Chapter 61

"Stop!!" Suddenly, a furious shout halted Bai Chen and the giant zombie's next move.

Yin Jueqing had appeared behind the crowd at some unknown point, and he was gripping Qin Kelan's neck.

Qin Kelan's face was pale, with tears still wet on the corners of her eyes, and a trail of blood hung from the corner of her mouth.

Seeing that Qin Kelan was unharmed, Bai Chen's heart relaxed slightly.

However, when he saw her pale face, the anger in his heart flared up again.

"If you don't want her to die, you'd better not move another inch." Yin Jueqing's sinister gaze was like a hidden dagger in the dark, always ready to strike.

Yin Jueqing, holding Qin Kelan, slowly walked up to Bai Chen. "Bai Chen, you've destroyed everything I had. Now your woman is in my hands. If you make any sudden moves, I won't hesitate to destroy her."

Upon hearing Yin Jueqing's words, everyone felt as if they were in a dream, especially Long Xing.

He clearly remembered that Bai Chen and Qin Kelan were enemies. It was Qin Kelan and Yin Jueqing's alliance that led to the downfall of the Xiuzhi Sect and put Bai Chen in danger.

How could Qin Kelan suddenly become Bai Chen's woman in the blink of an eye?

"Bai Chen, kill him! Don't worry about me." Qin Kelan's eyes were blurred with tears, but the hatred in them had not diminished.

Clearly, her hatred for Yin Jueqing made her willing to give up everything, even her own life.

Bai Chen smiled. "No."

"Hehe... I knew it. How could someone like you watch your woman die in front of you? I'll give you credit for knowing when to back down."

Yin Jueqing showed no sign of being cornered; instead, he was delighted that his plan had succeeded.

"State your terms. What will it take to release her?"

Yin Jueqing glanced at the giant worm on the ground. "Let it go."

"Give a more practical condition. It's not your son, and even if you save it now, we'll just kill it again."

Yin Jueqing's face grew colder, and the others couldn't help but feel uneasy. Bai Chen's words were truly despicable.

"Don't worry about that. If you try any tricks, I'll make Qin Kelan accompany the worm king in death."

"Seniors, do you have any confidence in killing him without harming Qin Kelan?"

Mei Jiangxue and the others all shook their heads slightly, their brows furrowing. Bai Chen's words were clearly provoking Yin Jueqing's nerves.

"What did you say?" Indeed, Yin Jueqing's face turned angry, and he gripped Qin Kelan's wrist even tighter.

Clearly, holding Qin Kelan hostage in the midst of so many experts was putting a lot of pressure on him.

No matter how cold and ruthless he was, the pressure of overwhelming force was immense.

"Why so tense? I was just asking. If the seniors can do it, it would save me a lot of trouble, wouldn't it?"

Qin Kelan, however, smiled through her anger. She and Bai Chen had clashed several times, and each time she had gone with high hopes and returned in defeat.

Bai Chen was a scoundrel who never played by the rules.

His enemies, when facing him, experienced more than just headaches.

His bizarre tactics seemed endless.

And each time he said something without thinking, it would provoke his opponents.

He was the kind of person who made his enemies grind their teeth in hatred but made his friends smile.

Yin Jueqing was almost fuming with rage. Even if you were going to make a move, at least do it behind my back.

Asking so openly was a clear sign of disrespect.

Bai Chen shrugged helplessly. "Since you're so eager to save your son's life, I'll leave it to you. After all, you can't hide forever. Whether you die a few days earlier or later doesn't make much difference."

Bai Chen spoke calmly, but Yin Jueqing's ears burned, and his face turned ashen with murderous intent.

"Do you think you can still kill me after today?"

Yin Jueqing snarled, his eyes darting to the worm king on the ground, which was barely alive, his eyes gleaming with a strange light.

"Alright, let Qin Kelan go, and I promise not to attack you here."

"Do you think I'll believe you?"

Not just Yin Jueqing, but even the others present didn't believe Bai Chen's promise.

This kid was full of lies, and it would be a miracle if even one in ten of his words were true.

"Don't think you can leave first and then release her. I still don't trust you. You have two choices: release her, and I'll let you and your son go, or we both die."

Yin Jueqing's face grew even uglier. While Bai Chen was threatening him, he was also insulting him.

If not for the situation, he would have loved to flay Bai Chen alive.

However, Yin Jueqing had anticipated this scenario and took a small step back.

"Everyone, step back ten paces."

Everyone wanted to see what trick Yin Jueqing had up his sleeve, so they all stepped back ten paces, except for Bai Chen, who remained unmoved.

"Step back too! Or else..."

"Or else what? Kill Qin Kelan? If you hurt a single hair on her, I'll make you regret your decision today!" Bai Chen's face suddenly changed, and a fierce light appeared in his eyes.

