The Mantis Stalks the Cicada!

The Mantis Stalks the Cicada!

The middle-aged cultivator raised his brows and said in a deep voice, "What did you say?"

Wang Meng laughed. "No, something came out of Green Crane True Immortal's Tomb. Would you dare chase it in the dead of night? Can you guarantee that the one who came back would still be you?"

The middle-aged cultivator had been brimming with anger, but his words left him momentarily speechless. He shot the tall young man a cold glance.

A seductive woman smiled sweetly. "We're all on the same side. Why damage the harmony?"

The middle-aged cultivator sneered. "He never considered me one of his own."

Wang Meng nodded. "That's true enough. But even if you can't stand the sight of me, there's nothing you can do about it."

The middle-aged cultivator turned his head away and stopped paying attention to the burly young man.

A somewhat frail old man had a longsword hanging from his waist. The sword was covered in rust, and its hilt had been worn down badly. He sighed. "After what happened in the daytime, he certainly won't dare hide near the Slum Area. We'll search for one more night. If we can't find him, we'll let it go."

The middle-aged cultivator wanted to say something, but he seemed wary of the exceedingly frail old man. He merely nodded. "Fine."

For a time, the atmosphere grew somewhat heavy. Aside from the crackling of the firewood, only the sounds of the tall young man eating roasted meat could be heard.

The exceedingly frail old man smiled. "Give me a piece too."

Wang Meng raised a brow but said nothing. He tore off a rabbit leg and handed it over.

After taking it and biting into it, the exceedingly frail old man sighed. "Not as good as when it's alive."

Wang Meng: "..."

The group kept watch around the fire, their expressions shifting between light and shadow, as though each of them bore heavy thoughts.

As the wounded young man lost more and more blood, his consciousness began to blur.

Yet he struggled to remain awake as he escaped their encirclement.

The Blue Bricks beneath the bed had been extremely well concealed. Unless one was an experienced cultivator, they would never have thought to look there. The young man was very clever, but precisely because he was clever, he thought too much.

At this moment, the Earth Escape Talisman could no longer hold out. With a light leap, he emerged aboveground beside a large tree. Leaning against the trunk, he panted heavily. "I've finally left that place. Once I recover from my injuries, I, Chu Qingyun, will slaughter every last one of you!"

A savage killing intent surfaced on the young man's face. He viciously drove the dagger in his hand into the ground, his gaze icy.

But suddenly, he sensed that something was wrong. He abruptly looked up and discovered a fire ahead, with several figures gathered around it.

The firelight flickered over their faces, casting them in shifting light and shadow, lending them an unsettling chill.

There was a tall, burly young man.

There was an old man carrying a rust-covered iron sword.

There was also a seductive Beautiful Woman, a middle-aged man who looked somewhat weak, and an utterly ordinary cultivator who resembled a flower gardener. The five of them looked over, surprise in their eyes. Chu Qingyun: "..."

The tall, burly young man, Wang Meng, appeared to have the most impatient temperament, yet the first to strike was the middle-aged man. "He's here! Kill him!"

Unconcealed delight filled his face. They had all been brooding over their own concerns, never expecting Chu Qingyun to suddenly appear beside the tree, muttering to himself about taking revenge and killing them all.

A willow leaf rose from his waist and traced an exceedingly mysterious path through the air.

This was his personal magical artifact!

In an instant, everyone around the fire moved. The tall, burly young man kicked the flames outward, and countless sparks engulfed Chu Qingyun.

The seductive Beautiful Woman suddenly flung her long hair. The hair behind her head swept forward like dark clouds.

The others also attacked, unleashing vicious techniques. In the blink of an eye, Chu Qingyun was trapped in a tight encirclement, and the dagger in his hand was knocked away.

One of his arms was caught by the Beautiful Woman. Blood streamed down as flesh and skin tore apart! "Aaaahhh!"

Chu Qingyun could not help screaming.

His brows furrowed deeply, utterly unable to understand. Shouldn't these people be lying in ambush in that room?

Why were they deep in these mountains instead?

And why were they sitting around a fire, roasting meat?

Chu Qingyun had no time to think. Terrifying attacks came crashing toward him one after another! He had once possessed an Earth Escape Talisman, but it had already been used up. Now, he could only flee outward. Then suddenly—

One of his legs was struck by a Sword Qi from the tall, burly young man and severed at the knee.

With a thud, he collapsed to the ground!

Greed appeared on everyone's faces, especially the middle-aged cultivator's. A resolute look surfaced in Chu Qingyun's eyes. If he fell into these people's hands, he would surely suffer a fate worse than death. "You bastards will die horrible deaths!"

Chu Qingyun let out a piercing roar that shook the mountains and wilderness! Then he slapped his own Crown of the head! Bang! This palm strike was driven by bitter hatred, shattering his skull at once and killing him on the spot.

The middle-aged cultivator was greatly startled and hurried toward Chu Qingyun.

The middle-aged man who resembled a flower gardener and had remained silent all this time said in a deep voice, "Careful. He may be faking his death!"

The middle-aged cultivator was jolted awake and abruptly halted.

Once they confirmed that Chu Qingyun was dead, they could not help feeling regretful. The item was gone.

But they were deeply puzzled. In the middle of the night, why had Chu Qingyun not found somewhere to hide, instead appearing right before them? "Could it be that this bastard was tired of living?"

With Chu Qingyun dead, they looked at one another. Just as they prepared to inspect his corpse, streams of fierce Sword Qi came tearing through the air!

They belonged to young men and women with cold expressions and extraordinary bearing.

Their clothes clearly came from the same sect, with a red cloud embroidered over each chest. Every one of them controlled a flying sword, their swords dancing through the air like soaring dragons, turning into streaks of lightning as they charged in! A tall woman with skin whiter than snow said coldly, "Capture these thieves. If they resist, kill without mercy!"

The disciples shouted in unison, "Yes!"

Terrifying flying swords and Sword Qi erupted throughout the mountain forest! Their earlier attacks, as well as Chu Qingyun's final scream, had clearly drawn the attention of these Red Cloud Sect Disciples.

The leading female disciple had a frosty, detached bearing.

Seeing the frail old man swing his rust-covered iron sword to block the flying swords wielded by the Red Cloud Sect Disciples, she could not help frowning. A purple longsword shot from her waist, becoming a streak of light in midair and pinning the old man directly to the ground! His eyes were bloodshot, and a low growl escaped his throat, like a dying beast.

He had never imagined that after Chu Qingyun came to deliver himself to death tonight, they too would follow in Chu Qingyun's footsteps! In an instant, of the five powerful cultivators, three died, one was injured, and one escaped. The middle-aged cultivator who resembled a flower gardener was gravely wounded.

He could originally have escaped as well, but the purple sword of the Red Cloud Sect female disciple with skin whiter than snow was simply too sharp. Like a streak of lightning in the air, it directly severed his arm at the shoulder, while the other Red Cloud Sect Disciples hacked off his remaining limbs one after another!

"Take him back to the sect to await judgment!"

After the exceedingly beautiful Red Cloud Sect female disciple in red spoke, she rode the wind in pursuit.

She chased after the tall, burly young man.