Chapter 81: Seizing the Opportunity

Explosions echoed inside the cave.

The Legendary Da Guan fixed his gaze on five superhumans but did not act himself. Instead, he pointed towards them and bellowed angrily.

Two rank-four Da Guan immediately mobilized, leading hundreds of the three-tribe guards.

The Gekko People in a nearby rock nest also awoke, grabbing weapons and emerging from their nests. Much of the cave was awakened in seconds, like a boiling pot.

The five superhumans were quickly surrounded.

“Retreat!”

Strange Genius shouted, looking at the rock where Ji Xinghuo was hiding, his face full of reluctance.

The Illusionist was suddenly hit by explosive flame arrows, disrupting her control over the illusions. She was just a few meters away from revealing the position of Ren Mian and the others, but the illusion dissipated helplessly.

The five superhumans turned and fled.

But they didn’t get far before the first wave of enemy interceptions arrived. Ahead, several Gekko archers fired arrows at them. The Gekko, mainly warriors, are not good at archery and could only reluctantly gather a few archers for saturated firing.

The Gravity Warrior, clad in heavy armor, stepped forward, shielding his teammates with his large body.

The arrows fell to the ground before him.

Several arrows that hit him were also deflected by his armor, causing no damage.

Meanwhile, Shadow made a sudden sprint, avoiding the arrows aimed at him and in a blink, he charged into the group of Gekko archers. His dual short swords swiftly swung, leaving a trail of Gekko corpses on the ground.

They continued to push forward, but the Gekko were too numerous.

The Illusionist again cast Silent Illusions, cloaking the entire team’s presence. From the palace steps, the Legendary Da Guan shot a piece of shattered ice from his fingertip.

The ice shard, fast as lightning, expanded rapidly into a spear of ice several meters long in mid-air.

The ice spear shot straight towards the five people.

“I’ve got this!”

The Gravity Warrior shouted, turning around to shield his teammates again, using the flat of his giant axe as a shield in front of him.

Boom!

The ice spear struck the axe, bursting into numerous icy shards and cold air.

The Gravity Warrior instantly turned into an ice statue, the cold spreading rapidly from his feet across the ground, encompassing a hundred meters in ice.

The other four, covered in frost, had their silent illusions broken and their speed drastically reduced.

The surrounding Gekko warriors seized the opportunity to encircle them.

Flames erupted from Strange Genius, transforming into a three-meter-tall giant made of molten lava. He lightly tapped on the icy Gravity Warrior’s shoulder, the flame transferring and immediately thawing the ice, dispersing the surrounding cold.

By then, two rank-four Da Guan had already closed in.

Another rank-four Gekko warrior, leading hundreds of his kin from the side, soon enveloped them in a complete encirclement.

The Martial Artist thrust his long spear, plunging into the crowd of Gekko, facing the rank-four Gekko warrior head-on.

“Ah!”

A sharp scream.

A visible sound wave emanated from the Illusionist’s mouth, a “Spear of Sound” grazing the Martial Artist’s body and hitting the rank-four Gekko warrior first, making his body pause as blood flowed from his orifices, a severe mental shock inflicted.

The Martial Artist thrust his spear through the Gekko warrior’s head, sweeping sideways and clearing the enemies around him.

His long spear carried “Shattering Force”!

This star force ability, combined with striking techniques, meant that even a slight graze from the spear would cause the body to instantly disintegrate into a pile of flesh.

Elsewhere, Strange Genius and the Gravity Warrior together quickly killed the two rank-four Da Guan.

The Gravity Warrior expanded a gravity field around himself, slowing any enemy entering its range. Strange Genius morphed rapidly, using his molten body as a weapon, directly pouncing on the slowed Da Guan, instantly turning them to charcoal with his lava heat.

Shadow, transformed into the Grim Reaper, was reaping the lives of archers within the crowd.

The five superhumans fought as they retreated.

Gekko swarmed from all sides like a tidal wave, but they stood firm as rocks, shattering the fierce tide in moments.

They moved quickly towards the cave exit, leaving a trail of Gekko and Da Guan corpses.

Ji Xinghuo, hidden behind a rock, watched the battle unfold, awestruck.

The prowess of these five superhumans exceeded their peers. Any one of them was formidable; when uniting as a team, unless the Legendary Da Guan intervened, relying on the Gekko alone would hardly detain them, only needlessly sacrificing thousands of Gekko lives.

