Immortality: Grinding Experience Starting as a Paper Craftsman

Chapter 67 The Paper Curse: A Devastating Struggle, Both Sides Suffer.

That pale hand was as hard as ice that had been frozen for millennia.

Before Blood River Master could react, he was pulled back by the immense force and staggered.

The originally deadly grab missed its mark, merely grazing Yun Canghai's scalp and leaving a trail of tragically beautiful blood.

Having escaped death, Yun Canghai did not flee in terror; instead, his eyes revealed a near-manic ecstasy.

"Hahaha! It worked! I knew it would work!"

He stared intently at the pale arm emerging from the vortex, naturally assuming that the soul-summoning spell in the talisman had finally taken effect, summoning the ghostly creature under his absolute control.

"You beast! Quickly subdue this old devil for me!"

As Yun Canghai coughed up blood, he gave a stern order to the vortex, his voice filled with an air of arrogance and ruthlessness as if victory was assured.

Blood River Master, whose ankle was grabbed, froze for a moment, then turned around abruptly. When he saw the solidifying figure in the vortex, he also revealed a ferocious smile.

"Yun Canghai, you really are a fool! This is an ancient Yin general summoned by the Netherworld Ghost Bone! It was attracted here by the aura of my ghost bones, how could it possibly listen to you?"

Despite the excruciating pain in his ankle, Blood River Immortal roared defiantly at the figure, "Lord Yin Marshal! I have sacrificed the supreme treasure, the Ghost Bone! Please help me devour this arrogant brat!"

The two old rivals, who had just been fighting to the death, now acted like two children vying for favor, eagerly issuing commands to the unknown summons.

They were all naively and arrogantly convinced that this was their trump card.

Amidst their anticipation and struggle, the figure finally stepped completely out of the vortex.

From the dark vortex, a tall monster slowly crawled out.

It wore a tall crown, was clad in heavy armor, held a mourning stick wrapped with white paper strips, and had a deathly pale face with two strange patches of red on its cheeks.

With each step it took, it made a "rustling" sound, like countless sheets of dry paper rubbing against each other.

This is neither a ghostly being nor an ancient Yin general.

This is a paper figure.

A paper demon from the underworld, modeled on Gu Yan's master-level paper-making technique, with the resentment of dozens of Liuyun Sect disciples as its flesh and blood, shattered Netherworld ghost bones as its core, and covered with a sky full of specially made soul-guiding talismans.

Its body was surrounded by the twisted and wailing faces of dozens of disciples, each talisman transformed into a piece of scales.

The mourning staff contained all the malevolent power of the ghost bones, its black aura chilling.

Upon seeing this eerie entity exuding a mixture of bamboo fragrance and the stench of corpses, the smiles on Yun Canghai's and Xue He Zhenren's faces froze simultaneously.

"What is this thing?!"

Yun Canghai's voice became sharp and shrill due to shock.

He watched helplessly as the paper demon did not attack Blood River True Man as he had expected. Instead, it turned its head and stared intently at him with its empty and eerie eyes.

In that instant, Yun Canghai saw countless familiar faces emerge on the Paper Demon.

Those were the servant disciples who had just been sacrificed.

"Elder...take us back..."

"Ouch... Elder..."

Countless venomous whispers exploded in his ears, like maggots clinging to his bones, drilling straight into his soul and eroding his reason.

"No! Impossible! This talisman is clearly mine..."

Before Yun Canghai could finish speaking, the paper demon had already raised the mourning stick in its hand high, and then swung it down heavily.

The movements were stiff yet lightning-fast, carrying a chilling wind that sent shivers down one's spine.

"Snapped!"

This strike was completely unadorned, landing squarely on Yun Canghai's protective aura.

The shield that was strong enough to withstand a Golden Core cultivator was as fragile as a windowpane under the Mourning Staff, and was easily broken.

The staff slammed into Yun Canghai's shoulder, producing a series of cracking sounds.

"ah--!"

Yun Canghai let out a piercing scream as half of his body collapsed. He was flung away like a tattered sack, crashing heavily into a distant mountain wall, kicking up clouds of dust. His fate was unknown.

Upon seeing this, Master Xuehe was also greatly shocked, and the hair on his body stood on end.

He immediately recognized the power contained within the mourning staff as the purest and most domineering Yin energy from his Netherworld Ghost Bone!

Having succeeded in its attack, the paper demon did not pursue, but instead mechanically rotated the enormous paper head, making a "crackling" sound as bamboo strips rubbed against its neck.

Those empty, ink-stained eyes slowly moved toward Blood River True Man.

"Lord Yin...it's a misunderstanding...it's all a misunderstanding..."

