Cultivating for a hundred lifetimes to ascension

The eyes of the two Blood Skeletons overflowed with blood light, and obediently, they turned into two beams of bloody light, howling as they rushed down, easily intercepting the two Sword Lights.

With a wide-open mouth, the Blood Skeletons swallowed up the flying swords. Their jaws moved up and down a few times, and an ear-piercing crunching sound started to resound.

Zhen Yue's face drastically changed, while on the other side, the Blood Skeletons opened their mouths to spit out showers of golden debris which fell like rain, and instantly, the ground was riddled with a dense mass of tiny holes.

Seeing how difficult the Withered Bone Master was to deal with, Zhao Sheng's brows slightly furrowed as he weighed his options.

Zhen Yue appeared to be going all out, but he knew that his opponent had definitely held back a third of their power.

This was naturally due to the wariness they held towards him.

Zhao Sheng was very clear about his adversary's mentality. He himself hadn't used all his strength, so he had no expectation that others would either.

But now, countless Cultivators were searching for this place outside, and someone could barge in here at any moment.

He couldn't drag this on any longer!

With this thought, Zhao Sheng's brow relaxed; he turned his head, and inexplicably smiled at Zhen Yue before suddenly pulling back and swiftly retreating. His figure flickered, and in the blink of an eye, he had left the courtyard.

"Escaping?"

A trace of joy appeared on the Withered Bone Master's face, but the joy lasted only for a fleeting instant before it vanished without a trace.

On the other side, as Zhen Yue saw Zhao Sheng fleeing without a word, she felt anxious and enraged, but her face showed a drastic change.

The Withered Bone Master, cunning and shrewd, had a translucent mind and quickly grasped why Zhao Sheng had suddenly withdrawn.

"Damn it, that kid must have gone to loot the treasures!"

Rage surged in the Withered Bone Master's heart, and a vicious glint flickered in his eyes, as he suddenly let out a shriek.

The swarm of Ghost Skulls suddenly made one turn, the green flames were retracted, and they swiftly flew back above his head.

"Young lady, how about we call a truce? Otherwise, others will snatch away all the treasures!" The Withered Bone Master, with his skull retracted, spoke vilely to Zhen Yue.

Zhen Yue looked surprised. She reached up to tuck a strand of hanging hair behind her ear, hesitated a moment, and then called back her Golden Light Spirit Sword.

"Alright!"

Her voice was crisp, with a trace of tremor.

The Withered Bone Master nodded, revealing an ugly smile. Then, he turned and left decisively, leaving Zhen Yue astounded by his abrupt departure.

But how could she fall behind? She quickly leaped up, pursuing him with a Flying Escape.

The two, one after the other, left the small courtyard, took half a circuit, and quickly arrived at the back courtyard.

As for Zhao Sheng, who had left earlier, he stood motionless in the middle of the back courtyard, staring unblinkingly at something inside the main hall, seemingly observing.

The Withered Bone Master's eyeballs rolled a few times, barely suppressing the desire to take action, and then, driven by curiosity, he stepped forward.

"What's this?"

Once he saw clearly what was inside the main hall, the Withered Bone Master couldn't help but show a shocked expression.

Inside the main hall was a charred corpse, sitting cross-legged on an apricot-yellow cushion, with a Cold River Elder Fishing Painting hanging on the wall behind it.

The scorching corpse's head had a big hole, and a fist-sized Jade White Spirit Pearl lay between the knees. The right hand was holding a gold Imperial Tablet about a foot long, and the left hand was severed.

A green bamboo basket lay slanted on the floor, seemingly crudely woven, yet it contained a pool of clear water, within which swam a small fish.

Not large, only the length of a palm, the fish's body was crystal clear, emitting ripples of a Five-Colored Light Halo. As it swam, the halo diffused and shimmered, incredibly dazzling.

Upon seeing the clear water, despite being far away, one could smell the entrancing fragrance.

"Five Luck Spirit Fish! There's no mistake, it absolutely is this creature. I thought they had long been extinct. Never did I expect to find a live one here. And that water... could it be the legendary Pure Spirit Water?" the Withered Bone Master muttered, his eyes fixed in a trance. Find exclusive stories on empire

In contrast to the Withered Bone Master, Zhen Yue didn't blink as she stared intently at the Jade White Spirit Pearl, her face filled with a bewitched look.

If she wasn't mistaken, that Spirit Pearl should be the core of the Bei Mansion. If she could refine it, she would be able to take control of this miniature Grotto Heaven.

Zhao Sheng didn't know what the other two were looking at. At the moment, his expression was grave, divine light circulating in his eyes. He wasn't looking at the scorched corpse, nor did he care about the bamboo basket and other treasures, but stared fixedly at the ancient painting behind the scorched corpse.

