Chapter 103: Fortuitous Opportunity

Shu Da’s body was already covered in more than a dozen wounds.

He began to panic.

Although each of Lin Xue’s attacks wasn’t fatal, they came at such a blinding speed that in the blink of an eye, she had struck him several times.

What’s more, that bizarre Blood Mist made him feel as if he were trapped in a swamp, unable to exert his full strength.

If this went on, sooner or later, he’d be killed by Lin Xue.

Restless and anxious, Shu Da spun around, let out a furious roar, and launched an all-out attack at Lin Xue.

He wanted to smack this Demon Snake to death with one blow, just as he had killed Hong Lao San.

Yet, inside the Blood Mist, Lin Xue’s speed was enhanced.

She dodged his attack with ease, darted behind him in a swirl, and left another seven or eight deep wounds on his body, draining more of his blood.

Shu Da’s back looked like a sieve, his whole body soaked in fresh blood.

A surge of terror welled up in his heart.

Lang Qianxing and his son would catch up any moment now.

If he didn’t run, he’d surely die.

He couldn’t stay here tangled with this snake spirit any longer.

But if he didn’t deal with her, he wouldn’t get far before she stabbed him to death, one cut at a time.

A fierce gleam flashed in Shu Da’s eyes.

It seemed he had no choice but to use his last resort.

Back then, apart from teaching him Wan Shu Chao Yuan, the Weasel Spirit had also passed on a few other supernatural arts.

One life-saving technique among them was to burn one’s own Serpent Core, sacrificing cultivation in exchange for speed to escape.

But this technique caused terrible harm to the body.

Shu Da thought that even if he escaped in his severely wounded state, he might die outside anyway.

This body was no longer usable.

He remembered a technique he’d seen in Hong Lao San’s private stash: Soul Possession.

This method could help a cultivator gain a new body.

But a person could only possess another once, and could only be possessed once.

Shu Da looked at the ground covered in mice and thought, why not just switch to another body?

With Wan Shu Chao Yuan, sooner or later he, Shu Da, would reclaim his current position.

However, he realized that most of the mice lying about were already dead; the survivors were half-dead and not much better off than he was.

Shu Da regretted being too ruthless earlier, leaving all the cave’s mice half-dead and unfit for possession.

He should’ve left a few alive.

Just as Shu Da was lamenting, he suddenly saw a relatively healthy-looking mouse darting out from Hong Lao San’s dormitory, poking its head out and looking around warily.

Shu Da’s eyes lit up.

He didn’t know why this mouse was still doing fine, but now was no time to care.

He let out a roar, unleashed that supernatural art, and began burning his own Serpent Core, his body bursting forth at incredible speed.

In the blink of an eye, he was beside that mouse, grabbing it with one hand, and dashed toward the back of the cave.

Lin Xue stabbed at empty air.

She stared, dumbfounded, as Shu Da suddenly erupted with astonishing speed.

She hadn’t expected Shu Da to move so quickly.

She couldn’t let him get away!

Gripping Xuesha, Lin Xue was just about to give chase when an icy chill suddenly enveloped her.

A half-transparent figure appeared before her, blocking her path.

Lin Xue froze for a moment, looking up at him.

The figure’s face was deathly pale, twisted with resentment and thick with a sinister aura.

He stared hard at Lin Xue’s face, studying her closely, then opened his mouth and asked in a ghostly voice, “Are you the Demon Snake who stole the Yang Family’s Foundation-building Pill?”

……

Zhang Zongnian scampered to the entrance of the dormitory on his four stubby little legs.

He heard the sounds of battle outside.

Someone was fighting?

Who could it be?

He looked in the direction of the sounds.

He saw a familiar swirl of Blood Mist.

Shu Da was trapped inside it, and a graceful, ethereal silhouette—agile and beautiful—was darting circles around him, launching unceasing attacks.

Shu Da was already covered in wounds, howling in agony.

Zhang Zongnian’s heart leapt with joy.

It’s Lin Xue!

If she could wound a demon as strong as Shu Da, that meant Lin Xue had succeeded!

She had really achieved Foundation Establishment.

His own sacrifice had not been in vain.

Tears welled up in Zhang Zongnian’s eyes.

He felt both happiness for Lin Xue and worry—worried that she might be injured battling Shu Da.

Wait, where was Shu Er?

Zhang Zongnian looked around for Shu Er.

He saw a shriveled corpse on the ground; judging by its size, it was indeed Shu Er.

A weight finally lifted from Zhang Zongnian’s heart.

He was still elated, but suddenly, Shu Da turned to look at him.

Then Shu Da let out a thunderous roar, his aura surging abruptly.

Zhang Zongnian’s heart clenched, fearing Lin Xue wouldn’t be able to withstand this.

But instead of attacking Lin Xue, Shu Da charged straight at him.

Zhang Zongnian was startled.

He saw Shu Da’s eyes lock onto him, barreling straight toward him at lightning speed.

There was no way he could outrun a Shu Da who had ignited his Serpent Core.

In the blink of an eye, Shu Da was upon him, grabbing him in one big hand, then shot like a gust of wind into Hong Lao San’s dormitory and through to the cavern in the rear.

Shu Da’s Serpent Core was burning rapidly.

