Chapter 220: Feeding Poison with One’s Own Body

“Kill! Kill! Kill!”

With a sharp cry, the sleeping girl suddenly sat up!

Her bloodshot eyes locked onto Gu Ning’an, who stood at the temple entrance.

“Universal Immortal…”

“Mr. Gu…”

After changing her form of address twice, the girl silently sat up, then knelt down in full prostration before Gu Ning’an.

“Thank you, sir, for saving my life.”

Puzzled by the girl’s composure, Gu Ning’an gestured beside her and said calmly, “There’s food and water. Eat something.”

“Thank you, sir.” She kowtowed again before grabbing the water flask. Gulping down a mouthful, she then tore open the butter paper wrapping, paying no mind to the bloodstains on her hands as she grabbed a steamed bun and began devouring it.

The three buns—each several times larger than her fists—were gone in less than half a cup of tea’s time.

With food and water in her stomach, her complexion visibly improved.

Watching her tilt her head back to drink, Gu Ning’an asked, “Do you want more?”

She put down the water flask and shook her head. “I’m full. Thank you, sir.”

“What’s your name?”

“Qiao Min.”

“Besides the people from this village, do you have any other family?”

“No.”

“Where do you plan to go next? I can take you there.”

“The wolf demons aren’t all dead yet. I want to kill them.”

“How?”

“I know of a poisonous herb. Eating it won’t kill you immediately… I’ll eat it first, then trick the wolf demons into eating me, poisoning them to death.”

Hearing her calmly state such a plan, Gu Ning’an was momentarily taken aback.

“Have you considered that while this might work on ordinary wolves, it might not be effective against wolf demons?”

Qiao Min shook her head. “This is the only way I can kill them myself… If it doesn’t work, then I’ll be dead anyway, and I won’t have to see it fail…”

Gu Ning’an nodded slightly. “Before that, could you tell me everything you know about this ‘Universal Immortal’?”

“Of course.” Qiao Min nodded and began recounting the tale from the very beginning…

Piecing together her account with the memories of the wolf demons, Gu Ning’an finally traced the full story of the village massacre.

What he could now confirm was that the incense power drifting from Great Wu all came from the short-legged old man, who had built the temple and protected the village, thereby accumulating this power.

The old man had once given the villagers a portrait, and they had used it to carve a stone statue that bore a sixty-percent resemblance to the figure in the image.

But gathering incense power on someone else’s behalf was a thankless task. Even if the old man had taken a small share for himself, it was far less effective than simply erecting a temple for his own worship.

After all, he was the one protecting the villagers—why should he let another reap the benefits?

Furthermore, the fact that the portrait only resembled its subject by sixty percent strongly suggested that the old man had never actually seen him in person.

Never having met him, yet going to such lengths for his sake—and possessing the ability to perform spirit descent technique…

Adding up all these details, Gu Ning’an now had a rough idea of who the short-legged old man might be…

“Sir, if you don’t mind, you may rest in any house for the night before leaving… I will bury my parents first, then go gather the poisonous herbs.”

Saying this, Qiao Min stood up and walked toward the temple entrance.

Gu Ning’an nodded. “May you avenge them soon.”

“Thank you for your kind words, sir…”

With a slight bow at the temple doors, Qiao Min turned and left without looking back.

…

A hundred miles from the village lay a hilly region, beneath which was a concealed stone cave.

The entrance to the cave was about the height of a person. It was narrow at first, but upon venturing deeper inside, one would discover a vast underground chamber.

The cavern was spacious, with its rock walls embedded with oil lamps, making the once-dark space brilliantly illuminated.

Inside, the tables, chairs, and benches were all crafted from premium huanghuali wood—clearly looted from some merchant’s shop by the wolf demons.

On a chair covered with a thick black felt, the leanest of the wolf demons reclined, its chin fur dampened by spilled liquor.

“Big brother… this time, we really had our fill!”

“But that short-legged old man—do you think he’ll come back for revenge?”

“Regardless of whether that ‘Universal Immortal’ is real or not, that old man’s strength is definitely not to be underestimated.”

One of the wolf demons, its front paws drooping, looked somewhat uneasy.

The pack leader picked up a stone cup, took a swig, and said unhurriedly, “In Great Wu, establishing a temple is no simple matter.”

“That old man clearly didn’t know the rules. I’d wager he’s already set up another temple elsewhere.”

“If he’s not careful and offends a powerful demon, he might not have long to live.”

At this, the pack leader sneered and continued, “Besides, crows are black no matter where you go.”

“You really think that old man wanted to protect the villagers out of kindness?”

“It was all for incense power.”

“Now that they’re all dead, what’s the point of him coming back?”

Upon hearing this, the gathered wolf demons immediately voiced their agreement.

Their words were no different from humans flattering their superiors—nothing but sycophantic praises like “Big Brother is wise!” and “Big Brother speaks the truth!”

The pack leader burst into hearty laughter. “Good, good, good! In a few days, once we confirm that this so-called ‘Universal Immortal’ is a fraud, we’ll find another village and feast on fresh meat!”

As soon as he said this, the cave echoed with excited wolf howls, and the demons indulged in a raucous celebration.

Just then, through his drunken haze, the pack leader vaguely noticed two familiar figures—”Second” and “Fifth.”

“Hey, Second, Fifth, when did you two get back?”

“Why didn’t you make a sound coming in?”

His sudden question made the entire group freeze. They instinctively followed his gaze—

On the long huanghuali table, which had previously only held stone cups, two wolf heads had suddenly appeared in the empty space.

When they realized that the heads weren’t attached to bodies, every wolf demon’s fur bristled in alarm!

In an instant, they all reflexively tried to leap from their seats—

“Sit down.”

A calm yet commanding voice rang beside their ears.

To their horror, they found themselves obeying involuntarily, their bodies remaining perfectly seated, unable to move an inch.

At that moment, their pupils reflected the image of a figure dressed in white.

His expression was tranquil, resembling a scholar.

But the wolf demons knew—

They had run into someone truly terrifying.