Chapter 247: The Parties Affected (4)

"Bang!"

Shen Ranming hit the car board with a dull sound, which startled the other three people in the car and made them jump up. They stared at Shen Ranming, who was twitching and rolling on the ground, in shock and confusion. They moved quietly without saying a word to each other, and they actually formed a subtle defensive posture against each other.

“Uh uh uh…”

Sunlight streamed through the bamboo curtains into the carriage, flickering and shifting shadows illuminating Shen Ranming's tumbling form. He didn't convulse and die as the three had imagined. Instead, his trembling gradually subsided. He uttered a muffled groan and violently vomited a mouthful of foul phlegm. Finally, his breathing calmed, and he opened his eyes blankly.

It didn't look like any of them had done this. The three of them looked at each other, and finally someone expressed concern, but they remained steadfast and didn't move an inch.

"Shen San, are you okay? What happened suddenly?"

If Luo Xuanyi were to see the person who spoke, she would have recognized him as Chen Rong, an outer disciple of Hua Shen Daoist's Danxin Pavilion on Ruoyu Peak. Like the others in the carriage, he was dressed like a traveling merchant, with a jade token bearing the name Wangyouke hanging from his waist.

Shen Ranming had grown accustomed to seeing the hypocritical expressions of Chen Rong and the others. After all, they were all members of the Zang Yao clan. He also secretly speculated on their thoughts and secretly hated himself for showing weakness in front of them.

Shen Ranming struggled to get up from the ground, gathering his thoughts but still feeling bewildered. "I suddenly felt a chill running up my spine, burrowing straight into my dantian. The spiritual energy in my body was momentarily disrupted... Huh?"

As soon as he spoke, he regretted it and stopped talking. However, the passenger closest to the door noticed his abnormality and immediately asked, "What did you find unusual?"

The person asking the question was Nie Chuicheng, the leader of this mission, who was already at the Golden Core Stage. Shen Ranming had no choice but to tell the truth: "A strange mark appeared in my Dantian Foundation Establishment."

"The mark, could it be a curse?" Nie Chuicheng looked up at the man who had been standing silently behind Shen Ranming. "Junior Brother Ren, you're good at tracking and tracing back, why don't you give it a try?"

Shen Ranming pursed his lips. He still ached all over, but since Chen Rong from Danxin Pavilion wouldn't offer any medicine, he could only endure it. The other three clearly had no concern for his well-being.

He looked at Ren Xiaqi, his senior brother from the same Guiqi Pavilion in Huaxue Ridge, but Ren Xiaqi just looked at Nie Chuicheng: "Brother Nie, we have a heavy mission. There's no need to be so cautious, right?"

Since Luo Xuanyi cured Ren Xiaqi of his elixir poison, his cultivation has advanced by leaps and bounds, reaching the Golden Core stage. However, Shen Ranming, nominally a disciple of True Lord Beilian, has been stuck. Ever since he took the Star-Swallowing Pill Luo Xuanyi gave him, his cultivation has remained stuck at the Great Perfection of Foundation Establishment. Within the Zang Yao Sect, where strength is paramount, he's practically lost in the crowd.

If this continued, Shen Ranming would sooner or later be sent to Taoist Hua Shen for drug testing. In order to survive, he took a gamble and killed four or five people to earn the opportunity for this mission.

Ren Xiaqi saw that he was both ambitious and extremely talented, and he wished he could strangle this young talent in the cradle to prevent him from having to compete with him for sect resources. He had been watching silently until he was sure that this matter only concerned Shen Ranming's life, so he didn't want to expend any more energy. "I think it's just that Brother Shen offended someone and played a little joke on him."

Nie Chuicheng insisted, "This mission is important and no mistakes are allowed."

"If that's the case," Ren Xiaqi reluctantly approached Shen Ranming, pulling out a dagger from his sleeve. A flash of cold light emanated from his hand, and everyone could only smell the scent of blood. After a moment, he shook out a piece of dense white fabric from his sleeve and stared at it for a moment, as if remembering something. "Hmm, it's a soul seal. No matter where you are, you can't escape its pursuit. It's brutal."

