Longevity: Starting as a menial servant in the Green Wood Sect

On the bed, Shen Wan leaned against the cold jade pillow. The gorgeous, blood-red robe draped over her did not add any joy; instead, it made her pale face look like a paper effigy with fresh makeup, exuding a chilling aura of death.

She watched Gu An approach, but instead of looking at the so-called "Rejuvenation Pill," she stared intently into Gu An's eyes.

In those deep pupils, she read the final signal—take action.

There was no verbal communication, not even telepathic communication. Under such high pressure, any slight fluctuation of spiritual energy could alert Zhou Tong, a quasi-Foundation Establishment cultivator.

Shen Wan slowly closed her eyes, her slender fingers hidden in her sleeve suddenly digging into her palm, her nails piercing through her skin and sinking deep into her flesh.

She is reversing the flow of energy.

The "Living Wood Poison," which Gu An had barely managed to suppress with silver needles and the "Life-Generating Wood Technique," was deliberately detonated by her at this moment. Not only that, she also burned the last of her life essence to catalyze the poison to its extreme.

"Well……"

A muffled groan, barely suppressed, escaped from deep within her throat.

Beneath her originally pale skin, countless dark green lines erupted like wildly growing vines, instantly transforming into a bizarre dark red. It wasn't the red of vigorous blood and energy, but the color of destruction, a poisonous fire attacking the heart, about to incinerate everything.

Watching this scene from behind, Zhou Tong's eyes revealed a hint of joy: "Excellent! The medicine is working so fast! This Rejuvenation Pill is indeed powerful; this vibrant energy will surely please that lord!"

He never imagined that this was not the effect of the medicine, but rather the last gasp before the alchemy furnace was about to explode.

Gu An stood in front of Shen Wan, using the act of adjusting her clothes and feeding her medicine as cover, while his right hand swiftly reached into her bosom.

There, hidden, was a fist-sized, grayish-white bead that exuded a dense aura of yin and death—a second-grade low-level corpse pill!

This was a treasure he had dug out from the corpse of that Qi Refining Level 6 armored beast. He had originally intended to keep it to refine Yin Thunder or exchange it for spirit stones in the future, but at this moment, it was the only thing that could break the deadlock.

Corpse pills belong to extreme yin, and cold jade beds also belong to yin and cold.

However, the poisonous blood that Shen Wan was experiencing at this moment was an extremely yang poisonous evil that was "Yi Wood generating Fire"!

Yin and Yang clash, and water and fire are incompatible.

Within this confined and narrow space, once detonated, its power is no less than that of a "Heavenly Thunder Spear" unleashed with all the strength of a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

"I'm sorry."

Gu An's lips moved slightly, and he silently uttered three words.

His left hand made a very discreet groping motion along the edge of the Jade Bed, where the array core controlling the circulation of spiritual energy throughout the entire Jade Bed was located.

"Click".

A very faint, crisp sound.

Gu An's fingers pried open the cover of the array eye like iron hooks, and then his right hand slammed the second-tier corpse pill into it!

At the same time, he flicked his other sleeve, and the bottle of "Tai Sui Mist" remnant liquid that he had been keeping close to his body, mixed with a wisp of primordial poison blood that he had just wiped from Shen Wan's lips in the chaos, was poured all over the corpse pill.

Sizzle sizzle sizzle—!

It's like pouring a ladle of ice water into a scalding hot oil pan.

A chillingly loud reaction suddenly rang out.

The moment the corpse pill came into contact with the poisonous blood and mist, its originally stable Yin energy instantly boiled over, and its grayish-white outer shell began to show dense cracks, emitting a dazzling eerie green light.

What was that sound?

Zhou Tong, standing behind him, keenly sensed something was wrong. He whirled around, a flicker of surprise in his sinister eyes. "Manager Lu! What are you up to?!"

However, the response he received was not Gu An's humble explanation.

Instead, it was a terrifying pressure emanating from the horizon.

Rumbling--

The miasma layer above the entire Broken Soul Valley seemed to be violently torn apart by an invisible giant hand.

In the night sky, a scarlet streak of light plummeted like a shooting star, and before it even hit the ground, a terrifying spiritual pressure belonging to the late Foundation Establishment stage descended upon it like Mount Tai crashing down.

The ground of the entire special protection zone trembled under this oppressive force, and all the Qi Refining cultivators felt a tightness in their chests, causing their spiritual energy to stagnate instantly.

"They're here! The Vice Sect Leader has arrived!"

Zhou Tong's expression changed drastically, a mixture of excitement and fear. He couldn't care less about checking the strange noises from the cold jade bed and was about to step outside to greet them.

It's now!

A cold glint flashed in Gu An's eyes.

