"Liu, you're joking."
Wen Jiu answered without so much as a blush.
But inside, he was still rather surprised. He hadn't made the Black Zombie completely conceal its aura; doing so would have been like leaving silver in plain sight. Instead, he had let some of its aura leak out, enough to reveal only the middle stage of the Black Zombie realm. He hadn't expected Liu Xiao to sense something amiss anyway.
But there was no way he would admit it.
Still, this served as a reminder to Wen Jiu: he should avoid letting the Black Zombie show itself whenever possible. Experienced cultivators could always pick up on something through instinct. They might not be certain, but at the very least, they would become suspicious.
Once suspicion took root, the value of concealing its aura would instantly be cut in half. After all, suspicion made people wary.
Seeing that Wen Jiu wouldn't admit it, Liu Xiao didn't press the matter. But he trusted his instincts. He had spent years in the Night Patrol Division matching wits with rogue cultivators and bandits; without those keen instincts, he would have been dead long ago.
After taking another careful look at the Black Zombie, Liu Xiao couldn't help silently wondering, Why hadn't I noticed before?
But he knew what should be said and what shouldn't, so he turned away and put the matter out of his mind.
When Wen Jiu had removed all the Law Devouring Yin Worms from Liu Xiao's dantian, and his mana was no longer being devoured or drained away, Liu Xiao was overjoyed, almost to the point of tears. He couldn't help feeling fortunate that he had tried to win Wen Jiu over with kindness back then.
If not for what had happened before, he never would have been