Chapter 87: Ambush Kill
Chapter 87: Chapter 87: Ambush Kill
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM...
As he gave chase, Song Xinghai rained down a fierce bombardment from above with his Flying Knife Magical Artifact. The attacks kicked up clouds of dust and blasted large craters into the ground, while the barefoot brute scrambled and tumbled below in a pathetic state.
But the barefoot brute was never killed. He didn’t make a single sound, and even though ghastly wounds appeared all over his body, he continued to run as if taking flight. In the blink of an eye, he had covered several miles.
’Why isn’t he bleeding? This isn’t a Cultivator... it’s a Corpse Puppet?’
Song Xinghai finally realized there was something wrong with the barefoot brute. He instantly calmed down and was about to call off the pursuit.
BOOM!
But at that very moment, he suddenly felt the world spin. He had fallen into an Illusion Array. Thick white mist surrounded him, making it impossible to even get his bearings.
Not only was his vision obstructed, but his Divine Thought couldn’t extend very far either.
As for the barefoot brute, he had long since vanished.
’This is bad! I’ve fallen into a trap!’
Song Xinghai was horrified, realizing he had been careless.
DONG!
But before he could react, the immense toll of a bell suddenly rang out.
Powerful Sound Waves swept through the area, instantly shattering the defensive light barrier of the Upper Grade Flying Boat. The Spiritual Light around both the Flying Boat and the Flying Knife Magical Artifact dimmed, and they plummeted to the ground.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM...
Almost simultaneously, a beam of black Sword Light, accompanied by a tremendous clap of thunder, shot toward him as fast as lightning.
CRACK!
However, in the nick of time, an exquisite cyan jade pendant at Song Xinghai’s waist shattered. It transformed into a cyan, hemispherical shield of light that completely enveloped him.
The Sword Light struck the cyan shield. Though it shook violently, it did not break.
Thus, Song Xinghai avoided a direct hit.
He wasn’t even knocked unconscious, but the combined impact of the powerful Sound Waves and Sword Light still made him spit out a large mouthful of blood.
’What a pity!’
Deep within the mist, a tall and upright young Cultivator watched the scene unfold, feeling a tinge of regret.
This Cultivator was none other than Zhang Chi.
The barefoot brute was the Corpse Puppet he had released to lure his opponent in, and the Illusion Array was the outer layer of the Thousand Illusions Locking Array he had set up.
A Top Grade Magical Artifact, the Black Bell, hovered before him. The Sound Waves and the Sword Light were both his attacks.
He had planned to imitate the elder from the Spirit Control Sect, using the Black Bell to stun his enemy before finishing him off with a single sword strike.
Unfortunately, his opponent did indeed have Protective Measures that not only activated automatically but could also partially resist the Sound Waves.
But considering his opponent was a prodigy from a Golden Core Family, he was no longer surprised.
"Who are you? Stop hiding and skulking! If you have any guts, come out and fight!"
At that moment, Song Xinghai’s face was a mask of lingering fear and rage.
Thankfully, he had the Protective Talisman from his grandfather. Otherwise, he likely would have died in that first exchange.
But Zhang Chi gave no reply. Or rather, the only reply he gave was another beam of black Sword Light.
To make matters worse, the Sword Light was incredibly fierce. Under its relentless assault, his protective light barrier quickly dimmed.
"You want to kill me? Dream on! Unless you’re a Foundation Establishment Powerhouse, no one can break my defenses. In fact, not only will you fail to kill me, I’m going to kill *you*!"
Song Xinghai’s expression flickered. As he spoke, he activated the defensive function of his Magic Robe, slapped a Tier One Peak Vajra Talisman onto his body, and took out an Upper Grade magical artifact—a small black umbrella—which he opened for additional defense. Only then did he regain his composure.
He then slapped his Storage Bag, pulling out a fist-sized black sphere that radiated a destructive aura. Gritting his teeth, he hurled it forward.
BOOM!
While still in mid-air, the black sphere erupted, unleashing a dense cloud of hair-thin black lights.
The black lights instantly blanketed an area several hundred yards in all directions, sparing only the point of origin.
