Chapter 287: Chapter 286: Hundred Venomous Insects Formation
According to Ying Xiong’s explanation, the chiefs of the three gangs would escort supplies into the Ghost Fortress on the 15th of every month. Seizing this opportunity, Ghost Granny would also reapply her Gu techniques to keep them under control.
As agreed, Shi Xiaole returned to the inn. There were three days left before the fifteenth of this month, just enough time for him to prepare.
For the potential Exotic Fruit, he was determined to explore the Ghost Fortress this time. Of course, the primary reason was that Ghost Granny’s power level wasn’t outrageously high; otherwise, Shi Xiaole might not have taken the risk.
In the blink of an eye, three days passed.
That night, Shi Xiaole arrived at the Purple Beauty Gang, where he was immediately led into a secret chamber. Inside, he saw more than a dozen people, one of whom was the young man who had been called an idiot that night.
The young man seemed a little surprised, but his face didn’t change.
"Since everyone is present, let’s start our operation."
At Ying Xiong’s command, except for the three gang leaders, everyone else changed into the uniforms of the three gangs’ followers. They then escorted a large amount of supplies and stopped a mile away from the Half Moon Pond.
Everyone was given a three-foot red cloth and a handheld lantern.
These were rules established by Ghost Granny. The cloth was a soul-summoning cloth, and the lantern was a soul-attracting lantern. Only in this way would the little ghosts of the Ghost Fortress guide them in.
Shi Xiaole suddenly thought of Chou Wuji.
If he were here, perhaps they wouldn’t need to go through all these steps and could just break their way directly into the fortress by disrupting the Array System.
It was midnight, and isolated stars dotted the sky.
Somewhere in the distance, eerie wails resounded and black smoke gradually filled the air, from which two little ghosts floated out.
"Ying Xiong, why are there so many unfamiliar faces this time?"
The two little ghosts were cautious. They glanced at Shi Xiaole and the others and asked coldly.
"To answer the two lords, these are specimens brought in for Ghost Granny to practice her Gu techniques on. They are very robust."
Ying Xiong said with a forced smile.
One of the little ghosts curved up the corner of his mouth and suddenly made several points on the bodies of Shi Xiaole and others. Then he was relieved, "This is a unique technique from our Ghost Fortress. Haha, take the supplies and follow us. Don’t miss the time. Otherwise, Granny may take your lives."
The group remained silent, following along after the two.
One of the middle-aged men with a mustache breathed in a peculiar rhythm, and a layer of black energy appeared in his eyes. Once the black energy dissipated, he felt lighter.
"Humph, mere Locking Point Gu. How can it touch me."
The man with a mustache was the expert who had removed the Gu poison from the three gang leaders.
The Locking Point Gu technique was only a low-end method amongst the Miaojiang Venomous Insects Skill, and it was naturally no match for such a Gu technique expert.
Very discreetly, the Mustache removed the Gu techniques from the others.
In fact, to Shi Xiaole, there was no difference between being removed from control or not.
Given his current physique, ordinary Gu techniques could hardly harm him. Even if he were replaced with a common acupuncture method, its effects might be better. However, either method would be of no major significance.
With the completion of Brahma-I Unity, Shi Xiaole’s internal power had reached a mysterious level where it could seep into every pore. The acupuncture method would only cause a rebound of his internal power. If he carefully controlled it and the opponent’s internal power did not surpass his own, he could automatically relieve it at any time.
The black fog was rolling, and the group was swaying left and right.
One of the little ghosts pulled a certain bamboo piece from the ground. Suddenly, the aura of the Array System surged, and a bastion built from black stones appeared before the crowd.
The fortress was heavily patrolled. When they saw the two little ghosts, they validated a secret code and then allowed passage.
"Is this the Ghost Fortress?"
Shi Xiaole were not focusing on the little ghosts. His gaze was on the Half Moon Pond at the center of the fortress.
"Go in, granny is waiting for you inside."
They were urged by the two little ghosts to enter the main building. Soon after, under the lighting of the fire torch in the stone room, they met Ghost Granny.
Ghost Granny, dressed in black, was sitting on a futon looking surprisingly about forty with considerable beauty. However, her dark lips and slightly drooping eyebrows gave off an eerily bleak feeling.
"What are you standing around for? Don’t you know the rules? Take off all your clothes."
Without opening her eyes, Ghost Granny casually gave the order.
Since her Gu techniques had recently made a breakthrough, she intended to use this batch of new arrivals as test subjects to observe their bodily reactions.
Gazing at the dozens of people present, Ying Xiong plucked up his courage and yelled, "Ghost Granny, for all your evil deeds and your perverse behavior, you deserve thunderbolts from heaven!"
The temperature in the stone chamber plummeted suddenly.
Opening her eyes, Ghost Granny’s eyes revealed two venomous snakes ready to strike. She slowly said, "Repeat what you just said."
Due to her long-term oppression, Ying Xiong was momentarily taken aback. Despite his fear, he gritted his teeth and said, "Ghost Granny. Today is your day of doom."
What was he afraid of? There were altogether six Xuanqi realm seventh-tier experts, twelve sixth-tier Xuanqi experts, and Shi Xiaole, who was only at the third tier of the Xuanqi realm, but whose ability was actually at the seventh level.
Plus, there was Lin Shaoyi, who had only reached the sixth tier of the Xuanqi realm, but whose strength equaled the eighth tier. With so many people joining forces, why would they not be able to take down Ghost Granny?
As for the people outside, they were basically under the control of the mustached man’s Gu techniques. By this time, they were already struggling with their own survival.
Tonight’s operation was unexpectedly smooth. All they had to do was capture Ghost Granny, and everything would be a great success.
