Chapter 363: Being Caught in One's Own Web

The sound of the slip of the tongue was not loud; in that environment, it couldn't be heard by many people, but it was enough to alert those around him.

Both Gu Lianni and Li Hongjiu looked surprised. As members of the artifact forging world, anyone with some knowledge would not be unfamiliar with it: it was an artifact forging sect that had suddenly risen more than a hundred years ago. It had once been very prominent, producing many talented individuals, and even overshadowed Shudao Mountain, seeking to contend with Lianzong, before suddenly disappearing.

The reason for its disappearance seemed to be its involvement in a dispute between the Heavenly Court and its four subordinate Royal Courts. Subsequently, one of the Royal Courts found an excuse and directly sent forces to destroy it.

From then on, the cultivation world no longer had the sect known as Zhekong Island.

The 'Boundless Banner' was precisely Zhekong Island's most prized treasure. It was said that the banner contained a self-contained realm, capable of devouring people and treasures. Its function was similar to a Universe Bag, but its power was far beyond what a Universe Bag could compare to.

How could a Universe Bag possibly suppress an artifact as powerful as the 'Sudden Slice'? It would be destroyed in a single encounter.

It was rumored that once this treasure appeared, it could suppress other treasures, making them dare not reveal themselves.

It was said that when Zhekong Island was razed, the relevant forces extensively searched for the 'Boundless Banner' but did not find it. No one knew where it had gone, and unexpectedly, it had appeared here.

In fact, Zuo Zisheng had never seen it himself, only heard about it. However, seeing that the banner's form matched the legends and that it could easily collect a fifth-grade artifact, it was highly likely to be the one.

Gu Lianni and Li Hongjiu witnessed the instant clash of the two treasures and were also surprised that a treasure like the 'Boundless Banner' had fallen into the hands of a mere Four-Cauldron Sect.

Seeing their fellow disciple killed, the other core disciples of Lianzong were about to unleash their artifacts in retaliation. However, when they saw Senior Brother Zuo's treasure collected in an instant, they were all so frightened that they clutched the artifacts they were about to throw and dared not act rashly.

Yin Tianlu had also heard of Zhekong Island's 'Boundless Banner,' but he hadn't noticed what was happening behind him. At that moment, he merely heard it without distracting himself to think further. He was concentrating on manipulating his artifact to attack Shi Chun again.

As the saying goes, "a fall into the pit, a gain in your wit." The inverted bowl shape formed by the scattered swords, empty around its lower part, gave him a hint for attack: if one side didn't work, he could try an all-around assault.

The flying swords swirled around the rapidly spinning large umbrella like a cloud. After regrouping from disarray into a formation, they suddenly split and descended to envelop their target.

Shi Chun, standing on the sword hilt, glanced at Xu Anchang and You Mu, who had already made their move. Seeing them emerge in an instant, proving their strength was indeed considerable, his confidence immediately grew significantly. He then looked up, discerning the sword rain's intention, and leaped into the air.

Any other participant would have been terrified by the assault of this fifth-grade artifact, with no time to dodge. Yet, he charged directly upward against the sword rain.

He had no other intention but to give the sword rain an opportunity to attack him from all directions.

More than two-thirds of the sword rain had already been immobilized by him, meaning the artifact had lost two-thirds of its power. Having successfully dealt with it once, how could he fear the remaining one-third of its power? His seemingly urgent movements actually revealed an effortless composure.

This upward charge against the flow was simply astonishing for the observers, especially Gu Lianni and the others.

They genuinely couldn't believe this was the Shi Chun they had spent so much time with.

Initially, they held a slight disdain for this so-called number one at the Heaven Rain Meteorite Gathering. It was like picking the best among the mediocre, just a bunch of cultivators who hadn't reached grand completion playing around.

Later, his abilities brought them benefits, making them feel they could interact as equals.

Now, they felt a slight sense of awe towards him.

Some gaps didn't require finding excuses; after seeing it with their own eyes, they understood clearly.

