Chapter 95: This Background Is Truly Poor

Chen Xiyi looked at Wang Jiu kneeling on the ground. Wang Jiu’s internal senses were already completely disrupted by his Illusion Art. Wang Jiu thought he might have a chance, but from the very beginning, he had fallen into Chen Xiyi’s control.

At that moment, he truly felt the difference between a Qi Refiner and a non-Qi Refiner. Wang Jiu had to painstakingly use talismans and Ritual Implements to cast his Illusion Art, while Chen Xiyi simply manipulated the Qi Mechanism with his Primordial Spirit to seize control of Wang Jiu’s work and even turned it against him.

This Illusion Art was not cast by Chen Xiyi; it was Wang Jiu’s spell intended for the guards. Chen Xiyi just took over what was already there.

From the moment Wang Jiu approached the Merchant Caravan to cast his Illusion Art, he was already trapped in one himself.

Chen Xiyi knew Wang Jiu would come at night, so he did not forget about him. Since nightfall, Chen Xiyi had been watching him on his Game Map. He was already prepared when Wang Jiu approached the Merchant Caravan.

He certainly couldn’t wait until Wang Jiu actually arrived to start preparing. If he had the ability to prepare in advance, of course he should take every precaution.

If the Illusion Art failed, Chen Xiyi planned to counter with other methods. As a last resort, he could even pull out his Firearm and shoot Wang Jiu.

Chen Xiyi took out a dried fox head from Wang Jiu, who was still mumbling and begging for mercy, and placed it aside with a look of disgust.

It wasn’t the fox head he disliked, but the fact that it hadn’t been properly preserved. The foul smell made him uncomfortable.

Besides the fox head, he also found a stack of talismans. Chen Xiyi examined them carefully. He didn’t know exactly what they did, but most were made by combining Yin Qi and cold Qi Mechanisms—likely for underhanded methods.

If they were made with Yang Qi, Human Qi, or the Five Elements Qi, they might have been legitimate talismans. But talismans imbued with Yin Qi, Death Qi, and other ominous-sounding Qi Mechanisms were definitely not good news.

Aside from these, there was also a jade ring and a golden locket—both were Ritual Implements.

The jade ring was based mainly on Wood Qi, Water Qi, Human Qi, and Yang Qi, clearly a healing-type Ritual Implement. As for the golden locket, it seemed somewhat dubious, carved with a herd of sheep and imbued primarily with Demonic Energy and Yin Qi.

Chen Xiyi guessed that it probably cast a spell to turn someone into a sheep after covering them in sheepskin.

After searching Wang Jiu multiple times and confirming he had no other talismans or Ritual Implements, Chen Xiyi tied him securely with a leather rope.

“It seems this Illusion Art that affects the Five Senses is truly powerful. With all the noise I’m making, he doesn’t even react.”

Wang Jiu’s fox head Ritual Implement’s Illusion Art was clearly different from the one used by the Fox Demon he encountered at the fox grave mound.

The fox head Ritual Implement targeted a person’s Five Senses, while the Fox Demon’s Illusion Art targeted the environment.

All things considered, the Five Senses-type Illusion Art was more subtle. Otherwise, how could it affect all those guards so quickly?

As for the Fox Demon’s Illusion Art, it was a large-scale illusion. Without favorable conditions, ordinary people couldn’t cast it. Only Qi Refiners could perform it independently, and even then, they had to be at least in the Spirit Wandering Realm.

A Primordial Spirit in the Qi Controlling Realm couldn’t support it. Otherwise, like that Fox Demon, they would need to rely on favorable conditions. Of course, if a Qi Refiner did use favorable conditions to cast an Illusion Art, its power would certainly be greater than the Fox Demon’s.

At this thought, Chen Xiyi couldn’t help but complain that he, as a Qi Refiner, was truly lacking.

After all, he was just a beginner—a newbie among newbies.

