Gu He in Peril, Lin Chen to the Rescue

Half a month later,

In the vast Misty Cloud Mountain Range of the Jia Ma Empire, dense forests are lush and verdant. Occasionally, a gentle breeze blows, stirring up waves of green, making it look like a green ocean, which is extremely spectacular.

Call out!

Deep in the forest, a figure in black robes swept across the dense thicket and climbed a towering tree. The tree was extremely thick, reaching straight into the sky, with countless branches at its top. The dense foliage around it provided excellent cover, making it a perfect hiding place.

"Cough cough..."

The Black-Robed Man coughed up a mouthful of blood and quickly swallowed a healing pill. His pale face regained some color, and his aura gradually calmed down, but he dared not reveal any of his strength.

He swallowed another Breath Concealing Pill, suppressing his aura and lowering his breathing, his eyes warily scanning his surroundings.

Rustle!

Just then, several figures dressed in black robes emerged from the jungle ahead, their sinister gazes sweeping across the dense forest before them. They exchanged a glance, made a hand gesture, and then dispersed to explore further into the distance.

Seeing the Black-Robed Man temporarily disperse, the middle-aged man, also dressed in black robes, on the tree finally breathed a sigh of relief, his brows furrowed as he pondered to himself, "Who exactly was it?"

"A traitor has emerged from the Misty Cloud Sect? Yun Yun gave the order?"

"Impossible, that's that old dog Yun Leng?"

"That's impossible. That old dog is all bark and no bite; he wouldn't do something like that. So who are these people? They're all formidable Dou Wang expert, and the leader is even a high-level Dou Huang expert. I don't think the Misty Cloud Sect has that kind of strength..."

"I wanted to return to the Misty Cloud Sect, but I was ambushed by several Dou Wang and can't go back for the time being. These people are meticulous; I must find outside help from the Misty Cloud Sect!"

The middle-aged man frowned, pondered for a moment, then a cold glint flashed in his eyes as he thought to himself, "Go to the Chu Yun Empire. Izumo and the Jia Ma Empire have always been at odds. These people will never expect me to flee there."

"There's no time to lose. Let's heal our injuries first, then find an opportunity to inform the Misty Cloud Sect."

Having said that, the middle-aged man waved his hand slightly, brushed aside the leaves in front of him, leaped into the air, lowered his body, and was about to rush away into the distance.

Suddenly, his expression changed drastically. He stopped in his tracks and looked at the several dark figures that had suddenly appeared before him. His face instantly darkened.

Ahead, several figures in black robes, who had just returned, had gloomy eyes and faint, cold smiles on their lips. They exuded a terrifying aura, each holding a jet-black chain that radiated a chilling presence.

"Run! Why did you stop running?"

"Gui Li is right. You're seriously injured and can't have gone far. You little punk, just surrender obediently!"

"Go back to where you were, and I'll spare you a lot of trouble!"

The middle-aged man's expression changed drastically. He then roared, and a dense purple flame rose from his body, transforming into a suit of flame armor that enveloped his entire body. Purple flames gathered in his hands, and he slapped out repeatedly with both palms. Countless purple fireballs the size of human heads shot out!

Immediately, a pair of purple flame wings spread out from behind, and it was about to soar into the distant dense forest!

"A mere trick! Let's attack together and take him down!"

Several Black-Robed Man snorted coldly, formed hand seals, and unleashed black chains that shot out, instantly causing countless wisps of black mist to rise. The sharp, spiraling mist at the top of the chains spun rapidly, shattering the purple fireball and wrapping around the middle-aged man!

Damn it!

The middle-aged man turned around and his expression changed drastically. He formed a hand seal, and countless purple flames surged out. In an instant, dense Heaven and Earth Energy gathered and transformed into a deep, giant shield of flames, blocking behind him.

Xuan-tier Advanced Dou Technique: Flowing Flame Fire Shield!

Whoosh whoosh whoosh!

Several sharp chains pierced through the air, striking the fire shield and unleashing a deafening roar. This caused the surrounding trees to shake violently, sending countless leaves flying and then turning into dust that scattered in all directions!

"Bang!"

A black chain struck the middle-aged man's fiery armor, producing a metallic clang and sparks flying everywhere. The man coughed up blood, his body momentarily halting as he nearly fell to the ground.

"Fortunately, the leader didn't come, otherwise..."

The middle-aged man wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, mustered his fighting Dou Qi, suppressed his injuries, and was about to rush away into the distance.

