Chapter 6

I Call Myself Zhu Yu, Not Your Honorable Master

Seeing the swarm of spiders coming like a tide, the ghost official was not afraid, but rather angry.

He didn’t know where the spider demon was, so he looked up and cursed into the air, “A small creature like you, daring to oppose both the Ghost and Heavenly realms, do you think you’re too tired of living?!”

The spider demon laughed loudly, “I’ve served the Lord here on this mountain for over a hundred years. Humans, ghosts, demons, and monsters—I’ve consumed them all. Who cares about your Ghost or Heavenly realms? In front of the Lord, they are just ants. What is there to fear?”

Shen Zhongyu, hearing this, lowered his voice and asked Yu Pei, “Isn’t the heart of the Su Zhan the only thing on this mountain? What else needs to be served?”

Yu Pei remembered the fluffy ball at the bottom of the pit.

The fluffy little thing even cried, it really did look like it needed someone to take care of it.

“Perhaps its heart…” she paused for a moment, “…is similar to that of a little dog?”

“Dog?” Shen Zhongyu couldn’t help but laugh. “Junior Sister Yu, you mean that back then, that monster took out a little dog from its heart and threw it on Demon God Mountain? And that dog’s heart was treated as a world-destroying monster and locked away in the Demon-Suppressing Formation?”

Yu Pei: “…Or maybe a little cat?”

In any case, she hadn’t figured out what that fluffy ball really was.

Shen Zhongyu thought for a moment: “But if that’s the case, what is that monster? A doghouse or a cat’s den? I’ve never heard of a doghouse turning into a monster. Truly, the world is so vast, there’s nothing strange enough.”

He actually continued thinking along this line.

Wen Yunhe, weakly speaking from the side, said, “Senior Brother, this is too absurd. A bloodthirsty monster, how could it have such a peculiar heart?”

Yu Pei also thought it was absurd.

But it was true!

What was locked inside the Demon God Mountain’s Demon-Suppressing Formation really was a fluffy little thing that frequently whined!

At that moment, the ghost official had taken down the token and transformed it into a long knife.

“Stubborn and unyielding!”

He swung his ghostly breath like a raging wind toward the spider swarm in front of him. In the blink of an eye, the spiders that had been crawling rapidly were all dead and withered.

Escaping danger is an animal’s instinct—no matter how it becomes a monster, these spiders not only didn’t retreat but instead crawled faster, swarming toward the cold, ghostly breath in waves.

It wasn’t just the ghostly breath, the spiritual energy that Yu Pei and the others unleashed also didn’t faze them in the slightest.

They didn’t fear death at all.

The spiritual energy and ghostly breath intertwined, sweeping through every corner without sparing a single one.

In just a moment, the entire spider swarm was wiped out, and the whole spider tower was filled with the stench of burning, the ground turned completely black.

“Is this your confidence in opposing the Ghost Realm?” The ghost official sheathed his blade and sneered, “Ignorant fool, how much longer do you intend to hide in the dark?”

“Ignorant fool?” The spider demon deliberately spoke in a strange tone, “Lord Ghost Official, you’ve only guarded Demon God Mountain for a few years, and you really think the Ghost Realm is above the Demon Realm?”

The ghost official’s expression remained cold.

But before he could swing his blade again, Wen Yunhe, who had been standing aside, suddenly said in shock, “Senior Brother, those spiders… they don’t seem to be dead.”

The ghost official froze and looked down.

In the pile of scorched, indistinguishable corpses, countless tiny spiders were crawling out.

They were even smaller than rice grains, but their speed was incredibly fast.

Not only that, but black mist was slowly seeping out from the pile of corpses.

Even he, who prided himself on his strength, could tell that something was wrong—

These spiders were actually manifestations of the spider demon.

That’s why they could revive after dying.

In other words, unless the spider demon hiding behind was dealt with, even if they exhausted all their inner energy, they wouldn’t be able to kill all these spiders.

But he had no idea where the spider demon was.

The thought of the spider demon lurking in the dark, watching them like a predator teasing its prey, only fueled the ghost official’s anger.

He forced himself to calm down and said, “Could it be that you think some crooked methods will trap us?”

The spider demon spoke in a chilling tone, “Lord, you’re joking. I just want to play a little longer. Once I’ve had my fun, the taste of human flesh and ghost souls will be even more delicious.”

The ghost official was further provoked by his words and raised his blade again.

“Don’t act just yet.”

Yu Pei looked far at the faint dark magic aura above the pile of corpses.

