she could find any trace of He Pingsheng there.

She found no trace—but another message was carved into the bark: “Linglong, you little bitch, keep digging—there’s another jar below!”

“Ahh…”

Linglong flew into a rage.

He called me a little bitch?

“Qing…” She drew her sword and slashed rapidly—cutting the clothes and branches into countless fragments.

But another problem arose.

There was another jar below—dig or not?

Humans are curious creatures.

Even knowing He Pingsheng had buried traps underground, they couldn’t resist digging to see what was inside that jar!

“Don’t dig!” Luoyu urged. “He holds a deep grudge against you—he’s surely setting a trap!”

“He won’t leave anything good!”

“It’s fine!” Linglong said. “I just want to know what trick he’s playing!”

“Probably more venomous snakes—I’ll stay far back and cut it open with one sword. I don’t believe he can hurt me!”

Luoyu thought for a moment: “That’s true.”

Linglong stepped forward herself and began digging again, building on the hole the male disciple had made.

After a dozen breaths, a jar emerged from the mud.

Only the upper half of the jar was visible.

The entire jar was soaked in sludge.

“Pull…”

Linglong reached out with her left hand, gripped the jar’s handle, and yanked hard.

The entire jar was pulled free from the mud.

“Light…”

Linglong shook it in her left hand: “It feels empty inside!”

Then she tossed the jar onto the ground and leapt back.

Luoyu followed her retreat.

“Cut…”

After retreating several zhang, Linglong summoned her flying sword—a blade of qi slashed through the air.

Boom…

The jar shattered instantly.

Nothing inside!

Empty!

“What does this mean?” Linglong didn’t understand.

Luoyu also shook her head.

At that moment, Linglong suddenly frowned.

“Sister, what’s wrong?” Luoyu asked anxiously.

Linglong said: “My hand… it’s itching…”

A dreadful feeling rose in her chest.

Linglong quickly extended her left hand.

On her pure, jade-white palm lay a red mark.

The mark was deepening steadily.

“Bad!” Luo Yu said: “Poison… it’s poisoned…”

“The handle of that jar just now was poisoned!”

“The poison has already seeped into your skin!”

“Damn!” Ling Long’s face turned pale instantly: “This damned bastard, how treacherous!”

“Bad!”

Although Ling Long was anxious, her mind remained clear; she instantly pulled out her Hundred Treasures Bag, rummaged through it, and withdrew a bright green vial.

Snap…

She crushed the vial, and inside was a red elixir.

“This is…” Luo Yu’s pupils contracted: “Sister… this is a Grade-Two Antidote Elixir?”