Not far from Linghu Lake, Liu Shi stood at the center of the formation, his expression difficult to discern.
This was a blood-locking formation set up by dozens of Sword Sect disciples. It could lock the demonic beast's vital energy veins and sever its spiritual energy supply if it entered. The giant lizard was already injured and its blood and energy were low. If they could successfully lure it out of the lake and then use the human wave strategy to lure it into the formation, then killing it would be a matter of time.
The problem now is that although the demon beasts in the Nascent Soul stage cannot speak human language, their cognition is already quite high. Even if they are seriously injured and their senses are blurred, as long as they sense the presence of people outside the lake, how can they leave the place where they are recuperating so easily?
Fighting it out was even more impossible. The Spirit Lake it instinctively found was perfectly compatible with its water properties, and with the natural barrier of the Water Ganoderma lucidum protecting it, as long as it refused to come out, no one could harm it at all, given the level of cultivation of the disciples in the battle.
There was a gust of cold wind in the distance, and the grass and trees swayed. Liu Shi's gaze flickered towards that direction.
It's nothing, just a bunch of weeds.
That’s right, unless one is very brave, who in this area would dare to come to the territory of the Sword Sect?
He dispelled the pair of eyes that inexplicably appeared in his mind. Liu Linshuang, who was in charge of the arrangements, came over with a serious expression: "Brother, the earth ganoderma root is ready. When do we take action?"
He looks young, with a pair of bright eyes and black and shiny pupils. Staring at people like this always makes people feel a little pressured.
Liu Shi turned his head to glance at the calm Linghu Lake and said, "Wait for my instructions."
Since everyone arrived here, the lake has been silent from beginning to end. If he had not confirmed that the information given by Liu Chang was correct, he would have doubted whether there was really a giant lizard at the bottom of the lake.
"Understood." Liu Linshuang agreed, raising his hand to glance at the scores of each realm. A small projection stone slowly projected four lines of words in the air. He ignored the Zero from the East Realm and only frowned as he said, "Brother, the Body Refining Sect has already received a thousand points."
Liu Shi's expression sternened for a moment, but he quickly relaxed again: "It's nothing, let them go."
“But if we let Fellow Daoist Ji defeat us, the public opinion in the Northern Realm might be…” Liu Linshuang’s face was filled with worry.
"Fellow Daoist Ji? Why are you being so affectionate?" Liu Shi glanced at him. "If Ji Rongxue had this ability, he wouldn't have been released by those old guys from the Body Refining Sect today."
Liu Linshuang wanted to speak, but he waved his hand and said impatiently, "Go down. I told you to wait for my instructions and don't act rashly."
Yun Xian and the other two lay there eavesdropping for a long time, and their waists were almost aching.
"Earth Ganoderma roots?" Qiao Lingshan, a well-read woman, immediately saw what Dao Zong was planning. She transmitted a message, "Water Ganoderma grows in the center of the lake, but it's naturally rootless. If we can find Earth Ganoderma roots and use them together, the healing effect will be doubled. They're trying to use Earth Ganoderma roots to lure the giant lizard out!"
Yun Xian's eyes turned, and he said, "Then let the Sword Sect's weakest disciple be responsible for guarding the Ganoderma lucidum roots..."
Although the monitor lizard knew there were cultivators near the lake, the effects of the Earth Ganoderma Root might have prompted it to take a risk, not to mention that this "risk" might not be that dangerous for it. This big-eyed, adorable disciple had only just reached the Golden Core stage, and even if he encountered a weakened Ice Shadow monitor lizard, he wouldn't be enough for it to swallow in one bite.
Feng Ye was puzzled: "The giant lizard can't be so stupid, it's obvious that this is a trick."
"When you're strong enough, deception or not doesn't matter anymore." Qiao Lingshan said, "Monster beasts have different temperaments. If it were another calm monster, it might not succeed, but the giant lizard..."
Yun Xian guessed that she had thought of it too.
Since ancient times, there's no such thing as perfect. A monster that's too smart is likely to be weak, while one that's too strong is more likely to be stupid. Look at this Ice Shadow Giant Lizard. Knowing the Four-Way War was about to begin, it couldn't help but engage in a brawl with the other monsters. Fighting would be fine, but it's even gotten itself seriously injured. It's quite clever, but it doesn't look very intelligent at first glance.
With the right time, right place and right people, it must be that Liu Shi is not just lucky, but most likely he was informed of the news in advance.
The cold wind blew over again, making the three people feel cool on their heads.
