A Demon's Path Chapter 98

Zhao Tian inspected the Three-headed Fierce Vulture's injuries. He quickly realised he didn't possess the antidote to dispel the poison. Only because this vulture had a robust physique did it manage to survive this long to the poison. But it was evident its end was near. "I've never seen such a malicious poison before." He furrowed his brow. "Where did such a divine person come from?"

A disciple emboldened himself and stepped forth to report, "Master, it's probably, I think it's Ling Xiao from the Sunken Wind Valley."

Zhao Tian had a cold gaze in his eyes. "Why?"

"Those two were riding a broom. It is said Ling Xiao, the kid enjoying the limelight as of late, possesses a broom just like that one." The disciple seemed to be on top of the current affairs.

Without giving it a second thought, Zhao Tian issued another command, "Throw every nearby town upside down. Apprehend all Chain Soul Masters below the age of 20 and bring them to me!" From his incomparably overbearing tone, anyone could discern his rude and overbearing nature.

…

Ling Xiao and Li Yuanchong, the instigators of this search, were lying down in a small tavern in the village nearest to Myriad Bamboo Peak. They couldn't take a single step.

"Dammit! That damned bird! Even after using two Celestial Soul Masters to cushion my fall, I'm still reduced to such a miserable state. I really hope I poisoned that bastard to death!" Ling Xiao hatefully cursed.

"Relax. Even Hua Que fell to your poison, Elder Ling. Now you're suddenly afraid you can't even kill some livestock?" Li Yuanchong looked up at the sky as he spoke with slight mockery.

Li Wuhen set their bones. After applying some ointment, he secured them with bamboo. It would take up to 4 days for them to recover to a state where they could move about again. This was exceptionally quick. If a normal person had these kinds of injuries, they shouldn't even think of moving within a month.

Ling Xiao and Li Yuanchong were fortunate, though. The Three-headed Fierce Vulture forgot to act as it usually would in a moment of desperation. It didn't throw them straight down to the ground, but rather it flung them in an arc. That was the only reason they weren't reduced to minced meat; they had the time to prepare for impact.

"We'll recuperate here for the next four days. Then we have to hurry back to the Sunken Wind Valley as fast as we can," Ling Xiao grudgingly said. I fucking hate this! He had the hardest time staying sane, knowing he couldn't move at all for the next few days. "Brother Wuhen, the arrow you shot out just now was really bold. Hehe, how did you generate so much strength?" Ling Xiao was bored lying down, so he started chatting with Li Wuhen. He would talk with Li Yuanchong, if he wasn't as dull as a rod. At least Li Wuhen was better, if only by a little.

Li Wuhen laughed foolishly. "You forgot. What's our Heavenly River City most proficient in?"

Ling Xiao burst out laughing. "How wonderful! You actually attached a spatial array on the arrow to save time and energy! Haha! When will you teach me how to do that?"

Li Wuhen nodded in agreement. "When you reach the green rank, I'll teach you."

Green rank? Ling Xiao shook his head. Almost a year had passed since he started cultivating, yet he was still stuck at the red rank.

Suddenly, a disturbance occurred outside the tavern. It appeared a group of people had charged into the village and were searching for something, or someone. Li Wuhen's expression changed in an instant. "Young Master, Brother Ling, what are we going to do?"

Ling Xiao calmly looked up at the non-existent ceiling, various scenarios flashing through his mind. "Let's make a bet," he said in a serious tone. "The bet shall be: is someone in the search party outside stronger than Brother Wuhen."

Li Wuhen was stunned. "What do you mean?"

Ling Xiao took out hundreds of yellow gems from his chain depository. "Take these gems. I believe with them increasing the strength of your arrays, it can deceive most people. Brother Wuhen, don't tell me you don't know how to set up concealing arrays."

Li Wuhen understood what Ling Xiao was trying to say. He promptly took the gems and enshrouded the small tavern in a concealing array at the quickest speed possible.

When the disciples from Myriad Bamboo Peak approached the tavern, they were oblivious to its existence. They could only see the tavern adjacent to it. "Let's go!" The disciple who seemed to be in charge waved his hand and was about to leave when someone shouted, "Hold it!"

"Eldest Young Master!" The disciples respectfully cupped their fists at the middle-aged man who shouted at them. He was Zhao Kai, Zhao Tian's eldest son. "Done already? Did you guys finish searching so easily?" he coldly snorted.

