Chapter 1211, The Ambush on the Mountainside

Translator: Silavin

  

Vibrant Vermilion Peak.

 

On its towering mountainside, countless figures darted in every direction with precise, orderly efficiency, spreading out to form what was unmistakably an enormous encircling formation, sealing off the entirety of the mountainside without a single gap.

 

These figures had concealed themselves with extraordinary care, suppressing even the faintest trace of their aura. From their movements alone, one could plainly see that these individuals all possessed considerable strength.

 

Every last one of these experts lay hidden across the various concealed positions along the mountainside, not producing so much as a whisper. From their posture, they resembled hunters waiting patiently for prey to walk straight into a trap.

 

“Everyone listen, hold your positions. The moment you detect any movement from him, send word immediately!”

 

A Peak Stage Martial Ancestor swept swiftly across the mountainside, his voice low but unnervingly clear as it reached every pair of ears present.

 

Atop a great boulder on the mountainside, two figures stood with imposing stillness. From them radiated a terrifying wave of pressure that rolled outward continuously, causing the Demonic Beasts howling in the surrounding area to fall into a hushed, instinctive silence.

 

These two figures were none other than Zhao Xueqi and Zhang Qun. At this moment, both of their gazes were fixed upon the direction of the mountain’s peak.

 

“*Hmph!* We have laid an inescapable net this time. Even if that brat possesses the ability to reach the Heavens, he shan’t be descending from this mountain.”

 

Zhao Xueqi let out a cold snort, his eyes brimming with ferocity.

 

“He managed to escape from the belly of the Azure Sky Demonic Flood Dragon. I rather suspect that brat has cards up his sleeve that we know nothing of.”

 

Beside him, Zhang Qun furrowed his brow, a flicker of unease passing across his face.

 

A Half-Saint Realm Azure Sky Demonic Flood Dragon was something even they feared deeply. If he were perfectly honest with himself, Zhang Qun had no doubt that had he himself been swallowed by that creature, there would have been absolutely no prospect of survival.

 

If Qin Yichen had no extraordinary trump card, how could he possibly have walked out of what was essentially a death sentence?

 

“What is it, Zhang Qun, gone cowardly again?”

 

Zhao Xueqi cast a sideways glance at Zhang Qun, a thin, mocking smile colouring his voice.

 

“It is not a matter of cowardice. After all, I do not have your backing.”

 

Unexpectedly, Zhang Qun did not take the bait. Instead, he gave a soft laugh and mocked himself quite pleasantly.

 

“*Hmph!* If you are frightened, then get yourself away from here. It is not as though you have not lost face once or twice before.”

 

Zhao Xueqi gave another cold snort and spoke with bland indifference.

 

The two of them were, by any measure, figures of considerable renown within this Myriad Beasts War Domain. They had mobilised a significant force to come to Vibrant Vermilion Peak, suffered no small number of losses along the way, and ultimately came away with nothing.

 

And in the end, all their effort had merely served to do someone else’s work for them, a nameless brat they had never even met. If word of this were to spread, it would be a substantial blow to their reputations.

 

“Anyone who dares compete with me, Zhao Xueqi, for something, I will flay the skin from their bones and rip out their tendons.” Zhao Xueqi’s eyes were viciously cold. His gaze remained fixed upon the direction of the peak as his frigid voice slowly unfurled. “I shall make it known to everyone, that those who dare offend me, no matter how outstanding they may be, all share the same fate in the end.”

 

Hearing these words, Zhang Qun could not help but feel his brow tighten.

 

Though his own strength was sufficient to carve out a place for himself within the Myriad Beasts War Domain, this was a land whose depths were unknown, and he could not afford to act carelessly.

 

Those who could truly run rampant within the Myriad Beasts War Domain without restraint were, in all likelihood, only those Saints.

 

The reason Zhao Xueqi could afford to be so savage, could dominate this region for over a decade, lay not only in his fearsome power and ruthless methods. More crucially, there was a certain existence standing behind him.

 

Without that existence, Zhao Xueqi’s overbearing conduct, however formidable his strength, would surely have seen him die more times than anyone could count.

 

“Brother Zhao, then please excuse my absence.”

 

After a brief internal deliberation, Zhang Qun gritted his teeth and made his decision.

 

Zhao Xueqi had a Saint at his back. He did not.

 

From the strength Qin Yichen had already displayed, it was not difficult to surmise that behind the latter stood an exceptionally fearsome Race offering support. Otherwise, even if his talent were monstrous beyond reason, it would be impossible to possess such power at that age.

 

And what troubled Zhang Qun most was how the latter had managed to extricate himself from the Azure Sky Demonic Flood Dragon’s grasp.

 

That creature had been gravely wounded by both him and Zhao Xueqi working in concert, and had then swallowed Qin Yichen whole when the youth had been caught completely off-guard.

 

By any sensible reckoning, that should have been an unbreakable death sentence.

 

To escape alive from such a dire situation suggested the latter possessed cards he had no business provoking.

 

Without further regard for Zhao Xueqi’s reaction, Zhang Qun simply cupped his fists in a brief salute, then leapt from the rock and swept away downward without another word.

 

*Whoosh!*

 

The moment Zhang Qun departed, four figures swept in from the surrounding area, none other than four of the Blood Hand Five Eagles.

 

“Grinning Tiger, Zhang Qun. On what grounds does a cowardly wretch like that share our Older Brother’s reputation?”

 

The second of the Blood Hand Five Eagles watched the direction of Zhang Qun’s departure with open contempt.

 

“Older Brother, what shall we do? Shall we continue?”

 

The remaining few exchanged glances, and every one of them looked toward Zhao Xueqi.

 

“Hmph. Tell the Brothers to keep their eyes sharp. Zhang Qun can afford to lose face. I, Zhao Xueqi cannot.”

 

Zhao Xueqi’s expression darkened, and after a brief pause, he finally gave his cold verdict.

 

His standing today was inseparable from a certain someone’s influence, it was true. But his fearsome reputation had been earned, not borrowed. He had not been sparing with the bloodshed required to shut the mouths of those who spoke carelessly.

 

“”Yes!””

 

At the word, four figures gave low acknowledgements and swept away in every direction.

 

Before long, the sky had gradually sunk into a deeper darkness. A biting wind howled down continuously from the peak, moaning as it swept the mountainside.

 

*Whoosh!*

 

In the gloom of the darkening sky, the sound of something cleaving through the air rang out sharply. A figure appeared like a streak of light, shooting downward from the peak at astonishing speed.

 

That figure was Qin Yichen. As he swept downward and drew close to the mountainside, his speed suddenly slowed.

 

Qin Yichen’s gaze swept across the area of the mountainside. Though it appeared perfectly still, a sharp, instinctive sense of danger made itself known through his heightened perception.

 

“What is the point of hiding? Come out, all of you.”

 

Qin Yichen’s gaze swept the area ahead, and his cool, resonant voice, laced with surging Yuan Energy, rang out across the Heavens without warning.

 

“Hehehe. Brat, Heaven has a path and you refuse to walk it, yet Hell has no gate and you barge right in.”

 

The moment Qin Yichen’s words landed, a dark, ferocious voice abruptly thundered across Heaven and Earth.

 

Simultaneously, more than twenty figures swept out from their hidden positions, encircling Qin Yichen. A blood-red silhouette materialised from above like a spectre drifting down from the sky.