The Old Hag's Death and the Red Wood Tribe's Ambush

As promised, Liu Xu rushed over early this morning, clearly unable to wait any longer. But Xu Bai couldn't wait either. Since he had nothing else to do, he decided to go over and take a look, and while he was at it, kill that Old Hag in that place.

Liu Xu didn't find Xu Bai's answer strange, because Xu Bai's performance was flawless, so she couldn't tell that she had been exposed.

After hearing Xu Bai's answer, Liu Xu did not stop, but turned around and led the way, with Xu Bai following behind. The two of them left Azure Cloud Academy one after the other.

Outside the Azure Cloud Academy, the streets remained bustling, with a constant stream of scholars, some carrying books, others paper and pens.

Liu Xu wore a veil, and Xu Bai followed behind, with Hundred Rifts sword hanging at his waist.

Such a combination is quite rare in Nanhua Dao, since almost no martial arts practitioners are willing to set foot here, but Xu Bai's behavior at this moment is more like that of a martial arts practitioner.

Xu Bai didn't speak, nor did Liu Xu. The two remained silent as they walked along the bustling street, gradually entering a secluded alley, and finally exiting Nanhua Dao, arriving at a desolate wilderness.

Since it was broad daylight, even though no one passed by this desolate wilderness, it looked perfectly normal, with nothing unusual except for its barrenness.

Liu Xu stopped, turned around, and stared straight at Xu Bai.

Is it coming? Xu Bai knew in his heart, but on the surface he still pretended not to know and asked doubtfully, "Didn't you say there would be a temple, and there would be a Buddha statue in the temple? Why is there nothing here? Did it just disappear for no reason?"

He began to feign ignorance, and on the surface, there was no flaw in his act, as if he were genuinely confused.

The Old Hag is still inside Liu Xu's body. If he can't get the Old Hag out, he'll be in a difficult situation.

Therefore, we cannot reveal that we already know the situation; we must lure this Old Hag out first.

Once we get him out of there, everything will be much easier.

Because Liu Xu was covered by a veil, her expression was not visible, but from her curved eyes, it was clear that she was smiling. As Liu Xu smiled, she strode towards Xu Bai with her long, slender legs.

With long, slender legs, Liu Xu quickly reached Xu Bai Xu Bai, placed her hands on his chest, and raised her head, her clear eyes filled with endless allure.

"That temple seems to be gone, but it doesn't matter, at least we still found something."

"Oh?" Xu Bai stroked his chin and said, "Why do I feel like something's off about you?"

At this moment, even a normal person could see that something was wrong, so Xu Bai said this sentence naturally without any flaws.

Liu Xu's eyes turned into two crescent moons. "I'm not doing anything wrong. On the contrary, I'm better than ever today because I can completely possess you."

Xu Bai: "..."

Although these words came from Liu Xu's mouth and sounded somewhat romantic, Xu Bai still felt a chill.

Because inside Liu Xu's body is a Old Hag, and these words are being spoken by the Old Hag.

Imagine being told such things by an Old Hag; Xu Bai, who knew the truth, would have already gotten goosebumps.

Fortunately, the Old Hag didn't do anything more disgusting. The next moment, her hands, which were pressed against Xu Bai's chest, flashed with a white light. Then, Xu Bai felt something emerge from Liu Xu's body and then enter his own.

This is the spirit of the Old Hag.

Xu Bai finally understood why the dean said that as long as she was imprisoned, it would be fine. Because, judging from the situation, if the Old Hag wanted to transfer her soul, she would need to come into contact with someone; otherwise, she wouldn't be able to touch him at such close range.

However, now was not the time to think about these things. A look of confusion appeared in Liu Xu's eyes, but she quickly returned to normal. She looked around in surprise and then realized that her hands were pressed against Xu Bai's chest, so she quickly pulled them back.

Where am I?

"It's alright," Xu Bai said with a smile. "It's good that you've recovered."

Liu Xu found it even stranger that Xu Bai had said those words in such a confused manner. She was about to ask him for details when, unexpectedly, Xu Bai's face turned deathly pale the next moment.

"It hurts!" Xu Bai clutched his head, squatted down slightly, and then his shoulders kept shaking.

He could feel another powerful soul entering his mind, constantly devouring his soul at an extremely rapid pace.

