208: Chapter 208 A Deadly Encirclement and Slaughter!

...

After resting for a moment, Xiao An twisted his right shoulder, feeling a wave of soreness and numbness radiating from between his joints.

The spiritual energy in his body was less than thirty percent of its peak. Although the wisp of Earth Dao heaven and earth qi in his Qi Sea could grant him a significant boost in combat power, every time he used it, the damage to his Meridians grew worse.

At the same time, there was another wisp of something hidden deep within his Dantian...

It was something he had accidentally obtained from a ruined ancient formation in the outer regions—a wisp of Yin-attribute heaven and earth qi. He had never revealed its existence to anyone.

If news of this got out, the number of Cultivators pursuing him would likely increase tenfold or more!

"No, I need to find a place to hide and heal my injuries first..."

"Only by getting out alive is there any hope of turning the tables. He absolutely could not die here."

Xiao An activated his movement technique, skimming close to the ground as he rapidly sped into the distance. He did not know what lay ahead, but it was at least safer than what lay behind.

Unfortunately, he was mistaken.

...

Thirty miles north of Luanshigang, there was a dried-up riverbed covered in gravel.

Seven Yao Beasts had already been lying in wait here for an entire day.

"He's here."

Elder Rat's whiskers twitched violently. A faint ripple of spiritual energy was rapidly approaching from the south, moving at an incredible speed with a powerful aura.

It had to be Xiao An!

Elder Rat sent a voice transmission to alert the others, then completely held his breath, remaining absolutely motionless.

As Xiao An swept across the riverbed, his footsteps suddenly faltered.

His perception was extremely keen.

For a swordsman, detecting killing intent was an instinct engraved into their very bones. Just now, as he swept past that gravel beach, he had felt a faint sense of unease.

But he couldn't quite put his finger on what was wrong.

It was too quiet.

In a terrain like Luanshigang, there should normally be small Yao Beasts roaming around. Yet, within a radius of several miles, there were no birds or beasts, the vegetation was dead, and there was not a single trace of living breath.

Either a large Yao Beast was entrenched here and had driven away all other living creatures...

Or—

Xiao An abruptly skidded to a halt, holding qingfeng across his chest.

But the instant he stopped, Bai Ling made her move.

An invisible wave of mental energy rippled out from the pile of rocks. Colorless and odorless, it surged straight toward Xiao An's Sea of Consciousness.

The illusions of the White Fox Clan did not rely on simple tricks of the eye; instead, they acted directly on the Divine Soul, causing the target to suffer a cognitive lapse in an instant.

Xiao An felt a buzzing in his head, and the scenery before him blurred for a split second.

In that very instant.

The ground beneath his feet split open.

Elder Rat erupted from the soil. Though small in stature, his speed was astonishing.

Opening his pointed snout, he bit down hard on Xiao An's ankle. This was no ordinary bite; Elder Rat's fangs were infused with wind spiritual energy, acting like two invisible blades that shredded the protective spiritual light around the ankle and sank directly into the flesh and bone.

"Beast!"

Xiao An growled, a flash of sword light slashing toward Elder Rat.

How could Elder Rat dare to take his sword strike head-on?

Releasing his fangs from the ankle, his entire body dove back into the earth, as fast and slippery as a loach diving into water...

But with that single bite and block, Xiao An lost the initiative.

On both sides of the riverbed, the vine seeds planted by Bi Luo erupted at the exact same moment.

Dozens of thick green vines grew wildly out from the crevices in the rocks, intertwining to form a wooden cage over ten feet high, completely sealing off a radius of thirty zhang.

The surface of the vines was covered in barbs, oozing a dark green sap. This was a paralyzing toxin specially concocted by Bi Luo; once touched, the circulation of spiritual energy would become sluggish.

"Wood Manipulation Techniques?"

Xiao An's expression shifted slightly, and he immediately swung his sword to slash.

Wherever qingfeng passed, it was incomparably sharp. As his sword energy flared, over a dozen vines snapped, but green sap splattered from the cuts, and new vines instantly sprouted from the severed ends.