Yet even he, as a newbie, could easily overpower Wang Jiu, a Magician from the Jianghu, showing that the problem wasn’t the Qi Refiner profession, but Chen Xiyi himself.

After tying Wang Jiu up, Chen Xiyi casually hung him upside down.

He slapped Wang Jiu across the face, and Wang Jiu abruptly woke up. By then, Wang Jiu was already paranoid, unsure if he was still in an illusion.

Chen Xiyi’s slap, imbued with the Power of his Primordial Spirit, dispersed the Qi Mechanisms that had invaded Wang Jiu’s body and created the illusion. Wang Jiu was now free from the Illusion Art.

Of course, an ordinary person couldn’t snap someone out of an illusion just by slapping them. Chen Xiyi’s slap carried the force of his Primordial Spirit, which made it possible.

“Tell me, where did you learn these unorthodox methods?” Chen Xiyi asked.

“What?” Wang Jiu was stunned; he hadn’t expected such a question.

Chen Xiyi fiddled with the golden locket. Though he didn’t know its name, a simple analysis quickly revealed how to use it.

This was likely crafted by Wang Jiu himself. In the eyes of these people, it was an impressive Ritual Implement, and crafting it must have been quite difficult.

If nothing else, obtaining the Demonic Energy used as its core couldn’t have been easy.

Humans have Human Qi, demons have Demonic Energy, and ghosts have Ghost Qi. The Demonic Energy inside this locket probably came from a sheep demon, serving as the core to transform someone into a sheep after covering them in sheepskin. The Yin Qi, on the other hand, was used to supply energy.

Wang Jiu watched Chen Xiyi playing with the golden locket and felt a sinking feeling in his heart. He knew his secrets were exposed.

“If I tell you, could you let me go for the sake of the person backing me?” Wang Jiu asked.

Chen Xiyi smiled. “Of course I can let you go. I don’t want to make an enemy of your backer.”

These words gave Wang Jiu a glimmer of hope, and he hurriedly tried to say more, but Chen Xiyi spoke again.

“But first you tried to kill me, and now you’re bringing up your backer. If I let you off that easily, wouldn’t it make me seem easy to push around? Don’t you think?”

Hearing this, Wang Jiu didn’t know whether to agree or disagree.

He could see that Chen Xiyi wanted something in return. Though he felt unhappy about it, his life was in Chen Xiyi’s hands. If he dared to argue, he might be killed on the spot.

“You’re right. Just tell me what you want, and I’ll give you everything I have.” Seeing the situation, Wang Jiu decided to go all in.

“Which school’s methods do you practice?” Chen Xiyi asked.

“Thanks to my late master’s kindness, I am of the Resentful Child school. My master was quite well-known in the Jianghu…” Wang Jiu said quickly, hoping to show he had connections.

Chen Xiyi sneered. “Your master was famous in the Jianghu? Is he alive or dead? Do people still respect him?”

Given Chen Xiyi’s age, unless Wang Jiu’s master was a Qi Refiner, he was probably long dead.

Wang Jiu grew more uneasy. He felt Chen Xiyi’s malice becoming increasingly obvious.

“Just tell me what you want,” Wang Jiu said, realizing Chen Xiyi wasn’t afraid of his backer, let alone his declining Resentful Child school. Twenty years ago, when his master was alive, no one would have dared treat him like this.

“I want the legacy of your Resentful Child school,” Chen Xiyi said coldly.

“Impossible,” Wang Jiu refused without thinking.

Everyone valued their legacy highly. Even someone like Cheng Zhen, who had attachments and a good relationship with Chen Xiyi, only traded it because Chen Xiyi offered so much.

Even someone like Wang Jiu, who engaged in shady dealings and scams, had this awareness.

“Oh, then I’ll send you to your death,” Chen Xiyi said decisively.

This time, Wang Jiu was stunned. He regretted his rash refusal. Why didn’t this guy follow the usual script? Normally, there should be more negotiation, maybe some threats or persuasion.

