Chapter 674: Finding Yu Fei-er
Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97
These puppets were pulsating with immense energy that was equivalent to the one he had met in the stone room. Judging from the looks of it, even a Saint realm expert would be killed even if he came here.
Luo Qiqi and Zhang Xuan had nearly died dealing with just one. It took them careful planning and much effort just to get rid of it. To encounter eight at once…
With an awful complexion, Zhang Xuan proceeded forward.
Boom boom boom boom!
A while later, the ground suddenly started shaking relentlessly with a peculiar rhythm.
‘Hmm?’
Zhang Xuan frowned.
The shaking was forceful, reminiscent of shock waves emanated in a clash between experts. However, what was bizarre was the constant short interval between each tremor. Nevertheless, this trace of battle raised Zhang Xuan’s hopes.
‘Could it be that they are still holding on?’
Zhang Xuan’s eyes lit up.
Even though the Otherworldly Demons had been forged into puppets under Wu Yangzi’s hands, they possessed no emotions or irrationality that would make them fight one another… The only possibility was that Yu Fei-er and the others were still alive, and they were still fending them off!
But… those were Saint realm puppets. How did Yu Fei-er and the others manage to survive for so long?
Speeding up, Zhang Xuan flew to where the tremors were originating from. In the midst of his journey, he saw yet another three puppets walking in a straight line, similar to the ones he had seen previously.
‘This is already the seventeenth one…’
Making a quick count of the puppets he had encountered, Zhang Xuan’s face darkened.
It was fortunate that he hadn’t come here in his physical body, or else it would have been no joke if he had been surrounded by these guys!
While his cultivation had advanced greatly in recent times, and he had the Library of Heaven’s Path behind him, he knew his own limits. He might have gotten past a Saint realm expert by hoodwinking the other party with his words before, but against lifeless puppets who only followed instructions… he knew that death would be the only outcome from an encounter with them.
‘Something is wrong! If Yu Fei-er and the others are still alive, why are these puppets walking away instead of encircling them?’
As Zhang Xuan encountered more and more puppets, a seed of doubt slowly sprouted in his mind.
After noticing that Yu Fei-er was still alive, those puppets should have been rallying one another to deal with them. Why would they be walking away instead in such an orderly fashion?
Even though Zhang Xuan was confused by the situation before him, he continued to advance at top speed.
Zhang Xuan didn’t dare to fly too fast for fear of inducing any significant reverberations in the air from his movement. After advancing for around another eight minutes, he finally arrived at the source of the tremors.
Along the way, he had seen many scars of battle as well, but they were of a relatively smaller scale compared to the first ones he encountered. Most likely, they were trying to fend off the Otherworldly Demon puppets as they retreated.
The fact that he had yet to see their corpses yet meant that there was a good chance that they were still breathing.
To be able to survive so long against so many Saint realm Otherworldly Demon puppets… they were indeed formidable.
‘Hmm? They are over there!’
After taking a detour around a high-rise building, Zhang Xuan noticed that the source of the tremors was right before him. Quickly raising his gaze to take a look, a vast square appeared before his eyes.
It covered an area of several dozen mu, and stationed at the very center was an altar. Most probably, it was a tool they used to pay respect to their ancestors or the heavens back when they were still alive.
(15 mu ≈ a hectare)
Bizarre symbols were inscribed on the altar, leaving one with overwhelming dizziness just by looking at it.
There were various peculiar statues erected around the altar. They resembled a fusion of various beasts, forming an extremely sinister sight.
A powerful killing intent emanated from the statues, inducing a cold shiver down one’s spine.
‘They are still alive…’
As Zhang Xuan’s gaze fell on the center of the altar, his eyes lit up.
Over there, a barrier of light was erected, and two Otherworldly Demon puppets were striking it ceaselessly. This was where the tremors were coming from.
In the barrier of light, Yu Fei-er, Xing Yuan, and the others were seated cross-legged at the very center. Their faces were pale, and their bodies were drenched in fresh blood.
