"Master, just tell me what to do! I'll do whatever you need!"
The merfolk was now full of energy, a far cry from the defeated creature it had been just moments ago.
"Did Mo Wentian leave anything behind in your sea of consciousness?"
Song Wanníng's gaze swept over the merfolk's soul realm. She already had suspicions, but she needed a clear answer.
After all, Mo Wentian was an experienced Nascent Soul cultivator. There were many techniques she might not yet know.
"Yes! He planted a parasite worm in my sea of consciousness!"
Just mentioning it made the merfolk seethe with rage. That man had originally tried to form a contract, but it had refused at all costs. Unable to succeed, and worried that a visible contract might alert Mo Rou, he had instead chosen to implant a parasite.
The child worm was in the merfolk's soul, while the mother worm remained with Mo Wentian.
Suddenly, the merfolk's expression changed. Eyes wide, it gasped, "Master, if that's the case, Mo Wentian might have sensed something already! Should we run? If he comes, we won't be able to escape!"
Clearly, Mo Wentian had left it traumatized. Panic gripped it once more.
But Song Wanníng calmly interrupted, "Even if he notices something wrong, all he'll suspect is that you acted against him."
Parasite worms could detect movement within the host's soul realm, but not in the same clear way divine senses could. They couldn't perceive specific events.
So for now, she wasn't worried.
Besides, even if Mo Wentian was concerned, he wouldn't act rashly at this stage. This was his best chance to bring down Mo Rou—he wouldn't risk losing it.
Song Wanníng narrowed her eyes and sent her divine soul sweeping through the merfolk's soul realm again.
Just as she suspected. It was a parasite.
In her past life, there had been rumors that Mo Wentian knew some Gu techniques, the parasitic sorcery of the Witch Clan. It wasn't technically a forbidden art, so it hadn't caused much attention.
Song Wanníng herself wasn't well-versed in Gu sorcery, but she did know one thing: if the child worm was destroyed, the mother worm would suffer a heavy backlash as well.
That was the opportunity she had told Mo Rou about. If they failed to act on it now, she wouldn't be able to help further.
After all, she wasn't the type to get personally involved in killing for someone else's clan. That wasn't her way.
The child worm was cunning and well-hidden. She searched repeatedly but found no trace of it.
Song Wanníng raised an eyebrow. The black-and-white ring of light appeared once more, this time descending on the soul realm with oppressive force.
The circle quickly constricted, compressing the area little by little.
This time, the merfolk didn't seem to feel any discomfort. Instead, its eyes widened as it began to search for the parasite.
As the circle tightened, they finally noticed something unusual. A disturbance—something trying to escape.
In a flash, Song Wanníng streaked toward the anomaly.
A flash of sword light slashed downward. Immediately, a grayish-green parasite worm burst forth, squirming desperately as it tried to flee.
Its plump, greasy body twisted violently, wriggling away as fast as it could.
Seeing the sword light chasing it, the worm moved even faster. In its panic to survive, it didn't even care about the host anymore. It headed straight for the edge of the merfolk's soul realm.
In the main hall, Mo Rou was growing restless.
So much time had passed, yet there was still no sign of activity. Had Song Wanníng succeeded?
If Song Wanníng hadn't warned her not to interfere ahead of time, she would've barged in already. She was worried. The longer this dragged on, the greater the chance that Mo Wentian might notice something was wrong.
Mo Rou clenched her fists in agitation. Just as she was lost in thought, something shot out of the merfolk's head.
It moved too fast for her to see what it was, but it darted straight for the door.
"You're not getting away!"
She instantly realized it must be connected to Mo Wentian and struck without hesitation. But before her attack could land, a small golden sword shot past her cheek like a bolt of light, heading directly for the fleeing parasite.
Whoosh—
A meteor-like sword flash streaked through the air.
"Screee—"
The thing let out a sharp, inhuman shriek before exploding midair, reduced to a mist of blood. It had all happened in the blink of an eye. Mo Rou didn't even have time to move. She could still feel the chilling edge of that sword as it had grazed her cheek—a trace of killing intent that lingered in the air.
If that sword had been aimed at her instead...
Mo Rou shivered, quickly pushing the thought away. She immediately sent word to the allies she had arranged beforehand.
When she looked up again, the golden sword had already returned, gliding calmly back into Song Wanníng's soul realm.
"I'm heading out first. Stay here and wait for me!" Mo Rou called back.
Now certain that Song Wanníng was unharmed, she didn't hesitate any longer. She soared out of the hall toward her target.
At that same moment, the destruction of the child worm caused Mo Wentian to jolt awake. Blood sprayed from his mouth as he clutched his chest. He stared in shock and hastily tried to stabilize his spiraling energy.
"What… what's going on?!"
Another mouthful of blood spurted out.
With the parasite shattered, he suffered severe backlash. Not only was his spiritual energy in chaos, even his meridians were beginning to reverse flow.
If Mo Rou showed up now, he'd be in serious danger. He didn't waste a second. Mo Wentian rushed for the door, desperate to flee the premises. But as soon as he opened it, he was greeted by three Nascent Soul cultivators already waiting in the courtyard.
A moment later, Mo Rou descended from above, landing lightly nearby.
At the same time, a formation activated in the air, sealing off the entire compound.
Mo Wentian's pupils contracted sharply. "Mo Rou, you tricked me?!"
He had confirmed earlier that only the Second Elder was still in the estate. Yet now, two other elders—who should've been far away—had appeared right here at his doorstep.
Realizing he'd been played, Mo Wentian was filled with murderous rage. He glared at Mo Rou, seething with hatred, even as he tried to send messages to his own people for backup.
"Hmph, enough talk."
Mo Rou didn't give him a chance to stall. At her command, all four Nascent Soul cultivators attacked at once. The other three had waited for this moment far too long. Their killing intent surged as they charged at Mo Wentian.
"Heh, so I underestimated you. You even figured out that I know Gu sorcery!"
Mo Wentian cursed, leaping into the air to counter their assault. But a question still burned in his heart. No one knew about his use of Gu techniques—not even his most trusted followers.
He had arranged everything with the merfolk personally. There shouldn't have been any leaks.
Yet somehow, Mo Rou had found out. She had even destroyed his carefully-raised parasite worm, hitting him with backlash and catching him completely off guard.
He didn't have time to dwell on it though.
The four might not match him individually, but they were all in peak condition—while he was injured and weakened. Before long, lights of every color lit up the skies above the Mo Clan estate.
Thankfully, the formation kept the spectacle hidden. Outsiders couldn't see what was happening inside.
Still, the spectacle drew the attention of many disciples. They gathered outside, eyes filled with worry as they stared toward the sealed courtyard. At that moment, two more Nascent Soul cultivators arrived—Mo Wentian's own allies.
"This is bad! The fight's already begun!"
"Wentian's injured. We need to help him immediately!"
With that, the two rushed toward the barrier without hesitation.
===
To be honest, for "merfolk" I want to use term "merfolk" for female and "Sharkfolk" for male. Just like Mermaid and Shark in typical xianxia troupe. But then I decide to use Merfolk as general term, so if you read sharkfolk in previous chapter, that is the reason why.
I want to change in the previous chapter, but I can't find it T_T, sorry