This Sword Cultivator is Somewhat Dependable

"This is a Ghost Sound Demon, a demon pet bred by the Demon Race, capable of constantly emitting sonic attacks that target a cultivator’s Divine Soul," Lu Qingshan explained to Su Shu.

The mode of action of the Ghost Sound Demon was usually to release an extremely powerful Ghost Sound Wave attack, and while the cultivator was stunned, it would turn into a clump of black mist, enter through the cultivator’s ears, and burrow into the cultivator’s heart.

After that, it would reside inside the cultivator’s heart, continuing its relentless Ghost Sound attacks until it completely crushed the cultivator’s Divine Soul.

Then, the Ghost Sound Demon would occupy the cultivator’s heart and naturally take control of the cultivator’s Physical Body, turning the cultivator into a Puppet under its command.

This was a demon pet with extremely strange abilities, but if one knew how to deal with it, it was not difficult to eliminate.

Generally, these types of demons that parasitize someone else’s body all share one common characteristic: they are extremely fragile by themselves.

It is precisely because of their fragility that they need a sturdy shell.

...

If it were any later and the Ghost Sound Demon had fully taken over Xu Hao’s body, the situation would have been different.

With non-stop sonic attacks coupled with Xu Hao’s strong Physical Body, this Ghost Sound Demon, despite only being level 15, would become exceedingly troublesome and difficult to deal with.

Fortunately, Xu Hao was still struggling fiercely, so the Ghost Sound Demon couldn’t manipulate Xu Hao’s body to mount an effective resistance.

In such a state, the Ghost Sound Demon was practically a pushover, so Lu Qingshan dealt with the Ghost Sound Demon with relative ease.

Once the Ghost Sound Demon died, the piercing scream that caused headaches and shortness of breath also dissipated.

Xu Hao, who had just been gasping for air and whose chest had been opened by Lu Qingshan, also stabilized his breathing very quickly.

This was not surprising.

Foundation Establishment Cultivators were already beyond the realm of ordinary people, with a Recovery Power far exceeding that of normal people, let alone Xu Hao, who was renowned among the six cultivators for his powerful Physical Body.

Li Zu and Xiao Zhi also hurried over.

"Is Big Brother Xu alright?" Su Shu’s eyes were filled with tears as she looked at Lu Qingshan with hopeful eyes.

Lu Qingshan nodded.

Su Shu’s chest heaved dramatically; the heart that had been hanging finally settled down.

Lu Qingshan glanced at Xu Hao and then said, "Now we can treat our captain’s injuries."

The external injuries suffered by Xu Hao were actually not severe, and they were not inflicted by the enemy.

—They were all caused by Lu Qingshan’s chest-opening surgery.

Su Shu hurriedly made a Seal Gesture with her hands, and another blue six-petal lotus appeared.

With the Ghost Sound Demon no longer obstructing, the effects of the Rejuvenation Spirit Art were extremely significant.

The wound on Xu Hao’s chest was visibly healing at a rapid pace.

A trace of color also gradually returned to Xu Hao’s pallid face.

After sweeping his Divine Sense over Xu Hao to check his condition, Lu Qingshan said, "The captain should wake up soon."

Indeed, just a moment later,

Xu Hao’s fingers twitched slightly, followed by his eyes slowly opening.

Xu Hao, who had just awakened, was still a bit confused and wasn’t clear about the situation when he felt a fragrant breeze and was then tightly embraced by a soft body.

Noticing that Xu Hao had awakened, Su Shu could no longer suppress her emotions and threw herself onto Xu Hao, wrapping her arms tightly around his waist, sobbing softly in grievance.

Xu Hao, who had just narrowly escaped death’s door, was taken aback and stiffened.

The face that had just regained a flush of color as if rejuvenated, now turned red as a monkey’s buttocks in an instant.

It seems that the healing effect of a woman’s embrace far surpasses that of High Level Spirit Arts.

Seeing this scene, Lu Qingshan couldn’t help but click his tongue.

After a brief stiffness, Xu Hao came back to his senses, hesitated a bit, and then tentatively extended his hand, gently patting Su Shu’s back.

"I’m fine, aren’t I? No need to cry and whine like a woman..." Xu Hao said, his voice awkward and cautious as he comforted her.

...

Lu Qingshan couldn’t help but twitch the corner of his mouth.

Cough—

Li Zu, too, couldn’t control himself and let out an awkward cough.

Then Li Zu felt a chill down his spine.

He saw Xu Hao with eyes wide open, glaring fiercely at Li Zu.

Li Zu touched his nose awkwardly and quickly changed the subject, "It’s been so long, and we haven’t seen Zhong Ming. He might not have solved it yet, should Xiao Zhi and I go and check?"

Xiao Zhi quickly nodded in agreement, "That makes sense. I’ll go with you then."

The two reached an understanding and turned to leave.

"Wait!" Lu Qingshan called out to them, and they turned back, looking at him with questioning eyes.

"I’ll go with you and take a look as well," Lu Qingshan said earnestly.

...

