Chapter 116: Chapter 115: The Two Old Daoists Unleash Their Power

The Black Bear King and the Yellow Dog King looked up to see the small courtyard was filled with people.

A young man, two old men, three women, and a fox. Their opponents were all impeccably dressed. Combined with the recent cry of "The fish are hooked!", it was obvious they were well-prepared and had been lying in wait for them.

’How is that possible?’ The Black Bear King’s pupils constricted.

He and the Yellow Dog King both possessed several centuries of Dao Practice. With their auras and Demon Power completely suppressed, even the Golden Wind Divine King would have struggled to detect them. ’So how did these people find us?’

But this was no time to ponder that. A single glance at the light curtain enveloping the courtyard told him that his opponents had an array that could seal off the space. Moreover, the binding force he felt constricting his body meant the array could weaken his power.

’The priority now is to break this array!’

The Black Bear King knew nothing of arrays. He could only think of one way to break it.

ROAR!

With a roar that tore through the sky, the Black Bear King instantly transformed. In the space of a single breath, he became a massive black bear over four meters tall and immediately spun around to charge the light curtain.

’Not a single wasted word. So decisive!’

Gu Zhao held the Array Control Wooden Token, continuously pouring Magical Power into it. Within the Dragon-Caging Array, Dragon-Binding Iron Chains shot out to entangle the Black Bear King, then abruptly tightened.

BOOM!

With a tremendous crash, the Black Bear King slammed into the Dragon-locking Light Curtain, sending ripples across its surface. The light curtain shuddered violently, but it held firm.

The violent impact left the Black Bear King dizzy. He shook his massive head, and just as he was preparing to charge a second time, he felt the biting wind of a blade slash from behind.

"Third Brother!" the Black Bear King roared, wanting the Yellow Dog King to hold off the attack for a moment.

The Yellow Dog King watched as a short, gaunt old Mage grew a foot taller within the span of a few steps. The old Mage then swung the Great Saber in his hand, creating a piercing whistle as it cut through the air.

The Yellow Dog King didn’t dare block the blow head-on. Instead, two daggers slid from his sleeves. His body blurred into an afterimage as he lunged, aiming for Taoist Yi Hong’s legs.

However, before he could get close, a longsword barred his path. The other old Mage had appeared in a flash, his sword dissolving into a flurry of cold glints that enveloped the Yellow Dog King’s head, face, and shoulders.

The Yellow Dog King could sense that this old Mage’s sword strike was unlike that of an ordinary Martial Artist. The tip of the blade carried a dense True Qi that resonated with a natural rhythm. Before the sword even reached him, the Demon Power within his body began to stir restlessly.

’His Magical Power doesn’t feel as profound as mine, but its nature seems to suppress my own. It can absolutely threaten and injure me.’

The Yellow Dog King decisively halted his advance, using his twin daggers to parry the longsword. The clang of metal on metal rang out repeatedly, but he could not break through the Sword Curtain. 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

Meanwhile, sensing the commotion from the Yellow Dog King’s fight, the Black Bear King turned his head. Shielding his body with Demon Power, he swatted a massive paw toward Taoist Yi Hong’s Cyan Dragon Crescent Saber.

BANG!

With a thunderous crash, the Black Bear King didn’t budge an inch, but Taoist Yi Hong was forced back several steps. "Such immense strength," he marveled.

Feeling the stinging pain in his paw, the Black Bear King’s eyes narrowed to slits, a cold light flaring within them. "Did you kill my second brother?"

If he hadn’t taken these people seriously before, then after clashing with Taoist Yi Hong and seeing Taoist Yan Song holding his own against the Yellow Dog King, he now knew that these two old Mages were not to be trifled with.

’On Three Extremes Mountain, they’d be worthy of high-ranking positions!’

Gu Zhao didn’t answer the Black Bear King’s question. Instead, he simply reached behind his back and produced a folding fan.

SNAP!

The fan snapped open, revealing the White Wolf Raiding Map to the Black Bear King and the Yellow Dog King.

