The spider legs were long and curved, their tips razor-sharp and streaked with blood. They exuded a ferocious aura, making Tang San look like some kind of human-shaped spider monster!
"What... what is that?!"
Zhao Wuji's eyes widened, and he cried out, "Those are... the legs of a Man Faced Demon Spider?!"
Ma Hongjun stumbled back in fright and stammered, "C-could it be that the Man Faced Demon Spider died with such resentment that its spirit possessed Tang San?"
The sudden, bizarre sight left everyone present stunned and at a loss.
Dragon Duke and Snake Granny frowned as well. Their years of experience told them this was probably not a simple case of "possession." It seemed more like...
Just then, the unhurried sound of footsteps came from the woods to one side.
Everyone warily turned to look. Zhao Linchuan was strolling out from beneath the trees with Xiao Wu and Jin Da, as if he were out for a leisurely walk.
Sunlight filtered through the leaves, casting dappled shadows over him. A mild, composed smile rested on his face.
The moment Zhao Wuji and the others saw Zhao Linchuan, they reacted like startled birds, instinctively assuming defensive stances, their faces full of fear.
But then they noticed Dragon Duke and Snake Granny beside them, and their hearts settled somewhat. With those two seniors here, the newcomer probably wouldn't dare go too far... right?
Dragon Duke Meng Shu furrowed his brow, about to demand the newcomer's identity and drive away the unwelcome guest.
But when his gaze swept over the towering, silent, burly man behind Zhao Linchuan, Jin Da happened to look up and give him a casual glance.
That one glance!
Every hair on Meng Shu's body stood on end!
A chill from the depths of his soul, like a cold serpent, shot through every limb in an instant!
The gaze was calm and without a ripple, yet weighed as heavily as Mount Tai!
A crystal-clear thought exploded like thunder in the hearts of both him and his wife, Chao Tianxiang.
Unbeatable! They couldn't win!
The words on their lips died there. Cold sweat drenched their backs, and they stood rooted to the spot, not daring to make the slightest move. All they could do was exchange terrified looks.
Zhao Linchuan seemed not to notice everyone's tension. Wearing just the right expression of "concern" and "gravity," he walked straight to Tang San, who had fallen unconscious, the eight grotesque spider legs on his back still twitching.
He bent over and "carefully" examined the strange growths on Tang San's back. He even reached out and lightly touched the edge of one spider leg.
Then he straightened and turned to Dragon Duke and Snake Granny, along with Zhao Wuji and the others, who were watching him tensely. In a solemn voice, he said, "There's no need for everyone to panic. To be frank, Tang San and I were classmates at Notting Junior Spirit Master Academy. We got along fairly well."
"I know a little about his current condition."
"Oh? Young master, you know what's causing this strange affliction?"
Suppressing his fear, Dragon Duke Meng Shu hurriedly followed up, "May I ask if you have a way to deal with it?"
"Of course I do."
A teasing curve touched Zhao Linchuan's lips. His tone was "earnest" as he said, "It's just that... the treatment may cause him considerable pain."
"A little flesh wound is nothing! As long as Tang San can escape this danger and keep his life and future, a little suffering is well worth it!" Snake Matriarch Chao Tianxiang quickly interjected, her voice urgent.
As she saw it, as long as they could save this astonishingly talented "future member of the family," a little pain was nothing to worry about.
"Very well. Since you two seniors approve, I'll begin."
Zhao Linchuan nodded, and the trace of warmth on his face vanished at once.
He turned slightly to face the eight grotesque spider legs on Tang San's back.
His gaze sharpened. His left hand moved as fast as lightning, five fingers clamping around the back of Tang San's neck like iron pincers. At the same time, he curled the fingers of his right hand into a claw and seized the spot where the roots of the eight spider legs met.
"AAAAAAH—!!!!!!"
A heartrending scream, nothing like a human voice, burst from deep in Tang San's throat. It sounded as though his very soul were being torn apart!
The agony and despair in that scream sent a chill through everyone present!
As it rang out, everyone watched in horrified disbelief as Zhao Linchuan's right hand sank into Tang San's back without resistance, as though it were plunging into tofu!
Then he gave his wrist a jerk and yanked outward!
"Riiip—!!" That teeth-grating sound rang out again!
A mass wrapped in dark purple Soul Power, writhing and twisting, its shape faintly resembling eight tiny spider legs, came with a spray of blood as Zhao Linchuan forcibly "pulled" it from Tang San's back!
The excruciating pain, far beyond the limits of human endurance, crashed over Tang San like a tidal wave, sweeping away his muddled consciousness and dragging him back to reality.
But the next second, it plunged him into utter darkness once more. He passed out again, his body slumping limply to the ground. A gruesome, bloody gash gaped across his back, so deep that bone showed through!
"You—!"
"You brat! You're asking for death!" Dragon Duke and Snake Matriarch flew into a rage, their eyes nearly popping out of their sockets!
They had never imagined that the so-called "solution" would be such a brutal, bloody "extraction"!
This wasn't saving someone. It was murder!
"Hmph!" Jin Da let out a timely snort.
In an instant, a pale golden pressure, almost tangible, burst outward from him!
It was as though an invisible gravity field had descended, covering an area dozens of meters around him!
Thump!
Thump!
Dai Mubai, Oscar, and Ma Hongjun were weaker. They couldn't even stay on their feet under the pressure; their knees buckled, and they fell to the ground. Their faces were deathly pale, their breathing labored, and they couldn't even raise their heads.
Meng Shu and his wife, along with Zhao Wuji and the others, were also jolted. Their faces changed as they desperately circulated their Soul Power, but it felt as if they were carrying a mountain on their backs. They couldn't move a step, and even releasing their Martial Souls was extraordinarily difficult!
They stared at Jin Da in shock. He was unquestionably a powerhouse far beyond a Titled Douluo, perhaps even someone who had reached the legendary realm of a Super Douluo!
And an exceptionally powerful Super Douluo at that!
"Take it easy." Zhao Linchuan's voice rang out again, calm as though the bloody scene a moment ago had nothing to do with him.
He watched the Eight Spider Lances rapidly retract now that their Soul Power connection to Tang San's body had been severed, and said coolly, "Didn't I say I had a solution?"
"This sinister thing is parasitizing his body. If it isn't completely removed, sooner or later it will turn the tables, devour his mind, and turn him into a real monster."
"I've 'pulled it out.' The process was painful, but it was the only way to treat the root of the problem."
Before you continue