Chapter Twenty-Three: The Unlucky Lu Tong

"Ah... what was the point of all this?" Xiao Wenzi, who had managed to dodge in time, watched as the man surnamed Peng perished along with his adversary, unable to suppress a deep sigh. He had intervened to help, hoping the man could avenge himself and survive, but the outcome was cruel indeed.

Yet, how much better was Xiao Wenzi’s own situation now? He had inexplicably become an ordinary mosquito; cultivation and advancement were exceedingly difficult, and who knew when he would regain his former appearance? There was no time for him to indulge in pity or melancholy.

He quickly banished distracting thoughts and flew to the two corpses, beginning to rapidly suck blood and exchange it for system coins. Having reached the peak of the First Layer of Heaven, both his reaction speed and blood-sucking ability had been greatly enhanced. In mere minutes, he absorbed hundreds of drops of fresh blood and exchanged dozens of system coins from the two bodies. Adding to last night’s two to three thousand coins, Xiao Wenzi was confident he could soon break through to the Second Layer of Heaven.

Time passed, and the blood in the bodies cooled and coagulated. Unable to absorb any more, Xiao Wenzi ceased his actions and continued to fly deeper into the mountains.

By noon, news of the demon mosquito’s havoc in Kaoshan Town had reached Nanshan City. The cultivators searching for him all realized this was no ordinary affair and hurried toward the small town several dozen miles away.

Dozens, then hundreds, of cultivators arrived one after another, and Kaoshan Town instantly became lively. Yet, despite their thorough searches, none could find a trace of the demon mosquito.

Low-level cultivators’ spiritual senses were weak, unable to detect the faint residual fluctuations in the air. However, curiosity about the demon mosquito was not limited to those mid-stage novices.

Lu Tong was a late-stage Ninth Layer cultivator, short on resources; ten spirit stones were not much, but could solve his urgent needs. Judging from various clues, the demon mosquito seemed to possess considerable intelligence. If he could catch it, he might negotiate with Shopkeeper Xu, or at worst present it to the influential figures at the City Lord’s Mansion, perhaps earning a handsome reward.

Thus, Lu Tong rushed to Kaoshan Town to question the victims. Inside a brothel, he carefully discerned and sensed, finally detecting a faint trace of demonic energy.

Guided by the aura, he flew out of the town and into the Tannan Mountains.

“Yes, the little creature fled in this direction.”

Soon after, Lu Tong stopped beside the corpses of the man surnamed Peng and the white-robed middle-aged man. Seeing the tiny bite wound on the white-robed man’s neck, he was certain his deduction was correct.

Xiao Wenzi sped along, expending demon energy. He knew adventurers often frequented the mountain’s outskirts, and low-level cultivators abounded; staying on the periphery was unsafe for cultivation.

It would be best to find a place adjacent to a powerful beast. Given his small size, unless he encountered natural enemies like toads, frogs, or snakes, most fierce beasts would probably disregard him.

As a demon mosquito, Xiao Wenzi was highly sensitive to beastly auras. He sensed from afar that a formidable creature lurked in a valley a dozen miles ahead to the right. If he could live beside it, its lingering presence might deter any cultivators who came, which seemed a wise plan.

Just as Xiao Wenzi prepared to continue on his way, he suddenly sensed something and turned to look behind him.

A young man was approaching swiftly on a flying sword, radiating a powerful aura. Xiao Wenzi knew at once this was no novice.

Was he coming for him? Xiao Wenzi’s heart tightened; he dared not remain airborne and plunged into the woods below.

Lu Tong tracked the faint demonic fluctuations. His spiritual sense could not lock onto Xiao Wenzi from a hundred feet away, so he failed to notice Xiao Wenzi slipping into the woods.

He finally hovered above the forest, muttering, “How did it suddenly disappear? The little creature must be hiding in the woods below. Let’s see how I drag you out.”

As he spoke, flames danced at his fingertips—a fireball spell, the most basic technique for fire cultivators. Flicking his fingers, several fireballs fell into the woods below, igniting the thick layer of dead leaves and sending roaring flames throughout the ancient forest. Lu Tong expanded his spiritual sense, searching for any birds or creatures escaping the blaze.

“Damn it, that's ruthless—setting the forest on fire right away! What grudge does he have against me?” Xiao Wenzi, hiding in an insect hole within an ancient tree, cursed as waves of heat swept outside.

He longed to rush out and slap the reckless youth into the flames, letting him taste his own medicine. But now, surrounded by fire and trapped in the tree hole, he couldn't even escape, let alone teach anyone a lesson.

Suddenly, a distant cry echoed from the sky, and a streak of purple light shot rapidly from the horizon, causing Lu Tong’s face to turn pale.

“Damn it, how unlucky! A third-tier Purple Forest Finch is passing by—run!”

Seeing the beast’s figure within the purple light, Lu Tong dared not hesitate. He turned to flee, abandoning any further search for the demon mosquito.

The Purple Forest Finch carried a trace of ancient Purple Cloud Eagle blood; even golden core cultivators dared not provoke a third-tier Purple Forest Finch, much less a Ninth Layer cultivator like him.

Lu Tong tried to escape, but he was no match for the speed-specialized Purple Forest Finch. Perhaps provoked by his destruction of the forest below, the finch accelerated, reaching him in the blink of an eye.

A clear cry rang out; the Purple Forest Finch beat its wings, sending gusts of wind to scatter the nascent fire below. Then, it transformed into a stream of light, pursuing Lu Tong.

No—faced with the assault of the third-tier demon bird, Lu Tong had no power to resist. Amidst his screams, his body was torn apart by the finch, splattering blood in all directions.

Having dispatched the culprit, the Purple Forest Finch grabbed Lu Tong’s corpse and sped away, never once noticing Xiao Wenzi in the tree hole.

In truth, the tree hole where Xiao Wenzi hid was shattered by the force released by the Purple Forest Finch, and he too was crushed to death.

Yet, as soon as the flames died and the forest regained its calm, the silhouette of a small mosquito reappeared out of thin air.

“Damn, what kind of beast was that? Far too power