Chapter 206: Chapter 206: The Ferocious Duel of Two Tigers
The moonlight lingered dimly, the starlight was faint.
A dark green figure swiftly darted, rushing from the hills into the forest, then from the forest back into the hills.
Until a certain moment, the dark green figure paused on the peak of a mountain, panting heavily, cold sweat streaming down his face like rivulets, dripping onto the icy debris below.
"Phew..."
The Medicine Maniac glanced behind him, confirmed no one was following, and let out a long sigh of relief.
"The sixth Meridian Unlocking Realm expert in Xirong County, with strength possibly even surpassing Xiao Jianxin..."
He lifted his head to gaze at the moon, his eyes somewhat melancholic.
"I am truly getting old..."
It seemed like a sigh, yet also a lamentation.
After a long while, he took out a wooden box and opened it, his gaze falling upon the Seven-Star Divine Flower lying quietly inside.
"The Seven-Star Divine Flower is in hand, only two more auxiliary herbs are needed. The Purple Ling Leaf is in Baiyuan County, the millennium-old Cyan Moon Fruit is in..." The Medicine Maniac furrowed his brows, "Wind Vine County... a bit troublesome."
"Blood Vine Castle... Wind Vine County..."
"Troublesome or not, I must go. Having obtained the Seven-Star Divine Flower, how can I give up over an auxiliary herb!"
"..."
Resting for a moment, the Medicine Maniac set off on his journey again.
He first arrived at a place outside Baiyuan County, picked the first auxiliary herb, the Purple Ling Leaf, then headed northwest towards Wind Vine County.
...
Wind Vine County, Cyan Moon Ridge.
Cyan Moon Ridge was composed of three ranges; viewed from above, the three ranges lay adjacent like a cyan crescent moon, hence the name Cyan Moon Ridge.
Cyan Moon Ridge spanned over a hundred miles, shrouded year-round in mist; the central area was laden with deadly miasma, making it dangerous for ordinary people to approach. Martial Artists below the Refining Organ Realm entering it would have no hope of survival.
Those at the Refining Organ Realm could barely enter, but would still lose direction amidst the mist.
At the center of Cyan Moon Ridge, there was a lake with emerald green waters. On a small patch of land within the lake stood a large cyan tree, so massive that it would take seven or eight people to encircle its trunk.
The tree’s branches were lush, forming an umbrella-like canopy, creating an illusion of blotting out the sky when one stood beneath.
Atop the verdant branches, white lights flickered, resembling either jade or moonlight.
On the outskirts of Cyan Moon Ridge, a dark green figure flickered briefly before entering.
Not long after he entered, several figures emerged from the distant forest.
These individuals wore uniform attire, with blood-red vines embroidered on their cuffs.
"Someone really entered the Cyan Moon Ridge, report it swiftly."
They whispered among themselves; a crimson blood arrow soared into the sky.
Roughly an hour later, the forest rustled, and dozens of figures were seen flickering amongst the trees.
"Did you see clearly? Was the person wearing a dark green robe?" The leader was the Fortress Master of Blood Vine Castle, one of the five great Meridian Unlocking Realm experts in Xirong County.
"...Fortress Master, we were quite far away at the time and didn’t see clearly, but the person should have been wearing a dark green robe," the person who reported, replied cautiously.
"Should?"
The two words from the Blood Vine Castle Fortress Master immediately made those people feel as if they were plunged into an ice cave.
"Fortress Master, we saw clearly, the person was indeed wearing a dark green robe."
"Hmm." The Blood Vine Castle Fortress Master’s gaze turned icy as he stared at Cyan Moon Ridge, then turned to the person beside him: "Teng Yi."
"Here," the second Fortress Master of Blood Vine Castle bowed respectfully.
"Was the message sent out?"
"It was sent," replied Teng Yi respectfully.
"Hmm, surround the area with your men, and make sure to intercept that person."
"...Fortress Master," Teng Yi hesitated, "The Medicine Maniac is an expert in the Meridian Unlocking Realm, we’re afraid..."
"Hmph!" The face of the Blood Vine Castle Fortress Master instantly turned cold, "With me personally overseeing this, what are you afraid of?"
"Yes."
Teng Yi dared not speak further and led his men to ambush the surroundings.
