SWDnovel Chapter 19 The First Thread in the Blood Mist
Chapter 19 The First Thread in the Blood Mist
Amidst the bursting of blood, Sun Cheng's screams lasted only two breaths before being abruptly cut short by a sickening cracking sound.
The leading demonic cultivator moved with ghostly speed, his long sword, shrouded in thick blood and evil energy, cleaving Sun Cheng and his fragile spiritual energy shield in two from top to bottom.
Blood splattered like ink on the gray rocks, hissing and emitting plumes of foul-smelling white smoke.
"waste."
The demonic cultivator leader flicked the blood off his blade and kicked the two severed corpses into the depths of the fissure in the ground.
"Thump."
The corpse plunged into the churning black mist, like a piece of fatty meat thrown into a frying pan, and instantly fell silent, leaving only a few wisps of dark red, vengeful spirits that were greedily devoured by the red light from the ground.
Gu An huddled in a crevice between rocks a hundred paces away, his eyelids not even twitching.
He had activated the [Turtle Breathing Technique] to its fullest extent, his heartbeat had stopped, and his body temperature had become one with the cold rocks around him. Even when the demonic cultivator leader's divine sense swept across the area like a comb, all he received in return were stones, withered grass, and deathly silence.
"Hurry up!"
From the depths of the fissure, a low, rumbling roar, like a muffled thunderclap, echoed. The sound seemed to travel through thick layers of earth, yet it sent shivers down people's spines.
"Third brother, fourth brother, clear the area. Second brother, form the formation!"
"yes!"
The remaining two demonic cultivators obeyed the order and quickly dispersed. One of them, holding an array flag, began to plant the flags around the edge of the fissure to pinpoint acupoints; the other, carrying a long sword that was still dripping blood, scanned the surroundings with a sinister gaze, clearly checking for any survivors.
Gu An silently calculated the distance and time in his mind.
The massive creature underground—the demonic cultivator leader at the seventh level of Qi Refining—is unable to climb out yet due to the suppression of the earth's veins and the narrowness of the passage. The three who have come up now are all around the third level of Qi Refining.
Fight head-on? That's suicide.
Gu An glanced at the panel.
Lifespan: 19/91
If discovered, these ninety-one years will be wiped out instantly.
run?
Gu An slightly raised his head, his eyes glancing at the valley entrance. The several blood-red array flags had already blocked the retreat, forming a blood-fiend barrier isolating the inside from the outside. If he were to crash into it now, not only would he be unable to get out, but he would also instantly trigger the alarm and become a sitting duck.
The only way out is to prevent them from setting up this formation.
As long as the "Blood Guiding Array" used to draw in the underground forces fails to take shape, the demonic cultivators underground will be unable to flood in on a large scale. Once the sect notices the anomaly here, even if it's only for a quarter of an hour, the situation will reverse.
"If you want to live, you have to be the troublemaker."
Gu An slowly exhaled a breath of stale air, which dissipated silently along the cracks in the rocks.
He noticed that the demonic cultivator in charge of setting up the formation, known as "Second Brother," was holding a compass and pacing around a broken ghost mulberry tree with a frown.
"The yin energy here is too strong, and the array flags cannot be planted steadily."
The second brother cursed and turned to look to the left, "We need to move over there and find a point where yin and yang meet."
The direction he was pointing to was a slope covered with jagged rocks.
That place was near Gu An's hiding place.
"The opportunity has arrived." A cold glint flashed in Gu An's eyes.
He didn't move, but quietly slipped a spool of silver-gray silk thread from his sleeve.
This is the first batch of silk spun by the mutated Xuan Yin silkworm on that Ghost Mulberry. After being tempered by Yin Fire, it is as thin as a spider's thread and as tough as iron. More importantly, it does not reflect light and can perfectly block spiritual energy detection.
In the brief moment that the second demonic cultivator turned to retrieve the array stone, Gu An made his move.
He didn't get up, but instead glided silently along the ground like a gecko. With a flick of his fingers, several strands of dark yin energy were quickly pulled out, one end wrapped around the base of the rock, the other end taut, lying across the only path between the two boulders.
Its height is just at neck level; touching it will cause immediate death and bloodshed.
After doing all this, Gu An took out a porcelain bottle from his pocket. It contained poison powder that he had collected to deal with the poisonous moths. He carefully applied it to the silk thread.
This poison is not fatal, but it can paralyze the nerves, causing a person to lose their voice instantly.
Having laid the trap, Gu An retreated back into the shadows, his entire being turning into a lifeless stone once more.
[Trap Setting: Beginner (1/100)]
The data on the panel flickered, but Gu An had no time to pay attention to it.
The second demonic cultivator approached, carrying several dark red spirit stones. He was focused, his eyes fixed on the compass in his hand, chanting incantations, completely unaware of the death threads beneath his feet that seemed to merge with the air.
Ten steps, five steps, three steps.
Gu An held his breath, his fingers gripping the crevice in the rock tightly.
Unaware of what was happening, the second demonic cultivator took a step and passed through the gap between the two giant rocks.
A faint "hum" sounded, like the soft snapping of a string.
