Black-Clad Man

If he had enough time to set up an array, there would be no need to run at all; he could fight them head-on. But that was the awkward weakness of low-level array masters: setting up an array required a great deal of time.

Using the changing terrain to their advantage, Lu Feng and Jiang Ruoyun hid at times and fled at others, gradually drawing closer to the depths of the mountain forest.

At this point, they not only had to guard against the threat of those Black-Clad Men, but also beware of the high-level spirit beasts lurking in the darkness.

"That stinking girl runs fast. Once I catch her, I'll make her suffer," one black-clad man complained to his companion in the distance.

Meanwhile, Lu Feng and Jiang Ruoyun were hiding in a patch of grass not far from them, holding their breath and not daring to reveal themselves.

After the Black-Clad Men had gone far away, Jiang Ruoyun softly asked, "There's a mountain cave in the distance. Should we go inside and hide for a while?"

Hearing this, Lu Feng looked ahead and saw the mountain cave Jiang Ruoyun had mentioned. Yet there was not a single vine covering its entrance, and the ground outside was very flat, indicating that people or beasts frequently came and went from within.

Whether it was humans or beasts, neither made for a good hiding place at the moment. But that did not mean it could not be used.

"You stay here and don't move. I'll go see whether that mountain cave is safe." Lu Feng leaped toward the cave, concealing himself several times along the way to avoid being discovered.

When Lu Feng reached the entrance, he did not enter right away. Instead, he first observed the surroundings. After all, if he rashly went in and encountered a high-level spirit beast, he might not even have a chance to run.

Lu Feng bent down and examined the area, finding some shed spirit beast fur and certain unusual droppings in the distance. From these alone, he could roughly determine what kind of spirit beast it was. Then, upon seeing claw marks on a distant stone, he became even more certain of his guess.

Lu Feng picked up a small stone and tossed it into the cave. A furious roar immediately came from within.

After confirming that the spirit beast was currently inside the cave, Lu Feng swiftly ran back to Jiang Ruoyun. Displaying the beast fur in his hand, he said, "A Violent Bear lives in that mountain cave. I can't determine its exact rank yet, but it's at least Rank Two."

Jiang Ruoyun looked at the brown fur in Lu Feng's hand and asked doubtfully, "You can tell a Violent Bear lives in that cave just from these few hairs?"

Lu Feng smiled as he explained, "Violent Bear droppings have a green tint, which matches what's outside the cave. Besides, there are messy claw marks on one of the stones there. Violent Bears have a habit of using rocks to sharpen their claws."

Seeing that Jiang Ruoyun was still half-convinced, Lu Feng continued, "Of course, those are only deductions. I verified it in the end—the bear's roar was unmistakably real."

Only then did Jiang Ruoyun finally believe Lu Feng. She asked, "What do we do next, then?"

"Wait a moment." After speaking, Lu Feng took several Jade Shards already carved with patterns from his Storage Ring and placed them in an area not far ahead. He then injected spirit energy into them, linking the Jade Shards together.

Lu Feng used a few simple methods to suppress the sound of the Array Chant and set up an Entrapment Array.

"The Black-Clad Men are after you. I'm afraid I'll have to trouble you to lure them into this array," Lu Feng told Jiang Ruoyun. If possible, he naturally did not want Jiang Ruoyun to risk herself, but he had an even more dangerous task to undertake.

"Can your array trap them? They're in the Five-Souls Realm," Jiang Ruoyun asked skeptically.

"It can't trap them for long, but it can hold them for a brief moment," Lu Feng said confidently. And that brief moment would be enough to bring them great disaster.

"What about you? Don't tell me you're going to lure out that Violent Bear?" Jiang Ruoyun asked worriedly.

Lu Feng smiled in tacit admission, then said something that left Jiang Ruoyun dumbfounded.

"Since those three Black-Clad Men are determined to deal with us, let them see what we're made of." A chilling glint shone in Lu Feng's eyes, inspiring awe in whoever saw it.

"What?" Jiang Ruoyun thought Lu Feng had become muddle-headed and could no longer distinguish the situation. They were clearly the ones being chased, clearly the weaker side, yet he was actually boasting that he would deal with opponents so much stronger than them.

"If we don't try, how will we know we can't do it?" The resolve and confidence in Lu Feng's words somehow gave Jiang Ruoyun courage, and stirred a different sort of feeling toward him.

The sky gradually darkened. Under the cover of night, Lu Feng gained several more measures of confidence. Darkness, after all, carried an aura of danger.

"Move..." Lu Feng called softly to Jiang Ruoyun. The two quickly vanished from where they stood, one going to lure the Black-Clad Men, the other to lure the Violent Bear.

The most crucial thing now was timing. Whether it was the Black-Clad Men or the Violent Bear, the timing of their entering the Entrapment Array had to be controlled with exquisite precision. Any mistake would lead to failure.

The Black-Clad Men were farther away. By the time Jiang Ruoyun lured them over, Lu Feng had already waited at the Violent Bear's cave entrance for quite some time. Watching the three Black-Clad Men desperately pursue Jiang Ruoyun in the distance, Lu Feng's expression became exceptionally serious.

Seventy steps, fifty steps, thirty steps...

