Old Seven collapsed to the ground, aware that he had been outwitted. He struggled with all his might, but to onlookers, he seemed to shiver uncontrollably. His strength mysteriously drained away, leaving him limp and lifeless, like a pile of mush.

His vision darkened as the Ethereal Rhinoceros Hermit circled the fire and approached. At this point, Old Seven truly began to tremble.

"Oh, Old Seven, Old Seven, what am I to say about you? Zhao asked you to meet with me, and you actually came? I, the Ethereal Rhinoceros Hermit, consider myself a wolf cub that can never be tamed. Zhao knows this – don't you? Ah, but your courage, I must say, is quite admirable!"

Now, Old Seven lacked even the strength to speak, lying prostrate with his head buried in the damp soil.

The Ethereal Rhinoceros Hermit squatted down, yanked his head up by the hair, and saw, as expected, a face twisted with resentment. "What's the matter? Can't accept your fate? Or are you waiting for Old Three to make a move?"

At these words, Old Seven's face was involuntarily filled with astonishment.

The Ethereal Rhinoceros Hermit burst into laughter, then suddenly flung Old Seven's head down, smashing his face almost flat, the blood smearing his features, as he struggled to breathe in more than he could breathe out.

Just as he exerted force, a furious roar sounded from outside the Underground Cave, accompanied by a ghastly white Skull Rosary flying from the direction of the roar. The hollow eyes of the skulls glinted with a dim green light, creating a chilling ambiance that made the temperature in the fire-lit Underground Cave drop sharply.

The Ethereal Rhinoceros Hermit's laughter continued unabated. He casually tossed Old Seven aside and his figure swayed. Without seeming to move quickly, he became a blur, and the Skull Rosary missed its target.

But at that moment, the chilly ground suddenly cracked open, and a shadow burst forth right under the Ethereal Rhinoceros Hermit's feet. Its fingers were bent like iron hooks, charged with the power of True Sha, and it grabbed hold with such force that the Ethereal Rhinoceros Hermit's leg bones seemed on the verge of shattering.

At this critical juncture, the Ethereal Rhinoceros Hermit didn't dodge. Instead, he stood still, allowing the hand to grasp him squarely.

The person below let out a sinister laugh, ready to exert more force, when suddenly, a shiver ran through them, and a chill seemed to seep out from every pore. Inexplicably, their grip weakened. At that moment, the Ethereal Rhinoceros Hermit lifted his foot, and the fingers that had clamped around his ankle lost their effect and loosened with a shake.

With a forceful step, he trod on the man's head, pressing it hard into the soil. Half of the man's body was buried in the ground, and he struggled violently, but in the end, all that could be heard were his muffled curses.

Having subdued two foes with a flick of his wrists, the Ethereal Rhinoceros Hermit dusted off his sleeves and said with a smile, "I still exercise caution with Zhao's methods, but you fools who scavenge behind him, what right do you have to stand against me?"

The man on the ground could only whimper in response.

"Are you wondering how I've suddenly reappeared, when not long ago I was like a skilled cook without rice, having used up all my spices in years of hiding? Ha, if I hadn't played the toothless tiger, would you have willingly walked into my trap?"

The Ethereal Rhinoceros Hermit spoke proudly, "I know you're after my Mysterious Nimbus Guide—but with various Bewitching Fragrances in hand, within a mile radius, even a Vacuum Walking Cultivator would be laid low before me! Not to mention we're underground where the air moves sluggishly, enhancing the potency of the Bewitching Fragrances by thirty percent. Such a death allows you to die with your eyes closed."

With that, he laughed heartily, waved his sleeve, and snuffed out the last thread of life from 'Number Seven.' The man under his foot, stimulated by these events, arduously arched upward, finally gaining enough space to open his mud-filled mouth and curse:

"Ethereal Rhinoceros Hermit, don't be so smug. I'll be waiting for you down here!"

"Oh, you just wait!"

With another forceful step, the half-buried head instantly burst like a rotten melon.

Effortlessly killing two former allies, the Ethereal Rhinoceros Hermit smiled faintly, picked up the Mystical Bronze from the ground, and without a glance at the corpses or even bothering to extinguish the campfire, he turned and left.

A quarter of an hour later, Yu Ci emerged silently from the ground, scanning the area with a glance, then shook his head. The gruesome scene aside, the two men were dead, and the fatal factor—the lingering scent—was pitifully scant.

"That fellow's mastery over the Bewitching Fragrance is truly divine."

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Yu Ci examined the condition of the two corpses, finally fixing his gaze on the flattened face of 'Number Seven,' as fragments of memory surged in his mind. He had a sense of recognition from the Divine Chart—he had seen these two somewhere before, hadn't he?

As he pondered, his brow furrowed suddenly. A Smoke Pearl shot through the corridor, bursting in mid-air to release a ring of pale white smoke that quickly dissipated into nothingness.

Following that, the voice of the Ethereal Rhinoceros Hermit echoed from the passage he had just left: "I've sensed an odd scent all along the way, and sure enough, there's a Boot following Ghost... May I inquire as to your name?"

Yu Ci remained silent. In the presence of this Bewitching Fragrance master, even breathing was a mistake.

Failing to coax Yu Ci into speaking, the Ethereal Rhinoceros Hermit didn't mind and continued to speak with a smile: "I don't know how long you've enjoyed the show, but if you witnessed how I concocted the third one, you'd best remember the 'Marrow Piercing Cold Incense'. Do you know that brain marrow Blood Qi can mask the scent of 'Marrow Piercing Cold Incense', but if you mix in a bit of vinegar, the smell becomes even more active than before, although it's somewhat pungent..."

