Chapter 1174: Escape from the Encirclement

The higher they climbed, the tighter the encirclement, the denser the Yaogu army, and the slimmer the fox demons' chances of escape.

Their mind-bewitching spells were largely ineffective against Yaogu soldiers who possessed elemental power.

"The nearest Yaogu army squad is less than a hundred zhang away from us," He Lingchuan said, already having a plan. "We need to find a suitable squad—no more than three people—and they should all be relatively tall."

"No way," Dong Rui immediately rejected. "Yaogu army search parties are at least seven or eight people per group."

He had also been carefully observing.

To capture the fox demons of White Ridge, especially with a great demon among them, the Yaogu army was extremely cautious, with no search squad having fewer than six members.

After observing for a while, hidden by a mountain crevice, He Lingchuan pointed to a squad ahead and to the left. "They're the ones."

This squad was the furthest from the main force and had just reached a low hill.

"There are seven of them."

"Not a problem," He Lingchuan replied, "but remember, no blood, and don't damage their armor!"

The seven-man squad approached the mountainside with extreme caution.

The sparse, withered grass seemed to conceal spectral figures everywhere.

"The higher-ups just sent word to watch out for idle individuals as well," the captain told his subordinates. "If you see anyone of unknown origin, apprehend them immediately."

"Huh? Aren't we supposed to be catching foxes?" a subordinate asked. "Why are we arresting people too?"

"Didn't you hear the music earlier?" the captain glared. "Can foxes play instruments? Someone must have secretly come up the mountain."

"The higher-ups said anyone on the mountain at this time must have ill intentions, so we are to arrest them as spies."

As they walked further, suddenly two sharp "squeaks" of a fox sounded. The tall grass ahead rustled as if in a breeze, and something that had been hidden within quickly fled.

Something fluffy, like a tail, flashed through the grass.

"Foxes, not very big," someone noted, "but they went in two directions! There are two of them!"

In this situation, they should have called for reinforcements, but the captain looked left and right—no other squads were nearby. The foxes ahead were also running incredibly fast and would vanish in an instant.

He made a swift decision, splitting the squad into two branches. "You four go east, the other two come with me to the west!"

They were just small foxes. It wasn't a question of being unable to defeat them, only of failing to catch them.

If they encountered a full-fledged fox demon, they could then fire a signal arrow.

His subordinates were efficient. Four men immediately left the squad to pursue further, while the captain, with two others, continued deeper into the tall grass.

Soon, they followed the trail to the back of a large tree.

"Careful, it's close to the cliff..."

The words "very close" hadn't left his mouth when suddenly two muffled thuds came from behind him.

The captain, startled, turned his head, only to see one subordinate sprawled on the ground. Behind him stood a masked stranger, who was now grabbing another subordinate's head and slamming it against a rock.

That dull "thud" was the sound of a skull cracking and blood spilling.

"You..." As the captain was about to draw his saber and step forward, his right arm and neck suddenly stung with pain, and his vision went black.

He Lingchuan gently lowered him to the ground and said to Dong Rui, "Strip those two of their armor, quickly."

Lingguang also jumped down to help, clumsily pulling off the clothes.

He Lingchuan could have dealt with them more quickly by drawing his saber and killing them, but then the clothes would inevitably be stained with blood.

The two quickly put on the Yaogu soldiers' armor and helmets. He Lingchuan then began to perform the "Mind-Shadow Transmission" technique on the captain.

This was a secret art passed on to him by Xi Yunhe, which allowed him to control the actions and speech of a living person for a short period, and also induce temporary amnesia, making them forget what happened during that time.

Of course, it had limitations. It only worked on those with weak wills, or those who were sick, infirm, or unconscious.

The Yaogu captain met this condition.

The spell was very successful.

Just a few breaths later, he opened his eyes, stood up, and strode forward.

He Lingchuan and Dong Rui, clad in Yaogu armor and with Yaogu sabers at their waists, followed closely behind, secretly controlling the living puppet ahead of them.

This way, even if outsiders noticed them, they would only see a Yaogu captain traveling with two subordinates.

This was a common sight all over the mountain.

In fact, several small figures were following them from behind—

The ones who had just mimicked fox calls and lured the Yaogu soldiers to split up and pursue them, were the Spirit Ape and the Bat Demon Puppet.

After completing their task, they leaped down the mountain rocks, circled around, and came to find their master.

Lingguang walked alongside them.

After disguising themselves as Yaogu soldiers, He Lingchuan and Dong Rui brazenly walked down the mountain. They encountered four or five squads along the way, and everyone simply passed each other by.

Two of the squads even greeted the Yaogu captain. The captain merely nodded, making an excuse about being assigned a new task from above, and hurried on.

Even if others found it strange, they didn't say much.

After all, their target wasn't people; they could tell that at a glance.

The trio continued in the opposite direction, quickly nearing the foot of the mountain.

Ahead, the area was brightly lit, with soldiers densely packed, layer upon layer.

This was the outermost encirclement of the Yaogu army.

As long as they broke through here, they would have escaped to safety.

"Faster," Dong Rui whispered. "Time is running out. Don't forget, the Yaogu are also hunting us."

They had previously used the xun on the mountain as a signal to summon the fox demons for a meeting. General Chongwu had heard it and consequently listed any idle individuals entering the mountain as targets for capture.

He Lingchuan nodded slightly.

They had to walk behind the Yaogu captain, and this entire process was too time-consuming.