Night was about to fall. The dark night in the secret realm was the most dangerous time. Vision was obstructed, the beasts were agitated, the cultivators' power was weakened, and the monsters were more prosperous. So, if she were Liu Shi, she would probably choose to officially start the action at night.
As expected, this one was still setting up the formation, while the other disciples of the Sword Sect were stationed on the spot, and began to rest and regulate their breathing, strengthen patrols, and prepare for the night.
Yun Xian patted Qiao Lingshan and gestured to step back.
Retreat first.
“…”
The three of them retreated several feet and luckily found a collapsed pile of rocks, which formed a small space for them to sit cross-legged.
Finally able to rest for a while, Qiao Lingshan frowned and took out the projection stone. When she saw the scores of various circles on it, her face turned pale: "It's still zero!"
This was a record. Anyway, half a day had passed without any results, which was not very good.
Feng Ye scratched his head and said, "People outside must be laughing at us."
"That's right! Senior Brother must also be..." Qiao Lingshan was about to say that Senior Brother must also be disappointed, embarrassed, and ashamed, but she felt something was wrong halfway through the sentence, so she changed the subject and said, "He must be concerned too."
The other two were silent for a moment, not quite agreeing.
Although they had only met once, Yun Xian inexplicably felt that even if their score was zero until they left, Su Chi's pretty face would not show any change.
Seeing Yun Xian sitting there in a rather unruly posture, Qiao Lingshan went over and pulled her aside, saying, "Say something."
"Don't worry, don't worry." Yun Xian soothed him, "When you see a zero, you immediately think of your poor grades, you immediately think of being laughed at, and you immediately think of not being able to bring honor to the sect. This is just the beginning, don't let your imagination run wild."
Qiao Lingshan: “…”
So what if it’s not like that?! You’re the only one who doesn’t think that way!
She was a little nervous at first, but when she saw Yun Xian sitting there with his legs spread out, her nervousness suddenly dissipated a little.
There was a sound of wind in the distance. Yun Xian's eyes quickly passed over it, and after confirming that nothing was wrong, she lazily turned back. She went to the side and picked up a small wooden stick, poking and drawing in the sand, lowering her eyes, she said, "The current situation is basically like this."
"To take the lead, you need at least one advantage that ordinary people don't have. Think about it, besides my smart brain, what advantages do we have?"
Qiao Lingshan asked, "Run fast?"
Feng Ye: "Shameless."
"That's right." Yun Xian said with relief: "Both."
Qiao Lingshan: “…” Forget it, I’m too lazy to complain.
Yun Xian poked the sand with his stick, drawing two little figures leaping up with swords and a fainted Qin cultivator. He continued, "Even if we go to kill the monster, let alone finding any lone ones, the three of us can barely take on a ninth-level Jindan cultivator. Even if we succeed, we won't be able to protect the demon core. Besides, our cultivation level shouldn't be exposed. I don't know why Liu Shi is still wary of me. If those people from the Sword Sect knew my actual combat power, it would cause endless trouble."
"An ancient once said, 'To possess a sharp edge but not reveal it to the world is called concealing one's incompetence. To be without a sharp edge and yet deceive the world is called wisdom.'"
Feng Ye humbly asked for advice: "What if I can't deceive you?"
Yun Xian said calmly: "That's why he became an ancestor."
Feng Ye: “?”
As they spoke, the sky had grown dark as ink. A rough wind blew in from the distance, whipping across the sand and rocks. It vaguely resembled the shrill howling of ghosts, mingled with the roars of unearthly beasts. The weather was changing rapidly, and the temperature was growing increasingly cold. A thin layer of frost even formed on the grass and trees.
The hour of You has arrived, the free safe zone is briefly opened, and the dangerous night in the secret desert begins.
This was the news Yun Xian learned from the unlucky passerby. Late at night, one could occasionally come across a temporarily safe area in the secret realm, and the surrounding areas would be engraved with the marks left by disciples from past battles.
Yun Xian reached out and brushed the gravel, crushed the stick, and wiped out all traces of Fang. He stood up and concluded: "It's a risky move, and the points must be found from others."
Qiao Lingshan couldn't help but help her wipe the mud off her butt.
"So now..." Yun Xian was completely unaffected. He looked up and said, "We need to lure the giant lizard out from the bottom of the lake before the Sword Sect finishes setting up the formation."
The time has come. Liu Shi withdrew his last gaze and turned to walk towards the lake.
To prevent alerting the beast, no bonfires were lit at night. It was pitch dark, and despite the monk's powerful senses, he still felt a sense of inexplicable unease.