Yu Ci had sealed his nostrils early on, but he had underestimated the potency of the scent and couldn't help but shiver. His Boiling Blood and Qi Cauldron within was robust, preventing him from being overwhelmed by this assault. However, after the shiver, his pores opened and couldn't close for a while.

The Ethereal Rhinoceros Hermit burst into laughter, suddenly driving his True Sha, emerging from the corridor as a mist, with Yu Ci naturally confronting him.

The Underground Cave, being only about an acre in size, was not a space where Golden Elixir cultivators could fully exhibit their prowess. Thus, as soon as they clashed, they found themselves in close combat. True Sha formed their respective circles, then collided and twisted, with countless strands of Aura entangling and refusing to yield to each other.

But soon, Yu Ci's brow tightened.

Facing his opponent, Yu Ci finally gained a more tangible understanding of this figure who had repeatedly escaped pursuit and remained active to this day. This man's True Sha was the most sinister kind Yu Ci had ever seen—completely vaporized, yet not purified into Sword aura like Sword cultivation, but truly transformed into mist with tremendous penetrative power and yet very weak lethality. With his upper-level Golden Elixir Cultivation Level, even in a head-on collision, he couldn't gain the upper hand against Yu Ci.

However, it was precisely this True Sha nature that was most suited to catalyzing and transforming the Bewitching Fragrance. The Bewitching Fragrance and the True Sha had become indistinguishable from one another, inseparable. Yu Ci had never encountered such an opponent. He felt wave after wave of the bizarre fragrance pressing upon him, and it seemed not to enter through his nostrils or pores but rather as if it were emanating from within himself, making it even more difficult to discern its origin and method of transformation.

His mind was disturbed by the fragrance, inevitably undergoing changes, and even the flow of True Sha within him became somewhat sluggish. When he tried to exert his power, something felt amiss. Realizing he could not gain the upper hand, Yu Ci suddenly retreated, seizing upon the fact that his opponent's True Sha was not strong in direct combat. Using the momentum, he rolled and changed direction, darting into a side passage.

How could the Lingxi Taoist allow this cultivator, who had witnessed his greatest secret, to leave this place alive?

With a low shout, he did not pursue directly but instead manipulated his unique True Sha, gathering it into a Smoke Pearl. With a flick of his finger, he sent it flying into the passage. As the Smoke Pearl soared, it was controlled with a level of finesse and precision, and propelled by a special Heart Method. Unless Yu Ci could instantly escape ten miles away, he would not be able to avoid the influence of the Bewitching Fragrance.

As expected, the Ethereal Rhinoceros Hermit sensed that about a mile from where he stood, the condensed Smoke Pearl collided with Yu Ci's Protective True Evil. In an instant, it spread and penetrated, the power of the Bewitching Fragrance not needing to pass through the nostrils but directly permeating the pores to take effect.

This demonstrated the purpose of having earlier stimulated the "Marrow Piercing Cold Incense."

"Success!" The Lingxi Taoist felt a surge of joy in his heart but did not become complacent. Without hesitation, he condensed another Smoke Pearl. This time, he added an ingredient for the 'Five Steps Down', intending to leverage his expertise in the cycles of creation and destruction to invoke the greatest potency and bring his adversary to his knees.

As Smoke Pearl was deployed, the Lingxi Taoist had a strong premonition: this time, victory was at hand!

The feedback from his successful hit came swiftly. The target's True Sha began to circulate chaotically, signaling that within two more breaths, all the bodily functions of his opponent would be doomed. He was certain of his triumph!

Yet, at that very moment, a thought pierced through the void and struck his mind: "I hear that within a mile radius, even a Vacuum Walking Cultivator is to fall?"

The Lingxi Taoist's hair stood on end. The source of the thought was perilously close, just within arm's reach. Reactions always outpace thoughts, and in an instant, he scattered the "True Essence Corroding Incense" he had reserved for protection. Propelled by the True Sha, its potency exceeded all limits. Whether it would take down the Vacuum Walking Cultivator was uncertain, but it was undoubtedly beyond the endurance of any Golden Elixir cultivator.

However, the adversary remained unaffected!

In the next moment, the Ethereal Rhinoceros Hermit let out a muffled grunt. A force akin to his own vaporized True Sha, yet tenfold purer and a myriad times more deadly, pierced effortlessly through the defense of the "True Essence Corroding Incense" and into his body. It felt as though a dozen sharp needles had been thrust inside him, following the pathways of his circulation, both with and against the flow, converging on the core of his True Sha.

Agony surged through his Dantian Organ, and his muffled grunt turned into a scream. His vaporized True Sha dissipated, and now it was he who suffered from total bodily dysfunction. Yet, he could not comprehend what had just transpired.

His eyes widened, only to see the silhouette of a long shadow cast upon the cave wall by a campfire, eerily extraordinary. Turning his head, he caught sight of a pair of massive eyes radiating prismatic golden light.

"Monster!"

Before his thought could dissipate, Sword Energy penetrated his skull, twisting with force within his Brain Palace. The Ethereal Rhinoceros Hermit's body convulsed, his face still wearing an expression of disbelief as he fell backward, lifeless under the heavens.

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I have also posted the following more chapters [All free]: https://www.readgates.com/article/74a39e