Chapter 1113: A Critical Moment

The next moment, he became invisible under everyone’s watchful eyes.

Zong Chaosheng scanned the area, but couldn't detect Jiang Fan's presence. Not even the slightest trace of his aura could be detected! This ability left him utterly astonished.

"What kind of spell is this? So incredibly potent?"

Bai Xin explained, "It's an aura concealment technique."

"Is that the Jian family's 'Selfless Dust-Cleansing Art'?" She politely refused Zong Chaosheng's top-grade Dust-Free Talisman, stating, "I don't need an invisibility talisman either." Immediately, a wisp of black smoke emerged around her, engulfing her. As the black smoke dispersed, she too vanished from sight. Even a Seven-Aperture Nascent Soul cultivator couldn't detect her presence.

Finally, all eyes turned to Zong Chaosheng. Since no one else was using a Dust-Free Talisman, they assumed Zong Chaosheng wouldn't either.

Zong Chaosheng clutched the top-grade Dust-Free Talisman, his face turning an unsightly mix of green and purple. He had intended to flaunt it in front of Jiang Fan. After all, Jiang Fan came from a humble background; how could he possibly obtain such a thing as a top-grade Dust-Free Talisman? To his surprise, he had been utterly outdone by Jiang Fan.

Under the expectant gaze of the onlookers, Zong Chaosheng, his face flushed, affixed a Dust-Free Talisman to his chest, became invisible, and huffed, "Let's go!"

The three, still invisible, silently leaped away from the Sky-Connecting Black Pillar. While Zong Chaosheng and Bai Xin were still awestruck by the scene before them, Jiang Fan had already quietly slipped behind the three ancient giants. He telepathically transmitted, "Are you both in position?"

Only then did the two of them snap back to reality. They quickly moved to the stone where the ancient giants stood.

Zong Chaosheng directed, "I'll take the middle one, Bai Xin the left, and Jiang Fan the far right."

Jiang Fan took a deep breath, mobilizing his soul power. "Alright, I'm ready," he confirmed.

Bai Xin unclipped the small yellow bell from her waist. "I'm ready too," she said.

Zong Chaosheng's eyes gleamed with determination. He couldn't allow Jiang Fan to outshine him. He promptly produced a black coffin and, with a deep bellow, cried, "Attack!"

The words were barely out of his mouth when he had already launched his attack.

Jiang Fan's expression changed. By the time he heard the command, Zong Chaosheng's attack vibrations had already spread. This was enough to alarm the ancient giants! Was this guy really disregarding everyone else, just to be the first to subdue an ancient giant? Fortunately, Jiang Fan specialized in soul attacks, which had no casting delay. The ancient giant on the far right had just begun to react when Jiang Fan immediately struck.

"Soul-Imprisoning Lock!"

Instantly, the ancient giant on the far right became utterly still.

Bai Xin's gaze also sharpened slightly. Zong Chaosheng's premature move left her somewhat passive. The ancient giant on the left, sensing danger, immediately began to shake its body, intending to release a burst of vital energy to alert its distant companions. Fortunately, Bai Xin acted swiftly. The yellow bell in her palm instantly grew to ten zhang, swiftly enveloping the giant within it. As the bell resonated, the ancient giant inside was instantly immobilized. This was none other than the Qintianjian's divine artifact, the Imprisoning Bell!

Both of them breathed a sigh of relief. They then looked towards Zong Chaosheng. Invisible themselves, they couldn't see what Zong Chaosheng was doing. They could only discern that the ancient giant appeared to be in pain, as if being dragged by something. Yet it wasn't being pulled in completely. This caused both their expressions to change dramatically. Zong Chaosheng had attacked first, yet he still hadn't subdued his target? He was still struggling. If it recovered and unleashed its vital energy, their entire mission would be ruined!

Zong Chaosheng, at this point, also began to panic. The black coffin in his hand was capable of forcefully capturing and suppressing even powerful Seven-Aperture Nascent Soul cultivators. However, against the immensely powerful ancient giant, it proved less effective than anticipated. What made his heart sink to the very bottom was this: The ancient giant, after struggling for a moment, finally remembered to send out a warning. Its body began to vibrate. Visible streams of vital energy began to emanate from its body, and rapidly radiated outwards into the distance!