Yet, the Legendary Da Guan still showed no sign of wanting to act.

Ji Xinghuo’s nerves tingled with alarm.

The Da Guan suddenly set his sights on him. Even with rocks for cover, he felt a terrifying palpitation.

Without hesitation, Ji Xinghuo leaped down from the rock.

Almost the moment he rolled away, an ice spear penetrated the rock, striking where he had been seconds before. Chilling air burst from behind him.

Ji Xinghuo’s entire body chilled, his skin sprouting bluish-gold scales as he hastily fled.

He heard a command from the Legendary Da Guan.

Though he couldn’t understand it, he guessed the Da Guan was directing the Gekko warriors to hunt him down.

“Xinghuo?” Ren Mian’s voice echoed in his mind. “What’s happening?” She still didn’t know the full situation.

“I’ve been spotted.”

As Ji Xinghuo swiftly ran through the tunnels, he replied, “Don’t move yet. After I lure the enemies away, we’ll see if there’s a chance to hide elsewhere.”

His magnetic field sense already detected hundreds of Gekko converging towards him.

Yet, he was not panicked.

The Gekko’s nest was complex, a three-dimensional honeycomb with many corners to hide.

As long as he wasn’t directly exposed to the Legendary Da Guan’s line of sight, relying on his stealth ring and magnetic field sense, he was confident he could shake off the enemies.

He could even guide his teammates to other hiding spots through their mental link.

Ji Xinghuo moved stealthily through the gaps in the rock nest, soundlessly and always out of sight from the Legendary Da Guan.

His magnetic field sense projected the terrain and enemies in his mind like having a map hack.

He knew the nest better than the Gekko.

After a few rounds, the encircling Gekko lost their direction, clueless and unable to spot their foe.

“I’m safe.”

Ji Xinghuo stood in a rock crevice, only a hundred meters away from where he was discovered, still within the range of the mental link. He informed Ren Mian.

He monitored the situation of those five superhumans while evading his pursuers.

The battle intensified, and the cave resounded with killing shouts.

However, the five superhumans were moving further from the palace, already reaching the cave’s exit. Just a bit further and they’d be back in the previous cave.

In mere minutes, hundreds from the North Luo Master Clan had been slain.

Ji Xinghuo opened the interface of Wanxiang Star Pupils to check.

The psychic source energy fluctuated continuously: +1+1+2+1+3+5+2+1…

Wanxiang Star Pupils, with its broad absorption range, could gather psychic source energy even if Ji Xinghuo himself didn’t make the kills.

It had now accumulated over 600 points!

However, as the sounds of killing receded, Ji Xinghuo noticed the psychic source energy ceased to increase, likely beyond the absorption distance of Wanxiang Star Pupils.

He estimated this distance to be roughly two thousand meters, further than he had anticipated.

“Can you hold back from intervening?”

Ji Xinghuo’s magnetic field sense locked onto the Legendary Da Guan. If he didn’t act now, the five superhumans just needed to enter the previous cave and the Illusionist could easily cover their tracks, allowing them to escape.

This thought just formed when the Legendary Da Guan made his move.

He dashed down the palace steps, his body glowing with frost and mist, forming blue waves at his feet. Each step carried him tens of meters, breaking a hundred meters per second, rapidly closing in on the direction of the five superhumans, like a massive wave rolling forward.

“The chance has come.”

Ji Xinghuo was overjoyed. Before he could speak, Ren Mian too seized the opportunity, emerging from her hiding place in the rock nest.

Jiangnan Caiyi kept the Phantom Pearl active, covering the entire team as they advanced towards the palace entrance.

Ji Xinghuo caught up in stealth mode to join them.

“If we’re exposed, don’t hold back. Charge straight in,” Ren Mian decisively instructed, glancing back at the Legendary Da Guan pursuing the five superhumans. “They won’t entangle him for long. We have limited time. Just get into the palace of the Toad Spirit, and leave the rest to me.”

The few hundred meters distance was crossed in a blink. The four reached the steps beneath the palace.

At the moment, several hundred Gekko warriors under a rank-four Da Guan solidly guarded the palace entrance. They formed three human walls with just a few meters between each, leaving no gaps for enemies to slip through.

Ji Xinghuo and the team clambered up the steps hurriedly.

The Phantom Pearl could hide their shapes but not absorb sound. As they climbed, numerous Gekko shifted their gaze towards them.

