My best friend asked me if I was still doing system tasks.

The saliva and blood sprayed into the air mingled together, transforming into words as Luo Hanying finished speaking. Instantly, a rhinoceros-hide armor made of spiritual energy appeared on her body, blocking the dagger the man was about to stab at her heart.

At the same time, a bronze shield struck the man's chest, a bronze halberd pierced his brow, and other swords attacked his back.

Even when the man unleashed his Golden Core Realm Perfection cultivation, it didn't shake Luo Hanying in the slightest. Having spent so much time with powerful cultivators, she no longer took the pressure of a mere minor realm into account.

He was attacked from multiple directions, twisting his body and wielding his dagger to clash with weapons made of spiritual energy, blocking their attacks. At this moment, the phantom of the pre-Qin chariot charged around and cut between the two, creating distance between them.

Luo Hanying moved to a safe distance and kicked the sound-absorbing array on the ground, shouting with great force, "Senior Uncle, Senior Sister, Senior Brother, help me! Help me! I'm going to die, help me!"

Luo Hanying's shout woke up everyone within a five-mile radius. In the middle of the night, the sounds of chickens, ducks, geese, dogs, cattle, horses, and sheep filled the air, interspersed with the cries of babies, curses from men, women, and children, and faint sobs from the timid.

Jin Caiyu, clutching her pipa, kicked open the door. She stared intently at the man trying to escape through the window, then unleashed a sonic boom through her fingers: "Where do you think you're going!"

"Caiyu! Be careful!" Ran Jie followed closely behind, carrying an erhu in her hand.

Not to be outdone, Luo Hanying, along with Lan Shihai and Fu Xueyun, chased after them.

The group jumped out of the window and landed on the ground. Lan Shihai and Fu Xueyun joined Jin Caiyu and Ran Jie's battle, one playing the suona and the other bringing out the large drum. The four of them formed a battle formation, and the moving melodies and flying sound waves were a double torment to the men's ears and bodies, both mentally and physically.

Luo Hanying wiped the congealed blood from her neck; the blood was a normal color.

She felt nothing at the moment, and didn't know whether she should use her spiritual power—

She had acted out of necessity to protect herself in that emergency, but now she didn't know if the poison the man mentioned was real or not. She was worried that continuing to circulate her spiritual energy would cause the poison to spread throughout her body, hastening her death.

Ji Daoyun arrived late. He hovered in mid-air on his sword, used the Binding Spirit Rope to trap the man, and then landed. Before anyone could react, he made a hand seal and struck the man on the head with his palm.

In the man's terrified state, his head suddenly exploded within a few breaths.

The scene left everyone stunned. Jin Caiyu carefully checked herself for any blood splattered on her body, while Ran Jie put away her instrument, looking preoccupied.

Luo Hanying clutched her neck, staring blankly at the headless corpse. A wave of nausea rose in her stomach, causing her to gag and cough, but she couldn't vomit anything.

She suddenly knew what the scene of Le Shu's death must have looked like when Ruan Chayan described it to her.

Ji Daoyun withdrew his protective spiritual energy, and inevitably became stained with dirt upon touching the man's head. After performing a cleansing ritual, he wiped his clean palms with a handkerchief and looked at Luo Hanying: "Come here, let me see the poison on your body."

Then he said to Lan Shihai and Fu Xueyun, "You two should dispose of this person's body."

He then instructed Jin Caiyu and Ran Jie to have one of them contact Tao Xian, who was guarding the Lu family, and the other to contact Nan Huachao, who was in a neighboring town.

Luo Hanying roused herself and walked to Ji Daoyun's side. Her face was pale, and her gaze darted around, not daring to fall on the bloody corpse.

While taking Luo Hanying's pulse, Ji Daoyun said to the two communication jade slips, "Luo Hanying was just assassinated, and the assassin has been killed."

I used the Soul Searching Technique and saw in his shattered sea of ​​consciousness that Lu Yanxin had ordered someone to send him to ask Luo Hanying some questions and kill her in the process.