Just then, a dark figure wearing a ghost mask silently darted out from beside him, its body surrounded by swirling black mist, emitting a "hehehe" laugh, and a withered, skeletal hand reached out to grab him!

"Not good!"

The middle-aged man was terrified and was about to resist when suddenly a series of whooshing sounds rang out from within the black mist. Four pitch-black chains wrapped around his limbs with lightning speed.

Countless chilling energies seeped into his body, causing his soul to tremble. In a daze, it seemed as if countless vengeful ghosts were roaring and rushing towards his soul!

Bang!

The Ghost-Faced Man struck Gu He's dantian with his palm, startling him awake. A sharp pain shot through his abdomen, and his fighting Dou Qi instantly dissipated. The fiery armor that enveloped him also vanished in specks of light.

Thump!

The Ghost-Faced Man threw Gu He to the ground, stomped on his head, and said in a chilling tone, "Run! Why aren't you running anymore?"

"You dare play hide-and-seek with me? Don't you know I'm a master in this art?"

"Guards, bring me a knife! I want to chop off his fifth limb and cripple him too!"

"Yes, sir, use this one, this knife is sharp."

Just then, someone handed over a long, narrow blue knife. The blade was so shiny it seemed to reflect a person's image; it was clearly a weapon capable of cutting through iron like mud.

"Not bad, a good knife..."

The Ghost-Faced Man instinctively took the knife, but immediately felt a chill all over his body. It seemed as if an extreme cold energy burst forth from his hands, instantly freezing them. His expression changed drastically, and he blurted out a string of curses.

Who goes there!

Pfft!

The next moment, a long blade resembling an ice crystal pierced his chest, spurting out countless drops of blood that instantly transformed into crimson ice spikes, a truly gruesome sight that caused the Ghost-Faced Man to roar in fury.

"Get out of here!"

Boom!

The immense aura of the Seven-Star Dou Huang erupted, and countless dense black mists spread out, instantly repelling the person who had handed over the knife. The mask on the Ghost-Faced Man's face shattered instantly, revealing a pale human face, which stared angrily at the person in front of it.

"7962! You dare to plot against me?!"

The Black-Robed Man chuckled, and a ghostly blue flame rose from his hand, transforming once more into an ice-blue longsword. He said, "My lord, Heavenly Poison asked me to give you his regards. Rest in peace; your funeral will be handled by my lord!"

Upon hearing this, the four Black-Robed Man had surged in from all sides immediately showed expressions of surprise and uncertainty. They stopped in their tracks, exchanged glances, and secretly whispered to each other:

"What should we do? It seems like Lord Heavenly Poison has made his move!"

"Hiss, this is troublesome. I heard that lord has a penchant for torturing his colleagues, and several people die every time he goes out with them. This kind of ruthless person is the most dangerous to deal with!"

"Damn it, 7962 was an undercover agent! He'd already defected to Heavenly Poison!"

The four whispered among themselves, and finally each took a step back, leaving the battlefield to the Ghost-Faced Man and the newly appeared Black-Robed Man; none of them intervened.

"You four idiots! I've treated you all well, and this is how you repay me!"

Enraged, the Ghost-Faced Man forcefully suppressed his injuries, shattered the ice spikes on his chest, and a dense aura of blood emanated from his body. The flesh inside his chest writhed and temporarily glued together, though his originally surging aura decreased significantly.

It was clear that some kind of secret technique had been used to temporarily stabilize the injuries.

"Tsk tsk, as expected of the Hall of Souls, they have so many tricks up their sleeves. They seem to be far superior to those two from the Heavenly Snake Mansion..."

Lin Chen smiled and commented, his body radiating a dazzling Mysterious Jade Light, which transformed into a layer of crystal-like keratin covering his entire body. Above the keratin, Dark-Blue Flame rose up, instantly raising the surrounding temperature!

Sizzle!

The eerie blue flames transformed into jagged ice spikes, covering the fair, jade-like skin and instantly piercing through the black robe, revealing a strong and powerful body!

"This is Heavenly Flames? You're not...?"

The Ghost-Faced Man's expression changed drastically. Before he could finish speaking, a deafening dragon's roar resounded, transforming into invisible sound waves that spread outwards, causing faint ripples to appear in the surrounding space!

Boom!

The next moment, countless icy blue fist imprints slammed down, like stars falling from the sky, carrying the overwhelming force of Mount Tai, and shot towards the Ghost-Faced Man!