"Ah, young man, your experience is still lacking!"

With confidence, Tang Yuanmu, watching himself just a step away from the Thunder King's Heart, felt all the more assured, even taking a moment amidst his busyness to glance back at the black-clad youth still standing unmoving. His voice carried a sense of frustration, like hating iron for not becoming steel.

In Tang Yuanmu's view, the current situation in the Thunder King Main Hall was wholly due to Xing Chen's efforts. Unfortunately, after dealing with the Thunder King's Heart Strange Spirit, this fellow was lost in thought for a moment, clearly making it easy for Tang Yuanmu to claim the spoils.

Self-esteemed as cunning and farsighted, Tang Yuanmu took pride in his timely intervention, so he stretched out his hand with zero hesitation to seize the Thunder King's Heart.

Sensing that the Thunder King's Heart offered no resistance, Tang Yuanmu felt even more triumphant. In his mind, the most feared was the Strange Spirit with a dried corpse body, followed by Ye Suxin of the Kill Heart Sect.

Contrarily, the black-clad youth Xing Chen, who shone brightly in the Thunder King Main Hall, did not warrant much of Tang Yuanmu's attention at this moment. He simply believed the Strange Spirit was stupid enough to be outwitted by Xing Chen.

Whether it was the "Afterimage" from before, the unremarkable wooden sword, or the unexpected touch, these were strictly speaking just clever tricks.

Once these things are demonstrated in front of people for the first time, they create vigilance, making them hard to succeed again. Tang Yuanmu asked himself, convinced that he would never be captivated like the Strange Spirit by Xing Chen's deception, if that fellow dared to act, he might as well remove this threatening lad.

"Haha, you two, thank you for letting me win!"

With the Thunder King's Heart in hand, Tang Yuanmu's old face seemed to open up in laughter, glancing over at the man and woman, as if he was the greatest winner of this Thunder King Valley treasure contest.

"I'm in a good mood today, so I won't take your lives, but the premise is, you must obediently hand over your Waist Storage, consider it a life trade!"

Tang Yuanmu's mood was indeed excellent. His words caused Ye Suxin of the Kill Heart Sect to change her pretty face drastically, silently calling this old guy truly shameless.

This man was renowned in the Southern Domain of the Tenglong Continent, a noted demon; how could he possibly have any mercy in his heart? Even if he contributed the least in the Thunder King Hall, he was at that moment the biggest winner.

It must be known that Tang Yuanmu had always obsessed over the Thunder Wood in Yun Xiao's possession, and after witnessing Yun Xiao's techniques, whether it was the unremarkable yet unmatched sharp wooden sword, the eye-deluding "Afterimage," or other strategies, he wanted them all.

In Tang Yuanmu's view, all these things must be in Xing Chen's Waist Storage, once he obtained them and cultivated successfully, paired with the Heavenly Rank Thunder King's Heart, he would be unmatched in the Southern Domain of Tenglong Continent and even across the entire continent.

Of course, with Tang Yuanmu having spoken, he wouldn't "go back" on his word; he would ultimately spare the man and woman, but before that, he'd likely have to cripple their Meridian Qi Cultivation first.

"Tang Yuanmu, I belong to the Kill Heart Sect, dare you treat me this way, aren't you afraid of the Kill Heart Order leaving you with nowhere to escape?"

Though Ye Suxin was severely internally injured at the moment, there was no hint of compromise in her. As the words "Kill Heart Order" left her mouth, Tang Yuanmu's form indeed trembled slightly.

Yet in the next moment, Tang Yuanmu's expression returned to normal, glancing around to see no fourth person in the Thunder King Main Hall, a cold smile appeared on his face.

"What of the Kill Heart Sect, once I achieve great success in cultivation, even the Sect Leader of the Kill Heart Sect may not dare to trouble me, Tang Yuanmu!"

Admittedly, Tang Yuanmu was somewhat carried away with success. A mere Origin Seeking Realm Early Stage cultivator dared overlook even the Sect Leader of the Kill Heart Sect; one wonders where such confidence came from?

"How about it? Hand over your Waist Storage, keeping your life, isn't this deal worth it?"

To avoid prolonging the matter, Tang Yuanmu held the Thunder King's Heart while speaking coldly. Only this time, Yun Xiao, who had remained silent, finally chuckled and spoke.

"Tang Yuanmu, are you so sure you can make us comply?"

Yun Xiao's smile didn't seem feigned, but Tang Yuanmu, full of ambition, didn't catch the underlying meaning, also showing a cold smile.

"Kid, if you insist on not accepting this offer, Tang will take it himself, but he'll be extracting your life too!"

