With a flap of her wings, Lady Butterfly shot out dozens, even hundreds, of Flying Needles. They whistled sharply through the air, but Lü Zhong blocked them all with his Cloud Dragon Wind Tiger Barrier, producing a series of sharp clinks. A moment later, with the roar of a dragon and the howl of a tiger, the Spiritual Barrier broke apart into illusory images of a dragon and a tiger that charged toward the completely naked Demon Cultivator.

In a few flashes of her butterfly-like form, she bypassed the illusory images and appeared directly in front of Lü Zhong.

A short, vermilion-lacquered blade with gold accents appeared in Lady Butterfly’s hand. This blade was named "Zhuanghong." It was two feet long with a blade no wider than two fingers, and it was a Middle-grade Spiritual Artifact. She had obtained it by killing a True Disciple of the Celestial Blade Sect, one of the Seven Southern Barbarian Sects. It had been a protective artifact bestowed upon the disciple by his sect elders.

Zhuanghong was forged using the techniques of an Ancient Cultivator. It possessed no Divine Techniques of its own, but the blade could be "nurtured."

The longer it was nurtured, the more terrifying its first strike became. 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

Not long ago, Lady Butterfly had used the blade once.

Without the accumulated power from being nurtured, Zhuanghong was no different from an ordinary Middle-grade Spiritual Artifact now. To deal with Lü Zhong, who was proving difficult to defeat, Lady Butterfly had no choice but to bring it out early. Otherwise, if she relied solely on her Butterfly Flying Needles, there was no telling how long it would take to defeat this troublesome opponent.

Across from her, Lü Zhong saw Lady Butterfly produce a Spiritual Artifact, and his vigilance rose to new heights.

’The courtyard might be a complete mess, with the ground plowed over several times, but less than ten breaths’ time has passed since we started fighting. I have to hold out until the Law Enforcement Team arrives. Even if they set out the moment they get the report, it will probably still take them some time.’

At this thought, he slapped his Storage Bag and released the Spirit Puppet.

’The reason I’m only releasing it now is because I know full well that I have no chance of beating Lady Butterfly in a one-on-one fight. Her Body Technique is simply too superb, too terrifying. With a flash of her wings, she can go wherever she pleases. She’s so agile and unpredictable that my Qingyang Mirror and Qianfeng Ring can’t lock onto her, forcing me to rely on Spiritual Artifact Techniques and engage her in close-quarters combat.’

That was why Lü Zhong had decided to use stalling tactics.

’Once I drag this out until the Law Enforcement Team arrives, Lady Butterfly will have no choice but to retreat.’

"Hmph!"

The butterfly-bodied Lady Butterfly snorted coldly. An even more intense, frigid killing intent poured from her pure black eyes, which had no whites. She raised the Zhuanghong short blade high, and a crescent-shaped wave of Blade Qi flew out.

At first, the Blade Qi was just a sliver.

But after flying for a moment, it suddenly expanded to ten feet wide.

It carved a deep trench wherever it passed.

A stinging pain erupted between Lü Zhong’s brows. He had no doubt about the Blade Qi’s power and hurriedly recalled the Cloud Dragon and Wind Tiger, which had missed their target. At the same time, he formed a Finger Mantra, ordering the Spirit Puppet to charge forward and meet the Blade Qi head-on.

The Shuo Jin Sword clashed with the Blade Qi and snapped cleanly in two.

When the Blade Qi reached it, the Spirit Puppet was sent flying.

Weakened by the exchange, the remaining Blade Qi was finally dispersed by two of Lü Zhong’s Magic Sword Skills.

The next instant, Lady Butterfly skimmed across the ground and attacked.

She swung Zhuanghong, creating streaks of fine red light that slashed wildly at the newly formed Cloud Dragon Wind Tiger Barrier. Lü Zhong, of course, wouldn’t just let her attack. He raised a hand, grabbed his Jade Nether Fire Fork, and formed a Magic Finger to thrust it forward.

The Bone Fork began to spin wildly, weaving through the afterimages of the blade.

The clang of metal on metal was incessant, and sparks flew everywhere.

But then, Lü Zhong noticed something strange about Lady Butterfly’s movements. She was using her only remaining left arm to form a hand seal. Her delicate lips moved up and down, constantly uttering obscure phrases of a spell. Her pure black eyes, which had no whites, now inexplicably radiated a faint, eerie glow. It looked like she was casting some incredible Secret Skill.

A chill ran through him, and he didn’t dare meet her gaze.

Unexpectedly, Lady Butterfly gave a ghostly smile.

"Too late!"

