Chapter 76: Devouring the Master!

Before Xu Bingzheng could finish speaking, the world spun around him.

By the time he recovered his senses, Wang Ping had already used Soul Pursuing to extract his soul from the paper doll. He landed in a giant palm, staring helplessly up at the sky.

Everywhere he looked, he saw only five fingers like mountain peaks and skin ridges patterned like river veins. The figure towered into the clouds, too massive to be seen in its entirety. He could barely make out a pair of golden eyes, radiant as the sun and moon, looking down at him through the sea of clouds.

I am doomed!

Endless regret swelled in Xu Bingzheng's heart. If he had known, he never would have come. How had he let his ambitions for an official career completely cloud his judgment?

Meanwhile, Wang Ping sized up Xu Bingzheng in his palm.

Stripped of a physical body, Xu Bingzheng's bare soul could not hide a single thought from Wang Ping's spiritual sense. Every surge of emotion lay completely bare.

He felt no surprise at all.

It seemed that even in a wretched place like Great Shun, returning from the dead was nothing rare... even Xu Bingzheng himself had just resurrected.

This was both a good and a bad thing.

The benefit was that his own resurrection would not stand out too much amid a sea of similar cases. The downside was that future enemies would likely be just as troublesome to kill.

He glanced toward Youren Temple. Seeing Shenhou and Xugou advancing completely unhindered into the Daoist temple, he nodded in satisfaction. Regardless, his plan to instigate the black-headed commoners into robbing the granaries—thereby luring the snake from its hole and drawing the tiger away from its mountain—had succeeded.

Wang Ping was by no means a rigid man.

Helping the black-headed commoners rob the granaries was something he could have done earlier, or even later. Why had he insisted on doing it at this sensitive time?

His purpose was to lure the tiger away from the mountain.

He had used the critical importance of the granaries to seize their attention, attacking the very place the enemy had to save. This forced the people of the National Academy to rush to the rescue, buying precious time for Shenhou and Xugou.

At the same time—

Doing this also lets them scout the way for me, to see exactly what is inside Youren Temple. If there is real danger, well... better a dead fellow Daoist than a poor Daoist...

To his surprise, he had actually hooked a big fish in the process.

Wang Ping pondered as he held Xu Bingzheng's soul in his grasp.

"Wang Ping... young friend Wang... Lord Wang!"

Xu Bingzheng's voice trembled as he changed his address three times. His former arrogance had completely vanished, leaving only the boundless terror of a man whose life and death were being toyed with in the palm of another's hand.

As far as he was concerned, Wang Ping was clearly no longer a Mortal. He had become an extraordinary person like Perfected Wandering Spirit, standing on a level beyond what any Mortal could hope to reach.

With a single thought from Wang Ping, his life would be extinguished.

And the truth was exactly that.

After all, Xu Bingzheng had lost his rank on the Armament Manual. His martial arts had plummeted, he lacked the military formation empowerment that Yan Weichuan enjoyed, and he had let Wang Ping get into point-blank range.

Under these circumstances, even if Xu Bingzheng possessed a mystic treasure like the Myriad Blade Spirit Chariot, Wang Ping was absolutely confident he could scatter the man's soul before he ever had a chance to use it. The gap between them was just that immense. Otherwise, if there had been even the slightest risk, Wang Ping would have already dealt the killing blow.

However, since he was fully in control, he intended to make good use of the situation. Everything should be exploited to the fullest, after all. He absolutely could not waste Xu Bingzheng's value as human livestock.

Wang Ping chuckled lightly. "Spit it out."

"The layout of Youren Temple? Are Perfected Wandering Spirit and the Longevity Rivaling Heaven Gourd inside? What is the status of the repairs? You have at least three things to tell me."

"If I tell you the truth, will you spare my life?"

Xu Bingzheng asked in a low voice.

"I will consider giving you a quick death," Wang Ping replied, his tone calm. "Of course, you are welcome to try a slow and agonizing death instead, so don't force yourself."

