Chapter 8

Since escaping from the blood-soaked Moon Viewing Pavilion, Jiang Wang had not had a full night's sleep, so this time he slept particularly long.

He had many dreams. He dreamed of himself slaughtering all around on the sword platform, of his cultivation advancing by leaps and bounds, riding the wind and breaking through the clouds. He dreamed of the vast sky, with five streaks of light moving swiftly, five streaks...

He woke up.

He sat up silently, leaning against the headboard, unable to distinguish whether the sudden feeling was one of palpitation or sorrow.

He shook his head, gathering his thoughts.

By now, it was already night outside the window, and he was still alone in the dormitory.

Jiang Wang frowned.

Du Yehu could drink for days and nights, which was quite normal, but Ling He always followed the rules and would never stay out all night.

The dormitories for the outer disciples of Maple Forest Dao Academy were a row of connected bungalows. He put on his clothes and went out, finding the door of the opposite dormitory tightly closed, and the surrounding area was very quiet, with a strange chill in the corridor.

Jiang Wang casually stopped a passing figure, "Fellow disciple, have you seen Senior Brother Ling He?"

"Ling He? I haven't seen him." The person replied in a very stiff voice.

While answering, he shook his head.

Bang!

His head actually broke off and fell to the ground, rolling a few times.

He shook off his head!

Looking at the headless body that had just been speaking, Jiang Wang felt a chill rise from his coccyx, rushing to his head.

But he had been through many battles, and instinctively took a step back, preparing to retreat to the dormitory to at least retrieve his weapon.

However, the dormitory door suddenly closed tightly, and he couldn't push it open! It was as if someone inside the room was holding the door, preventing him from entering.

At that moment, the headless body turned around, spread its arms, and ran towards him! The head that had fallen to the ground suddenly shot up, colliding with Jiang Wang even before the body! It had long hair, a twisted and fierce face, a sunken nose, and bulging eyes.

A midnight ghost, a deadly evil spirit.

"Playing tricks!" Jiang Wang roared, hoping to alert other outer disciples in the dormitories, while retreating violently.

This was Maple Forest Dao Academy, with Fifth Rank cultivator Dong A in charge. Any unusual movement would be suppressed! No matter what strange and evil entity, it would not dare to cause too much commotion. If he could escape directly, it would be the best strategy.

But the head's shooting speed was too fast, and Jiang Wang couldn't escape in time.

So he took a few steps back, suddenly leaped into the air, and channeled one of the two Dao Yuan in his Dao Pulse into his right leg. Then he twisted his body and kicked backward in the air.

With the Dao Yuan's explosive power, this kick had far greater force than before.

The images of gods, ghosts, and demons were not just legends. Although Jiang Wang had not yet fully transcended, he had long seen the world of the transcendent. He had killed people and seen blood, and had already honed his courage.

He told himself in his mind, it's just a ball, not a head, just a ball!

Bang!

The boot and the head collided decisively. The head shot back at an even faster speed, hitting the headless body and causing it to stagger.

A soccer kick!

At the same time, Jiang Wang felt a sharp pain in his foot. It turned out that the head had opened its bloody mouth and torn a strip of flesh from his shoe while he was kicking it!

The wound was faintly blue.

Jiang Wang knew it was not good, probably the effect of some kind of corpse poison.

But his goal of using an attack to block the enemy had been achieved. He did not hesitate and turned to run.

He ran a few steps to the end of the corridor, but was blocked by a transparent layer of primordial energy.

The force was not strong, but it was very resilient, firmly blocking his path. This was a setup for an ambush!

Jiang Wang's mind raced, and the last Dao Yuan in his Dao Pulse burst open, gathering at his right shoulder.

He exerted all his strength and charged with his shoulder!

"Open up for me!!!"

Jiang Wang felt his body become light, and he had already escaped from the corridor between the two rows of dormitories.

Then he heard the wind, the chirping of insects, and the voices of returning outer disciples... the sounds of the night.

The quiet environment had been broken.

"Senior Brother Jiang Wang, what are you doing?"

"Senior Brother, why are you injured?"

Some outer disciples who saw Jiang Wang came over to greet him.

Hearing the familiar greetings of his fellow disciples, Jiang Wang knew he was out of danger. He turned and rushed back to the corridor, which was indeed empty.

The headless body and the head had already disappeared.

Some of the dormitory doors were pushed open, and people asked, "What happened? Why couldn't we open the door just now?"

A frightened voice shouted, "D... dead!"

Jiang Wang rushed into the dormitory where the shout came from and found the missing decapitated body. He and his head were lying on the ground, still with a twisted and fierce face.

