Chapter 104: Chapter 105: Spirit Flying Ants

Exhaling a turbid breath, Chen Che’s expression was serene.

To anyone else, facing four Seventh Layer Tribulation Cultivators would have been an undeniable death sentence.

But to him, they were nothing more than insects he could crush with ease.

His True Essence reserves were already 71% greater than those of cultivators at the same tier, making his strength comparable to the Qi Refining Seventh Layer. Moreover, the quality of the True Essence condensed by his Energy-Introducing Technique far surpassed that of this world’s other cultivators.

Chen Che’s gaze swept over to Hu Yao, who shuddered and said, stunned:

"Your strength..."

The carnage before him left him utterly stunned and bewildered, more so than even the sight of the dead Tribulation Cultivators.

"You’re a smart man. You should know what to ask and what not to ask."

Chen Che said coolly.

"...Right."

Hu Yao nodded. Most cultivators had their secrets, and it was never a good thing to know too much.

Besides, he was more inclined to side with Chen Che than Li Hong.

With that, he quickly searched the bodies and handed over several storage pouches.

"These Tribulation Cultivators were surprisingly poor. Only a dozen or so Spirit Stones and a few cultivation technique scrolls. They didn’t even have any pills."

Chen Che took them and glanced through the contents, his expression immediately turning to one of disdain.

These cultivation techniques were all incomplete, like mathematical proofs missing a step or two. While they could be executed, their power was always slightly inferior to the complete versions. The only one that was relatively complete was the Cyan Lotus Sword Technique.

But its power was still a far cry from the Sword Control Technique in his textbooks.

Hu Yao stood to the side, staring with undisguised longing. Cultivation techniques were incredibly hard to come by. Even the techniques within the Jinyun Valley weren’t freely available; they had to be exchanged for contribution points.

Furthermore, several of these scrolls were for techniques not even recorded in the valley’s library.

Just as he was thinking this, Chen Che handed the scrolls to him.

"They’re all yours."

"You’re giving them... all to me?"

Hu Yao cradled the scrolls, his body trembling with an excitement so intense he could hardly believe it.

"Mhm."

Chen Che replied, but his attention was already on the bamboo tube one of the dead men had surrendered. More accurately, he was focused on what was inside it.

He swept his Divine Sense over the tube. Inside was a thumb-sized, six-winged flying ant.

It was a Spirit Flying Ant.

’Can this thing really lure out Li Hong?’

"Brother, are you going after Li Hong?"

Seeing Chen Che about to open the tube, Hu Yao’s expression changed drastically, and he hurriedly grabbed Chen Che’s wrist.

"Exactly."

Chen Che gave a slight nod.

’He and Li Hong were already like fire and water; there was no possibility of reconciliation.’

’Besides, I’ve already spent over ten days searching these mountains, and the school term back on Earth Element Star is about to start. After the term begins, I have to prepare for the provincial competition. As long as Li Hong is alive, I’ll always have to be on my guard. And I can’t afford that, since the provincial competition determines whether I can get into one of the Four Greats.’

’This is a rare opportunity. I might as well see it through to the end.’

"Do you need my help?"

Seeing that Chen Che’s mind was made up, Hu Yao quickly changed his tack.

"You’re probably not his match. Just act as my backup. If necessary, all you need to do is stop him from escaping."

With that, Chen Che opened the bamboo tube.

A six-winged black ant emerged, flapping its wings. It circled once in mid-air, then shot off toward the depths of the dense forest.

... 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Wild Pigeon Mountain was in utter chaos.

「Meanwhile.」

Two Jinyun Valley disciples arrived before a large, cyan stone.

"It’s done. Once the signal arrow was fired, almost every cultivator rushed to Wild Pigeon Mountain."

"Good."

Li Hong, who was seated cross-legged atop the cyan stone, gazed toward Wild Pigeon Mountain. He didn’t need to be told; he could see that the entire peak had descended into chaos. Even from such a great distance, he could hear the shouts and cries of battle.

"Excellent."

Li Hong looked at them. "With this, failure is impossible!"

’A chaotic situation like this is perfect for an ambush.’

