Chapter 227: Trap

Volume 3

The other two cultivators flew far away, vanishing in the blink of an eye. The burly man, sitting motionless on the giant tiger, watched them depart with cold eyes, showing no intention of giving chase.

Han Li, hidden in the clouds, found this strange. Given the man's ruthless and cold-blooded demeanor just now, he shouldn't have let them go so easily. Could there be some other trick up his sleeve?

As Han Li was making random guesses, the burly man's icy voice suddenly rang out from below: "Your Excellency, you've watched the show for so long. Is it finally the right time for the fisherman to profit? Shouldn't you make your move now!"

Han Li was startled. "Could it be that even hiding this high up, I was still discovered by this person?"

Thinking this, Han Li couldn't help but swallow, his heart pounding in his throat. Having witnessed the power of these puppet mechanisms, Han Li had no desire to end up like those cultivators, serving as a target for the giant tiger's attacks in the air. The super light beam was too fast, and its power was too astonishing! Han Li estimated that if he faced it directly, he would have to continuously dodge with all his might using his Divine Wind Boat; otherwise, he truly couldn't safely escape the giant light beam's attack.

After a brief thought, Han Li couldn't help but consider fleeing immediately from the air, to avoid bringing a fatal disaster upon himself! But when he glanced at the burly man's actions again, this thought instantly vanished. This was because the weapons of the puppets around the burly man were not aimed at his high-altitude position, but obliquely towards a small mound not far away.

Han Li was so surprised he almost bit his tongue! There was actually a third person here, and he had been completely unaware.

With a rustling sound of turning earth, someone indeed emerged from the small mound. It was the eccentric wearing a gray cloth bag over his head, who had been at odds with the burly man earlier.

"It really is you!"

"Who exactly are you? You seem to know something about the secrets of these puppet beasts!" The burly man stared at the eccentric with ice-cold, bone-chilling eyes.

After a moment of silence, the cloth-bag eccentric suddenly spoke words that greatly astonished both his opponent and Han Li, who was eavesdropping: "Huang Long, so many years have passed, and your temper is still as fiery as ever!"

"How do you know who I am? Which acquaintance of mine are you?" The burly man was astonished when the other party called him by his name, his face full of surprise. However, since his identity had been exposed, there was no point in concealing it further. He simply tore off his hood and threw it to the ground, revealing the face of a fierce-looking man with short, burnt-yellow hair.

"Why aren't you serving as a Protector King of the Thousand Bamboo Sect, instead coming all this way to this place? Is it only because of the half-volume of the Great Derivation Art hidden within the puppet beasts?" The eccentric ignored the burly man's actions and continued to speak slowly and unhurriedly.

"If you don't reveal your identity, don't blame me for being impolite!" Huang Long's expression changed as he saw the other party hitting straight at his most secret points, and he quickly shouted sternly.

"Have you forgotten who secretly taught you the first level of the Great Derivation Art back then?" After a moment of hesitation, the eccentric uttered a sentence that made the other party's face change dramatically, causing him to retreat several steps.

"Are you Senior Brother Lin?…No, Senior Brother Lin passed away many years ago. How dare you trick me! I'll take your life!" After the initial shock, the burly man immediately flew into a rage. Then, with a fierce expression, he waved his hand, and the more than one hundred puppets immediately stepped forward, completely surrounding the eccentric from a distance.

"I am very pleased to see that Junior Brother Huang has not forgotten our old friendship!" The eccentric suddenly said with a soft look in his eyes. Then, he tore off the cloth bag on his head, revealing his true face.

"Senior Brother Lin!"

"Martial Uncle Lin!"

The burly man and Han Li, who had been closely watching the situation, exclaimed almost simultaneously. The burly man spoke out loud, while Han Li merely gasped in astonishment to himself.

This eccentric was none other than the old man surnamed Lin, whom Han Li had seen in the stone house when he first entered Huang Feng Valley, and who had a great fondness for carving. Because the small monkeys he carved were so lifelike and adorable, Han Li had a very deep impression of this old man, and thus recognized him at a glance.

"It really is Senior Brother Lin! How did Senior Brother become so old? And didn't you already…" Even after shouting, the burly man still couldn't believe it. Only after examining him again, he joyfully stepped forward and grabbed "Senior Brother Lin's" hands, his expression extremely agitated.

"Hehe! Junior Brother Huang, that day, I merely faked my death. The one who died was… What are you doing!"

Han Li's Martial Uncle Lin was speaking with a smile, but his expression suddenly changed drastically. With a look of shock and anger, he abruptly shook off his Junior Brother Huang's hands. However, two deep, chopstick-thick blood holes had appeared on his wrists, and dark blood was continuously flowing out, clearly carrying a strange poison.

