Waiting to Die

"Leave this place first. We can't stay here."

Zhou Baishan sprang to his feet, took off the Evil Skin, and headed deeper inside.

Zhao Hong hurried after him.

"Brother Zhou, the Evil Skin Cult dares to oppose the imperial court. What exactly is their background?"

"I don't know. But they've existed in Great Li for over a century, giving the court an enormous headache. They launched large-scale purges against them in the early years, but after lying low for a while, they always resurged."

"This Evil Skin is carved with mystic patterns. It can actively devour blood essence and vital energy, evolving on its own. Whether human skin or beast hide, in the hands of the Evil Skin Cult, it is even more terrifying than demons and fiends. If one's strength is insufficient, encountering one of their demon-men could result in being forcibly fused with it—neither human nor ghost, reduced to a puppet."

"Rumor has it that the Evil Skin Cult originated from losers in a past struggle for the throne. Others say they are remnants of ancient sects and noble clans suppressed during the founding of the dynasty. Some even say they are powerful demons that took human form... In any case, there are countless theories. As for the truth, only someone at Lord Judge's level would qualify to know a few of the secrets."

That was outrageous enough.

At first, Zhao Hong had thought it was merely an evil sect entrenched in one corner. He had never expected it to be so frightening.

It had spread throughout Great Li.

Once donned, the skin perfectly merged with one's own, without the slightest flaw.

Hiss!

He could not help sucking in a breath.

If they held high positions or infiltrated the Judge's Office, that would be something to see.

Still, the Great Li court could not be that stupid.

But no matter what, the Evil Skin Cult really was fierce.

When the sky fell, the tall ones would hold it up.

For now, he only hoped Zhou Baishan could successfully capture that demon-man and then bring him into the Judge's Office.

He was still too weak.

So while on the road, Zhao Hong swallowed the second Blood Gang Pill.

The intense impact from the first time did not return. His bones trembled once, then firmly suppressed the violent power, slowly steaming and refining it away.

The aura leaking from him made Zhou Baishan turn around for a glance. He was speechless for a long while.

That was a Blood Gang Pill.

When Zhou Baishan had first entered the Blood Gang realm, he had needed to find a safe place to sit and slowly refine it.

How could anyone eat it like candy?

It would truly be a pity if such talent died before he had risen.

The second Blood Gang Pill entered his stomach.

Zhao Hong smacked his lips, feeling slightly disappointed.

It was not useless. His strength had increased considerably.

But its effects had weakened greatly.

Unless he had dozens of them, his cultivation might not advance further in a short time.

"An ordinary Blood Gang Pill is worth eighty taels within the Judge's Office. Outside, it goes for nearly a hundred taels," Zhou Baishan suddenly said.

"Damn, that expensive?"

Zhao Hong touched his chest.

There were five hundred taels' worth of banknotes inside.

At that price, he could only buy five or six pills. It would not amount to much.

I'm fucking poor.

You never knew how expensive daily necessities were until you ran a household.

After coming out here, Zhao Hong deeply realized how precious silver was.

And it was not easy to earn, either.

Killing a Blood Gang martial artist only earned him five hundred taels.

One pill cost nearly a hundred taels.

For a Blood Gang martial artist, a hundred taels was not exactly expensive.

Hopefully, he would encounter a few more bandits like Third Brother.

Zhao Hong sighed and followed Zhou Baishan in search of a suitable place.

Half a day later.

They went deep into the mountains and found a secluded place to settle down.

Then came the hunting.

Fierce beasts, demons, and even bandits and vicious criminals who had slipped through the net.

According to Zhou Baishan.

Although the three-hundred-li Clawfang Mountain region had been largely cleared out, many still remained hidden in the wilderness.

Some had fled outward, but there were also ruthless people who still wanted revenge.

And with demon-men from the Evil Skin Cult appearing as well.

Quite a few had gone into hiding.

And so, the days passed one by one.

It was not particularly dull.

Zhou Baishan hunted those at the late and perfected Blood Gang realm.

Zhao Hong searched for opponents around his own strength, fighting to temper himself.

From time to time, he took some blood essence from Zhou Baishan's prey to cultivate.

He did not neglect his martial arts either.

"Damn it."

Zhao Hong was fleeing madly.