Without any hesitation, he pressed his hands down sharply, and the Yi Wood True Qi in his body was no longer being nurtured, but transformed into the sharpest thorn, fiercely piercing into the array eye of the Cold Jade Bed, which was already at a critical point.

Detonate!

"boom--!!!"

A muffled yet deafening explosion suddenly erupted inside the C-class tent without warning.

This was not an explosion of flames, but rather a release of deadly poison and malevolent energy.

The valuable second-grade low-level cold jade bed shattered into countless sharp jade fragments in an instant.

The second-tier corpse pill shattered completely. The corpse energy accumulated over decades mixed with the "living Yi Wood Poison" in Shen Wan's body, transforming into a terrifying dark green mushroom cloud that instantly broke through the tent's confinement and spread wildly in all directions.

"No--!!!"

Zhou Tong had just reached the doorway and didn't even have time to activate his protective spiritual shield before he was slammed hard on the back by a shockwave mixed with countless jade fragments and deadly poison.

"puff!"

Zhou Tong was blasted away like a kite with a broken string. His protective robe was instantly riddled with holes by the corrosive poison gas, and his exposed skin hissed and emitted plumes of black smoke.

This explosion not only destroyed the camp, but also swallowed up all life within a radius of thirty feet.

Those low-ranking servants and medicine apprentices who hadn't had time to evacuate would immediately clutch their throats and collapse to the ground if they came into contact with even a trace of that dark green poisonous mist, turning into a puddle of pus within a few breaths.

confusion.

Utter chaos.

In the heart of this toxic fog and dust where you can't see your hand in front of your face.

Gu An, however, was prepared.

At the moment of detonation, he had already withstood the shockwave of the explosion thanks to his fully developed "copper skin" body and extremely high resistance to poison gas, and picked up Shen Wan, who was blown away by the blast wave.

At this moment, Shen Wan had completely lost consciousness, and her breath was extremely weak.

"Cough cough..."

Gu An coughed up a mouthful of black phlegm mixed with blood, feeling as if his internal organs had shifted, and his back was covered in blood from being pierced by several shards of cold jade.

But he dared not pause for even a moment.

Like a mad dog searching for food in a fire, he dragged Shen Wan and rushed to the corner of the tent in a few steps—there, his already prepared, stinking corpse-carrying cart was parked.

"Go in!"

Gu An lifted the thick layer of rotting flesh and limbs that had begun to infest the bottom of the cart, revealing an extremely narrow secret compartment that could barely accommodate one person.

He showed no mercy and directly stuffed the unconscious Shen Wan, dressed in a red robe, inside.

Then, he quickly grabbed the pile of rotten flesh that emitted a nauseating stench and covered it back over the hidden compartment. Not satisfied with that, he grabbed a handful of black blood from some kind of internal organ and smeared it haphazardly on the camouflage panel.

All of this was done in less than two breaths.

At this moment, the terrifying poisonous fog was still spreading, but because the center of the explosion was inside the tent, those on the outside could not yet see the situation inside clearly.

"Ah! My alchemy furnace! My contribution!"

In the distance, Zhou Tong, his face covered in dust and grime from the explosion, struggled to his feet, letting out a bloodcurdling scream. Ignoring his injuries, he frantically tried to rush into the poisonous fog.

At the same time, the crimson streak of light descended from the sky.

"Hmph! Useless!"

A cold snort, like a thunderclap, resounded in everyone's ears.

An old man, dressed in a blood-red robe and with a face as withered as a skeleton, hovered in mid-air, riding a white bone flying sword. He looked down at the churning poisonous cloud below, a flash of disgust and anger in his eyes.

"If you can't even handle this small matter, what use are you?"

As he finished speaking, an immense and despair-inducing divine consciousness, like a tangible tide, swept relentlessly toward the center of the explosion.

This is the oppressive aura of a major overhaul in the late stage of Foundation Establishment!

Under this divine sense, any means of concealment are like child's play.

Center of the toxic fog.

Gu An felt a sudden tightness all over his body, as if he had been stripped naked and thrown into the freezing snow.

But he didn't dodge.

On the contrary, he did something that surprised everyone.

He scratched his cheeks and arms with his fingernails, mixing the blood with the cigarette ash and dirt on his face. Then, with disheveled hair, he stumbled and staggered out of the billowing toxic smoke, pushing the incredibly heavy corpse cart like a madman.

"My car! My car!"

As Gu An pushed the cart, he let out heart-wrenching cries, his voice filled with the extreme attachment and despair of a small person facing annihilation for their possessions: "This is a government vehicle! If it breaks down... if it breaks down, I'll have to pay with my life!"

