"It's Liu Xian!"
At the voice from outside the courtyard, Chu Mo's expression shifted slightly. He held his breath and focused, offering no reply.
Although he had yet to see the man, he was certain Liu Xian was a Red Name monster. On a moonless, windswept night like this, Chu Mo hardly thought he had come to spread warmth and kindness.
"Liu Xian. Magic artifact: Scarlet Sun Needle. Proficient in Fire Crow Talismans, Flowing Flame Arrow Talismans, Flame Sun Protection Talismans..."
The information he had gathered flashed through Chu Mo's mind. He had made his preparations after returning last time.
Creeeak-
The courtyard gate swung open, and Liu Xian strolled inside. Seeing the youth standing in the courtyard, he smiled faintly. "Since you're here, why didn't you answer?"
[Level 6 · Duo'e Sect Grunt (Red name)] [HP bar: 8%] [MP bar: 73%]
"Chu Mo." A trace of longing showed in Liu Xian's eyes. "Has your practice of the Heartfire Meridian-Forging Art been going smoothly? How about a deal?
Sell me this body of yours. Once I've dealt with-"
Perfect opening!
Why would Chu Mo listen to his nonsense? Taking advantage of Liu Xian's distraction as he spoke, he unleashed the [Golden Baleful Bone-Piercing Art] he had already primed! A concentrated golden ray shot straight at Liu Xian's heart like a venomous snake darting from its hole!
At the same time, dark light surged inside his sleeve, and [Soul-Severing Sand] swept toward Liu Xian's retreat route in a gust of sinister wind!
Clang!
A crisp metallic clash rang out. Scarlet light flashed before Liu Xian, and a crimson steel needle struck the tip of the Golden Cone precisely, shattering it.
His figure shifted like a phantom, narrowly evading the sweeping Soul-Severing Sand. His robes fluttered, but he remained entirely unscathed.
"Heh. Cheap tricks." He chuckled softly, a cold gleam flashing in his eyes. "Since you won't agree, I'll just have to do it my-"
Before he could finish, another sudden change occurred.
Several green vines formed from spiritual power burst from the earth beneath Liu Xian's feet, coiling tightly around his legs like spirit snakes.
[Green Vine Bind] took effect
"Now! Senior sister, go!" A fierce glint flashed in Chu Mo's eyes as he gave the order without hesitation.
The red figure named Qing Xi instantly lunged in front of Liu Xian and detonated!
Boom!
A violent spiritual-energy shock wave swept through the little courtyard, sending dust billowing!
Rest easy, senior sister. I'll remember your sacrifice, Chu Mo said silently, watching the space ahead intently.
Yet when the dust cleared, Liu Xian looked somewhat disheveled, but a faint crimson barrier shimmered around him. He was completely unharmed!
It's a Flame Sun Protection Talisman. Chu Mo's pupils contracted sharply. He pushed the Dust-Treading Art to its limit and darted backward.
Liu Xian grinned savagely. "You have a good eye, and your tricks aren't bad either. But you think you can hurt me with that little power? Die!"
The Scarlet Sun Needle became a streak of crimson light, its speed surging as it shot straight between Chu Mo's brows! There was no way to dodge!
Squelch!
Pain pierced the spot between his brows, and darkness fell.
[HP bar: 0%] [You have died] [Yin-Yang Jade -1. Remaining: Two] [You will resurrect in 30 seconds]
Liu Xian looked at Chu Mo lying on the ground and snorted coldly. He made no attempt to intercept the gray wisp that darted from the corpse.
"A fine haul." He walked over to Chu Mo's "corpse," bent down, and removed his Storage Bag.
It was a shame he had failed to capture and refine him alive, but obtaining a high-quality fire meridian still made the trip worthwhile.
"Where did this brat get so many tricks?"
With a hint of puzzlement, he reached out to examine the corpse-only to find himself staring into a pair of eyes that had opened without his noticing.