The disciple in charge seemed to lack confidence. He stuttered, "We've already searched all the houses… We didn't find-"

"Idiot!" Zhao Kai burst out. "Kick everyone out of their house, and then we'll go in to conduct a proper search. That's the only way to do a thorough search!"

The disciple in charge quickly said, "Eldest Young Master is right in chiding us. We will do as you ordered and search one more time."

The middle-aged man took out a fan and started fanning himself. He seemed to be especially proud of himself for this great speech. With his nostrils pointed up at the sky, he said, "If this Young Master didn't personally set out, how can you bunch of idiots ever find them?"

"What an idiot!" Li Wuhen hatefully cursed.

Ling Xiao chuckled. "Take a guess. Do you think this Eldest Young Master can catch us?"

Li Wuhen couldn't stop himself from laughing. "How could he possibly? He won't ever find us while we're hidden here. I did as Brother Ling instructed and jackknifed everyone in this small tavern."

Ling Xiao felt disturbed. "Everything was alright at first. But now an Eldest Young Master emerged out of nowhere. Tell me, do I have back luck?"

Li Yuanchong closed his eyes and let out a dull snort. "Don't make wild guesses. Honestly speaking, you really are unlucky. Someone amongst them knows how to use arrays."

Ling Xiao's heart sank with a thunk. Why didn't Li Wuhen realise it, but Li Yuanchong did? Something's wrong!

As the villagers looked around town, it was clear to them something was missing. They felt a strange disharmonious feeling. Suddenly, one of them shouted, "Why is Blessings Tavern gone?"

The disciples of Myriad Bamboo Peak crowded over and surrounded the empty space. Zhao Kai too rushed over and acted as though he was a patron of a brothel who'd seen a prostitute or like a prostitute who'd seen money. "Examine every nook and cranny!" he fiercely howled.

The disciples of Myriad Bamboo Peak looked left and right. They even almost lifted the lid off a chamber pot nearby. However, they couldn't find anything. "Is it possible someone set up an array here?" Zhao Kai frowned as he loudly wondered.

"It seems like this guy isn't a simple idiot." Ling Xiao smiled and continued, "Now, he'll definitely bring an expert in arrays over."

Li Yuanchong snorted. "That expert will soon arrive and when they do, they won't find anything."

Since it was not convenient for Ling Xiao to turn his head around, he cast a sidelong glance at Li Yuanchong. "How do you know this?"

Li Yuanchong coldly smiled. "Don't think you're the only one who can predict the future. I can too."

"Hurry! Fetch me someone who's good with arrays!" Zhao Kai shouted.

The disciples of Myriad Bamboo Peak were just about to go look for someone when a voice rang out not far off, "Big Brother Zhao, why are you in such a rush to look for me."

Zhao Kai's eyes shone. He was indescribably excited. "Brother Yuanzhi, fancy meeting you here! But why are you here?"

A man in his twenties bearing a heroic spirit faintly smiled as he said, "I heard someone stole a blade of our Soul Returning Grass. So, I came over to see if I could assist in any way."

"There is! Of course there is! Can you help me check if there's an array here?" Zhao Kai impatiently asked. Even though he was Zhao Tian's eldest son, he was also the most useless child. As the person who received much treatment of indifference in his family, he was impatient to establish success and prove himself. How could he let such a good opportunity slip by?

The man called Yuanzhi walked to the front of the tavern with a small, calm smile still hanging on his lips. "Indeed, someone set up an array here. I'll split it open!"

Li Wuhen's expression wildly changed. "This person's Heavenly soulforce is so powerful!" He tightly gritted his metal teeth. He was prepared to stake his life in battle to protect his Young Master and Brother Ling who had saved his life.

Ling Xiao chuckled. "Brother Wuhen, since Yuanchong isn't nervous, what are you nervous for?"

Li Wuhen had a fierce look on his face. "No! No matter what, this is the first time I'm the Young Master's bodyguard. Even if I die, I have to protect the Young Master!"

Huuuummm! Ling Xiao, Li Yuanchong, and Li Wuhen felt the world shaking around them. It felt as though the tavern was on the verge of collapsing. Before Li Wuhen could make any drastic responses, they heard cries of surprise from the people standing outside the tavern. "Aahhhh!" For what they saw was not the tavern they knew so well, but the ruins of what once was their tavern!

Chapter end