Taking the fabric in his hand, Nie Chuicheng's expression changed almost at the same time as Shen Ranming's.

"So, Shen Ranming will reveal our location?"

Nie Chuicheng didn't even hide his name, calling him Shen Ranming. Shen Ranming's heart was pounding with fear, afraid that he would eliminate him for the mission. He looked at Ren Xiaqi with a hint of pleading in his eyes.

Ren Xiaqi smiled: "Of course he will be exposed. The one who places the soul seal can control all his whereabouts."

Shen Ranming's heart suddenly fell to the bottom.

"This soul seal curse isn't the kind we use. I think it's from the Yao family's bloodline. It takes a lot of effort to dispel a normal curse, let alone this famous Yao family curse. We don't have that much time to waste here."

"Brother Ren is right," Chen Rong nodded, holding his hands in his pockets. "Brother Nie and I are going to deal with the Baicheng elixir. It's fine if we part ways in Wanmei City ahead of you, but Brother Ren wants to go hiking with Shen Ranming. I think it's better to execute Shen Ranming here."

With just a few words, his head would fall. Shen Ranming had survived to this point, with the lives of twenty or thirty of his fellow disciples on his hands, but at this moment, he still felt powerless.

After all, he was just a Foundation Establishment cultivator, and was completely powerless to resist the three Golden Core cultivators, so it didn't matter.

In the Zang Yao Sect, without strength, one could only be manipulated. He nearly gritted his teeth, but dared not show the slightest sign of resistance. He could not figure out why he had been cursed by the Yao family; it was simply a calamity sent from heaven.

Who would have thought that Nie Chuicheng would ponder for a moment and then confirm with Ren Xiaqi: "Is it really the Yao family curse?"

"That's right, there's no mistake."

"Strange, he wouldn't... Maybe he doesn't trust us..." Nie Chuicheng murmured, stroking his long beard. Shen Ranming's heart rose and fell with his hand, feeling uneasy.

"Brother Nie, do you know who cast this curse?" Chen Rong realized that there was more to it.

"That's right."

This curse might be related to a key figure involved in their mission. Nie Chuicheng couldn't hide it, lest any mistakes be made and he be held responsible. "There is only one cultivator left in this world who can cast the Yao family curse, and that is Taoist Fuhe."

"Taoist Fuhe has reached a deal with the sect. Brother Chen and I will cooperate with his subordinates, the Paper Arts Sect, to carry out the White City Poison Pill."

Chen Rong, from Danxin Pavilion, and Nie Chuicheng, from Shenglu Pavilion, were both skilled in poison making. They were ordered to poison a large number of elixirs provided by the Zhishu Sect and then sell them throughout Xuancheng Prefecture. As for Ren Xiaqi and Shen Ranming, their task was quite different.

"Could it be that he discovered that we have other plans?" Having said that, Ren Xiaqi had to face the matter squarely.

Nie Chuicheng shook his head. "That's not the case. After all, the sect has spent nine hundred years preparing for you. Even you who were sent here don't know exactly what to do. Maybe it's just the caution of an old fox."

"So, it's not easy to kill Shen San." Ren Xiaqi did not hide his disappointment and disgust. "Since he has the soul mark and can't be killed, why not let him follow you to sell poison pills."

"That's all we can do."

After that, all three of them sat down, and the car returned to silence. Only Shen Ranming was left standing with his fists clenched. He secretly swore in his heart:

One day, I will eat the three of you alive!

Shen Ranming took a deep breath, but didn't even dare to exhale loudly, and sat back in his seat.

Arriving in Wanmei City, they heard of the great achievements of the demonic cultivator Shen Ranming, who had wreaked havoc in Xuancheng Prefecture. I won't go into detail about how the four reacted. Ultimately, Ren Xiaqi parted ways with the other three. The carriages and horses under the banner of Wangyouke split into two groups, one heading north while the other continued on towards Zhongzhou.

First update~