Chapter 327: Did I Fall into an Ambush?
Manager Ji was utterly dumbfounded at this moment.
He had been ambushed? By what hidden weapon? When had his presence been exposed?
It was beyond his comprehension.
By all logic, his concealment should have been flawless. To ensure the complete invisibility achieved through the ancient phoenix's spiritual aura, he had meticulously avoided any unnecessary actions, merely shadowing the Demon Sect's Holy Saint with utmost caution.
Even though the Holy Saint had displayed some suspicious behavior under that massive withered tree in the city earlier, performing inexplicable actions, Manager Ji had refrained from acting recklessly. He had patiently waited, planning to strike with overwhelming force once the target obtained the desired item.
As an intelligent Netherkin, Manager Ji believed that his strategy had been impeccable from start to finish.
Even now, as he concealed himself in the bamboo forest along the mountain path, he maintained his invisibility by traveling stealthily through the treetops, avoiding the use of spiritual energy or nether energy as much as possible.
Despite all this, he was somehow exposed?
Something was off—everything felt wrong, no matter how he thought about it!
He could vaguely sense that this mountain forest was likely the Holy Saint's final destination for the day. If the Holy Saint were truly to find what he sought, it would probably be here in this forest.
Though Manager Ji could not discern anything special about this seemingly ordinary mountain, known as Xiaofeng Mountain, he was confident that his deductions were flawless.
Yet, something had gone wrong at precisely this moment?
Manager Ji, rarely at a loss, felt uncertain.
Should he retreat once more, or should he attack directly? Has the Demon Sect's Holy Saint really seen through his true form?
'—And what on earth is this bizarre black pot? What kind of strange artifact is it? It ambushed me with such terrifying speed while I was focused on the Holy Saint and his companions. Who could have made such a move?'
Glancing at the ominously dancing black pot surrounding him, Manager Ji was mentally unraveling. However, he refrained from acting rashly and instead directed his gaze toward the Holy Saint of the Demon Sect and his companions, who were already staring at him.
The three humans and one chicken stood frozen, wide-eyed, all on the verge of having twitching lips.
Little Yuli: Huh? This look... and this odd feeling of hunger just from glancing at it. Is it really that special spiritual chicken? How did it... actually fall from the sky? Should I stop speaking nonsense in the future...?
Bai Xiaoyao: It really fell... Wait, that black pot looks familiar. Doesn't it resemble the one recorded in my incomplete "Heavenly Court Treasure Manual"? The Ancient Heavenly Gate's secret treasure of the Kitchen God? A pot-type artifact that activates and irresistibly attracts delicious ingredients? Ugh, stomach, stop growling...
Meanwhile, ignoring the two visibly stunned young girls, Luo Wusheng sighed inwardly, thinking, The protagonist's halo really works wonders as always.
Originally, seeing the reappearance of this unique spiritual chicken, Luo Wusheng would have immediately acted, attempting to unravel the connection between the chicken and the Ancient Phoenix Essence.
Yet, he found himself deep in thought.
This chicken looks identical to the one in the forest earlier. But that one inexplicably turned into smoke in the fire...
Something was strange.
And where did that large black pot come from? Who was behind this?
The first person who came to his mind was a certain white-haired loli. Yet, he dismissed the idea—it didn't seem like her style. While the combination of a barefoot white-haired loli and a pitch-black pot had strong visual impact, the dignified master of the Heavenly Divination Tower wouldn't easily break character in normal circumstances.
After a brief contemplation, Luo Wusheng decided to seal the special spiritual chicken's teleportation ability first.
Regardless of the oddities, this was a necessary step.
However, just as he was about to act, the Sword Fairy beside him suddenly tugged at his sleeve.
Luo Wusheng glanced over in confusion, only to see the young girl biting her lip, a trace of unease on her small face.
Just as he was about to ask what was wrong, her voice sounded in his ear through a voice transmission.
"I think… I feel the presence of the Sword Ancestor?"
Before Luo Wusheng could process the implications of her words, he suddenly felt something, lifting his head slightly.
Earlier, he had neglected to monitor the Sword Emperor's broken sword due to a combination of factors: its prolonged silence, his time spent accompanying the two young girls around Qifeng City, and his vigilance against suspicious activities.
Now, however, the runaway Sword Emperor's broken sword had somehow closed the distance, drawing nearer by the moment.
Instinctively, his gaze turned to the horizon.
Coincidentally, Manager Ji, who was still internally grappling with his next course of action, also turned to look in that direction.
With its sharp instincts, it detected nearly twenty Nascent Soul Realm presences rapidly approaching from that direction!
How could this be? Why would such a large number of Nascent Soul cultivators appear at this exact moment? And their trajectory—clearly aimed at its current location!
Looking back at the Demon Sect's Holy Saint, whose face seemed to radiate a sense of "Finally, they've arrived," Manager Ji was reminded of the inexplicable black pot that had struck earlier. Suddenly, it all made sense.
Its chicken eyes went wide in realization.
Cluck! I've been ambushed!
Its chicken claws scraped the ground as it took a half-step back, its expression turning dark.
The short, sharp beak opened and closed.
"Cluck, cluck— Cluck, cluck, cluck—"
"Demon Sect's Holy Saint— It seems I underestimated you. I didn't expect you to have already seen through my presence and even set a trap at this final destination—"
"Truly worthy of being the greatest variable to the Netherkin Nation's grand plans thus far."
"But fortunately, I still have a backup plan— If you think a ragtag group of cultivators can handle me, you're gravely mistaken!"
Dark, blood-colored nether energy erupted from Manager Ji's chicken body, especially concentrating on its claws, which turned as black as ink in an instant.
Its aura continued to rise as its body began to expand.
<+>
Meanwhile, a short distance from Xiaofeng Mountain:
"That— that's nether energy?!"
A startled voice came from within the nearly twenty-person Nascent Soul team. "This is Xuanyuan Province! How could such dense nether energy appear here? Judging by its power, this must be at least a Nascent Soul Realm Netherkin!"
The exclamation caused everyone in the team to frown deeply.
All eyes bypassed the massive black mist figure they had been pursuing and extended their gaze further into the distance.
At the very edge of their vision, in a seemingly ordinary mountain far away, a pillar of dark, blood-colored nether energy shot into the sky, as though some monstrous creature were forming there.
"Look quickly! The Soulblade Specter is making new moves! Its speed is increasing again—it's transformed completely into a mass of black mist!"
"And its direction— Is it heading toward that nether energy?"
"Could it be that the Soulblade Specter's abnormal behavior is connected to the Netherkin? That explains why it slowed down earlier, allowing our spells to hit it multiple times— No! It's about to reach the Netherkin! We can't let it escape! Return my sword!"
The dozen Nascent Soul cultivators gritted their teeth in fury, their speed increasing slightly.
Far behind them, more figures were chasing from the ground, but the distances between the three groups—Soulblade Specter, cultivators, and ground pursuers—continued to grow.
- - - - - - - - - -
Note: If you want to see more chapters of this story, please join my Patreon[1], for $5 each month, you can read all of the available chapters.
Patreon Account: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=93297024[2]
Latest Chapter In Patreon: Chapter 479: Junior Sister's Schemes Run Deep[3]
Link to the latest chapter: https://www.patreon.com/posts/chapter-479-run-148261662[4]
[1] https://www.patreon.com/user?u=93297024
[2] https://www.patreon.com/user?u=93297024
[3] https://www.patreon.com/posts/chapter-479-run-148261662
[4] https://www.patreon.com/posts/chapter-479-run-148261662