Using a small opening at the top of the back wall, Cao Yun got in the storehouse. Inside, there was nothing of interest, only shelves full of scrolls, parchments, stationeries of all kinds, as well as music instruments, some clothes, and other artistic tools. But in the center of the room, Ren Chao laid unconscious. He was not tied up, but his breathing was very rugged and his face a little red. It almost looked like he was drunk, or more likely, drugged.
Suspecting that this was a trap, Cao Yun inspected the room very carefully. His senses told him that there was no one else inside and that there was no trap either. Then, he used his array formation knowledge. Indeed, there was an array formation. From what Cao Yun knew, it looked like the Spider's Embrace, a 3-star Earth array formation. It wasn't a powerful array formation, but as soon as someone got inside, two things would happen. The first one was that the person who set up this array formation would get warned. The other thing was that a powerful force would push the intruder on the ground for several minutes. Its name was very apropos.
However, it was a classical trap and Cao Yun saw right through it. He even found out where the eight Gates of Silk were. These gates would allow someone to cross this array formation without setting it up. Worried for Ren Chao, Cao Yun decided to jump down below into the room. He landed precisely on one of these Gates of Silk.
The moment he touched the ground, light surged from all around the room. It formed a net with Cao Yun in the center.
"No, the Spider's Embrace couldn't have been activated. I'm sure I stepped into the first Gate of Silk!" Cao Yun was trying to figure out what was going on here, his thoughts in chaos. At this moment, a slender figure walked into the storehouse, it was Lu Meihan.
"Do you think you're the only one who can be stealthy?" She was hiding just outside the storehouse from the beginning. Slowly, she walked toward her prey.
Cao Yun tried to move but the net of energy around him contorted and filaments of light bound him to the ground. His arms and legs were completely trapped.
"I'm not a master in array formation, but I have a friend who is." Lu Meihan was of course referring to the demonic cultivator who was supporting her. "We prepared for this day since your fight with Luduo Bu. We had array formations set up all around the walls. He personally came to set them up, knowing how proficient you were. And he was right to do so. Even with my senses, I couldn't have felt your presence. But you did trigger some small array formations."
Cao Yun was racking his brain and with his perfect memory, he analyzed the path he had followed. No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn't be sure of where theses detection array formations were. He was only a beginner in the art. Against the array formations set up by the Coiling Silk Faction, this wasn't a problem at all. But against someone like Sun Liao for example, he couldn't see through a single one of them. And detection array formations were the smallest and the hardest to pick up on.
"I thought that you would come running for your friend, but I wonder... How did you know he was here already? You suspected me from the first time we met?" Lu Meihan was intrigued. She had prepared for Cao Yun but she had not given him any clue to come here. The only thing that could have gotten her exposed was her first failed attempt against him. Of course, she was unaware that he had spied on her conversation with her friend.
"I know you want to use me for some dual cultivation thing. Probably to heal your backlash." Cao Yun was not going to spill the beans. However, he was going to try and buy some time. Looking around him, he understood. The Spider's Embrace was just a decoy. There were at least two other array formations hidden within. But he did not recognize them at all.
The first one was generating this net of energy. Given how consuming it was, it probably couldn't last very long, but for the time being he couldn't move his body. And the other one, he could feel it within his body. It was obstructing the flow of his Qi. Trying to circulate his Qi was just like trying to move mercury. As such, neither his physical nor energetic body could be of assistance.
Well, that would be true without the Po character. Thanks to his True Success in it, the Po character allowed him a better control over his Qi. And even though it was impossibly difficult to circulate his Qi, the Po character made the task hard, but achievable.
"Well, you're smart." Her charming smile disappeared and she got serious. "Indeed, I need your energy to heal me. In fact, I'll die without it now. So I'm sorry, but I swear that you won't regret my embrace." She slowly walked toward him, trying not to get stuck in the array formations herself. She knew where the gates were but she wasn't very proficient in the use of array formations so she decided to be extra careful.
