Everlasting

 

“What? Those three fellows have come out? Good! Good! Good!” Hearing that Chen Feng’s group of three had come out, Liu Yuntian shouted the word “Good” three times in a row. Immediately, he got up to move out.

Swoosh! Swoosh!

The moment Liu Yuntian, a soft breeze blew and two old men appeared, one on either side of Liu Yuntian.

“Let’s go! Capture the three fellows. I want to torture them properly.” After saying that, Liu Yuntian flew into the sky. Surprisingly, he was not utilizing any magic treasures. Additionally, the speed at which he was flying was much faster compared to those at the same level as him.

This Young Master with a pleasure-seeker image was actually an expert.

…

“We are here. You two, protect me while I set up the array,” said Ye Ziming before hastily pulling out small command flags. With a wave of his hand, the command flags submerged underground before disappearing completely. Next, the three of them could feel a hot and humid aura seeping out from underground. It seemed as though there was a boiling lake beneath them. Or perhaps, it was a volcano that was on the verge of erupting. The heat coming off the ground continued to rise. Wave after wave of heat rose to the sky until finally, both Chen Feng and Lu Ta had to circulate their astral energies to protect their bodies.

There was a serious look on Ye Ziming’s face as his hands kept forming hand seals, which transformed into power before flowing into various corners upon the ground. After that, the heat waves bursting uncontrollably out from the ground began to seep back in, hidden underground once more. It was stored in secret, just waiting for the time to erupt.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

Both of Ye Ziming’s hands waved without respite and 36 more command flags shot out to insert themselves upon the ground. Next, they disappeared underground as well.

“Phew! This is really costly! If we fail to finish off the other party, we will be suffering a huge loss.” Ye Ziming’s face was covered with sweat. The move earlier had consumed a great deal of Ye Ziming’s vitality. Additionally, those command flags had been very costly to create.

This restrictive array is a powerful technique. Weaker cultivators can borrow the power of arrays to beset stronger enemies. Although the Longevity Scripture also contains introduction to arrays, they are all large-scale arrays and incredibly complicated. Given my present cultivation base, I would not be able to create even the simplest of arrays. However, according to the Longevity Scripture, some powerful arrays could borrow the power of Heaven and Earth to kill even Immortal Humans. I wonder if that is true? Chen Feng pondered.

“Now, we only need to wait for them to send themselves in.”

The three of them sat on the ground as they calmly await Liu Yuntian to arrive and step into their trap. 

“They’re coming!”

After less than an hour, Chen Feng and the others simultaneously raised their heads up to peer into the distance. Ten li away, several auras had emerged. Furthermore, they were quickly approaching. It did not take long for Liu Yuntian and his bodyguards to appear before the three of them (1 li = 0.5 km).

“Excellent! The three of you did not escape. It seems you fellows were waiting for us. Could it be you all think you can fight me?” Seeing Chen Feng’s group sitting cross-legged on the ground, Liu Yuntian revealed a sneer before bursting into an arrogant laughter.

“Nine cultivators at level 4 of the Concealed stage and the two old men. Be careful,” said Ye Ziming.

“Where are the other three?” Liu Yuntian suddenly asked in a serious tone.

“Back then, Sixth Brother and the other two were chasing after these three fellows,” one of the warriors stepped forward and replied.

“No need to ask, we have killed them. I say, Young Master Liu, you were the one speaking insolently from the get go, provoking others all the time. And now, you brought your men over to kill us? Aren’t you going overboard? Or do you fancy your Purplecloud Sky Grotto as an immortal dao sect that is capable of controlling everything?” Ye Ziming abruptly spoke up, a sneer on his face.

“Humph! A few country bumpkins think they are qualified to talk to me? I don’t even want to dirty my hands killing you fellows. However, since you three dared offend me, you must pay the price,” said Liu Yuntian with a sinister smile.

“Oh? And what is the price?” asked Ye Ziming coolly.

“If you fellows immediately abolish your own cultivation base, get on your knees and beg me for mercy, I can let you all live. If not, I will have to take action to break all your limbs and destroy your sea of wisdom. I will make it so you fellows cannot even live as cripples!” said Liu Yuntian viciously.

“I remember a wild dog barking beside us some time ago. Now that wild dog suddenly approached us and started barking again. Is this wild dog without a master?” Chen Feng suddenly said in a curious tone.

“Ha ha ha, Brother Chen, you said it yourself. It is a wild dog. How could it have a master?” replied a laughing Lu Ta.

“Is that so? I forgot it is a wild dog. It turns out it has no owner. However, it is rare to see such an arrogant wild dog,” said Chen Feng with a smile.

“Ha ha ha ha ha ha!” Chen Feng’s group immediately burst out laughing.

“You fellows! You are courting death!” Liu Yuntian’s face was extremely ugly to behold and his words hissed out through gnashed teeth.

“Go! Capture them! Absolutely do not kill them! I want to keep them alive and toy with them!” shouted Liu Yuntian.

Sou! Sou! Sou! Sou!

The nine warriors attacked in tandem, every one of them wielding identical-looking spears as they charged forward in a battle formation. Potent energy trampled through their surroundings as the nine warriors, all in orderly formation, attacked Chen Feng’s group. The moment they took action, it was apparent that they possessed a high level of tacit cooperation. These warriors were clearly veterans of battle.