Threatening words emanated from Tang Yuanmu's mouth, even witnessing Yun Xiao's bizarre execution of the Thunder King's Heart Strange Spirit didn't shake his belief that Yun Xiao merely relied on clever tricks.

"Sigh, truly ignorant of your nearing death, how do you manage to live until now?"

Yun Xiao completely ignored Tang Yuanmu's threatening speech, shaking his head hopelessly, then reaching out to point at the Thunder King's Heart, continuing, "You may think it's a Heavenly Rank treasure, perhaps it's really the Pigeon Bone Poison that will claim your life!"

"Bluffing!"

Tang Yuanmu wouldn't believe a single word of this nonsense. He clearly saw the Thunder King's Heart emerge from the box just now, and he's been holding it in his hand for so long without any change. If it were truly poisonous, how could that be possible?

Even the latent spiritual wisdom of the Thunder King's Heart seemed to have vanished following the explosion of the mummified body. Tang Yuanmu instinctively thought that this boy was just sounding alarms to scare him, merely wanting to take the Thunder King's Heart from his hands.

"In this world, there is a means called One Thought to Transform Myriad Poisons. I wonder if you have heard of it?"

Yun Xiao paid no attention to Tang Yuanmu's tone and expression. After his words, his right hand, which was already raised, moved slightly. His forefinger pointed at the Thunder King's Heart, and the next moment, an imperceptible aura triggered something inside the Thunder King's Heart through the air.

Hiss… Hiss…

In just the blink of an eye, Tang Yuanmu felt a pain in the five fingers of his right hand. The Thunder King's Heart, which was originally inactive, seemed to transform instantly into a heated branding iron, causing him to hastily let it go.

"What… what is this?"

At this moment, Tang Yuanmu had no attention to spare for the Thunder King's Heart because he saw that the five fingers of his right hand were emitting green smoke and rotting right down to the bone.

This scene was eerily similar to the previous state of the Thunder King's Heart's strange spirit, except one lacked blood, while the other was full of flesh and blood.

And precisely because of this fleshy corrosion, Tang Yuanmu became panicked. He realized he had unknowingly fallen into that boy's trap. However, he couldn't understand how the Thunder King's Heart, which was originally inside the box, was infected with such strong poison in the first place.

In fact, none of this was Yun Xiao's own doing but came from the Dragon Guiding Tree Spirit Little Dragon. The poison inside the Thunder King's Heart wasn't inherent; it was tainted following the explosion of the mummified body.

Despite being shielded by the box earlier, the Thunder King's Heart is the body of the Strange Spirit, and there's an exceptionally unique connection between the two.

The Little Dragon's One Thought to Transform Myriad Poisons is indeed marvelous. Not only can it spread through physical mediums, but also via certain unique connections, like those between the Thunder King's Heart's body and its controlled shell.

It is laughable how Tang Yuanmu thought he had seized the advantage, unaware that his previous action was the very opportunity that sent him to the Ghost Gate, another typical case of "people dying for wealth".

As for Ye Suxin not far away, she was long stupefied, every time thinking that the young man in black had exhausted his means, only to be suddenly amazed in the next moment — truly unpredictable.

"Star… Little brother Xing, this… this is all a misunderstanding. Please spare me. I, Tang, promise to follow your commands faithfully henceforth!"

Seeing the five fingers of his right hand rot away in an instant, Tang Yuanmu finally panicked. He knew that Star was his last straw to clutch at. If missed, not only would his entire right arm be lost, but he might also end up like the previous mummy, disappearing without a trace.

"Forget it, I still prefer to trust the dead!"

Yun Xiao is no ordinary kind-hearted person. Besides, earlier outside, he had learned about this great demon that roamed the Southern Domain of Tenglong Continent, knowing him to be a ruthless, unscrupulous, despicable character.

Moreover, Tang Yuanmu had attempted to snatch his Waist Storage before, which amounted to courting death. This guy brought it upon himself, so Yun Xiao would not have any psychological burden.

"I… I can give you the Waist Storage, just… just spare my life!"

Seeing the indifference from the other, Tang Yuanmu fell to his knees with a thump, sounding genuinely sincere. But nobody saw the fleeting glint of cunning in his downcast eyes.

"Sorry, I…" (Whoosh!)

Just as Yun Xiao resolutely uttered these three words, Tang Yuanmu, who was kneeling on the ground, suddenly moved. His entire body sprang up, and a flash of cold light swept closer with his target unmistakably being Yun Xiao's throat.

It seemed Tang Yuanmu never truly believed begging for mercy would be effective, so he was already prepared to strike the moment he kneeled.

In Tang Yuanmu's mind, since the poison he suffered was inflicted by Star, killing this boy in a flash would yield the antidote from his body. At worst, he would lose an arm, but after acquiring countless treasures, his strength might even multiply.