Hee Lingchuan’s roar thundered across the deck: "Kill them! Don’t hold back!"

Just because they couldn’t look back or retreat didn’t mean their hands and feet were tied. Why were they all just standing there like spectators?

Was this any time to worry about camaraderie?

The men had only been stunned for a moment. Jolted by his shout, they snapped back to their senses, gritted their teeth, and raised their weapons against their possessed comrades.

In a situation like this, their own lives came first. Camaraderie would have to wait.

Before long, all the Puppets were slain, and the Three Corpses Insects possessing them were forced out before they could even settle into their new hosts.

By now, the Walnut Boat had passed through the city gates and was weaving through the undulating ruins of the old city, passing through patches of mottled light and shadow.

Some of the Three Corpses Insects managed to retreat into the shadows, but the last few were forced out directly into the sunlight.

Bathed in the bright light, these phantoms instantly dissipated, leaving nothing behind.

Without the protection of a physical body, the Taiyang True Flame was their bane.

The outer city wasn’t large, and its buildings were sparse. The Walnut Boat soon left the walls far behind, once again gliding among the sand dunes.

Under the protection of the sun, everyone gasped for breath, finally able to turn their heads freely again.

Nian Songyu’s voice drifted over from another boat, reminding all the Subordinates, "Jettison the bodies and lighten the load! We need to pick up the pace."

Dusk was falling, and they had to travel as quickly as possible.

The corpses strewn across the deck had once been good comrades who fought side-by-side. The living stood in silence for a long moment before they began to collect the food, water, and weapons from the bodies.

Supplies were too precious to waste.

Hee Chunhua’s Personal Guard had died with his eyes wide open. Hee Lingchuan walked over and gently closed them.

Hee Chunhua sighed. "His name was Zhao Shaogang. He was with me for five years and handled many things for me."

"I know. I remember." Hee Lingchuan pressed his lips together as he retrieved the last bag of naan, the last Water Bag, and a simple silver hairpin from Zhao Shaogang’s body.

He had killed this man with his own hands.

"That hairpin..." Hee Chunhua began, about to reminisce, but Hee Lingchuan cut him off. "Death is like a lamp going out. There’s no point in saying more. His family will be well compensated."

’Every living person has a story, but so what? They were being paid danger money.’

Hee Chunhua fell silent and patted his shoulder. "You’re right."

This was no time for self-indulgent sentimentality.

He held up the broken comb clutched in his left hand. "I thought the resentment clinging to this comb would repel these ghoulish things. Apparently, it’s useless."

The comb had been the source of all their troubles, yet it seemed completely useless in the desert.

Hee Chunhua was deeply disappointed.

Hee Lingchuan glanced over, a flicker of guilt in his eyes. "Perhaps you’re not using it correctly?" ’The Divine Bone Necklace around my neck is also a "talisman," and perhaps the most important one at that, but no one else knows.’

’Then again, this pendant hasn’t shown any special abilities yet. Have I not met the conditions to activate it?’

He pushed the corpse off the boat. Below them was what looked like a large pool edged with black stone, though it was now completely dry.

Sand burial had always been the tradition in Black Water City and the Panlong Desert.

Hearing the dull thud as the body landed, and seeing the bloodstains on his own arm—from killing the man and searching his corpse—he felt a tightness in his chest.

Strictly speaking, this was the first person he had killed since becoming Hee Lingchuan, and it was his own father’s Personal Guard.

He had known Zhao Shaogang. They had chatted and laughed together.

The situation had been too urgent for hesitation. Now that the adrenaline was fading, Hee Lingchuan felt a pang of remorse.

"Are you all right?" Hee Chunhua asked, noticing his son’s head was bowed.

"A little seasick." Hee Lingchuan raised his Water Bag and took a long drink, forcing down the oppressive feeling in his chest.

’Killing a person isn’t like slaughtering chickens and dogs. I’m surprised I didn’t lean over the gunwale and vomit my guts out.’

’Since coming to this world, my heart seems to have grown harder.’

’What is it that’s been changing me so subtly?’

On the other side of the deck, Situ Han was also gathering belongings, his eyes rimmed with red. One of his Sand Bandits had been possessed, and he had been forced to kill the man himself.

This was a man with whom he had plundered wealth and ravished women. Just a few days ago, they had gotten drunk and slept side-by-side. Now, before the man’s body had even gone cold, Situ Han had to toss him overboard.

And everyone knew this kind of thing would happen again on their journey.

This was only the beginning.

Hee Lingchuan took a few deep breaths to calm himself, then leaned closer to Hee Chunhua. "National Preceptor Sun’s boat had the fewest deaths," he said, referring to the number of bodies they had thrown overboard.

"There’s no such thing as fairness in this world."

A person possessed by a Three Corpses Insect becomes a Puppet. Aside from what Panlong City could do in its heyday, no one has a quick cure. It’s said that by the later stages of the Alliance Army’s siege, the Xianyou Kingdom had developed several treatments. However, they were time-consuming, labor-intensive, and costly. The success rate for expelling the insects was no higher than twenty percent, and the process took three to five days.

The Three Corpses Insect lies dormant within the human body to begin with; the first step for a Mage on their path to power is to slay their own. How could it possibly be easy to expel one using external means?

Besides, a possessed Puppet flies into a frenzy. How could one be treated obediently?

That was why decision-makers like Nian Songyu had agreed long ago: if anyone on the boats was possessed by a Three Corpses Insect, they had to be dealt with swiftly and decisively to prevent further trouble.

Every possessed person would become a liability. They couldn’t afford to wait, nor could they afford to save them. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

Hee Chunhua shook his head, pushing the troublesome thoughts aside. He patted his son’s shoulder. "Thanks to your quick thinking, several lives were saved. By the way, when did your aim with the Flying Blades get so good?"

That last Flying Blade had shot past his own shoulder with incredible precision.

’This good-for-nothing son of mine saved my life and helped me quell the chaos. He’s really matured.’

Hee Prefect was greatly heartened.

"My aim? Uh!" Hee Lingchuan flushed. "It just happened. It was a desperate situation, wasn’t it?"

Hee Chunhua: "..."

As if Hee Lingchuan’s words had been a prophecy, the other two boats remained unscathed, while National Preceptor Sun’s Walnut Boat was the one to receive uninvited guests—

Two enormous Purple Gold Toads.

These creatures were a type of mutated Demon. They looked like toads magnified a hundred times over, and they attacked by shooting out their tongues like arrows to snatch their prey.

The hill-sized Purple Gold Toads leaped from a sand dune, nearly capsizing the Walnut Boat when they landed. The galloping Earth Dragons strained against their harnesses, almost unable to pull the boat forward.

They ate people the same way ordinary toads ate flies. They would even use their forelimbs to stuff prey into their mouths before slowly starting to chew.

Furthermore, when a Purple Gold Toad faced an enemy, the warts on its body would burst, releasing a poisonous, purple-and-gold-tinged mist. Anyone who inhaled it would become dizzy, foam at the mouth, and collapse within seconds.

This was the origin of their name.

Fortunately, the Purple Gold Toads were slow eaters. The time they took to chew each person gave National Preceptor Sun and his men ample time to deal with them.

The Hee father and son were on another boat, too far away to help. All they could do was settle in and watch the show.