The west of Major Metropolitan City:
Dark clouds covered the sky above the many mountains and cliffs there, as well as Bat Valley. The environment was extremely humid.
Li Shenji stood in one of the valleys, listening to his subordinates’ reports.
“Battalion Commander, there are too many bats here. It is not easy to search the place.”
“Indeed. Only vampires and bat spirits stay here. We scouted around by pretending to be vampires, but we nearly got discovered.”
Li Shenji’s subordinates complained.
Li Shenji showed a sullen expression as he turned his head to look at Ye Shenzhen.
Ye Shenzhen shook his head slightly as he said, “Lord Li, I will naturally assist with everything I can. However, His Holy Eminence does not want us to take risks and attack head-on lest Gongyang Sheng get harmed. Continue searching.”
Li Shenji showed a sullen expression and said, “This place has bats everywhere, even the sky. How are we to search?”
“I have no way around this, either.” Ye Shenzhen shook his head.
“Aside from Gu Hai and me, His Holy Eminence should have sent other people as well, right?” Li Shenji narrowed his eyes slightly as he looked at Ye Shenzhen.
Ye Shenzhen remained silent, not answering.
Li Shenji revealed a faint smile and said, “We are in the open, while they are hidden? However, do you know how dangerous it is for us to be in the open?”
“Naturally, His Holy Eminence considered the danger. That’s why saving Gongyang Sheng would be a major contribution.” Ye Shenzhen shook his head.
Li Shenji nodded with a sullen expression.
At this moment, a group of Divine Strategy Battalion disciples approached quietly.
“Battalion Commander, we caught a few bat spirits and interrogated them. We eventually got a location. There’s only one underground palace that they have not been to. Only the Bat Ancestor goes there. Perhaps he is there,” a Divine Strategy Battalion disciple said.
“Oh? You found a possible location? That’s good,” Li Shenji said.
That Divine Strategy Battalion disciple immediately pointed out the location.
“That foggy region?” Li Shenji asked.
“That’s right.”
Li Shenji looked at a distant foggy land.
“Eunuch Ye, how about you make a move and draw the Bat Ancestor while I go in to take a look?” Li Shenji suggested in anticipation.
Ye Shenzhen shook his head and said, “Battalion Commander Li, sorry. You want me to draw the Bat Ancestor away? Haha! I am just here to assist you, but I will not take risks.”
Li Shenji’s expression turned unsightly.
Li Shenji looked into the distance. Giving up would be a great pity, but if he sent his subordinates to lure out the Bat Ancestor, they would not succeed; the Bat Ancestor would swallow them in one bite.
“Never mind, I’ll lure away the Bat Ancestor. Eunuch Ye, can I trouble you to scout the place where the Bat Ancestor comes from?” Li Shenji asked.
“That is doable,” Ye Shenzhen replied with a faint smile.
Li Shenji nodded and took out a mask, covering his face. After he made some arrangements, his figure flashed, avoiding everyone as he rushed towards the foggy area.
Boom!
“Halt! Who is it?”
“You bastard?! Who are you? How dare you barge into Bat Valley!”
“You are seeking death!”
Rumble…!
Li Shenji caused trouble on purpose, immediately drawing his sword to start a massacre in Bat Valley.
Boom!
After finding a gap, Li Shenji suddenly swung his sword at a mountain in the foggy area, blasting it.
“Primogenitor, it’s bad! Someone barged in!”
“Prime! Save me!”
Lu Shenji plunged that foggy area into chaos amid loud explosions.
“How audacious!”
A furious roar suddenly came from the foggy area.
Whoosh!
An overwhelming number of bats suddenly appeared, together with a sullen Bat Ancestor.
Lu Shenji swung his sword again.
Boom!
After that, Li Shenji did not engage but immediately flew into the distance.
“Where are you going?” The Bat Ancestor glared as he gave chase.
Whoosh!
The two powerful experts vanished over the horizon.
Ye Shenzhen’s eyes narrowed slightly. Then, he stepped forward, his figure flashing as he rushed to the foggy area.
——
At the edge of these mountains:
Long Shenwu and Sima Changkong also looked coldly into the distance.
“Ha! Li Shenji already lured the Bat Ancestor away. Mister Sima, be careful. I’ll return in a while,” Prince Shenwu said.
After Prince Shenwu spoke, his figure flashed, vanishing from his location.
——
In the underground palace, before Li Shenji made his move:
Gongyang Sheng sat within that blood cage, sneering at the Bat Ancestor before him.
“You returned with nothing to show for your efforts? Hahahaha! What is the point of trying to pit yourself against me? If you are that capable, then go and deal with my Qian Nation envoys. Hahahaha!” Gongyang Sheng laughed coldly.
“Humph! Don’t get cocky. As long as you don’t solve that Eighty-One Palace Diagram, you can forget about leaving!” the Bat Ancestor said coldly.
“The Eighty-One Palace Diagram? Ha! If I solve it, will you let me go?” Gongyang Sheng asked coldly.
“Haha! Who knows? That will depend on Xi Yu. It’s your own fault for having studied the Nine Palace Diagram to such an extent!” the Bat Ancestor said coldly.
“The Eighty-One Palace Diagram? Is this a seal? Also, an entrance? What is sealed there?” Gongyang Sheng asked with misgivings.
“You don’t need to know. You only need to solve it,” the Bat Ancestor said coldly.
Gongyang Sheng smiled coldly. Then, he closed his eyes without answering.
“Humph! If you don’t solve it, your calligraphy soul will be completely burned away. Do you really not care about your calligraphy soul?” the Bat Ancestor said.
Gongyang Sheng’s eyelids twitched, but he still did not answer.
