Chapter 1052

"Look at Tianya and Yidao—they too once infused true qi into this flower."

Zhu Tie Dan deliberately argued back, pointing to Duan Tianya, Guihai Yidao, and others seated in meditation nearby,

said to Wan Qiansan,

"Of these three, does any look like their oil is spent, their lamp about to go out?"

Wan Qiansan immediately looked over, and indeed saw Duan Tianya, Guihai Yidao, and Cheng Feishi.

Aside from Cheng Feishi, the other two sat cross-legged in meditation.

Their appearance clearly showed they were not dead.

"This—Marquis, you're not lying to me?"

Wan Qiansan watched Shangguan Haitang groan and cry out in agony, and his pity surged again.

Without thinking, he took a step outward.

"Master Wan, we truly aren't deceiving you."

The Xiangxi Four Ghosts blocked him again, saying,

"The flower held by Miss Shangguan is truly bizarrely evil.

It doesn't just absorb true qi—it has also drawn away a thread of Miss Shangguan's true intent.

Our Phantom Shadow Divine Art, compared to this evil flower, isn't even one ten-thousandth as potent!

Even if we save Miss Shangguan now, she won't live.

Please, Master Wan, be cautious and think thrice!"

Wan Qiansan wouldn't listen—he only saw Zhu Tie Dan step back several paces with his hands behind his back.

Duan Tianya and Guihai Yidao were still meditating, with no threat to their lives.

But Shangguan Haitang kept crying out in agony, her condition dire.

His pity surged; he didn't care about anything else—he prepared to rescue Shangguan Haitang.

"Fine! Since Master Wan insists, we'll die with you!"

The Xiangxi Four Ghosts roared as one, suddenly their ghostly shadows flashed, attacking Zhu Tie Dan from four angles.

Since Wan Qiansan was obstinate and insisted on rescuing Shangguan Haitang, who was nearly oil-spent and lamp-extinguished,

to prevent any mishap and let Zhu Wushi gain an advantage,

the Xiangxi Four Ghosts united in purpose, planning to first trap Zhu Wushi.

Zhu Tie Dan hadn't expected the Xiangxi Four Ghosts to attack him.

Their Phantom Shadow Divine Art was already notoriously difficult to deal with.

He hadn't expected their martial skill to be so strong.

Though they appeared to attack from four angles, they could swap positions and shift angles seamlessly.

This coordinated strike truly opened Zhu Tie Dan's eyes.

But the Zhu Tie Dan before them now was no longer merely Zhu Wushi!

He had passed through the great furnace of Wu Lin; his horizons and experience far surpassed Zhu Wushi's by countless times.

With the help of the old monks of Xinchantang, he had seized from this world's Zhu Wushi every bit of true qi, the cultivation of eight hundred experts, and even Zhu Wushi's fortune.

The real power of Zhu Tie Dan now far exceeded Zhu Wushi's!

Thus, though the Xiangxi Four Ghosts attacked suddenly and their coordinated technique was devious and strange,

Zhu Tie Dan was utterly unfazed—he casually unleashed a fist art and blocked their combined assault.

"Haitang, I'm coming…"

On the other side, Wan Qiansan paid no heed to any of this—he rushed to Shangguan Haitang's side and reached out to pat her shoulder.

838 Is there anyone this cruel?

As Zhu Tie Dan had predicted, the moment Wan Qiansan's hand touched Shangguan Haitang's shoulder,

he felt an immense pulling force surge from his palm.

Before he could react, every drop of his internal energy surged out like a flood.

It flowed to his palm, entered Shangguan Haitang's body, and was then completely drained by the strange flower bud.

"Hai… tang…"

Wan Qiansan had never anticipated this—after his internal energy was drained, his body aged rapidly.

Before losing consciousness, he gazed longingly at Shangguan Haitang, then collapsed helplessly to the side.

"Who would've thought Wan Qiansan was so useless—he was drained in the blink of an eye?"

Though surrounded by the Xiangxi Four Ghosts, Zhu Tie Dan still had mental focus to observe the scene over there.

Seeing Wan Qiansan drained and aged in an instant, rolling to the side, alive or dead, he didn't know,

he felt nothing but contempt—and secretly lamented the loss.

If Wan Qiansan had held out just a little longer—even two more breaths,

the Xiangxi Four Ghosts would have intervened to save him.

If even one of them moved, all four would be trapped.

It would not only hasten the blooming of his flower, but also rid him of the Xiangxi Four Ghosts!

The Xiangxi Four Ghosts had no idea of Zhu Tie Dan's calculations.

Taking advantage of the pause, they saw Wan Qiansan's gruesome death.

Their hearts filled with grief; they attacked Zhu Tie Dan like madmen.

It turned out Wan Qiansan, with his boundless wealth, had paid a heavy price to win over the Xiangxi Four Ghosts.

He had built bridges and paved roads in their homeland, and even hired scholars to teach reading and writing to the children in those remote mountain villages.

During this time, he spared no expense, opening profitable businesses in the hometown of the Four Ghosts of Xiangxi.

As a result, the once destitute hometown of the Four Ghosts of Xiangxi underwent a complete transformation.

From then on, everyone had food to eat and clothes to wear.

Even at their own doorsteps, they could find ways to earn money.

The fellow villagers of the Four Ghosts of Xiangxi called Wan Sanqian the Great Benefactor.

Thus, no matter how aloof the Four Ghosts of Xiangxi were, they could not withstand Wan Sanqian's profound kindness.

Hence, they left the mountains and followed Wan Sanqian everywhere, becoming shadow-like personal bodyguards.

Precisely because of the Four Ghosts of Xiangxi's protection, over these years, no one dared lay a hand on Wan Sanqian, no matter how much wealth he accumulated.

Both sides benefited mutually and had long forged an unbreakable bond.

Now that Wan Sanqian had suddenly died here, though not killed by Zhu Tie Dan, the Zhuge Shenhou.

Yet the Four Ghosts of Xiangxi thought of everything their hometown had gained, now about to vanish into thin air.

Their hearts ached with unbearable sorrow, and they no longer held back against Zhu Tie Dan, the Zhuge Shenhou.

When the Phantom Shadow Divine Art was unleashed, it truly lived up to its reputation.

Zhu Tie Dan, the Zhuge Shenhou, who had previously been at ease even while fending off the four of them and observing the outside, gradually fell into disadvantage.

"Damn it! I didn't kill Wan Sanqian—why are you all crazily surrounding me?"

Although Zhu Tie Dan, the Zhuge Shenhou, had not used the full power of his eight hundred experts, he had already employed many techniques.

He found his connection to the outside world growing increasingly scarce.

Clearly, he was now deeply trapped within the Phantom Shadow Divine Art.

Frustrated, he couldn't help cursing aloud.

The Four Ghosts of Xiangxi spoke little even to each other, and even less to Wan Sanqian.

At this moment, they naturally ignored Zhu Tie Dan's curses, instead tightening their encirclement further.

On the other side, after Wan Sanqian collapsed, his life and death unknown.

Soon after, Shangguan Haitang was completely drained by this peculiar flower bud.

Then, with his energy exhausted, he slumped sideways and fell directly beside Wan Sanqian.

After draining the four secret agents and the barely useful Wan Sanqian.

This strange flower bud was now only one final step away from full bloom.

Faintly, through the gaps between its petals, it seemed as if one could glimpse the interior of the stamen.

"Hehehe! Who would have thought that after all the Zhuge Shenhou's cunning schemes, it ultimately benefited us?"

At that moment, Cao Zhengchun appeared, wearing a look of triumph.