The second brother's body suddenly stiffened, and his forward momentum came to an abrupt halt.
His eyes widened, and the compass in his hand fell to the ground with a "thud." He tried to shout, to circulate his spiritual energy to protect himself, but found that his vision suddenly began to spin and turn upside down.
Then he saw a familiar headless body, spitting out a jet of blood, slowly collapsing forward.
That was...me?
"Pfft."
Only after his head hit the ground and rolled three feet away did the hot blood in his chest erupt like a fountain, staining the newly planted battle flag red.
The Xuan Yin Silk was too fast, too sharp. So fast that even the pain receptors didn't have time to transmit signals before the head had already been moved.
That thin layer of protective spiritual light was as fragile as paper in front of the Xuan Yin Silk.
Without the slightest hesitation, Gu An darted out like a cheetah.
Before the headless corpse could fall to the ground with a loud thud, he caught it, rolled over, and dragged it into the shadow of the pile of rocks.
The movements were fluid, swift, accurate, and ruthless.
[Killed a Qi Refining Level 3 demonic cultivator, combat experience +20]
[Item obtained: Damaged storage bag x1]
Gu An had no time to examine the spoils of war. He stripped the blood-stained clothes off the corpses and haphazardly covered them on the rocks to disguise them as a pile of junk before quickly moving to another location.
"Second brother? Why isn't he making a sound?"
In the distance, the third brother, who was clearing weeds, suddenly turned around and looked at them with a puzzled expression.
"This idiot, did he mess up the formation and get backlashed?"
The third brother walked over, cursing and swearing, carrying a knife and scanning his surroundings warily.
The air was thick with the stench of blood, but this did not seem out of place in a deadly place like Youying Valley, or after Sun Cheng had just been killed.
However, when the third brother walked to the pile of rocks and saw the pool of dark red blood that had not yet congealed on the ground, as well as the head that had rolled in the grass with its eyes wide open in death, his pupils suddenly contracted to pinpoints.
The word "attack" was still in his mouth.
"call out!"
A dark blue-black glint shot out from the shadows below.
Those were Gu An's leaf blades. Only this time, he had wrapped a section of Xuan Yin silk around the leaf.
The third brother reacted extremely quickly, slashing out with his backhand and accurately knocking away the poisonous leaf.
"A mere trick! Get out here!"
He roared and swept his longsword horizontally, a blood-red blade aura directly shattering the boulder where Gu An was hiding.
Stone fragments flew everywhere, and dust billowed up.
However, there was nothing behind the boulder.
Just as the old strength of the third brother was waning and the new strength was beginning to emerge, his ankle suddenly tightened.
A dark yin thread that was originally buried under the rubble suddenly tightened, wrapping tightly around his ankle like a venomous snake.
"rise!"
From the bushes not far away, Gu An let out a low shout, unleashed his full spiritual power, and pulled sharply.
"Thump!"
The third child lost his balance and fell heavily to the ground.
Before he could even get up, a dozen sharp, knife-like mulberry leaves rained down from all directions.
Each leaf was aimed at his throat, eyes, genitals, and other vital areas.
"Ugh! You bastard!"
The third brother frantically swung his knife to block, causing his protective aura to tremble violently.
Although he blocked most of the attacks, a mulberry leaf still managed to cut through his wrist, which was holding the knife, in a strange arc.
Blood splattered instantly.
Gu An's figure flashed through the mist, not engaging him in a prolonged fight, but retreating after a single strike and disappearing back into the darkness.
Like a lone wolf lurking in the night, ruthless, patient, and deadly.
"Fourth brother! Come here! This is a tough one!"
The third brother clutched his wrist, leaned against the rock wall, and roared in terror.
He finally realized that besides the dead Sun Cheng, there was an even more terrifying hunter hiding in the valley.
A hunter who is only at the third level of Qi Refining, yet knows how to use all terrain and tools to kill.
Deep within the fissure in the earth, the roaring sound paused slightly.
A terrifying pressure surged onto the ground as if it were a tangible force.
"A bunch of useless trash."
The underground leader seemed enraged. "Is it worth making such a fuss over just one rat up there?"
"Whoever it is, I want to see the formation erected within fifteen minutes. Otherwise, you'll be filling in as the formation's foundation!"
The sound was like a heavy hammer blow, turning the faces of the surviving third and fourth brothers deathly pale.
Gu An hid on a withered mulberry tree thirty feet away, holding two "Heaven-Shaking Thunderbolts" he had left in the valley for self-defense—the standard equipment of the sect's law enforcement disciples, powerful enough to blast a small mountain valley to pieces.
As for why he had it, it was simply because Zhao Feng had climbed his cash cow and something unexpected happened, so he received a reward.
He looked at the array plate that had rolled to the ground, a bloodthirsty smile curving his lips.
Since you're in such a hurry to establish your formation, I'll lend you a hand.
Gu An weighed the Thunderclap Thunder in his hand and locked his gaze on the fourth brother who was trying to pick up the array plate.
[Turtle Breathing Technique: Proficient (35/200)]
[Current Status: Stealth Hunt]