The Blood Vine Castle Fortress Master glanced at Cyan Moon Ridge before vanishing into the shadows himself.
"Medicine Maniac, if you dare to defy my Blood Evil Sect, don’t blame me for being ruthless."
Yesterday, he was ordered to lead an attack on the Jingyan County mining site to eliminate the Chief Clerk’s Office, which was obstructing Jingyan’s transport, led by Chu Ming.
Everything was going smoothly, but at the last moment, a mysterious expert emerged.
That person first cut down two Fortress Masters of Blood Vine Castle and then eliminated the Blood Slaughter Guard.
Originally, he only speculated that this mysterious expert was the Medicine Maniac, but after sensing the poison lingering in the air, he became certain that the mysterious expert was indeed the Medicine Maniac!
"Medicine Maniac..." The Blood Vine Castle Fortress Master’s eyes were chilling.
Having lost three major Blood Slaughter Guards, the Blood Servant was furious, demanding an explanation by any means necessary.
He knew the Medicine Maniac was collecting ingredients for a Life-Extending Elixir, one of which was found in Cyan Moon Ridge.
The ambush today was precisely to await the Medicine Maniac!
Of course, relying solely on his Blood Vine Castle was insufficient to capture the Medicine Maniac, so the moment he learned of the Medicine Maniac’s appearance, he immediately reported it up the chain.
As time passed, the area outside the ridge was silent, eerily reminiscent of an untouched primordial forest that sent chills down one’s spine.
Inside the ridge.
The Medicine Maniac hurried forward, unfazed by the mist and miasma, heading straight for the island in the center of the lake.
"Millennium Cyan Moon Fruit!"
Nimbly, he leaped onto the great cyan tree and picked a white fruit.
"Got it."
Stashing the Cyan Moon Fruit safely, the Medicine Maniac suppressed his excitement and headed towards the exit of the ridge.
Moments later.
Just as he stepped out of Cyan Moon Ridge, the elites of Blood Vine Castle hiding in the shadows rushed out.
"Blood Vine Castle!" The Medicine Maniac was initially startled, but quickly regained his composure.
"Teng Sect, what is the meaning of this?" he asked angrily.
"The meaning?" The Blood Vine Castle Fortress Master glared at the Medicine Maniac, speaking with icy menace: "You thwarted my Blood Vine Castle’s plans, and you ask what this means?"
Teng Sect was the name of the Blood Vine Castle Fortress Master.
"When did this old man ever thwart your Blood Vine Castle’s plans... hmm?" The Medicine Maniac was about to argue but suddenly thought of something midway.
Soul-Catching Fragrance Powder!
It must have been because he used Soul-Catching Fragrance Powder at the Jingyan County mining site yesterday, causing Blood Vine Castle to mistakenly believe that the mysterious expert was him!
Meridian Unlocking Realm strength, mastery of poison!
The two combined, and no second person could be found in Xirong County.
It was a major misunderstanding.
The Medicine Maniac hurriedly cupped his hands in explanation: "Teng Yi, the mysterious person from yesterday wasn’t me. I went to that mining site just to pick herbs..."
However, before he could finish his words, Teng Yi waved his hand, and the experts of Blood Vine Castle rushed forward.
"It’s a misunderstanding...."
The Medicine Maniac felt frustrated and still wanted to explain.
But Teng Yi, with all his strength, launched his trump card.
Because in this Fortress Master’s view, the Medicine Maniac’s strength was above his own, and without his trump card, today he might not last until reinforcements from the sect arrived.
The Medicine Maniac was caught off-guard and retreated repeatedly.
"Teng Yi, have you gone mad?!" He didn’t understand why Teng Yi was being so crazy.
"You’re the crazy one!" Teng Yi attacked the Medicine Maniac with dozens of experts.
The weakest were in the Strong Bone Realm, and the strongest was the Blood Vine Castle’s Deputy Fortress Master, Teng Yi, who was at Refining Organ Perfection.
With so many people attacking and the full force of the Meridian Unlocking Realm expert Teng Yi, the Medicine Maniac could only defend.
"I can’t take this any longer. My body won’t hold out."
The Medicine Maniac’s eyes suddenly glinted fiercely, a cold light burst from his right hand, and his left hand held poison.