This is the spirit of that Old Hag, and it is attacking him now.

"What's wrong with you?" Liu Xu asked in a panic when she saw this, trying to help him up.

A figure flashed by and waved to Liu Xu, Liu Xu immediately stumbled back several steps.

"Don't touch him, or he'll crawl all over you again." The dean, with his hands behind his back, looked Xu Bai up and down as he squatted on the ground and asked, "How are you feeling? Are you alright?"

Xu Bai raised his head and gave a pale smile, "I feel okay, except for some pain."

His own soul was being gradually eroded, but the characteristics of his Undying Soul Body were at play, and the eroded soul was recovering at an even faster rate. At this rate, the consumption of his soul was not even as fast as his recovery.

Xu Bai could clearly sense that the Old Hag's soul had weakened considerably after launching the attack on him.

At the same time, Xu Bai heard the voice of an old woman in his mind.

"You've fallen for my trap. How do you even have the means to repair your soul?"

Xu Bai didn't know how to answer, but thinking that the Old Hag was in his mind, perhaps she could sense what he was thinking, so he silently thought to himself.

"Old Hag, how are you feeling?"

After these words entered her mind, the Old Hag's soul became extremely chaotic, as if she had been thoroughly enraged.

You schemed against me!

"So what?" Xu Bai thought to himself with a smile, "If you didn't want to take over my body, how could you have ended up in this situation?"

During their conversation, the Old Hag launched several fierce attacks, shattering Xu Bai's soul into pieces, but in the next moment, his soul recovered to normal at an extremely fast speed.

After this happened several times, the Old Hag's spirit became much weaker.

Xu Bai raised his head and stood up from the ground. Just now, he felt that he was no longer in pain.

The Old Hag did not continue attacking his soul; instead, she stayed quietly to the side.

"What's wrong?" the dean asked upon seeing this.

Xu Bai slowly said, "She seems to be scared. She knows that if she continues to attack, she will disappear first, so she stops attacking me, but she is still inside my body."

The dean frowned; this scene was completely unexpected.

He knew his junior sister's personality very well; she was very stable. Now, the situation seemed to be more difficult than he had expected.

If the attack continues, then it's not a big deal.

Judging from Xu Bai's recovery of his soul, he is fully capable of withstanding the attack, but the problem is that his junior sister has stopped attacking.

In other words, the junior sister has now taken over Xu Bai's body, but she hasn't fully taken control yet.

It cannot be solved once and for all; if left inside the body, it will always be a scourge, and may one day seize the opportunity to retaliate.

The dean was well aware of the situation, but since it had already happened, he needed to stabilize the situation first. "Let's go back to the Academy first, and I'll think of another solution."

He thought Xu Bai would listen to his advice, but to his surprise, Xu Bai shook his head after hearing this, indicating that he was unwilling.

"I have a way," Xu Bai said.

These four simple words exuded an inexplicable confidence. The dean noticed this and temporarily abandoned his idea of returning to the Academy, wanting to see what Xu Bai planned to do.

After Xu Bai said those words, he asked them in his mind.

"Old Hag, are you really not going to attack anymore?"

There was complete silence within his soul. After a long while, the old woman's voice rang out once more.

"Do you think I'm stupid? I don't want to waste my time and end up having my efforts completely wiped out by you."

Xu Bai stroked his chin and said, "I suggest you continue your attack."

"Why?" the Old Hag asked.

Xu Bai laughed and said, "That way you can die with a little more dignity. At least you will die from an attack, not from an attack by me."

As soon as he finished speaking, the Old Hag fell silent, sensing that Xu Bai's words had a hidden meaning.

If he was attacked and killed, would he then launch an attack himself? This thought suddenly popped into her mind, and the next moment, the Old Hag found that her idea had been confirmed.

Xu Bai controlled his own soul and launched an attack on the Old Hag's soul.

To outsiders, this was a suicidal attack, because the difference in their souls was too great. But Xu Bai didn't care. He had Undying Soul Body and a powerful regenerative ability, so he didn't care about these things.

Their souls collided, and pain surged through Xu Bai's mind, but Xu Bai smiled.

From the outside, from the perspective of the dean and Liu Xu, Xu Bai was covering his head with his hands, his brows furrowed tightly, looking extremely pained.

