The Mantis Stalks the Cicada

Clang!

A dazzling spark flashed through the air.

The dagger that should have delivered a fatal blow not only failed to pierce Zhang Hao's heart, but was forcibly blocked by a spontaneously activated spiritual radiance.

"Courting death!" The sudden attack had nearly put Zhang Hao in a certain-death situation, filling him with shock and rage.

He swiftly pulled out a spirit artifact from his Storage Bag, spun around, and slashed behind him!

Yet his strike hit nothing but air.

The cultivator lurking in the shadows immediately fled after failing to land the blow, giving him no chance to seize them!

"This is... a spirit artifact that can activate on its own to protect its master? Its market price must be at least a thousand Spirit Stones. I didn't expect you to be so wealthy, Fellow Daoist." A pleasant voice came from the woods nearby, and Zhang Hao immediately turned toward the sound.

A Beautiful Woman clad in thin purple gauze, exposing large swathes of snow-white skin, stepped out of In the Darkness.

She held a long flute that seemed to be carved from emerald jade, a faint smile on her face.

"This little bastard has quite a few Spirit Stones. It's no surprise that he has something like this. But for a Qi Refining Stage Cultivator to possess so many Spirit Stones, it seems there's a great secret On Their Body!"

A burly man emerged from behind the Beautiful Woman. He was one of the Chen Family members who had purchased the Hundred Year Jade Marrow at the auction.

He stared greedily at Zhang Hao, while his gaze inadvertently swept over the Beautiful Woman beside him, A Trace of wariness flashing in his eyes.

I didn't expect her to be a Sound Cultivator... The Man surnamed Chen's heart sank.

Cultivators themselves, aside from being distinguished by their realms, were also divided into ordinary cultivators and specialized cultivators according to their accomplishments in the Hundred Arts of Cultivation.

Ordinary cultivators were those who only focused on consuming pills to raise their Cultivation Level, with little achievement in any of the various fields of cultivation.

Their defining trait was that, whatever their realm, they could only use spirit artifacts, talismans, and treasures corresponding to that realm. They had not formed abilities or specialties of Their Own.

Such cultivators were greatly constrained by resources. Without enough Spirit Stones to buy powerful methods, their Combat Power would be drastically weakened, and they would be restricted by all kinds of circumstances in battle.

Specialized cultivators, on the other hand, were cultivators who, building upon the foundation of ordinary cultivation, chose a single field of cultivation to study and thereby attained some accomplishment.

Not only did such cultivators possess a unique set of methods capable of handling all manner of environments, but those methods could also complement their cultivation.

Among specialized cultivators today, the two most renowned and widespread types were Body Cultivators and Law Cultivators.

Body Cultivators, on the foundation of Refine Essence into Qi, used spiritual energy to nourish the flesh, thereby bringing about a transformation of the body.

Not only were their physical strength and neural reaction speeds far beyond those of cultivators of the Same Rank, but once their cultivation reached the later stages, they could Even More possess terrifying abilities such as surviving with a drop of blood and an Indestructible Vajra Body.

In cultivation, they could also reduce the difficulty of the bodily trial of the Foundation Establishment Realm, or shorten the time needed for the second Foundation Establishment stage, [Refining Form], and so on. The benefits were countless.

Law Cultivators, meanwhile, were cultivators highly proficient in tricks, Spirit Arts, and the like.

Not only could they cast spells with a mere gesture, they could even create all sorts of secret arts Unpredictable as Gods and Ghosts according to their own needs. The great masters among them could further improve and create cultivation techniques, opening a new road on the path of cultivation!

It could be said that each had its own merits, but without a doubt, whether in terms of Combat Power or potential, they far surpassed ordinary cultivators.

However, Law Cultivators were even harder to cultivate than Body Cultivators. It was a path that placed tremendous demands on talent and creativity, and since he lacked the qualifications, he could only become a Body Cultivator.