“This magic aura is poisonous, and the spider tower is narrow. If we keep fighting, not only will it never end, but it will also do us more harm than good.”

Shen Zhongyu responded, “The poison from this magic aura is very strong. If it touches—”

“If it touches…” The ghost official interrupted him, “You will be on a dead-end path.”

Shen Zhongyu could sense the deeper meaning in his words and his smile faded slightly.

If they were devoured by the spider demon, their souls would scatter.

But the magic aura was different.

The magic aura corroded flesh and blood, but it had little effect on the ghost official.

The ghost official withdrew his gaze and turned his attention to the distant gate of the tower.

Seeing that the spider swarm was closing in, he raised his blade once again.

“Junior Sister Yu,” seeing that he was unwilling to listen to advice, Shen Zhongyu withdrew his usual casual demeanor, “You and Junior Sister Jiang stay between Yunhe and me, and don’t wander off.”

Yu Pei’s attention remained on the ground.

The pile of corpses was still emitting poisonous fumes, and spiders continued to crawl out from it.

They moved like puppets, without any awareness, being driven forward to attack.

But she didn’t sense any magic aura coming from the spiders.

The magic poison didn’t seem to come from them.

Shen Zhongyu looked at Wen Yunhe and calmly said, “Yunhe, if he attacks, use the Seventh Bright Command to block the spider swarm’s magic aura.”

Wen Yunhe nodded in response.

At the same time, the ghost official swung his blade downward.

The blade wind cut straight towards the gate of the tower.

The ghost aura was sharp, and it actually carved a wide path through the spider swarm, shattering even the gate of the spider tower.

Beyond the broken gate, faint light could be seen filtering through.

It’s done!

“I thought this fool might come up with something, but it turns out it’s nothing,” the ghost official said with great satisfaction, as he immediately ran toward the door.

Since he couldn’t kill all the spiders, he would destroy the spider tower instead!

But because of his strike, the spider swarm suddenly exploded with more magic aura, rapidly spreading toward Yu Pei and the others.

A cold sweat nearly soaked his back, and Shen Zhongyu could almost smell the decaying stench of the magic aura.

The ghost official could run, but they couldn’t.

He had killed so many spiders that the entire path was filled with magic aura. Even if they managed to escape, they would be corroded to death by the magic poison.

A direct assault was not an option.

The only choice was to block the spider swarm first, wait for the magic aura to dissipate, and then figure out a way to escape.

The bone-chilling pain spread from his arm, yet Shen Zhongyu did not move a single step.

The few behind him were all his junior disciples.

As the eldest brother and leader, even if he were to die here, he would still protect them.

He took a deep breath and suddenly called, “Yunhe!”

Wen Yunhe understood and moved to stand behind Yu Pei and Jiang Yuan.

One of them was in the front, the other in the back, and together, they clasped their hands and formed a seal—

“Outside the twin stars, break the eastern wall!”

Two faint streams of energy rose from the ground, rapidly expanding and closing in.

After a few breaths, they formed a semi-circular shield, enclosing the four of them inside.

It was at the moment the shield was formed that the spider swarm crawled to their feet and began to climb the shield.

Before long, the entire shield was covered with countless spiders, biting and gnawing at the spiritual shield.

Cold sweat slid down his face, and Shen Zhongyu asked, “Yunhe, how much longer can we hold?”

The stench of blood choked his throat, and Wen Yunhe struggled to respond, “Big Brother… at most a quarter of an hour.”

Shen Zhongyu released more spiritual power, and the spiritual aura on both sides of the shield grew denser. Before long, the spiders started crawling toward him, searching for gaps in the shield to crawl through.

“Save some spiritual power. Later, I’ll make a path from your side, and we’ll take the two Junior Sister and leave.”

Wen Yunhe was reluctant: “But…”

“This is the only way now.” Shen Zhongyu smiled lightly, “Don’t worry, I have ways to protect myself.”

“If we can’t escape, we’ll think of something else.” Yu Pei crouched behind Shen Zhongyu, peeking through a gap at the outside of the shield.

Shen Zhongyu was startled: “What’s wrong?”

“This spider tower…” Yu Pei stared at the back of the ghost official, “The ground has been changing.”

The ghost official indeed had carved a path.

The magic aura on the path couldn’t harm him.

With a blade in hand, no spider could stop him.

But the problem was, no matter how long he ran or how big his strides were, he never got any closer to the door.

The gate seemed to be just within reach, but he couldn’t get to it.

It was as if he were running in place.

The ghost official also noticed this anomaly.

He stopped, swinging his blade to kill the spiders that surged beside him.

