Poison God's Heritage

"Buyong!" Xuan spoke as she saw the decrypted state one of the zombies was.

A couple I didn't recognize because they were charred beyond recognition, they were some of the people that died due to the turtle when we were in the forest.

But this man I recognized, not because of his robes since they were no longer white but were full of blood and grim. But because he held a stick, there was a powerful gale swirling around it.

They have been 'revived?' zombified? I don't know what's this but this poison cultivator is able to bring back the dead. Although they don't look like they are fully back.

No human or any living organism can stand after being charred to that degree until the bones on their bodies are already turned to ash. And no human can survive having so many bones broken, half their skull crushed and most of their intestines hanging out of their belly.

"What did you do to him?!" spoke Xuan, "I'll have your hide for this!"

"Little girl, you'll be joining him soon, after I'm done with this one," he said as he gazed at me.

"What's the point of killing us here," I spoke. "We all know that this is nothing but a dream, and once we die we'll wake up," probably, I wasn't sure that things might be like this but now I'm even more confused.

Everything that has been happening seems to happen for absolutely no reason.

"Then I'll have the joy of killing you twice," he said grinning, "Not to mention, if this was a dream, wouldn't one of the people that have already died before, wake up in reality, and come save you, or at least wake you up," he said.

Now that he mentioned it…

"Those who die in here will also die in real life," he said.

"Then won't it be better to not kill us," someone from the fire palace spoke.

"Why should I spare any of you?" the poison cultivator spoke grinning wide.

"Because we can help figure this out, and how to leave…" he said.

"Exactly, but that doesn't mean you have to be alive to help," he said as he pointed his hand forward.

Almost immediately, all the poisons I had stored in that person's fat, saving him an agonizing death seemed to roil and broil with wanton abandon within his body.

A surge of deadly poisons was immediately let loose within his body, causing every vein they passed to, rip and tear, then they spread into his muscles, paralyzing some, and then eating away at some.

Agony beyond what any shout could express seemed to surge from within that man as the pain he was in was incomparable.

"Stop that!" I said as I tried my hardest to counter his poison influence. But having to hold the poison on more than a dozen people at once was my limit, spreading any focus to help one would cause someone to die.

"You're too weak, no wonder you were fated to die here. For a follower of Du Shen, you're far too weak," he said as he clenched his fist and the man who was in devastating agony seemed to burst form within.

"You held so much power in that book, but I can't even feel the Acolyte within you, which is a blessing since they are a pain in the ass to subdue, you somehow killed the acolyte inside you, by not feeding it well," he said as his smile grew wider.

"I'll actually get my hand on a clean book, and at the same time won't have to deal with that annoyance, I have to thank you for that, I'll make your death the least painful of them all," he said as he pointed his hand at me.

Just as he pointed his hand at me, he began coughing. And grabbed at his neck as if he was choking.

This time it wasn't just me, but this man also was choking. Why? He is coughing, and looks like…he is drowning.

How can a person be drowning? And also why is this man coughing too? Wait, there is only one connection between me and him. The Poison God's heritage, but how is this affecting us?

This man is currently spitting liquids out of his mouth that is disappearing the moment it touches the ground as if it's not real but the fact that he is coughing liquids means that his body is translating it into this dream.

The reflection from before… liquid, choking. And our sudden appearance here…

'I think I figured it out, but I can't be too sure, I need more time…'

I rushed the man while he was suffering what seemed to be an agonizing death experience.

'Yuyu, Liang Yu, if you see me do something stupid don't stop me!' I said through divine sense.

'What's more stupid than charging someone who is leagues above our cultivation stage!' I heard the reply of Yuyu who seemed concerned and worried sick.

'You'll see soon,' I said.

I swung both mechanical arms trying to slam the Poison Cultivator's face in.

But a powerful wind blast stopped me in my tracks.

Buyong was apparently working as a bodyguard even when the master was suffocating.

I forced some of my Divine Sense to manifest around me, for no reason but to cause myself mental exhaustion.

Which will come in handy soon.

"Let's help him, or we'll all die! Take this chance to fight back!" spoke someone.

And the group immediately came to aid.

Without treasures, weapons, or access to anything but their basic cultivation techniques, taking out a man who can harness the power of poison to bring back the dead was not something easy.

Especially with that person's cough seemed to be lessening by the second.

"Cough! Att- Cough! KILL THEM ALL!" he spoke as he began another nasty coughing pit, spitting more and more liquid.

The three undead grunts charged our group, while I made sure to close the distance between me and them me to take on their leader.

He was kneeling coughing like mad and once he saw me approach him, he stabbed his neck shooting a powerful poison surge, shutting his entire throat down, and immediately recovering.

He released a silent roar since his throat was destroyed, but that was enough to release my hold on the poisons of everyone's bodies.

My mind felt as if it was hit by a sledgehammer as I lost control over everyone's poisons. But that was actually what I needed.

Because.

"COUGH!"

I began coughing while standing right in front of the poison cultivator.

The man smiled, stood up, and then spoke to everyone using Divine Sense, "Look how the tables have turned. Now you're the one dying."

I grinned as I replied, "Remember when I said I was going to do something stupid," I said.

Yuyu and Liang Yu's eyes widened.

Not from my words, but my actions, as I forced the mechanical arms to lift me up, then throw me into the chasm.

"SHEN BAO!" shouted Liang Yu.

Her face was white from despair as I dropped into the darkness.

As I was falling down, my divine sense was still locked onto him so I could see and hear what was going on.

That was probably not something anyone was expecting, especially not the poison cultivator.

"Given up already, but don't worry, I'll drag you back even if I have to find your body---"

He said then immediately his head snapped towards me, "BASTARD!" he shouted.

And immediately his neck began spewing out the liquid.

'Damn he is smart," I muttered, but I needed to focus.

I looked down into the darkness as the coughing began to increase more and more, then soon, I saw that reflection.

Shades of darkness began covering my eyes and suddenly my eyes opened.

No air to breathe, liquid filling my eyes, nose, and lungs. It was heavy and felt like molten lead that was pervasive as it went everywhere.

I was inside a cylindrical vat, and from the looks of it, I was still wearing my clothes and had everything on me this time.

The poison god's book manifested itself immediately in front of me, as a massive arm shot from within it and broke the vat.

I was immediately sent sprawling to the ground as the contents of the vat spilled out everywhere.

I coughed the shit that was inside my lungs and blinked several times to finally realize where I was.

Around me were many of the same vats where every one of the cultivators that were with me. Seemed to be imprisoned.

But something was different, the liquid in their vats was a clear crystal blue. While the one I was in was murky green.

'Oh…now I get it, I'm poison, and being in contact with that liquid for so much caused it to destabilize. The same must have happened to that man. No wonder we couldn't use our abilities, well I couldn't since my literal presence inside that vat was disabling its properties. As for that man, he was bypassing the process by injecting himself with poisons. The mental toll on him must have been great, in fact, it's good that way.'

I looked around trying to find his vat, and once I did, "Y, kill him,' I said.

Y immediately shot from the Poison God's book, lunging right into the vat where that fucker was trapped in.

Only Y was a second too slow.

The vat broke as the man inside it seemed to regain his composure far faster than I did. He immediately jumped back and like a gecko stuck himself to the ceiling of the room.

A powerful ripple of Saint Qi shot out from around him and almost made the entire room collapse on us.

"TODAY YOU DIE!" he shouted.

'Shit…an Ascendant.'