Beyond those two most widespread types, there were also Talisman Cultivators, puppet cultivators, Sound Cultivators, and other rare yet formidable existences.

For example, the purple-clad Beautiful Woman before him was a Sound Cultivator.

Sound Cultivators were exceedingly rare. They could turn spiritual energy into sound and accomplish all kinds of unimaginable feats.

For instance, they could use unique melodies in place of breakthrough pills, use sound to blind the five senses and disrupt consciousness, or even use song to control another's soul. They were profoundly mysterious.

It's not just her. Even that cultivator Hidden in the shadows—my Chen Family's inherited Pupil Technique can't detect a trace of him...

Countless thoughts Flashed through the Man surnamed Chen's mind, but his face showed not the slightest abnormality. Instead, he spoke up. "How about we kill this fellow first, then discuss how to divide the spoils, Fellow Daoists?"

"Yes."

Just as his words fell, an Ice Cold voice came from all directions, Making People unable to determine its source.

"This humble one will do as you say, Fellow Daoist." The purple-clad Beautiful Woman smiled sweetly as she raised the Jade Flute in her hand.

Zhang Hao, targeted by the three of them, could not help but wear a grave expression. His Whole Body tensed as he took out his spirit artifact and stared fixedly at them.

He naturally knew that between himself and these three, it was already a situation of Never Die, Never Cease. Only by killing them could he escape safely.

Inside the Room fell silent at once, and battle was ready to erupt at the slightest spark!

"Woo, woo~"

The Evening Wind swept past, and another distinct, melodious flute melody sounded. Clearly, the purple-clad Beautiful Woman had struck first.

Playing the flute into the wind, her fingers danced as notes intertwined, producing a Spirit Melody that disrupted consciousness.

Zhang Hao's mind immediately grew hazy. Everything before his eyes blurred, and his thoughts drifted away beyond his control!

"An opportunity!" The Chen Family man, who had been watching coldly from the sidelines, sharpened his gaze and immediately sprang into action.

He brushed a hand over his Storage Bag, and a Great Saber appeared in his grasp.

The saber was roughly a meter long and emitted an extremely sharp aura. Clearly, even among Qi Refining Stage spirit artifacts, its quality was superior!

Moreover, the Chen Family man imbued it with Gold Attribute True Qi, making it even sharper—enough to break through most Defense Spirit Artifacts of the Same Rank!

Then, gripping the hilt in one hand, he dragged the saber and charged rapidly toward Zhang Hao.

This Moment, his Whole Body was taut, veins bulging across his arms. He directly mobilized every function of his body, erupting with extraordinary explosive force.

This was Saber Drag Charge!

It was a fighting style that gathered the strength of one's entire body into a single slash to finish the opponent.

Clearly, he had no intention of testing the waters or engaging in a prolonged battle. He wanted to take advantage of Zhang Hao's distracted mind to break through all his defenses with one slash, accomplishing everything in a single blow!

"Die!"

After a brief sprint, he arrived in front of Zhang Hao. He abruptly halted, then brought down the charged blade in his hand with every ounce of strength in his body.

At this moment, Zhang Hao's mind was ensnared, leaving him completely unable to react. He could only helplessly take the blow.

Bang!

The spirit shield formed from talismans shattered!

Crack!

The automatically defending Spirit Artifact shattered!

Sizzle!

The great saber struck Zhang Hao's shoulder. Rather than severing it in one stroke, it felt as though it had struck steel, unable to cut any deeper. It merely sprayed out a trace of blood flower!

"Ahhh!!!" The intense pain instantly broke Zhang Hao free of the Spirit Melody's interference. He came to his senses and let out a furious roar!

"This is... Spirit Armor?!"

The Man surnamed Chen was immediately startled.

Defensive spirit talismans, a master-protecting Spirit Artifact—he had not expected Zhang Hao to also possess Spirit Armor with such incredible hardness. Why did this guy have So Much protective equipment?!