He still had enough sense to realize that now was the time to leave the captain and Su Shu alone; he shouldn’t stick around and spoil the mood.

...

The trio, accompanied by others, had just flown towards the south for a short while when they saw a black light shoot towards them rapidly.

The black light stopped in front of the three and revealed its figure—it was Zhong Ming.

Looking puzzled, Zhong Ming gazed at them, "Where are you heading? I just heard several strange howls; did something happen?"

"Seeing that you were taking so long, we feared you might have encountered some trouble, so we were just about to look for you," Xiao Zhi explained.

Waving his hand in annoyance, Zhong Ming said, "No need to talk about it. The Foundation Establishment Cultivator I was supposed to kill was very well-equipped, with several defensive artifacts, tough as a turtle shell—it took me quite an effort."

"Luckily, I finally dealt with him. Now that the mission is complete, how about we find the captain to report back, and then prepare to return?" Zhong Ming suggested.

Li Zu, Xiao Zhi, and Lu Qingshan exchanged glances. Finally, Lu Qingshan raised an eyebrow, smiling lightly, "I think we should linger around Feiyun Peak a bit longer."

"What’s there to see on this run-down mountain range…" Zhong Ming was clueless, but before he could finish, Xiao Zhi pulled him away.

"If we say we’re going for a stroll, you’ll go for a stroll. We three will accompany you, so quit your useless chatter."

The trio took Zhong Ming, who was unaware of the situation, and flew off into the distance.

...

The four landed halfway up the mountain.

From there, they could clearly see the lower-grade disciples cleaning up and continuously fleeing because of the recent turmoil.

"Feiyun Sect is finished," sighed Xiao Zhi upon seeing this scene.

"All brought upon themselves. When they chose to betray the Human Race and secretly communicate with the Netherworld, they should have foreseen this consequence," Zhong Ming said coldly.

"Only those four Foundation Establishment Cultivators colluded with the Netherworld. These disciples knew nothing and are innocent.

Because of the higher-ups’ wrong decisions, the sect has been destroyed. Without the protection of the sect, the life of a Loose Cultivator is not easy," said Xiao Zhi with some emotion.

The group fell silent.

Such is the way of the world; there is no absolute right or wrong.

Although Xiao Zhi felt emotional, he did not harbor any thoughts of changing the situation.

…

"I was rash just now." Li Zu, wrestling with his thoughts for a long time, was somewhat embarrassed but eventually approached Lu Qingshan, offering a sincere apology.

Lu Qingshan had already noticed Li Zu’s discomfort and, seeing him coming to make amends, merely waved his hand indifferently, saying calmly, "It was nothing major, and besides, you acted out of concern for the captain. I didn’t mind at all."

Li Zu observed Lu Qingshan’s expression and, reassured that Lu Qingshan genuinely didn’t take the earlier Ice Arrow attack to heart, finally breathed a sigh of relief.

In the future, he and Lu Qingshan were to fight together on the same team, so it was best to address and resolve any conflicts directly to prevent small grievances from festering and leading to greater disasters.

He understood this principle.

...

After wandering around Feiyun Peak for quite some time and noticing that it was getting late, the four finally returned.

Back with Xu Hao, Zhong Ming was stunned by the sight of the devastated battlefield.

Was the fight on the captain’s side really that intense?

Xu Hao had regained some of his Element Qi by now and seemed unperturbed, while Su Shu stood beside him, her face playful as ever, revealing no signs of the ordeal.

Yet, somehow, the atmosphere felt different from when they arrived.

What was different?

Perhaps the air held a hint of strangeness.

Zhong Ming felt confused, wondering to himself.

…

Despite some twists and turns, the first mission had been perfectly executed, and Lu Qingshan managed to establish a modicum of trust with the other team members.

After gathering and tallying the spoils of war, the group rode on Xiao Zhi’s Red Rock Goose back to Zhenjiang City.

The demise of the Feiyun Sect, which had occupied Feiyun Peak, and the ensuing scramble of small families and sects for the territory, were now beyond their knowledge.

Once in Zhenjiang City, everyone exchanged addresses, made plans to visit one another when free, and after bidding farewell, they went their separate ways.

Lu Qingshan returned to his own small courtyard.

As for Xu Hao, he needed to return to Zhenjiang Tower first to hand in the mission.

… and also to settle accounts with Black Ice Platform, the department responsible for intelligence.

If it hadn’t been for Lu Qingshan, he might have capsized in the gutter, all because of Black Ice Platform’s delayed intelligence.

For such a massive blunder from Black Ice Platform, thinking they could get away without paying any price was wishful thinking!

.....

A woman with a veil covering her face and a graceful demeanor looked up at the iron-hooked silver writing of the "Zhenjiang City" sign on the city wall.

She fondly recalled the profound words the young man had said to her not long ago, "If you ever run into trouble, feel free to find me in Zhenjiang City."

Biting her snow-white teeth against her lower lip, she made up her mind and stepped into the city.

She hoped that the young man would truly be able to solve her troubles as he promised.