But the corners of his mouth turned up slightly, revealing a pained yet smiling expression that seemed utterly insane.

"Old Hag, how do you feel?" Xu Bai asked frantically.

"Are you insane? Are you insane?!" The Old Hag's voice was filled with boundless rage.

"It's not just that you're crazy, I can't sleep soundly unless I kill you right now." Although Xu Bai was in great pain, the expression on his face did not change.

The Old Hag's voice was filled with panic. "No! Stop attacking!"

As the two were talking, Xu Bai launched a series of attacks on the soul. His soul shattered and repaired itself time and time again. On the other hand, the Old Hag's soul did not repair itself after it was shattered, and it decreased at a visible rate.

At this moment, the Old Hag became afraid and began to speak.

"Stop attacking. Find me someone, and I'll leave your body."

"Do you think I'm a fool?" Xu Bai said, "After you leave, do you think I'll let you escape completely? The Dean's method can imprison you, but it's not 100% reliable. I, on the other hand, can kill you 100% of the time. Why not?"

The Old Hag continued, "I can guarantee that I will never bother you again."

"These days, how much is it worth?" Xu Bai scoffed.

The Old Hag fell silent; she felt that Xu Bai was like a wall, impossible to communicate with.

But that is indeed the problem now. Xu Bai now has the upper hand, and if he continues to attack like this, she will surely die.

The Old Hag felt she needed to find a way to escape, but after thinking for a long time, she couldn't come up with any solution.

Xu Bai's attacks continued, relentlessly striking at the soul, weakening the Old Hag's soul more and more.

The originally enormous divine soul has been reduced by a small portion, and now it looks only slightly larger than Xu Bai.

At this moment, the Old Hag finally couldn't hold back any longer and revealed the secret she had been keeping hidden all along.

"I can tell you the secret of the Ghost Market. When you were fighting me just now, I could sense from your remaining soul that you had been to the Ghost Market. I'll tell you this secret, how about you spare my life?"

Upon hearing this, Xu Bai stopped and simply uttered a single word in his mind. "Speak."

The Old Hag made a condition. "First, you need to find someone for me so that my soul can possess them. Then you can lock me up. That way you won't have any worries. After all, the Dean was able to lock me up. Then I'll tell you the secrets about the Ghost Market."

Xu Bai did not answer and continued his attack.

"Are you crazy? This is my only condition. If you don't agree, aren't you interested in that secret?" the Old Hag said anxiously.

If this continues, she will surely die.

"To be honest, I'm very interested," Xu Bai thought to himself. "But there's a limit to interest. For example, if you ask me to let you go, that's impossible. You said I'd let you die with some dignity."

The method the old Old Hag mentioned is a common tactic used by villains. Xu Bai doesn't want to be an idiot and let these villains go, only to have them grow stronger and attack him again.

This is a foolish act. He is very interested in the Ghost Market, but there is a limit to his interest.

He would never agree to release the Old Hag because of the secret of the Ghost Market, let alone verbally agree and get Old Hag to reveal it.

This Old Hag is such a shrewd person, she would never say such a thing, and even if she did, it would be a lie.

Of course, sometimes, when presented with a choice, Xu Bai Xu Bai want it all.

—He wants it all! He wants both the secrets of the Ghost Market and the Old Hag's life. As for how to get both, he has a skill—the skill to control souls.

Once this Old Hag's soul is weakened to a certain extent, she can do whatever she wants.

The attack continued. Xu Bai repaired his soul at an extremely fast speed, while the Old Hag's soul was being worn down at a visible rate. In the blink of an eye, amidst the Old Hag's screams, her soul was reduced to the size of a fist.

At this moment, Xu Bai suddenly stopped.

The Old Hag thought she was doomed, but she was surprised when the game suddenly stopped, which made her suspicious.

Did the other party not want to kill her? No, absolutely not, they wished they could kill her immediately.

The Old Hag's doubts were quickly confirmed, as a surge of divine soul power spread along Xu Bai's soul and soon took control of the Old Hag's soul.

"You can control the soul! Who exactly are you?!" The Old Hag was utterly shocked.

If she had known this young man had so many tricks up his sleeve, she wouldn't have acted so hastily. Now it seems he wants them all.