Several Gekko warriors named what they heard.

The rank-four Da Guan loudly ordered, the Gekko archers raising longbows ready to shoot. Over a hundred Gekko warriors grasped their spears, their eyes locked on the invisible enemies.

“Caiyi!” Ren Mian called.

“Close your eyes.”

Jiangnan Caiyi leaped gently, rising several meters high on the steps.

Her body morphed into a turbid white-black shape, her features twisting extremely. Countless black mist emerged from her body, her flesh rapidly proliferating. Tentacles appeared out of thin air, forming an indescribable shape; her entire being no longer resembled a human but seemed the most evil and terrifying existence in the world.

At this moment, she was no longer human.

Even a glance at her would contaminate the mind, severely impacting the psyche and leaving it extremely fragile.

“#￥@#……”

This indescribable entity emitted an indescribable sound.

At the palace steps in front of hundreds of North Luo Master Clan members, all fell into a daze, their minds filled with boundless fear and madness.

They screamed, running about chaotically. Some raised their weapons to slay those beside them, starting to slaughter each other.

Some even strangled themselves or directly self-harmed.

“It’s done.”

Jiangnan Caiyi landed from mid-air, reverting to her human form. Her voice sounded very weak, her complexion pale as if her body had been drained of all energy.

Ji Xinghuo glanced at her nervously.

The combination of a Demonic Cultivator’s “Inner Demon” and a Spirit of Malice’s “Malicious Form” resulted in a Demon Lord’s “Indescribable Dread.” These two abilities, neither possessing direct killing power, caused a disintegration effect comparable to that of starfall abilities, instantly shattering the will of hundreds of enemies to resist.

“Let’s go up!”

Ren Mian led the charge to the top of the steps, passing through the chaotic crowd. Any deranged Gekko warrior that approached was instantly speared to death by Chi Zhonglin.

Ji Xinghuo’s Dragon- Hawk Bow fired several arrows, singling out and killing those rank-two and above who were about to regain consciousness.

Including that rank-four Da Guan; just as he shook off the mental terror, an arrow pierced his head.

The four moved unimpeded and stormed into the palace.

By this time, most of the North Luo Master Clan had regained consciousness, roaring as they pursued up the steps.

Ren Mian’s hands quickly threw out several spiked fruits at the palace entrance, exploding like small bombs. The sound was not loud, but it shot out hundreds of poisoned spikes in all directions. The pursuing North Luo Master Clan members fell like harvested wheat.

There were also guards inside the palace, but not many, just over a hundred.

Chi Zhonglin charged ahead, wielding his long spear to clear a bloody path.

Ji Xinghuo’s hands did not stop. Arrow after arrow flew, most piercing through two or even three heads like candied haws.

The values of psychic source energy jumped every second.

Most of the elite had been lured away. They couldn’t withstand the four, and soon, the team reached the corridor entrance at the end of the palace.

“Go in!”

Ren Mian shouted.

Suddenly, Ji Xinghuo turned to look outside the palace. The Legendary Da Guan was engaged in heavy combat. The five superhumans had split up to flee for their lives. He only saw the Martial Artist, the Illusionist, and the Gravity Warrior. Strange Genius and Shadow were nowhere to be seen.

A giant ice blade split the Martial Artist in half. The Legendary Da Guan turned his head towards the palace, not hesitating as he rushed over.

“Sister Ren!”

Ji Xinghuo’s heart raced with alarm. Entering the cave of the Toad Spirit now would be like trapping themselves.

Ren Mian also saw the returning Legendary Da Guan. Yet her face showed no panic as she calmly said, “You guys go in now. I have a way to handle him and ensure we can escape.”

The three trusted her completely and turned to run into the tunnel.

Ren Mian stayed at the back.

This tunnel was not long, only about a hundred meters. As the four ran to the halfway point, Ren Mian threw several dark roots behind her. They hit the ground and immediately began to expand wildly, burrowing into the hard ground and rocks, deeply rooting themselves and quickly destroying the tunnel.

A dull sound echoed.

Cracks appeared in the floor and walls of the tunnel, debris fell, and dust billowed. The tunnel was about to collapse.

The Legendary Da Guan, who had already charged into the palace, saw this scene and let out an angry shout but dared not chase them into the tunnel.

In the end, he could only watch helplessly as the tunnel collapsed.

With a loud boom,

the ground shook violently. This hundred-meter-long tunnel was completely blocked.