Chapter 18: The Monster in the Black Wind

Because of Zhao Yu's words, the silver-haired old man and his two companions couldn't help but exchange glances.

The scarred man couldn't hold back: "Is he brain-damaged, or is he just playing the fool with us?"

What Zhao Yu said... it really wasn't something a person with a normal mind would say.

Taking one's head off? If a person did that, they would surely be dead. Even with their level of cultivation, if they were decapitated, even if their soul didn't dissipate instantly, their physical body would perish, and death would be inevitable.

The eagle-nosed man observed Zhao Yu for a while and frowned: "Hard to say. His expression looks very serious; he seems to truly believe it."

The silver-haired old man lifted his eyes slightly: "Whether he is playing the fool or not, just pull his soul out. Then, burn his spirit with intense flames for a moment. Under such boundless agony, even if he were truly insane, he would obediently answer our questions!"

As for whether Zhao Yu would die afterward... once he had no more use, death was of no consequence. He was merely a barbarian from these million-mile-long Yin Mountains.

"Reasonable." The scarred man raised his hand and made a grabbing motion toward Zhao Yu through the air.

Mana surged, transforming into an invisible art aimed at snatching the soul within Zhao Yu’s body. Zhao Yu merely felt a gust of wind blow past him.

And then... there was no then.

But it must be said, this breeze felt a bit cooler than the mountain wind.

Zhao Yu unhesitatingly gave a thumbs-up in praise: "As expected of a practitioner. If I had this ability, I wouldn't need to seek refuge from the heat in the summer anymore."

He decided he must learn this skill in the future!

The scarred man stood frozen in place. The eagle-nosed man and the silver-haired old man looked at the scarred man, their expressions strange: "Did you not eat, or what?"

He couldn't even pull the soul out of a mere mortal? If it weren't for the fact that Zhao Yu seemed mentally unstable and was undoubtedly a mortal, they might have suspected they had encountered an old monster disguised as a pig to eat the tiger.

The scarred man’s lips twitched. He turned, revealed a cruel look, and formed a seal: "Soul without anchor, body without spirit, Soul Snatch!"

With the incantation, a blood-colored light lunged toward Zhao Yu’s heart. The light was fast—so fast that a mortal like Zhao Yu certainly shouldn't have been able to dodge it.

The blood light entered his body. Zhao Yu only felt that it was a tiny bit cooler than before. Without hesitation, he asked curiously: "What kind of skill is this? I feel like this would be even better for staying cool in the summer."

He wouldn't even have to worry about the wind blowing his furniture out of place.

The scarred man didn't speak; he just stared at Zhao Yu in disbelief, as if he had seen a ghost. The silver-haired old man and the eagle-nosed man also turned solemn and grave.

Initially, the failure to extract the soul could be attributed to the scarred man's arrogance or some treasure Zhao Yu might have possessed. But the Soul-Snatching Art just used... if one's cultivation had not reached the Nascent Soul stage, the body should have instantly collapsed into nothingness, and the soul would have been captured! Even if one had reached the Nascent Soul stage, if they were struck directly by that art, even if the body didn't collapse, the spirit would fall into a brief stupor.

Yet, Zhao Yu remained completely unharmed...

Recalling Zhao Yu’s "insane" words from earlier...

The three men's faces changed drastically. They shouted in unison: "He is definitely not human! He is a terrifying specter from the Abyss of Despair! Run!"

Only the specters of the abyss could move freely within the Winds of Despair!

The three flashed away, turning into rainbows that instantly broke through the air to escape the cave. Zhao Yu hurriedly chased after them: "Why are you all running for no reason? Believe me, if you take your heads off, your illness will..."

Before he could finish, Zhao Yu swallowed his words. The black wind was still raging outside. Most importantly, a monster that looked extremely powerful had suddenly emerged from the black wind.

Its clothes were tattered, its body was a mass of bloody flesh, and on its back, there was a pair of hairless, fleshy wings. On its crown, several tentacles were dancing about. Its eyes did not look like human eyes; they looked more like the slit pupils of a serpent. Although it didn't grow countless tentacles like his wife, his wife had said that growing more limbs didn't necessarily mean one was strong, but growing tentacles—that definitely meant one wasn't weak!

"Hee hee..." The monster let out a strange laugh at the three men the moment it appeared. The laughter was indistinguishable as male or female, or perhaps a mix of both.

"Damn it, this... this is the legendary Desolate Blood Corpse... scatter and run!"

In sheer terror, the three men didn't hesitate; they lunged toward the mountain walls in three different directions. With their cultivation and speed, escaping by tunneling through the mountain should have been easy!

However... the tentacles on the monster's crown suddenly elongated.

"Ah..." With a sharp, shrill wail, the three were instantly pierced through the head by the tentacles.

The light in their eyes vanished, replaced by a dull vacancy. Then, their bodies stiffened and they returned the way they came, walking in front of the monster. The monster licked its lips, grabbed a corpse with its bloody hand, tore the body open, and began to feast greedily.

Zhao Yu thought for a moment and stepped forward: "Um... would you mind cleaning up first?"

The monster, still enjoying its meal, paused and looked up, staring straight at Zhao Yu.

"Brother, it's not that I'm lecturing you, but think about it—blood is splattered everywhere. That's not hygienic."

After a pause, Zhao Yu advised further: "Let me tell you, if you don't practice good hygiene, you won't be able to get a wife... I have a wife, so I definitely wouldn't lie to you."

He couldn't beat the three men combined, and this brother, who looked quite powerful in this form, had killed them in seconds. In other words, this guy could kill him in seconds too. Of course, that wasn't important. What was important was that this guy had tentacles on his head and wings on his back... he looked like a proper practitioner! And a high-level one at that!

Who knows, this guy might have some secret manuals he could cultivate! Building a good relationship was imperative.

The monster didn't speak, just stared straight at Zhao Yu. Zhao Yu thought about it and probed: "Brother, are you mute?"

How pitiful.

The monster stared at Zhao Yu for a while longer, then suddenly grinned: "Your blood, it smells so sweet... such temptation... I have only smelled a similar scent on the Sovereign of Despair..." Its mouth was full of small, sharp teeth, unlike a human's.

"Do you eat people?" Zhao Yu immediately became alert. Could this be a man-eating specter? He subconsciously reached for the back of his waist... if this guy ate people, to avoid being eaten, he had to strike first.

Can't win? Forget it, fight first and ask questions later!

The monster's gaze toward Zhao Yu paused. It looked down at the partially consumed corpse in its hand, then back at Zhao Yu, saying nothing. Was what it held not a person?

Zhao Yu gripped his wood-chopping knife: "I asked you a question."

Although he would likely be killed by this monster in an instant, to avoid being killed and eaten, it was time to get fired up. He still had a wife at home, as well as a sick younger brother and sister-in-law... he believed he wouldn't lose. After all, the books said that in a desperate situation, if you shout about "friendship, family, and love" and recall the faces of your loved ones, you can achieve a desperate comeback.

He could feel the hot blood rising in his body! It was time for a beautiful duel.

The monster, however, stared blankly at the wood-chopping knife. A hint of human-like contemplation was clearly visible in its eyes.

A long time passed.

The monster's eyes suddenly became flustered: "Nine-Spirit Phoenix Wings... it's the Nine-Spirit Phoenix Wings... you... you... you are..."