Cao Yun needed more time so he tried to get her talking. "I'll die, won't I?" Lu Meihan's face got shocked. She was trying to minimize the situation so as not to expose the truth. If Cao Yun was fighting too desperately, it would be more cumbersome.
"Why do you think so?"
"Luduo Bu told me about you before dying." Knowing that Lu Meihan was aware of Luduo Bu's connection with the demonic cultivator, Cao Yun tried this bluff. "You want to use Ren Chao to force yourself onto me. You'll literally suck me dry. Then, you'll probably kill Ren Chao to remove any possible witness."
Lu Meihan stopped in her track. "I'm sorry... But there is no other way... At least, your last moments will be happy. And your friend won't feel a thing."
"What about Wang Mei?"
Once more, Lu Meihan's face darkened. "What she doesn't know won't hurt her. But you should be more worried about your friends at the main gate. You shouldn't have involved them. I don't know what you told them, but I'll have to get rid of them, just in case. I'm sorry..."
"You keep claiming that you're sorry, but you just don't care! You only care about your power!"
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
This time, she got mad. "Why couldn't I control my fate?! If I don't heal my backlash, I'll just become useless. My parents will marry me off as a mere political tool. I'll have to serve a pathetic noble just to gain a meager influence for my family. I would rather die than go through this! Hate me as much as you want, but I won't suffer such a life! As long as there's a way, I'll persevere."
Just as she was about to get to him, Cao Yun was finally able to mobilize enough Qi. He sent it through his meridians, following the 'Imperial Throne' path. A surge of wind erupted around him and blew away the filaments of energy. Without his spear and with a small amount of Qi, the technique got weaker, but it was still strong enough to get rid of those bounds. He only needed an instant to move away. Once free of them, Cao Yun jumped toward Ren Chao and took him in his left arm.
Lu Meihan reacted at once and placed herself in front of the door. Not wasting any more time, Cao Yun charged toward her. His right palm hit her right in the chest. 'Slaughtering the Enemy'. A vibration penetrated her flesh and sent her flying backward. She literally broke through the doors and landed on the grass outside.
Cao Yun ran as fast as he could to leave the garden of the Coiling Silk Faction. But as soon as he left the storehouse, he heard Lu Meihan's scream.
"Coiling Silk! Intruder!"
At the front gate, the guards heard it as well and immediately assumed fighting positions. They obviously connected it with the domestic dispute that was keeping them occupied. This had to be a distraction for an intruder to get inside. And apparently, he had attacked their faction leader.
Sun Liao let go of all pretenses and took out his bow. He had the 'Nine Chi Black Dragon Spear' with him. Surprising everyone, he used this giant spear as an arrow. To propel such a weapon through the air, he needed colossal strength. But Sun Liao had recently broken through to 6th-grade Mortal. His talent coupled with Chief Instructor Peng's training had bore fruit. Pushing his muscles to the limit, he shot the spear through the sky.
The guards tried to stop him but Mei Hua was on them. She wasn't a great fighter and was one grade below Sun Liao. However, she was good enough to buy some time. Her rope dart coiled around the guards. They quickly got out of the restraints but the spear was already in the sky.
Once this was done, Sun Liao jumped on the wall circling the faction residence. He produced several arrows and fired them everywhere. Right now, he was forming very temporary array formations all over the place. Mei Hua took a pill and her strength surged forth. For several minutes, she would become as strong as a peak 7th-grade Mortal, jumping two levels. Alchemists often used pills in battle to increase their abilities, but there were always consequences.
Luckily, Mei Hua was the direct disciple of Xiao Xuefeng, so she wasn't too afraid of a severe backlash. Moreover, the pill she had consumed had reached the Pure rank, so the toxins were very limited within. She had also mastered the principle of toxins minimization. A pill of such a low grade was not a problem for her.
'Ten Thousand Thorns', 'A Bed of Brambles'. Her rope fell to the ground, circling the guards. As soon as they tried to move, Mei Hua moved her hand and the dart went for them. It quickly attacked and then retracted. If they tried to go through the rope, it would lift up and tense. The rope became as hard as steel, blocking their way. Before they could chase it away, the dart was attacking them.
