Chapter 6: The Passageway, the Vanishing Qin Shuang

The time between the threads snapping and the red light flaring in the mannequins’ eyes was actually extremely short.

The moment the Talisman Soldier lunged at Master Xuanqing, his reaction was instantaneous. With a flick of his right wrist, he brandished his Floating Dust.

The Floating Dust suddenly hardened and extended, piercing through the Talisman Soldier like a long spear.

With a few KRACKS, the Talisman Soldier shattered into pieces on the ground.

The other Talisman Soldiers began to move as well. With over a thousand of them stirring at once, it felt like facing a tidal wave.

"Attack!"

It was unclear which of the Jianghu People shouted, but in response, they all raised their Weapons.

In the next instant, they clashed with the Talisman Soldiers.

Though the Talisman Soldiers were numerous, their individual strength was no match for this group of Jianghu People.

A single member of the Jianghu could handle several of them.

Several Talisman Soldiers charged toward Shen Bai.

Qin Shuang’s eyes darted around. She was about to hide behind Shen Bai when she felt someone grab her by the collar from behind.

Turning her head, she saw Shen Bai holding her up by the collar, a hint of a smile in his eyes.

"Stop hiding. Let me see what you can do."

"But I can’t fight!"

Qin Shuang wore a miserable expression.

Shen Bai paid her no mind, simply tossing her toward the nearest Talisman Soldier.

Qin Shuang flailed and shrieked in mid-air.

But when she saw Shen Bai’s calm demeanor, she sighed silently, then flicked her middle finger.

A fine needle shot out with the motion.

The single needle multiplied into thousands, becoming a storm that riddled the Talisman Soldiers ahead of her until they looked like hornets’ nests.

Qin Shuang landed steadily on her feet and said with resignation, "You’re so cruel. After all the time I’ve spent minding your shop, too."

Shen Bai strolled forward. "If you really couldn’t handle it, I wouldn’t have let you die."

As his words fell, his Longsword trembled. Blood Red Sword Qi burst from the blade, transforming into countless crimson streams that shot out as he swung his weapon.

With Shen Bai at the center, any Talisman Soldier that came within a ten-meter radius was annihilated by the Blood Red Sword Qi.

Here, Shen Bai’s style was completely different from everyone else’s.

Only Shen Bai was annihilating the Talisman Soldiers with such ease.

Shen Bai’s display immediately drew the attention of the many Jianghu People.

Before this, many of them had thought Master Xuanqing was making a big fuss over nothing by paying Shen Bai so much attention.

But at this very moment, they felt the sting of a sharp slap to the face.

The terrifying Sword Qi made their hair stand on end, and their gazes toward Shen Bai turned fearful.

They suddenly realized Master Xuanqing didn’t just respect Shen Bai—he was wary of him.

A few of the Jianghu People silently took several steps back, increasing the distance. They didn’t want to get too close, lest they be injured by the Blood Red Sword Qi.

Shen Bai paid no attention to what these people were thinking, instead keeping a close eye on Zhou Qing’s situation.

The Talisman Soldiers were indeed numerous and strong, but the constables had also experienced many battles. They were all in the Daoist Scripture Realm, and with their teamwork, they were completely fine.

Shen Bai then turned his gaze to Master Xuanqing, just as Master Xuanqing’s gaze locked with his.

At this moment, sheets of Talisman Paper were fluttering around Master Xuanqing.

Every Talisman Soldier that approached him was shredded to pieces by the Talisman Paper.

Their eyes met for a moment before they both looked away.

Shen Bai stroked his chin. ’Now is not the time to make a move,’ he thought. ’There are too many people.’

It would be inappropriate for him to act now.

The battle was still raging. Although there were over a thousand Talisman Soldiers, the people here were no pushovers.

Half an hour later, the Talisman Soldiers before them had been reduced to a floor of fragments.

Of course, some of the weaker Jianghu People wiped the cold sweat from their brows, clearly having been hard-pressed.

Master Xuanqing clenched his fists.

He felt as though he had lost face.

He had been sure of victory, but he never expected to encounter a Wild Daoist Technique.

At that moment, Master Xuanqing’s face flushed red with shame. He wished the ground would swallow him whole.

Shen Bai didn’t notice this and was still asking loudly, "What’s the deal with this Wild Daoist Technique anyway?"

The situation had been too urgent earlier for Shen Bai to ask for details, but now was the perfect time.

Qin Shuang thought for a moment and explained, "In this world, some people follow the proper path of Cultivation, while others take shortcuts. The Wild Daoist Technique is an offshoot of the Daoist School’s skills, but its practitioners perform evil deeds, using special methods to take these shortcuts."

"Take the Talisman Soldiers, for example. Ordinary Talisman Soldiers are extremely difficult to create. But these ones only require the heart’s blood of a mortal to be refined quickly. Everywhere in the Jianghu, the Wild Daoist Technique is reviled, much like the Upper Evil Sect in Fenglin State."

"But the Wild Daoist Technique is more widespread and powerful. The Upper Evil Sect can’t even compare."

Hearing this, Shen Bai finally understood.

It was like the difference between the righteous path and the evil path.

Listening to their conversation, Master Xuanqing felt as if Shen Bai was targeting him.

He had just lost face, and now Shen Bai was asking about the Wild Daoist Technique, causing the anger in his heart to surge.

Just as Master Xuanqing was about to say something to regain a bit of his dignity, something unusual happened.

A flash of light suddenly appeared in the pitch-black cavern, illuminating it as brightly as a dazzling day.

Shen Bai looked up and saw that massive Luminous Pearls were embedded in the walls above, pulsing with a soft glow.

As the Luminous Pearls lit up the area, the cavern’s features became clear.

Not far ahead, a pitch-black passage appeared.

There were no Luminous Pearls inside the passage to light it, so it was impossible to see what lay within.

Although the cavern was incredibly spacious, this was the only passage, telling everyone it was the only way forward.

Master Xuanqing suppressed his anger, flicked his sleeves, and strode toward the passage as if he didn’t want to linger there a second longer.

Before leaving, however, his gaze lingered on Shen Bai for a moment, carrying a trace of undisguisable killing intent.

Master Xuanqing led the way, and the others followed silently behind.

This trip was for the purpose of finding the Deceitful Object, so everyone knew what they were getting into in such a dangerous situation.

If you want good things, you have to face danger.

Shen Bai walked side-by-side with Qin Shuang toward the passage, meeting up with Zhou Qing and the others along the way.

’The soil is damp. This place is very humid.’

Shen Bai thought as his feet sank into the soft earth.

The passage was dark, but to a Cultivator, such darkness was nothing.

The deeper they went, the thicker the sinister, cold Qi became.

After walking for about the time it takes half an incense stick to burn, Shen Bai noticed something was wrong.

The sound of footsteps ahead was gradually fading, as if people were suddenly disappearing.

Shen Bai stopped and turned to his side, about to say something to Qin Shuang, only to find that her form was gradually becoming blurry.