Chapter 26: The Reason

"Brother Su, we're late!"

As soon as they met, Meng Dongge sighed and pointed to the ground filled with dead insects, "I heard the noise and sensed something wrong, so I came to support immediately. Still, I was a step behind the Alien Ghost and couldn't save Chen Yun's husband and brother. It's all my fault..."

"It's us who found out too late, after all, we were closer to Chen Yun and the others."

While speaking, Su Jie carefully observed his surroundings, staying on guard.

After all, it wasn't necessarily the Alien Ghost who attacked Chen Yun and the others, it could very well have been Meng Dongge right in front of him.

"No one wants this kind of thing to happen. Since it really was the Alien Ghost, we can only blame bad luck."

Gu Weonian glanced at the situation on the scene and immediately figured out a rough scenario.

Most likely, Chen Yun and the others encountered the Alien Ghost at night, lost due to an unfavorable defense, leading to the deaths of Chen Koudang and Xu Chaoxian.

That Meng Dongge and his group could come so quickly to support was considered very loyal among the Ghost Ridge Palace Disciples.

You know, even Gu Weonian, from the same lineage as Elder Qiu as Chen Yun, hesitated quite a bit about coming to support, let alone the disciples of other branches like Meng Dongge's group.

"This is just too tragic."

Sun Zhihai felt his scalp tingle. It's not that he hadn't seen dead people before, but Chen Yun and the others were part of his group to patrol and guard the mountains.

To fall into such a situation on the first day made him empathize deeply.

"Chen Yun is still breathing..."

After checking Chen Yun's condition, Su Jie turned to Meng Dongge and asked, "Mr. Meng, why are you alone? Where are the other five members of your team?"

"They went to kill that beast. We can't let the leader of this disaster get away. I stayed here to protect Chen Yun," Meng Dongge gritted his teeth in hatred as he explained.

As they spoke, intense shouts reached their ears.

"Quick, stop it!"

"Use the Nine Curves Net, block its escape route!"

"All together, we're about to get it!"

Accompanied by shouts, a three-meter tall creature darted past Su Jie and the others.

Its skin was pale, it hunched its body, and moved on all fours; its claws were like steel blades, creating a menacing sight.

"Alien Ghost..."

Gu Weonian screamed in fear.

The atmosphere was too eerie; any slight rustle could put one on edge. The sudden appearance of the Alien Ghost nearly scared him breathless.

"Could it be that I'm overthinking?"

Su Jie pondered inwardly. It was really an Alien Ghost. Had he misunderstood Meng Dongge?

"Run... Run! We can't defeat the Alien Ghost."

With a trembling voice, Sun Zhihai constantly touched his chest, where a green lizard poked its head out. He even summoned his Lifebound poisonous insect.

"Watch closely, this Alien Ghost is nearly finished."

Su Jie raised his hand to stop the two. The pair calmed down and then realized the Alien Ghost was covered with wounds, suffering from corrosive and penetrating injuries, and its torn muscular tissues were widely exposed to the air, even its internal organs spilled out. Its movements were sluggish; it couldn't survive much longer without interference.

After darting out not too many meters, the Alien Ghost eventually collapsed due to severe injuries, its blood nearly drained, falling to the ground.

Buzz, buzz!

Following this, a large swarm of poisonous insects arrived.

Hundreds of locusts, poisonous snakes, scorpions, killer bees, and venomous spiders engulfed the Alien Ghost.

The massive influx of lethal toxins finished off the severely injured Alien Ghost, rendering it motionless and struggle-free.

Five Ghost Ridge Palace Disciples emerged from the forest where the Alien Ghost had run through, holding various items such as nets and ropes. These were the other five members of Meng Dongge's team.

They quickly surrounded the corpse of the Alien Ghost, eyeing Su Jie and his companions warily.

This was due to the concern that Su Jie and the others might be tempted by the valuable corpse of the Alien Ghost, which had dramatically increased in price.

"What are you all doing? Our three comrades aren't the type to act recklessly. There's no need for such precautions; how does it look to others?" Meng Dongge rebuked sharply, scolding the other five fiercely.

Instead, this made Sun Zhihai and Gu Weonian quite embarrassed.

Gu Weonian cleared his throat and said, "Mr. Meng, since this Alien Ghost was hunted by you and also avenged Chen Yun, we harbor no inappropriate thoughts."

