The Trap

Li Guanqi was concealed less than ten zhang away from them. He had reined in all of his aura, rendering himself as still and lifeless as a boulder. By this point, a sliver of wariness had crept into Ye Feng's eyes as well. The sole reason was that the woman named Wen Mei seemed a bit too frantic. The moment she laid eyes on him, it was as though she had caught hold of a life-saving straw, desperately backing behind him. Her whole body trembled faintly in sheer terror. The child upon her shoulder had a distinctly tender face. His eyes were brimming with panic as he clung to the woman's shoulder, clutching her clothes with both hands in a death grip. Even after observing so closely, Ye Feng still could not spot anything amiss. The aura wafting from the jade case truly belonged to a Blood Origin Fruit, and an old one at that. Having hailed from a clan that dealt in heavenly and earthly spirit herbs, Ye Feng possessed at least that much discernment. Moreover, a five-hundred-year Blood Origin Fruit was exceedingly precious. Consuming just one would be enough to equal ten years of painstaking cultivation! If swallowed, it could likely propel him straight into the mid Core Formation realm. Yet right at that moment, the bearded man across from them panicked as soon as he saw the woman hand the jade case to Ye Feng. The moment the woman produced the Blood Origin Fruit, Ye Feng had already deduced why the brute was pursuing her. She possessed only the strength of half-step Core Formation, yet carried a five-hundred-year Blood Origin Fruit on her person. Naturally, that had drawn the man's greed. Boom! The burly man stepped forward with intricate footwork, closing to within a zhang of Ye Feng in just two or three strides. The silver-ring saber in his grip slashed toward Ye Feng without mercy! Sharp blade light whipped up shrill howls as it bore down upon Ye Feng. A cold sneer curved the youth's lips. Powerful as the brute was, his control over his own strength was pitifully weak. Moreover, the strike was riddled with openings in his eyes. If he wished to counter, he could think of at least seven or eight ways to do so! Ye Feng reached out to shove the woman behind him out of harm's way, intending to meet the foe alone. Suddenly! He felt an icy chill surge from behind! A flash of cold light thrust toward his back with lightning speed! In an instant, a pincer attack closed in from both sides. Without time to think, Ye Feng spun and delivered a savage backward kick straight into the woman's shoulder while snapping his sword back to clash violently against the brute's saber. Bang! Clang! Delivered with immense force and zero mercy, the kick sent the woman flying with a heavy thud. The woman's left hand lost its grip, leaving the child suspended in midair. Yet just as Ye Feng hesitated over how to handle the child, the boy—whose eyes had been wide with terror—suddenly whipped out three daggers and flung them forward! A surge of origin power abruptly erupted from the child's body, carrying an aura on par with peak early Core Formation! Laced with ferocious origin power, the three streaks of cold gleam shot toward Ye Feng in a triangular formation like loosed arrows! At such close range, Ye Feng had nowhere to dodge! Behind him, the woman lashed out with a dark-green vine whip, while in front of him, the brute's saber pressed down with crushing weight, sticking to him relentlessly. Bang! Bang! Bang! Three successive barriers of origin power proved as fragile as paper against the three dharma artifact daggers. Ye Feng leaped into the air, forcefully twisting his body mid-flight to barely evade two of the daggers! Squelch! With a dull squelch, one dagger drove deep into his thigh. In an instant, a wave of numbness washed over Ye Feng. His body stiffened completely, and the origin power inside him felt as though it had been obstructed by some alien force! Alarm rang out in his mind: *Not good! The dagger is poisoned!* At that moment, sinister sneers spread across the faces of the three encircling him. The woman rose to her feet, staring at him with cold, merciless eyes. With a flick of her wrist, her whip coiled around him in a flash and slammed him brutally against a tree trunk. Where was any trace of the frail, helpless woman from before? Toying with the jade case in her hands, she wore a teasing smile. She giggled softly. "The little fellow sure has a handsome face. How about this... once this deal is done, hand him over to me to keep for a while?" Meanwhile, blood poured from the wound on the bearded brute's arm. He cursed peevishly, "Damn it, this brat's swordplay is tough! Hand him to you? Did any of the previous ones last more than three days in your hands? The way I see it, this kid has fair and tender skin. If all else fails, let's just ruin his core and sell him off to the Jiaosifang. We might fetch a fine price for him." Ye Feng could not mobilize a single shred of origin power. His face was pale, and his limbs were utterly numb. At this point, how could he fail to understand what was going on? He had clearly walked straight into their setup! The woman popped open the jade case in her hand. Inside lay only a shriveled fruit pit! Wen Mei's gaze turned sultry as she picked up the pit and chuckled. "This thing is truly useful. Someone falls for it every single time. Da Niu, how much good stuff do you reckon we can scavenge off this brat?" The bearded brute named Da Niu grinned maliciously. "Who cares how much? It's all ours anyway. If it's too little, we'll ruin him and sell him off to the Jiaosifang. If you want to have your fun with him after that, I'm afraid you'll have to pay up." Sprinkling golden sore ointment onto his wound, Da Niu turned toward the child, whose head barely reached the woman's waist. Dropping to one knee to meet the child's gaze, he said respectfully, "Boss, what do you think we should do with this brat?" Not a trace of panic remained on the face of the boy, who looked no more than six or seven years old. Instead, an icy composure entirely unsuited to his apparent age settled over his youthful features. He waved a small hand and said softly, "What to do? The usual rules—search him first. Once his core is crippled, sell him to the Jiaosifang just as you said. You two can negotiate with the madam yourselves. If Wen Mei wants him, she can enjoy him right now." Listening to them discuss his fate as if no one else were present, Ye Feng's eyes filled with bitter remorse. Had he known earlier, he would have listened to Li Guanqi. Why had he allowed himself to fall into such a plight? Evidently, this group preyed on passing rogue cultivators in this exact manner! No wonder the woman had dangled a five-hundred-year Blood Origin Fruit as a reward from the very start! It was clearly meant to lure him into taking action so they could ambush him from behind. Alas... his heart had wavered at the time... If he were not paralyzed, he would have loved nothing more than to slap himself twice across the face! Why did he have to meddle in other people's business? That child was unmistakably a dwarf! As the dwarf spoke, he turned to scan the surroundings, then furrowed his brow and murmured, "When I sensed this area earlier, I vaguely felt two auras... Could my senses have played tricks on me?" Just as Da Niu leapt forward, raising a palm to shatter Ye Feng's core— Suddenly! A blurred silhouette materialized in midair! A flash of purple sword light streaked across the sky like lightning! Clang! Crack! Crash! In a split second, the saber in Da Niu's grip shattered into countless shards, and his massive head flew high into the air, severed cleanly from his neck!