Chapter 46

Sun Ergou cut off a hind leg from the wolf's corpse to use as bait, not minding the dirt, and strode toward the Ghost Gate Abyss. He was short, with small steps, and the wolf's leg bumped against his knees, making it very inconvenient.

"Need any help?"

Sun Ergou looked up at Wei Shiqi, a bit discouraged, and stretched out his arm to hand over the bait. He thought to himself, he was still growing too slowly; when would he be as tall and strong as him?

The three of them crossed a mountain and went through a narrow pass, arriving at the stone bridge before the Ghost Gate Abyss.

Wei Shiqi held the iron rod in his hand and tightened the Dragon-Seeking Sword on his back. He hadn't found a scabbard in the snow cave, so he had to use two pieces of wood to clamp the blade and tie it to his back with tree bark.

Sun Ergou was much more casual. He pressed the sword pouch at his waist and drew out a long, white phosphorescent whip. The head of the whip was the upper half of a human skeleton, with crossed hands on the chest, and green ghostly flames flickering in the skull's eyes. The body of the whip was a complete python skeleton, the tail held in his hand. With a slight shake, the python bone whip came to life, swaying and moving in the grass, making a creaking sound.

Qin Zhen, who was naturally afraid of snakes, involuntarily took a few steps back. The blue wolf approached her, growling low at the python bone whip, showing great caution.

"Brother Shiqi, is that blue wolf your spirit pet?"

"It's an old hunting partner from Lao Ya Ridge, just a regular wolf, not a spirit pet."

"Brother Shiqi, there's no need to hide it; it has a hidden aura, clearly already enlightened."

Wei Shiqi chuckled, "It's still far from it; who knows when it will develop intelligence."

"As long as it lives long enough, there will always be a chance." Sun Ergou flicked his wrist, and the human skeleton at the head of the whip suddenly spread its arms, firmly holding the wolf's hind leg and throwing it into the Ghost Gate Abyss. The whip extended and disappeared into the mist.

Sun Ergou smiled at Wei Shiqi, sat down cross-legged, and waited patiently, like a fisherman. As the saying goes, dig a deep pit to wait for tigers and leopards, and cast sweet bait to catch golden turtles.

A moment later, a sharp scream echoed, and the python bone whip trembled violently, as if it had caught something heavy. Sun Ergou's eyes lit up, and he shouted, "It's hooked!" He activated the yuan qi in his body, and with a loud cry, the python bone whip was thrown high. The skull at the head of the whip grabbed a human-faced dove, pulling it up and down like a kite.

"Move!" Sun Ergou gripped the whip tightly and pulled it down with all his strength. The python bone whip contracted, forcibly pulling the human-faced dove down. Wei Shiqi was ready, using his legs, waist, and abdomen to leap high into the air, swinging the iron rod to strike the junction of the left wing and body of the human-faced dove. With a "crack," the bones shattered, and the wing hung limply.

The human-faced dove let out a strange cry, like a kite with a broken string, and plunged into the cliff, dazed. The python bone whip changed again, wrapping around it tightly. The human-faced dove, in pain, opened its mouth and bit the whip, shattering its teeth, but leaving no marks.

Wei Shiqi reduced his strength and took the opportunity to strike the back of the human-faced dove's head with the iron rod, knocking it unconscious.

Sun Ergou breathed a sigh of relief, about to put the prey into the spirit beast bag, when two more human-faced doves flew out from the Ghost Gate Abyss, screeching and attacking Wei and Sun.

"Be careful!" Wei Shiqi only had time to warn before the human-faced doves pounced, their wings creating a strong wind, and their claws reaching out. He rolled on the ground, and before he could stand up, he swept the iron rod along the ground. The human-faced dove was very agile, using one claw to press the iron rod and the other to quickly reach for Wei Shiqi's head.

Seeing her senior brother in danger, Qin Zhen's face turned pale with shock, and she rushed forward, but the blue wolf bit her clothes and dragged her back.

A yellow light flashed, and the human-faced dove's claws, like clay and paper, were severed in mid-air. Wei Shiqi had timely drawn the Dragon-Seeking Sword, striking successfully.

The human-faced dove screeched, flapping its wings, but before it could rise more than a few feet, Wei Shiqi darted under it, and another yellow light flashed, slicing open its belly. Its organs and blood spilled out, and its body fell heavily to the ground.

The Dragon-Seeking Sword remained spotless, like clear water, almost melting in the sunlight.

Sun Ergou didn't pay attention to the Dragon-Seeking Sword. Although his cultivation was high, he had few opportunities to fight. Seeing the human-faced dove attack him, he was momentarily flustered, struggling to defend himself. Fortunately, he didn't panic, quickly discarding the unconscious human-faced dove and activating the python bone whip to protect himself, retreating step by step into the dense forest, taking advantage of the terrain. The human-faced dove, unable to spread its wings in the forest and having lost its companion, screeched and flew up, diving back into the Ghost Gate Abyss.

The mist swallowed the human-faced dove, and its sharp screech echoed through the mountains. Wei Shiqi's alertness grew stronger. He sheathed his sword and quickly returned to Qin Zhen's side, picking her up without a word and placing her on the blue wolf's back. He pointed toward the stone stele, and the blue wolf understood, dashing off like an arrow. "Senior brother—" Qin Zhen's voice was tinged with tears, quickly disappearing in the wind.

Three human-faced doves, one dead, one injured, and one escaped. Sun Ergou breathed a sigh of relief, feeling a weight lifted from his heart, but his face was somewhat uncomfortable. As a prestigious inner disciple of Pingyuan Sect, he was actually outmatched by a trial disciple from Xiandu. It was too embarrassing to admit! He was depressed and took a step toward the unconscious human-faced dove, "Wait!" Wei Shiqi called out, stepping back.

Sun Ergou was startled and looked up. He saw the mist in the Ghost Gate Abyss spreading, and a huge human-faced dove spreading its wings, silently flying over his head.