An intensely concentrated Crimson-Gold Flame Bolt, radiating terrifying heat—a [Flowing Flame Arrow Talisman]—erupted at virtually point-blank range!
At such close range, with such an abrupt turn of events, Liu Xian had no time to react at all!
The puzzlement on his face had not even had time to become shock before the searing Flowing Flame Arrow punched through his chest!
"You... aren't... supposed..."
Liu Xian stared at Chu Mo in disbelief. The hole his Scarlet Sun Needle had left between Chu Mo's brows had vanished.
He came back from the dead...? A rasping sound escaped his throat, and he fell backward, filled with endless bewilderment and regret.
[You have killed a Level 6 · Duo'e Sect Grunt (Red name)]
Looking at Liu Xian's corpse, its eyes still wide open in death, Chu Mo smiled softly. "Didn't see that coming, did you? I get a resurrection round."
Based on the information he had gathered, he had known all along that he could not take Liu Xian head-on, even with a [Flowing Flame Arrow Talisman] equivalent to a strike from the sixth level of Qi Refining.
So Chu Mo had chosen to die once first, lowering his opponent's guard. It was hardly his first death anyway.
This death had been a little unusual, though. He had been pulled into the Darkworld Grotto-Scenery Banner.
Inside, he had felt as though he had no control over himself and was at someone else's mercy, leaving him uncomfortable all over. Fortunately, once thirty seconds had passed, he resurrected where he had fallen.
Just then, Liu Xian's soul emerged from his corpse. Before Chu Mo could cast the Mind-Cleansing Mantra, he heard it wail. Scarlet flames gushed from its heart and burned the soul away completely in an instant.
[You have killed a Level 6 · Yin Spirit (Red name)]
"Hiss-" Chu Mo sucked in a breath. The description never said the [Flowing Flame Arrow Talisman] could do that! Was his soul... utterly annihilated?
He shook his head and picked up the glowing orbs that had dropped to the ground.
[Obtained [Spell Coin] x67] [Obtained [Fire Crow Talisman] x6] [Obtained [Flowing Flame Arrow Talisman] x3] [Obtained [Flame Sun Protection Talisman] x2] [Obtained "Essentials of Scarlet Flame Talismanry, Volume One"] [Obtained "Burning Heart Sutra"]
"Did he drop his entire life's stash?" Chu Mo said in surprise. Liu Xian had dropped loot on both his first and second deaths, and it was all good stuff.
The Essentials of Scarlet Flame Talismanry, Volume One was particularly valuable. It recorded the various spirit talismans Liu Xian had mastered, even including the [Sunflame Evil-Breaking Talisman] and [Flame Arrow Volley Talisman], which could only be drawn at late-stage Qi Refining.
As for the Burning Heart Sutra, it was a Middle Grade Spirit cultivation art. Chu Mo skimmed through it and suddenly understood. "So that's how it is..."
He finally understood why Liu Xian had suddenly attacked him.
The Burning Heart Sutra was indeed a powerful fire-attribute cultivation art, and the burning-heart true flame it produced was extraordinarily domineering.
But its cultivation process concealed an enormous danger.
As one's cultivation advanced, heartfire would accumulate continuously, scorching the meridians and even the soul. Without timely release, one would lose all cultivation at best, or die with one's Dao extinguished at worst.
One of the "remedies" that could resolve this danger-and even use it to accelerate cultivation-was the pure and unique "fire meridian" nurtured within a cultivator's body after practicing the Heartfire Meridian-Forging Art to a certain degree!
The Burning Heart Sutra called this sort of "fire meridian," cultivated solely to weave another person's wedding robes, "fuel."
Through a secret art, practitioners of the Burning Heart Sutra could forcibly extract and refine the "fire meridian" someone else had painstakingly cultivated, quelling their own heartfire while greatly advancing their cultivation.
Liu Xian had likely assumed Chu Mo had cultivated a fire meridian. With the backlash from his own heartfire no longer suppressible, he had impatiently made his move, intending to burn Chu Mo as "firewood" to prolong his own Dao path.