Trembling in the corner should have been his panicked roommate.

The opponent had demonstrated at least the left-hand corpse control technique and orthodox water element Dao techniques. Or rather, there was more than one opponent.

Jiang Wang's mind raced, and he decisively spoke, "A left-hand practitioner attacked the outer disciples at night, skilled in Dao techniques and already transcended! Their strength should be around the Ninth Rank. Fellow disciples, take care of yourselves, act in groups of five, and respond to each other! From now on, the dormitory area will be sealed, and no one is allowed to enter or leave. I will immediately report to the inner disciples!"

The anxious outer disciples immediately had a leader and followed his instructions.

Jiang Wang immediately turned and ran towards the inner courtyard.

The entire eastern part of the city was the Maple Forest Dao Academy and its affiliated properties, but strictly speaking, only the central area of the eastern district, surrounded by high walls, was the true Maple Forest Dao Academy. Outer disciples like Jiang Wang were scattered around the academy.

Compared to the grand archway and the wealthy jade lions at the outer courtyard, the inner courtyard's gate was much smaller, barely wide enough for four people to walk side by side. However, just from the plaque with dragons and phoenixes, which emitted a faint glow in the night, one could see the intricate craftsmanship.

In front of the inner courtyard gate was a small pavilion, with only two flowing cloud lanterns hanging in front and a single ice grass mat inside. A handsome Taoist in a hemp robe was sitting cross-legged on the mat, meditating with his eyes closed. This was today's on-duty inner disciple, Li Jianqiu.

Jiang Wang ran to this point, hurriedly bowed, "Senior Brother Li, a left-hand practitioner attacked the outer disciples, and one of our fellow disciples has already been killed! Please come and take charge!"

For outer disciples, every inner disciple who had embarked on the path of cultivation was a star-like figure. After being in the academy for so long, Jiang Wang naturally knew them all. And for Li Jianqiu, Jiang Wang, who had initiated a Dao Proof Duel and had the Dean personally arbitrate, was certainly not an unknown figure, and as the on-duty disciple, he had a duty to act.

Therefore, he only heard one sentence and immediately drew his sword and stood up.

"No need." A stern voice sounded, and Li Jianqiu immediately sheathed his sword and bowed.

Dean Dong A appeared at the inner courtyard gate, his expression cold and hard, almost ugly: "I will handle this personally."

"Corpse Qi." He looked at the wound on Jiang Wang's foot, where the flying head had bitten, and extended his index finger. Without any other movement, a green needle had already formed.

Jiang Wang only then noticed that the wound on his foot had already become infected, and was now oozing black blood, causing him to feel a chill.

"C-class mid-grade Dao technique, Poison Absorption Needle. This technique is very practical and can be used up to the middle stage."

While casually explaining, Dong A lightly touched the wound with his index finger.

Apart from super-grade Dao techniques, ordinary Dao techniques were divided into four grades and twelve ranks. The vast ocean of Dao techniques could not be fully explored in a lifetime. Each cultivator on the path of transcendence must clearly understand what kind of Dao techniques they are most suitable for and, through constant battles and exploration, form their own combat system.

The needle was inserted into the wound on Jiang Wang's foot, turning black at a visible speed. In a few breaths, the green needle had turned completely black, and the wound no longer showed any blue-black color, but instead oozed fresh red blood.

Jiang Wang quickly tore off a piece of his clothing to bandage the wound.

Li Jianqiu watched this scene silently, deep in thought.

At this moment, Dong A asked, "What happened?"

Jiang Wang briefly recounted the events, then stopped, offering no further opinion. He believed, and could only believe, that the Dean of Maple Forest City Dao Academy would give him justice for the assassination attempt in the academy.

The corners of Dong A's mouth curled up, but his serious expression made the smile particularly chilling.

"Left-hand practitioners, daring to cause trouble in Maple Forest City Dao Academy, this is a challenge to the authority of the academy and to me, Dong A!"

He spread his Dao robe, extended his fingers, and pressed them to the ground!

"Jade Cage!"

With his fingers as the center, the intangible power of the Wood Dao spread in all directions.

All the gates of the entire academy slammed shut, and branches sprouted and grew wildly.

The ivy on the walls shot up like snakes, intertwining in the air.

All the wooden objects in the entire academy underwent a transformation.

Wooden chairs sprouted branches, wooden windows extended claws, giant trees broke through the soil, and thorns danced wildly!

In an instant, the entire Maple Forest Dao Academy became a green prison under the night sky!