Chapter 115: Looking for Oil

However, if he were to find a place to hide, they might end up slipping away in the middle of the fight, leaving Lian Li behind.

Finding them again would be a massive headache.

Furthermore, even if Lian Li stayed hidden, what if one of the many Spirit Cult members discovered him?

Therefore, the best solution was for Lian Li to change into the clothes of a Spirit Cult disciple, slightly obscure his face, and blend in among them.

The two of them moved simultaneously; Lian Li stripped his own clothes while Yun Huizhou stripped the clothes off a male Spirit Cult disciple.

Yun Huizhou struck a pressure point on that disciple to ensure a long, deep sleep before tossing him into a remote corner.

By then, Lian Li had finished changing. He took out a small dagger, cut a small strip of black cloth from the hem of Yun Huizhou’s robe, and tied it around his left arm.

“Use this to recognize me later. You should be familiar with the fabric of your own clothes,” he said to Yun Huizhou.

Yun Huizhou glanced at his hem, which was now missing a corner, then at the black cloth tied to Lian Li’s arm. His lip twitched as he replied, “I’ll recognize it.”

Lian Li nodded, stuffed his own clothes into a random corner, and smeared a generous amount of dirt on his face. Keeping his head down, he pretended to be a Spirit Cult disciple and ran toward the Holy Pool.

Indeed, to make the disguise convincing, he didn’t dare use his Lightness Skill. His Lightness Skill was different from that of the Spirit Cult disciples; by wearing the same clothes and blending into the crowd, no one would notice him.

If he wore the same clothes but used a completely different Lightness Skill, wouldn’t he be glaringly obvious to everyone as an infiltrator?

Fortunately, there were many Spirit Cult disciples running in the same direction, so he didn’t fall behind by following them.

Seeing that Lian Li had managed himself well, Yun Huizhou boldly used his Lightness Skill to fly toward the Holy Pool.

As expected, his appearance attracted the attention of some Spirit Cult disciples.

One group of disciples gave chase, while another group continued running on the ground.

Lian Li looked up briefly before burying his head and running with the crowd.

Over there, just as Qu Tingquan was about to mobilize all her Internal Energy to use a suicidal technique, a familiar sword light appeared from the distance.

Instantly, she shifted her moves, coordinating with that sword light with perfect unspoken understanding to force the positioning of the purple-robed woman and the yellow-robed man.

That sword light came so suddenly that the two Spirit Cult members had no better way to evade; they were forced to take a hit from one of the two swords.

Thus, both chose to take a hit from Qu Tingquan. After all, Qu Tingquan was at the end of her rope; taking a hit from her was better than taking one from Zhao Honglan.

After Qu Tingquan’s Sword Qi left wounds on one person’s waist and the other’s right arm, she immediately flew back, retreating toward Zhao Honglan’s direction.

Others tried to fly up to intercept her, but she swept them all aside, possessing an aura that suggested she would kill anyone who dared stand in her way.

Zhao Honglan also flew over in time to provide support. The two finally met, and upon receiving her own sword from Zhao Honglan, Qu Tingquan decisively discarded the table leg she had been using.

Unfortunately, there was no time to exchange heartfelt words; they were still surrounded by the Spirit Cult. Once Zhao Honglan gave Qu Tingquan her sword and she held her own weapon, she became even more fierce than before.

However, the purple-robed woman and the yellow-robed man were only two of the Spirit Cult’s experts. Other experts were rapidly rushing toward them, and how they would escape remained a problem.

Halfway there, Yun Huizhou was blocked by a black-robed man, and the two immediately began to clash.

Yun Huizhou was not like Qu Tingquan; he was not immune to the Gu insects used by the Spirit Cult.

Once the black-robed man realized he was no match for Yun Huizhou in a direct confrontation, he began to use indirect attacks, staying at a distance to control swarms of flying insects.

Yun Huizhou didn’t dare let these insects touch his skin, so his progress was halted, leaving him in a stalemate with the black-robed man.

While these three were battling fiercely, only Lian Li was still running toward the Holy Pool.

By the time he reached the edge of the Holy Pool, panting for breath, he found that Zhao Honglan and Qu Tingquan had already regrouped, but they were facing four opponents.

Each opponent was surrounded by swarms of flying insects, and a rustling sound rose from the ground. Lian Li glanced at the floor—damn, his trypophobia was about to act up.

However, these swarms stayed at a distance and didn’t dare approach; occasionally, they only dared to get close to Zhao Honglan.

Seeing this, Lian Li knew that it was likely the Holy Gu inside Qu Tingquan’s body taking effect.

He continued to look around but still didn’t see Yun Huizhou.

Given Yun Huizhou’s speed, he should have reached the Holy Pool by now. He must have been intercepted along the way.

Since Qu Tingquan wasn’t by Yun Huizhou’s side, he had to defend against those insects in addition to fighting his opponent.

People were easy to guard against, but insects were not.

Most people present were focused on the fight between the leads and the four Spirit Cult Hall Masters. Because the cult now had two more experts of the same level than their opponents, many disciples who originally couldn’t participate in a fight of this caliber began to harass them from the edges.

Qu Tingquan was only wrapped in a curtain. Although Zhao Honglan had taken off his outer robe to cover her as soon as he arrived, her movements were still somewhat restricted.

If this continued, even if they managed to break through, they would likely pay a heavy price.

He had to cause some chaos for them.

An idea gradually formed in Lian Li’s mind, and he slowly backed out of the crowd.

He walked toward the other side of the Holy Pool. When he was coming over earlier, he had paid special attention to the surrounding terrain. To the southeast of the Holy Pool, he had seen a strange building—one without any windows.

There were many rustling and hissing sounds coming from inside.

He had originally wanted to see what was inside, as such a peculiar place was bound to be important.

Unfortunately, just as he was about to investigate, some Spirit Cult disciples had called out to him from behind, urging him to hurry to the Holy Pool.

Seeing several disciples turn to look at him, he couldn’t afford to act out of character lest his cover be blown; he wouldn’t be able to withstand being mobbed.

But now, seeing the swarms of insects, snakes, and rats that appeared after those Hall Masters arrived, he finally knew what was inside that building.

It was likely a nest for insects, snakes, and rats.

The martial arts of the Spirit Cult members weren’t particularly formidable, but their ability to drive insects, snakes, and rats was very powerful.

If not for the suppression from the Holy Gu inside Qu Tingquan, Zhao Honglan and Qu Tingquan would likely be in a much more pathetic state right now.

At the thought that Yun Huizhou didn’t have Qu Tingquan with him and might be submerged by swarms of insects and snakes at this very moment, Lian Li could no longer remain calm.

A wicked idea sprouted from his daring heart.

They had intended to brainwash Qu Tingquan in the bathhouse by the Holy Pool, so people guarded the area twenty-four hours a day. The Spirit Cult’s territory was vast.

Therefore, they had built a temporary kitchen nearby to cook for the guards and to brew the medicinal decoctions that were poured into Qu Tingquan’s bath.

Lian Li had seen it when he arrived. No one was there now, and there just happened to be two barrels of oil…

He sprinted toward the kitchen. To be honest, he had never felt himself run so fast in his life.