They all decided to attack different parts of this encirclement. Mei Hua had given enough time to Sun Liao. Array formations were set up all around the faction residence. Thanks to Cao Yun's description, he had already prepared the array formations in advance within his mind. The best thing would have been if Cao Yun could escape with Ren Chao without any ruckus. But they had prepared for things to go south.
Now that he was done, Sun Liao helped Mei Hua. Other guards were coming and those inside 'A Bed of Brambles' were ready to break free.
From 'Houyi's Nine Suns', Sun Liao recited the second mantra, "From the East, the Vault rises". He took another stance and in his mind he focused on a specific image. Right now, he was picturing a gigantic sun rising from the horizon.
The 'Houyi's Nine Suns' manual was made up of ten layers. Each one had a specific four-words mantra, a specific stance, a specific illustration and a specific end result.
Sun Liao had three arrows in his right hand while holding his 'Ten Thousand Li Bow'. Of course he could not shoot an arrow at ten thousand li, but this bow was a 2-star Human weapon. Its range was at most ten li but for now, Sun Liao could not shoot that far. His own range would be around six li. This bow was engraved with intricate figures depicting all kinds of birds and sparks flying through them.
Sun Liao was aiming toward the sky. As soon as he let go, the three arrows flew upward and started to burn due to their own speed and the 'Houyi's Nine Suns'. They rapidly fell back down, right in the direction of the guards encircled by Mei Hua's rope. Seeing those small balls of fire descending on them, they switched to defensive positions. The moment they did, the rope came alive and tensed all around them.
It was like a steel cable striking them from all sides, followed by the intense heat of the arrows. The guards had a higher cultivation so they weren't too badly hurt. However, this served as a deterrent to the others. Mei Hua and Sun Liao working together was a great combination. And, they had not even worked on battle formations yet. If they had, they could have beaten a 9th-grade Mortal without any problem despite being in the middle stages of the Mortal realm themselves. Battle formations were really powerful if mastered correctly.
-
In the southeast of the residence, Cao Yun was running toward the wall with Ren Chao on his left shoulder. Lu Meihan had her weapon ready, a chain with weighted extremities. It was a variant of the rope dart from the Eighteen Classical Weapons.
Her chain flew toward Cao Yun's legs, trying to trip him over. Feeling the wind pressure, he jumped without looking. As long as Ren Chao was with him, he could not fight properly. But then, he would have a problem to get over the wall. Lu Meihan, despite her backlash, was a 9th-grade Mortal. And the Life Essence Phoenix Balm had restored almost all her strength.
Thankfully, everything happened according to the second plan and Cao Yun heard the whistling of a large object in the air. He knew instantly that his 'Nine Chi Black Dragon Spear' was coming down. Using all his strength, he jumped toward the sound. Lu Meihan was quick to react. She saw the black spear flying toward them and understood. Her chain was sent to catch the weapon but Cao Yun was faster. The chain only caught air and Cao Yun was now armed.
Still in the air, he launched a 'Dragon's Twin Horns' toward the enclosure wall. The vortex of wind broke down the bricks and dust was sent everywhere. Behind the dust, Wang Mei was waiting. With her sharp senses, Lu Meihan recognized her through the cloud of dirt. Her face got complicated. Deep down, she really cared for the girl, but her desire to overcome her wound had taken over. If she were to stop now, she would die in a few months due to the side effects of the Life Essence Phoenix Balm.
But seeing Wang Mei looking at her as an enemy, Lu Meihan's heart was hurt. She remembered the little girl who used to be her servant. There was no going back anyway!
Cao Yun took Ren Chao and threw him over to Wang Mei.
"Take care of Brother Ren, I'll keep her busy."
Cao Yun fell back between Lu Meihan and Wang Mei who had caught her boyfriend. His spear was ready and his stance firm in the ground.