"No." Pan Yang blocked him with one hand, shaking his head as he said, "Senior brother, you should stay here and guard the cave entrance to prevent anyone from discovering us. I’ll go handle these two myself."
Pan Yang chuckled darkly and said, "Very well. Though these two are from small sects, they are quite cunning. I’m afraid if we’re not cautious, they’ll slip away. I’m not adept at hiding my intentions, and I don’t want to mess this up. Second brother, you’re meticulous and unlikely to reveal any flaws. This task should fall to you."
Ever since Cheng Hao and He Renxuan had an unpleasant fallout with Ke Xiu Jun at the banquet that day, they sought refuge with the Pan Brothers.
The Pan Brothers, still having use for the two, outwardly treated them with courtesy.
At this moment, Cheng Hao and He Renxuan were patrolling the area, guarding against prying eyes. However, they, too, felt the surge of abundant Wood Spirit Qi here. Lacking the insight of the Pan Brothers, they mistakenly assumed they had found some high-grade medicinal ginseng.
Cheng Hao’s face showed envy as he said, "Those two senior brothers are truly remarkable, using the Mo Yu Ling Carp Horn to locate medicinal herbs."
He Renxuan chimed in, "Indeed, who could’ve known that those senior brothers possessed such an Exotic Beast? This time, our gamble seems to have paid off. If we assist them with all our might, they surely won’t mistreat us."
Cheng Hao struck his fist against his palm repeatedly, saying, "Exactly, exactly!"
As they spoke, they noticed Pan Yang waving at them with a smile. Mistaking it as a signal for help, they approached him with broad smiles, completely unsuspecting.
When Cheng Hao and He Renxuan stood before Pan Yang, his expression remained friendly as he said, "My elder brother discovered an exceptional Medicine Mushroom, but there’s a slight inconvenience that requires the assistance of you two fellow Daoists. This matter..."
As he got to the latter part of his statement, Pan Yang deliberately lowered his voice, prompting Cheng Hao and He Renxuan to lean in attentively to listen.
Unbeknownst to them, at that very moment, Pan Ming’s expression turned fierce, and with a swift gesture, he unleashed a dense Xuan Guang like a wave of thick sand, sweeping towards the two.
Caught off guard by the sudden attack, Cheng Hao and He Renxuan, though unprepared, had carried protective Jade Talismans on their persons. As the Xuan Guang descended, the talismans briefly emitted Treasure Light to shield them, but the dense and oppressive Xuan Guang quickly overwhelmed and shattered the protective aura.
The two immediately realized the danger and shouted simultaneously, attempting to retreat.
But Pan Ming invoked his spell, causing the Xuan Guang to expand outward like a spread curtain. Within moments, the entire area dozens of meters around was engulfed, transforming into a swirling yellow sandstorm that swept both men into its chaos. They wandered aimlessly within the storm for a brief moment before their bodies were crushed into pools of blood and mud, their Primordial Spirits unable to escape.
Pan Yang remained composed, retracting the Xuan Guang and returning to his previous position. With a nod to Pan Qing, who had been waiting, Pan Qing visibly relaxed and laughed heartily, saying, "Good, this way we won’t have to worry about third parties discovering this matter."
At that moment, the Nine-Headed Peak was littered with corpses, all of them disciples and servants of the Wu Clan. Meanwhile, high above the clouds, two figures continued their relentless battle.
The one holding the advantage was the enigmatic green-clothed youth. Above his head hovered a mystical green cloud, shining and misty, measuring over sixty meters in diameter. Within the cloud, faint thunderclaps could be heard, and an awe-inspiring Green Blade darted back and forth.
As for his opponent, the Old Daoist—disheveled, pale-faced, and gasping for breath—was clearly at his limit.
Casually, the green-clothed youth pointed forward, causing the Xuan Guang above him to tremble, sending forth a streak of Green Light.
The Old Daoist widened his eyes in fury, shouting, "You demon! The blood feud of today—my Wu Clan will avenge it someday!"
He slapped his hand forward, sending a Spirit Talisman into the horizon, but before he could escape, the misty green Xuan Guang struck him, obliterating him body and soul. His lifeless form plummeted from the sky.
The green-clothed youth looked at the vanished Spirit Talisman and smirked disdainfully, saying, "What is the Wu Clan? Once I obtain my True Body and survive this calamity, the twelve Xuan Clans across the southeast are nothing to me."
He chuckled coldly, descended upon the cloud, and with a wave of his hand, retrieved the sleeve bag from the Daoist’s possession. He rummaged through it, found a Medicine Mushroom, and swallowed it in one gulp. Closing his eyes for a moment, the green energy swirling above his head seemed to thicken noticeably.
Not far away, footsteps sounded. Hou Sanlang cautiously approached the green-clothed youth, holding out a sleeve bag with both hands, presenting it respectfully as he said, "Venerable one, the medicinal mushrooms sought by the Wu Clan over the past days amount to five in total, none of which are high-grade. They are all here now."
Over the past half month, Hou Sanlang had followed the green-clothed youth through the mountains, witnessing firsthand how this man easily discovered over ten medicinal mushrooms. With each mushroom consumed, the green energy around the youth grew increasingly pure.
Until today, the youth had single-handedly slaughtered all the Wu Clan cultivators at Nine-Headed Peak, his strength immeasurably greater than it had been half a month ago.
The green-clothed youth extended his hand, took the sleeve bag, and nodded with satisfaction, saying, "You’ve done well. Once my grand plan succeeds, you will be well rewarded."
Hou Sanlang’s face showed an expression of delight and gratitude as he said, "Thank you, Venerable, for your grace."
Looking at Hou Sanlang’s reverent demeanor, the green-clothed youth burst into laughter, only for his laughter to abruptly stop halfway.
His nose twitched repeatedly as if catching wind of something. His brows furrowed, and his expression darkened with anger as he muttered, "No good. Some reckless fool must have stumbled upon that Cave Mansion. I had planned to wait another year or two before retrieving that shell. Now, I can’t afford to wait any longer. If that shell suffers even the slightest damage, it will ruin my plans!" New ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄhapters are published on NovᴇlFire(.)nᴇt
Without further delay, he shouted aloud, the green energy beneath his feet surging and propelling him and Hou Sanlang into the air, heading towards Duan’an Mountain in a hurry.
...(To be continued. If you enjoy this work, please visit Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation votes and monthly votes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)