As he spoke, the shadowy figures of demons surfaced one after another behind him. These were the demons formed from the fallen black-headed commoners of Longxing County. Though they had long lost their mortal memories, their obsessions remained. Now, laying eyes on their former magistrate Xu Bingzheng, they bared their demonic ferocity on pure instinct.

"I'll speak! I'll speak!"

Xu Bingzheng understood enough about these demons to know exactly how agonizing it would be to be devoured by them. The tiny bit of courage he had mustered instantly evaporated.

"There is a bronze man array inside Youren Temple."

"The array holds a total of nine bronze men. Every single one is invulnerable to blades and spears, but they don't know any martial arts. Moreover, the number is wrong, making the array incomplete, so they shouldn't be too difficult to deal with..."

Hearing this, Wang Ping instantly understood.

What bronze men? They are clearly strongmen!

I see. Daoist Nun You sent the strongmen she bought to Youren Temple. The number is wrong... that makes sense. There were supposed to be ten of them.

After all, they were missing him!

"Besides that, there is Perfected Wandering Spirit himself. He is inside repairing the Longevity Rivaling Heaven Gourd. I've already gathered the lifespans required for it."

"Based on my estimates, the repairs will definitely be completed within three days."

"...That fast?"

Wang Ping frowned slightly. If that were the case, he wouldn't be able to wait for the Outer Heavenly Demon's cooldown to refresh before making his move. That was certainly bad news.

After a moment of thought, Wang Ping spoke again. "Is Perfected Wandering Spirit male or female? What does he look like?"

Xu Bingzheng paused. He shot Wang Ping a cautious look before tentatively asking again, "...If I tell you, will you spare my life?"

"Speak!"

Wang Ping sent out a mental command. A demon behind him instantly pounced forward like a ravenous wolf, tearing off a small chunk of Xu Bingzheng's soul.

"Ah!!!"

The sheer agony made Xu Bingzheng wail. He no longer dared to bargain. "He was a man before, but then he was swapped out for someone wearing a bronze mask!"

"What about the voice?" Wang Ping pressed.

"I don't know... Wait, wait!"

Seeing Wang Ping's expression darken with murderous intent, Xu Bingzheng hurriedly explained, "Even so, I can take a rough guess!"

"No matter who Perfected Wandering Spirit really is, the one currently inside Youren Temple shouldn't be the true body! Otherwise, there would be no need to hide behind a mask. I suspect they are using some kind of paper doll substitute, just like the one I was using, only much higher in quality! Furthermore, I've heard that powerful extraordinary persons basically cannot descend to this realm..."

"Yes! That's right!"

Xu Bingzheng racked his brains. Then, as if he had just realized something else, he cried out, "Also, based on her speech and mannerisms... I suspect she might actually be a woman!"

"A woman?"

Wang Ping's eyes narrowed. "Are you sure?"

Xu Bingzheng lowered his head. "I'm not entirely sure. It's just a feeling. After all, her speech and mannerisms inexplicably give off an alluring vibe."

"...Desire."

Wang Ping sighed inwardly.

Xu Bingzheng couldn't be certain, but upon hearing his description, Wang Ping had already reached a conclusion. There was no mistaking it. This time, Perfected Wandering Spirit was actually that venomous woman herself!

An inexplicably alluring vibe?

That makes perfect sense!

Wang Ping hadn't forgotten that the Immortal Gate recognized Daoist Nun You as possessing the Bliss Immortal Physique. Her ability to exude allure and bewitch the hearts of men was practically innate.

However, Xu Bingzheng was probably right about one thing. If Daoist Nun You had personally descended in her true body, her seductive influence would be vastly stronger than a mere "inexplicably alluring vibe." Therefore, the current Perfected Wandering Spirit was most likely some sort of clone or avatar... Can Immortal Gate cultivators not easily descend into the mortal realm?

Hmm... that makes sense, actually.

Wang Ping smiled bitterly. After all, the Great Shun World was effectively the Immortal Gate's Eight Trigrams Furnace. Who in their right mind would willingly jump into a blazing furnace meant for forging treasures?

Thinking of this, Wang Ping looked back at Xu Bingzheng.

