Chapter Fifty-Nine: Blinded by the Goose

In this way, although he would inevitably offend both factions to some extent, as long as he changed his identity and kept far away from the Tai Xu Mansion, there would be no problems! After all, Zi Tuo Peak was still alive but had yet to reach Tai Xu Prefecture—the game was far from over, and neither side would have the leisure to deal with such a minor figure as himself. All he had done was steal the betrothal gifts and, in passing, trick a few minor lackeys of the Tai Xu Lord—hardly a crime against innocents.

Yet, for some reason, a sense of foreboding gnawed at his heart.

"Stop!"

Having walked more than thirty miles from Huangyun City, they came upon a small stream when Zi Tuo Peak suddenly gestured for a halt.

Everyone stopped, their expressions growing grave.

There was a faint aura of murder in the air near the stream.

Fairy Zi Ling moved to the front, drawing a long sword that shimmered with a cold light, exuding a sword intent that made Tu Lu’s scalp crawl.

He, along with Jin Donghe, Fang Jinrui, and Guo and Yang, formed a protective circle around Zi Tuo Peak at the center.

Outside them, a second ring was formed by more than a dozen Sea-Filling Stage cultivators.

Just then, ripples broke the surface of the stream.

“Not good!” Tu Lu’s heart tightened.

In that very instant—

“Kill!”

More than a dozen cultivators burst forth from the water, each radiating the aura of late Sea-Filling Stage or higher—one of them even a half-step Purple Mansion cultivator!

From this half-step Purple Mansion expert’s hand, a sword light slashed forth from dozens of meters away!

The sword light cleaved the earth, cutting straight through the stream and into their protective circle.

“Break!”

A clear, melodious voice rang out.

Fairy Zi Ling flicked her sword, sending out a matching surge of sword energy. The two sword energies collided, shattering the ground in all directions and carving dozens of fissures through the stream.

This first clash ended in a draw!

The half-step Purple Mansion expert’s face darkened, stepping forward and bringing his sword down from above.

Fairy Zi Ling’s expression grew grave as she raised her sword to meet the attack.

At the same time, apart from the half-step Purple Mansion elder, all the other cultivators surged from the water.

“Kill!”

A coordinated assault from more than a dozen late Sea-Filling experts.

“Block them! Hurry, block them!” Zi Tuo Peak shrieked again.

But at that very instant, the dozen or so cultivators who had been standing guard in the second circle all turned on him, launching an attack against Zi Tuo Peak!

The cries of battle thundered to the sky.

The sudden betrayal stunned not only Zi Tuo Peak but also sent a jolt of fear through Tu Lu’s heart.

Guo and Yang, who had appeared so confident just moments ago, now paled at the sight.

Not only had the number of assassins instantly doubled to more than thirty, but their own forces had been cut down to only the handful of Tu Lu and his companions.

“Ah! Protect me! Kill them! Quickly, kill them! Protect me!” Zi Tuo Peak finally came to his senses, screaming in panic, his hair standing on end.

Tu Lu recovered only then.

He hadn’t expected Fang Jinrui’s faction to have such reach, nor that, in less than half a day after Zi Tuo Peak’s sudden decision, their preparations could be so thorough.

In such a situation, if the real Zi Tuo Peak were standing here, even without intervention, he would scarcely stand a chance of survival!

“Wait!”

Suddenly, Tu Lu sensed something was off, but before he could make sense of it, Fang Jinrui bellowed.

“Attack!”

Jin Donghe’s face changed. He immediately blocked the space between Fang Jinrui and Zi Tuo Peak.

“Die!” Fang Jinrui swept his hand, sending a massive palm print hurtling toward Zi Tuo Peak!

Jin Donghe’s eyes reddened as he roared, pouring all his power into a single punch to meet Fang Jinrui’s attack.

A deafening explosion!

Fang Jinrui staggered back several steps, but Jin Donghe’s body twisted—and burst apart, dissolving into a talisman.

“An ultimate Nascent Soul Talisman!” Fang Jinrui’s face darkened.

“Attack!” Guo Taicheng formed a seal with both hands, pressing down toward Fang Jinrui.

Yang Ke let out a furious roar, his body radiating endless golden light, transforming the space within several hundred meters into a field of gold.

“What is this?”

“No! My body!”

All the assailants’ faces changed; within the golden domain, their bodies began to sink as if swallowed by a swamp.

“I can’t hold this for long! Move quickly—take down Fang Jinrui, then retreat!” Yang Ke spat out a mouthful of blood.

Tu Lu’s expression shifted rapidly!

He still felt something was wrong, but there was no time to think!

Glancing around at the situation, he gritted his teeth and spun around.

“Lord City Master, allow me to safeguard your storage ring. Then I’ll withdraw—it’s fine if we don’t seize Fang Jinrui!”

Tu Lu reached for Zi Tuo Peak’s right hand. But at that moment, Zi Tuo Peak’s lips curled into a smile.

“So—that’s what you were after, my betrothal gift.”

“What!” Tu Lu’s heart sank, cold sweat breaking out across his back.

He immediately released the storage ring, leaping backward.

“Not good!”

“What is this!”

Everyone’s faces changed dramatically—even Guo Taicheng, Yang Ke, and Fairy Zi Ling were shocked as the storage ring suddenly emitted a terrifying aura!

It was like a bomb about to explode.

Boom!!!

In an instant, the earth rippled like water, the ground shattering, and everything within hundreds of miles pulverized to dust.

No one even had time to scream as a mushroom cloud soared into the sky, painting the heavens red, like an upturned volcano.

Not until half an hour had passed did the ground’s trembling cease and the smoke begin to disperse, revealing a landscape ground utterly flat.

No one could have survived such an explosion. Even a Purple Mansion cultivator would be gravely wounded by this blast!

After an unknown span of time, beneath a shattered boulder, a broken body began to stir.

A surge of boundless vitality spread from within.

Even so, it took the time of an incense stick burning before the figure slowly sat up.

It was Tu Lu!

At the last critical moment, his true body, which had been hidden at the rear of the group, had merged with his main form, unleashing a cultivation nearly at the Purple Mansion level and activating the Heavenly Dragon Talisman’s defense.

Yet even so, the explosion shattered the defense instantly, the aftermath obliterating all seven of his bodies, including the primary one. If he hadn’t managed to protect his heart and relied on the endless vitality of the hundred-year-old mother-ganoderma avatar, he might have survived, but it would have taken years to recover his strength.

Too careless!

“As I thought, I’m not cut out for scheming.”

Gazing at the devastated landscape, recalling Zi Tuo Peak’s final mocking smile, he could only sigh.

The hunter stalks the goose, only to have his own eye pecked out.

“Zi Tuo Peak left Huangyun City long ago,” came a clear, mellifluous voice from behind.

Tu Lu turned to see Fairy Zi Ling, leaning on her sword, limping over.

“I just received word. Near Huangqi Mountain, a scout saw a group that might be Zi Tuo Peak’s. Huangqi Mountain is eight hundred miles from here. That means before I even reached Huangyun City, he was likely already gone. We were all just pawns—cast aside... *cough, cough*...”

At this, her foot gave out and she fell to the ground, fainting away.