"Get lost!" Zhang Hao endured the searing pain in his shoulder, intending to force back the man before him even at the cost of worsening his injuries. But just then, the back of his head suddenly turned ice cold.

A twisted shadow had appeared behind him at incredible speed, and the dagger in its hand viciously stabbed down toward Zhang Hao's head!

A wolf before him, a tiger behind him, with someone else restraining him from the side—under such circumstances, Zhang Hao seemed to smell death in the air.

The Beautiful Woman in violet's control, the Man surnamed Chen's slash that broke through every defense, and the shadow cultivator's assassination that clung to him like a shadow.

The simple cooperation of three cultivators with extraordinary methods had forced him, despite all his Spirit Artifacts and talismans, into a desperate situation!

"No!" Zhang Hao's face twisted grotesquely, filled with unwillingness.

He had exhausted every scheme and effort to reach this day. How could he fall here?!

A trace of madness appeared on Zhang Hao's face, while his eyes became especially fierce.

He suddenly thrust himself upward, using his wounded shoulder to meet the dagger coming from behind!

At the same time, he took something from his Storage Bag without hesitation.

Pfft!

The dagger pierced straight through Zhang Hao's shoulder, but he did not struggle. Instead, he took this opportunity to seize the shadow cultivator tightly with one hand while throwing himself toward the Man surnamed Chen!

This is... a Foundation Establishment Realm Spirit Artifact?! What is he trying to do... Oh no! The two were stunned by Zhang Hao's actions. Before they had time for clear thinking, their expressions abruptly changed.

The Spirit Artifact Zhang Hao had taken out was actually giving off an astonishing fluctuation!

Oh no, he wants to detonate the spirit...

The two immediately guessed Zhang Hao's intentions and tried to flee, but Zhang Hao had them both firmly bound.

"Die!" A voice, ice cold and resolute, rang out inside the room.

Then, the Spirit Artifact in Zhang Hao's arms emitted streak after streak of white light, swiftly forming a rapidly expanding fireball. Within mere seconds, it covered a radius of several dozen meters!

Bang!

An explosion like thunder suddenly erupted through the night!

"Cough, cough!" After an unknown amount of time, the thick smoke gradually thinned, and a weak cough sounded inside the room.

"Th-that was close." A Beautiful Woman, charred black from head to toe and bleeding from all seven orifices, collapsed onto the ground. As she stared at the enormous crater nearby, her face was filled with terror.

She had never imagined that the other party would be so decisive, actually daring to self-destruct a Foundation Establishment Spirit Artifact in a desperate situation in an attempt to drag them into mutual destruction!

Had she not been far enough away and reacted in time, she might have vanished from this world as well.

"Cough!" Apparently aggravating her injuries, the Beautiful Woman tasted blood in her mouth and spat out another mouthful.

Although she had avoided the center of the explosion, the violent shockwaves and flying Spirit Artifact fragments had still left her severely injured.

Even the slightest movement now brought pain that burrowed deep into her bone marrow.

"But all of this was worth it..." Seeming to have thought of something, the Beautiful Woman revealed a trace of a smile despite her serious wounds.

The several battles just now had slaughtered every cultivator in the nearby area. That meant the wealth they had left behind after death, as well as all the treasures on this kid's body...

"Will Belong Solely To... Hmm?!"

Pfft!

Just as the Beautiful Woman was imagining the future, she heard a gusting wind behind her. Before she had time to react, an immense force crushed her upper body directly into pulp!

"Hmm? What did she just say?" In the darkness, a figure took out a handkerchief and gently wiped away the blood splashed onto his hand, looking somewhat puzzled.

More than twenty Storage Bags of varying sizes hung from his body.

"I didn't expect that I could still swipe So Much stuff before leaving. Sure enough, how did that sentence go? A man does not grow rich without windfall wealth."

The evening wind blew past, lightly lifting the hood over the Man in Black's head and revealing the faint outline of a handsome face.

This person was Lin Chen!