He leaped and bounded along the cave wall, and in a few jumps reached the fissure, slipped through, conjured a cloud of Heiyun beneath his feet, and flew off into the distance without a backward glance.

Zhang Zongnian listened to the roaring wind in his ears, struggling desperately, his heart full of unease.

This was the first time he’d ever been held captive in someone’s hand.

He didn’t know what Shu Da wanted with such a small mouse.

Could it be Shu Da had discovered that he was now a Mouse Spirit?

Shu Da flew dozens of miles in one breath.

His Serpent Core had completely burned out.

He began to black out, dizziness sweeping over him.

He turned to check—no one was pursuing from behind.

He couldn’t hold on anymore and fell headfirst toward the ground, crashing down without a care for his own body.

But he protected Zhang Zongnian in his hand, for fear of harming him.

This was to be his future body—he couldn’t risk any injury.

Shu Da gazed at Zhang Zongnian with deep satisfaction.

This mouse was in excellent health and looked perfectly suitable.

Let this mouse become his new vessel.

But first, he needed to pass on his secret technique, Wan Shu Chao Yuan, to the little mouse.

He remembered decades ago, when he’d saved the Weasel Spirit, and as the Weasel Spirit was dying, he’d been taught Wan Shu Chao Yuan by the method of pouring-in from above.

That was how he’d achieved his current cultivation.

Now, Shu Da intended to do the same—pass the technique to the little mouse via pouring-in, then perform Soul Possession.

Afterward, he could reclaim his place.

Shu Da set Zhang Zongnian on the ground, pressed his large hand to the mouse’s head, and poured all his supernatural arts and cultivation methods into Zhang Zongnian’s mind.

Zhang Zongnian’s eyes went blank, feeling strange currents rushing into his brain.

After a short while, Shu Da had finished transferring his supernatural powers and arts.

He leaned against a tree, panting, taking a short rest.

Zhang Zongnian regained consciousness, and suddenly found that he now knew how to summon and control the surrounding mice, as well as absorb spiritual essence from them to refine his cultivation.

He was baffled.

What was Shu Da doing?

Why suddenly pass on this skill?

Could it be he knew he was dying, and didn’t want his life’s skills to go to waste, so he passed them on?

After a short rest, Shu Da regained some strength.

He glanced in the direction of Xixia Mountain and cursed through gritted teeth, “Damn you, Lang Qianxing! Damn you, snake spirit! Just you wait, I, Shu Da, will come back for you!”

He grabbed Zhang Zongnian, holding him before his eyes, and began performing Soul Possession.

A glint of light flashed in his eyes.

Zhang Zongnian instantly felt his mind buzz, as if his whole being was floating in the sky, surrounded by endless white mist.

He looked down and found that he had returned to his human form.

Zhang Zongnian finally understood—Shu Da was trying to possess him.

He found it rather amusing and couldn’t help anticipating what Shu Da’s expression would be in a moment.

The white mist parted ahead, and Shu Da’s large figure lunged at him, his face full of hope.

But when Shu Da saw Zhang Zongnian, that hope vanished, replaced by shock and terror.

Shu Da cried out, “Why is it you?”

His voice trembled with fear.

Zhang Zongnian looked down at his body and replied, “This body was already possessed by me, Cave Master Shu Da. You’re too late.”

Sheer terror spread across Shu Da’s face, his usual calm and composure completely gone.

Every life can only possess another once, and can only be possessed once.

And once cultivation is exhausted, they cannot be possessed again.

Zhang Zongnian’s cultivation was so low, and the vital energy around him so thin it was nearly invisible, so Shu Da had no idea he was already a demon.

Shu Da began to tremble all over.

He frantically lunged at Zhang Zongnian, but an invisible barrier blocked his way, preventing him from coming any closer.

He pounded against the unseen wall, shrieking hoarsely, “Impossible! This can’t be! How could I end up like this? This is my body—get out! Give it back!”

Zhang Zongnian watched Shu Da’s wild howls calmly.

Amid his hysteria, Shu Da’s figure gradually faded and vanished.

Zhang Zongnian plummeted rapidly, returning to the ground, turning back into a mouse.

Shu Da was left slumped against the tree, eyes wide in fury—a corpse.

Zhang Zongnian let out a sigh of relief.

A trace of joy appeared in his eyes.

He had thought that since he couldn’t cultivate on his own, he’d need Lin Xue’s help to find a few small Serpent Core fragments to slowly build his power to the mid Body Tempering stage and regain his human form.

Who could have imagined Shu Da would hand him the Wan Shu Chao Yuan technique?

Now, he could absorb the spiritual essence of the world from other mice to increase his cultivation.

At last, he could avenge his mother!

Standing still, Zhang Zongnian pondered his next move.

Should he immediately seek out other mice to boost his cultivation,

or return to Luoyun Cave to find Lin Xue?

After some thought, he decided it would be best to first increase his cultivation, regain his human form, and then meet Lin Xue.

After all, this dirty, gray, ugly mouse form was truly unpleasant to look at.

He didn’t want to leave Lin Xue with a bad impression.

Zhang Zongnian lifted his head, using Wan Shu Chao Yuan to sense the number of mice nearby.

He chose a direction where there were more mice, stretched his four short legs, and dashed off.