From a country cook to a master chef

Only after the tiger's roar faded into the distance did Lin Jue slowly approach the corpses on the ground with "Grow Fast".

The Xu family manager lay in a pool of blood, his chest and abdomen completely ripped open, and in the thick, black blood, worm-like poisonous insects twisted and wriggled.

The surface of the venomous insect is covered with spirals, and upon closer inspection, one can see that its head is covered with rows of sharp barbs.

To be precise, each barb was a mouthpart, constantly gnawing at the flesh and blood of the corpse.

Lin Jue broke out in a cold sweat and frowned.

The creature that smelled blood, "Grows Fast," seemed quite excited and tried to touch the corpses on the ground several times, but Lin Jue pressed its head down in time.

He certainly didn't want his pet to get dirty.

The other bodies were found in equally gruesome circumstances.

Rather than corpses, they were more like cicada shells.

The internal organs, flesh, and bone marrow were all devoured by poisonous insects, leaving only black blood filling the entire body.

These people definitely didn't die from being eaten by a giant worm!

Aww~~

A terrifying tiger's roar came from ahead.

Lin Jue raised his tiger-head saber, his gaze piercing through the woods, and he was momentarily stunned.

"Arrogant?"

Not far away, in the snow-covered woods, Zhang Kuang was working with another stranger to fight a large insect.

"Tiger-sama?"

Lin Jue was astonished. This giant insect looked exactly like the Mountain Lord who had killed two strange alchemists on Fengyang Mountain.

It is definitely the same one.

Wielding an ancestral longsword, Zhang Kuang moved with incredible speed, always managing to evade the mountain lord's attacks unscathed.

Although the tiger was fast, its hind leg was injured, making its movements stiff and causing it to miss every time it pounced.

Blood streaked across the air in long, crimson arcs.

Zhang Kuang's desperate attempt to attract the tiger's attention was clearly a way to buy time for the other person and create an opportunity.

At that moment, the armored man drew a belt from his waist, which turned out to be a black venomous snake.

Without the slightest hesitation, he swung his short blade. As the snake's head hit the ground, bright red snake blood gushed out instantly, staining his hands crimson.

To Lin Jue's astonishment, the man used his palm as a brush to draw a mysterious rune that shimmered with an unusual light in the air in front of him.

"An aura master?"

Lin Jue was startled.

Just then, Zhang Kuang led the giant insect toward the man.

"Blood Fiend, solidify!"

The man snorted coldly, and the runes in front of him instantly emitted an eerie blood-red light, transforming into a ferocious blood python that coiled around the lunging worm.

Caught off guard, the mountain lord was bound by the blood python and fell to the ground.

hiss~

The giant python hissed, its blood-red fangs clamping tightly onto the mountain lord's neck.

Seeing this, Zhang Kuang breathed a sigh of relief. Just as he was about to make another move, he suddenly sensed something and looked coldly at the bushes where Lin Jue was hiding.

"Who's there?"

Zhang Kuang's long sword flashed coldly as he slashed straight at the bushes.

Lin Jue was taken aback, not expecting Zhang Kuang to discover his hiding place so quickly. He hurriedly drew his sword and parried the attack from the side, then stepped forward and slashed diagonally before thrusting straight back to force Zhang Kuang back. He then sheathed his sword and distanced himself from Zhang Kuang.

"Kill this man quickly, and join me in killing this beast so we can return and report back to our superior."

"The idea is a bit tricky, you'll have to hang in there for a while."

Zhang Kuang's expression was solemn. He glanced sideways at the man who was dealing with the giant insect, and he and Lin Jue fought and retreated, quickly disappearing from the man's sight.

In the midst of his busy work, the man glanced to the side but didn't see Zhang Kuang's figure. In a moment of distraction, the blood python was put on the defensive and was completely suppressed by the giant insect.

Seeing the critical situation, the man had no choice but to release the last black mother worm from the bag at his waist. Despite his heartache, he silently chanted a spell to save his life.

Under the influence of its indistinct incantation, the black mother insect suddenly sprouted wings on its back, and like lightning, it transformed into a black beam that shot into the insect's right eye.

