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"I've been careless!"
Although the Wild Dog Taoist and Master Ge came from the "Peach God Tao," which ranks among the most ancient sects in the world,
the deity they worship in their sect, the "West King Holy Mother," is adept at making elixirs but not at dealing with or controlling ghosts.
At least the "Human Face Painting Skill" and "Gathering Beasts Magic Skill," which Wild Dog Taoist mainly and secondarily practices, did not possess this ability.
However, as an old hand in Jianghu, he was well aware that besides the "Owl God Tomb" with its weird occurrences, it was common knowledge that one could easily encounter ghosts at night on Beimang Mountain, so of course, he wouldn't venture deep into the mountains unprepared.
He quickly reached into his sack again and took out a porcelain bottle, pouring out three black pills the size of longan fruits.
These "Ghost Repelling Pills" were concocted from ingredients such as tiger's skull, realgar, wolfsbane, celestial allure, soap pods, water-crowfoots, and cockspur grass, and carrying them could ward off all ghosts.
Though it was not a secret medicine unique to their sect, it was a treasure necessary for those of the Yin Gate occupations, such as Mountain Chasing Taoists, Earth Scholars, Forensic Doctors, Executioners, Sewing Corpse Men, Funeral Masters, and Paper Mache Craftsmen.
The next moment.
A hundred fiercely hungry evil ghosts, already transformed into a pungent and chilling yin wind, rushed violently towards him.
Bang!
The Wild Dog Taoist threw out the three "Ghost Repelling Pills." With a burst of power from his palm, he slapped them into a vast expanse of crimson smoke, meeting the oncoming crowd of evil ghosts head on.
Instantly.
Like boiling water poured into hot oil, many of the newly dead wandering souls with little merit and no consciousness turned into green smoke on the spot, while the other ghosts could not help but wail and retreat continuously.
Some even directly turned to attack the group of wild dogs that had become especially fat and sturdy after eating "Beast-Shaped Pills."
"Wangren Town" allowed ghosts to enter but not to leave. As long as it was fresh flesh and blood, what did it matter if it was human or dog?
Unfortunately, the big black dog that had bungled the task was kicked out of the group early on and was not present; the other ordinary wild dogs hardly had any power to resist under the siege of the ghosts.
It didn't take long for them to wail one after another helplessly.
Taking advantage of the commotion, the Wild Dog Taoist turned his head and fled.
But the thick white fog in front of him made the Tombstone Stone, which was a distinctive marker when he came in, completely untraceable.
His face filled with hatred, he flipped his hand, and a strange pill appeared in his palm.
It was blood-red like the "Human Face Beast Heart Pill," but emitted waves of intense meat fragrance.
Looking at this pill, fear was more evident in the Wild Dog Taoist's eyes than intoxication.
However, with the ghosts closing in again from behind, he didn't have the luxury of weighing his options. A trace of madness flashed across his red eyes as he tilted his head and swallowed the pill ferociously.
His skin instantly turned crimson, and his body size swelled by nearly half.
His blood roared inside him like a river, and the overwhelming Qi-Blood almost condensed into a Qi Blood Elixir in his Dantian.
The sound of the wind whistled, and his speed surged.
And his sense of smell, which had undergone a transformative increase of a thousandfold, easily penetrated the ghostly mist of "Wangren Town," catching the scent of the outside world.
Upon reaching the second stage "Refining Marrow and Changing Blood," a "Daoist Soldier" would experience a second growth, breaking the limits of the human body and gradually approaching a degree of "Non-Human."
The entire second stage is like experiencing a metamorphosis from a child to an adult all over again.
But ingesting this "Wolf Heart Dog Lung Pill" immediately granted the Wild Dog Taoist, who originally only had the first stage "Bone and Flesh Outer Appearance" Great Success Cultivation, a power comparable to that of a "Non-Human."
However, this was not without a price.
His already dog-like ugly face began to mutate at a speed visible to the naked eye.
His mouth protruded further, his eyes became red and green, and dark brown hair like steel needles began to spring from his pores.
In just a few breaths, he had turned into a hideous dog-headed humanoid monster, no better looking than those ugly ghosts showing their true forms behind him.
And it was not just his appearance—rationality seemed to be rapidly fading from the eyes of the Wild Dog Taoist, getting murkier by the second.
In the depths of Ghost Street,
In an eatery suspiciously cooking a pot of colorful organs, Wang Yuan quietly sat on a bench, watching the chase unfold in the distance.