“Ha! Just think about it. Don’t wait until your calligraphy soul is gone before deciding. Let’s see how long you can last!” the Bat Ancestor snorted coldly.
After saying that, the Bat Ancestor plunged to the bottom of the blood pool.
The deeper the Bat Ancestor went, the hotter the blood pool became. However, the Bat Ancestor never found out why.
Subterranean heat?
The Bat Ancestor had reached the bottom of the blood pool and even dug down a little.
However, the earth was not hot at all. The heat seemed to come from nowhere, making the blood intensely hot.
The Bat Ancestor had been cultivating here for a long time already, but he still could not find the reason.
“Hah…where does all this heat come from? I have been here for quite a few years. Why can’t I find the reason? There must be some secret here. I did not even tell Xi Yu about this,” the Bat Ancestor continued studying the place while feeling depressed.
Rumble…!
Suddenly, shouts came from outside.
“Primogenitor! Save me!”
“Prime, someone barged in! Argh! Save me!”
“Huh?” The Bat Ancestor’s expression turned cold, and he came out of the blood pool.
Rumble…!
The outside turned noisy.
“Someone is here to save me?” Gongyang Sheng’s eyes suddenly lit up.
The Bat Ancestor looked coldly at Gongyang Sheng and scoffed, “Save you? Haha! Unless the Qian Holy Emperor comes, no one can quickly break the ritual array outside.”
“That might not be the case,” Gongyang Sheng said with a smile.
The Bat Ancestor narrowed his eyes slightly. “It looks like someone has really come to save you. Ha! As a precaution, you had better sleep for a while.”
As the Bat Ancestor spoke, he suddenly landed a palm strike on Gongyang Sheng’s head.
Buzz!
Gongyang Sheng’s head suddenly gave off a bright, red light. Then, his eyes closed as he fainted.
After seeing Gongyang Sheng faint, the Bat Ancestor immediately rushed out of the underground palace.
“How audacious!” the Bat Ancestor shouted as he clashed head-on with the masked man’s sword.
Boom!
After the masked man’s manifested sword shattered, the masked man turned and ran.
“Where are you going?” the Bat Ancestor sneered as he gave chase.
The surroundings turned chaotic.
After the Bat Ancestor left, the countless bat spirits stood guard fearfully.
Just at this moment, two strong gusts blew.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Two more masked figures suddenly appeared.
“There are two more?”
“Oh no! The prime was lured away!”
“Block them!”
The vampires and bat spirits immediately charged at the two in a rage.
The two masked men exchanged looks, reaching a tacit understanding. Wielding a sword, one of the masked men blocked the bat spirits and vampires. The other masked man suddenly threw a palm strike.
Boom!
The ground shook violently. Then, a large, crimson net appeared out of nowhere, flying towards the two masked men.
“Oh no! The Bat Ancestor left on purpose! We fell for their tricks!” one of the masked men exclaimed.
Buzz!
The crimson net contained strong, bloody energy, instantly sealing off the two masked men’s escape.
Boom!
The two masked men attacked the net. While the net trembled slightly, it did not sustain any damage.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Attacking the blood net tired the two masked men.
——
Far away, Sima Changkong’s face sank. “The Yuan Imperial Dynasty’s strongest ritual array, the Blood Catching Net Ritual Array?
——
Inside the underground palace:
Gurgle! Gurgle! Gurgle!
While the outside was chaotic, Gu Hai, Long Wanyu, and Purple Subtlety suddenly appeared on the surface of the blood pool.
“Gongyang Sheng?” Long Wanyu exclaimed when she saw the nearby, bound, white-clad man.
Gongyang Sheng was unconscious, and many crimson chains bound him.
“Gongyang Sheng? No way! The Qian Heavenly Emperor’s mission is too easy, right?” Gu Hai appeared confused.
This…this is too much of a coincidence, isn’t it?
Gu Hai and Long Wanyu approached slowly.
Not long ago, Ye Shenzhen had given Gu Hai a portrait of Gongyang Sheng. This man was Gongyang Sheng, without a doubt.
Gu Hai, Long Wanyu, and Purple Subtlety explored the underground palace and discovered some tools and supplies.
“Is this the Bat Ancestor’s abode, Bat Valley?” Long Wanyu said in surprise.
“Where is the Bat Ancestor?” Purple Subtlety felt confused.
“There’s no time to think. We should leave right away,” Gu Hai immediately said.
Gu Hai went over to Gongyang Sheng’s side and looked at the crimson chains.
Clang!
Gu Hai swung his Life Executioner Saber and broke all the chains in an instant.
“Let’s go, quickly. It will be bad if the Bat Ancestor returns,” Gu Hai said.
“Alright!” Everyone nodded.
Whoosh!
The group returned to the blood pool and quickly found the top half of Longevity at the bottom.
“Hey? Why did you come back carrying a person?” Longevity felt shocked when he saw Gongyang Sheng on Gu Hai’s shoulder.
“Let’s leave first. I’ll tell you later.” Gu Hai shook his head.
The three grabbed onto Longevity. Then, Longevity pulled all of them back.
Whoosh!
Everyone immediately returned to the place they were before.
Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack!
The blood pool above was connected to the Bat Ancestor’s underground palace. Without the fire calabash’s suppression, the red talisman scripts above the bottom blood pool cracked.
Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack!
The cracks increased. Indistinct galloping hoofbeats even sounded below.
“The thing below is about to come out?” Purple Subtlety looked at the continuously breaking talisman scripts curiously.
“Brother-in-Law, quickly leave. This is a greatly ominous sign. It’s too dangerous,” Long Wanyu urged with fear and horror on her face.
“Let’s go!”
The four carried Gongyang Sheng as they hurried up the tunnel they arrived from, heading back outside.