"Let Lu Xizhou interrogate Lu Yanxin. I don't think Lu Yanxin is the mastermind behind this. Investigate carefully who Lu Yanxin has the closest contact with."

Ji Daoyun used a handkerchief to clean the wound on Luo Hanying's neck, observed the condition of the wound, and then gestured for Luo Hanying to stick out her tongue. He then pried open Luo Hanying's eyes to check the condition of her tongue coating and the whites of her eyes.

Luo Hanying obediently accepted the examination.

"Peach Fairy, go find Patriarch Lu now and ask him for two of the Twin-stemmed Tea Flower and the Curly-leafed Heart Grass, both over thirty years old. The sooner the better."

Ji Daoyun helped Luo Hanying stand firm, then used his fingertips to release spiritual energy to seal the major acupoints around Luo Hanying's body. "Luo Hanying, because you used spiritual energy, this poison should have taken effect in two hours. Now you only have about an hour left."

You must not use your spiritual power anymore. To prevent the poison from spreading, I have sealed your spiritual power and acupoints. You should move around less and sit quietly.

Jin Caiyu, Ran Jie, you two are female cultivators. Stay by Luo Hanying's side at all times and prevent her from falling into any further danger. She's no different from a mortal now.

Ji Daoyun patted Luo Hanying on the shoulder to comfort her, then asked, "Mu Hua, Nan Huachao, what's the situation on your end? Have you been attacked?"

Luo Hanying belatedly realized that she seemed to be about to die. She hugged Jin Caiyu and wailed, "It's over! I'm going to die! I'm really going to die!"

"Tea Mom! I'm going to die again, waaaaah! I'm really going to die!"

Ruan Chayan was wondering why Luo Hanying had suddenly become quiet, but who would have thought that she would say something so provocative? She quickly comforted Luo Hanying and asked her what was wrong.

Ji Daoyun raised his voice, both amused and exasperated, and said, "Don't get too agitated. Once Patriarch Lu brings the herbs, I'll refine a batch of antidote for you and you'll be fine. You child, I thought you were calm just now, but it turns out you were just slow to react."

"Ouch..." Luo Hanying sniffled awkwardly, then smiled through her tears. ["It's alright, Mother Tea, I can still live. Junior Uncle said I can still be saved."]

Ruan Chayan's heart was in turmoil as she listened to Luo Hanying recount her recent experience.

Nan Huachao and Mu Hua reported back that everything was calm on their side, and that Lu Xiyan's symptoms had been recorded and would be sent along with the medicine.

After exchanging information, Ji Daoyun returned the communication jade slips to the two of them, and the group returned to the inn.

The innkeeper was an old man whose cultivation level was only at the late stage of Qi Refining. He was already showing signs of aging, and it was likely that he didn't have much time left to live.

He stood at the door, wearing a robe and carrying an oil lamp, asking the returning crowd if they were alright and what major event had occurred amidst the commotion outside.

Lan Shihai comforted the old man, assuring him that they would be there to watch over him and that he could rest in peace.

The Lu family acted swiftly. Upon hearing that the medicine was life-saving, Lu Chengping immediately sent Lu Xizhou to personally deliver it to Ji Daoyun.

Ji Daoyun possesses the Cold Flame, so even with an Ice Spirit Root, he can still refine pills and magical artifacts.

Luo Hanying saw that the medicine was being made, which relieved her tension. She was even able to touch the purplish-black patches on her body and joke with Jin Caiyu, saying that the symptoms of poisoning on her body looked like livor mortis.

"Why do I smell bad?" Luo Hanying stretched out her palm and exhaled, looking embarrassed. "Do I have bad breath?"

“No, bad breath is also a symptom.” Ji Daoyun put away the Cold Flame, opened the alchemy furnace and said, “The antidote is ready. Come quickly, or I’m afraid your internal organs will rot if you wait any longer.”