“Bastard!” he shouted angrily, “What kind of tricks are you playing!”

The spider demon let out a strange laugh: “Why don’t you run a few more steps, and let me see just how powerful the ghosts of the Ghost Realm are?”

The ghost official was livid, raising his blade high and stabbing directly at the ground.

“Let me stab through this broken earth, open the ghost gate, and see how you act after that!”

But just as the tip of the blade touched the ground, a swarm of spiders climbed onto the sharp blade, stopping his movement dead in its tracks.

“Why get angry, my lord? I was just joking,” the hoarse, cold voice sounded again, “All I want are these few spiritual cultivators, I have no intention of opposing the Ghost Realm.”

As the voice spoke, a cloud ladder dropped from a small window above the tower, its tail landing right in front of the ghost official.

The spider demon said, “If my lord is willing to leave the food behind, you can leave now—do you want to go, or stay here and accompany them?”

As if to show sincerity, the swarm of spiders around the ghost official froze in place.

The ghost official looked at the half-circle spiritual shield behind him.

The spiders on it were still crawling, and it seemed they had gnawed out gaps, ready to break through the shield at any moment.

The Young Master’s order was for him to escort these people safely down the mountain.

If he failed, there would surely be punishment.

But these people had weak spiritual power and were badly injured. It would be difficult for him to get out on his own, let alone take them with him.

“This matter…” he paused, “Will the Young Master find out?”

The spider demon laughed: “That Lord Shu called me to the Demon God Pavilion today. From what he said, he doesn’t know these few people. You won’t say anything, so how would he know if they went down the mountain or ended up in his stomach?”

The ghost official gripped his blade tightly, hesitating as he made his decision.

Indeed.

These people were strangers to the Young Master.

And he had served by his side for many years, so he knew what was important and what wasn’t.

“If you trick me again, I will take your life!” he withdrew his blade and stepped onto the cloud ladder.

Through the gaps revealed by the movement of the spider swarm, Shen Zhongyu saw everything clearly.

He watched helplessly as the ghost official climbed the ladder, and a sense of hopelessness gradually took over his heart.

This spider tower was so strange that even if they forced their way through the walls, they would end up like the ghost official, unable to get close.

And once the spiritual shield was dispersed, they would be devoured by the spiders and then subjected to the magic breath entering their bodies.

What should they do?

He tried desperately to think of an escape route, but the more he thought, the more hopeless he became.

No way to retreat, no way to advance.

There was no way out.

At this moment, there was only one way—death.

Wen Yunhe had also reached his limit.

Like Shen Zhongyu, he practiced the healer’s path and had mostly learned treatment techniques, such as the ^[1]Mengzhang formula (孟章訣) refers to a Daoist healing or restorative cultivation technique named after Meng Zhang (孟章), the Azure Dragon of the East in Daoist cosmology. In xianxia or … Continue readingMengzhang formula. He was not particularly skilled in the defensive Zhiming formula, which consumed a great deal of spiritual energy.

Wen Yunhe swallowed a mouthful of blood, his face drenched in sweat.

He couldn’t see the situation behind him and could only ask, “Senior Brother, how far is that cloud ladder?”

“About ten zhang (33.3 meters or 109 feet) away,” Shen Zhongyu replied, “The spider tower is strange, even if it’s right in front of us, we probably won’t be able to reach it.”

Wen Yunhe sighed, “The chances of survival are slim, but we have to try.”

He wasn’t willing to die like this.

Before Shen Zhongyu could say anything more, Yu Pei suddenly spoke up: “Senior Brother Shen is right. Even if we exert all our strength, we probably won’t reach the cloud ladder.”

Her gaze fixed on the ground not far ahead—the place where the ghost official had stabbed earlier.

That strike had used all his power, and even though it hadn’t hit the ground directly, it had created a dent the size of a fingernail.

The surrounding area was covered in the black liquid that had leaked from the melted spider bodies, and more spiders were crawling out.

But all the spiders avoided that particular spot.

Only that one place had not emitted any magic breath.

It was like a small hole in a spiderweb, everywhere else could still trap the prey, but the hole allowed the prey to pass through.

Was the magic web hidden underground?

She lowered Jiang Yuan and let her lean against the ground.

“But what Wen Yunhe said is also true, we still need to try.”

Wen Yunhe froze for a moment: “You mean to go for the cloud ladder?”

“No, you all stay inside and don’t come out,” Yu Pei glanced at him, “If you still have the strength, make the spiritual shield even stronger.”

Shen Zhongyu didn’t understand: “What does Junior Sister Yu mean?”

