Chapter 31

"Make do with it... Little one, get out of the way!" Behind Wu Mian, the voice of Gui Bu Gui sounded, the last shout directed at him. As the sound faded, there was another whoosh from behind, and a lit fireball flew towards the figure.

Just as before, the moment the fireball was about to touch the figure, it turned into smoke. At this moment, there was a loud "bang!" as the fireball suddenly exploded in the smoke that had just spread out. Accompanied by a sharp howl, the smoke was scattered in all directions, and the dust from the explosion filled the air.

Wu Mian had not expected the old man to have such a move. He was pushed back seven or eight steps by the blast, and when he steadied himself, he felt a pain in his chest, only to find that his chest was already a bloody mess. He never thought this old man would have such a trump card. Seeing that the smoke had completely disappeared, he turned to look at Gui Bu Gui and said, "You planned to blow me up too, didn't you?"

At this moment, Gui Bu Gui had not expected the explosion to be so powerful. He stared wide-eyed at the shattered marble fragments on the ground after the explosion. Hearing Wu Mian's words, he finally calmed down. He chuckled and said, "I didn't expect it to be so powerful. I had only heard that when charcoal, sulfur, and saltpeter are mixed together, they can explode when ignited."

Pausing for a moment, Gui Bu Gui continued, "The only things that could be used on this poor soul were these few items. He hadn't given up on alchemy..."

Mentioning the steward, Wu Mian felt a twinge of guilt. He didn't want to continue this topic and asked about the figure that had been blown away: "What about the water demon just now? What is it, and why did Xu Fu hide it here?"

"You really wronged that old man," Gui Bu Gui sighed, looking at the spot where the water demon had been blown away. "The water demon is one of the six spirits Guangren created. Xu Fu could destroy it, but to control it, only Guangren could do it. Do you think a great alchemist would lend his disciple's spirit to someone else? Just like the terracotta warriors outside, this was likely Guangren's own idea."

At this moment, Wu Mian could barely walk and had no energy to think about the situation. Since Xu Fu's items had already been taken, he now needed to consider how to get out. By the time, it should already be daylight outside, and with Liu Bang's army entering the palace, it wouldn't be easy to slip away.

Just as Wu Mian was about to call Gui Bu Gui to leave, the old man's expression suddenly changed. He stared at Wu Mian's back and muttered, "When did you become so resistant to explosions..."

Wu Mian instantly reacted and turned around sharply. He saw that the black smoke from the explosion had condensed into a figure, but this time the figure seemed more listless and moved more slowly.

The figure looked at Wu Mian and Gui Bu Gui and suddenly spoke in a metallic voice: "I could have given you a quick death, but now I won't be satisfied unless I tear you both to pieces."

Gui Bu Gui's eyes widened as he looked at the figure and said, "When did you learn to speak? What has that little brat Guangren been up to for the past hundred years? Wait, why didn't you speak just now..." The old man paused, and a calculating expression appeared on his face.

Wu Mian couldn't wait for them to reminisce and said to Gui Bu Gui, "Another fireball! It can't take a second hit!" As he said this, the figure instantly turned into smoke and scattered far away. Unfortunately, the old man looked distressed and said, "Do you think I can make as many as I want? It's already a miracle I could make one."

The smoke condensed into a figure again, and after a strange laugh, it instantly appeared in front of Wu Mian. Before he could react, the object that was neither a knife nor a sword in its hand was already thrust into Wu Mian's chest.

At the same moment the object was thrust into Wu Mian's chest, Wu Mian also extended his right hand into the figure's body. But it was like grabbing air; he couldn't grasp anything solid and had to withdraw his hand helplessly. After this action, Wu Mian felt completely drained, and if not for the object in his chest, he would have collapsed on the ground. This result was expected by the figure, who paid no attention to Wu Mian's action.

In the figure's view, Wu Mian, now drained of energy, was at the end of his strength. His body's ability to heal had dropped to a very low level, and with the loss of blood from the wound, his head was already drooping, and his body hung on the figure's weapon, almost unconscious. It was just waiting for the figure to flip its wrist and split him in two like the steward.

Just as the figure was about to split Wu Mian in two, Wu Mian suddenly raised his left hand without warning and grabbed its wrist. This action startled the figure, as no one had ever managed to grab its physical form, not even Guangren, who created it.

With its wrist firmly grasped by the white-haired youth, the figure tried several times but couldn't pull free. Now, it couldn't even withdraw its hand, let alone split Wu Mian. At this moment, Wu Mian raised his other hand and again thrust it into the figure's body.

"Ahh!..." The figure suddenly let out a惨叫, its body instantly turning into smoke and spreading out in all directions. But this time, it was as if something was attracting it, and after a moment, it reformed into a figure.

At this moment, Wu Mian slowly raised his head and stared at the trembling figure, speaking in a voice that didn't belong to him, slowly and calmly: "Guangren still hasn't given up his meddlesome ways. I already told him that I would handle everything here and didn't need his interference. I never thought he would still act on his own and hide you here."

As he spoke, the figure looked at Wu Mian in fear, not understanding what was happening. Wu Mian gently squeezed the hand he had thrust into the figure's body, causing it to scream again. It had already collapsed on the ground, and if not for Wu Mian's grip, it would have been convulsing on the floor. Wu Mian looked at it with a faint smile and said, "Tell me, how did Guangren place the restriction on you?" The figure trembled and said, "Whoever... enters the... main altar... must be killed."

"Killed?" Wu Mian chuckled, staring at the figure in his hand and said, "When did Guangren become so formidable? If he had been this capable earlier, the position of Great Alchemist would have been passed to him long ago. Why should I have suffered for hundreds of years?"

After hearing this, the figure finally understood and trembled as it said, "You, Great Alchemist?" Wu Mian didn't answer but asked again, "One more time, how did Guangren place the restriction on you?"

This time, the figure didn't answer immediately. Its trembling grew more intense, as if it didn't dare to reveal the answer. Wu Mian, growing impatient, suddenly squeezed the figure's hand again, causing it to convulse uncontrollably. After a moment, Wu Mian slightly loosened his grip, and the figure hastily said, "He linked me to the main altar, but he didn't expect that you, the Great Alchemist, would return that night and break the altar's restriction, freeing me in the process..."

Wu Mian smiled helplessly and said, "It's my fault, but since it started because of me, I will also end it." After a pause, his expression turned calm, and he continued, "You have been a spirit for over two hundred years, unable to reincarnate, and thus harbored resentment. It was also my fault and my disciple's. Let's settle this today."

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