Chapter 287: Chapter 262: The Furnace Shows its Might_1
The assassin was already highly cautious of Yinuo. As soon as he made his move, he immediately withdrew, throwing a flying dart that collided with Yinuo’s flying knife.
Next, his left hand turned an inky green, indicative of a certain Poison Palm, which he used to counter Yinuo’s attack.
Splutter!
At the impact of the palms, the assassin’s face drastically changed as his palm was pierced by Yinuo’s blow. The momentum carried on, driving into the assassin’s chest and penetrating his heart.
With eyes wide with rage and disbelief, the assassin growled, "Asura Hand, you’re a remnant of the Asura Sect... Die together."
He swung his longsword, aiming for Yinuo’s neck.
But Lu Yan arrived in time, delivering a slash that sent the assassin’s head flying.
Yet, at the moment Lu Yan decapitated the assassin, the latter’s body exploded with a bang, dissolving into a rain of blood mist.
Oddly enough, this blood mist seemed alive, rushing towards the pair. Although they dodged hastily, they were too close to avoid it completely.
Moreover, this blood mist could even penetrate the protective Inner Strength to some extent. A small portion managed to land on their skin and seep into their bodies through their pores.
Lu Yan’s heart sank, but he urgently circulated his Qi-blood to inspect his body, finding no anomalies.
Yinuo checked herself in the same way but found nothing unusual either.
"Let’s go. We should leave Xuanhuo City immediately."
Lu Yan’s face was serious.
Due to this delay, the commander of King Ming’s army had been knocked to the ground, his fate unknown.
Their adversaries had individuals in the Primordial Spirit Realm. If they didn’t leave now, they might not be able to escape.
The two of them burst through the city wall, displaying their movement techniques to their fullest extent as they headed towards the distant forest.
Caw, caw [...]
Before they got more than a dozen miles away, a cry sounded from above. Startled, they hid behind a large rock and looked up.
In the sky above, over a hundred alien beasts flew overhead, each with a figure perched atop it.
Rumble!
Soon after, the ground rumbled.
At a distance, a considerable army hurried towards them, heading for Xuanhuo City.
"The Shengxuan Sect’s army... The Shengxuan Sect is indeed preparing to go to war against Mansion of King Ming."
Lu Yan’s face turned serious.
It was clear what the Shengxuan Sect’s intentions were. They had first infiltrated Xuanhuo City with assassins to kill the experts of Mansion of King Ming. Then, they launched a surprise attack with a large army, aiming to easily capture Xuanhuo City.
"Yinuo, we must head to Shanyang City and report this. We have to urge the Mansion of King Ming to send troops immediately."
Lu Yan spoke in a low voice.
Shanyang City was a large city directly controlled by Mansion of King Ming, sitting atop a third-rate Blood Land Vein.
Shen Yinuo nodded in agreement.
In the dead of night, the figures of the two people vanished among the trees.
Among the Shengxuan Sect’s army, a middle-aged man with a gloomy face suddenly sniffed the air and murmured, "The smell of Bloodkill, there are fish that escaped the net, they are nearby."
The gloomy middle-aged man immediately reported to a prominent figure within the Shengxuan Sect, whispering, "Sir, I smell Bloodkill. Our man failed. There are individuals who slipped through our net; they are in the nearby woods."
"Only those in the True Body Realm can create Bloodkill just before dying. If a True Body Realm assassin could make mistakes, these individuals who slipped through the net must be incredibly powerful. Yinyue, go fetch their heads."
The Shengxuan Sect’s figure ordered.
"Yes."
The gloomy middle-aged man moved away swiftly.
...
Lu Yan and Yinuo moved like the wind in the night, swiftly darting forward.
A short while later, they had distanced themselves by hundreds of miles from Xuanhuo City.
Soon after their departure, a figure emerged – it was Yinyue.
"Such fast speed. But you’ve entered the Bloodkill. You can’t escape my palm."
The gloody middle-aged man, Yinyue, spoke coldly. He sniffed the air a few times then, in a flash, he chased in the direction Lu Yan and Shen Yinuo had taken. His speed even surpassed theirs.
After running for a while longer, they were now thousands of miles away from Xuanhuo City.
Exhausted after this long ordeal, both of them stopped. Each took out a Martial Pill to restore their strength and Inner Strength.
Suddenly, Lu Yan’s heart skipped a beat, and he cast a suspicious glance around.
"Something’s not right... Yinuo, be careful."
Lu Yan warned.
"Something is indeed wrong."
Yinuo also noticed the anomaly.
The forest at night was usually teeming with sound, incessant chirping of insects.
But just now, the sound from all the insects abruptly vanished.
Someone has arrived.
Moreover, a formidable force that silenced the reptiles and insects, who didn’t dare make a sound in its presence.
However, they couldn’t sense any murderous intent or danger.
This person was undeniably stronger and more sinister than that True Body Realm assassin that came before.
Lu Yan and Yinuo, with their backs to each other, focused on their surroundings, alert and ready.
At the same time, they held their weapons in their hands.
Whoosh whoosh...
The mountain breeze blew in, and along with it came a dense green mist.
Poisonous gas.
The adversary had employed the mountain breeze to disperse the poison.
The poison rolled and surged towards them.
The two of them had no choice but to retreat.
However, by retreating, they inevitably exposed a weak point.
Whoosh!
A shadow darted out from the side, a person merged with a sword, and with an astonishing speed, lunged at Lu Yan.
The sword Qi whistled, immensely sharp.
Lu Yan had been prepared, his body bloated with scales, holding his war knife with both hands, he unleashed a full-force strike.
Clang!
The knife and sword collided, Lu Yan’s war knife trembling violently, as the fearsome sword Qi coursed along it, and struck his arm.
