Chapter 277

Chapter 277: Turning the Tables, Entering the Trap
Gui Lao said, “I’ll give you one last choice. Will you go in on your own, or do I throw you in?”

In the dim cave, the flickering firelight reflected on Gui Lao’s face. Her skin, full of pitted wrinkles, looked even more sinister and frightening.

Yu Zhao stood up and shook the chains on her body. “I don’t want to choose either.”

“That is not up to you.” Gui Lao sneered at Yu Zhao’s childishness.

Yu Zhao said lightly, “Why don’t you choose?”

“I pick the second one mysel…”

Gui Lao’s lazy expression suddenly froze.

She turned her head stiffly and saw Yu Zhao standing behind her, completely unharmed. The bindings on her hands and feet had vanished.

Yu Zhao was here. Then the Yu Zhao she had just been talking to…

Clang!

The sound of chains hitting the ground made Gui Lao’s scalp prickle.

She looked forward again. There was no Yu Zhao there at all. It had only been a Clone Technique.

Gui Lao’s instincts told her to retreat and put some distance between herself and Yu Zhao. But as soon as she tried to move her spirit power, a wave of dizziness slammed into her.

Her limbs went numb. Her mouth twisted, and one side of her face drooped. She could not move at all.

Terrified, she stammered, “I… I…”

By now there was no way she could not see what had happened. She had fallen into Yu Zhao’s trap. Yu Zhao had not been dragged back here by force. She had come on her own.

Gui Lao had guessed right.

From the moment Gui Lao suggested trading Yu Zhao for the others, Yu Zhao had roughly guessed what she wanted to do.

Yu Zhao had ruined the plan Gui Lao had prepared for so long. Gui Lao must hate her to the bone and had probably already thought of a whole set of ways to torture her, just waiting for her to walk into the net.

So Yu Zhao decided to turn the tables and step into the trap herself.

When Gui Lao released her black smoke, a thin wisp of pale smoke had quietly risen from the unremarkable Lotus Incense Burner at Yu Zhao’s waist.

When Gui Lao put chains on Yu Zhao and was gloating over her, the real Yu Zhao was already hiding in a dark corner of the cave, lying in wait.

The one chained in front of Gui Lao had only been a clone.

Yu Zhao had also stayed silent several times on purpose to lull Gui Lao and get her to spill more information.

Once Gui Lao understood what had happened, her whole body started shaking. No one knew if it was from anger or fear.

Yu Zhao said calmly, “You already made your choice just now. I will respect your wish.”

Her face showed little emotion. She was cold and distant, still with the bearing of a sect disciple that Gui Lao hated most.

But now when Gui Lao looked at Yu Zhao, there was no jealousy or hatred left in her heart, only endless fear.

She tried to beg for mercy, but only a chattering of teeth came out.

Yu Zhao was a little surprised by the sight.

Back on Qingqiu Mountain, she had not been trusted by Clan Leader Nine-tail and had nothing to do all day. So she had taken a few petals of Icefire Nether Blossom and used them to make a new incense blend.

The scent was too strong, and it was a new product. Yu Zhao had never had a chance to test it. This was her first time using it, and she had not expected it to work so well.

It also helped that Gui Lao’s cave was sealed and airless, piled high with messy items so that all kinds of smells were mixed together. The fragrance from the incense blend did not stand out there at all.

And, most importantly, Gui Lao had been so pleased with herself that she let her guard down and did not take Yu Zhao seriously, only to capsize in the gutter and reap what she had sown.

Yu Zhao took Gui Lao’s storage ring and all the trinkets on her body. Then, under Gui Lao’s horrified gaze, she threw her into the boiling furnace.

“Ahhh!”

A bloodcurdling scream burst out of the furnace, along with the sizzling sound of flesh being corroded.

Threads of bloody stench rose and tried to worm their way into Yu Zhao’s nose.

She wrapped all the fur and bones scattered around the cave with her spirit power and tossed them into the furnace too. As the cries inside grew weaker and weaker, she shut the lid.

One day later, Yu Zhao destroyed the stone cave and sealed the furnace here.

Walking out of the mountain, she took out a map she had found in Gui Lao’s storage space and compared it with her surroundings. She found that where she was now was less than two days away from the Dragon Pool Mountains.

She moved her feet and turned into a streak of rainbow light, flying straight toward the Dragon Pool Mountains.

Three hours later, Yu Zhao ran into a Nascent Soul stage black panther.

Its fur was as smooth and glossy as silk. Its body lines were sleek and full of explosive power.

Yu Zhao could not help but praise it in her heart: [What a beautiful black panther.]

“Yu Zhao?”

The panther stopped first and tilted its head at Yu Zhao.

Yu Zhao paused, then remembered she had seen this black panther at the closing part of the Little Gathering.

Back then, it had been standing with Hua Tu.

“It’s me,” Yu Zhao said.

“It’s really you! Are you okay? Bai Mei has been looking everywhere for you.”

“I’m fine.”

“That’s great. I’ll go tell them right away!”

The black panther blew on a bamboo whistle.

While they waited, Yu Zhao learned that she was from Great King Mountain’s Black Panther Clan and that her name was Wu Na.

Among the demonic beast younglings that had almost been taken, there were some of her clanmates.

So she was very grateful to Yu Zhao and had joined the search team for her on her own.

Less than half an hour later, Bai Mei, Hua Tu, and the other beasts all arrived.

When Bai Mei saw Yu Zhao safe and sound, the heart she had been holding up finally relaxed.

Yu Zhao’s status was not simple. If something had happened to her on Demon Race territory, the Demon Race would have been in big trouble.

Bai Mei said, “You don’t know how hard the Nine-Tailed Fox clan’s little foxes cried after you disappeared.”

“Yeah. Look at what that little brat did to the fur on my back,” Hua Tu said as he bent down and showed Yu Zhao the glorious results of Ah Chun’s work.

Yu Zhao glanced over.

[Tsk, it looks kind of ugly. Wu Na is still prettier.]

Since the other demonic beasts were still waiting inside the Dragon Pool Mountains, they only talked for a bit before heading back together.

At the clearing where the event had been held, Yu Zhao had barely landed when the little foxes, led by Xiao You, came running over with tears streaming down their faces and swarmed around her.

In the blink of an eye, Yu Zhao became a walking display stand covered in fluffy little foxes.

“Yu Zhao, you scared me to death! I thought I would never see you again!”

Xiao You squatted on Yu Zhao’s shoulder, cupping her face and bawling.

Its crying set off all the other little foxes at once. Soon, all Yu Zhao could hear were their sharp wails in her ears.

Yu Zhao smiled and patted them on the head.

[Looks like all those dried fish I fed you were not for nothing.]

Because of what had happened, none of the demonic beasts were in the mood to continue the event.

Old Monkey was still shaken too. He simply announced that the event was over and told everyone to come collect the things they had brought.

But not a single demonic beast stepped forward. They all looked at each other and silently reached the same decision.

Yu Zhao was still smoothing the little foxes’ fur when she heard Bai Mei call her name. She stood up and walked over. “What’s wrong?”

Bai Mei said, “We only saved the younglings in time because of you. To thank you, they have all agreed to give these things to you.”

Bai Mei had worried Yu Zhao would refuse and had already prepared a speech in her head.

But Yu Zhao just glanced over the pile from top to bottom, then put everything away without hesitation, not giving Bai Mei any chance to say more.

Bai Mei smiled slightly. Yu Zhao really was special, completely different from any cultivator she had met before. No wonder the Chieftain valued her so highly.