"It really was you!" the Black Bear King roared.

Meanwhile, the Yellow Dog King exchanged several blows with Taoist Yan Song. A surge of his Demon Power forced the Daoist back a few steps. "Who are you people?" he asked, confused.

"Shouldn’t we be the ones asking that?" Gu Zhao said, waving his folding fan. "We’ve never even left this village, yet you’re the ones who keep coming to kill us."

The Yellow Dog King was at a loss for words.

The Black Bear King’s eyes flashed with ferocity. He feinted a lunge toward Taoist Yi Hong. Seeing Taoist Yi Hong raise his saber defensively, the bear king abruptly spun around, channeled all his Demon Power, and smashed his fist into the Dragon-locking Light Curtain.

But he was fast, and Taoist Yi Hong was faster.

The instant the bear king turned, Taoist Yi Hong’s Yanyue Saber carved an arc through the air. Crackling with the power of wind and thunder, it slashed toward the Black Bear King’s neck with unstoppable momentum.

The Black Bear King’s pupils constricted; he hadn’t expected the old Mage to see through his feint.

Feeling the iron chains constricting him ever tighter and hearing the piercing shriek of the attack at his back, the Black Bear King let out a long howl. His body swelled another two feet in height as he focused his Demon Power to his back.

BANG!

The Black Bear King took the full force of Taoist Yi Hong’s saber on his back. He used the momentum to lunge forward, ramming his shoulder into the Dragon-locking Light Curtain again.

BOOM!

It was like two mountains colliding. An earth-shaking boom rang out, and the ripples on the Dragon-locking Light Curtain spread frantically, as if it would shatter in the next instant.

But before the Black Bear King could apply a second, array-shattering blow, Taoist Yi Hong sidestepped and swung his saber, hacking the bear under the ribs and knocking him away from the Dragon-locking Light Curtain.

Though the Black Bear King’s strength was immense, Taoist Yi Hong, as the main "tank" for the Taoist Sect, was by no means weak. Planting his feet firmly on the ground, he channeled his strength, and the downward chop of his seventy-pound Cyan Dragon Crescent Saber carried the force to split mountains and shatter rock.

In that brief moment of being pushed back, the Black Bear King felt the iron chains constrict even tighter, beginning to suppress his Magical Power and Divine Sense.

At the same time, Zhuo Qingyan raised her Jade Flute. A desolate, mournful melody began to play, its notes like silken threads worming their way into the ears of the Black Bear King and the Yellow Dog King, throwing their Seas of Consciousness into chaos.

While operating the array with the Wooden Token in his left hand, Gu Zhao’s right hand produced two Shangqing Divine Transformation Talismans. Channeling his energy and chanting an incantation, he cast the spell. The two Talismans disintegrated into ash in mid-air, then transformed into two streaks of cyan light that shot into the bodies of Taoist Yi Hong and Taoist Yan Song.

The Silk Embroideress and Wang Yue stood on either side of the courtyard, just outside the Dragon-Caging Array. Each clutched several Great Dragon-locking Talismans, their eyes nervously fixed on the battlefield within, ready to provide support at a moment’s notice.

Empowered by the Shangqing Divine Transformation Talisman, Taoist Yan Song, who had been on the back foot, rallied his spirits. He spat a jet of fire from his mouth, and as his Seven-Star Sword swept through it, the blade ignited, becoming a Flame Sword that temporarily overwhelmed the Yellow Dog King.

Taoist Yi Hong, in turn, intercepted the Black Bear King in the middle of the courtyard, making it impossible for the demon to get near the edge of the Dragon-locking Light Curtain again.

Seeing that the array was temporarily secure, Gu Zhao drew out dozens of Mountain Thunder Talismans and Fire Thunder Talismans, grimacing slightly.

’These past few small battles have nearly depleted my inventory. I’ll need to restock after this fight is over.’

In the next moment, an observer outside the courtyard would have seen it suddenly erupt with flashes of gold, red, purple, and various other colors, like a neon sign blinking on in the dead of night.