Sun Zhihai similarly smiled awkwardly, "Yes, Mr. Meng, you worry too much, we do have our principles."

Although they were extremely eager for the body of the Alien Ghost, which once sold on the Black Market, would easily bring in several hundred Blood Marrow Crystals, morally and especially in terms of power, any attempt to seize it would be suicidal.

Su Jie's eyes narrowed; this approach of retreating to advance was quite crafty!

Looking at Gu Weonian and Sun Zhihai's reactions, it was clear both had fallen for it.

Su Jie didn't immediately point it out, instead he appeared even more righteous than Sun Zhihai and Gu Weonian, saying, "Mr. Meng, it's only human for them to think this way. After all, our reputation as Demon Cultivators isn't very good. But rest assured, I, Su Jie, always act upright and detest evil. If it's not mine, I definitely won't take it."

Gu Weonian was speechless; wasn't that statement a bit too much? Are you really a Demon Cultivator, kid?

Meng Dongge smiled again and loudly said, "My fellow Daoists, please don't take offense. We expended a lot of effort and resources such as talismans and Poison Insects to successfully hunt this Alien Ghost. We have no choice but to sell it to recuperate our costs, otherwise we would have shared some with you. Ah, I do feel bad about this. Here, during this current battle, these dead poisonous insects will be left for you to handle, especially since they all belong to people from the same lineage as Elder Qiu."

"Thank you very much."

Gu Weonian and Sun Zhihai bowed together.

The many dead poisonous insects in the surrounding area, when used for their own Lifebound poisonous insects, were quite beneficial, especially those belonging to Chen Koudang and Xu Chaoxian.

"Mr. Meng, you're too polite."

Su Jie moved quickly and before Gu Weonian and Sun Zhihai could see his actions, he had already grabbed the most valuable queen ant corpse from the ground.

This move even stumped Meng Dongge, who gave Su Jie a strange look: Is that what you call not taking? So, you're only interested in the big ones?

"Since that's the case, we won't stay here any longer. Chen is severely injured now, why not leave her to us? I will see if I can try to heal her."

Meng Dongge kindly made this suggestion as he looked toward Chen Yun.

Sun Zhihai and Gu Weonian were just about to agree, since the now helplessly injured Chen Yun was just a burden, and handing her over would be convenient.

However, at that moment, Su Jie suddenly spoke up, "There's no need to trouble Mr. Meng with this. Chen Yun belongs to our branch, and we have a responsibility to take care of her current condition."

"We still have some medicine for injuries that could be very helpful."

Meng Dongge was startled, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"Really, it's not necessary."

Su Jie shook his head to refuse; even Sun Zhihai and Gu Weonian were quite puzzled—was he really as upright as he claimed?

"Well, I won't force the issue then, I hope Daoist Chen Yun recovers soon."

Meng Dongge didn't insist further and smiled as he took his leave.

"We need to handle the Alien Ghost corpse as soon as possible, so we won't stay here any longer. The three of you, take care. If you encounter an Alien Ghost, be sure to ask for our help immediately. I don't want to see what happened to Daoist Chen Yun happen to you."

"Take care."

"Take care."

The two groups bowed to each other, and Meng Dongge and his group carried the Alien Ghost corpse away from the battlefield.

Meanwhile, Sun Zhihai and Gu Weonian could hardly wait to start collecting various poisonous insect corpses from the ground.

The freshly dead poisonous insects were particularly suitable as food for their Lifebound poisonous insects.

Su Jie watched Meng Dongge and the others disappear into the woods, his fingers curling slightly.

A moth, taking advantage of the cover of night, silently followed them with fluttering wings.

This method of Insect Control, common among the inner disciples, was hard to detect without specific defenses.

"Brother Su, we've struck it big today!"

After counting, Gu Weonian was quite excited.

The poisonous insect corpses they collected from the battlefield filled a basket, a pretty fruitful loot indeed.

"Tonight's haul isn't bad."

Su Jie glanced over, but compared to Meng Dongge and his group's acquisition of the Alien Ghost corpse, these insect corpses were hardly impressive.

"But...did you really think you could deceive everyone?"

Licking his lips, Su Jie glanced at Chen Yun on the ground and then at Meng Dongge and the others disappearing from view, his lips curving into a chilling smile.