Chapter 2365: Chapter 2365 A Rotten Gut
As Ye Liuyun descended into the secret realm, he unleashed his divine sense. He beheld a panorama of towering, craggy peaks within the dominion of the Zestrone Cliff, each one more treacherous than the previous.
"Zestrone Cliff is right in the middle of this secret realm," Mu Yuantang declared with gusto. "Form into groups and proceed. The resources you uncover will depend on your ability and luck. We’ll maintain a one-day distance behind you."
With that, he sent them on their way. Some chose to form groups while some opted to venture off alone.
Without hesitation, Ye Liuyun and the Songstress broke away from the main party without consulting the others.
"Tsk. They think they are exceptional just because they ranked first?" someone muttered.
"Let’s hurry up then. If we can snag a substantial resource this time, we might just surpass her."
"Who can guarantee if they can even come back at all? Have you seen her bodyguard? Not even at the Omnipotent Level yet."
Their sarcasm was spoken loudly and shamelessly, as if Ye Liuyun and Songstress weren’t around.
"Should we just wipe them all?" The Songstress clenched her fists, rage simmering in her.
"Just let it go," Ye Liuyun persuaded her calmly. "They’re just being competitive. Ignore them unless they threaten us. Our real concern is Mu Yuantang. I reckon he will make his move soon."
Ye Liuyun was unbothered by the insults thrown at them and merely reminded Songstress to stay focused on their main target person.
Among many, two rivals exchanged a knowing glance before stealthily slipping away to trail after Ye Liuyun and Songstress.
Mu Yuantang noticed their movements yet did not say anything about it.
He wasn’t in a hurry. He waited until all of them had fully dispersed before pursuing Ye Liuyun to avoid being suspicious.
Quietly, he murmured to himself, "Let them fight it out first. I’ll strike when the time is right."
This time, Mu Yuantang brought with him two hundred elite troops, all of whom were close confidants of Mu Yuantang and formidable experts of the Omnipotent Level.
Fearing that Ye Liuyun might have some hidden skills up his sleeve, he had to be cautious.
However, about a hundred of his men had been tasked to ensure the completion of the mission. Hence, he had only a hundred experts for his disposal.
Not long after Ye Liuyun and Songstress set off, they noticed six people trailing behind them.
"See? Even if we ignore them, and they still come to bother us!" the songstress remarked with a smirk.
"Mhmm," Ye Liuyun nodded. He had no intention of sparing fools who sought their own death.
Yet his Divine sense had detected a massive serpent slithering underground in the distance. The serpent was hiding itself, likely having sensed their presence and lying in ambush.
Swiftly evading their pursuit, Ye Liuyun grabbed Songstress and hid her in his Spatial World. After that, he dissolved into his environment by draping the Concealcape.
The martial practitioners tailing them noticed the sudden burst of speed and picked up their pace to catch up.
"D*mn! They ran so fast and disappeared in a blink!" One of the pursuers muttered in confusion.
"They must be up ahead. We should hurry up, or we’ll lose them!" another urged.
Unfortunately, the hidden Anaconda sprang from its hiding place just as they were about to speed up, snapping a guard with its jaws before slipping back into the hiding spot. Moments later, it whipped out its tail, sending another guard flying, leaving him severely wounded.
The two contestants panicked and fled the scene. The remaining guards scrambled after them without delay. Totally disregarding their wounded comrade.
The Anaconda pounced once more, swallowing the injured guy whole, after realising no one was there to protect him.
Ye Liuyun could only shake his head in shock. These guards severely lacked observational skills, and their leaders were downright heartless.
The Anaconda sensed something amiss when Ye Liuyun shifted position. It flicked its forked tongue around, trying to probe his position.
"An Anaconda that can burrow underground with ease. This could be useful!"
With that thought, Ye Liuyun launched a Divine soul attack, branding the Anaconda a slaving seal before stowing it away in his Spatial realm. Then he took off after the four pursuers fled.
But as he closed in, he overheard them shamelessly pinning all the blame on Songstress.
"That wench cost us two of our guards!"
"D*mn right. Once we got her, we’ll make her pay!"
The two guards continued to move forward while spitting curses.
Ye Liuyun almost scoffed out loud. These men had no shame whatsoever.
He instantly communicated with the Songstress, releasing her in a secure spot before removing his Concealcape, revealing himself.
"So this is where you’ve been hiding!"
"Hmph! Don’t get ahead of yourself just because you defeated us in the arena! In the wild, you are no match for us!"
The two young men acted arrogantly, oblivious to their previous state of terror.
"Oh? We’ll see about that."
Songstress’s expression turned icy, shedding her previous air of innocence.
With a swift motion, Ye Liuyun cleaved one guard apart with a single slash. He then attacked another guard with his Divine Sense and subdued him. When he was done with him, he imprinted another guard with the slaving seal. In matter of seconds, he had gained another two followers for his team.
He refrained from further action and observed Songstress’s performance while guard up for any possible threat.
Songstress moved between the two opponents with ghostly elegance and ethereal ease. She nearly led the two opponents to collide on multiple occasions. To avoid accidentally hurting each other, the two had to restrain their movements.
But the Songstress held nothing back. Each of her blows drew the two opponents into retreat, frequently into perilous circumstances.
As one of them, in a last-ditch effort to fend her off, charged in full force. In response, she released a Soul-Soul-Crushing Tactic to temporarily freeze one of them, giving her enough time to dodge the attack.
The reckless strike landed squarely on another guard’s chest, sending him into the air and leaving him wounded.
Songstress wasted no time charging forward, her blade glinting as it slashed the man’s throat, causing a gusher of blood to fly.
The other assailant remained motionless, his face betraying his growing fear.
Noticing the two guards idly watching from the sidelines, he barked, "Do something!"
"Are you scared?"
When she was done, Songstress twirled her dagger playfully as she advanced toward him.
"You..." The attacker suddenly realised that the guards had all been under Ye Liuyun’s control this whole time.
His eyes darted between Ye Liuyun and the approaching Songstress before he dropped to his knees, begging, "Spare me, please! It was his idea! I was... just misled! Have mercy on me! I’ll serve you. I’ll do anything!" He wasted no time shifting the blame onto the dead comrade.
Ye Liuyun lightly shook his head in contempt. "All that strength in vain without courage."
Songstress remained expressionless. With a swift motion, she struck out with her palm.
The young man leapt back in panic, but she outpaced him. Her dagger plunged into his ribs before she viciously wrenched it sideways.
"Ah!"
He bent over and clutched to his side to minimise the wound, only for her to reverse her grip and slice across his neck.
He sank slowly to the ground, his gasp muffled by his grip on his throat. After she had done everything she could, she struck him one last time, cleanly severing his head.
"Did you think I was afraid of you?" she scoffed as she flicked the blood droplets from her blade.
