Chapter 7, The Skeleton Demon

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The poisonous smoke from the skeletal demon sprayed onto the low wall, producing a hissing sound. In an instant, the low wall melted away as if it were ice meeting the scorching sun. Chen Qi was greatly astonished by the potency of the skeletal demon's poison. Seeing that the skeletal demon was about to spray again, he quickly urged the True Dragon Energy and transformed the Five Yin Bag into a fluctuating black circle, confronting the poisonous smoke.

The black smoke formed by the Five Yin Bag was shattered by the skeleton demon, causing a momentary stagnation in Chen Qi's internal energy. He could not afford to dwell on the overwhelming discomfort akin to a raging tide; instead, he twisted his body and leaped aside, narrowly avoiding the demon's gaping maw. At the same time, Chen Qi swiftly drew the Myanmar knife gifted by Lu Haozhi, executing a sweeping strike that perfectly struck the demon as it turned mid-air, lunging at him once more.

He gazed for a long time, and suddenly felt a slight tremor. He discovered that the image of the true dragon on this page of golden script had a subtle aura flowing from head to tail, and on the body of this golden dragon, there were many hidden points of light, becoming increasingly distinct the more he looked.

Chen Qi grasped this page of the golden book, momentarily unsure of what to think. However, he now understood that the three pages of the golden book had not been lost; they were merely hidden within his own body for some unknown reason. When he encountered danger, they flew out and shattered the skeletal demon.

The old man noticed nothing, yet a hint of anger appeared on his face as he raised his voice and exclaimed: "Which fellow cultivator has graced us with their presence, to have actually captured my young disciple?"

Chen Qi, a bandit on Tianma Mountain, was indeed of a cruel disposition. The black light circle transformed from the Five Yin Bag had already captured that person, yet he showed no signs of restraint. He forcibly dragged the little concubine of the magistrate from Poyang Prefecture out of bed, leaving her completely bare, and amidst the woman's horrified cries, he ensnared her into the Five Yin Bag.

The skull demon cackled ominously, suddenly rising high into the air, overcoming its previous downward momentum. At an altitude of over 10 zhang, it opened its massive mouth and spewed forth a cloud of black smoke. Chen Qi, seeing this thick, inky smoke, dared not let it touch him. He quickly rolled over, grasped a low wall by the street, and swiftly performed a somersault, flipping himself inside.

The text on this page of the golden book has long since faded, yet a golden dragon, with its claws bared and seemingly poised to soar and transform, has emerged.

The Five Yin Bag is ranked seventeenth in the He Mountain Classic. Moreover, Chen Qicai has only been cultivating for a few days and is completely unaware of the opponent he faces, this skull demon. Although he grits his teeth and endures, the Five Yin Bag gradually fails to contain the skull demon. The skull demon emits a strange cackling cry, its teeth clashing with a clicking sound, and suddenly spews out a cloud of poisonous smoke, causing its own body to swell dramatically, shattering the black halo conjured by the Five Yin Bag, and it lunges at Chen Qi with a bite.

The last time I used the Five Yin Bag, I immediately felt exhausted to the point of death. How is it that this time, after using it to capture that Taoist priest and the concubine of the Governor of Poyang, I suddenly feel invigorated? How could that old Taoist also understand the spells from the He Mountain Classic? Could it be that this He Mountain Classic has some connection to his family? The matter of my killing that Taoist priest and the concubine of the Governor of Poyang must be kept well hidden; it cannot be known by others, or it will lead to disaster. However, this page of golden scripture has changed again; the original incantation has vanished, yet it has added this true dragon pattern...

The person chuckled and said, "Then let me show the young lady something even more interesting"

The skull demon was extremely cunning. Upon seeing Chen Qi once again using the Five Yin Bag, it let out a sharp howl and became even more elusive. Relying on its ability to fly, it twisted and turned, quickly finding an opportunity to circle behind Chen Qi and opened its mouth to spew out toxic smoke. Chen Qi, after all, was at a disadvantage; he did not possess the same aerial agility as the skull demon. Sensing that the situation was dire, he was greatly alarmed and hurriedly tried to dodge, but how could he possibly escape?