At that moment, it was as if his feet were nailed to the ground, and he didn't dare to move forward a single step.

Because in his eyes, that ancient painting was enveloped in an extremely dense aura of purple-black light, which diffused all around. The halo not only shrouded the charred corpse below but also covered the entire hall within its influence.

Since his reincarnation, Zhao Sheng had never seen such a dangerous object. He had a premonition that if he entered its range of influence, his death would be certain.

The Withered Bone Master, always the greediest, was just about to step into the hall when he suddenly saw Zhao Sheng stop in his tracks. A wary expression immediately surfaced on his face.

After a moment of hesitation, he glanced at Zhen Yue next to him and chose not to make a move. Instead, he said coldly, "I don't want anything else, old man just wants that bamboo basket and the things inside it."

As soon as Zhen Yue heard these words, she snapped out of her trance. After looking at Zhao Sheng, she decisively said, "I want that Spiritual Pearl!"

After both had stated their choices, they turned their attention toward Zhao Sheng.

Zhao Sheng came to his senses, stroked his chin, and after pondering for a while, nodded and said, "Since you both have made your choices, what's left will be mine! Any objections?"

The Withered Bone Master immediately answered, "No objections!"

Zhen Yue was just a beat slower but also concurred, "That's fine."

Both of their straightforward answers made Zhao Sheng feel puzzled. He looked at the bamboo basket and the Spiritual Pearl again, reevaluating the true value of these two treasures.

As soon as that was said, the Withered Bone Master couldn't wait to rush into the hall, but unexpectedly a golden sword rainbow flew across the sky, blocking his way.

"Little girl, what are you doing?" The Withered Bone Master looked back at Zhen Yue with great displeasure.

Zhen Yue said with a smile, "Skull old man, you can go in first if you want, but you must make a vow on your Heart Demon first."

With a flick of his sleeves, the Withered Bone Master said sternly, "I've never made any damned Heart Demon vows. Little girl, if you keep meddling, I might as well settle scores with you again."

As he said this, he turned to Zhao Sheng and forced an ugly smile, "Little brother, if you do not take sides, the Spiritual Pearl will be yours. What do you say?"

Zhen Yue, in a panic, immediately shouted to Zhao Sheng, "Don't fall for Old Mo's trick; he's trying to defeat us one by one!"

Zhao Sheng looked at the two of them, took a step back, and, without saying a word, made his stance quite clear.

Seeing this, the Withered Bone Master smiled smugly and gave Zhao Sheng a satisfied look.

He then threatened Zhen Yue saying, "Little girl, get out of the way! Otherwise, don't blame me for being ruthless!"

Zhen Yue, seeing Zhao Sheng act so "stupidly," felt her mood sour, but on her own, she was no match for the Withered Bone Master.

After hesitating, she reluctantly recalled her Spirit Sword and then glared fiercely at Zhao Sheng.

The Withered Bone Master pinched a spell, and the group of Ghost Skulls above his head suddenly spread out, spurting green flames to form a wall of flame skulls, blocking in front of Zhao Sheng and Zhen Yue.

Then, he turned to face them, but his body gradually stepped backward into the hall.

Zhen Yue watched unwillingly, feeling an urgent dread in her heart.

Zhao Sheng, seeing the Withered Bone Master be so cautious, couldn't help but flash a self-mocking glance. But that shade of emotion was quickly concealed deep within his heart, his face serene as still water.

The Withered Bone Master stepped backwards through the doorway, and seeing that neither of them showed signs of attacking, he was overjoyed.

With lightning speed, he turned around, grabbed the bamboo basket with one hand, and with an unsatisfied wave, whisked the Spiritual Pearl into his pouch.

If Zhen Yue could recognize the Spiritual Pearl as the Cave Mansion Core, the Withered Bone Master naturally recognized it as well.

His earlier offer was merely a ruse, as he had no intention of keeping his word from the very start.

However, at the moment of his utmost triumph, his gaze accidentally swept across the Cold River Elder Fishing Painting, and in an instant, a transparent fishing line shot out of the painting, and a golden fishhook vanished into his skull with a flash.

Instantly, the Withered Bone Master's eyes became vacant, and his body stiffened on the spot.

Bang!

The Spiritual Pearl, bamboo basket, and the rigid body of the Withered Bone Master all fell to the ground together.

No one could have imagined that a living person could die in the blink of an eye, and so silently, with extreme strangeness.

It wasn't just Zhen Yue who was shocked; even Zhao Sheng had no idea how the Withered Bone Master had died.

All he saw was a moment of stillness followed by the Withered Bone Master suddenly collapsing to the ground with a thud.

"What… what happened!" Zhen Yue, after witnessing this scene, felt a chill in her heart, her voice stammering in fright.

But Zhao Sheng's eyes lit up.