From Paper Craftsman to World-Suppressing Immortal

"The High Priest of Sorcery? Daoist Lingxu, do you know who is hiding deep within the underground palace?" Zhang Zhixuan asked.

Master Lingxu's face was grim, his fists clenched so tightly they cracked, and he said resentfully, "I not only know him, but I'll never forget him even if he turns to ashes!"

"This high priest of witchcraft was the head shaman high priest of the Witch God Sect of the Qingman Dynasty in his early years. After the Qingman Dynasty was destroyed, he fled into the Hundred Thousand Mountains with the remnants of the Witch God Sect and disappeared. Ten years ago, for some unknown reason, he reappeared."

"After that, this high priest of witchcraft roamed all over the Great Xia, committing dozens of massacres. Wherever he went, he used witchcraft to sacrifice the souls of the living and kill all the villagers. The two witchcraft masters in the Tianjin serial disappearance case that you and Pei Shouzhen solved recently were his most proud disciples."

"My feud with him dates back eight years. Back then, he was incredibly audacious and wandered to the vicinity of Longhu Mountain, where he actually committed a crime right under the nose of the Celestial Master's Mansion, attempting to extract the souls of all three hundred villagers in Qingxi Village!"

"My junior brother happened to be there, and the two fought a bloody battle for a whole day. In the end, that bastard took a child hostage and brutally injured my junior brother. When I arrived, I only saw the blood-written letter left by my junior brother and half of his body. From then on, I vowed to kill this villain to comfort the souls of my junior brother and all those he had harmed."

Master Lingxu took out a bloodstained rag from his bosom, unfolded it in his hand, and wrote two words in crooked bloodstains on the rag: "Kill the witch".

Master Lingxu clutched the blood-written letter left by his junior brother in his hand, his knuckles turning white from the force, his expression filled with barely suppressed hatred: "I chased him for eight whole years, from western Hunan to the capital, and then from the capital to Tianjin. Heaven rewards the persistent, and I finally caught up with him here!"

Pei Shouzhen, Chu Qinghe, and Yun Mo, the three disciples of the Celestial Master's Mansion of Longhu Mountain, all clenched their fists, their expressions indignant, silently accumulating an explosive outburst.

Zhang Zhixuan instantly recalled the terrifying scenes in the various rooms deep within the underground palace. Now that he thought about it, those black worms crawling all over the corpses and gnawing on the rotting flesh must have been the Gu worms raised by the high priest of witchcraft.

"Such people are despicable and utterly wicked; they deserve to be punished by the whole world!"

"kill!"

The group, united by a common enemy, instantly reached a consensus.

Following this, Daoist Lingxu instructed Yunmo to distribute antidote pills to everyone. These antidote pills were unusual, specially made to counter witchcraft and poison, with the aim of preventing the various sinister and vicious methods of the High Priest of the Witch God Cult.

Master Lingxu specifically instructed everyone that the Golden Light Mantra and Thunder and Fire Talismans of our sect have miraculous effects against witchcraft.

Zhang Zhixuan used six paper puppet soldiers as the vanguard to clear the way. Once everyone was ready, they immediately lit torches and stepped into the underground palace passage.

Inside the passage, just as Zhang Zhixuan had just explored, the walls were covered with crooked symbols of the Witch God Cult. This place had obviously been occupied and operated by the Witch God Cult for many years and was an important stronghold of the cult within the Great Xia territory. It must be hiding many of the Witch God Cult's unspeakable secrets.

The group walked through a dark corridor, where several rooms suddenly appeared ahead. Zhang Zhixuan gestured for them to stop, warning, "These rooms are filled with many skeletons and remains. I've seen black worms feeding on rotting corpses inside; they must be Gu worms created by the Witch God Cult. Be careful!"

Before Zhang Zhixuan could finish speaking, several black Gu worms suddenly crawled out of the room in front and rushed towards the paper puppet at the front.

