Just as the man was baffled, a small number of Urticating Venom Needles had already made contact with his skin, and several more had wormed their way into his nostrils.
"Ah!"
The middle-aged man let out a wail and clutched his face.
The man's originally gaunt, withered facial skin rapidly turned a greenish-black, then began oozing blood. Pink, raw flesh tore through the skin and was exposed to the open air.
Not only that — blood began seeping from the man's nostrils, eyes, ears, and the corners of his mouth.
"Argh! Argh!"
The man's howls of agony grew louder and louder. People outside the house could surely hear them by now.
Click!
The door opened — Zheng Yueling had actually come home.
Surprise flashed across her face, which then rapidly turned to mockery. She snorted derisively: "I knew someone from your side would come to steal my spider. But I didn't expect a rookie — trying to steal a chicken only to lose the bait."
Hold on! Who are you calling the chicken?!
Bai Jie was immediately incensed.
Hearing the witch's taunting laughter, the middle-aged man — now brimming with fury to vent — abruptly charged at Zheng Yueling.
The man was before the witch in an instant. The next moment, his hand, like a withered tree branch, was about to lock around the witch's fair, slender neck.
Seeing this, Bai Jie nearly danced with glee: Fight! Fight!
But a bizarre scene unfolded. Zheng Yueling merely tilted her torso backward slightly and easily evaded the throat-lock.
Then, with incredible speed, she spun around and drove an elbow strike into the middle-aged man's chest.
"Gak!"
The middle-aged man hacked painfully. His chest caved inward. The force of the blow sent him stumbling backward, and he finally crashed awkwardly into the tea table, managing to disperse the impact.
Crash!
The sound of shattering glass echoed through the living room.
If Bai Jie had a jaw right now, it would have hit the floor.
He was shocked!
He'd known the witch's vitality was 10, but seeing that seemingly slender, delicate figure of hers display such astonishing combat prowess firsthand — the contrast was staggering.
"I'll kill you!"
The man cursed. With his face now a bloody ruin, he looked like a vengeful ghost straight out of hell.
A murderous glint flashed through his eyes. The man's hands formed seals, and he once again chanted bizarre incantations. A sinister, demonic aura immediately filled the room.
Zheng Yueling stood where she was, watching coldly, a trace of disdain curling at the corner of her lips.
A rustling sound rose. A crimson millipede crawled out from behind the man's clothes. Then its body rapidly expanded, growing until it was over a meter long before stopping.
Insect control?! And this sorcery — could this man be from the Wu Gu Clan?
Bai Jie's thoughts flew. At the same time, he began forming initial conjectures about Zheng Yueling's identity.
"Long Hai — do you think I'm still the same person I was before?"
Facing this terrifying millipede, Zheng Yueling's expression didn't waver. She spoke calmly.
Hsss!
The millipede suddenly sprayed a liquid with a strong, pungent odor. But Zheng Yueling sidestepped slightly and dodged it effortlessly.
The millipede drove its body forward like a long train, moving at incredible speed, reaching Zheng Yueling's feet in the blink of an eye. It raised its head, about to scramble up her leg.
Shing shing.
Suddenly, a flash of cold steel, a spray of juice — the millipede was now in two pieces. Still writhing, it was then stomped into pulp by Zheng Yueling.
Zheng Yueling had somehow produced a dagger from somewhere. She twirled it idly between her fingers.
"So this is your gu insect? A bit too weak, isn't it?"
Bzzz!
Before the words had even finished leaving her mouth, a wing-beat that sent shivers down the spine resounded behind Zheng Yueling.
That was... Bai Jie's gaze contracted.
Danger incoming, but Zheng Yueling didn't even look. She slashed backward with her dagger, following the sound.
Splaaash!
The dark shadow that had ambushed Zheng Yueling was instantly diced into pieces. Juice and all, it dropped onto the wooden floor.
This ambusher was actually a mosquito the size of a washbasin, with mouthparts as thick as USB cables!
It, too, clearly couldn't escape its fate. Splat — Zheng Yueling stomped it from chunks of meat into pulp.
