Xiaoxiao reluctantly fumbled in her pocket for azure grass that could block poisonous gases, rolling it into pills and stuffing them into her nostrils.

But this bewitching smoke’s effect was even more domineering than their Talismonger Sect’s enchantment talismans!

Soon, Xiaoxiao felt unbearably hot and restless, her hands trembling as she wanted to loosen her clothes to cool down.

Compared to ordinary people, her willpower should be somewhat stronger, after all, she was someone with a Demon Pearl inside her body, needing to constantly struggle against demonic nature.

So she closed her eyes and regulated her breathing for a while, feeling like she might be able to handle it, then slowly opened her eyes and looked in Wei Jie’s direction.

Watching Wei Jie grip the railings tightly with both hands, eyes closed with furrowed brows, he seemed to be in the same state as her – the drug had taken effect and he was struggling to restrain himself…

In this cage of mere square feet, she was very close to him, close enough that she could smell the unique scent mixed with wine fragrance emanating from his body.

In this cramped space, this familiar scent seemed to transform into something even more deadly than insect powder and musk.

But this scent wasn’t detected through her nose – just one look at his broad back and strong arms gripping the prison bars tightly brought back all the intimate memories related to him…

Even with grass balls stuffed in her nostrils, it was useless. In just an instant, it was like pouring oil on a thousand-year-old thatched hut, igniting a raging fire across the sky.

Xiaoxiao’s body trembled violently, and she had the impulse to pounce on this man and knock him to the ground.

As for what to do after knocking him down, Xiaoxiao wasn’t entirely clear, but this man with his furrowed brows and slightly closed long lashes was simply too tempting…

At this moment, her heart was restless, and she couldn’t help feeling anxious – she was unwilling to be locked in this cage with Wei Jie like livestock waiting to be bred, at the mercy of others!

Thinking of this, she covered her mouth and nose, reaching out to pat Wei Jie’s back, wanting to ask if he had any way to resist the bewitching insect powder mist.

But the moment her hand touched him, she realized how scorching hot Wei Jie’s body was. The tiger stripe body paint on him hadn’t been washed off yet, and his tensed muscles bulged hard as iron. Combined with his tight grip on the bars, his entire body was taut and straining, looking like a caged beast.

When Xiaoxiao’s hand lightly patted his back, it was as if she had suddenly awakened an ancient, fierce beast that had been feigning sleep with closed eyes!

Wei Jie slowly turned his head, his purple eyes hidden beneath flowing hair flashing with intense, unresolvable desire as he looked at the girl behind him, whose eyes shimmered like water and whose cheeks were flushed red…

Xiaoxiao was suddenly pounced upon and knocked to the ground by the man, who let out a fierce roar. The next moment, her tightly closed lips were once again sealed harshly by the man, and both her hands were pressed above her head.

Even when Xiaoxiao fought against the possessing Demon Pearl, it had never been as difficult to endure as this moment.

The burning heat on her lips quickly spread, and the fierce fire in her heart also scorched what little rationality remained. Entangled by the pink demonic mist, Xiaoxiao could hardly resist the fierce assault of the man above her.

Her arms also tightly embraced the man’s neck, but the trace of clarity remaining in her heart was loudly crying out, “No!”

But when this thunderous cry struggled to reach her lips, it transformed into a cat-like trembling wail – “Don’t…”

Xiaoxiao was also infuriated by her powerlessness, and tears couldn’t help but flow from her tightly closed eyes.

That trace of tear moisture also touched Wei Jie’s face, which helped him barely regain a trace of reason and hazily remember that she didn’t like him…

The tears with their slight coolness finally made Wei Jie, who had almost lost all reason, pause.

He struggled to think: if he indulged his desires now, afterward Xiaoxiao would probably hate him to the bone…

Besides, even if he wanted to sleep with her, why would he need this wretched, evil drug’s assistance?

He secretly bit his tongue hard, using the pain to struggle against the surging desire, then suddenly roared furiously again while grabbing the Heaven’s Punishment Sword that was pressed beneath Xiaoxiao, slashing the blade hard across his hand.

Wherever the Heaven’s Punishment Sword passed, it burned like fire. This unbearable stabbing pain helped Wei Jie regain most of his rationality.

