Still in his True Man State, Zou Feng needed only two or three moves to finish off Zhang Kun, who had already lost his will to fight.

The moment Zhang Kun died, Xiaolv eagerly pounced on the body, tearing at the flesh and injecting its venom.

Soon, Corpse Poison began to form within the body.

Xiaolv then began to absorb and refine the fresh Corpse Poison for itself.

There was nothing inherently wrong with this series of actions, as Zou Feng also needed to refine Corpse Poison to cultivate the Corpse Luo Heart Scripture.

Furthermore, the Corpse Poison converted from the body of a Fourth Grade Martial Artist was naturally extraordinary, providing a significant boost to his Cultivation.

’However, this Gu Insect has once again acted on its own without my permission...’

Glancing at Xiaolv, Zou Feng remained impassive, acting as if he didn’t care in the slightest as he too began to refine the Corpse Poison.

After finishing the Refinement here, he returned to the previous battlefield and repeated the process.

Of course, the Corpse Poison that Xiaolv converted on the spot was ultimately not as potent as poison that had been allowed to fester for years, so its effects were bound to be diminished.

Furthermore, because his Corpse Luo Heart Scripture had already reached the Realm of Refining Fire, only the corpses of Fourth Grade Martial Artists were of any use.

As Zou Feng collected the various spoils of war, Zhi Shuang watched him in silence.

The reverence in her gaze was like a surging river, overflowing and unstoppable.

Her expression showed that she truly revered him as a god.

But as she continued to watch, Zhi Shuang suddenly coughed up a mouthful of blood.

Although she herself was baffled by this, Zou Feng deduced that she had been caught in the aftershocks of the battle and unknowingly suffered an internal injury.

But this wasn’t a major issue. Zou Feng immediately darted forward to support the swaying Zhi Shuang.

He first took out an Elixir and had Zhi Shuang swallow it, then circulated his Gang Qi to heal her.

"Thank you, Elder Zou!"

Before long, Zhi Shuang had recovered her strength and bowed repeatedly in thanks.

Zou Feng simply waved his hand, signaling that if she was all right, they could continue on their journey.

This time, however, Zhi Shuang did not immediately follow. Instead, she dropped to her knees with a THUD and kowtowed. "Elder Zou... I... I know this is very sudden..."

"Could you possibly... accept me as your disciple? I wish to take you as my master!"

Zhi Shuang kowtowed repeatedly as she spoke.

Soon, her forehead began to bleed.

Zou Feng glanced back at Zhi Shuang, then raised his palm.

An invisible current of Gang Qi slowly lifted Zhi Shuang to her feet.

"I don’t accept disciples!"

"Don’t bring this up again. Now, let’s return to Silk Cave!" With that, Zou Feng paid Zhi Shuang no more mind and started off in the direction of Cloud Mist Mountain.

Zhi Shuang had wanted to plead further, but Zou Feng’s tone left no room for negotiation, causing her to give up in dejection.

The next moment, as she followed him to continue their journey, a subtle flicker of confusion passed across her crestfallen face...

’This assassination attempt was a close call, but for them to track my movements so accurately and set up an ambush in advance... it would be strange if there wasn’t an inside man providing information.’

’Either there’s a traitor in the Hongxing Gang, or there’s a rat in Biyou Palace.’

’The latter is more likely.’

’After I joined Silk Cave, Yin Suhong, the Valley Master of the Valley of Ten Thousand Snakes, wasn’t the only one who couldn’t stand to see Teng County gain an ally like me...’

「The next morning.」

「Biyou Palace, the forbidden grounds in the deepest part of Silk Cave.」

This forbidden area was a bottomless cavern.

A bone-chilling wind periodically swept out from its depths, accompanied by the skittering sounds of some unknown creature.

Teng County was currently suspended from a translucent spiderweb, her expression fanatical.

Before long, a spider the size of a washbasin—translucent and shimmering as if carved from jade—crawled up from below.

It quickly made its way onto the translucent spiderweb.

"My little darling, come over here!"

Overjoyed to see the spider, Teng County quickly beckoned to it.

The Jade Spider was surprisingly obedient, crawling right to Teng County’s side.

Teng County hurriedly pulled it into an embrace, stroking it as if holding her own child.

"My little darling, Mommy missed you so much!"

"It’s only been a few days, and you’ve grown so much..."

"Here, eat some more!"

As she spoke, Teng County extended her hand to the spider, allowing it to suck her blood.

It should have been a terrifying scene, but judging from Teng County’s expression, she was no different from a mother feeding her child.

The more blood the Jade Spider drank, the more gratified she became.

After some time, once Teng County’s face had grown noticeably pale, the Jade Spider finally seemed to be full and stopped feeding.

"Was that enough?"

Teng County gazed at it with boundless affection.

The Jade Spider gave its body a shake, wriggled out of Teng County’s embrace, and started crawling back down into the chasm.

"Darling, don’t play for too long. When you’ve had your fun, come right back home, okay?"

She offered this parting advice, but received no response at all.

Teng County stared down into the bottomless, pitch-black abyss, unwilling to tear her gaze away for a long time.

"Cave Master!" a Maid’s voice called from the cave entrance.

"What is it?"

"Elder Zou has returned. He says he has something to discuss and requests to see you."

Hearing this, Teng County’s expression turned thoughtful for a moment before she broke into a cheerful smile. "Perfect. Have Elder Zou come to my room."

"Yes, Cave Master!"

The next moment, Teng County reached upward, and a silk thread rapidly retracted, pulling her up at an incredible speed.

Before long, the Maid led Zou Feng to the door of Teng County’s private chambers.

This was the first time he had ever come to this place.

Although he had been stationed at Silk Cave for about ten days, Teng County had never invited him to her chambers before.