The He Mountain Classic records that these demons are called "Skull Demons," which are an extremely ferocious type of sorcery, ranking second among the most vicious techniques in the He Mountain Classic, just below the Seven Kill Primordial Spirit. This type of demon art requires the skulls of those who died violently as materials, condensing countless malevolent souls and fierce spirits, and it can only be refined after killing numerous living beings. The poison smoke emitted by the Skull Demons contains corpse poison, and anyone affected is certain to die. For every living being killed, they can devour a soul, thereby increasing their ferocity.

Only then did the strange python soar through the air for a while before gracefully landing in the front yard. An extremely tall old Taoist suddenly leaped up, standing atop the roof, scanning the surroundings. He seemed to have suddenly sensed something, and with a swift motion, he employed his lightness skill, moving faster than lightning, and in a moment, he had circled around this large estate covering more than 10 acres.

Chen Qi hid in the shadows, observing clearly that after the old Taoist released so many skulls, he swayed and vanished without a trace, his lightness of foot almost seeming superhuman. He took a few precautions, crawled out from his hiding place, and fled the grand residence along the street corner. After running for two or three blocks, he finally let out a sigh of relief, only to feel a chilling sensation behind him. When he turned around, he saw a skull the size of a wheel, white and eerie, cackling ominously, spewing black smoke, and lunging towards him.

Chen Qi was taken aback, thinking: "So the Daoist who was just swallowed by the Five Yin Bag was the disciple of this old Daoist. Fortunately, I killed him to silence him and destroyed the body to erase the traces. The strange black mist that the old Daoist just commanded seemed to be the Seven Kills Primordial Spirit from the He Mountain Classic. Having cultivated such a technique, he is almost akin to a devil. How can I possibly be his match? Even if there were hundreds of thousands of troops here, they would merely be fodder for this old Daoist. I should avoid drawing attention and be more discreet in hiding."

With a single stroke, Chen Qi succeeded, his courage swelling. He brandished the machete in his hand, determined to shatter the skull demon before him.

Chen Qi had already sensed that something was amiss, and he no longer dared to contemplate the theft of valuables. He tossed the more than ten black talismans into the Five Yin Bag and turned to leave. He had already noted the escape route upon entering, and with a few leaps, he jumped out of the large courtyard. Just as he was about to retrace his steps back to Lu Haozhi's residence, suddenly a black aura soared into the sky above the courtyard, resembling a monstrous python, twisting and turning in the air. He had already noted the escape route upon entering, and with a few leaps, he jumped out of the large courtyard. Just as he was about to retrace his steps back to Lu Haozhi's residence, suddenly a black aura soared into the sky above the courtyard, resembling a monstrous python, twisting and turning in the air.

Chen Qi took the page of the golden book and hurried back to Lu Haozhi's residence. The second chief was surprisingly still not back. Chen Qi then returned to the room where he rested, reflecting on the events of the night and studying the page of the golden book.

The circle of black light, which absorbed vital energy, suddenly generated an immense suction force, descending upon the Daoist. The Daoist thought that it was merely the servant outside the room peeking in and did not take it to heart, pondering what means to employ. As soon as the black light circle, formed from the Five Yin Bag, descended, he finally realized the danger. By the time he attempted to cast a spell for defense, it was already too late. This sinister magical artifact swallowed him from his feet, and in an instant, the black light circle expanded and contracted several times, turning his body into a mass of pus and blood. The circle of black light, formed from the Five Yin Bag, descended, and he finally realized the danger. By the time he attempted to cast a spell for defense, it was already too late. This sinister magical artifact swallowed him from his feet, and in an instant, the black light circle expanded and contracted several times, turning his body into a mass of pus and blood

As the black smoke spewed from the skeleton demon reached the back of his neck, a golden light suddenly shot out, resembling the sharp edge of a sword. In an instant, it shattered the skeleton demon into pieces. Chen Qi narrowly escaped disaster, still in a state of panic, but upon seeing the golden light destroy the skeleton demon, it floated down gracefully. He reached out and grasped it, only to find it was a page of golden scripture

Fortunately, I acted first; otherwise, if that Taoist had cast his spell before me, I would surely have met with misfortune. However, why is it that this time the Five Yin Bag is not only not exhausting like last time, but also seems to have many nourishing effects?