And at this moment, he gripped the Heaven’s Punishment Sword with his bleeding palm, channeling the power of his Inner Core and pouring all his true qi into the rust-covered blade.

Wei Jie was a natural cultivation prodigy; such an exceptional bone structure was rare in a thousand years. Combined with the enhancement of Foxhill’s spiritual spring, he had formed his Inner Core early. Even without following his previous trajectory of becoming demonic, his life’s opportunities were enough to make countless cultivators green with envy!

It’s just that he was naturally carefree by nature, usually only using thirty percent of his effort to improve his cultivation, spending the rest of his time teasing his master.

So even though he had formed his core early, he hadn’t worked day and night to reach higher levels like other cultivators.

But at this moment, he and Xiaoxiao were trapped in this bewitching smoke tunnel, driven somewhat mad by the enchanting mist.

At such a passionate age, with the beautiful woman who already made his heart flutter right beside him, how could he endure?

If he couldn’t break out, he would do something to harm Xiaoxiao.

This moment was truly more torturous to one’s character than even becoming demonic! However, such a desperate situation where one was caught between advance and retreat spurred one to progress.

All of Wei Jie’s potential was activated at this moment, mixed with uncontrollable desire and the burning pain from his palm wound.

Combined with the Heaven’s Punishment Sword that was destined to belong to him, the Inner Core’s power concentrated at the sword tip, making the entire iron blade seem plated with gold!

He swung the sword forcefully in a slash. Where the sword light reached, cracking sounds rang out, and the bars forged from meteoric iron immediately shattered!

When fresh air surged in from the split tunnel opening, the pink thick smoke was immediately diluted considerably.

Xiaoxiao felt the limp weakness throughout her body recede significantly, finally having the strength to climb up on her own.

But just now, when Wei Jie swung his sword, his posture was like an ancient deity. With his long hair flying, sword-like brows, and purple eyes paired with his cold expression, it truly made one’s heart flutter again.

Xiaoxiao had started cultivating too late. Although she had repeatedly encountered fortuitous opportunities, she ultimately couldn’t compare to those who had cultivated from a young age.

At this moment, she displayed the weakness of her shallow foundation, completely lacking any determination under the stimulation of this insect powder!

She had just stood up when, seeing Wei Jie’s alluring movements and broad back, she couldn’t help but press herself against her handsome disciple’s body again, rubbing her face against his back.

Such a cat-like obedient master – if it were any other time, no man could resist, but now with crisis upon crisis, it naturally wasn’t suitable for petting the master!

Wei Jie took a deep breath toward the sky amidst the chaos, lowered his head to quickly plant a kiss on Xiaoxiao’s cherry lips, then said in a low voice: “Don’t worry, I’ll give it to you when we get out…” Then he pulled her and rushed out.

Xiaoxiao, blown by the oncoming cool breeze, became much more clear-headed, though still somewhat dazed – Wei Jie said he’d give me something when we get out… what was he going to give me?

When the two of them rushed out of the secret passage, Wan Lian Shi had already brought his disciples to surround the study.

Seeing the two supporting each other as they walked out of the study, Wan Lian Shi looked at Cui Xiaoxiao’s somewhat disheveled appearance and said with ill intent: “What? You’ve already done it? So fast? Could it be this boy is a virgin and somewhat inadequate?”

Wei Jie, having his masculine prowess questioned, merely smiled coldly, then placed his sword across his arm, his fingertips caressing the demon-subduing precious blade, silently gathering power…

Xiaoxiao, who had already sobered up, remembered how she had actively thrown herself into Wei Jie’s arms earlier and felt extremely embarrassed and angry.

Now, hearing the crude words from the instigator, she suddenly curved her lips, reached out to draw a silver talisman, transforming it into water arrows that shot toward Wan Lian Shi.

Wan Lian Shi had fought with Xiaoxiao before and knew her capabilities.

As long as this girl didn’t go red-eyed and become demonic, based on her original cultivation level and those few talismans, she wasn’t even worthy of carrying his shoes!

Too many people in the world wanted to follow the Ghost Sect’s talisman path! But hardly any could succeed.

The fundamental reason was that those who wanted to follow the talisman path weren’t vicious and cruel enough in their hearts. Without being able to refine the most evil talisman materials in the mortal world, how could they condense powerful spiritual force?