The wind was still strong, Gu Lianni's long legs were still prominent, and the hair at her temples still fluttered in the wind. Her gaze, full of attention, held an indescribable quality.

Seeing the masked man suddenly leap into the air, Yin Tianlu immediately saw it as an opportunity, his eyes showing the urgency of seizing the moment.

Just as Shi Chun, suspended in the air, seemed to be at his limit, he suddenly showed signs of hovering. This scene again brought a flash of surprise to Li Hongjiu's eyes, as it wasn't the first time he had caught such a sign from Shi Chun's movements.

The sword rain was very fast, having quickly completed its encirclement. Giving Shi Chun no chance to breathe, it suddenly fired simultaneously from all directions.

Shi Chun intentionally revealed a weakness, and this was precisely what he wanted. The sword rain was not only powerful but also too numerous, and its inconsistent, lingering nature would be troublesome. He wanted to cripple it in one go.

Everything culminated in one action: suspended in mid-air, he pushed his arms outwards.

The sword rain, suddenly fired from all directions, was like a rapidly contracting ball of light. However, when it contracted to a certain size, it showed signs of slowing its contraction and then remained motionless in the void.

"Ah..." Yin Tianlu cried out, his face flushing again. The same situation had reoccurred; even with desperate mental exertion, he couldn't make the immobilized sword rain move an inch.

The onlookers were all moved. That masked man was simply too strong!

Meanwhile, Xu Anchang and You Mu, who had flown out into the air, could be said to be working in perfect coordination.

One was inside the rotating six golden wheels, the other outside. Both were swiftly flying through the air, each step landing precisely on a crescent moon shape.

The two were not there to watch the show. Since they had made their move, they naturally intended to lend Shi Chun a hand. Together, they rushed towards the rapidly spinning large umbrella in the air.

Seeing this, Yin Tianlu was furious. He couldn't deal with the masked man, but surely he could deal with them?

He didn't believe everyone possessed the masked man's abilities.

With just a slight mental command, the rapidly spinning large umbrella in the air quickly retracted, then transformed into a streak of light, delivering a thunderous strike towards Xu and You.

Zuo Zisheng, as if having a toothache, instinctively cried out, "Don't..."

However, it was already too late. By the time he finished uttering those two words, the matter was already over.

Xu Anchang, swiftly moving outside the six golden wheels, once again swung his pole and waved the banner. The unfurled large black banner blocked in front of him, and the moment the thunderous striking umbrella collided, it vanished as if a clay ox had entered the sea.

It disappeared silently, without a single sound of collision.

"Ah..." Yin Tianlu let out another cry of shock, his face even showing a sense of panic.

This time, it wasn't about being unshakeable; rather, he felt he had lost connection with the entire artifact, as that umbrella was its core.

With the core of the artifact's control gone, there was nothing left to connect to.

Seeing his dumbfounded expression, Zuo Zisheng was both exasperated and amused. He cursed, "I already told you that was Zhekong Island's 'Boundless Banner'! Did you not hear me, or have you never heard of it?"

"Zhekong Island, Boundless Banner..." Yin Tianlu stood there stunned, only then remembering he had indeed heard it mentioned earlier, yet he hadn't reacted.

Li Hongjiu, however, seemingly to himself, asked, "Could that masked man really be Shi Chun?"

He had been suspicious before, but then he saw the masked man call out Xu Anchang and You Mu from this side.

Someone whose cultivation was inferior to his, actually possessed such ability?

Whether it was an elder or Shi Chun, he was becoming increasingly interested.

Zuo Zisheng, having lost a precious treasure, was very annoyed. He looked around and asked, "The attacks of a fifth-grade artifact can be easily restrained, and there's also the 'Boundless Banner' said to suppress all treasures. How are we supposed to play now?"

Li Hongjiu responded, "Relying on external objects, such an encounter was bound to happen sooner or later."

Zuo Zisheng immediately stared at him, suddenly remembering that this person hadn't made a move while he himself had lost a treasure. He immediately sneered intentionally, "We have all suffered heavy losses, while Mr. Li has merely watched the show. Is this how Yanbao Sect cooperates with us, by simply sitting back and watching them escape?"