Thinking this, the Old Hag's consciousness gradually became hazy, and she soon became dazed.

Xu Bai asked in his mind through his divine soul, "Tell me everything about the Ghost Market."

At this point, the Old Hag was powerless to resist.

As Xu Bai asked the question, the Old Hag replied blankly, "I once possessed Liu Qingfeng's body by chance. Liu Qingfeng went to the Ghost Market, and I know everything he encountered."

"Currently, the Human-Strange Entity Market and the Demon-Strange Entity Market are constantly clashing with each other. Once they unify the two Ghost Market, they will be able to break the rules and enter the human world."

"They can form a battlefield between the two sides through special channels, and time is running out for humans."

"If we can attack the Ghost Market, we will have the advantage of the human world. But if the Ghost Market unifies sooner and attacks us, they will also have the advantage."

At this point, the Old Hag stopped and did not continue. She had obviously told him everything she knew. Xu Bai could not hide his surprise upon hearing her answer.

Although this news did not bring him any substantial benefit, it was of great importance to the world at that time, especially to the Great Chu Kingdom.

The two Ghost Market have been quietly and gradually unifying. If they are to be unified first, there will definitely be chaos and the losses will be enormous.

"Wait a minute." Xu Bai asked one last question, "Liu Qingfeng has no soul. You've taken over his body, so why didn't you use it directly instead of running away again?"

The Old Hag said blankly, "After I took over the body, I discovered that Liu Qingfeng actually possessed a powerful ability to destroy souls. If I stayed any longer, I would be slowly eroded, so I took the opportunity to leave. As for the reason, I don't know."

Xu Bai stroked his chin.

These messages are absolutely true, because they were obtained by controlling the other person's soul, so there is no possibility of them being false.

Seeing that there was no point in asking any further questions, Xu Bai launched another attack using his divine soul.

The already weak Old Hag quickly disappeared completely under Xu Bai's continued attacks. Xu Bai felt his soul relax, and a feeling of exhilaration returned to his mind.

He stood up from the ground, and his face became rosy.

"Has it been resolved?" the dean asked.

He stayed by her side to protect her, worried that something unexpected might happen, such as someone else getting involved while Xu Bai and her junior sister were fighting.

Therefore, the dean was very careful and cautious. Now that he saw Xu Bai had returned to normal, he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

Xu Bai nodded, indicating that there were no further problems.

At this moment, Liu Xu was standing nearby, wanted to speak.

In fact, she had been confused about what had happened from the beginning, because the dean had not explained it to her. Now that she saw that the situation had eased, she was going to ask what was going on.

Xu Bai shook his head and said, "I'll explain later, Dean. I need to go to the nearest Shadow Courier Station immediately. Do you know where it is?"

The dean was puzzled, but since Xu Bai had already asked, he could only point in one direction and tell Xu Bai about the nearest Shadow Courier Station.

Xu Bai didn't say much and hurriedly left, leaving only the dean and Liu Xu behind.

"Dean, what's wrong with him..." Liu Xu asked curiously.

The dean seemed thoughtful. "There might be something that needs to be reported to the higher-ups. Since they haven't told us, it must be something confidential. We scholars shouldn't concern ourselves with it. Come back with me first, and I'll explain what happened on the way."

Upon hearing this, Liu Xu knew that Xu Bai must have something important to do, so she could only nod and follow behind the dean towards the Academy.

After leaving that desolate area, Xu Bai immediately took to the air and used the unique flight power of the Transcendent Realm to quickly head in that direction.

He had to tell the Chu Emperor about this matter; as for how to resolve it afterward, that was the Chu Emperor's business.

Shadow Courier Station was not far away, and because Xu Bai was flying in the air, he found it quickly.

After it fell from the sky, all the Courier Folk were filled with astonishment.

Being able to fly signifies reaching the Transcendent Realm, and those who have entered the Transcendent Realm are true masters. Therefore, the Courier Folk present all showed fear and silently retreated, afraid of attracting Xu Bai's attention.

Xu Bai ignored the reactions of the Courier Folk and went to the innkeeper's room, raising his hand to knock on the door.

A short while later, a middle-aged man opened the door. When he saw Xu Bai, he looked puzzled, clearly not recognizing him at first glance.

Xu Bai took out a jade token with the character "Xu" written on it and waved it at the postmaster.

