Chapter 234: Robbing the Sect Leader, What Great Courage!

"Did you see how they bought things at the merchant association just now? They didn't even ask the price, just bought them outright."

Five figures in black robes, their voices hoarse and indiscernible by gender or age, moved nimbly through the dense forest, unnoticed by Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou.

"Their faces are pale, and their clothes don't look like anything from around here. They must be disciples from some sect or aristocratic family out to gain experience."

Another person sneered, like a venomous snake hidden in the shadows: "Gain experience? Then let them experience the dangers of the world."

"Did you hear that young master just now? He said they have Mid-Foundation Establishment cultivation. Considering their background, their combat power could match Late-Foundation Establishment."

"So what if it's Late-Foundation Establishment? All five of us are Late-Foundation Establishment and highly experienced. How could these two youngsters be our match?"

"Still, it's better to be careful."

"Remember those sect disciples we encountered last time? One job earned us three months of rest. If we pull this off today, we can rest for another three months!"

"More than that, I think they have more spirit stones than we imagined. They're a fat sheep."

"This should be about right. Few people come here usually.""Make your move!"

At the leader's command, the five figures swiftly fanned out, encircling the two. They stood at pre-determined positions, ensuring the two could not escape in any direction. Their practiced movements clearly showed that they had done this countless times.

"Stop!" the leader barked, his voice laced with a sonic spell designed to shake one's resolve.

"Who are you?!" Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou were visibly startled. Although they adopted cautious stances, the panic in their eyes was poorly concealed.

"Newcomers indeed," the leader scoffed, throwing back his hood to reveal a gaunt face with a hooked nose and cold eyes. "You dare to roam this dense forest without even knowing the name of the Five Eagle Mountain Heroes." As he spoke, the five released their Late-Foundation Establishment aura, signaling the two not to offer futile resistance.

"It's clear you've been raised by some sheltered sect or family," another said, his voice eerie and sinister as he pulled back his hood, revealing a blind eye. "You can't even tell what we do. How naive."

"Five of us surrounding you two in a dense forest—what else could it be?"

"We saw you bought a lot of things at the merchant association just now. You two are quite rich, aren't you?"

"Tell us, how many spirit stones do you have? If the amount satisfies us, this matter can be easily settled. But if you don't have enough spirit stones, then don't blame us, the Five Eagle Mountain Heroes, for being merciless!" His voice grew chillingly cold at the end, hinting at cruelty.

Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou exchanged a smile, then shrugged helplessly. To think, their first enemies in the dense forest weren't demonic beasts, but people.

"Attack! Let them know our strength!"

At the leader's command, all five moved simultaneously. Their coordination was excellent; they had never met their match among Foundation Establishment cultivators. They were about to seize Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou. Unexpectedly, the two acted at the same time, with astonishing speed.

"Draw a Circle for Prison!""Draw a Prison!"

Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou quickly drew circles, unleashing similar spells. Invisible barriers appeared around the five, blocking their escape, and then they were pulled into a dungeon.

"What kind of technique is this?!""Is it the legendary 'Draw a Circle for Prison'?""No, we're in a dungeon! This is a spatial spell!""It's the Drawing Arts, it must be the Drawing Arts!"

The five discussed animatedly, trapped within the dungeon and invisible barriers, bewildered by the sudden turn of events.

"Robbing me, the Branch Master? Are you tired of living?" Meng Jingzhou sneered."Robbing me, the Grand Ancestor? What audacity!" Lu Yang sneered.

Meng Jingzhou turned in surprise: "I'm only a Branch Master. When did you promote yourself?" The Immortal Cult collapsed due to mismanagement and unfortunate encounters. How could *you* get a promotion?

"What do you mean 'promote myself'?" Lu Yang said righteously. "This was specially approved by an immortal."

Meng Jingzhou recalled the immortal residing within Lu Yang's body and understood. He greatly envied Lu Yang; having an immortal's soul within meant he could consult an immortal at any time for guidance—what an immense stroke of fortune.

"Speak. How many times have you robbed, and have you killed anyone?"

"Why waste words? Of course they have. Look at his face—does it look like someone who hasn't killed?"

"Just hand them over to the authorities. Let them decide whether to execute or imprison them after trial."

"Wait, wait, wait, young heroes, there's been a misunderstanding between us!" the hooked-nosed leader quickly interjected. "I can't help how I look, and we're not robbers."

Meng Jingzhou didn't believe a word of the hooked-nosed leader's nonsense: "Misunderstanding my foot! You've been following us since we left the merchant association, deliberately staying outside our spiritual sense range in the dense forest, then trailing us all the way to this godforsaken place, and even surrounded us! If that's not robbing, what is?"

Lu Yang added: "And you also said you'd let us see the dangers of the world, and mentioned how you encountered sect disciples last time, talking about one job earning three months of rest."

The five were greatly alarmed. They hadn't expected their movements to be exposed from the very beginning. They *should* have stayed outside the spiritual sense range of Foundation Establishment cultivators. Just what kind of disciples are these two, to be so perceptive?

What they didn't know was that Lu Yang's spiritual sense had long rivaled that of a Golden Core cultivator, allowing him to hear their entire conversation clearly.

"We're really not robbers, we're bodyguards, bodyguards!"

"What in the world?" Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou both reacted with confusion.

"We saw you two didn't even ask for prices at the merchant association. You must be aristocratic disciples here for experience who've never worried about spirit stones. We were afraid you weren't familiar with this place and would suffer greatly, so we specifically came to be your bodyguards!"

"Then what did you mean by letting us experience the dangers of the world?"

The hooked-nosed leader stammered: "It's just... seeing that you're rich, we'd raise our fees a bit. If we earned a lot this time, we could rest for several months after the job was done."

"Then why did you ask us how many spirit stones we had?""To help us set the price."

"And what did you mean by 'if you don't have enough spirit stones, then don't blame us, the Five Eagle Mountain Heroes, for being merciless'?"

"Further ahead is the territory of a Half-Golden Core demonic beast. If you didn't have enough spirit stones, we wouldn't warn you and would let you continue forward."

"And what about earlier, when you said 'make your move'?"

"When we saw you shrug, we thought you were going to refuse our bodyguard services, so we were preparing to lure out that Half-Golden Core demonic beast from ahead and fight it to demonstrate our five's strength."

Another person muttered quietly: "But judging by how you are, you probably don't even need us as bodyguards."

"Then why did you insist on discussing bodyguard services with us in the dense forest?""No taxes."

Lu Yang: "..."

So you're treating the dense forest as a tax-exempt zone, huh?