He also wanted to provoke the other party into action to see their true capabilities.

Li Hongjiu, who was watching Shi Chun's movements, was calm and composed. "Don't worry," he said, "none of them will escape."

The people nearby couldn't help but re-examine him upon hearing this. Such a bold statement, was it true or false? That was a guy who even a pile of fifth-grade artifacts couldn't handle.

Seeing their doubt, Guang Haoyou, standing behind Li Hongjiu, calmly added, "Since my uncle said they can't escape, then they definitely can't."

This sentence not only revealed full confidence but also carried significant weight for Zuo Zisheng and the others, forcing them to reconsider Li Hongjiu.

Even Guang Haoyou had said so, and they realized that this seemingly unreliable Li Hongjiu might genuinely possess the legendary extraordinary abilities.

Li Hongjiu, however, glanced around and said, "Some trouble has arrived."

The people nearby immediately looked around...

Shi Chun suddenly experienced what it meant to be caught in one's own trap. The immobilized sword rain around him had actually trapped him inside, with all the sword tips pointed at him. He was like a mouse caught in a cage.

With his cultivation, he certainly couldn't break the immobilization power that could fix a fifth-grade artifact.

Of course, he also had a method to break immobilization spells; he could completely break the restraints on a few swords and then slip out.

But then he would face another problem: after the restraints on the swords were lifted, would they immediately rush to stab him to death? Would it be a cycle of immobilization and release?

However, he was not in a hurry. He had already seen Xu and You displaying their formidable skills above. The various factions' forces dared not act rashly, clearly suppressed. "Good, good," he thought, "no need to panic." He immediately pulled out the Ice Sheep and put it under his mask to breathe first.

Meanwhile, Xu and You also floated down outside the circular sword array. One of them held a sword hilt, hanging to peek inside. Confirming with a look that it was indeed Shi Chun, the two immediately grinned foolishly.

Their laughter was clearly a bit humble. It seemed a powerful individual had been sent from above, and they had indeed underestimated him before.

Xu Anchang chuckled lightly and said, "Brother Chun, with so many people watching us intently, shouldn't we leave here first?"

Shi Chun, standing on the sword tip, did want to leave, but the problem was how to get out. So he raised his chin towards the banner in the other person's hand and asked, "With such a good treasure, why didn't you bring it out earlier? What kind of treasure is this?"

Capable of deterring all factions, even a fool could tell it was a good treasure. He was practically drooling with desire. He had no other intention; he believed this treasure was definitely his and would eventually fall into his hands, so he wanted to understand its situation first to better handle it later.

"The Boundless Banner," Xu Anchang replied, then chuckled wryly, "Brother Chun, this isn't the place for casual chat, is it?"

Shi Chun gestured towards the immobilized sword rain below. "Didn't you collect their umbrella? Can you take these with it? If you can collect them, don't just take half; collect them all for me, I still have use for them."

Xu Anchang grumbled inwardly, "These words are unbearable. Are you the only one who finds artifacts useful? Aren't artifacts useful to anyone?"

"The problem is, shouldn't we be escaping quickly now? Is it appropriate to still be thinking about this? The Boundless Banner isn't capable of dealing with just any artifact."

"Also, so many people are watching, and they aren't some small sect. If you publicly devour their artifact, are you sure you can digest it after leaving? Some things are hard to digest once swallowed, and swallowing them is just asking for trouble."

He hesitated for a moment, then cautiously scanned his surroundings. Seeing that Shi Chun wasn't joking, and no longer holding his previous disrespectful attitude towards Shi Chun, he reluctantly nodded slightly and said, "I'll try."

He immediately cast a spell, waving the banner. Where the banner cloth swept, the cage-like circular sword array was immediately and silently erased, creating a gap.

"Alright, we can get out safely," he thought, "no need to make a fool of myself in public." Upon seeing this, Shi Chun immediately broke into a wide smile.