Chapter 32

Chapter 32: Mysterious Disappearance
Fang Cheng Lang was so angered by Lan Zi Yu’s shameless attitude that he let out a short, disbelieving laugh.

Seeing the two of them about to start arguing again, Ye Cong Xin tugged on Lan Zi Yu’s sleeve and softly promised Fang Cheng Lang: “First Senior Brother, we will remember.”

Lan Zi Yu snorted and turned his head to the side, but he did not keep talking back.

Fang Cheng Lang saw this and could only press down the dissatisfaction in his heart.

On the surface, the two senior brothers seemed to be on good terms again, but the seed of a crack had already been quietly planted.

…

“This is so damn unlucky!”

The group of seven rolled and crawled as they ran for dozens of li before finally stopping, panting hard.

Every face was full of the joy of having survived and the bitter hatred of not being willing to accept it.

Those sect Disciples only became Golden Core Cultivators by relying on the favor of Heaven, with everything going smoothly for them. If the seven of them had the same backing, they might already be Nascent Soul Old Fiends by now. Why would they have to swallow such rage?

Kui Zi had first taken a slap earlier, then run more than ten li in one go. Now he was tired and hungry, and most of his anger had already faded.

On a sudden impulse, he suggested: “Dragon Roar Valley is too dangerous. Brothers, we should stop hanging around here to join in the fun.”

People say you seek fortune in danger.

But you also need to know your limits.

Now that even sect Disciples had joined in, their chances of fishing in troubled waters had dropped sharply. If they were not careful, they might even lose their lives here.

What for?

The others were quite tempted when they heard him.

The seven of them together could put on a show in front of some rogue cultivators, but if they ran into someone truly powerful, they would be completely helpless.

What had just happened was the best example.

However, the one who made decisions had not spoken yet. Even if they had ideas in their hearts, they did not dare show them.

So they all turned in unison to look at the feminine man, waiting for him to decide.

As their strategist, the feminine man thought further ahead than they did.

He had already realized that the rumor about the Seven-colored Deer was very likely a scam. It was depressing to go home empty-handed, of course.

But the situation was clearly against them now. If they kept pushing on, these brothers of his might very well bury the rest of their lives in this valley.

He made a quick decision: “Let’s go. We are pulling out of Dragon Roar Valley right now. We are done playing with them.”

The others were overjoyed and nodded in agreement at once.

Just as the group was about to head toward the valley exit, a low, hoarse male voice drifted over.

“Sorry, everyone. You will not be leaving today.”

All seven were startled. They each drew their weapons and warily looked toward where the voice had come from.

A tall, lean figure slowly appeared in their sight.

The man did not look very old. He wore strange clothes they had never seen before, a silver collar hung around his neck, and his lips were as red as blood.

The seven of them carefully checked the surroundings to make sure the man had no companions, then quietly let out a breath of relief.

The feminine man gave a meaningful look, and as usual, Kui Zi stepped forward to provoke the stranger.

“Kid, you sure talk big. Do you think we, the Yin Mountain Seven Tigers, are easy to deal with? Get lost, or we will take your little life!”

?????????

When they ran into someone like Zhang Jun, a gentle and polite Young Master, they could act arrogant while provoking him.

But when they ran into someone mysterious like the man in front of them, the best approach was to use threats and scare him away.

“Rabble.”

Wu Shao Zhen let out a cold snort.

His voice was full of deep scorn and killing intent.

The seven men on the other side were enraged by his careless attitude. They exchanged a look, and the next moment, multicolored Spirit Power burst out all at once.

Sword Qi, blade light, wind blades… several attacks rushed toward Wu Shao Zhen together.

He did not dodge. He simply stood there calmly.

A flicker of doubt flashed in the feminine man’s eyes.

Then his face suddenly changed. In alarm, he shouted: “Run!”

All the colorful attacks slammed into Wu Shao Zhen. Wu Shao Zhen’s body exploded like loose sand with a bang, yet there was no spray of blood at all.

Right after that, countless flying insects flapped their wings and surged toward the seven like a dark tide.

Each insect was about the size of a thumb, its whole body a strange dark red, with sharp mouthparts that gave off a chilling feeling.

The seven men were so frightened by the swarm of insects that their souls almost flew out of their bodies. They scattered in all directions like panicked avian beasts.

But no matter how fast they ran, they could not outrun the insects.

Very soon, the first person was caught by the swarm.

It was Kui Zi.

Among the seven, he was the weakest, so of course he ran the slowest.

The dense mass of insects blocked his path. In front of him and behind him, left and right, there was no way to escape.

He could not control his fear and fell to his knees with a thud, kowtowing again and again, each time harder than the last.

“Senior! Senior… I am willing to be your ox and horse! Please spare my life! Spare me! I do not want to die! I do not want to die!”

“Trash like you should feel honored to be food for my gu insects.”

The hoarse male voice sounded again, handing Kui Zi his death sentence.

Kui Zi did not even have time to let out a scream before the hungry insects ate him clean, leaving only a pale white skeleton on the ground.

“Hehe, none of you are getting away.”

…

“Huff… huff… huff…”

The feminine man felt as if a ball of fire was burning in his chest. Every breath seemed to scorch his throat.

His expression was full of terror. Even though the Spirit Power in his body was exhausted and his limbs felt as heavy as if they were filled with lead, he did not dare stop running.

When Kui Zi died, he had not managed to run far. He had used Divine Sense to “see” Kui Zi being eaten by those disgusting insects, completely unable to fight back.

He did not want to become food for the insects too, so he could only run, run with everything he had.

But very soon, the shadow of death fell over him again.

He heard the neat, buzzing hum rise behind him.

That man was coming.

Despair grew like weeds in the feminine man’s heart. He gritted his teeth so hard his face twisted in a horrible way.

[If I am going to die no matter how hard I struggle, then I will at least die with some dignity.]

Just as he was about to stop and launch a final, desperate attack, his right foot suddenly got hooked by a vine, and his whole body was yanked sideways.

On his right stood a huge boulder covered in vines.

If he crashed into it, he would have no strength left to resist.

[Heaven wants me dead!]

The feminine man screamed silently inside, his eyes going completely dull.

Wu Shao Zhen’s face showed a bloodthirsty joy.

Just when both of them thought the feminine man was sure to die, the man suddenly vanished.

Wu Shao Zhen paused, a hint of interest flashing in his eyes.

He had seen it clearly. Right as the feminine man was about to crash into the boulder, he disappeared without any warning.

That stone had a problem.

A secret realm? Formation Array Arts?

Wu Shao Zhen curled his lips. He had not expected that after casually picking a place to lay a trap, he would run into something this interesting.

After thinking for a moment, he recalled the well-fed insects back into his insect pouch, then walked alone up to the boulder.

He looked around to make sure there was nothing unusual nearby, then took a deep breath and slowly pressed his palm against the stone.

Whoosh.

A light breeze blew past.

Dry leaves on the ground were lifted into the air.