Estimating the Black-Clad Men's distance from the Entrapment Array, Lu Feng finally sprang into action. He fired an arrow deep into the cave, and after hearing the bear's furious roar, quickly ran toward the Entrapment Array while firing several more arrows as he ran.

Though the sharp arrowheads could not pierce the Violent Bear's hide, they could still cause it considerable pain.

Following their earlier plan, just before reaching the Entrapment Array, Jiang Ruoyun avoided the tree trunk deliberately placed across the way ahead. If the Black-Clad Men wanted to catch Jiang Ruoyun, they would inevitably leap over it to close the distance. On the other side of that fallen trunk was the Entrapment Array Lu Feng had set up.

As he fled, Lu Feng saw that the Black-Clad Men had obediently stepped into the Entrapment Array just as planned. The corners of his lips could not help but lift slightly as he hurriedly led the Violent Bear to the front of the array.

Although the Violent Bear was a Rank Two spirit beast, it was not particularly intelligent. Pretending to go around the array would not fool it; for all he knew, in its straightforward pursuit, it might also circle around with him.

There was only one way to deal with it: risk himself.

At this moment, the three Black-Clad Men were already inside the Entrapment Array. Judging by their somewhat flustered appearances, they had clearly realized that something was wrong.

The leading black-clad man was attacking the edge of the Entrapment Array. According to Lu Feng's estimate, the array would not withstand even three of his strikes.

Just as the black-clad man launched his second strike, Lu Feng jumped into the Entrapment Array and even gave the three men a provocative "Hey."

"It's that brat! Catch him!" one man in black shouted, then charged at Lu Feng first.

Long prepared, Lu Feng lightly raised both hands and flung out the dust and sand he had been holding. Though this move was somewhat underhanded, it was the best tactic available at the moment.

With their vision blocked, the Black-Clad Men charged forward based on Lu Feng's remembered position. Yet Lu Feng had already run out of the array. How could the one who set the array not know how to leave it?

But the charging black-clad man's strike did not miss.

Bang!

A rather comical scene unfolded. The black-clad man's palm struck the Violent Bear, which Lu Feng had lured into the Entrapment Array, squarely on the body. The force was so great that its belly visibly caved in.

Inside the Entrapment Array, the disproportionately sized man and bear both froze where they stood, staring at each other in astonishment for a moment.

Roar!

Then came the Violent Bear's thunderous, enraged roar. With one charge, it sent the black-clad man flying to the edge of the Entrapment Array. Though the man reacted quickly and dodged properly, he still suffered considerable injuries.

"Break the array, quickly. I'll hold it back," ordered the leading black-clad man of the Five-Souls Realm as he drew his sword.

A Five-Souls Realm soul master was roughly equal in strength to a Violent Bear, so holding it back was no difficult task. The other two Black-Clad Men also revealed their cultivation after encountering the bear. Both were in the Four Soul Realm.

One Five-Souls Realm, two Four Soul Realm.

Watching the situation inside the array, Lu Feng was clearly taken by surprise. Now it was the Violent Bear he worried about. Once the array broke, the three men joining forces would have no trouble dealing with a Rank Two spirit beast.

Suddenly, Lu Feng heard a buzzing sound beside his ear. Looking toward the rear, he discovered a beehive hanging from a treetop not far away. His heart leaped with joy. I really have an affinity with bees these past two days.

The array he had set up in the Side Courtyard earlier had been inspired by spotting Autumn Poison Bees on the back mountain, which was why he had thought of Butterfly Attracting Powder.

"Mosquito Spirit Bees!"

Following Lu Feng's gaze, Jiang Ruoyun could not help crying out in alarm. She then grabbed Lu Feng and prepared to flee.

"Wait." Lu Feng stopped her and pointed at the Violent Bear inside the array. "That bear can't defeat the Black-Clad Men. Let's give it a hand."

"How? Don't tell me you're planning to use those Mosquito Spirit Bees?" Jiang Ruoyun asked in astonishment. She knew very well what Mosquito Spirit Bees were like. A single sting from one would not only make the wound unbearably itchy, but also scatter one's spirit energy for a short time.

Lu Feng nodded with a smile and pulled Jiang Ruoyun toward the back of the beehive. Once they had gone far enough, he took out the Netherworld Bow again under Jiang Ruoyun's astonished gaze. He flung out an old garment, then nocked two arrows.

Whoosh, whoosh...

Before Jiang Ruoyun could say anything, Lu Feng fired two arrows in succession toward the beehive. The arrow feathers precisely carried the garment he had flung out, wrapping it around the hive.

Whoosh, whoosh...

Another two fierce arrows followed.

The first arrow was incredibly fast, launched later but arriving first. It targeted precisely where the beehive connected to the treetop. The arrow arrived, and the hive fell; together with the first two arrows carrying the garment forward, it completely wrapped the beehive.

The second arrow was slightly slower and targeted the garment enveloping the beehive. Because it carried much less force, it did not pierce the hive. Instead, it sent the falling beehive flying into the distance.

Such precise archery, such ingenious planning.

Jiang Ruoyun could not stop marveling. The garment, the arrows, even the beehive—everything had been within Lu Feng's calculations.

With four arrows, he had removed the beehive without damaging it in the slightest and sent it straight into the Entrapment Array.