Cutting off his escape route like this wasn’t right.

He had refused instinctively, influenced by the idea that legacies shouldn’t be shared, but that didn’t reflect his true feelings.

His life was more important than his legacy. If he had such strong principles, he wouldn’t be involved in shady dealings and scams.

“Wait, wait! We can discuss this, we can discuss it!” Seeing Chen Xiyi approach with his dagger, Wang Jiu panicked and tried to explain.

“Discuss? What is there to discuss? You give me your legacy, I let you live—isn’t that straightforward?”

As a Player, Chen Xiyi couldn’t keep promises; he could only survive by deceiving others.

Besides, why keep promises to someone like Wang Jiu, who trafficked people and did dirty work?

“By the way, have you heard of Lingchi?” Chen Xiyi asked suddenly as he approached with the dagger.

“What?”

“To put it simply, it means death by a thousand cuts. I’ve tried it a few times before with a dull knife, but it didn’t work well. No one lasted until I finished. This time, with a dagger, it might be a bit faster. I hope you can hold on until I’m done.” Chen Xiyi began by slicing off a piece.

With the precision granted by his Primordial Spirit, Chen Xiyi’s hands were not only steady but also incredibly fast—an indirect application of his Primordial Spirit.

Wang Jiu couldn’t help but scream in agony, but Chen Xiyi had already set up a Formation Array with Qi Mechanisms in the carriage to block sound.

No matter how loudly Wang Jiu screamed, the noise didn’t escape.

Before he could finish screaming, Chen Xiyi sliced off another piece, pushing Wang Jiu to the brink of despair.

Not because of anything else, but because Chen Xiyi’s slices were so thin that light could pass through them. At this rate, when would he finally die?

What’s more, Chen Xiyi specifically targeted his face. Though the slices were thin, they covered a large area, almost like skinning him.

“Wait, I’ll give it to you, I’ll give it to you! Just let me go.”

Just as Chen Xiyi sliced off the third piece, Wang Jiu started begging for mercy.

“Don’t rush. This is just the beginning. I need to indulge myself a bit more.” Chen Xiyi made another cut.

This time, Wang Jiu’s composure shattered completely. What kind of indulgence was this? How could anyone have a craving for this?

Especially with Chen Xiyi’s serious expression, Wang Jiu felt utterly unnerved, thinking Chen Xiyi might actually mean it.

“I’ll talk, I’ll tell you everything! Just stop cutting!”

After five consecutive slices, Chen Xiyi left Wang Jiu’s face without a single patch of intact skin.

“Look, I tried to reason with you nicely, but you wouldn’t listen. You forced me to resort to violence. I’m a scholar who usually reads the Spring and Autumn Annals, yet you drove me to this. Whose fault is it?” Chen Xiyi used the dagger to cut the leather rope, and Wang Jiu fell face down.

The contact between his wounds and the floor caused excruciating pain.

Chen Xiyi crouched down, wiped the filth from his hands onto Wang Jiu’s clothes, then lifted him up. Ignoring Wang Jiu’s pained expression, he continued, “Where is the legacy of your Resentful Child school?”

Wang Jiu staggered to his feet, gasping for breath, blood streaming down his face and soaking into his clothes.

“I didn’t bring it with me. I left it in a ruined temple not far from here,” Wang Jiu said, trembling.

He truly didn’t dare lie to Chen Xiyi now, convinced that this man was even more wicked than himself. After all, who would use a dull knife for death by a thousand cuts? That was extreme cruelty.

“Tsk, I hope you’re not lying. Otherwise, I’ve heard that if a person freezes in the snow, it makes slicing much smoother.” Chen Xiyi kindly reminded Wang Jiu.

“Don’t worry, sir. I… I understand,” Wang Jiu said, shivering at Chen Xiyi’s description, his heart filled with bitterness.