Catching Them All

Upon hearing Lingzhou Yue's words, the six prodigies suddenly became alert. They watched as Wen Yushu sat down at the gambling table and fought several rounds of Wraith, remaining calm and unharmed before returning to the round table on the top floor to choose their respective sectors.

There are six prodigies, so the Dark Forest surrounding Chaos City is divided into six equal sectors: due north, northeast, southeast, due south, southwest, and northwest.

The Yan Mo disappeared in the due north, and the puppet master's body was also found in the due north.

Hua Lian felt that the most likely possibility was that the Yan Armor was still in the due north direction.

She considered herself the strongest among the six, so she naturally chose the due north direction.

Wu Yu then chose to go northeast, closer to Hua Lian.

Xiao Ran pulled Wu Yu aside and quietly asked him:

"Do you want to be the first to find the Yan Armor?"

Wu Yu said, "I don't want to be the first to encounter an enemy that even Senior Wen couldn't catch."

"Understood."

Xiao Ran nodded, preparing to choose the Southwest Sector, which was the furthest from the northeast sector of Wu Yu.

He wanted to be the first to encounter the enemy.

Anyway, with the Boundless Qi Sea and his Master nearby, plus Gentleman not trying to kill him, he has no safety issues.

The first enemy encountered is the one who can immediately summon their Master, giving them the greatest chance of obtaining the Yan Armor.

Judging from how much the Dao Alliance values this Yan Armor, it represents a considerable amount of filial Filial Piety Points! However, just as Xiao Ran was preparing to choose the Southwest Sector, Murong Yu chose the Southwest Sector ahead of time.

Xiao Ran frowned, sensing that things were not so simple.

"Senior Sister Murong's sect is in the east, why did she choose the Southwest Sector?"

Murong Yu's words reflected his thoughts, and his clear complexion suggested that he was like the Trisolarans, incapable of lying.

"I don't know if it's just my imagination, but when we first met, I felt like I was being followed, so I wanted to try my luck."

Is this a woman's Sixth Sense?

Xiao Ran only found out that Gentleman had been secretly following him after seeing the Black Ring Group.

"I choose the Northwest."

If Wu Yu as divine as he seems, then the southwest is the most likely place to encounter enemies. Xiao Ran's choice of the northwest would allow him to arrive in roughly the shortest possible time.

The Ranger sensed that the two were having an affair, so he also chose the south sector, closer to Murong Yu.

Finally, Xuan Yuan Guang made a choice... well, it's not really a choice, he only had the southeast sector left.

After assigning the sectors, it was noon, and the six people immediately left the city from three directions.

Hua Lian and Wu Yu left the city through the north gate.

The Ranger and Xuan Yuan Guang left the city through the south gate.

Xiao Ran and Murong Yu exited the city through the west gate.

On the way to Ximen on her sword, Murong Yu asked Xiao Ran:

Who do you think the enemy will be?

"Apostle, perhaps."

Xiao Ran casually brushed it off.

After all, since the end of the Dharma Ending Era, apart from the Wraith, the Dao Alliance, and the Five Great Powers, only the Apostle have been stirring up trouble in the cultivation Cultivation World.

"If the Dao Alliance isn't putting on a show, then there really is only one possibility: Apostle."

Murong Yu's hair was as white as snow, and her cool and beautiful face was always tinged with a translucent red.

She asked again:

"So what do you think is the enemy's primary objective?"

Xiao Ran casually replied:

"They probably took the Yan Armor. This Yan Armor must have some technology that is ahead of its time, otherwise the Dao Alliance would not have attached so much importance to it, and even used us as bait."

"I think the enemy doesn't care about the Yan Armor; their real target might be one of the six of us."

Murong Yu guessed, his face showing considerable certainty.

"Why?"

"If the enemy gets the Yan Armor and leaves immediately, the Dao Alliance won't have time to seal off the space. Senior Wen spent half a day and still couldn't catch the enemy, which shows that the enemy's spatial magic Cultivation Level very powerful. Even if we seal off the space, we might not be able to trap the enemy. The reason why Senior Wen didn't encounter the enemy is very simple: the enemy's target is one of us."

Xiao Ran felt a chill run down his spine...

Could you be someone from the Black Ring Group?

"I suspect the enemy is a pervert whose goal is to capture you."

Murong Yu shook her head.

"If it was to capture me, then the Sunbird wouldn't have suddenly gone after me halfway through the battle. The enemy's target is you."

It is reasonable and well-founded, and brings happiness.

Xiao Ran had nothing to say.

We left the city.

Two Dao Alliance Deacon from North Hanging City and two Candidate Yan Masters from the Divine Martial Kingdom had been waiting for a long time.

The Dao Alliance Deacon prepared a map, pills, Spirit Stone, and daily food and water for the two of them, but the amount was not large.

After the handover was completed, the two deacons remained outside the city gate to continue handling follow-up negotiations.

Xiao Ran and Murong Yu each led a Candidate Yan Master and parted ways outside the west gate.

Murong Yu and a young female puppeteer traveled south to the Southwest Sector.

Xiao Ran and a young puppeteer travel north to the Northwest region.

Enter the Dark Forest.

Xiao Ran rode his sword, carrying the little puppeteer, in a straight line.

