Chapter 1784 - 2086: Guardian (Part 1)
Unconsciously, it was already close to midnight. On top of Qiu Nanshan, a cold wind continuously blew over the tents. After a tiring day, Ling Chen and the others had already crawled into their sleeping bags to rest. Just then, several footprints suddenly appeared in the white snow about twenty meters from the tents.
The lights inside all three tents were on, which undoubtedly informed the enemy of their position.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Suddenly, dense sounds of air being torn apart rang out, swiftly passing through the three tents. In an instant, the outsides of the tents became riddled with holes, and even the lights within them extinguished, plunging the entire mountaintop into darkness once more.
As the lights went out, more than ten shadows appeared around the tents, slowly approaching them. When everyone got close, one of the shadows quickly lifted the tent flap and then thrust the knife they held inside.
However, the shadow soon discovered that there was actually nobody inside the tent.
Where are they?
After a brief moment of stunned silence, a shadow raised their right arm and made a gesture to everyone. Instantly, all the shadows spread out, forming a massive encircling ring around the three tents. Additionally, they held something strange in their hands, resembling chains.
A few minutes passed, and seeing no movement around them, the dozen or so shadows suddenly raised their arms. Over ten chains instantly lashed out, probing into the deep snow. Then, the shadows quickly jerked their arms, pulling the chains back out from the snow.
Repeatedly, after ten or so seconds, one of the shadows’s chain suddenly snagged in the snow. Seeing this, the others quickly threw their chains over and pulled forcefully. Immediately, a figure flew out from the thick snow.
This figure was entangled in at least four or five chains. As the figure emerged, eight more figures sprang out from the surrounding snow. Simultaneously, with a "bang," a flare shot up into the sky, transforming into a ball of fire that slowly descended, illuminating the entire mountaintop.
By the light of the flare, the figure drawn out by the chains was none other than the Netherworld Snake leader, Chen Derong. Ling Chen, not far away, fixed his gaze and couldn’t help but be shocked. Chen Derong wasn’t entangled by chains but rather hooked by iron hooks. These hooks were fixed at one end of the chains and dragged along the bottom of the snow; if anyone hid in the snow, they could easily get snagged by the hooks.
At this moment, Chen Derong’s thigh, arm, and shoulder were hooked by the iron claws. Blood flowed freely, dripping onto the snow beneath, dyeing a sizable area red.
Faced with the constant tugging from the guardians, Chen Derong gritted his teeth, disregarding the pain in his body, and tightly clutched the chains with both hands.
"Rescue him!" Upon hearing He Honggang’s shouted instruction, Ling Chen did not hesitate. With a light tap of his toes, the Nine Yang Qiankun Step was immediately deployed, rushing straight toward Chen Derong’s location.
Seeing Ling Chen moving in for the rescue, the guardians quickly swung their chains, intent on hindering Ling Chen’s progress. However, relying on the agility of the Nine Yang Qiankun Step, Ling Chen continuously shifted positions, dodging the chains’ attacks.
As he got closer, Ling Chen flicked his wrist, and with a crisp sword melody, the Wave-cutting Sword unsheathed, slashing at one of the chains.
Clang!
With a clear sound, the chain hooked onto Chen Derong’s thigh was directly sliced through by the Wave-cutting Sword. One strike succeeded, and without hesitation, Ling Chen consecutively struck, instantly severing several chains. However, the hooks remained embedded in Chen Derong’s body.
"Ling Chen, you cover for his retreat. Leave this area to us," Ling Gengqiu and Chen Younian had arrived near, jointly resisting the guardians’ assault.
Seizing this opportunity, Ling Chen swiftly retreated with Chen Derong, moving back behind the group.
"Bear with it. I will help you remove the hooks." Ling Chen said, then grabbed one of the hooks and forcefully pulled it out. Instantly, blood gushed out, soaking Chen Derong’s sleeves. With thorough preparation for this mission, He Honggang ensured everyone carried ample medicine. Seeing Chen Derong’s slightly pale face, Ling Chen hurriedly sprinkled styptic powder on the wound, then bandaged it.
Given that the enemies were yet to be repelled, the wounds could only be treated simply.
To tell the truth, Chen Derong was indeed unfortunate, having four wounds on his body. Though not life-threatening, they would considerably impact his mobility.
After dressing the wounds, Chen Derong coldly watched those guardians still attacking, and sternly said, "Don’t worry about me, kill those bastards first."
Ling Chen nodded, picked up the Wave-cutting Sword beside him, and rejoined the battle.
At this time, with the joint efforts of He Honggang, Ling Gengqiu, and Chen Younian, the guardians’ offensive was gradually suppressed. As the distance between both sides shortened, those guardians of Qiu Nanshan realized Ling Gengqiu and the others’ formidable strength, beginning to fight while retreating, seemingly ready to withdraw.
"Trying to leave?" Chen Younian sneered, a light tap of his toes and with the swiftness of a gust, instantly charged into the opponent’s ranks. Just after starting, one of their side was seriously injured, how could he not be angry.
As Chen Younian exploded into action, Ling Gengqiu and He Honggang shared a glance, both moving forward closely, cutting off the guardians’ escape route.
The cooperation of three extraordinarily skilled experts swiftly dismantled the guardians’ defenses, rendering the need for Ling Chen and others’ intervention unnecessary. Before long, more than ten guardians were dispatched.
"He Honggang." Chen Younian called directly, disregarding politeness, "How many of these guardians are there?"
He Honggang shook his head, "I’m not sure, but their numbers shouldn’t be few. No matter which tribe, having continued for several hundred or thousand years, how could they possibly have few members?" Pausing, he continued, "Let’s have everyone prepare, we must move immediately. If all those guardians are drawn here, then none of us will leave."
"Are those guardians really that powerful?" Ling Gengqiu asked.
"You should have felt it earlier; these guardians blocking us are experts with Dragon List and Earthly List strength. During previous visits, I even encountered Heavenly List-level experts among them. Their distinction from Heavenly List experts within Martial Arts is significant. I’ve crossed paths with them; they seem to possess a mysterious power, immensely strong," He Honggang explained, "As is known, our Dark Pavilion holds a unique cultivation technique called the Soul Devouring Skills, capable of briefly enhancing one’s potential to reach Heavenly List-level strength. The methods those guardians use are somewhat akin to Soul Devouring Skills but are far superior. It seems their power is borrowed."