Although the speed could not compare to Bi Luo in her prime, it was still incredibly annoying and difficult to deal with.

Unwilling to get bogged down here, he leaped up, broke through the top of the wooden cage, and took the opportunity to retreat.

But at that exact moment, a clap of muffled thunder exploded overhead.

Lei Nu had leaped into midair at some point. Shrouded in endless lightning, he crashed down toward the earth like a dome of thunder!

"I am the storm!"

Lei Nu roared furiously as a massive phantom of a Thunder Bear projected into the sky. The lightning illuminated the entire riverbed, instantly kicking up dust and rocks as a violent storm of lightning descended upon the world!

Xiao An's face showed astonishment; there was no way to dodge.

He grimaced, his left hand forming a sword seal. The sword energy on qingfeng swelled to fifty feet, and he slashed downward!

The sword energy clashed with the Thunder Bear.

With a loud boom, a wave of air swept in all directions, and gravel shot out like a rain of arrows.

Lei Nu was knocked backward by the counterforce, flipping several times in the air before stabilizing himself. Xiao An, on the other hand, had lightning energy surge into his body, numbing half of his frame as he was violently sent flying and slammed deep into the ground.

By the time he finally managed to free himself, his right leg was completely useless.

Elder Rat's bite had completely crushed his ankle, and a stream of tiny wind blades continuously tore at the wound, preventing it from healing.

Before he could even steady himself, a surge of killing intent erupted from his flank.

It was Xiong Shan. The Black Bear had silently charged out from the side of the riverbed, galloping on all fours like a moving hill.

Seeing this, Xiao An raised his sword horizontally to block.

Xiong Shan slammed a paw against the flat of the sword. The metallic clash rang out, shattering the web of Xiao An's thumb and index finger. Xiao An gritted his teeth to stabilize himself, and with a twist of his blade, he thrust the tip of his sword toward Xiong Shan's throat...

The moment the tip of the sword pierced an inch into the flesh, Xiong Shan used his raw muscles and bones to clamp down on the blade.

Such terrifying Physical Body strength could actually halt his sword strike in its tracks. His defense was truly second to none!

Xiong Shan let out a muffled grunt, but he did not retreat.

Instead, he continued to press forward, his two bear paws clamping onto Xiao Chenyuan's sword arm from both sides, locking it in a death grip to match him in raw strength.

"You're courting death."

Xiao An channeled his Earth Dao heaven and earth qi.

An incredibly dense, earthy-yellow spiritual energy surged from his Qi Sea and poured into the blade.

qingfeng let out a low hum as its weight suddenly multiplied several times over. Breaking free from Xiong Shan's grip, it swept out in a wide arc!

The sword slashed across Xiong Shan's chest, tearing open his flesh as blood sprayed everywhere!

Roaring in pain, Xiong Shan was forced back several steps.

But because he had used the heaven and earth qi for this strike, a sharp pain shot through his Qi Sea, and several more of his Meridians ruptured...

"What a powerful sword..."

Thunder Badger's voice came from behind and to the side.

He had already circled behind Xiao Chenyuan, his claws crackling with accumulated lightning.

Shuang Yu flanked him from the other side, her body covered in a layer of frost armor condensed from icy energy, leaving a trail of white frost on the ground beneath her feet.

A three-sided ambush.

Coupled with the arriving Lei Nu, Elder Rat who could emerge from the ground at any moment, and Bi Luo and Bai Ling blocking any path of retreat...

Seven Foundation Establishment Great Demons had completely trapped Xiao An here.

Xiao An scanned his surroundings, his expression finally changing.

It was not fear.

Rather, it was a desperate, do-or-die determination.

"Fine!" he rasped, holding qingfeng horizontally in front of him. "I've been running for five days and five nights, pursued for five days and five nights."

"I never expected that in the end, I would die at the hands of a pack of Yao Beasts."

"So be it."

He raised his sword, pointing the blade toward the sky.

"Come at me then!"

...