There is also a faint pressure coming from the bottom of the lake.
It seems that not only he can't sit still, but the monitor lizard at the bottom of the lake has also started to get restless.
Liu Linshuang came again. Liu Shi only felt a flash before his eyes. His white teeth were very beautiful in the darkness. "Brother, it's night time. The beasts are getting restless. When do we start to act?"
"..." Liu Shi really couldn't stand this big fool anymore. "The formation hasn't been set up yet, how can we act? I'll be here, you go back immediately."
This blood-locking formation can hold back a severely injured Yuanying stage monster across levels. The mystery of it can be seen from this. The Dao Sect is not the Xingyan Sect, and they are not proficient in formations. They were able to set up this formation just by memorizing it by rote. There was an accident before, and one person made a mistake, which resulted in the entire formation having to be overturned and started over again, which delayed some time.
Now only a little effort is left to successfully set up the formation.
Liu Linshuang got the news and returned to his place, holding the Ganoderma Lucidum root. Everything was going so smoothly, but for some reason, the uneasiness in Liu Shi's heart became even stronger.
At this moment, a short piano sound came from not far away!
The sound of the piano was so powerful that it even caused strange phenomena in heaven and earth. Dark clouds gathered and heavy rain poured down.
Liu Shi's pupils suddenly shrank.
The piano repairer is here!
Normally, qin cultivators never fight alone; their qin music only becomes more effective when they are in numbers. Who has come with such a large group? Is it from the Body Refining Sect? Or from the Southern Realm? That psychopath Xue Lingxiu has always had a grudge against him, and he's very likely to come and disrupt things...
The more he thought about it, the more he couldn't sit still. Liu Shi frowned and said, "Liu Hui, watch over here. I'll be back soon!"
Liu Hui, who had been drinking with him in the restaurant before, stepped out and said, "I understand."
“…”
In this eerie dark night, Liu Hui was patrolling aimlessly with his big knife in his arms, but he was not actually very alert in his heart.
After all, this is the closest place to Linghu Lake. Unless someone has extraordinary skills and can hide from the layers of guards, or has been here from the beginning, he feels that even a mosquito would find it difficult to fly in.
Besides, he wasn't worried about what would happen if someone really came in. Could there be a second Ganoderma lucidum root to be found in this secret realm?
There was no moon or stars in the secret realm. Like a ball of inky black, it enveloped the sky, weighing heavily. As Liu Huifang looked up, he heard something fall to the ground not far away, making a soft "crack."
He frowned slightly and looked away.
...Hmm? A familiar bull mask? Why is it here? Where are those two shameless women?
Before Liu Hui could react, a ghostly figure appeared behind him and blew softly into his neck, "Hello."
"Who?!" He felt a chill on his neck and got goosebumps all over his body. He quickly turned around and drew his knife, but he didn't expect that there was someone lying in ambush behind him. A knife came down on his neck, and Liu Hui instantly fell unconscious.
The quiet lakeside was suddenly filled with intense breathing sounds.
Yun Xian kindly placed Liu Hui's head on a roadside stone so that he could easily smell the fragrance of the passing monster's urine. He wondered, "Why are you so nervous?"
"Never, never..." Qiao Lingshan's heart was pounding like thunder, and she stammered, "I have never done such a heinous thing..."
So that's how it is. How kind! Yun Xian patted her arm soothingly: "It's okay, there will be more in the future."
Qiao Lingshan: “?”
The two thought that Feng Ye had probably run far enough, and wondered if Liu Shi had noticed him. There was no point in saying more, as delays would lead to unexpected events. Yun Xian and Qiao Lingshan sneaked to the lake and looked at the icy blue water.
There was a faint smell in the lake. Yun Xian looked down through the lake with great effort, but she only saw a huge stone with a strange shape. But later she found that it seemed to be one of the closed eyes of the giant lizard.
The bottom was all black and I thought it was something at the bottom of the lake. It must be its coiled body.
"..." Yun Xian sighed: "This is too big."
What nonsense! Qiao Lingshan glared at her and said, "I already said it's a giant lizard!"
She was still panicking, but now she forced herself to remain calm. They definitely didn't have any Ganoderma root. Storage rings would be inspected before entering the secret realm, and even herbs couldn't be brought in more than three. Who would bring such a thing without being informed in advance? Monitor lizards prefer water and raw food, especially humans. However, they didn't have a habit of offering human sacrifices, and didn't even have raw meat. In the end, they only found a few slices of roasted venison in Yun Xian's storage ring.