’The stage is set. Wu Hui and his three men are experts at this sort of thing, so I don’t have to worry. All I have to do now is wait for the good news.’

WHOOSH~

A moment later, a six-winged ant zipped over, hovering before him. At the sight of it, Li Hong shot to his feet, his face filled with ecstatic joy.

"Success!"

He loathed Chen Che to the very marrow of his bones.

Now that Chen Che was dead, not only would a great weight be lifted from his mind, but Jinyun Valley would be left with only one Pill Master Tributor. Even if his brother couldn’t complete the pill formulas right away, Ye Jingzhou would have no choice but to rely on him.

It was a beneficial outcome for both him and his brother.

"Congratulations, Steward!"

"Victory is assured!"

The two disciples chimed in with their congratulations.

"We still need to clean up..."

Li Hong sneered.

Although Wu Hui and his men had killed for treasure many times before, Chen Che’s status was different. If he died a sudden, violent death, Jinyun Valley would inevitably investigate. Therefore, they had to erase all traces to prevent anyone from discovering the truth.

"Let’s go!"

Watching the Spirit Flying Ant turn toward the dense forest, Li Hong quickly followed, his two disciples close behind him.

A moment later, a dilapidated ancient temple appeared before them.

Just as a look of pleasant surprise appeared on Li Hong’s face, a disciple beside him suddenly cried out, "Steward Li, look out!"

A beam of sword aura shot out from the ruined temple like a thunderbolt, reaching him in the blink of an eye.

’Not good!’ Li Hong thought, hastily dodging to the side.

PFFT!

The disciple who had shouted the warning, however, failed to dodge. The sword pierced straight through his chest, and he plummeted from the sky to the ground below.

"Ding Peng! Wu Hui! You have some nerve! Are you planning to attack me as well?"

Li Hong glanced at the fallen disciple, then landed hard, planting himself on the ground like a stone statue dropped from the heavens, making the earth tremble. His voice boomed like a great temple bell, vibrating through the surroundings.

Before the echo of his voice faded, a figure emerged from the ruined temple, fixing him with a piercing gaze.

"It seems you’ve forgotten my methods... Huh? Chen Che? You’re not dead? Where are Wu Hui and the others? Tell them to get out here!"

He hadn’t even finished speaking when he got a clear look at the attacker’s face, and his mind reeled in shock.

In that single instant, his mind raced with a thousand speculations. He even wondered if Wu Hui and his men had struck some deal with Chen Che to turn against him.

However, Chen Che’s next words stunned him into silence.

"If you’re talking about those Tribulation Cultivators, well, they’re already dead."

Ignoring Li Hong’s darkening expression, Chen Che continued nonchalantly:

"When I released that Spirit Flying Ant, I was a little worried you wouldn’t show up in person. But it’s a good thing you came. Since you’re here, let’s settle the score between us, once and for all."

As he spoke, Chen Che raised his Pure Jun Sword, and streams of light began to pour from the blade.

A phantom sword materialized from the light. It then split into two, then four, and continued multiplying until it formed a massive curtain of rain that filled the sky.

The Sword Rain hung suspended in the air, glittering brilliantly.

The light from the swords illuminated the area for miles around, dyeing the space in a strange, dazzling glow.

Describing the scene takes time, but it all happened in a flash.

"Go!"

Chen Che waved his hand forward, and the boundless Sword Rain shot toward his target.

"Damn it!"

Li Hong’s expression changed as he snapped back to his senses. An Eight Trigrams Mirror flew from his robes, instantly expanding in the air until it was twenty to thirty feet wide, forming a barrier in front of him. The remaining disciple with him also quickly brought out a small shield.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

Almost simultaneously, the deluge of swords crashed down.

Amidst the ceaseless barrage of impacts, the ground cracked and split apart, while the surrounding trees and grass were instantly pulverized into dust.

SHRRIIIP!

The disciple accompanying Li Hong was engulfed by the Sword Rain as if drowned by a flood. Both he and his shield were torn to shreds, completely obliterated on the spot.

When the dust settled, Li Hong glanced at his Eight Trigrams Mirror, which was now covered in cracks. His expression was utterly frigid.

"Very good."