The strongest trump card, the Life-taking Liquid!
"No, retreat!"
The poison was instantly scattered, shocking Teng Yi, who hurriedly pulled back.
But the others didn’t react as quickly.
Sizzle——
Black smoke billowed.
"Ah——"
"Help!"
The screams were endless.
More than twenty people at the forefront died instantly on the spot, including Teng Yi at Refining Organ Perfection.
The Fortress Master of Blood Vine Castle, Teng Yi, with lingering fear, just stabilized his footing, only to see the Medicine Maniac’s left hand making the motion of shooting poison again.
He hurriedly retreated once more.
The Medicine Maniac’s eyes focused, his body flickered repeatedly, instead of scattering the poison, he ran away in the opposite direction.
The Fortress Master of Blood Vine Castle watched the fleeing Medicine Maniac, wanting to chase him, but in the end, he didn’t take that step.
All three Blood Slaughter Guards had been killed by him; if he gave chase alone, the risk of losing his life was high.
On the other side.
The Medicine Maniac fled madly, not knowing how long he had escaped, sensing no pursuit behind him, he found a hidden cave and went inside to rest.
"Blood Vine Castle!"
He stomped and shattered a giant rock on the ground, the fury in his chest burning violently.
"Enough is enough! Enough is enough!"
"When has the Medicine Maniac ever been so aggrieved!"
"Being suddenly bullied by a Meridian Unlocking Realm expert is one thing, but even a Blood Vine Castle dares to ambush me!"
"I can’t tolerate this! I can’t tolerate it!"
At this moment, the Medicine Maniac turned the grievances of the past two days into anger, venting it by cursing the ancestors for ten generations.
But it still seemed not enough!
The Medicine Maniac took out an elixir, clutching his congested chest, his expression extremely gloomy.
"Teng Yi, you were the one who first injured me, so don’t blame me for sending a big gift to your Blood Vine Castle!"
...
Deep at night.
A stronghold of Blood Vine Castle.
Some bandits were patrolling, some were having fun, and some were snoring.
Suddenly, a gust of wind arose.
"Hiss, the wind is so cold tonight." A bandit shrank his neck.
"It’s not just cold, this wind smells like... like a sickening blade.....uh....I..."
The bandit was speaking when he suddenly bled from the seven orifices, and then even spat something out.
Upon closer inspection, it was a pile of black rotten meat.
"Uh...."
Then the second person, the third person...
A cold wind swept across, and in this stronghold, over a hundred people, from ordinary individuals to Blood Circulation Realm martial artists, and even the Strong Bone Realm leaders, all died spitting black blood.
The Medicine Maniac emerged from the shadows, his furrowed face as grim and terrifying as if he had walked out of the Black Abyss.
"Next place."
Subsequently, in stronghold after stronghold within Blood Vine Castle, the bandits successively died of poisoning.
Within a single night, Blood Vine Castle, which originally housed three thousand people and had ten strongholds, saw seven strongholds destroyed, leaving only the main fortress of the Blood Vine Castle and three other strongholds close to the main fortress.
At the crowing of the rooster, just before dawn.
In the main fortress of Blood Vine Castle, two figures sat facing each other in a tense and oppressive atmosphere.
Crack——
A chair suddenly shattered, and the Blood Vine Castle Fortress Master Teng Yi stood up abruptly.
"Sit down!"
A cold voice followed.
"Lord An, all my Blood Vine Castle people are nearly killed by the Medicine Maniac!" Teng Yi clenched his fists tightly, his fury rising to the heavens.
"I know." An Hengying slowly stood up, "But the Medicine Maniac cannot be killed for now."
"What do you mean?" Teng Yi’s anger soared at these words.
"By order of the sect, we must first obtain the recipe for the Medicine Maniac’s poison concoction."
Just one night, and over a thousand people from the Blood Vine Castle died at the hands of the Medicine Maniac’s poison. Such a poison, the Blood Evil Sect must acquire.
"Fortress Master Teng, please spread a message."
"What message?"
"That Blood Vine Castle is going all out to capture the Medicine Maniac."
"Lord An wants to...lure him into a trap?"
"Hmm, go do it then."
"..."