The surrounding area is filled with tall, dark, and dense trees, and the mountainside is rugged and uneven, with withered and deformed flowers and plants.

Black mist lingered, emitting a bloody and nauseating stench, and the low growls of the hidden Wraith Beast could be heard all around, like engines idling.

The bait must be aware of its own limitations.

Xiao Ran stood at the tip of the sword, neither concealing himself nor using the Art of Resonance to merge with heaven and earth.

It only raised a faint blue light, flying close to the ground, cutting through fog and thorns, dodging and weaving, automatically avoiding rocks and trees.

To Xiao Ran's surprise, the little puppeteer behind him was not afraid.

Upon closer inspection, this young puppeteer is less than a hundred years old, with mediocre talent and only Qi Cultivation Level Qi Refining; he still looks like a teenager.

He wasn't tall, but he was decent-looking, with short, spiky hair and pimples on his face. His eyes held a vibrant energy and a touch of arrogance, and he didn't seem to admire Xiao Ran, a Qi Refining, much.

The kid didn't talk much, was arrogant, and had a haughty air about him that he had nothing in common with Xiao Ran.

After all, if he were in the Mortal Realm, he would be Xiao Ran's grandfather, but now he looks like a younger brother.

"You can also pilot a Nascent Soul Level Yan Armor?"

Xiao Ran suddenly asked.

The boy curled his lip, his tone slightly disdainful.

"That's Yan Armor at the Spirit Severing level."

Can Cultivation Level Qi Refining level drive a vehicle?

"I can do it, but you can't. It requires special talent. No matter how high your Cultivation Level or how outstanding your cultivation talent is, it's useless. You need a human-machine connection rate of 60% to pilot it. But I have a connection rate of over 80%, so I can skillfully operate the new generation of Standard Yan Armor."

"Understood."

Xiao Ran appeared very modest.

He probably understood the value of the Yan Armor.

Ordinary people, after special training, can directly pilot Yan Armor without Cultivation Level, using spirit Spirit Stone to drive Spirit Runes, thus ascending to the heavens in one step and obtaining the power of the Spirit Severing Realm...

What does this mean? It means that the power of cultivators can be universally applied!

No need for geniuses; they can create Yan Armor are even more powerful than geniuses and build an army.

No wonder the Dao Alliance poached young people from the Divine Martial Kingdom a hundred years ago to imitate and absorb its technology.

Otherwise, in just a few years, with the technological prowess of the Divine Martial Kingdom and its population of billions, the kingdom alone could challenge the Dao Alliance.

The other four major powers are still living in a dream world and have yet to realize the enormous potential of science.

Xiao Ran could deduce that the only possible conflict between the Dao Alliance and the Five Great Powers in the future would not come from Chaos City, but from the Divine Martial Kingdom.

In the Dark Forest.

Xiao Ran did not conduct a thorough search of the Northwest sector, but instead patrolled back and forth along the southern edge of the sector.

This puzzled the young puppeteer.

Xiao Ran traveled back and forth for several hours.

The young puppeteer finally couldn't hold back any longer.

"You're just slacking off. I've heard that Zongzhi Mountain Lingzhou Yue is a famously lazy woman, and sure enough, her apprentice has inherited her mantle."

Is it the original, unofficial version?

Xiao Ran raised his fist, as big as a sandbag, and gestured it in front of the boy.

"Do you believe I'll beat you up?"

The boy wasn't buying it at all.

"If you're so tough, wait until I get the Yan Armor, then we'll have another go."

Are all the young people in the Divine Martial Kingdom this arrogant? Although a strong youth makes a strong nation, it's a pity that once you get the Yan Armor, you won't have the chance to pilot it anymore.

Xiao Ran kept wandering aimlessly along the sideline.

Despite appearing to be slacking off, Xiao Yanshi ultimately managed to decipher his sword-riding trajectory.

"You always seem to be in the closest spot to Murong Yu. Are you watching Murong Yu closely? Do you like her, or do you guess the enemy is going to attack her?"

Xiao Ran didn't want to make him overly nervous, or to make him speculate about his motives or the enemy's identity, so he simply said:

Is it wrong to like someone?

The aloof young man suddenly became interested.

"Divine Martial Kingdom is saying you're amazing at flirting with girls. They say you've taken in your Senior Uncle, Master, and disciples all at once. When I came to Chaos City, I also heard people say you've won over two female prodigies, that you made Murong Yu turn white overnight, and that you made Hua Lian give birth... Is all of this true?"

Xiao Ran never expected that this arrogant kid, who was so haughty before, would become so excited and adoring when talking about women, as if he were a completely different person.

It's clear that no matter the era, engineering and tech geeks will always be a different story.

Given Gentleman's cautious nature, Xiao Ran sensed that this would be a war of attrition, and that excessive tension wouldn't last until the end, so he lowered his guard and said:

"It's true."

The boy immediately came over, as excited as a complete idiot.

"Could you teach me? I want to become your apprentice."

Xiao Ran had an expression of indifference to fame.

"There's no need for the apprenticeship; that's a paid service."

Xiao Ran underestimated the boy's wallet.

They also underestimated Gentleman's cunning.

Ten days later.

The boy became a master of theory.

Gentleman has not shown up yet.

Chapter 170 The King of Lewd Talk: Exchange Her for Her Unblemished Black Hair