Although Chen Qi carried a fine Mian knife with him, he did not dare to draw it against his opponent. He quickly raised his hand, and a fluctuating circle of black light shot out, precisely enveloping the skull. As the black light circle expanded and contracted, it aimed to swallow the skull. However, the skull possessed great strength and struggled vigorously to break free.

It turns out this monster is not so frightening after all

The Iron Bone Skill practiced by Chen Qi is an external hard skill, which provides the greatest enhancement to strength. When he swung his blade, he had little expectation; however, he did not anticipate that although the skeletal demon could fly, its essence was extremely light. Its power relied entirely on the poisonous smoke swirling around it, and its strength was not particularly great. Surprisingly, Chen Qi's strike sent the demon tumbling through the air, causing it to drift away.

Seven, Skull Demon

Chen Qi sensed that something was amiss and dared not move, hurriedly hiding himself, and only then did he steal a glance at the sky.

Chen Qi turned over in his mind, pondering for a long time, yet he could not sort out a single clue. Fortunately, he was not one to seek trouble for himself, so he set aside these thoughts and instead focused on studying the page of golden text.

Chen Qi, in a moment of confusion, first used his iron-bone skill to break the latch on the window, and then he rolled in. He was too lazy to pay attention to the woman's clothing; he simply picked up the Taoist priest's robe. In the folds, he felt around and pulled out more than ten black talismans and some scattered gold and silver. The gold and silver were nothing special, and Chen, the leader, casually collected them. However, those black talismans were as hard as iron; they appeared to be made of paper, yet felt icy to the touch, clearly not ordinary items.

Chen Qi was nimble and quick, hiding in a concealed spot, making it difficult for the old Taoist to find him, which only fueled the old man's anger. The old Taoist shouted several times without receiving a response, then with a flick of his large sleeve, he released over a hundred white, eerie skulls. As soon as these skulls emerged, they transformed into the size of wheels, with thick black smoke billowing from their features and orifices, swirling chaotically in the air and quickly scattering in all directions. The old Taoist shouted several times without receiving a response, then with a flick of his large sleeve, he released over a hundred white, eerie skulls. As soon as these skulls emerged, they transformed into the size of wheels, with thick black smoke billowing from their features and orifices, swirling chaotically in the air and quickly scattering in all directions.

Chen Qi suddenly felt something was amiss. The figure glanced towards the window, and his gaze was as cold as ice, resembling a flash of cold lightning. Without a moment's hesitation, Chen Qi raised his hand and channeled all of his True Dragon energy into his arm. The Five Yin Bag immediately transformed into a circle of black light, swelling and contracting unpredictably, and flew into the room.

Chen Qi did not find these talismans strange, but they looked somewhat familiar to him. After pondering for a moment, he hurriedly took out the He Mountain Classic. After flipping through a few pages, he found on the seventh page the method for refining the Xuan Yin Ghost-Slaying Talisman. Comparing it with the He Mountain Classic, he looked at the more than ten black talismans and couldn't help but feel slightly surprised, muttering to himself: "Could it be that this person has also practiced the He Mountain Classic? Why does he have more than ten Xuan Yin Ghost-Slaying Talismans on him?"

These three pages of the golden book are truly remarkable, possessing such formidable magical power that even a skeletal demon can be shattered in a single blow. This is not a place for contemplation; it is better to leave quickly

Chen Qizhen felt a contraction in his vital energy, and the black light circle formed from the Five Yin Bag flew back to his arm. He had originally intended to weaken himself, but unexpectedly, this time he felt a surge of vital energy being expelled from the black circle transformed by the Five Yin Bag, invigorating his previously lacking spirit