His luck had been rather bad. He had encountered a demon.

When he discovered it, it had been dissecting and eating the corpse of a fierce beast.

Then it raised its head, revealing a dog's face.

A yellow-furred dog demon.

The aura it gave off was at the perfected Blood Gang realm.

Roar!

The dog demon darted after him in hot pursuit.

Zhao Hong's face went pale as he ran for his life, wildly shaking a bell in his hand with a loud clatter.

That bell had been left behind by Third Brother.

It had belonged to a dead Silver Bell Guard from the Judge's Office.

There was a small space inside the bell that could be used for storage.

At the same time, when Judge's Office martial artists encountered danger while on missions outside, they could use the bell to notify nearby people to come to their aid.

But the bell's mark had already been erased, rendering it useless.

Without the Judge's Office method, one naturally could not claim it as their own.

Zhou Baishan had only told Zhao Hong to carry it. If they were not too far apart, he could still sense the sound of the bell.

At that moment, the bell's ringing echoed through the mountains.

Behind him, the dog demon's eyes were filled with bloodlust as it rapidly closed in.

The overwhelming demonic aura made Zhao Hong's hair stand on end.

"Brother Zhou, where the hell did you go?"

Zhao Hong was frantic with anxiety.

Whoosh!

A figure swept toward him from the front.

It was Zhou Baishan.

"A perfected Blood Gang dog demon."

The instant he saw it, his eyes lit up.

He shot past Zhao Hong like lightning and struck downward with a palm wrapped in astonishing gang energy.

Boom!

Roar!

With a miserable cry, the dog demon tumbled across the ground, landing flat on its back.

Zhao Hong let out a breath of relief.

Zhou Baishan quickly killed the dog demon with overwhelming force, then took out the Evil Skin and covered the dog demon's corpse with it.

A moment later.

The dog demon's corpse had completely shriveled, all its vital energy drained away.

"A few more of these, and it should be about enough."

Zhou Baishan's eyes burned with excitement.

Zhao Hong slowly approached and looked at the Evil Skin.

The Evil Skin looked as warm and smooth as jade, as tender as a young girl.

Yet the aura it emitted made people deeply uncomfortable.

Sinister and chilling.

It was close to the Profound Embryo realm.

More than half a month had already passed.

Zhou Baishan's results were astonishing.

He had killed vast numbers of fierce beasts and demons.

As well as several unlucky criminals.

"Profound Embryo..."

Suppressing the unease in his heart, Zhao Hong suddenly asked, "Brother Zhou, if a martial artist's Profound Embryo shatters, is there any treasure that can restore it?"

"A shattered Profound Embryo?"

A flash of surprise crossed Zhou Baishan's face before he shook his head. "There are such treasures, but even within the Judge's Office, they require utterly terrifying amounts of merit. Even someone at the level of an inspector would not be qualified to exchange for one."

"With an injury like that, unless one comes from a powerful noble family, it is basically a death sentence. They will not live much longer."

"Not live much longer?"

Zhao Hong's eyelid twitched. He forcibly suppressed the turmoil in his heart, keeping his expression calm.

"The Profound Embryo is the foundation of a martial artist. Once it shatters, it is comparable to a fatal wound. Without a chance to restore it, even if rare medicinal herbs are used to keep them alive, their strength will continuously fade. If they are lucky, they might live a few more years. If not, they only have a few months."

"With injuries like this, it is rarely just the Profound Embryo. How could the limbs, bones, and even the internal organs remain unaffected?"

"What, have you seen someone with a shattered Profound Embryo?"

Zhou Baishan looked at Zhao Hong suspiciously.

Zhao Hong quickly shook his head. "No. I heard someone mention it back in Stone Valley County."

"Oh."

Zhou Baishan did not think much of it.

But Zhao Hong's expression had turned extremely ugly, and he could not help asking again, "Brother Zhou, how long can someone like that usually live?"

Zhou Baishan answered casually, "With ordinary medicinal herbs to keep them alive, at most two or three years. They're already crippled. Unless they come from a powerful noble family, no one would give much in the way of resources to keep a cripple alive."

Hearing that, Zhao Hong calculated an even shorter figure in his heart.

One year!

Zhao Yang had clearly returned to the village to wait for death!