Those naturally untalented fools often mistakenly thought the talisman path was a shortcut to compensate for their deficiencies – how ridiculous!

Before becoming immortal, one must first become a ghost. Every step of the Ghost Sect must be soaked in blood – how many mortals could persist to the end?

Seeing Xiaoxiao once again using her old tricks, playing with her amateur talisman arts, Wan Lian Shi sneered and didn’t even bother to dodge, just pinched a human skin talisman and also transformed it into a water shield to block.

When talismans clash, they compete in the strength of spiritual power.

As long as Xiaoxiao’s controlled water arrows collided with his water shield, just like last time, the Ghost Sect’s power would completely suppress this girl who didn’t know her place.

Even if she lost her primordial spirit again and was possessed by demons, he wasn’t afraid.

The master had given instructions earlier – if these two showed any abnormalities, find a way to lure them toward the prince’s courtyard. That prince talked too much, and the master always worried he could see through their disguise.

But if they could kill two birds with one stone and use these two to eliminate the prince, that would be perfect!

If the heir to the throne were injured, it wouldn’t be as simple as killing a few villagers! People throughout the realm would curse her as a demoness! There would be no place in the world for her!

If she didn’t become demonic, who would?

Thinking of this, Wan Lian Shi’s smile deepened… But when Xiaoxiao’s water arrows came howling like a dragon’s roar and touched his water shield, the smile on his face became hard to maintain.

When masters fight, victory or defeat can be decided in an instant.

This time, Cui Xiaoxiao still used talisman water power, and it had only been a few days since the last time, but Wan Lian Shi felt an overwhelming, continuous spiritual force pressing down on him like a mountain.

In just a few short days, how had this girl’s power suddenly improved so much?

Moreover, those water arrows seemed to carry some kind of cold, sharp aura that made Wan Lian Shi very uncomfortable.

At this moment, he looked closely at the talisman Xiaoxiao had thrown out… This talisman was made of silver! But what kind of silver was this that could condense greater spiritual power than his human skin talisman?

He had no time to think further as the spiritual forces attached to both talismans collided again.

Wan Lian Shi could feel that the spiritual power woven into a net by those water arrows had suppressed his spiritual power, pressing down like a giant palm crushing everything…

This time, it was Cui Xiaoxiao who was superior.

When Wan Lian Shi felt his vision go white, it was when his spiritual power was crushed by Cui Xiaoxiao.

Taking advantage of Wan Lian Shi’s failing spiritual power, several water arrows broke through the water shield and pierced his shoulder blade, causing him to cry out in pain and fall backward.

But before he could catch his breath, Wei Jie came with the Heaven’s Punishment Sword, slashing down with another sword strike.

He was naturally prone to becoming demonic, preferring extreme actions. Just now in the tunnel, he had to struggle to control his surging desires.

Such restraint and suppression – how similar it was to becoming demonic!

When he held the Heaven’s Punishment Sword that should have been his originally, man and sword became one. The demon-subduing sword, glowing with golden light, after gathering power, slashed horizontally with such force that it cut off half of Wan Lian Shi’s arm in one strike!

This made the Ghost King Sect master scream in agony.

But most terrifying was that he hadn’t withdrawn his technique yet. The controlled human skin talisman seemed like a little ghost that had broken free from its puppeteer’s control, actually floating up on its own and drifting toward Wan Lian Shi.

Though Ghost Sect talismans were domineering, their backlash was equally terrifying!

The human skin talisman that had been crushed lifeless by Cui Xiaoxiao’s spiritual power attached itself to Wan Lian Shi’s severed arm, wound like a blood-sucking bat, beginning to greedily drink its master’s blood and qi!

This backlash made Wan Lian Shi’s face visibly age, appearing decades older in just an instant.

Watching him roll on the ground in pain, frantically trying to tear off the blood-sucking human skin talisman, Xiaoxiao sneered: “Our Talismonger Sect was never on the same path as your Ghost Sect! Compete with the Talismonger Sect? You’re not worthy!”

Master Tang Youshu had never relied on talismans’ resentful energy to condense spiritual power since founding the sect.

You must know that Master was originally inspired by the Ghost Sect to found his sect – how could he not know about this shortcut?