Judging by the feedback from his spiritual sense, the man had already confessed everything he knew. Pressing him any further would only result in fabricated lies; his value as human livestock had essentially been squeezed dry.

Since that was the case—

Crack!

Wang Ping closed his fingers, preparing to outright crush Xu Bingzheng's soul. Seeing this, a look of absolute despair washed over Xu Bingzheng's face...

However, right at that moment.

"Hmm?!"

Suddenly, a powerful, stifling resistance erupted from the depths of his soul, forcing Wang Ping's hand to halt just before he could crush Xu Bingzheng completely.

This is... Daoist Nun You's magic power?

Wang Ping's heart skipped a beat. As the artifact spirit of the Six Desires Heavenly Demon Flag, the only capital allowing him to run wild right now was the magic power Daoist Nun You had infused into him beforehand.

However, that very same magic power—which had previously flowed as smoothly as his own limbs—was now violently rebelling. It surged backward, battering his body and shaking his soul to its core. Even the demons contained within the flag began to howl in agony as visible cracks instantly spiderwebbed across his entire body!

This is... backlash?

Wang Ping quickly forced himself to remain calm.

I see. This body of mine ultimately has a master. Daoist Nun You gave explicit commands to the Six Desires Heavenly Demon Flag, and I am currently defying them.

Daoist Nun You's voice echoed in his mind once again: "Your mission this time is to gather as many demons as possible, and to do everything in your power to elevate your rank."

"That is your primary mission."

"Your secondary mission is to ensure that the refinement of the Longevity Rivaling Heaven Gourd remains undisturbed. Someone else is primarily in charge of that, of course; you merely need to assist from the sidelines."

Previously, whether he was conversing with Shouchong or killing Yan Weichuan, he hadn't violated the primary mission. At the very least, his actions had remained within Daoist Nun You's margin of tolerance.

Now, however, things were different.

In Daoist Nun You's plan, Xu Bingzheng was the key figure responsible for manipulating the demons and harvesting lifespans. Killing him was a blatant violation of the secondary mission.

In other words, this was an act of "Devouring the Master."

Under these circumstances, the magic power backlash was a natural consequence. If he didn't yield, the violently rebelling magic power would likely obliterate him on the spot!

Clearly, after his previous betrayal, Daoist Nun You had deepened her guard against the Six Desires Heavenly Demon Flag and deliberately planted this restriction within him.

It's a pity she ran into me again.

Wang Ping flashed a feral grin. He immediately sank his consciousness into the Great Peace Mortuary and activated the already illuminated scripture scroll upon the towering tome.

Courage of the Noble Gentleman!

As long as his actions aligned with the principle of upholding righteousness and adhering to justice, unless his head was completely blown off, he would remain utterly unaffected by any injury, no matter how severe!

Now is the exact time to uphold righteousness and adhere to justice!

In the very next second, the supreme profundity of the scripture scroll descended from the void and empowered Wang Ping's body. It instantly washed away the agonizing torture of the magic power backlash.

Of course, the backlash itself hadn't ended. However, under the effect of the Courage of the Noble Gentleman, the damage it caused was far from fatal—it was practically negligible. Therefore, Wang Ping could completely tank the backlash and forcibly channel his magic power right up until the scripture scroll's effect wore off!

Snap!

Immediately afterward, having resolved the issue of the backlash, Wang Ping clamped his hand shut once more. He mercilessly plunged Xu Bingzheng—who had just managed to spark a tiny glimmer of hope—straight back into the abyss of despair.

A wisp of green smoke drifted into the air as the magistrate's soul shattered into nothingness.

Having finished the deed, Wang Ping suddenly felt a stir in his heart. He looked back toward Youren Temple, only to see a beam of azure light shooting straight up from its grounds and piercing the clouds above.

Meanwhile, within the Immortal Gate's Divine Weapon Courtyard.

You Xuexin suddenly snapped her eyes open. Her beautiful eyes stared fixedly at the star-like Eight Trigrams Furnace churning below her as her gorgeous face gradually twisted into a vicious scowl.

"The Six Desires Heavenly Demon Flag... is devouring its master?"

"Again?!"