Fizz fizz fizz...
His arm sparked, with the red scales slashed open to reveal countless lines oozing with fresh blood.
Lu Yan’s body recoiled backward, frantically channeling his Inner Strength to barely fend off the True Vigor infiltrating his body.
With one move to repel Lu Yan, his adversary swiftly swept the longsword onwards, slicing towards Yinuo’s throat.
Yinuo, bathed in a red Inner Strength, her abdomen flickered as if a sun burned within it. She deflected the sharp sword with her Iron Pot. With a clang, Yinuo drifted back.
Her complexion slightly pale.
"Impressive, a Fifth-level Master and a Sixth-level Master were able to block my direct attack. You’re far better than those well-known geniuses from the Mansion of King Ming, Shang Wuyang, and Mo Wenzhuo."
The sullen middle-aged man praised.
As he spoke, a tremor ran through his body, numerous poison needles launched from his body at Lu Yan and Shen Yinuo.
Simultaneously, his figure flickered, focusing his attack on Lu Yan.
Choosing the weaker one to kill first.
Lu Yan was obviously weaker than Shen Yinuo.
"Be careful, this man is at least a True Body Second Refinement."
Yinuo warned.
Lu Yan’s focus heightened, he pressed the Void Steps to its extreme. His body felt weightless as he moved horizontally by several hundred meters, dodging each poison needle. Just as he prepared to draw out his bow to counterattack, his opponent’s speed remained unyielding. With a swift tap of his foot, his body twisted, and he rapidly closed in on Lu Yan.
The close distance rendered the bow useless.
Lu Yan continued to dodge, but his opponent clung to him like a terminal illness, with the distance between them growing shorter.
"Let’s risk it."
Lu Yan suddenly halted, brandishing his knife to strike back.
"Before me, you cannot escape."
The gloomy mid-aged man sneered and lunged forward with his sword.
Clang!
Lu Yan was once again pushed back.
The opponent was at least a True Body Second Refinement, the gap was too wide, he could not match him in direct combat.
Just as the man was about to take advantage of the situation and strike down Lu Yan, three throwing knives were rapidly shot at him from behind.
The flying knives whistled with an intensity that the gloomy middle-aged man dared not underestimate. He spun and pierced three times, knocking the flying knives away.
Yunino lunged in, rapidly brandishing her hands, throwing nine continuous flying knives.
Then with a sharp cry, her palms spun as if grinding a millstone, pushing forward.
Her abdomen emitted a dazzling glow, a red furnace appeared and grew in size rapidly, suppressing the gloomy middle-aged man.
The bright light illuminated the night sky as the scorching high temperature set the surrounding vegetation aflame.
The middle-aged man’s face darkened as he swung his wrist, causing the sword to tremble and collide with the nine throwing knives. The man and the furnace became locked in a stalemate.
The brief moment when the stalemate did not send the furnace flying, the middle-aged man revealed his flaw.
Naturally, Lu Yan would not miss such an opportunity.
He had already returned his war knife, replacing it with the Starfall Bow.
Hum hum hum...
The bowstring vibrated intensely, instantaneously shooting seven arrows. The seven arrows traced odd arcs, shooting from various directions towards the gloomy middle-aged man. Target: his forehead, back of the head, throat, and heart – all vital areas.
Confronted with Lu Yan’s arrow attack, the middle-aged man couldn’t ignore it. He was forced to unleash his True Vigor, pushing back the furnace slightly, and then quickly wielding his sword, splitting seven rays of Sword Light.
Clang clang clang....
Consecutive clashing sounds echoed, with sparks flying. The seven arrows were all deflected.
However, Yinuo’s furnace took advantage by suppressing him, causing him to roar angrily. His longsword, as though bearing a massive burden, was forced to bend and become distorted.
"Lu Yan..."
Yinuo shouted softly.
Understanding her intention, Lu Yan strained to draw the bowstring, pouring his body’s Inner Strength into the arrow.
He was saving his strength.
Not only him, Yinuo was also saving her strength. While controlling the furnace, her right hand started to turn crimson, significantly intensifying.
However, the speed was slower than usual due to being divided.
The gloomy mid-aged man felt the danger, roaring as he continuously struck the furnace with his left hand. The thick palm power hit the furnace, making it vibrate continuously.
Swoosh!
At this point, Lu Yan shot the arrow.
The void gave off nine ringing echoes.
The gloomy middle-aged man roared, vigorously slapping in the arrow’s direction.
The mighty palm power surged like a tsunami, trying to block the arrow.
But this was the Nine Ring Arrow, Lu Yan’s current strongest attack. It wouldn’t be easily broken— especially by a dividing hand.
The arrow soared through the winds and waves, tearing through the man’s palm power. With a puchi sound, it pierced the middle-aged man’s hand and continued towards his heart.
At the critical moment, the middle-aged man twisted his body, narrowly avoiding his heart. However, the arrow eventually hit his shoulder.
Seizing the opportunity, Yinuo jumped forward, her blood-red palm striking as sharp as a blade edge, hitting the middle-aged man.
Thud!
The middle-aged man took one hard strike, causing his chest to cave in.
Unfortunately, the time to save her strength was not enough for Yinuo. As she had to divide her attention to control the furnace, her power did not reach its peak, and the middle-aged man resisted.
"Asura Hand..."
The middle-aged man roared like a wild beast, his entire body’s True Vigor instantly surged out like a volcanic eruption. The skin on his body revealed droplets of blood, enormously enhancing his strength.
Rumble Rumble!
Two consecutive strikes on the furnace pushed it away. The middle-aged man seized the opportunity to escape, rushing away like a phantom.
