Chapter 279: Chapter 248: Divine Gu Valley_1

“I am Zhao Yan from the Zhao family of Chi Zhou Prefecture! I pay my respects to the elder!”

Zhao Yan quickly approached Xu Mu, curving her slim waist slightly, her voice as sweet as flowing water.

“What’s with this Zhao family, Qian family nonsense, if you have something to say, spit it out!”

Xu Mu caught the flying sword that had flown back to him, making several cuts on the donkey’s body, picking out black larvae from within. Then he used a healing skill on the donkey and it immediately recovered its vitality.

Zhao Yan, who was witness to all this, couldn’t help but narrow her eyes at the power of the healing skill that far surpassed what she knew.

The old man before her could very likely be a great cultivator at the Foundation Establishment Stage!

Thinking about this, Zhao Yan became even more respectful towards Xu Mu.

“I have an unreasonable request!”

“If it’s unreasonable, then don’t say it!” Xu Mu waved his hand dismissively.

“…”

Zhao Yan almost choked but still steeled herself to say, “Could I please request the senior to escort me back to the Chi Zhou Prefecture? I am willing to use a medium-grade spirit stone as compensation!”

“….”

Xu Mu was speechless.

A medium-grade spirit stone?

Truthfully, he would be too lazy to even pick it up if it fell on the ground.

However, considering that Zhao Yan was only at the fourth level of Qi cultivation, this was indeed a high price. It was enough to purchase a tier-four Grass Renewal Pill.

“Not interested!”

Xu Mu responded indifferently, then made a beckoning motion with his hands, and the bodies of several cultivators he had killed flew over.

These people were all dressed in black robes, wore helmets, and had insect tattoos on their faces and necks.

There were bloody holes in their chests, looking as if they were pierced by a sharp sword. No doubt, it was the result of the golden light released by Xu Mu.

Zhao Yan’s heart jolted and she was even more certain about her suspicions.

How could he easily kill so many people, even when they were hidden, if he wasn’t at the Foundation Establishment Stage?

“Still pretending at this time!”

Xu Mu reached out towards a disheveled-looking young man among them. Realizing that his identity has been exposed, the young man no longer tried to hide and threw the hidden weapon in his hand at Xu Mu.

“Be careful!”

Zhao Yan instinctively warned.

Whether he was too close or Xu Mu didn’t intend to dodge, the thrown object accurately landed on him.

It was a black pill that exploded upon contact with Xu Mu, turning into a sticky black fluid that engulfed him.

“Haha! Old fellow, you actually dare to meddle in other people’s affairs, now you’re dead for sure!”

Seeing Xu Mu hit, the disheveled youth laughed triumphantly.

The black pill, though unassuming, was a life-saving item left to him by his father. It was a poison pill composed of the venom of hundreds of poisonous insects. A common person would die upon smelling it; even an expert in the later stages of Foundation Establishment wouldn’t last long once the venom enters their body.

Although the youth had great confidence in the poison pill, for safety’s sake, he still took out his own magic artifact and attacked Xu Mu.

However, by this time, Zhao Yan had also reacted. She quickly released her own magic artifact to resist the attack.

This unidentified man’s strength was not weak, and if his sneak attack had succeeded, it would likely be her end today.

But she never thought that the seemingly powerful Xu Mu would be caught off guard so easily.

Perhaps he truly is declining due to old age!

Zhao Yan sighed inwardly.

The disheveled youth was obviously more powerful than Zhao Yan, but he had just been injured by the sword. Zhao Yan was also full of tactics and so, for a time, the two were equally matched, unable to determine the winner.

On the other side, Xu Mu, who was wrapped in venom, did not make a sound until the venom flowed down his body like rainwater, corroding the ground within a radius of ten feet into a circle of scorched black. Naturally, he himself remained unscathed.

With his level of body refinement, forget about venom made by those at the Foundation Establishment Stage; even if a group of poison cultivators at Foundation Establishment Stage came to attack, they wouldn’t be able to hurt a single hair on his body.

Only the donkey, which had been scared badly, was hiding in some distant bushes, making noise nonstop.

“I didn’t expect your life to be so tenacious.” Xu Mu laughed.

The donkey had been gifted to him by the village elder as a sign of gratitude. Xu Mu found it amusing, so he kept it with him.

Paying no mind to the scared donkey, Xu Mu turned his head towards Zhao Yan, who was still in the heated battle with the disheveled young man.

Seeing Zhao Yan’s spiritual power diminish, a cruel smile appeared on the young man’s face.

“Miss, I suggest you surrender obediently. Otherwise, once this young master captures you, I’ll throw you into the parasitic pot and let you experience the pain of a thousand insects tearing at your flesh. You’ll beg for death but won’t be able to die! Ha, ha!”

Faced with the young man’s threats, Zhao Yan could only grit her teeth and keep hanging on.

At that moment, the disheveled young man glanced over at Xu Mu, to see whether he was dead yet, and he nearly lost control of his bladder when he saw Xu Mu looking back at him with an ambiguous smile.

How could that be possible? How did this happen?

Even if he couldn’t kill him, at least some harm should have been done, right?

The young man was shocked and filled with doubt.

But no one seemed willing to provide an explanation.

The young man realized he stood no chance of winning and quickly pulled out a Tier Five talisman from his storage bag, sticking it on his body.

Next second, his body was enveloped in a yellow light and he sank into the ground.

The talisman he used was a Tier Five Earth Escape Talisman that his father had procured with great difficulty. Its purpose was to protect his life in danger.

He was very straightforward, sensing the trouble and immediately used it.

As long as he burrowed underground, only a Golden Core Stage cultivator could catch him in this forest.

The young man’s body, shrouded in yellow light, disappeared into the ground like a droplet into the sea.

However, before he could rejoice, he felt a strong force pulling him from beneath the ground, and before he could process what was happening, a big hand was pressing against his forehead, followed by terrifying divine intents invading his brain.

“Divine Intent! Foundation Establishment!”

These two thoughts flashed across his mind before his consciousness completely enveloped by darkness.

“Senior, are you okay?”

Zhao Yan turned back to look at Xu Mu, her face a mix of surprise and joy.

“What, were you hoping that something would happen to me?”

Xu Mu removed his hand from the young man’s head. After conducting a soul search, he had learned of the man’s identity and intentions.

“Senior, that’s not what I meant, I was…”

Zhao Yan was in a hurry to explain herself.

“Okay, I know what you meant! I accept your offer, but my price of one Medium-grade Spirit Stone is too low. It must be increased by fifty Lower-grade Spirit Stones!”

“Huh?”

Zhao Yan looked stupefied.

The topic changed so quickly that she didn’t have time to react.

Meanwhile, Xu Mu walked over to his donkey, stroking his chin.

The reason he agreed to escort her wasn’t out of greed or lechery.

It was due to the identity of the disheveled young man.

The young man was the son of the Lord of the Divine Insect Valley. Since Xu Mu has killed him, the Lord would definitely seek revenge.

Given Zhao Yan’s power, she was doomed without a doubt.

Since the matter was related to him, he would feel guilty if he just let it be.

She was a cultivator, and he could use her family’s reputation to get in touch with local cultivators, which was quite beneficial.

The Divine Insect Valley was located in the black fog valley. Since he had to clear it out sooner or later, why not take this opportunity to deal with it? It would be killing two birds with one stone.

After Zhao Yan got over her initial shock and heard Xu Mu’s quoted price, she didn’t dare to object, though she did feel a slight heartache over it.

And so, Xu Mu set off with Zhao Yan’s team.

After a day of travel, the team arrived at Jing Lin County.