“Attack!” Chen Feng was the first to attack. He swiftly unsheathed his Overwhelming Astral Sword to display a dazzling sword energy, which rampaged throughout the sky as it sliced everything. The potent energy unleashed by the warriors were shattered apart and the nine warriors were wounded as a result.

“A good opportunity!”

Seeing Chen Feng unleash his prowess with his first attack, wounding the other party, Ye Ziming and Lu Ta followed suit. Lu Ta used his Endless Sky of Turbidity staff to attack and three of the warriors were sent flying.

Ye Ziming’s move was even more bizarre. He simply slipped into the void. When he re-appeared, he was right before his target. Next, a flurry of fists, seemingly encompassing the entire sky, shot out.

“Godfist of the Hegemonic Sky!”

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

A series of explosive sounds rang out and the six remaining warriors were all sent flying.

“Eh? Prized artefact!”

“Voidslip! You are from the Xu Clan of the Central Plains?”

The eyes of the two old men standing beside Liu Yuntian immediately lit up. One was looking at the Overwhelming Astral Sword in Chen Feng’s hand while the other stared at Ye Ziming.

Next, without waiting for Liu Yuntian to say anything, they made their move.

“Illusory Capture!”

The two attacked at the same time and two big illusory palms rapidly appeared in the sky. The two palms appeared blurry and were seemingly non-existent. And yet, they gave off a feeling of tangibility. The moment the two palms were condensed out, Chen Feng’s group felt as though their surroundings had turned solid. It felt as though they were fishes trapped within mud. Even minor movements were difficult to perform.

“These two men are powerful. Hurry, retreat back into the array!” Chen Feng directed all of his divine sense into the Overwhelming Astral Sword. Next, a will, with a grand and upright energy, surged forth. It was as though a sword of unparalleled sharpness was piercing through the sky. The two large and illusory palms halted. Next, cracks appeared upon the palms, seemingly on the verge of breaking apart due to the momentum of the sword energy that Chen Feng had unleashed.

“A Prized artefact is indeed powerful. Kid, you are unable to fully unleash the power of a Prized artefact. You should hand it over to me,” shouted one of the old men. Immediately, he charged towards Chen Feng. With a flash, he appeared before Chen Feng and his hand reached out to perform a simple grabbing motion directed at Chen Feng.

Shua!

It was at that moment that a burst of light suddenly flashed out from underground, wrapping Chen Feng, Ye Ziming and Lu Ta. With a sudden tug, the three of them abruptly disappeared. At the same time, the scene before the old man changed, transforming into a burning desert.

“Humph! You think you can confuse me with a little illusion? Break!” the old man shouted, his voice like thunder. Next, a powerful ripple of divine sense, fused into an extraordinarily powerful soundwave, spread out. Immediately, the scene before him changed back to its normal state. By then, however, there were no longer any traces of Chen Feng’s group.

“To think they had set up an array here,” said one of the old men. 

“One of the three fellows is a level 1 Concealed stage cultivator, a nobody. As for the other two, one is at level 3 of the Concealed stage while the other is at level 4 of the Concealed stage. We can capture them with a wave of our hands. Even if they do set up an array, it will be of no use.”

“That is right! Break the array and charge in to capture all three!”

Next, the two old men ignored Liu Yuntian as they stepped forward, disappearing from sight as they entered the array.

“Those two old fogeys dare ignore my orders and act on their own private whims? Outrageous! I will settle this after we return!” The expression on Liu Yuntian’s face changed for a bit before slowly calming down. After that, he waited calmly.

“Do you think those two old men will enter?” asked Lu Ta.

“Of course, unless they can remain unmoved after seeing a Prized artefact,” said Chen Feng with a smile as he regarded the Overwhelming Astral Sword in his hand. Chen Feng had deliberately utilized the Overwhelming Astral Sword earlier in order to entice the other party into entering the trap.

“Careful! They have entered!” said Ye Ziming as he quickly performed several hand seals. Next, the three of them disappeared.

“Humph! It turns out they are borrowing earthen energy to set up this array. If our cultivation bases are but one level lower, we might actually end up getting trapped. Unfortunately, we have just broken through to level 7 of the Concealed stage. This array is but child’s play in our eyes,” said one of the old men. Next, he sent a fierce punch down the ground, causing the ground to quake. It was as though a small mountain had descended from the sky to crash upon the ground.

Pa!

Tens of metres underground were some command flags set up in a certain direction and pattern. They were none other than the core of the array that Ye Ziming had set up. At present, a vast power drilled underground, causing one of the command flags to explode into ashes. Immediately, the command flag’s operation came to a halt.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The two old men attacked again and again, causing the command flags embedded underground to explode one after another. The power of the array gradually grew weaker. 

“Not good! To think that these two old fellows are so powerful. Five Elements of Yin and Yang, Grand Array Reversal! Rotate the five elements and link up with the earthen fire!” Ye Ziming shouted loudly and potent energy rumbled out from his body as his clothes flapped intensely. Both his palms were forcefully pressed down upon the ground as symbols rapidly seeped underground.

Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!

Burst after burst of rumbling sounds reverberated out as earthen energy erupted like an exploding volcano. Powerful heatwaves shot out continuously like dragons. In but one breath’s worth of time, the temperature of the surrounding area, with a radius of several hundred metres, had risen several times over. And it was still climbing higher. The ground began cracking before turning charred.