It seemed like they had suffered grievous wounds while attempting to escape from the Otherworldly Demon puppets.
‘What an incredible trump card!’
Looking at the barrier of light, Zhang Xuan was impressed.
To be able to fend off the relentless attacks from two Saint realm puppets, the resilience of the barrier was indeed incredible!
‘It probably belongs to Yu Fei-er or Xing Yuan… Considering the standing of those two, it wouldn’t be surprising for them to possess such means up their sleeves.’
Realizing what was going on, Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief.
As the princess of Hongyuan Empire, it was natural that she would carry a lot of defensive artifacts so that she could protect herself in face of danger. Otherwise, due to her exceptional identity, it was unlikely that her family would be willing to let her venture out alone.
On the other hand, given how Xing Yuan could pursue the princess so openly, his family background was likely to be exceptional as well.
While their artifacts might not be sufficient for them to fight against the Otherworldly Demon puppets, it was sufficient for them to stand their ground temporarily.
‘But this barrier of light seems to be on the verge of crumbling…’
Zhang Xuan frowned.
No matter how powerful an artifact may be, it was limited by the amount of energy stored within it. Taking his Dragon Scale Protective Amulet for example, while it was able to withstand an attack with the full might of a Transcendent Mortal 9-dan, it was only limited to three uses.
While the barrier of light that the four were in was able to withstand the relentless attacks from the two puppets, its light was dim, and it seemed like it was going to break apart soon.
And once it did, it would spell the moment of their doom.
‘I must find a way to save them…’
The current situation placed him in a dilemma. If he were to instruct them to dispel the barrier of light, the two Otherworldly Demon puppets would surely rush straight at them, and Zhang Xuan had no confidence in bringing all of them out alive with them on their trail. But if the barrier of light wasn’t dispelled, they would be trapped here…
What could be done at this moment?
Furthermore, what puzzled Zhang Xuan the most was that, judging from where the other Otherworldly Demon puppets which he’d encountered on the way here were heading from, they were probably at this altar before. Why did the rest march away, leaving only two of them here?
If all of them were to strike the barrier of the light together, it would have surely shattered by now!
Assessing the situation a while longer, Zhang Xuan was still unable to make sense out of the situation. Thus, he decided to drift a little closer to the barrier of light to get a better look.
‘Why is there a corpse in there?’
Moving forward, he saw Yu Fei-er, Xing Yuan, Wu Zhen, and Ye Qian were seated shoulder to shoulder in a circle at the center of the barrier of light, and seated at the center of the four of them was an old man.
Even though there was no visible damage to the body of the old man, his withered and emaciated body revealed that he was long dead.
A thought suddenly emerged in Zhang Xuan’s mind.
‘Could this be… Grandmaster Wu Yangzi?’
For a human corpse to appear here… Putting the clues together, the old man should be Wu Yangzi.
When Zhang Xuan couldn’t find Wu Yangzi’s corpse in the stone chamber previously, he had already been a little perplexed as to where it could be. From the looks of it now, the corpse had been here all along, and somehow, Yu Fei-er and the others had managed to find it, and they were currently guarding it.
Of course, it was also possible that the corpse was guarding them. It was impossible for Zhang Xuan to determine whether the barrier of light came from Yu Fei-er’s group or Wu Yangzi.
While Zhang Xuan was assessing the situation carefully, cold sweat was dripping down the faces of Yu Fei-er and the others.
Panting deeply, Xing Yuan said with a pale face, “Sixth Princess, it seems like we won’t be able to get out this time.”
There was a glaring wound on his chest. Even though he had already applied some recovery medicine, fresh blood still kept oozing from it, forming a rather frightening scene.
“We’ll probably die here…”
Wu Zhen’s face also darkened.
They had all thought that it would be a simple mission—all they needed to do was to confirm the existence of the underground chamber where Wu Yangzi once stayed in. Who knew that this seemingly simple mission would actually lead them to so many formidable puppets!