Zhang Chi was immediately caught in the attack from the black rays, which were revealed to be a volley of Black Needles.
The Black Needles were incredibly sharp and swift, and they gave off a faint, acrid smell—they were clearly coated in a potent, unknown poison.
The mist of the Illusion Array offered no obstruction whatsoever to the swarm of Black Needles.
However, Zhang Chi was prepared. The moment his opponent had produced the black sphere, the hairs on his body had stood on end as he sensed the imminent danger.
SWOOSH!
With a faint blur of motion, he instantly retreated into the inner Protective Array of the Thousand Illusions Locking Array.
SHWIP! SHWIP! SHWIP!
In the next instant, the Black Needles pierced straight through the Protective Array, but their Mighty Power was diminished by more than half.
By the time they reached Zhang Chi, they were all blocked by his Profound Turtle Shield with a series of sharp metallic pings.
The Profound Turtle Shield, however, was now riddled with holes and nearly destroyed. It would be completely unusable until repaired.
’Such a waste!’
Zhang Chi was astonished, and he felt a sharp pang of regret for his shield.
At the same time, his gaze grew more solemn.
He knew that without the Protective Array, the Profound Turtle Shield would have stood no chance against those Black Needles.
Then, even with his other defenses like the Flood Dragon Snake Armor and the Upper Grade Magic Robe, he might very well have been injured.
GULP!
Next, Zhang Chi chugged an entire jar of Spirit Wine and swallowed a large handful of Spirit Pills.
Using the Black Bell earlier had consumed more than half of his Spiritual Power. But after consuming the Spirit Pills and Spirit Wine, his Spiritual Power was instantly replenished.
Furthermore, the Spiritual Power within him began to boil as Blood Flames erupted from his skin. He pushed his Nine Flames Spirit Devouring Technique to its absolute limit, holding nothing back, and his Combat Power soared.
It turned out that among the Elixirs he had just taken, there had been one Violent Qi Pill.
"Haha! Now you know how powerful I am! That black sphere is a Top Grade Magical Artifact. Even a Foundation Establishment Cultivator would be injured by it, let alone a mere Qi Cultivation Peak punk like you!"
Song Xinghai laughed triumphantly.
He was certain his enemy was already dead.
But, out of caution, he still took out three shimmering Tier Two Low Grade Spirit Talismans from his Storage Bag.
One was golden; it was a Breaking Charm.
Another, pure silver in color, was a Small Shifting Talisman.
The final one was cyan with lightning crackling across its surface—a Cyan Wood Thunder Talisman.
The first, as its name implied, was specialized in breaking through Array Restrictions.
The second was specifically for escaping.
Once he broke through the array, he could use the Small Shifting Talisman to instantly teleport to a random location over a hundred li away.
The third was a true killing tool. Once activated, its power was comparable to a full-force strike from a Foundation Establishment Early Stage Cultivator.
Of course, these three Spirit Talismans were incredibly precious, even to him. Besides, he couldn’t even see his target and was convinced the man was already dead, so he didn’t use them right away.
But that single moment of hesitation spelled his doom.
SWOOSH!
Just then, a streak of blood-red light shot out with incredible speed. Within the bloody glow was Zhang Chi.
He had activated the Blood Escape Technique—not to flee, but to accelerate.
In his Blood Escape state, he moved like a bolt of lightning, slamming fiercely into his opponent’s protective shield. His body was wreathed not only in Blood Flames but also in a ceaselessly flowing, jade-colored light.
This was the Bright Jade Body Refining Technique, pushed to its absolute limit.
He had also protected his entire body with the Flood Dragon Snake Armor and his Upper Grade Magic Robe.
Furnace Carbon was not idle, either. It erupted with a Sword Light even more dazzling than before and joined the assault.
Even the Fire Crow Gourd flew out, rapidly expanding and releasing a flock of massive, searing Fire Crows that bombarded the target from a different direction.
The Corpse Puppet and the Four-legged Strange Snake joined the fray as well. Although their power was weak compared to Zhang Chi and the Sword Light, they couldn’t be underestimated. They might just prove to be the straws that broke the camel’s back.