Chapter 118

“They’ve arrived.” Yun Huizhou placed Lian Li behind him, his voice devoid of emotion.

Qu Tingquan’s face instantly turned deathly pale. “We can’t get away…” she said, her voice weak.

Zhao Honglan also came to a halt, supporting Qu Tingquan as they stood atop the crown of another tree.

Beneath the tree, spiders as large as two palms and scorpions the size of fists were crawling up the trunk. They quickly reached the branch where they were perched. Yun Huizhou struck out at the swarm with a palm strike, then grabbed Lian Li and leaped to another tree.

However, the swarm of insects quickly caught up again.

Seeing the situation, Lian Li knew things were about to take a turn for the worse. He clutched Yun Huizhou’s clothes tightly, at a complete loss for what to do.

According to the original plot of the book, the male and female leads and this primary supporting male character were supposed to survive until the grand finale. Now, with the continuous flapping of his little butterfly wings, he had fanned the male lead and the supporting male character to the Southern Border ahead of schedule. Moreover, it looked as though he was about to fan the male and female leads, along with the primary supporting male character, to their deaths right here. Perhaps the female lead wouldn’t die, and the male lead wouldn’t die either, but if they were captured and taken back to the Spirit Cult, they would likely face a fate worse than death.

As for Yun Huizhou, this supporting male character, there was no telling if his supporting male lead halo could keep him from dying.

And as for himself, he felt he was surely a goner.

Lian Li couldn’t even cry now. What happened to the promised male and female lead halos? The protagonist group’s halo? Why hadn’t a single one of them lit up!

When others transmigrate into books, they have to exert immense effort to kill off the male and female leads or the major supporting characters; even when those leads actively court death, they somehow always manage to survive. When others transmigrate, killing the “Children of Destiny” requires long-term schemes to slowly erode their providence bit by bit. Why was it that, in his case, he was about to get them all killed in one fell swoop?

The insects and snakes continued to close in, forcing Yun Huizhou to leap incessantly from tree to tree. Zhao Honglan’s situation was much the same. It wasn’t until the insects and snakes had driven them all onto the same tree that the swarm finally came to a halt. Qu Tingquan let go of Zhao Honglan, pulling her arm back.

She spoke to the empty surroundings, “Let them go, and I will return with you to raise the Holy Gu.”

A strange wind blew from all directions, and after a long while, the voice of a middle-aged man drifted over.

“You, and that one, stay.”

The moment the words were spoken, a surge of energy shot straight toward Lian Li. Lian Li sensed it, but he was completely unable to dodge.

Yun Huizhou instantly drew his blade to block the strike for him, but the force of the impact sent him reeling back. Already perched on a tree branch, his foot met empty air as he retreated, and he went tumbling down toward the ground.

The ground beneath the tree was swarming with snakes and insects; falling in was an unthinkable prospect.

Lian Li reached out to grab him, but he couldn’t catch him at all.

Fortunately, before hitting the ground, Yun Huizhou finally managed to dissipate the impact of that energy blast. He struck a backhanded palm toward the ground, using the recoil to leap back onto the tree.

However, his expression at this moment wasn’t looking particularly good either.

Just then, a somewhat familiar figure appeared on a tree fifty meters ahead of them.

Lian Li looked over and discovered that it was actually Sui Xin Monk.

The monk wore a smile of feigned compassion. Pressing his palms together, he said softly, “Four benefactors, the shore is behind you if you but turn back.”

“Turn back to the shore”—those words sounded exceptionally ridiculous in this context.

Turning back meant Qu Tingquan and Lian Li returning to the Spirit Cult the way they came, in exchange for Yun Huizhou and Zhao Honglan’s safe departure.

Zhao Honglan stared at Sui Xin Monk with eyes full of killing intent. Yun Huizhou, possessing far less patience, barked, “Stinking baldy, scram!”

Sui Xin Monk paid no heed to Yun Huizhou’s demand. Instead, his smile grew even more compassionate.

“How could I stand by and watch you all wreak such havoc upon the Spirit Cult while the Cult Leader and Elders are in seclusion? Since the disciples are reluctant to disturb the seniors’ meditation, I, this monk, must play the part of the shameless one for once.”

After saying this, Sui Xin Monk looked at the four of them, his eyes filled with the vindictive pleasure of revenge.

Qu Tingquan flung off Zhao Honglan’s hand and continued speaking to the void, “The only one you want to capture is me. Don’t involve innocent bystanders. Let them go, and I will cooperate with everything required to raise the Holy Gu.”

The middle-aged male voice sneered, “You are in no position to negotiate. Since you dared to burn our Gu House, then be prepared to face the consequences. Since you’re unwilling to come with us, then we’ll simply kill you.”

With those words, a massive black palm materialized in mid-air, instantly bypassing Yun Huizhou’s defensive stance and lunging toward Lian Li.

Given Lian Li’s speed, dodging was out of the question—not to mention that the middle-aged man’s martial prowess was far superior to his. The man had manipulated the surrounding aura to lock onto Lian Li, making him feel as though he had plunged into a mire, rendering every movement difficult.

The giant black hand struck from behind. Lian Li couldn’t even manage to turn his head; he could only feel the violent gusts of wind surrounding the massive palm scraping against his back, causing a sharp, stinging pain.

If this palm strike landed solidly, he would likely die without feeling a shred of pain or uttering so much as a groan. Just as he was waiting for death, someone’s arm wound around his waist once more. He watched as Yun Huizhou, who had been standing in front of him, turned to grab him; then, in a dizzying blur, their positions were swapped.

Yun Huizhou turned his back to him once more, raising his hand to meet the giant black hand.

This time, he wasn’t knocked back. He remained where he stood, but he spat out a mouthful of blood, swaying several times before finally steadying himself.

Seeing that this palm strike had been blocked and had failed to kill Lian Li, the middle-aged male voice snorted coldly again. “Your martial arts are decent, but it’s a pity you’re bent on seeking death… I’d like to see just how many of my strikes you can withstand.”

In the air, the outlines of three giant black palms slowly coalesced once more—one aimed at Zhao Honglan, one at Yun Huizhou, and one at Lian Li.

Zhao Honglan shielded Qu Tingquan behind him, his expression grave as he watched the black palms in the sky.

This was the work of only one person; the other had yet to even make a move.

Yun Huizhou remained expressionless. He simply looked up at the two black palms aimed at him and Lian Li, straightening his posture as he prepared to withstand the blow once more.

Lian Li reached out to tug at him, wanting to speak, but Yun Huizhou reached back and tapped his Mute Acupoint.

Lian Li continued to pull at him, so Yun Huizhou struck his acupoints again, rendering him unable to move.

Lian Li sensed that this acupoint could only hold him for three seconds, after which he would regain his freedom of movement. Those three seconds were just enough time for the three black palms to solidify and strike down. In other words, at the exact moment Yun Huizhou finished intercepting the two black palms aimed at them, Lian Li would be able to move freely.

He knew that after taking these two palm strikes, he would be unable to do anything else. From then on, it would all be up to Lian Li.

Lian Li watched as the two palms drew near. They seemed to move slowly—slow enough for him to discern every nuance of their trajectory—yet they also seemed incredibly fast, arriving before them in what felt like a mere instant.

With his blade held horizontally before him, Yun Huizhou watched the incoming palms. Even now, his eyes remained devoid of any ripple of emotion, as if nothing could truly command his attention.