The tiger roared in pain, shaking the mountains and fields, and then roared again as it pounced on the man.

Seeing the tiger rushing towards him, the man remained solemn and calmly raised his right hand, making a grasping gesture in front of him.

However, the next second, he did not see the tiger die.

A cold voice came from behind him.

He turned his head and saw a dazzling red and white light, and a scorching heat rushed towards him.

The man's body suddenly burst into flames and was instantly reduced to ashes in the fire. He died before he could make a sound, killed by the fire talisman sent by Lin Jue.

Having determined that the man had no chance of survival, Lin Jue and Zhang Kuang walked out of the woods side by side, Lin Jue still clutching the remaining two Fire Talismans in his right hand.

"It's you!"

"This junior pays his respects to Lord Sanjun."

Lin Jue bowed and said, "This junior left Yucheng and traveled north. When I passed through this place, I heard the sound of fighting in the forest, so I came to take a look. I didn't expect to see Lord Shanjun here."

"Oh, let me introduce you. This is my friend Zhang Kuang. It seems there's some misunderstanding between him and Lord Shan Jun."

"Misunderstand?"

The mountain lord strode forward, glaring fiercely at Zhang Kuang. "Is it a misunderstanding that he colluded with the sorcerer to plot against me?"

Seeing Lin Jue standing nearby, Zhang Kuang put down his long sword and quickly cupped his hands, saying, "Lord Shan Jun, this matter was not a collaboration between me and that sorcerer. It was only because he threatened my family that I had no choice but to join forces with him. I hope you can see the truth."

Lin Jue nodded and explained from the side, "Lord Shan Jun, I just learned what happened from him. He was indeed coerced by that thief and had no choice but to do it. Besides, we have already killed the thief, so we should consider that we have made amends."

"Fine, for your sake, little one, I'll let you off this time. Go, go as far away as you can."

The mountain lord let out a long roar and slowly turned around, but before he could take two more steps, he suddenly fell to the ground.

Lin Jue was startled, only then noticing the strange black aura emanating from the surface of the Mountain Lord's body.

Its eyes were covered with constantly wriggling black lines, which, upon closer inspection, were exactly the same as the linear venomous worms found in the abdominal cavities of the corpses.

Lin Jue was shocked: "Sir, have you been poisoned?"

The mountain king nodded: "It's voodoo!"

Zhang Kuang explained in a low voice, "The sorcerers come from Zhanbo Kingdom. This fog was created by the master of that person. Anyone who inhales the white fog will be infected with witchcraft when they fight with the sorcerers, and there is no way to avoid it."

However, once the sorcerer dies, the voodoo he planted in others will dissipate on its own.

Unfortunately, the witchcraft poison within Lord Shanjun was not inflicted by that person, but by someone else. It is precisely because of this that we dared to come and ambush you, my lord.

Lin Jue, listening from the side, was utterly terrified: "So, the entire Yu City is probably already in the hands of the witches? With such methods, how can the Great Wu Kingdom possibly resist?"

Before Zhang Kuang could speak, the witchcraft within the Mountain Lord erupted, a large amount of black energy floated out of his body, and countless blood vessels burst from his body, staining the snow beneath his feet red with blood.

"You must leave quickly! That man is coming, and you are no match for him!"

The mountain tiger collapsed in the snow, letting out a furious roar with its last bit of strength.

Numerous black venomous insects broke through the skin and flesh and emerged, greedily sucking up the essence of the body's blood and vital energy.

Without further hesitation, Lin Jue turned around and took "Grows Fast" back to the woods they had come from, carrying the unconscious Yuan Rou on his back and running quickly toward the Shizipo Post Station.

Zhang Kuang followed closely behind him. When he looked back, he saw a thick black fog spreading out from the sky, and from within the fog came sounds of ghosts wailing and howling.

"Oh no, it's that guy's master who's here."

Upon hearing this, Lin Jue's heart sank, and without hesitation, he turned around and threw out the last two Fire Talismans.

Amidst the raging inferno and the eerie black mist, a deep voice slowly emerged.

"A high-grade, superior-level imperial fire talisman; no wonder it was able to kill Wu Li."

"Young man from the Great Wu Kingdom, what is your name?"