"Has Senior Brother Lin's mind not been damaged by these years of fleeing? But how can you still be so careless as to let your Junior Brother injure your wrist? Tsk tsk! That's the Black Silk Gu that your Junior Brother painstakingly obtained from the Gu Poison Sect; I'm afraid it won't be easy to remove! This is all Senior Brother's fault. Since you faked your death, you should have just stayed hidden and anonymous. Why bother contacting old subordinates and attempting to steal the second half of the Great Derivation Art! This has made the current Sect Leader Jin very unhappy, forcing your Junior Brother to perform an act of 'cutting the grass and eliminating the roots!'" Huang Long chuckled coldly, speaking with mocking sarcasm.

"Good! Good! What a truly 'enthusiastic' Junior Brother you are to me!"

In his fury, Senior Brother Lin immediately calmed down. He quickly circulated his spiritual energy to force out some of the poisoned blood, then pulled out a green jade bottle. After pouring the entire bottle of yellow medicinal powder into his mouth, he stared intently at the yellow-haired burly man, his expression cold as he said, "I suppose the message my 'good' subordinate relayed to me was all fake then! There is no second half of the Great Derivation Art in the puppet beasts at all; this was all just a trap to lure me out! What I find strange, though, is how the Secret Store personnel would cooperate with you to such an extent?"

"Wealth stirs hearts; this worldly proverb holds true in the cultivation world as well! As long as our sect offers enough benefits, there's nothing that cannot be achieved!" Huang Long said with a sneer.

Then, he turned his head and shouted towards the woods to one side: "Come out, everyone, and witness the formerly handsome and dashing Lin, the only son of Sect Leader Lin, Senior Brother Lin!"

"Hehe! This little sister has long heard of Senior Brother Lin's great name; it's a pity I joined the sect a bit late and never had the chance to meet him!"

"Hmph! What Senior Brother Lin? He's nothing but a stray dog now!"

A sweet female voice and a gruff male voice, filled with resentment, came from the woods. Then, a man and a woman walked out side-by-side.

"Let me introduce you to Senior Brother. These two are newly promoted Protector Kings of the sect, they are…"

Huang Long was about to brazenly mock Senior Brother Lin, who had always been superior to him. But before he could finish, Senior Brother Lin, realizing he had fallen into a trap, suddenly spun rapidly, waving his hands continuously. A large number of black dots, flashing with various colors, shot out from his body and landed all around him.

Then, countless lights immediately flickered on the ground. One after another, fully armored puppet soldiers, growing from small to large, appeared around him, numbering as many as two hundred, a truly spectacular sight.

"Be careful! This person has actually mastered the third level of the Great Derivation Art and can control so many puppets! Everyone, make sure to hold him down and don't let him escape. Once the poison in his body takes effect, even with incredible abilities, he will only be able to surrender." After saying this, the burly man Huang Long commanded his puppets to attack.

The man and woman exchanged glances, then also released over two hundred puppet beasts, sending them all to attack.

Suddenly, a unique puppet battle erupted. Light arrows and light beams of various colors shot back and forth, while in front, large numbers of human-shaped soldier puppets and mechanical beasts, armed with weapons, engaged in close combat! Han Li, watching from the air, was stunned.

Although he still hadn't fully grasped what had happened, Han Li had about seventy or eighty percent of a vague understanding. Martial Uncle Lin, before entering Huang Feng Valley, was apparently from the Thousand Bamboo Sect, and even the son of its Sect Leader! But clearly, he had now lost his influence, which was why he had remained hidden in Huang Feng Valley until now! However, because he still coveted the Great Derivation Art, the new Sect Leader, in a fit of rage, had sent his former fellow disciples to eliminate him completely.

After understanding the sequence of events, Han Li couldn't help but sigh.

Then, seeing the intense battle below, he knew that this was definitely not a battle that a cultivator at the early Foundation Establishment stage like himself could intervene in for profit. It was best to leave early to avoid being unintentionally caught in the crossfire.

Having understood the risks, Han Li immediately retracted his Green Fire Mist. Then, he fully activated the Divine Wind Boat beneath his feet, instantly transforming into a long white rainbow that shot across the sky and vanished.

Han Li's movements this time were too grand to escape the notice of the four combatants below. They were all greatly startled and involuntarily slowed their fighting. None of them had expected that someone had been secretly eavesdropping on their conversation; it seemed many secrets had been heard by this person. However, seeing that Han Li wisely fled and was not an accomplice, the four exchanged glances and then, in unspoken agreement, resumed their battle.