"So this is what an inner-hall successor amounts to? How disappointing. The Wu Gu Clan has truly fallen. Got any more tricks? Bring them out."
Zheng Yueling wore an inscrutable smile. She looked, with great interest, at the middle-aged man frozen in place — Long Hai.
The latter's face, rotting and twisted, was a mask of terror. It was as if he had seen something utterly impossible.
"No... impossible!"
"You... you... could it be you implanted a strength gu?! But you're just an outer-hall disciple! How could you possibly have the right to receive a strength gu?!"
The witch's delicate features still held a smile: "Who says I obtained a strength gu?"
"This is power that belongs to me. No — to us."
As she spoke, Zheng Yueling's gaze lost focus. She tilted her head up slightly, as if looking toward some unknown space.
"In this world, there are many things you don't know."
"Leave. My spider will not be handed over to you."
"I won't kill you either. You can go call for more capable clan members. Though when that happens... my spider will truly belong only to me..."
Long Hai, on hearing this, suddenly recalled the purpose of his mission. He looked deeply at Zheng Yueling: "Originally, I wondered why you were so confident you could keep that spider."
"After this, I have a rough idea — because you've already gone mad!"
"You have no method to control gu. No sustainable cultivation resources. And you have no idea that the Wu Gu Clan's true foundations are something you simply cannot contend with! Aren't you afraid the elders will refine you into a corpse gu?!"
Zheng Yueling smiled as she paced slowly before Long Hai. She softly denied it: "I told you — in this world, there are many things you don't know."
"The Wu Gu Clan is mired in deep-rooted problems, rotten to the core. Even when trying to change, you still refuse to abandon your old systems and sorcery. You're no longer suited to thrive in this new world. You'll never amount to anything — so how could you possibly do anything to me?"
At this point, she paused. "As for the art of controlling gu... haven't you just delivered it to me?"
A pink-purple glow surfaced in the witch's eyes and projected straight into Long Hai's eyes.
The latter's gaze instantly turned vacant and spiritless. His pupils held only emptiness...
That witch was casting her witchcraft again!
Bai Jie desperately wished he could cover his own mouth with his front legs. This was the first time since his reincarnation that he had seen Zheng Yueling use this kind of means on a person while conscious.
After a long while, the pink-purple glow in Zheng Yueling's eyes finally faded. She stepped back several paces. With a snap of her fingers, Long Hai jolted awake.
But a confused look crossed Long Hai's face: What had just happened? Why did he feel like he'd blacked out...
"If you don't leave now, I'll call the authorities," Zheng Yueling reminded him, as if doing him a favor.
"Y-you'll regret this." Long Hai spoke coldly, then still chose to leave.
"Go get that treated quickly. And try to stay indoors, day and night. Wouldn't want your face to scare us young, pretty college girls." Zheng Yueling called after him.
Long Hai's wretched figure immediately stumbled, then swiftly vanished from the windowsill.
Zheng Yueling scoffed dismissively. She walked to the terrarium where Bai Jie was kept and saw the old skin husk he had molted. She examined it with surprise.
"You little thing — you've changed again. Hmm... can't call you a little thing anymore. You're a big thing now."
"Precious Nyx, I've now mastered the art of controlling gu. Would you like to be my pet spirit companion?"
Bai Jie: "..."
"Not saying anything — that means yes?"
Bai Jie raised his front legs and crossed them into a big X.
"Mhm. I'd love to be your owner too. Precious, you're so obedient. Your big sister hasn't doted on you for nothing."
Bai Jie: "..."
You absolute... The spider could curse but held back.
The witch's hands formed seals as she chanted a sorcery incantation. It was somewhat similar to what Long Hai had chanted at Bai Jie earlier — yet not exactly the same.
Bai Jie's heart tightened. Had this witch really gotten her hands on the so-called "art of controlling gu" from Long Hai?
Ding!
[Spiritual interference from sorcery detected. Automatically neutralized by Talent: Poison-Refining Gu.]
At the end, a mouthful of dark crimson essence blood shot from Zheng Yueling's mouth, transforming into a blood arrow aimed at Bai Jie. On the surface of that essence blood, pink-purple light swirled.