But he would rather abandon shortcuts, using only the most common yellow grass paper, having his disciples cultivate the purest spiritual power.

No matter how weak the power, the Master never wavered. By Master’s later years, using only these simplest talismans, he could skillfully manipulate the five elements. The hardships involved could hardly be imagined by anyone who wasn’t a Talismonger Sect disciple!

The secret manuals Master left behind looked like foot-binding cloth, smelly and long. But actually, the greatest wealth he gave his disciples was the strong determination to face temptation.

Xiaoxiao had also gradually comprehended the techniques Master left for Talismonger Sect disciples through exploration and practice in the sect!

Compared to those evil talisman materials, the righteous qi that firmly believed evil could never triumph over good was the key to maximizing talismans’ potential.

Unfortunately, before Xiaoxiao and Wei Jie could enjoy the pleasure of defeating a Ghost Sect grandmaster, a crisis followed immediately!

At this moment, Wei Jie and Cui Xiaoxiao, revealed in their true forms, were exposed under the moonlight.

On a high pavilion in the royal manor, a statue was coldly “watching” them!

The recent battle had filled both of them with uncontrollable killing intent, naturally activating the Xiezhi divine statue on the royal manor’s high pavilion.

The statue’s eyes, refracted by moonlight, suddenly shot out brilliant light, fiercely targeting the royal manor’s unwelcome guests.

Wherever the statue’s gaze reached, the stone roads were immediately blasted to pieces.

This Xiezhi was bestowed by the supreme god to the descendants of the Xia clan, possessing divine power that mortal bodies could not withstand.

Wei Jie protected Xiaoxiao while dodging, but was still grazed by its divine light. His arm was branded as if by red-hot iron, even giving off a burnt smell!

If they were directly hit, medicine would be useless. They could only quickly dodge and seek opportunities to rush out of Lord Can’s manor.

The manor’s guards seemed to intentionally or unintentionally herd them toward the courtyard where the prince was staying.

Finally, the cornered master and disciple pair jumped into the prince’s courtyard and disappeared without a trace.

Amidst all the fighting and killing sounds, the prince’s eunuch angrily came out, glaring: “His Imperial Highness is resting, why are you all making such a racket?”

Wan Lian Shi, supported by his disciples, heard several guards who had run inside say those two people had vanished without a trace, and gnashed his teeth: “Assassins and evil beings have entered Lord Can’s manor. Please, eunuch, go inform the prince and let us search inside!”

The eunuch, seeing him missing an arm, covered in blood, and having suddenly aged considerably, was startled and hurried back inside.

When he came out again, the eunuch still didn’t dare approach Wan Lian Shi, saying urgently: “The prince has a precious body, how can he be involved in danger here? The prince said Lord Can’s manor is both noisy and boring, and he wants to return to the capital immediately!”

Wan Lian Shi had also lost too much blood and couldn’t hold on anymore. Unable to stop the prince, he rolled his eyes and fainted.

In the chaos, the prince gave an order indicating he wanted to leave the manor quickly.

His subordinates acted with lightning efficiency, preparing to leave immediately.

The prince was too drunk to walk on his own. Soon, a soft sedan carried the prince, plus a crowd of attendants carrying boxes, forming a noisy procession heading toward the manor gates.

Just then, Qinhe, who had just been treated for his wounds by Lord Can, brought people again. He had the snake-eyed man guard the entrance and block the sedan.

The snake-eyed man looked with his embedded snake eyes and immediately detected clusters of human heat signatures in the prince’s sedan, quietly reporting to Lord Can: “There’s more than one person in the sedan!”

Qinhe sneered, thinking: These two are truly bold – could they be holding the prince hostage to get out of the manor?

Thinking this, he raised his sword and lifted the curtain…

But the next moment, the sedan erupted in trembling, flower-like screams.

It turned out this prince knew how to enjoy himself – even in a soft sedan, he wanted warm fragrance and soft jade. A woman’s disheveled head emerged from his raised bedding – it was one of the prince’s beloved concubines.

From the looks of it, there were several beauties under the bedding, with a pair of smooth little feet half-exposed, nervously fluttering about.