The next moment, the postmaster's face was filled with fear, and he asked in astonishment, "Are you King Xu?"

Xu Bai nodded. "Arrange for writing materials. I need to write a letter. Please help me send it to the imperial Imperial Palace in the Capital City. Tell them it's an urgent letter from me."

Seeing Xu Bai 'Xu Bai serious demeanor and remembering his identity, the postmaster dared not neglect him and led Xu Bai into the house, quickly preparing writing brush, ink, paper, and inkstone.

Xu Bai picked up his pen, wrote down the whole story, put it in an envelope, and sealed it with sealing wax.

During this process, the postmaster stayed far away and dared not look at what Xu Bai had written. After all, it was a secret, and if someone of his rank were to see it, he would probably be in big trouble.

After Xu Bai finished writing, he handed the envelope to him, and he respectfully accepted it, promising to send it to the Capital City as soon as possible.

Xu Bai nodded. The matter was settled, and there was no need to stay any longer. So he left the room, took to the air, and prepared to return to the Academy.

There's nothing much going on at the Academy. The most important reason the headmaster called me here this time is about that Old Hag.

Now that the Old Hag has been dealt with, Xu Bai returned to the Azure Cloud Academy, finished the remaining two books, and then prepared to leave.

Especially the Enhanced Strengthening Body Art and the new travelogue given by the Dean. Both of these books have slow progress bars and are extremely precious. If anything were to happen to them on the way, he would feel like he had lost a lot.

Flying high in the sky, Xu Bai moved very fast, his True Yuan Power flowing endlessly within him.

As they drew closer to the Azure Cloud Academy and were about to reach the city gate of Nanhua Dao, an unexpected incident occurred.

Suddenly, a dark shadow fell from the sky and shot towards Xu Bai.

The shadowy figure was incredibly fast; by the time Xu Bai reacted, it was already right in front of him.

The shadowy figure stretched out its palm and pressed it against Xu Bai's chest. In this dangerous situation, Xu Bai could only use the Vajra Saint Demon Body and simultaneously employ the Moving Stars and Changing Constellations.

The next moment, a portion of the hand that had been stripped of most of its power landed on the dark light, causing cracks to appear in the light. Xu Bai then flew backward and landed steadily in the air.

Only then did Xu Bai get a clear look at the face of the person in front of him.

This is a burly middle-aged man, dressed plainly and with a very ordinary appearance, his hands behind his back, hovering in mid-air.

"Transcendent Realm?" Xu Bai stroked his chin and asked, "Who are you?"

Being able to fly in the air means one must be at the Transcendent Realm. This person's sudden attack clearly indicates that they came specifically to take my life.

There are plenty of people in this world who would take your life, so Xu Bai didn't know the identity of this middle-aged man.

The middle-aged man had his hands behind his back. Although his appearance and clothing were ordinary, he had a sharp and imposing aura. After hearing Xu Bai's question, he slowly spoke, "Chi Muwu".

"I have been waiting for you outside for a long time. You have finally decided to leave Azure Cloud Academy. Today is your death day."

Chi Muwu? Akagi?

Xu Bai stroked his chin and asked, "What is your relationship with the Red Wood Tribe?"

The Red Wood Tribe, a tribe of the Barbarian Tribe, had fought a strange fellow from the Red Wood Tribe who was at the Half-Step Transcendent Realm not long ago on his way to the Upper Capital.

This tribe was almost wiped out; I never expected there would still be survivors.

"In the language of your Great Chu Kingdom, you could call me a remnant," Chi Muwu said slowly.

Xu Bai asked, "Why do you want to kill me?"

"I went to great lengths and used every means to escape the pursuit of the Great Chu Kingdom, all for the purpose of killing you here. As for why, you can understand it as 'the tallest tree in the forest is bound to be felled by the wind.'" Chi Muwu said, finally unfolding his hands that had been behind his back.

The next moment, a powerful aura rose from Chi Muwu's body.

Xu Bai narrowed his eyes slightly, sensing the powerful aura, and asked, "What level of Transcendent Realm are you?"

Chi Muwu sneered, "Sixth Rank. I know you can fight beyond your level, but I am only a sixth-rank Transcendent cultivator. You can't possibly surpass me because I have precisely blocked your strength..."

