Chapter 323 | Demonic Beings? Obviously Auspicious Omens!

Chen Zhou was currently redeeming Blood-Inducing Pills from the system shop.

Like soul-shaping pills, these things weren't very useful in normal situations and were far less practical than Flesh-Reconstitution Pills.

Redeeming a few when needed was more than enough.

Hearing Tuoba Feng's words, Chen Zhou grabbed a large handful of blood-red pills and, without even looking, stuffed them into the split mouth of the bone column.

"Crunch, crunch."

The bone column chewed with great relish, and the blood-red light screen visibly faded.

The bone column required blood, and the Blood-Inducing Pills were filled with dense vitality and blood power, making them a perfect substitute—perhaps even tasting better.

After finishing feeding the bone column, Chen Zhou spoke without turning his head.

"I'm not afraid."

"First, you can't beat me."

"You couldn't do it in your prime, let alone now when you've only just recovered a little."

"Second."

Chen Zhou turned around, pointing with a smile at the stone coffin behind the man.

"If you dare to go back on your word, I'll destroy your coffin and feed your daughter to the bone column."

Tuoba Feng: "..."

The threat was simple and crude, yet extremely effective.

Tuoba Feng choked on his words and stopped being difficult.

He silently swallowed the 【Flesh-Reconstitution Pill】 in his hand.

As the pill entered his stomach, it instantly transformed into a surging torrent of heat that rushed through his four limbs and hundred bones.

The wounds on his severed legs began to itch, and flesh buds wriggled and grew frantically.

The flesh on his body that had been ossified by death qi began to slough off, replaced by new flesh that quickly scabbed over.

In just a few moments, his feet actually grew back. Although the skin was still tender, he could already walk.

"Divine medicine..."

Tuoba Feng looked at his perfectly restored feet, his heart filled with an overwhelming sense of shock.

What exactly was the background of this Exalted One?

By this time, the bone column had finally had its fill. It emitted a satisfied hum and completely opened the passage.

"Let's go. On to the next stage."

Chen Zhou called out and was the first to step inside.

He wasn't actually afraid of Tuoba Feng going back on his word.

Aside from the crushing difference in strength and the threat of the hostage, there was a more important point: the recognition of the Judgment Whisk.

Divine artifacts possessed spirits and could distinguish good from evil.

Someone who could gain the recognition of the Judgment Whisk—and even resist Chen Zhou's judgment—had a soul that was fundamentally kind and possessed a bottom line.

Furthermore, this man was very principled.

He would rather die than use lies to stall; such a person would not make promises lightly.

But if he did agree, his word was his bond.

Besides, his only request was to save his daughter and treat some black spots.

That was something Chen Zhou was very good at; it was nothing more than a flick of his fingers.

The two figures vanished into the passage.

Because they had been delayed for a while in the previous stage, by the time Chen Zhou stepped into the next space, a blood-soaked demon was already waiting there.

It was a monster with a wolf's head and a human's body, holding two dripping scimitars. It had clearly just killed its opponent and was currently flaunting its might.

Seeing someone enter, the wolf demon gave a cruel grin and was about to pounce.

Swish!

A shrill blade light flashed.

Before Chen Zhou could even act, Tuoba Feng, who had followed closely behind, had already surpassed him and swung his blade.

With his legs restored, Tuoba Feng's speed was incredibly fast.

The wolf demon didn't even have a chance to react before its head soared into the air, the smile still frozen on its lips.

Thud.

The corpse hit the floor.

Tuoba Feng sheathed his blade and stood silently in front of Chen Zhou.

The bone column wriggled again, splitting open after absorbing the demon.

Tuoba Feng didn't say a word; he moved to continue leading the way with the coffin on his back.

"Wait."

Chen Zhou suddenly called out to him.

Tuoba Feng stopped and looked back in confusion.

Chen Zhou raised an eyebrow and pointed at the coffin on the man's back, suggesting, "Shouldn't you save your daughter first?"

"Don't worry, it won't take long."

"The sooner she's treated, the sooner she can stop suffering."

Hearing this, Tuoba Feng visibly froze.

He looked at Chen Zhou with a flash of dazed confusion in his eyes, as if he didn't understand what Chen Zhou was saying.

"What?"

Chen Zhou frowned. "The coffin on your back."

"Didn't you say earlier that your daughter was sleeping on your back?"

"What, you don't need this lord to save her first?"

"The feeling of black spots eroding and madness entering the mind is not pleasant. Every moment delayed is another moment of danger."

The confusion in Tuoba Feng's eyes grew even deeper.

He knitted his brows, seemingly trying hard to recall something.

"Did I say that?"

He shook his head and stated with absolute certainty, "Has Your Excellency misremembered?"

"Xiaoyun is still in the Western Region."

"Her physical condition is too poor; she can't leave the suppression of the god's tomb's array at all, let alone endure the bumps of a ten-thousand-mile journey."

"How could I have brought her out with me?"

Tuoba Feng sighed, his eyes turning anxious.

"To save her, we must clear these stages as quickly as possible, leave the bone column space, and return to the Western Region."

After saying that, he didn't wait for Chen Zhou's reply and ducked into the crack. He seemed desperate to save his daughter and didn't want to waste a single moment.

Chen Zhou stood in place, watching Tuoba Feng's vanishing back, his eyes narrowing slightly.

Something was wrong.

Something was very wrong.

Earlier in the previous level, when Tuoba Feng was controlled by the Evil God Whispers, he had clearly said with his own mouth that Xiaoyun was right behind him, sleeping.

When a person is under mental control, what they speak is often the truest words from the bottom of their heart.

Yet now that he was conscious, he flatly denied it?

And looking at his expression, it didn't seem like he was faking it at all.

Memory distortion?

What exactly was inside that coffin?

Chen Zhou followed with a frown.

Passing through the bone column, the scene of the next stage met his eyes.

The space had become even larger, appearing to be the ruined corridor of a palace.

"Giggle, giggle..."

A burst of laughter came from the depths of the corridor.

Three palace maid ghosts in court attire, their faces deathly pale, were floating in mid-air.

Their fingernails were black as hooks, and their red clothes were like fresh blood, radiating a dense resentment.

Standing behind them was an imperial guard ghost general clad in tattered black armor, holding a broken spear and emitting the aura of a peak sixth-stage being.

"Your... Your Excellency?"

One of the female ghosts realized who it was and let out a shrill cry of joy.

"Great, we're saved!"

"Your Excellency, we are all the Crown Prince's people!"

"Just now outside, we saw Your Excellency drinking and chatting merrily with His Highness."

They spoke all at once, as if they had found their pillar of support.

Tuoba Feng's face was as cold as water. Without waiting for the ghosts to finish, he gripped his blade and delivered a horizontal sweep.

Boom!

Blade qi surged, carrying a desolation like solitary smoke in the great desert, instantly forcing the three ghosts back.

"What?"

"How is this Western Region madman here as well?"

"He's the one who killed so many of our sisters and even disturbed the Crown Prince!"