Once they blended into the Yaogu army ahead, it would be even harder for others to find them.

Just then, a general suddenly emerged from the squad ahead, pointed at them, and asked, "You three, what's going on?"

These three weren't from his battalion, so why were they here?

Dong Rui's eyes flickered. Good things come to those who wait, but this was trouble. This man had hundreds of soldiers behind him; were they supposed to force their way through?

The captain, controlled by He Lingchuan, immediately cupped his fists and said in a deep voice, "Sir, the Three-tailed Great Demon just appeared at White Ridge Cliff and might be sneaking in this direction. The General has ordered all southern squads to immediately converge a hundred zhang towards White Ridge Cliff!"

So he was delivering an order? The general subconsciously acknowledged.

The Yaogu captain, with his two subordinates, walked past them, looking straight ahead, as if hurrying to the next camp to continue delivering the notice.

"He's not suspicious, he's not looking at you anymore," the Soul-Capturing Mirror reported to He Lingchuan in real time. "Keep walking forward, don't look back. Good, good, you're almost out of his sight."

The trio continued forward until a low hill blocked the general's view. They then easily entered the encirclement.

Here, all were Yaogu soldiers. Everyone was following orders, moving in unison. Who would care what these three were doing here?

He Lingchuan controlled the puppet to slowly fall behind, then, when the supervisory squad wasn't paying attention, successfully slipped away!

The two then abandoned the Yaogu captain halfway, dodged scattered patrol teams, and under the cover of night and dense forest, ran another two hundred zhang forward. Only then did Dong Rui blow a whistle.

Soon after, three shadows shot towards them.

It was indeed the two apes and one bat.

The bat had flown up early, and the apes had been boldly sitting on branches watching the commotion. More than one Yaogu soldier had seen them, but hadn't paid them any mind:

Their target this time was foxes, not fat monkeys in trees!

"Quickly, quickly!" Dong Rui urged impatiently. "There's only a quarter of an hour left before the time limit for the Bieli Cave Heaven!"

"No worries," He Lingchuan said. "We've already escaped the encirclement and gained the upper hand. Even if the Yaogu army can re-locate the Three-tailed Fox Demon, it won't be easy for them to catch up to us again."

This quarter of an hour had given them a lead of several miles.

The time limit was up.

The Three-tailed Fox emerged from the Bieli Cave Heaven, first looking left and right, then gazed eagerly at the two of them. "So the tracking spell landed on—?"

He Lingchuan led it up the nearest hilltop, pointed back the way they came, and said, "See for yourself."

From their elevated position, it was easy to see the lights in the distant valley.

As far as the eye could see, torches were rapidly converging.

And then—

they headed straight for them!

After the Three-tailed Fox left the Bieli Cave Heaven, General Chongwu's tracking spell could once again take effect.

The Yaogu army tightened its formation, and the large force pursued in this direction, indicating that General Chongwu was highly confident the target had broken out of the encirclement and fled southwest!

But He Lingchuan could still sense his confidence.

As long as the tracking spell remained effective, they wouldn't lose their quarry.

Hunters must be more patient than their prey; the Three-tailed Fox would be caught by them sooner or later.

"Its tracking spell really did land on me," the great fox demon said, actually pleased by this, its three tails gently swaying. "Perhaps I was hit when I fought against the Grand Supervisor of Yaogu."

This was a significant advantage for the fox demon clan. As He Lingchuan had said, the Yaogu's target was the Three-tailed Fox, and they had no interest in pursuing the smaller foxes.

As long as they escaped in time after the Yaogu army withdrew, the Three-tailed Fox's offspring would essentially be safe.

"Tell your offspring to gather at Red Valley," He Lingchuan told the Three-tailed Fox. "General Chongwu is hot on our heels. We need to keep moving and figure out how to shake them off again."

General Chongwu's Yaogu army clung to them like a plaster. But Dong Rui had already devised a plan.

Let them track all they want, as long as they themselves always stayed ahead, preventing the enemy from catching up.

As they spoke, Dong Rui assigned the Bat Demon Puppet to fly back, to scout the movements of the Yaogu army.

From then on, they could only proceed on foot.

The Three-tailed Fox was severely wounded. It couldn't fight effectively, but could still barely walk. After Lingguang treated its wounds and fed it a few pills, the great fox demon seemed a bit more energized.

It used its true power to temporarily seal the meridians around its wounds, and continued on its journey with He Lingchuan.

At such a critical moment, it couldn't afford to be a burden. Though the Three-tailed Fox was in pain and exhausted, it uttered not a single sound.

This was when the difference between Dong Rui's demon puppets and true demons became apparent.

Both the Spirit Ape and the Bat could shrink their weight along with their size to become extremely small. However, the Spider Demon sisters and this great fox demon could not. Otherwise, if the fox demon could shrink, the Bat Demon Puppet could have simply carried it flying over Jing Mountain, and there would have been no need to enter the Bieli Cave Heaven pocket world at all.

Lingguang frowned, constantly pondering a method for healing.

The Three-tailed Fox asked using Dong Rui's catchphrase, "Where to now?"

The two had already planned it. He Lingchuan pointed forward:

"You've been to that place before, haven't you?"

The sprawling, undulating mountains were reduced to silent silhouettes in the night, resolute, weighty, and a little ominous.

"Jing Mountain?"

The Three-tailed Fox twitched its tails again. "Yes, I've been there. It's truly an unlikable place."