Even the mighty Blood River Immortal, a powerful demon at the half-step Nascent Soul stage who had roamed the world for hundreds of years, had never witnessed such a bizarre situation before.

He tried to influence the paper demon using the corpse control techniques from the Netherworld Blood Sea Scripture, but as soon as his consciousness entered the paper demon, it was like a mud ox entering the sea, instantly swallowed up by countless vengeful spirits.

"Waaah—"

The paper demon opened its painted, bright red lips and let out a sob like the wind whistling through a bamboo forest.

That was a dirge, but also a death knell.

It strode heavily, step by step, toward Blood River Immortal.

With each step he took, the talismans and scales on his body rustled, as if countless ghosts were wailing in unison, making people uneasy.

"Don't come any closer! Get out of my way!"

Blood River Master panicked. He desperately urged the remaining demonic energy in his body, transforming it into a giant bloody handprint, which slammed towards Paper Demon with a foul wind.

However, the Paper Demon simply raised its pale hand.

"Sizzle."

Like tearing apart a piece of waste paper, the terrifying bloody handprint was crushed by its bare hands, turning into specks of bloody light and dissipating.

Immediately afterwards, that cold, large hand grabbed Blood River Master's neck and lifted his withered body into the air.

"Cough...cough cough..."

Blood River Master's feet left the ground as he struggled desperately. His life essence was rapidly draining away, flowing down the paper-mache arm and being greedily devoured by the monster.

Just when Blood River Master thought he was about to be sucked dry.

The talismans on the Paper Demon's body, which were originally as black as ink, suddenly began to turn yellow and scorch.

The suffocating pressure began to rapidly subside.

After all, this was just a product temporarily pieced together by Gu Yan using paper-making techniques. Even with the help of rituals and the power of ghost bones, it could only maintain the burst of power for a few breaths and could not be sustained for long.

After severely injuring two top experts in succession, its energy was finally exhausted.

Cracks began to appear on its black and white paper armor, and its originally solid body became transparent, flickering like a candle in the wind. In a gust of cold wind, it turned into countless pieces of paper, which fluttered down onto the devastated altar.

Paper money filled the air, resembling a grand funeral.

"Cough cough cough!"

Blood River Master crashed heavily to the ground, five purplish-blue finger marks on his neck. He curled up in a ball, his breath extremely weak.

Meanwhile, in the distance, Yun Canghai was half-buried in the rubble, barely alive, clinging to life by sheer willpower.

……

Meanwhile, in a hidden cave hundreds of miles from the battlefield.

Shen Youwei leaned against the cave entrance, gripping her longsword tightly in her hand, her expression anxious as she gazed towards the battlefield.

She carelessly tossed the stolen Flowing Cloud Cauldron at her feet, completely disregarding this treasure at that moment.

"Why haven't the sect members arrived yet...?"

Shen Youwei took out another communication jade slip and frantically poured spiritual power into it to urge it on.

The commotion over there was just too great; the overwhelming aura of malevolent energy, even from a great distance, still made her heart pound.

She turned her head and looked at Gu Yan, who was lying on a flat rock deep inside the cave.

Gu Yan's face was as pale as paper, his eyes were tightly closed, his brows were furrowed in pain, and his clothes were already stained red with blood. He looked as if he would die at any moment.

"Junior Brother Gu, you must hold on."

Shen Youwei's eyes were filled with guilt and pity.

If it weren't for fighting against Yun Canghai's conspiracy, this junior brother who was only at the Qi Refining stage wouldn't have ended up like this.

"Water...water..."

Gu Yan let out a weak groan; controlling the Earthly Fiend Paper Doll had taken a heavy toll on him.

If he hadn't greatly enhanced his divine sense through the power of merit while in Changning County, he probably wouldn't have been able to withstand this massive consumption for even ten breaths.

Shen Youwei quickly took out a pot of spiritual spring water and carefully fed it to his lips, gently comforting him, "Don't be afraid, the sect leader is nearby. As long as we hold on for a little longer, we will be safe."

Gu Yan took a sip of water, felt a little better, nodded, and then "fell asleep" again.

However, deep within Shen Youwei's unseen consciousness, Gu Yan's mind was perfectly clear, carrying a hint of lingering pleasure.

Through the Blood Swordsman's perception, he clearly saw the two old guys on the battlefield who looked like dead dogs.

"The battle is over, now it's my turn to clean up the battlefield."

Gu Yan sneered inwardly.

The original character plays the victim in Shen Youwei's case, gaining sympathy points and an alibi.

Meanwhile, on the clone's side...

In a corner of the battlefield ruins, the Blood Swordsman, who had been lying dead, twitched his fingers.