Theft

The night was like water, and the earth had already fallen asleep.

In the cave dwelling area, under the night breeze, apart from the occasional hoot of an owl, the desolate and dark cave dwelling area was silent.

As the time reached the early morning hours, a dark figure appeared under the human bone lampstand, stealthily creeping forward and appearing before a cave door.

After fumbling with the stone door, a small snake emerged from the dark figure's finger and burrowed into the keyhole, unlocking the tightly sealed door.

The dark figure seemed very familiar with the environment. Although the room was pitch black, he skillfully found the chest where valuables were stored. Just as he was about to open it, a voice leisurely drifted over.

"Brother Peng, why must you go this far!"

Following the voice, the oil lamp in the room lit up.

Su Jie stood quietly by the bed, looking at the dark figure who had appeared in the cave, and let out a sigh.

The dark figure stiffly turned his head and forced a bitter smile.

"You found me, huh? I originally wanted to do this without anyone knowing. It seems this is your fate!"

"Brother Su, don't blame me. I injured my leg, and if I don't heal it before the patrol, it's a dead end. I need money to treat my leg."

Knowing he couldn't hide it any longer, the dark figure pulled off his hood, revealing Su Jie's neighbor, Peng Shiwen.

"Sigh, that's no reason to steal! If you had just told me properly, I might have lent you money."

Su Jie shook his head in distress, like seeing a child who had gone astray.

"You would lend me money? Then I'll borrow from you now. I just need 20 Blood Marrow Crystals."

Peng Shiwen was stunned, a look of joy appearing on his face.

"No."

However, the joy on Peng Shiwen's face lasted less than a second before Su Jie immediately refused.

"After careful consideration, I've decided not to lend it to you."

Su Jie had a thoughtful expression. He wasn't the type to lend money.

"We've been brothers for so long, don't we have any affection? Are you just going to watch me jump into the fire pit?"

Peng Shiwen seemed taken aback by the answer and glared angrily.

Su Jie waved his hand and said, "That's not true. I'm not that heartless. I won't just watch you jump into the fire pit; I'll close my eyes."

Peng Shiwen: "..."

The next moment, Peng Shiwen was furious. "Fine, fine, fine. I knew you were this kind of person long ago. Since you're not benevolent, don't blame me for being unrighteous. You'll give me the money today whether you want to or not. If you're not ruthless, you can't cultivate the devil. I'm desperate."

He never seemed to consider that if he stole Su Jie's Blood Marrow Crystals, Su Jie wouldn't be able to buy resources, and how dangerous it would be to enter the mountains.

"I'm very curious about one thing. Why did you choose me to steal from? Is it because I'm weak?"

Su Jie showed no anger, his expression still calm as he looked at the other man.

Peng Shiwen's eyes hardened, and he said coldly, "Nonsense. With your poor aptitude, who else would I target?"

"Then you've come to the wrong person!"

Su Jie smiled and beckoned with his finger.

Peng Shiwen's nose suddenly felt hot, and two streams of black blood flowed out. At the same time, his internal organs felt a sharp pain.

"When did you poison me? This is... Five Viscera Black Blood Incense."

A hint of fear appeared in his eyes, and Peng Shiwen suddenly looked behind Su Jie.

Behind him, an incense stick was burning, and poisonous smoke wafted out. Because it was dark in the room, he hadn't noticed it at all.

"To wait for the poison smoke to take effect, I had to chat with you to stall for time. I didn't expect you to be so resilient."

As the poisonous smoke swirled, Su Jie spoke, and a black and purple centipede, about a meter and a half long, shot out from his waist and pounced on Peng Shiwen.

Bang!

Several poisonous snakes, as thick as chopsticks, emerged from Peng Shiwen's fingertips and lunged at the Thousand-Hand Centipede, biting and injecting venom. However, they couldn't pierce the chitinous exoskeleton, and were instead swallowed by the Thousand-Hand Centipede.

A golden toad, the size of a palm, jumped onto Peng Shiwen's shoulder. Its long tongue shot out like a crossbow bolt, forking into several strands in mid-air and aiming for Su Jie. This was Peng Shiwen's natal Gu worm.

