Upon hearing this, Bai Yuanzhou realized that Han Xiong was acting strangely today, and immediately turned around warily, saying, "What do you mean by that? If I can't restore my wife to her original state, you'll never be able to get rid of that woman..."

Han Xiong sneered, "But I'm not a demon disciple yet. I only agreed to give her my soul. Besides, why would I want to get rid of her? I was working for her in the first place... Do you think your wife can ever be restored to her original state? You've frozen her for years. Even if she were to develop a soul now, she wouldn't live past tomorrow..."

Bai Yuanzhou finally realized something was wrong, but it was too late. The immortal sword that had suddenly appeared in Han Xiong's hand had already pierced his heart.

"Why...why...isn't this what you wanted too?"

"I... just don't like owing people money for drinks." As soon as he finished speaking, Han Xiong drew his sword and, in the next moment, beheaded Bai Yuanzhou.

At this moment, Jiang Ruoning, who was tied to the beam, stared at Han Xiong with wide eyes, feeling terrified for a moment, but soon, the fear in her eyes turned into hope.

Han Xiong untied him, saying, "Miss, do you remember the poem I gave you that night?"

Jiang Ruoning, still shaken, nodded subconsciously.

Han Xiong gave a bitter laugh. "Don't thank me. You saved yourself. I reminded you to leave Yingyue City that day, but you didn't listen to me. You drank the wine, and the tavern refused to accept my payment. But that doesn't mean I can refuse to pay. Today, consider it repayment for the wine!"

Only then did Jiang Ruoning calm down a little. "You...aren't you all in cahoots?"

Han Xiong smiled slightly, "We are all members of the Demonic Sect, is it strange that we kill each other? Don't ask anything, just run towards Kunlun Mountain after leaving this thatched hut. I'll give you a token, go to the Kunlun Immortal Sect to find Qin Yuejiao, she will protect you. Oh, and please pass on a message for me, just say..."

The man hesitated, unable to speak, and swallowed back the words he wanted to say. "Never mind, there's nothing to say. Go on, I have a lot to do later!"

Jiang Ruoning didn't dare to hesitate. She ran to the door and then came back, picked up her zither, and ran out again. But this time she turned back and asked, "Can we still meet?"

"Hurry up and go, young lady. If I survive this, you have to buy me a drink."

The girl in green seemed to realize something, her eyes dimming slightly, before she said, "What message did you want me to deliver? Since you're unsure if you'll still be alive, I can help you deliver it..."

Han Xiong gave a bitter laugh and shook his head. "If you don't want to die, get out of here!"

The woman in green seemed to have thought of something, and bowed deeply to Han Xiong while holding her zither. "Sir beggar, I don't know your name yet. Could you tell me your name?"

Han Xiong was taken aback, then suddenly smiled and said, "Then remember it well, my name is Han Xiong, the Xiong of hero!"

Jiang Ruoning didn't linger any longer and turned to run away.

Just after he left, Han Xiong suddenly looked up and said, "Master Xiao, you've been here for so long, why don't you come down and sit for a while?"

Having observed from the rooftop for a long time, Xiao Yuhan stepped through the roof and landed inside. "I haven't been here long. I just happened to see you killing Bai Yuanzhou when I arrived."

"I knew you wouldn't let me go so easily."

Xiao Yuhan looked around the room and frowned when she saw the bloodstains on the floor and the skeleton tied to the beam. "You really lied to me. I'll give you a chance to explain since you saved Jiang Ruoning."

Han Xiong took out the wine gourd he always carried and reluctantly took a swig of wine. "Master Xiao, most of what I said before was true."

Xiao Yuhan stared at the corpse on the distant pillar and asked directly, "What exactly are you and Bai Yuanzhou plotting to do?"

"His wife sold her soul to a demon disciple many years ago. Just before she was about to become a demon disciple, Bai Yuanzhou forcibly kept her here and froze her. The ghost doctor Bai Yuanzhou has spent his life researching how to restore a stolen soul. He has searched for many people but has never found a pure soul. Jiang Ruoning is one of them, so Bai Yuanzhou has his eye on her." As he spoke, Han Xiong took another swig of wine.

Xiao Yuhan remained expressionless. "And what about you? And what was it for?"

"Bai Yuanzhou's method is feasible. I want him to restore me after I become a demon disciple."

Xiao Yuhan seemed to be deep in thought. "So you made a deal with that white-haired woman, a deal with the demon disciple."

A hint of helplessness flashed in Han Xiong's eyes. "Who hasn't made mistakes? About twenty years ago, I made a deal with her. But that's how demons are. They lure you with benefits little by little until you have no choice but to sell your soul. From the moment I agreed to make the deal with her, I had no way out. So it was only a matter of time before my soul was taken and I became a puppet."

Xiao Yuhan was somewhat confused and continued to press, "What kind of deal did you make with her?"

Han Xiong hesitated for a long time before smiling bitterly and saying, "She will do three things for me, and I will give her my soul in return. The time limit is a maximum of one hundred years. Now the first two things have been completed, and I have not asked about the third thing in order to delay it for a while longer."

Xiao Yuhan frowned. "What two things did you ask her to do for you?"

Mentioning this, Han Xiong's expression grew even more desolate. "The first thing is that the year my elder brother died, I couldn't bear to see Qin Yuejiao suffer so much, so I made a deal with her to bring my elder brother back to life. You probably don't know this, but my elder brother, Han Ying, is still alive, though he's not himself anymore. As for the second thing, I wanted him to kill someone for me. You don't need to know who that person is, Master Xiao, but those demonic disciples will never grant your wish. No matter what you wish for, as long as the price is equal, it will be fulfilled, but it's also equivalent to not fulfilling it. Take my elder brother, Han Ying, for example. He is indeed still alive and a normal person, but he has lost all his memories. Now he has fled far away and his whereabouts are unknown. His being alive is actually the same as being dead."

"So why did she come to you again this time?" Xiao Yuhan pressed.

At this point, Han Xiong shook his head. "She didn't come to find me, but to find Bai Yuanzhou. In fact, from the very beginning, she was interested in Bai Yuanzhou's experiment on how to restore the souls of demon disciples. So she sent me to urge Bai Yuanzhou to continue his research. This time, she came to see the final result. Before I came to find Bai Yuanzhou, I forcibly erased the mark she left on me, which is why she hasn't been able to find me for so long. Moreover, my saving Jiang Ruoning and killing Bai Yuanzhou will only thoroughly enrage her."