As she spoke, she paid some unknown price and aged drastically in an instant. Her butterfly body took on the appearance of a white-haired old crone.

At that moment, the hair on Lü Zhong’s entire body stood on end as a sense of imminent doom washed over him.

As his thoughts raced, he flipped his hand over and took out a jade box containing the newly molted Substitute King Insect.

’So what if the side effects are severe? It’s better than being dead!’

Without hesitation, he forced out a drop of his Essence Blood, which fell onto the insect’s body and was quickly absorbed.

Instantly, he felt a connection form between his Heart and Spirit and the insect.

At almost the same time, a mouthful of black qi spewed from Lady Butterfly’s lips. The black qi transformed into black-winged butterflies. They seemed to be fluttering slowly, yet in an instant, they appeared right in front of Lü Zhong.

BOOM!

The already devastated courtyard was instantly swallowed by billowing black qi.

These black-winged butterflies were created by Lady Butterfly using a Secret Technique from her Butterfly Transformation Technique called the Curse Butterfly Skill. Each butterfly she created cost her a year of her lifespan. Their destructive power was terrifying, but it was a double-edged sword that hurt the user more than the enemy.

When the black qi dissipated, Lü Zhong remained standing, his face pale.

In his hand, a small, golden insect had lost all signs of life.

Sharp pains pulsed through his Divine Soul—this was the backlash from the Substitute King Insect’s death. Perhaps because it had already completed its first molt, Lü Zhong found that although his Divine Soul was damaged, he could still barely stand.

He stared fixedly at Lady Butterfly, his eyes filled with undisguised, intense killing intent.

’The power of those black-winged butterflies was truly terrifying,’ he thought. ’Even a Golden Core Master probably wouldn’t have an easy time against them. The Butterfly Transformation Technique is a major reason Lady Butterfly has been able to roam free for so long.’

’If I hadn’t happened to have the Substitute King Insect, I would have really died at her hands.’

"Not even the Curse Butterflies could kill you?"

Lady Butterfly’s face was grim, her black pupils filled with disbelief. Suddenly, her expression changed. Sensing a vicious gust of wind from behind, she hastily dodged to the side.

Having just used the Curse Butterfly Skill, she was weaker than she had ever been.

Because of this, her butterfly wings were seized by a pair of jade-like hands.

Lü Zhong’s gaze hardened, and he rapidly formed several Finger Mantras.

CRACK!

Receiving the command, the Spirit Puppet unleashed a giant burst of strength, directly snapping one of her butterfly wings before tearing it clean from her body.

The wound was a mangled mess of flesh and blood.

Immediately after, it grabbed the other wing.

"AHHHH!"

Lady Butterfly shrieked again and again as copious amounts of black blood gushed from her mouth and nose, her body trembling uncontrollably.

Even so, she managed to throw Zhuanghong with all her might.

CLANG!

Lü Zhong let the blade strike his body. He then picked the short blade up from the ground, walked step by step to Lady Butterfly’s side, and without a shred of hesitation, plunged it straight into the top of her skull.

Then he gave it a vicious twist. A spray of yellow, white, and red splattered everywhere.

He pulled her Storage Bag into his hand, then deliberately conjured a ball of Golden Sun Insect Fire to incinerate her corpse, leaving nothing but ash and eliminating any possibility of her using some foul trick to come back.

Only after doing all this did he collapse weakly to the ground.

’Lady Butterfly’s strength was immense, even greater than that of Li Wuzhen of the Seven Sons of Huayi.’

’Her strength was one thing, but her actions were as crazed as any Demon Cultivator. Any sane cultivator wouldn’t dare sneak into Changchun Immortal City to commit murder in broad daylight.’

"You really can’t judge a Demon Cultivator’s actions by normal standards." Lü Zhong had suffered a great deal because of this miscalculation. It was why Lady Butterfly had managed to corner him in the backyard without giving him a single chance to retreat into his formation, forcing him to bite the bullet and fight. Thankfully, he was the one who won in the end.

Just then, a rustling sound reached his ears.

He looked up and saw the two concubines and the courtyard maid who had been killed earlier.

They had been dead, but affected by the butterfly powder scattered by Lady Butterfly, they had "risen from the dead." They had become living corpses devoid of Spiritual Wisdom, driven only by the obsession to devour living beings.

Lü Zhong wanted to conjure a Fireball Bullet to deal with them, but his Divine Soul was severely injured. His head was splitting with pain, and he had no idea how long it would take to recover. So, he gave the Spirit Puppet a command to take care of the living corpses.

After they were dealt with, he looked around.

’That’s strange. Why isn’t the Law Enforcement Team here yet?’