At the same time, from his trouser leg at Peng Shiwen's feet, more than a dozen small snakes crawled out and quickly slithered towards Su Jie.

This was Peng Shiwen's Gu worm technique: first use the golden toad's tongue to restrain the enemy, then release the small snakes to bite, injecting a fatal venom.

Su Jie knew the opponent's moves. He didn't move, but the flesh on his ribs twitched.

Several pale arms emerged from the flesh, firmly grasping the forked tongues.

Then, Su Jie waved his sleeve, and a large swarm of Silver-winged Golden Cicadas and Yin Fire Blood Bees buzzed forth.

The former flew at extreme speeds, severing the tongues, while the latter raised their tails high and sprayed streams of fire at the snake swarm on the ground, causing the small snakes to emit a roasted meat aroma.

These were all battles between unranked Gu worms. The greatest threat was the swift Thousand-Hand Centipede, which charged forward, completely ignoring all attacks.

"A low-grade Gu worm, with Spiritual Energy at the third layer of Spirit Infusion. You've been hiding quite deeply."

Peng Shiwen's pupils contracted violently. Feeling the threat of death, he reached out and pressed the golden toad on his shoulder.

Using some unknown method, the golden toad's body suddenly expanded by a circle, then it turned and fled without hesitation, abandoning its natal Gu worm.

Because Peng Shiwen knew very well that no matter how strong the golden toad was, it couldn't possibly be a match for the low-grade Gu worm, the Thousand-Hand Centipede; the difference in their levels was immense.

The golden toad puffed up its belly, its croak resonating like thunder.

Croak!

Dozens of forked tongues shot out, their numbers several times greater than before.

The Thousand-Hand Centipede didn't even look. Pale hands on its underside tore free from the restraining tongues and, with a whistling sound, caught up to Peng Shiwen.

Peng Shiwen's left leg was injured, and he had inhaled Su Jie's poisonous smoke. How fast could he possibly run?

Before he could even exit the kiln cave, he was pounced upon by the Thousand-Hand Centipede, which coiled around him, wrapping his upper body like a zongzi.

"Spare me..."

Peng Shiwen's face contorted in fear as he tried to beg for mercy.

"If you knew this would happen, why did you do it in the first place? Brother Peng, you taught me yourself: 'If a person isn't ruthless, they can't cultivate the Devil path.' So, I can only ask you to die obediently."

As soon as he finished speaking, the Thousand-Hand Centipede released its constricting grip and slithered back to Su Jie's feet, wiggling its antennae as if seeking praise.

Looking at Peng Shiwen again, green handprints covered his body. The poison had already entered his system, causing him to bleed from all seven orifices. He was silent.

"You did a good job. Here's a tasty reward for you."

Su Jie patted the head of the Thousand-Hand Centipede and then used its pale hands to grab Peng Shiwen's natal Gu worm, the golden toad, and feed it to the centipede. Although it was not a ranked Gu worm, it had been nurtured by Peng Shiwen for half a year, and the Thousand-Hand Centipede ate it with great relish.

After feeding his meritorious servant Thousand-Hand Centipede, Su Jie let it coil around his waist and chest again.

Then, Su Jie thought for a moment, deliberately doused himself with some of Peng Shiwen's blood, and then rubbed his cheeks, making his complexion appear weak and pale, as if he were severely injured.

After completing all this, Su Jie dragged Peng Shiwen's corpse out of the kiln cave.

By this time, the commotion from the battle here had already alerted many people, and gazes of inquiry came from various kiln caves.

Fighting amongst fellow disciples of the Ghost Ridge Palace was common, as they were Devilish Cultivators, but the victor being Su Jie surprised many.

However, when they then saw Su Jie's "miserable" appearance, they understood immediately. It seemed to be just a pyrrhic victory where both sides were heavily wounded. Peng Shiwen wasn't a particularly formidable figure, so no one paid much attention to him.

Su Jie stood in place and waited, knowing that someone would come to handle the situation.

Su Jie didn't have to wait long. Two enforcers in red uniforms, who made no effort to conceal their Spirit Infusion seventh-layer strength, walked over.

The enforcement team was a special unit belonging to the sect, loyal only to the Sect Master, and distinct from ordinary disciples.