He stopped there, leaving the rest unsaid.

After he revealed his strength, he saw Xu Bai bypass him at top speed and head towards Nanhua Dao.

Nine Revolutions of Action and Ruin to its fullest extent, and in the blink of an eye, he had already run a long distance, leaving only a tiny figure in sight.

Xu Bai ran while thinking.

A sixth-rank official is not easy to defeat.

Eunuch Wei once said that he was able to surpass two ranks, and now he is at the second rank of the Transcendent Realm, so at most he can fight at the fourth rank.

Of course, perhaps Eunuch Wei's guess was wrong, and I could have fought more, but there was no need to try. It wasn't far from Nanhua Dao, so I just needed to speed up.

Once you arrive at Nanhua Dao, with the Dean there, everything will naturally fall into place.

Chi Muwu truly hadn't expected Xu Bai to turn and run away. This situation was beyond his imagination. By the time he reacted, Xu Bai had already run far away. He couldn't help but grit his teeth and say, "Blood Slaughtering Saber Wielder, you have failed the legends of the martial world. Do you dare to fight me?"

As she spoke, she chased after Xu Bai.

I thought there would be an earth-shattering battle today, but Xu Bai ran faster than anyone else. Now I can only bite the bullet and chase after him, trying to catch up before Nanhua Dao.

Xu Bai didn't turn his head or even answer; instead, he made an insulting gesture with his backhand.

idiot...

Only an idiot would fight opponents of higher levels every day. Wouldn't it be better to go to Nanhua Dao and let the Dean take care of things? Why bother fighting opponents of higher levels when the problem can be solved so easily?

Is it fun? Yes, it is, but it depends on the situation. For example, right now, the opponent is targeting his strength, so it's best to leave first.

However, this also highlights that the Barbarian Tribe and the Great Yue Kingdom still wanted him dead.

This Chi Muwu actually broke through the Great Chu Kingdom's layers of blockade, which must have come at a great cost, its purpose being nothing more than to kill me.

It seems that he has already made a name for himself in the eyes of the Barbarian Tribe and the Great Yue Kingdom.

It's not a big problem.

Such a situation is extremely rare, after all, not everyone can break through layers of blockades.

Anyway, let's get out of here first.

I need to talk to the emperor later and ask him to strengthen the investigation of these two places. Otherwise, he'll be constantly being chased by two assassins. He's very busy and doesn't have time to deal with these things.

Xu Bai ran while Chi Muwu chased after him.

Seeing that Xu Bai was about to reach Nanhua Dao, Chi Muwu also stopped. Looking at Xu Bai's back, he did not intend to continue chasing, but planned to leave first and find an opportunity to make a move later.

The dean of Nanhua Dao could die from a sneeze; he didn't want to risk his life.

After all, he wasn't stupid; he wouldn't go and fight the dean—he wasn't qualified.

Xu Bai turned around and saw that Chi Muwu had stopped chasing him, so he taunted, "Come and chase me, huh? No way, you're not scared, are you?"

Chi Muwu gritted his teeth; he had never seen such a shameless person.

After lingering for a moment, he prepared to turn and leave, planning to find another opportunity later.

"Xu Bai, there will always be a chance. I will definitely be able to kill you."

Before leaving, he even uttered a harsh remark.

Unexpectedly, the next moment, Xu Bai looked in his direction, stopped, and flew towards him.

What's going on? Chi Muwu wondered.

Wasn't he just desperately running away? Why did he suddenly change direction and try to fly back towards me? Is he planning a desperate last stand? Impossible. Logically speaking, Xu Bai should be safe by now, there's no need for him to come back.

But his strangeness quickly turned into boundless shock.

Because Chi Muwu realized that Xu Bai wasn't flying towards him, but rather towards his back.

Behind you?

What's behind me? Chi Muwu wondered, and instinctively turned around. What he saw next made his eyes widen in surprise.

Behind him stood a woman of stunning beauty.

The woman was wearing a Daoist robe, with a curvaceous figure and her hair was styled in a crooked bun, yet it possessed a kind of messy beauty.

While he was still in shock, the stunningly beautiful woman moved.

The stunningly beautiful woman in the Daoist robe raised her hand and touched his brow in mid-air, unleashing a surge of powerful energy.