Senior Sister Xiaoyun was usually rather sloppy, her storage ring a mess, filled with things she'd put away and then forgotten about immediately, so the roasted venison inevitably looked a bit unattractive... well, very unattractive. Not only did the giant lizard not want to eat it, but Qiao Lingshan didn't want to eat it either.
Forget it, if it doesn’t work, just retreat. I won’t die if I try anyway.
With this thought in mind, Qiao Lingshan respectfully placed the roasted venison by the lake and piled it up.
There was silence all around, only the cold wind was blowing, and the lake was silent.
It seems that the monitor lizard doesn't like it very much.
Qiao Lingshan piled up the wild ginseng that Feng Ye had contributed. There were no wild Ganoderma roots, but there were a few wild ginsengs, but eating too much would easily cause a nosebleed.
The monitor lizard remained motionless.
Well, we'll just have to use our trump card... The two exchanged glances, and Qiao Lingshan gritted her teeth and reluctantly put the Huoxiang Zhengqi Pill given by the Sixth Elder on top. It was said that this pill had a wide range of uses, and could heal anything from possessed to seriously injured and dying. If you didn't know what medicine to use, just take one, it was extremely valuable.
But despite this, the lake remained so quiet, and no movement occurred from beginning to end.
After failing three times, Qiao Lingshan couldn't hide her disappointment.
She had known for a long time that a monster of the Ice Shadow Giant Lizard's caliber would never start a fight over such a small thing. She simply wouldn't bother to care. Others came prepared, but they still might not succeed. They had nothing, so if they could get what they wanted, it would be a miracle.
"Yun Xian, let's go." Qiao Lingshan said, "It's not long now. Liu Shi will be back soon."
Speak of the devil, there it is. Not far away, I could faintly hear the voices of Dao Sect disciples asking after their senior brother. The unfortunate Liu Hui behind me also began to wake up, muttering, "What the hell is that..."
Yun Xian didn't leave immediately, he seemed to be frowning and thinking about something.
The sound was getting closer and closer. Qiao Lingshan tugged at the corner of Yun Xian's clothes and said anxiously, "Hurry up, I'll follow you!"
"Wait a moment."
Yun Xian actually felt that it could still be rescued.
The Ice Shadow Giant Lizard was extremely violent and impulsive, easily angered, and extremely powerful. Avoid direct confrontation with it. However, its disadvantage was its limited mobility. Its speed was only average among monsters, making it nearly impossible to catch a Jindan cultivator running at full speed...
Liu Shi ran away in vain, knowing that there was a trick, and quickly ran back. When he saw the familiar face, his eyebrows raised in anger, and he gritted his teeth and said, "Yun Xian, it's you again--"
"Slurp, slurp." Yun Xian took out a half-eaten apple from his storage ring and threw it into the lake. "Hey, come and eat."
His tone was extremely casual and his movements were extremely skillful. He probably called the greedy Wangcai next door like this many times. The half apple fell into the lake with a "plop" and floated on the water.
“…”
There was silence for a moment.
The next moment.
Suddenly, the earth shook!
The silent Ice Shadow Lizard slowly rose from the lake. Its body was almost the same size as the entire lake, like a massive mountain pressing down on the sky. Its body was ice-blue, but its exposed eyelids and pupils were a cruel blood-red, and its long, black tongue was curling up angrily.
Its mind was blurry and it was face-blind. It couldn't tell who the two-legged animals on the shore were. It simply didn't try to tell them apart. It slammed the ground heavily with its rough and huge tail. In an instant, everyone was shocked back five steps, and the earth trembled!
There was a deep wound on the monitor lizard's abdomen that was so deep that the bone could be seen, and it was still bleeding. It was obviously weak, but such pressure made people's minds go blank, and the only thing they could think of was "run".
Liu Shidao was still holding the sword in his hand, but Yun Xian and Qiao Lingshan had already rushed two feet away.
It vividly illustrates what it means to run faster than a dog.
"Retreat, retreat!" The giant lizard had already emerged before the formation was complete. If they insisted on resisting, at least five disciples would be killed, a loss that wouldn't be worth the effort. They had to run, and they had no choice but to run—but it wasn't hopelessly foolish; it could be fooled a second time. The plan had completely failed, a golden opportunity missed. Liu Shixin's heart was bleeding, and he could only shout, "Retreat quickly! Run! Liu Linshuang, are you okay? Give it the Ganoderma Lucidum root! You're still planning on fighting it for it?!"
In the midst of chaos, Liu Shi picked up Liu Hui and ran out, gritting his teeth.
Yun Xian, just wait for me!
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