The prince, disheveled and tousled, spoke incoherently in anger: “I’m in the middle of… of selecting courtesans! Who dares to disturb? You old fool, do you also want to crawl into my bed? Don’t you have a mirror to look at yourself? Get lost quickly – do you want me to perform for you?”

At this time, the prince’s attendants also stepped forward, plus with the manor’s chaos, many soldiers who had accompanied the prince had gathered at the entrance.

Even if the prince wanted to take advantage of the chaos to kill this useless prince, it wasn’t the right time.

Looking at the heads bobbing around in the prince’s bedding and the prince’s rolling white eyes showing his infatuated, intoxicated expression, one knew what sort of indecent activities were happening under those covers!

Qinhe, accustomed to being an upright gentleman, felt somewhat uncomfortable with such filthy behavior. He appropriately lowered his head and could only disdainfully drop the curtain, ordering people to carefully search under the soft sedan and verify whether any of the entourage had been infiltrated by the master-disciple pair.

After finding no oversights, Qinhe went to ask Lord Can for instructions.

Now the manor was in complete chaos, with many soldiers gathering at the entrance after hearing the news. Lord Can thought it over – it wasn’t appropriate to offend this useless prince now, so he finally allowed passage, letting the prince and his entourage leave.

The prince seemed to be having a great time and didn’t get out of the sedan, dismissing the other soldiers and only bringing his attendants as he was carried out of the city.

Once they reached the countryside, the soft sedan stopped in a forest.

The prince, who had been wearing a face of infatuated intoxication, suddenly gradually became clear-headed, patting the face of the woman he was holding and saying: “You may get out first.”

After the woman left the sedan, the prince suddenly lifted the bedding, revealing two people inside – none other than Wei Jie and Cui Xiaoxiao, whom the people in the manor had been hunting!

It turned out that just earlier, when they had mistakenly entered the prince’s inner chamber, they had come face to face with this prince. Xiaoxiao had apologetically clasped her hands toward the drunkard amid chaos, saying softly: “Um… Your Highness, we’ve disturbed you. Please continue sleeping, we’ll leave immediately.”

She had originally just said this casually, not expecting this drugged, drunkard to respond at all.

But unexpectedly, the prince who should have been dead drunk smiled and, after simply asking them a few questions, immediately began covering for them, helping the two escape Lord Can’s manor safely!

During the earlier dodging, Wei Jie had been injured by Xiezhi’s divine light while protecting Xiaoxiao. The skin injured by the Xiezhi still burned with pain, but Wei Jie couldn’t spare attention for his wounds, only staring fixedly at the prince who had been dead drunk just moments before.

At this moment, the prince in the carriage had clear eyes, showing no signs of being hungover. He simply smiled and straightened his clothes, asking elegantly: “May I ask how you two should be addressed?”

Xiaoxiao replied with some admiration: “Not knowing who we were, Your Highness still came to our rescue. Weren’t you afraid of saving two vicious criminals and harming yourself instead?”

The prince smiled slightly: “That you two could turn Lord Can’s manor upside down shows you have talent. In times of crisis, you never thought of taking me hostage, which shows you have virtue. How could I not save such people of both talent and virtue?”

Hearing this, Xiaoxiao couldn’t help laughing. Truly worthy of someone from the Golden Palace – such flattering words spoken like flowing water, ringing melodiously!

Earlier at Lord Can’s manor, Xiaoxiao had seen this prince only engaging in eating, drinking, and merrymaking, completely the behavior of a dandy.

But when he had covered for them during their escape from the manor, this prince had displayed such composure and cunning that one had to view him with new respect!

How could such a prince possibly be a good-for-nothing?

Though the prince was of noble birth, he had quite the potential for instant familiarity with people.

As they spoke, the prince had already ordered food boxes to be brought over, smiling at the master-disciple pair: “I found the food at that manor somewhat inedible – most of it went into spittoons and sleeves. Now I’m hungry. If you two don’t mind, why not share a cup of wine with me and eat a few bites to fill our stomachs?”

It seemed this prince truly wasn’t foolish – he also knew Lord Can’s food wasn’t good to swallow, actually secretly spitting out the food and wine that entered his mouth. He was truly clever.

After the prince finished speaking and saw that Xiaoxiao and Wei Jie didn’t move, he just smiled and picked up jade chopsticks to begin eating himself.