The worm king, which had been lying on the ground, suddenly stirred and began to move again.

This time, it seemed to have learned its lesson, no longer acting as viciously as before, but cautiously contracting its body and moving towards the cave.

A cold smile appeared on Yin Jueqing's lips, and he suddenly slapped Qin Kelan's back. She flew out with a cry.

Bai Chen quickly caught her, holding her tenderly. "Are you okay?"

Qin Kelan's hair was disheveled, and her face was extremely pale, but she felt the warmth of Bai Chen's embrace and said softly, "I'm fine."

Bai Chen probed Qin Kelan's body with his true qi and found no signs of evil qi, which slightly eased his mind.

When he looked back at Yin Jueqing, he had already fled into the worm tomb.

As the giant body disappeared into the deep cave, countless zombies began to emerge from the tomb.

"How can there be so many zombies?"

"Could the Yin Xu Sect have been breeding zombies all along?"

Everyone's faces changed dramatically, especially the Medicine Master, Poison Master, and Mei Jiangxue, who had experienced the era of zombie rampages.

The appearance of one or two zombies wouldn't cause panic.

Many sects had one or two zombies, each with their own reasons for keeping them.

But a large wave of zombies was something that couldn't be explained away.

Now, the only ones who dared to openly breed zombies on such a large scale were the Five Poisons Sect of the Southern Miao and the Tianyi Sect of the Northern Miao.

The giant zombie glanced at Bai Chen and said in a calm tone, "You shouldn't have let the worm king go."

"Heroes have short tempers, and love is a long affair. In life, one must have something to care about, right? Don't you have anyone or anything you care about?"

The giant zombie looked at Bai Chen again, this time with a hint of approval in his eyes.

"Heroes have short tempers, and love is a long affair! Your words always make sense." The giant zombie shook his head with a bitter smile.

"Seniors, please take care of Qin Kelan. I caused this mess, and now I'll clean it up."

Bai Chen looked at the endless stream of zombies emerging from the cave, too numerous to count.

"Kid, the zombies in this worm tomb have been bred for generations. There are probably at least eight thousand, if not ten thousand, and among them are zombie kings like the one you faced. With the people you have, it's unlikely you can stop them all without a significant loss of life." Jiesha suddenly spoke up.

"What do you suggest? We can't just let these zombies wreak havoc on the innocent, can we?"

"I have a plan, but it depends on whether you're willing to go along with it."

Jiesha's words were cryptic, and his tone reminded Bai Chen of the last time Jiesha had schemed against him.

"Speak your mind, and get to the point."

"One million merits for a copy of the 'Buddha's World Purification Spell.'"

"One million merits for a spell book? Are you crazy, or do you think I'm crazy? I don't have one million merits, and even if I did, I wouldn't be that foolish."

"This 'Buddha's World Purification Spell' may not be very effective against ordinary people, but it is highly effective against these foul creatures. As for the one million merits, you can owe me and pay it off with your next batch of merits. How about that?"

Jiesha never did anything without a profit. His sensitivity to merits was like a hungry dog's sensitivity to food.

The idea of paying with future merits immediately put Bai Chen on guard.

"Is purifying these zombies worth a lot of merits?" Bai Chen asked tentatively.

"Very little. Saving a person earns you 10 merits, but purifying a zombie only earns you 1 merit. Even if you purify a million zombies, I might not make a profit. I'm just doing this out of compassion for the people. If these zombies escape, they will cause great harm. This is a loss for me, but I'm doing it out of compassion." Jiesha said with a pained expression.

If Jiesha were truly compassionate, Bai Chen wouldn't believe it. This wine-drinking monk always talked about the will of heaven, so why would he suddenly use the people as an excuse?

Bai Chen was more cautious this time. "Half of my next batch of merits. Take it or leave it."

"You, why can't you understand my compassion? Eighty percent, and if you don't agree, I'll let it go. But think of the people who will suffer and the families that will be destroyed..."

"Stop pretending to be a virtuous monk. Even a butcher is more compassionate than you. Sixty percent, no more. If you don't agree, I'll die here today, but at least I'll have done my part. The suffering people will be your responsibility to explain to the Buddha."

"Damn you, this is your mess, why should I explain it to the Buddha? Seventy percent! Can't you do it for the sake of the people and save the world?"

"Seventy percent it is, but remember, that one million merits won't be deducted from my merit book."

"I'm always fair and selfless. Do you think I'd covet your pitiful merits? Stop talking nonsense and clear your mind of impure thoughts."

After some haggling, the two shameless individuals, under the guise of saving the world, finally agreed on a price.

"Take it! Buddha's World Purification Spell!"

Boom—

A vast and boundless righteous energy instantly surged into Bai Chen's mind.