Jiang Fan's face changed drastically. He urgently whispered, "Little Qilin!" The little Qilin in his arms instantly teleported to the top of the ancient giant's head. Its two tiny paws held a small crystal. After crushing it, a seed dropped from it, landing precisely on the ancient giant's head. The seed split open, revealing tiny, intricate teeth, and bit into the ancient giant's body. Its trembling body instantly ceased movement. Its struggles rapidly diminished. Only then did the black coffin successfully draw the ancient giant inside.

However, it was still a step too late. Some vital energy had already radiated outwards. Seeing the vital energy heading into the distance, seemingly unstoppable, Jiang Fan had already activated Cloud Shadow, transforming into a bolt of lightning to pursue and intercept the vital energy. He then swiftly unfurled Jiao Huangyin's paper fan. A black hole materialized on the fan's surface, engulfing the vital energy. As the paper fan folded shut, this wisp of warning vital energy was successfully suppressed. The crisis was completely averted.

Bai Xin, her heart no longer heavy, offered undisguised praise: "Remarkable technique! The Grand Wine Priest will surely credit you with a major contribution. Had Jiang Fan not intervened in time to turn the tide, their reconnaissance mission would have ended in failure."

Jiang Fan replied dismissively, "It's nothing, it's all for the mission." He approached Zong Chaosheng and said, "Give me back that seed." It turned out that even when Zong Chaosheng had been brimming with confidence, Jiang Fan had quietly handed the 'Fixation Seed' to the little Qilin. He had prepared for Zong Chaosheng's potential blunder. To his surprise, it truly came in handy.

Zong Chaosheng, losing face, retorted angrily, "If you had such a method, why didn't you use it sooner? You nearly caused us to fail the mission!"

Jiang Fan thought he had misheard. "Are you blaming me? You confidently assured us and even insisted on giving orders. Yet you acted prematurely, not only causing me and Commander Bai to scramble, but also taking a long time to subdue the ancient giant. How exactly did you manage to blame this on me?" He had encountered unreasonable people before, but someone like the one before him was a first.

Bai Xin calmly stated, "Our actions have already been simultaneously transmitted to the Grand Wine Priest. He will clearly discern who is in the right and who is in the wrong. Shifting blame will be useless."

Zong Chaosheng was slightly startled. He only just realized that everyone had a spatial imprint on them. His own mistakes couldn't be pinned on Jiang Fan. His face darkened. He retrieved the seed from the black coffin, tossed it to Jiang Fan, and huffed, "This is only the beginning! It's still uncertain who will win and who will lose!"

Jiang Fan retrieved the seed, not bothering to argue with him. He sent a message back. Gu Xin'er and the others immediately surged out from the Sky-Connecting Black Pillar, looking around curiously.

Jiang Fan stated in a low voice, "Everyone, there's no time to lose. We'll reconnoiter in different directions. Penetrate as deep as possible into the heartland and ascertain the ancient giants' military strength."

Zong Chaosheng was the most impatient; without a word, he led his contingent northward. The others also set off in quick succession. Finally, only Jiang Fan and his companions remained.

Song Lingyu focused on the untouched western plains and asked, "Should we head in this direction?"

But Jiang Fan replied, "Hold on." He watched as everyone departed before approaching the Sky-Connecting Black Pillar. As soon as he drew near, the Sky-Connecting Black Pillar recoiled to the side. Although they had heard that Jiang Fan could move the Sky-Connecting Black Pillar, witnessing it firsthand still caused Gu Xin'er, Song Lingyu, and Bai Xin to show faint traces of shock.

Under their bewildered gazes, Jiang Fan produced a chain and wrapped it tightly around the Sky-Connecting Black Pillar. Despite its struggles, he forcibly bound it to himself.

Gu Xin'er's eyes widened. "Why are you taking the Sky-Connecting Black Pillar with you?"