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"Do you really think you can trap me with just this pit?"
After confirming that this was merely a pitfall, the ghost's mocking laughter echoed once again, filled with derision toward Xu Taiping.
"Even if you trap this body, so what? I am a ghost cultivator and can leave my body at will!"
Amidst the ghost's sneering words, Xu Taiping silently drew the long sword from his waist and stood quietly by a taut rope, as if waiting for something.
"Boom!..."
At that moment, a gust of eerie wind suddenly surged out from the pit.
"Swish!"
Without hesitation, Xu Taiping swung the long sword, cutting through the rope.
"Bang!"
Several jars of strong liquor, suspended by the rope, plummeted and fell directly into the deep pit.
A strong smell of alcohol immediately filled the air.
"Trying to crush me with stones? Wait! Wine! This is wine! Ah!..."
The ghost, now detached from its body, saw the heavy objects falling and initially thought Xu Taiping was trying to crush it in the pit. However, when the smell of liquor began to spread, it realized too late that escape was no longer possible.
"Ah!..."
"Who? Who told you that my life's essence is wine? Ah!... Damn it! It must have been that damn person! Ah!... That damn person!"
The pit was filled with the ghost's agonized howls and curses.
Once the ghost's soul was exposed to the liquor, it reacted as if it had encountered poison with no antidote. It turned into a swirling black mist, darting aimlessly within the pit.
Standing by the edge of the pit, Xu Taiping let out a long sigh as he observed the scene.
"If I didn't know the ghost's weakness was alcohol, this might have been a lost cause."
Looking back at the sequence of events, Xu Taiping felt a surge of fear.
If it weren't for the consecutive risks he had taken, which made the ghost let its guard down, and if he hadn't spent time breaking through the ice stage of his training, and if he hadn't obtained these jars of strong liquor, his cultivation journey might have come to a halt right here.
"Younger… sir… save me… If you let me possess your body… I can… I can tell you the locations of the treasures… I've hidden over the years… I can tell you where they are…"
At that moment, a ghostly face formed from dark mist struggled to emerge from the pit, desperately begging Xu Taiping.
"I'll ask you one question." Xu Taiping ignored the ghost's pleas. "Besides you, who else knows the location of the water vein spring at Qingzhu Residence?"
"Pull me out, and I will tell you!"
The ghost tried to make a deal with Xu Taiping.
"Will you speak?"
Xu Taiping shook the jar of liquor in his hand.
"Don't!"
The ghost screamed in terror upon seeing the jar and wildly waved its ghostly hands.
"No one knows except me! I only learned of it after killing the previous owner of Qingzhu Residence!"
The ghost hurriedly explained, speaking quickly.
"You're not telling the whole truth."
"I am telling the truth! Please, I beg you, put down that jar of liquor!"
Xu Taiping tested the ghost once more and realized it seemed to be telling the truth.
Even so, he didn't lower the jar of liquor. Instead, he removed the seal from the jar.
"Youth, what are you doing? I swear I haven't lied to you!"
The ghost, thinking Xu Taiping was about to douse it with alcohol, trembled and cried out.
"I'll ask you one more question." Xu Taiping sniffed the alcohol in the jar before looking back at the ghost's soul. "The tiger demon you call 'king,' what is its strength, and does it have any weaknesses?"
"This... this..."
Upon hearing Xu Taiping mention the tiger demon, the ghost immediately became cautious, hesitating and stuttering.
"If I speak of the king, I... I'll truly be doomed!"
The ghost looked at Xu Taiping with pleading eyes.
"If you don't speak, I'll immediately make your soul scatter," Xu Taiping said, dipping his hand into the jar of liquor and revealing an innocent smile as he flicked the alcohol toward the ghost.
"Ah!..."
The ghost's anguished scream echoed across the mountains.
But in these remote hills, even if it screamed louder, no one would hear.
"Have you thought it over?"
Once the scream subsided, Xu Taiping dipped his hand into the jar once more and flashed the same innocent smile.
"The king is the king of all beasts, a spiritual tiger body, unlike us ghosts, and has no weaknesses. But half a month ago, it was ambushed and severely wounded by some disciples of Seven Peaks. It will take at least three more months to recover. Because of this, the king sent us ghosts to hunt for blood to nourish it." The ghost paused, a look of disdain creeping into its eyes as it glanced at Xu Taiping. "To be honest, even in its wounded state, it would be easy for the king to kill you."
"Three more months to heal... That coincides with the time I need to break through the Gate Opening stage..."
Xu Taiping furrowed his brows and silently contemplated.
To the ghost, Xu Taiping's thoughtful expression seemed like fear of the tiger demon.
The ghost's heart leaped in joy, enduring the agonizing pain caused by the liquor's fumes, and it spoke with a tone full of menace:
"So I advise you to let me go. If I die, the king will surely know!"
Xu Taiping heard this and raised his head to stare at the ghost. Suddenly, he threw the jar of liquor high into the air, channeling his inner energy and striking it with a palm.
"Bang!"
The jar shattered under Xu Taiping's palm, and the alcohol rained down like a shower, spilling into the pit.
"Ah!... You shameless wretch! You'll regret this! The king will come and avenge me!"
The ghost's shrill scream rang out once more.
Xu Taiping remained unmoved, tossing a pre-prepared torch into the pit.
"My grandfather once said, 'Use evil to counter evil, use good to repay good, never conspire with tigers or engage in dark deeds.'"
Listening to the ghost's wails from the pit, Xu Taiping muttered to himself, his expression unchanged.
"Boom!"
As the torch ignited the dry kindling below, the fire caught the alcohol fumes, flaring up in a towering blaze.
"Roar!..."
The instant the flames surged, a tiger's roar erupted from within the fire, and the flames took the form of a massive tiger head.
"How dare you kill my ghost servant?!"
The tiger demon roared at Xu Taiping.
"I heard you were severely wounded by some disciples of Seven Peaks and need three to five years to fully recover. Is that true?"
Thanks to the ghost's earlier words, Xu Taiping was not too surprised by the tiger demon's appearance. Instead, he smiled and asked the demon.
"Utter nonsense! My wounds will heal in no more than three months!"
The tiger demon nearly spat out its words in a rush.
But as soon as the words left its mouth, it realized something was wrong, and it roared in fury:
"How dare you trick me into speaking?!"