He subtly distanced himself from a dining companion whose bloody head looked as if he had died from falling off a cliff.
At another table, several pale-faced diners were slurping from large bowls.
In Wang Yuan's chest, tucked into his clothing, was a crimson incense bag containing six locust leaves, which emitted a faint spiritual light, making him indistinguishable from the other ghosts around him.
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Seeing the tragic state of the Wild Dog Taoist at this moment, his pupils contracted slightly.
"Could it be that in his panic, he has violated some kind of precept taboo? Is he trying to escape from here by self-mutilation?"
Just as Wang Yuan was shocked by the horrifying consequences.
The Wild Dog Taoist, who had paid a huge price for the Wolf Heart Dog Lung Pill, still couldn't escape the onslaught of the ghosts behind him.
Woo woo woo...
The mournful ghost wind turned into thick black fog, chasing the Wild Dog Taoist like a giant wave.
Suddenly, he let out a shrill scream, but it was unclear which evil ghost had rushed at him.
Although the majestic qi-blood of the "Non-Human" level successfully blocked the chilling ghost qi with Blessing, Fortune, and Longevity flames, the three flames flickered violently, followed by a cold numbness on his left shoulder.
With his actions slightly slowed, the Wild Dog Taoist was immediately overwhelmed by the ghosts that followed.
Facing impending death, the last remnants of reason in his beastly pupils completely dissipated, leaving only frantic chaos.
The bloodshot, oily green eyes, as if they had a consciousness of their own, rolled wildly in all directions.
In that instant, it was as if he saw something even more terrifying than those evil ghosts nearby, screaming, wailing, and speaking incoherently:
"I have often heard that it is not the non-human who diligently seeks knowledge, but knowledge that diligently seeks the person... The knowledgeable seek the person... The knowledgeable seek the person...
It has caught up with me, it has caught up with me...
The Undying Tree! The Three Realms Worm! The West King Holy Mother...
I have comprehended!..."
In the end, the Wild Dog Taoist had become like a madman, intermingling screams and disjointed mutterings with even dog barks in the cacophony of tearing and swallowing sounds.
"Save me... don't eat me... woof woof woof..."
But the many evil ghosts were unmoved. The Wild Dog Taoist's body's essence, qi, and flesh were quickly devoured, leaving behind nothing but a light, withered skeleton, just like those wild dogs.
It was quite a while later.
Only after the ghosts had dispersed did Wang Yuan cautiously approach.
"What's this...?"
He had intended to see if the Magician had left behind any spoils of war.
But to his surprise, although the corpse of the Wild Dog Taoist was dried up, there was a colorful light and seal script wriggling, emerging from his forehead.
In Wang Yuan's eyes, it twisted like a living tree root or a worm.
There were even extremely tiny faces swimming around on it, their mouths opening and closing, seemingly chanting something.
For some reason, Wang Yuan instinctively felt that this was the Dao Foundation of the Wild Dog Taoist's many years of hard cultivation in the Human Face Painting Skill, intended to inherit the Taoist lineage with the Divine Talisman!
His complexion turned slightly ashen:
"Is this what cultivating immortality is? What about those immortals who live forever and move with the world?
No no no, perhaps the Wild Dog Taoist and Master Ge's sect were from the beginning an evil path. The reputable and upright sects are probably not like this."
At this moment, the worm-like Dao Foundation had completely detached from the body of the Wild Dog Taoist and was about to burrow into the air with its twisting.
Snatch!
It was then caught by a palm with tiger-striped patterns.
Wang Yuan, using the Ghost King Altar Sealing Seal for the second time tonight, looked even more somber.
"When the Wild Dog Taoist was fooling me with human skin, it didn't trigger the Small Book of Life and Death.
But just now, this strange thing actually gave off an aura similar to that unpredictable weirdness, although weak, it didn't fundamentally differ.
The Wild Dog Taoist's last delirious words meant 'I have heard that it's not people who are constantly pursuing knowledge, but knowledge that is constantly pursuing people. Knowledge seeks people.'
He was caught up. Caught by what? Knowledge? The Three Realms Worm? A Sect Venerable God named the West King Holy Mother?"
Having witnessed the entire process of a Magician's mutation, Wang Yuan seemed to have glimpsed a hidden corner of the arcane world, unknown to others.
Yet, he found no joy in his heart.