Thinking of this, Ying Xiong loudly called out, "Everyone, let’s work together to kill this witch and rid the Martial World of this menace!"
"Kill!"
More than a dozen people burst out their internal power simultaneously, causing the air to hum. They all attacked Ghost Granny.
But at this very moment, Shi Xiaole suddenly sensed something was amiss. He caught sight of the middle-aged man with the horseshoe mustache standing still on the spot, an insidious grin of extreme satisfaction on his face.
A mighty surge of internal power burst forth from the palms of the horseshoe-mustached man, not aimed at Ghost Granny, but at the voracious young man surnamed Lin.
Chills ran down Lin Shaoyi’s spine, but it was too late to dodge. He could not even turn his head, with only one thought in his mind: He had been set up.
Thwack!
At the brink of disaster, a punch veered off the path of the oncoming palm force from the side.
"Kid, you dare to meddle in my affairs!"
Looking towards Shi Xiaole, the horseshoe-mustached man was filled with regret; had he known better, he would not have helped this kid dispel the venomous poison.
"Great swordsman, what is your intention?"
Ying Xiong and the others were unable to comprehend.
"A bunch of fools, dreaming of resisting me. Don’t you know that your actions tonight were orchestrated by me from the shadows!"
Ghost Granny stood up from her cushion, her face full of mockery. Shi Xiaole noticed that her gaze was particularly fierce when it fell on Lin Shaoyi.
"You... you were in collusion?"
Ying Xiong glanced at Ghost Granny and then at the horseshoe-mustached man, his face gradually becoming pallid.
"Indeed, the so-called Ghost Granny is my Senior Sister," the horseshoe-mustached man affirmed with a smile.
"Why? Why would you do this?"
The one who spoke out this time was another gang leader, his voice trembling uncontrollably.
"Of course, it was all for Master Lin Shaoyi."
The man with the horseshoe mustache was like a hunter who had successfully trapped his prey. He took one look at Lin Shaoyi and laughed, "Rumors have it that Master Lin has a unique constitution that can resist certain venomous insect skills, thus Senior Sister and I were very curious."
"Given Master Lin’s superior martial arts skills, even if Senior Sister and I joined forces in the outside world, we may not have the confidence to capture him. Therefore, we had to devise a plan to lure him into the Ghost Castle."
The face of Ying Bituo, the young leader of the Purple Beauty Gang, changed dramatically as he said: "You knew that Brother Lin would never meddle in the affairs of others and would never step into the Ghost Castle, so you decided to use my relationship with him to set a trap. It’s because Brother Lin is so trustworthy that he would never ask others for help with a request I had made, let alone refuse it."
Ghost Granny and the horseshoe-mustached man both laughed.
Ying Bituo cried out in shame, "Brother Lin, I’m sorry."
Lin Shaoyi said, "When you paid for my meal that time, I promised I would do something for you. I don’t blame you."
"Hahaha, Master Lin is indeed Master Lin, still maintaining his elegance in the face of death. Rest assured, we will not let you die so easily."
Ghost Granny gestured with both hands, and suddenly countless insects emerged from the cracks in the ground, crawling rhythmically, making Ying Xiong and the others shudder, as if they were plummeting into an icy cave.
There are many types of array systems in the world. Long ago, ingenious thinkers from Miaojiang combined venomous insect skills with the array system, creating the venomous insect array technique that shocked the world.
The Hundred Venomous Insects Formation before them was one such technique.
Although it was the lowest rank of venomous insect array techniques, it became deadly when set up based on the special terrain of the Ghost Castle. Not to mention a martial artist in the Xuanqi Realm, even a master who had just stepped into the Spiritual-Passage Realm would be doomed.
At the same time, the martial experts of the Ghost Castle also stormed in, standing outside the Hundred Venomous Insects Formation on high alert.
"You fools, dying under the Hundred Venomous Insects Formation should also be comforting."
Ghost Granny suddenly felt a twinge of pain.
The Hundred Venomous Insects Formation was her life-saving measure. If it wasn’t for Lin Shaoyi’s terrifying strength and his ability to resist certain venomous insect techniques, she could have killed all these people in front of her with her own strength.
Fortunately, as long as she could capture Lin Shaoyi and uncover the secret behind his immunity to the venomous insect techniques, her own venomous insect skills would surely improve. The calculation seemed to be in her favor.
"Let’s fight these scoundrels to the death."
"You walk the path of injustice, and there will surely be someone to deal with you one day."
Knowing that they would not survive this day, Ying Xiong and the others braced themselves, charging towards the Hundred Venomous Insects Formation with resolute looks on their faces.
But the fastest among them was Lin Shaoyi.
"Hundred Steps Divine Fist!"
As he lunged forward, Lin Shaoyi fired a punch. The massive force emanating from it seemed like a tunnel formed of concentric circles; within it, insects were silently knocked flying and the ground split apart.
But upon closer inspection, those knocked flying insects were clearly unhurt and quickly merged back into the Hundred Venomous Insects Formation.
"The Hundred Venomous Insects Formation is connected to my mind and spirit. As long as I am alive, it will never break."
Ghost Granny burst out laughing.
After trying several more times, Lin Shaoyi’s face grew serious.
Though he could resist certain venomous insect techniques, if the techniques were too powerful, they would still harm his body. Based on his instincts, he could tell that the Hundred Venomous Insects Formation was deadly enough to take his life.
"Blazing Flame Kick!"
"Whirling Six Slashes!"
Ying Xiong and the others tried their utmost, but they still could not prevent the insects from approaching. Some even tried to use the Flying Skill to escape, only to draw a flock of attacking insects, forcing them to retreat.
"Too late, my time has come."
Everyone was consumed by despair.
