The Gu nanny had never expected that after only a few years apart, this wretched Gu-child’s mental faculties would have recovered so thoroughly — nearly completely restored, enough that he could trade barbs with her like this.

The Gu nanny narrowed her cold, hawkish eyes, and without another word, immediately pulled out a hulusi.

This particular instrument was a musical piece unique to Nanzhao, and also a weapon secretly passed down through the ages by the Great Barbarian Shaman Cult!

Unlike an ordinary hulusi, this particular one was known as a poison gourd — the gourd itself packed full of every kind of venomous insect, essentially a vessel for cultivating Gu. Living permanently inside was a single poison-Gu sound insect. Once the poison gourd was played, the sound it produced wasn’t merely the music of the hulusi, but also the cry of the poison-Gu sound insect, capable of disrupting a person’s mind.

And this particular poison gourd of the Gu nanny’s was precisely the one she had once used to cultivate his mind — it could be said to be Baili Weisheng’s natural nemesis!

The moment he caught sight of that ancient, weathered poison gourd, Baili Weisheng’s previously cavalier, brazen expression instantly darkened.

This old hag — after all these years, she still wouldn’t let him go!

A moment ago, Baili Weisheng had clung to the tree trunk like some overgrown koala. Now, his expression turned grim, and he crouched low on the branch like some mysterious, terrifying beast, ready to strike at any moment!

The Gu nanny’s face, etched deep with the ravages of time, likewise darkened all at once, turning deadly serious.

She stood perfectly straight, not sparing Baili Weisheng another glance, one hand clasped behind her back, the other raising the hulusi to her lips, and abruptly began to play!

A “whoo-whoo” sound immediately came pouring out of the poison gourd, like wind!

Baili Weisheng’s eyes flashed with malice. He drew his short sword and fixed his gaze on the Gu nanny below, his expression grim and cold — no one could tell whether he was already affected by the Gu sound, or how much.

Suddenly, he let out a muffled grunt and dropped straight down from the tree, one hand behind his back, the other gripping his short sword, lunging straight at the Gu nanny!

Kill this old woman, and it would all be over once and for all!

The Gu nanny clearly sensed the killing intent bearing down on her from above, yet she didn’t retreat at all — a flicker of disdain crossed her eyes as she kept right on playing the hulusi!

Back then, her mind-cultivation skills hadn’t been thorough enough, and this wretched brat had escaped her!

Over the years since, she’d poured no small effort into perfecting her mind-cultivation techniques. The Gu sound she played today was nothing like what she’d been able to produce before!

Someone whose mind had once been partially cultivated was different from a normal person’s mind — at the very least, their willpower was weaker, and they had little resistance to Gu sound!

She simply refused to believe Baili Weisheng had the strength to withstand it!

The sword bearing down from above closed in swiftly, silently, and the Gu nanny’s Gu sound grew more and more urgent!

Suddenly!

A flash of sword-light gleamed right above the Gu nanny’s head!

But then Baili Weisheng suddenly reeled backward and crashed heavily to the ground, having already flung his short sword aside. At that moment, he clutched his head with both hands, his face twisted in agony, brows furrowed tight, his eyes fixed unblinkingly on the Gu nanny!

A cold smile flickered across the Gu nanny’s eyes. She didn’t stop — instead, she played the Gu sound even more urgently.

At this, Baili Weisheng seemed possessed, both hands pressed hard against his skull, pressing with all his strength, as if trying to crush his own head!

His whole face flushed red, his features twisted together in agonized knots, suffering torment beyond what any ordinary person could bear!

Such a handsome man, a man who loved to laugh so easily — seeing him tortured into this state would soften anyone’s heart, would ache anyone’s heart with pity!

But the very woman who had raised him with her own hands remained utterly unmoved. This was precisely the effect she wanted.

She could hardly wait to finish cultivating the Gu-child’s mind right now, to turn him this instant into a human Gu completely loyal to her.

But she knew better — one couldn’t grow fat in a single bite, and pushing too hard would only backfire.

All she could do for now was temporarily seize control of the Gu-child’s mind, then bring him back to Xiongnu territory.

Slowly, over the course of a year, she would properly cultivate his mind. Once it was finished, she could take him with her to search everywhere for the other person immune to all poisons!

That Yin-type person immune to all poisons — that was her true, ultimate goal!

At this thought, the Gu nanny immediately blew into the poison gourd with even greater force. As her effort intensified, the Gu sound grew ever more urgent, ever more eerie and strange!

The longer one listened, the less it sounded like the music of a hulusi, and the more it resembled the miserable, keening cry of some venomous insect — a sound chilling enough to raise the hairs on anyone’s neck.

The Gu-child, gripped by unbearable agony, clutched his head, until at last he could hold out no longer — with a violent convulsion, he lost all control and began thrashing about wildly on the ground.

The five-colored venomous lizard sat quietly off to the side, watching, its scarlet tongue flicking in and out, while the Gu nanny’s eyes grew steadily more and more filled with triumph.

The moment the Gu-child could no longer bear it and passed out, she would have succeeded!

Judging by the state he was in, that moment was fast approaching!

Suffer, ache, endure the pain!

All of this was of his own making — if he hadn’t left in the first place, he wouldn’t have to suffer through this now!

Baili Weisheng clutched his head, thrashing and writhing across the ground, yet for some inexplicable reason, the images flashing through his mind were no longer, as they had been before under mind-cultivation, the Gu nanny’s sinister face — what surfaced in his mind now was, of all things, a woman’s face!

Han Ziqing!

He couldn’t understand why!

He was in so much pain he could barely think of anything at all, and yet, inexplicably, he could see her face with perfect clarity — smiling at him, grateful for his help; furious at him, demanding to know exactly who he was!

Could it be — did he regret it?

Regret not having killed that woman?

If he’d killed Han Ziqing back then, he could now tell the Gu nanny, without hesitation, not to bother anymore — the person with Yin-type poison immunity was already dead!

There would be no point in cultivating him into a Gu anymore. She could wait for the next Yin-type poison-immune person to appear — wait until the cows came home, wait until she died of old age herself!

Baili Weisheng thought to himself — he must be regretting it.

Little Qingqing, if only he’d known, he never would have gone to such trouble bringing you home. If only he’d known, he’d have just killed you with one clean stroke!

Suddenly, a flicker of malice flashed through his blood-red eyes. His eyes fell shut, and all at once, he went completely still!

The Gu nanny stopped at once, delighted. “You little brat, trying to fight me — have you forgotten who raised you?”

With that, she reached out to grab Baili Weisheng, but just then, he suddenly lunged and grabbed her hand, sinking his teeth into it viciously!

That bite was savage, feral, like some wild beast — clamped down hard on the Gu nanny’s arm!

The Gu nanny’s mind went completely blank with shock. She grabbed a dagger and, without a shred of mercy, plunged it into Baili Weisheng’s back — the blade driving straight through, from back to front, piercing clean through to his chest!

She shrieked, “Let go, or I’ll gouge your heart right out of your chest this instant!”

Threatening cruelty without even asking who she was dealing with!

Baili Weisheng had already sunk his teeth into a large chunk of the Gu nanny’s flesh, and now he wrenched his head back violently, tearing it free — not releasing his bite so much as ripping it clean off, tearing away half the flesh of her forearm in one brutal motion. The pain made the Gu nanny scream in agony, “Ahh…!”

When it came to sheer ruthlessness, he wasn’t pretending to be heartless — he genuinely was. Gouge out his heart? Not a chance — he had no heart left to gouge.