The paper puppet soldiers reacted extremely quickly, wielding paper knives imbued with auspicious talismans that slashed and swept swiftly, instantly cleaving several black Gu worms that pounced at them in two. The worm corpses were burned by the auspicious golden light, instantly turning into burnt ashes.

However, this was not the end. Killing a few black Gu worms seemed to have alarmed all the black Gu worms in more than a dozen rooms. In an instant, like a black tide, countless black worms surged out from each room and rushed madly towards the paper puppet soldiers, Zhang Zhixuan, Daoist Lingxu, and the others.

"Be careful! These are corpse beetles created by the evil magic of the Witch God Cult. Don't get too close, they're highly poisonous! Use fire!" Master Lingxu warned, quickly forming hand seals and chanting incantations before taking the lead: "The Dao Qi is abundant, the talisman is the command, the fire dragon displays its power, burning away evil spirits, crimson flames blaze across the sky, ghosts are destroyed and corpses fall, the Supreme One commands, hasten as the law decrees! Command!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Master Lingxu pointed his fingers together and offered up the Fire Dragon Talisman in front of him.

"Whoosh!" A flame several meters long shot out, instantly burning the large number of poisonous corpse turtles that rushed towards them to ashes.

Even so, it seems like a drop in the ocean compared to the sheer number of these corpse beetles.

The sheer number of these black Gu worms that rushed in was so enormous that they almost completely filled the underground palace passageway.

Those at the front were burned to death, while countless others surged towards them from behind. The dark passage was filled with the ear-piercing sound of the Gu worms' limbs crawling rapidly.

The situation was more critical than they had imagined, so no one dared to be careless. They each used fire talismans to burn the insects.

Zhang Zhixuan commanded several paper puppet soldiers to erect large shields in front of him, but if the paper puppet soldiers made the slightest mistake, they would be instantly swallowed up by the swarm of insects, and the deadly poison on the Gu poison corpse beetle would burn the paper puppet soldiers' bodies to ashes in an instant.

Zhang Zhixuan's Vermilion Bird Puppet and Azure Dragon Mystic Essence once again demonstrated their powerful effects, hovering in mid-air to drive lightning and spew flames, each attack killing a large number of Gu worms.

Even so, the group was forced to fight and retreat, battling for almost the time it takes to burn all the highly poisonous Gu worms to death.

The once damp and musty passageway was now filled with a pungent, acrid smell of burning corpses, and the floor and walls were blackened by fire.

"These disgusting insects, their numbers are enormous!"

Even Zhang Zhixuan, who had personally investigated, hadn't expected this situation. How many vibrant lives would be turned into piles of rotting corpses if such a massive number of Gu worms were raised? They all became food for the worms.

The actions of the witch doctor cult are utterly outrageous!

"Everyone, we still have a long way to go. Be careful and don't let your guard down!" Zhang Zhixuan reminded everyone, as he directed the paper puppet soldiers to continue acting as the vanguard.

The group followed Zhang Zhixuan forward, stepping on the ashes and worms scattered throughout the passage.

Gradually, the passage ahead narrowed, and the stench in the air grew stronger. In Zhang Zhixuan's memory, after turning one more bend, he would be able to see the altar ahead.

Sure enough, as they rounded the last bend, they saw a faint, ethereal light ahead.

"Everyone, be careful! The altar ahead is personally guarded by the High Priest of Sorcery..."

Before Zhang Zhixuan could finish speaking, a loud "boom" suddenly came from above!

Suddenly, a heavy stone gate descended from the sky!

Zhang Zhixuan reacted swiftly, instinctively using his special skill to roll on the ground! Only then did he narrowly avoid the suddenly collapsing stone gate.

"Thump!" The heavy stone gate slammed down, the sound echoing throughout the underground palace passage.

Zhang Zhixuan frowned as he looked at the heavy stone gate behind him, thinking to himself: This stone gate separates him from the others perfectly; it was obviously done on purpose.

The original plan was to outnumber the enemy, but now it seems Zhang Zhixuan will have to face the high priest guarding the altar all by himself.

Sure enough, a sinister laugh suddenly rang out from the open space ahead: "The key is here!"