Chapter 151: Trapping a Turtle in a Jar

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Once Qin Haoxuan pointed it out, Ye Yiming also had a sudden realization. “I really thought he was just tired, so I didn’t pay it any mind. But earlier, when the sect announced the repair of the great array, I clearly sensed that he was very agitated… very excited.”

“Mm,” Qin Haoxuan nodded and stated his own theory. “Xing will definitely try to escape tonight. Although he likes to eat cultivators, with me here, he wouldn’t dare to act rashly. Besides, the elders of the Taichu Sect are no pushovers.”

Ye Yiming couldn’t help but smile. “For him, being here is like a starving ghost falling into a feast, but with his mouth sealed shut. He can only look, but not eat. Of course he isn’t willing to stay.”

Qin Haoxuan thought for a moment. “We can’t let him run. Although they say they’re repairing the great array tonight, it’s actually a trap set by the sect. Anyone who dares to wander outside will surely be captured and investigated. If Xing is caught, the investigation will eventually lead back to me, and that creature is not one to be loyal. But him staying in the Taichu Sect is also a problem. You can’t wrap fire in paper; if he stays, his identity will be exposed sooner or later.”

“Then what should we do?” Ye Yiming had originally thought that it would be a good thing if Xing could escape, but after hearing Qin Haoxuan’s analysis, he also felt that it was an impossible task.

“Our only choice is to stop him. If he dares to escape tonight, we will capture him and bring him back,” Qin Haoxuan said, gritting his teeth with determination. “As long as he can endure for a few more days, I have a way to deal with him.”

“Oh?” Ye Yiming asked with curiosity. “How?”

“Don’t we have the opportunity to enter the Aqueous Manor once a month? As long as we can last until next month, we can take him into the manor, find a spatial rift, and shove him back through. After the rift closes, we can leave. Even if we can’t find a rift, leaving him in the manor is still safer than having him in the sect. With him here, we both have to be on edge, and it’s not safe for him either. I’m sure he hates being in the territory of human cultivators.”

Ye Yiming nodded in agreement. “It’s the same as if we were in the Netherworld. Although he’s being hunted by many of his own kind, at least the Netherworld is his own world.”

Another half an hour passed, and the sky gradually darkened. Qin Haoxuan took out his Thousand-Mile Mirror and began to monitor Xing’s every move. Xing was currently meditating in a strange posture, as if he too were waiting for night to fall, waiting for the sect’s higher-ups to begin their “repair.”

As time passed and Qin Haoxuan was growing bored, a heaven-piercing aura suddenly appeared out of thin air, causing his body to stiffen. It was followed by a series of warning sounds, like bells and drums, each beat striking directly at the heart, making one tremble with fear.

This was the sect’s warning that the repair was about to begin, telling all disciples to return to their rooms and not to come out. However, the disciples, who had already been notified and were deeply respectful of the great array’s power, had long since locked their doors. No one was bold enough to defy it.

Ye Yiming said to Qin Haoxuan, “If you can’t bear the pressure, sit and meditate. It’s about to begin.”

Seeing Ye Yiming’s tense expression, Qin Haoxuan felt a hint of anticipation. He wondered just how spectacular the repair of the great array would be. He monitored Xing while occasionally switching the view to Emperor Peak.

The eye of the great mountain array was the Taichu Grand Hall on Emperor Peak. At this moment, the nine reclusive elders of the Elder’s Council were gathered there, sitting in a circle. In the center of the circle sat the Sect Master, Huanglong, with a solemn expression. The vast hall was filled with talisman flags, paper talismans, and rare spirit stones.

Sect Master Huanglong held a small metal rod and tapped it against a miniature bell-drum before him. This was the source of the sound that echoed throughout the Great Islet Mountain range.

“Array, rise!” At Huanglong’s sudden shout, a torrential spiritual energy erupted from the nine elders. The air in the Grand Hall became as thick as a physical substance, and the spirit stones on the floor released a terrifying power, quickly forming a spiritual cloud in the sky above.

As Huanglong’s ten fingers flew, the great mountain array, which was usually invisible, began to emit strands of golden light, forming a net that enveloped a thousand-li radius around Emperor Peak.

At this moment, the array’s energy was chaotic. Attacks that would normally only appear in the face of an enemy began to manifest randomly in the sky. Through the Thousand-Mile Mirror, one could see flashes of talismanic fire and bolts of heaven-cleaving lightning. Most numerous, however, were the golden sword gleams that materialized in the air, multiplying at a visible rate and slashing wildly, creating sharp, hissing sounds.

Qin Haoxuan watched as a small mountain peak was leveled in three breaths, the sword qi even coalescing into a golden dragon. Some of the sword gleams shot down from the sky, piercing deep, narrow holes in the ground.

If I were hit by one of those, I would certainly die, Qin Haoxuan thought with alarm. At the same time, he prayed that the fool Xing wouldn’t choose this moment to run out the door. He even suspected that a Dao Fruit Realm ancestor might be injured if caught in that chaos.

Just as he was mesmerized by the sight, Ye Yiming suddenly reminded him, “Check on Xing.”

Qin Haoxuan was jolted back to reality. That guy wouldn’t really try to run out while the array is being repaired, would he? He had thought the “repair” was just a pretense, but he never expected the sect to put on such a real show for this fake play. If he had to chase after him now, he would be risking his life.

He quickly turned the mirror to Xing’s room and saw him in the middle of practicing his transformation technique. His hair stood on end. The fool really is preparing to escape!

Xing’s body shimmered, and he transformed into a palm-sized mouse. He quickly dug a hole in the wall and slipped out. Once outside, he turned into a civet cat and began to run at an incredible speed, quickly leaving the Spirit Field Valley.

Qin Haoxuan and Ye Yiming looked at each other, both stunned. Having seen the terror of the array, they were petrified.

“What are you standing there for? After him!” The older and wiser Ye Yiming quickly recovered from his shock. He knew that if Xing was caught, they would both be implicated.

Wrenched from his shock, Qin Haoxuan said no more, put the mirror away, and gave chase.

Strangely, Xing was heading towards a section of the array where the seal was strong, not weak. With the help of the Thousand-Mile Mirror, they managed to evade the patrolling elders and, after running for over a hundred li, finally caught up to him.

When they arrived, they found someone else was already there, someone very unexpected.

It was a disciple from their year named Hua Feng. He was a weak seed, but he had a good Dao Heart and was known for being a diligent, bookish type with a talent for arrays.

But the person Qin Haoxuan saw now was no longer that mild-mannered scholar. His face was deathly pale, his mouth was full of sharp fangs, his ears were pointed, and his eyes glowed like bloody flames. He stared at them and the now-reverted Xing with a savage, bloodthirsty gaze.

It was obvious. The real Blood Demon behind it all was Hua Feng.

“Nether-Creature, you are quite capable,” Hua Feng said in a cold voice. “It took me three days to calculate that this spot, which appears strong, is actually the weakest point. I didn’t expect you to find it as well.”

Xing’s large eye twitched. He had only figured it out that afternoon and had come here as a last resort, fearing the other weak points were guarded.

“I came here only to find I lacked the power to break the seal alone,” Hua Feng continued, his blood-red eyes falling on Qin Haoxuan and Ye Yiming. His scarlet tongue licked his lips. “But I didn’t expect you to follow him. You’ve come at a perfect time. I can set up a Blood Explosion Array. By draining your blood, I can blast open the seal and escape.”

He then looked at Xing with a cold smile and asked, “Demon, will you help me?”