His entire body was blackened by the smoke, with a few charred strips of cloth hanging from his body. His skin was pitted and corroded by the poisonous gas, making him look a hundred times more miserable than the beggars outside.

But the veins on his hands, which were pushing the cart, were bulging as he tightly protected the broken-down cart full of "garbage," as if it were the lifeblood of his entire family.

That terrifying divine sense lingered on him for a moment.

Then it swept across that stinking cart again.

The cart was littered with mangled corpses, flowing pus and blood, and the nauseating stench of decay. Beneath that thick layer of rotting flesh, separated by a specially crafted isolation array and Shen Wan's own "Withering and Flourishing Spirit Seal," further masked by the intense residual aura of the second-tier corpse core explosion…

The Foundation Establishment expert's divine sense did not detect anything unusual.

Or rather, in his eyes, the behavior of an ant at the third level of Qi Refining, desperately protecting a corpse transport vehicle, was laughable, but it was also extremely in line with the logic of a low-level rogue cultivator.

As for that alchemy furnace?

Under an explosion of that level of toxicity, let alone a living person, even a man of iron would be turned to water.

"unlucky."

The withered old man in mid-air withdrew his divine sense, glanced at the dilapidated car that was still dripping black water, and a hint of disgust flashed in his eyes. He was too lazy to even lay a hand on this ant, afraid of getting his hands dirty.

"Zhou Tong".

The old man turned his head to look at the trembling elder of the Enforcement Hall kneeling on the ground, his voice icy cold, "This is the 'surprise' you prepared for me? A worthless pill that exploded?"

"Vice Sect Leader, spare me! Vice Sect Leader, spare me!"

At this moment, Zhou Tong had completely lost any of his elder's authority. He was banging his head against the wall, his face covered in blood, "It was an accident! Absolutely an accident! The poison in that woman's body went out of control! I... I'll go investigate right away! Even if I have to turn this place upside down, I'll give you an explanation!"

"No need."

With a flick of his sleeve, the old man unleashed a blood-red blade of light that slashed down instantly.

"Since you're already a piece of trash, then become nourishment for my Blood Sword."

"puff!"

Zhou Tong didn't even have time to scream before his head was sent flying into the sky, and his life essence was instantly devoured by the blood light, turning him into a dried-up corpse.

The entire room fell silent.

Everyone held their breath, not daring to even breathe loudly.

Gu An pushed the cart, huddled in the shadows of the corner, head bowed, his whole body trembling uncontrollably.

That wasn't entirely a disguise.

The brilliance of that sword strike, that indifference that treated human life as worthless, made him realize once again the cruelty of this world.

If it weren't for that explosion, if it weren't for that split-second decision, he and Shen Wan would be the ones turned into dried corpses now.

"Have the Corpse Puppet Sect members arrived yet?"

After killing Zhou Tong, the withered old man acted as if he had done something insignificant. He turned to look into the depths of darkness and asked indifferently.

"Reporting to the Vice Sect Master, Mine No. 3 is ready."

In the darkness, several figures dressed in black robes, exuding a sinister aura, quietly emerged and bowed to the old man.

"very good."

The old man nodded, his gaze sweeping over the remaining people present. He said coldly, "Now that this special protected area is destroyed, it has no reason to exist. Take the remaining survivors and supplies and move them all to Mine No. 3. I will personally preside over the blood sacrifice ceremony there!"

"yes!"

With this command, the once deathly silent camp became noisy once again.

This time, however, it was a desperate migration.

Gu An hunched his shoulders, listening to the command. Beneath his lowered eyelids, a hint of relief at surviving a disaster flashed, along with a deeper, darker glint.

No. 3 Mine Pit.

That was exactly where he was going.

Now, not only is he going there himself, but this old monster in the late Foundation Establishment stage is also going there.

The situation has become more dangerous, but also more... murky.

The muddier the water, the easier it is to catch fish.

"Get out of my way! All of you get out of my way!"

Gu An suddenly straightened up and roared at the several terrified laborers beside him, his face once again displaying that greedy, mercenary, and somewhat hysterical expression, "This truck is the lifeblood of the recycling team! Hurry up! Stay with the main group! If we fall behind, we'll all die!"

He cursed and swore as he pushed the heavy cart with all his might. The wheels rolled over Zhou Tong's still-warm headless corpse with a crisp "crunch".

In the midst of the chaotic crowd, this scene seemed so insignificant, yet so perfectly natural.

No one noticed the cold smile playing on the lips of the team leader pushing the cart.

No one knew that deep inside this cart, laden with stinking corpse parts, lay a key that could overturn the entire war.

The wheels rolled on, slowly making their way towards the dark abyss that swallowed everything.