Yu Pei stood up: “If that demon wants to play a game, then let’s play along.”

Shen Zhongyu was still confused when he saw her charge out of the spiritual shield.

In an instant, the spiders on the shield followed her.

His expression tightened: “Junior Sister Yu, it’s dangerous!”

Yu Pei, however, seemed to ignore him and quickly ran toward the cloud ladder.

But contrary to what Shen Zhongyu had said, she was getting closer and closer to the cloud ladder.

The spider demon thought she was headed for the ladder and laughed in the shadows: “Abandoning her companions just to seek a way out, what a noble righteous path!”

Just as she was only one step away from the ladder, the ladder suddenly retreated at an astonishing speed—as if the ground had suddenly shifted.

The spider demon intended to make her feel the pain of hope approaching only to fall into the abyss.

However, to his surprise, not only was there no despair, but Yu Pei’s expression didn’t change at all.

The spider demon stopped laughing, a trace of displeasure rising in his heart.

After repeating this several times, when the cloud ladder retreated again, Yu Pei suddenly bent down, pressed her hand to the ground, and leapt to the right, running toward the door the ghost official had created earlier.

The spider demon mocked her: “Her spiritual power is pitifully weak, but her wits are terrifying.”

He intentionally controlled a group of spiders to follow her, playing with her like a cat chasing a mouse.

Just before the spiders surged forward, Yu Pei once again pushed off the ground, leaped to the other side, and continued to run at full speed.

“Run, run faster!” The spider demon, growing impatient with her calm demeanor, said, “When you can’t run anymore, I’ll slowly eat you!”

Seeing her darting around the tower like a little bird, Wen Yunhe was even more confused.

“What is Junior Sister Yu doing?”

“I don’t know.” Shen Zhongyu also didn’t understand, “She can’t possibly be dancing with the spiders.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Jiang Yuan, who had been surrounded in the middle, slowly opened her eyes.

And then she saw the spiders.

Spiders everywhere.

Countless, with sharp, slender fangs, chasing the one who had just helped her all over the place.

Jiang Yuan’s vision went dark: “…Am I in hell?”

“Senior Sister Jiang, you’re awake?” Hearing her voice, Wen Yunhe’s ears turned slightly red. “Are you alright, Senior Sister?”

“I’ve been poisoned by some demonic venom, but it’s not serious.” Jiang Yuan staggered to her feet and formed a spiritual shield next to Wen Yunhe. “What exactly happened?”

The two of them began to explain the entire situation to her.

Meanwhile, Yu Pei was still running wildly inside the tower.

In the end, the spider demon had lost all patience: “What’s the point of running more? Can you escape?”

Cold arrows shot out from the walls, aiming directly at Yu Pei’s back.

But just as the arrows were about to hit, she suddenly stopped in her tracks.

The arrows froze in midair, less than half an inch from her.

“You just said earlier that you often eat people?” Yu Pei suddenly asked.

The spider demon did not respond.

He was too startled.

He had not commanded the arrow to stop, so why had it frozen in midair?

And this person’s spiritual power was so weak that he could hardly sense it, it couldn’t possibly be her doing.

The spider demon quickly turned his gaze toward Wen Yunhe and the others, but saw that they were already struggling to maintain their spiritual shields, let alone control the arrows.

He exerted more force, but the arrows remained motionless.

Yu Pei slowly turned around, raised her hand, and placed her fingertip on the center of the arrow.

“I’ve heard that the inner core of a spider demon is comparable to a heavenly spiritual medicine.”

With a slight flick of her finger, the arrow shifted direction.

“Has anyone eaten you?”

As soon as the words left her mouth, the arrow sped toward the wall, leaving behind a web-like pattern.

The spider demon’s brow twitched, and he suddenly realized a possibility.

He couldn’t detect this person’s internal energy, not because her spiritual power was weak.

But because her cultivation was far beyond his!

He was both shocked and frightened, wanting to immediately drive this person away from the spider tower.

But it was too late.

Yu Pei half-knelt and half-squatted on the ground, pressing her palm to the earth.

“Sentinel Technique Six, Heavenly Sword Formation.”

Immediately, crimson spiritual threads spread from her palm, flowing rapidly along the path she had just run.

In less than three breaths, the tower was covered with crisscrossing red lines, resembling a spider’s web.

“What are you going to do?!” The spider demon was in a panic, throwing down another cloud ladder. “Wait, I was wrong earlier, I can let you go now, you can leave immediately! I… I can even capture that person from earlier and let you deal with them! Taoist, calm down, calm—”

“Formation, activate.” Yu Pei said softly.

