Pathfinders

While flying across the chasm, Qin Sang took a long, deep look back at the battlefield. When he shattered the Concentric Pendant, he had held nothing back, conveying everything he knew to Yunyouzi and Ge Yuan, and especially warning them that Yu Kong intended to lure Luo Xingnan and Sheng Yuanzi into a deadly trap. By his reckoning, the interval between when they took up their ambush positions and when Luo Xingnan's group appeared had been fairly long; Yunyouzi and Ge Yuan had had ample opportunity to pull away. Yet they had not done so, choosing instead to follow the others inside. This puzzled Qin Sang, but it also made him wonder if they possessed some life-preserving trump card that gave them the confidence to slip away calmly when danger struck. Judging by the current situation, things looked grim. A good number of hook serpents had been slain by the cultivators. Some serpent carcasses plummeted into the chasm, while others crashed onto the ground. Colossal bodies lay strewn everywhere. Blood stained the earth and gathered into rivers, cascading over the rim of the chasm in blood-red waterfalls with a rushing murmur. However, the three hook serpent kings of the middle Demon Spirit stage were not among the dead. During the fierce clash, their gigantic forms were occasionally knocked flying backward. Their bodies were likewise covered in wounds, yet their auras did not weaken in the slightest. Each time, they whirled around amidst ferocious roars and charged straight back into the fray; driven into a frenzy, they seemed entirely oblivious to pain. By now, the fighting within the red mist was beginning to subside. The three strongest hook serpent kings were only injured, not slain. What was more, from beginning to end, not a single person had managed to escape alive. Yu Kong had originally planned to ambush and kill Luo Xingnan and the others as they fell back in defeat, only to discover that the hook serpents' might exceeded all expectations, rendering any action on his part unnecessary. At last, the battle died down, and the red mist dispersed. The surviving hook serpents hovered in the air, their maws dripping with fresh blood and shredded flesh. The madness in their giant eyes had not yet completely faded, and shrill roars rose and fell in waves. The three most powerful hook serpent kings were likewise battered and scarred, showing that the cultivators' dying counterattacks had been ferocious. One had even suffered both of its twin tails being severed, gushing blood and letting out piteous wails. They seemed to be communicating with one another. Afterward, one hook serpent king dragged its heavily injured companion and flew back into the chasm to slumber, while others landed on the ground to feast on the corpses of their kin or flew back toward their lair. The hook serpents' lair was located in the rear hills. Despite the serpents' colossal size, once they slipped inside, not the slightest trace of demon qi leaked out, suggesting the nest was likely no less deep than the chasm itself. Two middle Foundation Establishment stage experts, accompanied by a whole retinue of helpers, had perished just like that under the siege of a beast pack—not a single one had survived. Aside from Yu Kong and his four companions who watched from afar, no one knew; they had died in total silence. With just a minor scheme, he had effortlessly eliminated two formidable rivals without lifting a finger. Even Yu Kong had not anticipated such an outcome. Having snuck across and now standing behind the stone mountain, they had watched the grand battle unfold from start to finish, culminating in such a gruesome end. Every one of them was shaken to the core. For a time, dead silence reigned; no one spoke. "Senior Yu..." Wu Chen swallowed hard, switching to an honorific for Yu Kong. The scene moments ago had shaken him deeply. Yu Kong had manipulated events like turning his hand, wiping out so many Foundation Establishment cultivators in the blink of an eye. Whether it was the depth of his schemes or the ruthlessness of his methods, Wu Chen no longer dared show him the slightest disrespect. "You knew about these hook serpents all along..." "I indeed knew vicious beasts lurked here and would be troublesome to deal with, but I didn't expect these brutes to be so powerful. Originally, I only intended to claim the lives of those two old fellows. Who would have thought those two scoundrels would drag down so many innocent people with them? Once we are out, I will surely arrange a grand ritual for these Fellow Daoists to comfort their souls in heaven..." Yu Kong sighed sorrowfully, filled with apparent pity, yet the faint smirk of triumphant satisfaction on his face was not entirely concealed. "However, with our greatest enemies eliminated, the spirit herbs are all ours now. Furthermore, they helped us gravely wound the guardian beasts, so we will easily be able to make our escape after harvesting the herbs. We ought to be celebrating, wouldn't you say?" As Yu Kong's gaze swept over them, everyone, including Qin Sang, nodded in agreement. "Time is running short, and there are still restrictions to break. We must leave before the protective grand array's ebb phase ends. I have no desire to be trapped in a place like this for thirty years..." Urged on by Yu Kong, the group cast their evasion techniques and sped toward the distant mountain. Qin Sang cast one last glance back at the ravaged battlefield, pondered for a moment, and turned away. They moved with great caution. The appearance of the hook serpents was a stark warning that this place was not as peaceful as it seemed on the surface. These two low hills were not the only ones on the plain; other hills might very well conceal guardian beasts as well. Fortunately, everything remained very calm all the way until they reached the mountain. Drawing closer, everyone's breathing involuntarily grew heavy. Multihued beams of light pierced through the dense mist and shot into the firmament, dazzling the eyes. Qin Sang silently counted: a full twenty-one! That meant there were twenty-one spirit herbs on the mountain that were at least a thousand years old! Earlier, Luo Xingnan had boasted that he would focus on preparing for Core Formation once he returned. Had he pocketed these twenty-one spirit herbs, he might genuinely have achieved his wish. Qin Sang tilted his head up slightly, his gaze landing near the summit, where that streak of mysterious yellow qi was exceptionally striking. Twenty-one spirit herbs should theoretically be enough to divide among them—more than four apiece—provided Yu Kong wasn't too greedy and wouldn't ruthlessly turn against them. However, the auras of these spirit herbs also varied: most were thin and dim, with only a few shining brilliantly. Among them, the mysterious yellow qi easily ranked within the top three, its value undoubtedly among the very highest. Yu Kong might not be willing to part with it. "It seems those hook serpents were indeed the guardian beasts left behind by the cave abode's master," Yu Kong said with a slight nod. Looking at all the spirit herbs, he could hardly conceal the excitement in his voice. "Once we break the restrictions, these spirit herbs will be ours for the taking. For this final hurdle, we still need everyone to pull together!" Hearing this, the others tore their greedy eyes away and looked toward the dense mist. The restrictions were concealed within the dense mist. Even before stepping inside, one could sense a faint, looming aura of danger. The restrictions here would not be easily broken. They circled the mountain and probed it several times, only to find that the entire mountain was sealed by the dense mist and restrictions. There was no path up, forcing them to abandon any wishful thinking. "Time simply does not permit us to leisurely study how to unravel the restrictions. Fortunately, I have some knowledge of restrictions myself. However..." Yu Kong paused, his eyes sweeping over Qin Sang and the other two. "The restriction here is vast in scale and extraordinarily potent. Someone must enter the restriction in person and trigger its power before its full structure can be discerned. Since I must concentrate on finding a way to break it, I can only ask you, Fellow Daoists, to take turns entering the restriction to test it. What do you think, or do you have any other ideas?"