Chapter 103: Targets
"I have a bad feeling about this." Jiang Yue said as he looked at the pink cloud.
Unbidden, an image of old man Cang appeared in his mind.
He remembered the old man was poisoned and was constantly coughing up black blood before his death.
Since old man Cang’s enemy was a member of the Death Flower Ascension Front, Jiang Yue felt that poison was a common attack method among them.
Although he didn’t have any concrete basis, he felt it was a bad idea to stand under the pink cloud.
"Let’s go."
Yu Nianzhen also had the same feeling.
His face was solemn, and he didn’t wait for the others before he grabbed Jiang Yue’s arm.
Fortunately, the valley was in chaos, and no one was paying particular attention.
Otherwise, someone would have noticed a group of four running toward the valley’s exit.
However, they didn’t run far before they saw another group of hooded cultivators.
This group had fewer members, but there were still six.
"Should we fight our way out?" Wang Xue’er asked.
A sword had already appeared in her right hand, and her eyes were narrowed in focus.
"I don’t think we should fight openly." Jiang Yue answered.
They could hold their own against the six, but they weren’t the only Death Flower Ascension Front members in the valley.
If they caused a commotion, they would be found, and all would be lost.
"Looks like we can’t leave through the main exit."
One of the reasons the valley was chosen for trade was because it was closed.
It was bordered by craggy terrain on three sides which meant the valley only had one good entrance.
While this was good for defence, the craggy terrain was now a hindrance.
It gave no way for the four to leave the valley without attracting unwanted attention.
"The cloud is still expanding." Bai Ruyue stated.
Her voice was filled with barely concealed panic, but she was not the only one panicking.
"Let’s teleport out of this place."
"We can’t." Wang Xue’er sighed and looked more solemn.
"What do you mean?"
"We need to be out of the valley before we can teleport."
Initially, the anti-teleportation formation was set up to ensure secure business.
With such a measure in place, people could be assured to trade in peace.
Otherwise, they would need to worry that someone would grab their goods and teleport away without paying.
However, the formation that was meant for peace of mind now served to trap them.
Unless someone deactivated the formation, the only way to leave the valley was by walking out.
"Looks like we are trapped." Yu Nianzhen intoned.
He tried to inject a strand of qi into a teleportation talisman, but it was all in vain.
As soon as the qi entered the talisman, it glowed as if wanting to activate, but a moment later, the glow sputtered out, and the talisman dissipated.
This meant that the anti-teleportation formation was still in place, and no one could teleport out of the valley.
"The most pressing issue is the cloud."
He looked at the cloud and frowned.
While they were talking, the cloud continued to expand and grow heavier.
It looked ready to burst, and Yu Nianzhen suspected the resulting rain would be poisonous.
Although he wasn’t worried about death by poison since he had the tree of life, he didn’t want to be poisoned.
He had seen old man Cang’s last days, and the experience was unpleasant.
Most importantly, poison was not the only threat.
In the current situation, they were severely outnumbered.
If they had to fight, they would end up in a miserable state, and their lives wouldn’t be guaranteed.
"We need to blend in and find a way out of the valley." Jiang Yue suddenly said.
His eyes were filled with cruelty and murderous intent that was rarely seen.
"That’s the only way." Yu Nianzhen agreed.
"What do you mean?"
"The only choice we have is to take the place of a few Death Flower Ascension Front members:
"It’s not easy."
Wang Xue’er understood the plan but also knew it would not be easy.
It would be easy if the members walked alone, but they didn’t.
They were always in groups, and getting them alone was too difficult of a task.
"I can distract them for three breaths. Can you kill a few within that time?"
When he asked this, Jiang Yue looked at Wang Xue’er and Bai Ruyue.
He had no need to look at Yu Nianzhen because he knew the other would not disappoint him.
However, he had yet to see the two women fight.
He had an opportunity when they were fighting the fruit tree, but he was too occupied with his own fight to pay attention.
Because of that, he didn’t know what the two female cultivators were capable of, and he loathed to take the risk without clear information.
Unfortunately, there was no way to observe first.
The only choice was to take a leap of faith and hope the two would not fail.
"I can handle one if I do my best." Bai Ruyue said.
"I also can handle one." Wang Xue’er blushed a little when she said that.
She felt she could handle two, but she wasn’t sure.
In the origin forging realm, her cultivation technique didn’t give her many advantages.
This would change as she continued to cultivate, but the problem was now, and she wasn’t confident enough.
"I will handle the rest." Yu Nianzhen said.
Handling four people within three breaths was pushing it, but there was no other choice.
Since this was their only chance at survival, he would do whatever it took.
"Alright."
After saying that, Jiang Yue didn’t waste any time.
He released his pipa and looked at Yu Nianzhen.
"I need to get a little closer to them."
At the moment, the distance between them and the six hooded cultivators was thirty metres.
The six were crowded at the exit, and several bodies lay at their feet.
This showed that some people had tried to leave, only to be stopped by the six.
"We can use invisibility talismans to get close." Bai Ruyue suggested, and no one argued.
Invisibility talismans were vital for sneaking around, but they were useless when fighting.
No matter what, it was impossible to remain hidden while attacking.
However, they didn’t need to fight while hidden.
All they needed was to make sure they were close enough.
In this way, whatever attacks they launched would be fatal.
"It is possible that members of the Death Flower Ascension Front have an antidote for whatever poison is in that cloud."
Jiang Yue mentioned and looked at the pink cloud.
It was still expanding and was now ten metres away from them.
Although he hoped they could escape before it reached them, there was always a possibility that they wouldn’t.
If that happened, it would be good if they had an antidote.
At least then, they wouldn’t need to waste the leaves of the tree of life.
"Try to attack as silently as possible." Yu Nianzhen warned.
He was still worried about attracting attention.
Ideally, he wanted to escape without being noticed.
"We understand." Wang Xue’er said, and the others nodded.
"Let’s go if everyone is ready."
Soon after, the four activated low-grade silver rank invisibility talismans.
Although they were invisible, they weren’t careless.
They hid among the shadows and approached the six figures guarding the exit.
However, they did not attack right away.
Instead, they hid and listened to the six talk amongst themselves.
"Why did the leader decide to move all of a sudden." One of the hooded spoke.
His voice was muffled by the face mask, but his annoyance couldn’t be hidden.
The attack must have come as a surprise to some of the members.
However, more than this, the hidden four focused on another detail.
’Leader?’ Yu Nianzhen wondered.
Did this mean that the leader of the Death Flower Ascension Front was in the trade valley?
If that was the case, things were more serious than they thought.
"I heard that twelve targets are currently in the valley." Another of the hooded confided.
"Twelve..., that is almost the total number we have gotten so far. If we can get all twelve..."
"I heard at least three out of the twelve are special..."
"No wonder the leader decided to make a move."
"The rewards for taking down special targets can’t be compared to normal targets."
"It would be good if they came to the exit."
"Do you think you can take them down with your little strength?"
"I heard that special targets are as powerful as the leader..."
After that, the group of six fell silent.
They knew their leader’s strength and the horror of their attacks.
If they were to face someone as strong as their leader, they wouldn’t have enough lives to spare or enough legs to run.
’I hope they don’t come here.’ The six silently hoped.