At every intersection of the spiritual threads, a red sword blade formed in midair, and then swiftly stabbed downward.

In an instant, the red threads unraveled like a net whose knots had been untied, breaking into scattered pieces.

The spider swarms on the ground disappeared almost entirely in an instant.

The spider demon felt a surge of terror as if his soul were about to scatter.

In his panic, he suddenly remembered that Yu Pei had told the ghost officer before that she did not use the Demon Expelling Technique.

Seeing that she had no intention of letting him go, his eyes flashed with malice. He even began to release demonic energy, causing the remaining spider webs buried underground to explode.

If she destroyed his webs, then she would never leave alive!

The dark demonic energy surged from the ground, rushing toward Yu Pei.

Yu Pei raised her hand and brought her fingers together.

Facing the overwhelming demonic energy, she remained expressionless and said, “Lingguang Technique Six, Trap.”

Crimson air flowed from her fingertips, forming an enormous net that enveloped the dark demonic energy, tightening rapidly.

“Boom—!!!”

The two forces collided, sending the air into chaos.

The demonic energy was completely devoured, not a trace remaining.

As the last trace of demonic energy disappeared, the spider demon felt as if his heart and liver were being torn apart.

Now he understood.

She didn’t use the Demon Expelling Technique because it was unnecessary.

When dealing with demons and evil creatures, she didn’t banish them—she simply killed them.

At the moment they took off, Shen Zhongyu suddenly realized the reason Yu Pei had asked them to strengthen their spiritual shields.

When the two forces collided, even with the spiritual shields protecting them, they were still tossed away by the crimson air after the shields shattered.

The three of them were thrown against the walls one after another, like stones being flung through the air.

“Hiss…”

Shen Zhongyu struggled to get up, bracing himself on the ground, only to suddenly feel a sticky sensation in his palm.

He raised his hand and found it covered with some black spider silk.

Not only his hand, but the ground was also littered with broken spider webs.

“So this old thief buried the webs underground,” he muttered.

Jiang Yuan looked at the sticky spider threads on her fingertip and exclaimed in surprise, “I’ve heard before that some powerful spider demons can bury their webs underground, manipulating the earth’s veins. I didn’t expect to see it with my own eyes. So…”

She looked up at Yu Pei, still in shock.

“Where did you find my fated master?”

Shen Zhongyu: ?

Master? Who?

The spider demon had already attached its demonic soul to the entire spider tower.

The moment the webs were destroyed, the demon’s vitality was severely damaged.

In order to save itself, the spider demon had to assume its true form and, seizing the opportunity when Yu Pei was helping Jiang Yuan and the others, hurriedly fled.

Not long after escaping the spider tower, the demon saw someone from a distance.

The figure was tall and elegant, wearing a dark robe with arrow sleeves. His black hair was held up with a silver crown, exuding a refined air. Compared to the noble young masters of Spirit Capital, his looks were incomparable, and his eyes carried a wildness that could never be nurtured by the waters and mountains of Spirit Capital.

The moment the spider demon saw his face, it was first stunned, then filled with ecstatic joy.

The Lord!

It was the Lord!

Only a few people knew the true identity of the Lord, and the demon had once seen him by chance.

Although it was only that one time, it couldn’t have been mistaken!

Good, good!

Now that the Lord was back, he would easily kill those people and take revenge for him!

Overjoyed, the spider demon quickly scuttled forward.

“My Lord,” it hurriedly said, following behind the man. “I have served the Lord for many years at Demon God Mountain, my loyalty is as vast as heaven and earth! All the demons in this mountain have been waiting for the Lord’s return!”

But things were different from what the demon expected.

The man ignored his enthusiasm and didn’t even glance at him.

Until he said, “That vile woman destroyed my webs and tried to take my life. I hope the Lord will avenge me!”

The young man paused and slowly shifted his gaze toward him.

“Did you tie her up?”

“What—”

The moment he spoke a word, the spider demon felt its breath stop.

After the suffocating sensation, an indescribable, intense pain followed.

It struggled to lower its gaze.

A near-transparent band of spiritual energy had tightened around its neck, and it was continuously tightening further.

“Master…”

“You’re mistaken.”

The man’s lips seemed to curl in a faint smile, but his eyes were incredibly cold.

He moved his finger slightly, allowing the spiritual band to snap the spider demon’s neck.

“I am called Zhu Yu, not your Lord.”

—

Author’s Note:

Zhu Yu: What kind of trouble did she get into?

Shui Wu: The little highness has been tied up by bad people! QAQ