Chased all the way here, if not for Yu Fei-er’s ample supply of defensive artifacts, they would have already died a few hours ago.
“At the very least, we chose the correct passageway. This is indeed where Grandmaster Wu Yangzi lived previously, and we even found his corpse!”
Yu Fei-er harrumphed.
Amidst this despair, this was the only consolation she received. At the very least, she managed to best that smug Zhang Xuan once!
Since Grandmaster Wu Yangzi’s corpse was here, it could only mean that they had found the right place. Her greatest regret now was that she wasn’t able to see the smugness wiped out of that fellow’s face.
“You’re right.” Xing Yuan nodded weakly. Then, turning around to Yu Fei-er, he asked, “Sixth Princess, since we’re already on death’s door, can you tell if… you have ever liked me?”
Seeing as the barrier of light continued to grow thinner and thinner, Xing Yuan knew that it was a matter of time before it shattered. Thus, he was unable to suppress the greatest question in his mind anymore.
He had been pursuing this lady for a very long time already, but the other party had never reciprocated his feelings. Now that they were on the verge of death, he wanted to at least know the truth so that he could rest in peace.
Hearing those words, Ye Qian and Wu Zhen immediately turned their heads away awkwardly.
Not expecting Xing Yuan to ask such a question, Yu Fei-er opened her mouth, but she soon bit her lips. After a long moment of hesitation, she shook her head.
“I have already told you that before I become a 6-star master teacher, I’m not interested in engaging in any romantic relationship…”
She had an extremely competitive nature, and she had always wanted to prove herself to others. As such, romantic relationships were something at the back of her mind.
Even though Xing Yuan had been pursuing her for some time now, her heart had never skipped a beat for him.
“I knew it. I didn’t stand a chance from the start…”
Hearing such direct words from the other party, Xing Yuan shook his head and smiled bitterly. “Then, are you interested in Zhang Xuan?”
Recalling that shameless face on that detestable young man, Yu Fei-er clenched her jaws in anger.
“Zhang Xuan? How could I possibly be interested in that despicable and shameless fellow? I must be mad before I can possibly fall in love with such a guy!”
She was a princess, a member of nobility, and yet the other party dared to force her to become his maid and serve him tea…
If only that was all… When she went to reason it out with him, he even kicked her bottom twice!
She had never seen someone as ungentlemanly as him!
If not for the fact that she wasn’t able to defeat him, she would have long rushed over to crush that man with her hands.
‘I…’
Zhang Xuan, who was loitering around the barrier of light to find an opportunity to save the group, heard Yu Fei-er’s evaluation of him, and he staggered…
‘I am such an upright, kind, and magnanimous person. How in the world did I become a despicable and shameless man?
‘Just like the wise sages of the past once said, woman and hypocrite are the two most difficult species to please!
‘Such is indeed the case!’
Hearing her furious howls, Xing Yuan wasn’t delighted in the least. Instead, he shook his head in disappointment.
“The more ferociously you berate him, the greater the place he has in your heart. I have known you since we were little, and it has been more than twenty years since then, but have I ever occupied a space as big as him in your heart? When I said we weren’t able to leave earlier, the first thing that came to your mind wasn’t fear but that you have won a bet against him…”
Even in this desperate situation, all she could think of was Zhang Xuan…
From this fact, he knew that despite his years of pursuing her, his standing in the other party’s heart couldn’t even compare to that fellow she had just met.
“I…”
Yu Fei-er froze upon hearing those words.
Was she really in love with that fellow? But how could it be possible!
All she wanted was to rid herself of her identity as a maid and teach that shameless fellow a lesson!
Affirming her intentions inside once more, just as she was about to verbalize them to Xing Yuan, a voice suddenly drifted into their ears.
“Cough cough. This isn’t the time to be flirting with one another. You should be discussing how you can get away instead!”
Hearing that voice, Yu Fei-er eyes widened. “Zhang Xuan?”
