Just as Duan Xianxing and the others were preparing to take advantage of their momentum and "lure" the remaining four hesitant demonic wolves over to finish them off, Li Nanzhu suddenly raised her hand to stop them.
"Wait! Ignore them for now!" Li Nanzhu's sharp gaze swept over the four demonic wolves lingering in the distance, afraid to approach. She then looked toward the faintly visible boundary of the array ahead and spoke rapidly, "The boundary of this array is almost here! We're charging straight out! Leave those four demonic wolves for now!"
"Leave them?" Duan Xianxing was taken aback. "Leave them for what? What if they chase after us and cause trouble later?"
"Listen to Junior Sister!" Zhu Yinxi said in a heavy voice, without the slightest hesitation. "Let's go!"
Jiang Yifan and Feng Weilan also nodded immediately. They had already developed unreserved trust in Li Nanzhu's command.
The five of them no longer paid any attention to the four demonic wolves. They followed the safe path and charged toward the array boundary at full speed!
Sure enough, after advancing less than a hundred yards, the scene ahead suddenly opened up!
The Gobi vanished, replaced by an open area filled with a faint white mist. They had clearly moved beyond the range of the spirit-slaying array.
However, just as the five of them stepped out of the array boundary and breathed a sigh of relief—
"Awoooo—!"
Four shrill wolf howls rang out almost simultaneously behind them!
The group spun around to see the four demonic wolves that had been left far behind in the depths of the array suddenly appear at the edge of the exit. Their eyes glowed with intense red light, their fangs were bared, and they lunged forward with an air of madness!
Their speed was several times faster than before!
"As expected, it was a trap!" Jiang Yifan shouted as his long sword cleared its scabbard!
"The array has strengthened them! Be careful!" Feng Weilan also immediately sounded a warning.
They instantly realized that this was the original array designer's true test!
If not for Li Nanzhu's instruction to take care of the other demonic wolves beforehand, they probably would have been subjected to a fatal ambush the moment they left the array, as the wolves would have been instantly buffed at the exit!
Fortunately, the five members of the Five Elements Dao Sect were well-prepared!
"Move!" At the moment the demonic wolves pounced, Li Nanzhu didn't retreat. Instead, she took a step forward and struck first. A flash of golden light erupted from her hand as a demon-binding net shot out, accurately enveloping the demonic wolf in the lead!
"Heh! We've been waiting for you!" Duan Xianxing laughed loudly. He acted almost at the same time as Li Nanzhu, casting another demon-binding net!
Zhu Yinxi pointed her sword finger, causing cold energy to spread and slowing down another demonic wolf. Jiang Yifan and Feng Weilan also coordinated perfectly, launching a spirit-suppressing ring and spiritual energy restraints simultaneously!
Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!
Four muffled sounds echoed! Although the four demonic wolves came with fierce momentum, the five members of the Five Elements Dao Sect were faster and more precise!
In the blink of an eye, they were all bound tightly by the four golden spirit nets and restrictions. They crashed heavily to the ground, struggling and roaring madly, but were unable to break free for the time being!
"Junior Sister, what now? Should we kill them?" Duan Xianxing asked, holding his sword as he looked at the struggling demonic wolves on the ground.
According to common sense, they should naturally kill them immediately to eliminate any future trouble.
Li Nanzhu, however, shook her head with a sly smile on her face. "No, don't kill them yet. Bring them along!"
"Bring them along?" Duan Xianxing was stunned, and the other three also looked puzzled. Wouldn't carrying four constantly struggling demonic wolves be a burden?
"Trust me!" Li Nanzhu's tone was certain. "This illusion is linked one part to the next; there's bound to be more trouble ahead! These demonic wolves are 'local specialties.' Who knows... they might be useful for something specific!"
Though he didn't understand Li Nanzhu's exact plan, Zhu Yinxi nodded without hesitation based on his trust in her. "Alright! Bring them!"
Jiang Yifan and Feng Weilan also got to work, using sturdier spiritual energy chains to bundle the four demonic wolves like zongzi. Duan Xianxing and Jiang Yifan each dragged two.
The five of them continued cautiously into the depths of the white mist, bringing along their four constantly struggling "trophies."
Sure enough, before they had gone far, another anomaly appeared ahead!
A dense, blood-colored light blocked their path. A heart-palpitating sense of danger radiated from the light, and more complex and dangerous runes could be seen faintly covering the ground.
Clearly, this was the second half of the first trial, or perhaps a transition zone leading to the next, set with even stronger restrictions!
"We can't get through! There's a powerful killing restriction ahead!" Feng Weilan sensed the energy fluctuations ahead with a grim expression. "It would be extremely dangerous to force our way through!"
"Indeed, another ambush!" Duan Xianxing spat.
At that moment, Li Nanzhu's eyes lit up. She pointed toward the area of blood-colored light and said to Duan Xianxing and Jiang Yifan, "Fourth Senior Brother, Seventh Senior Brother, throw them in! Throw them where the red light is brightest!"
Duan Xianxing and Jiang Yifan were startled for a moment before they suddenly understood!
"On it!" Duan Xianxing was the most enthusiastic. He grabbed a demonic wolf bundled like a zongzi, gathered his strength, and gave a loud shout. "Off you go!"
Whoosh!
The demonic wolf was used like a sandbag, drawing a parabola as it was violently hurled into the blood-colored restriction ahead.
Buzz!
The light barrier fluctuated violently, and the seemingly calm blood-colored light suddenly erupted with dense, scalp-numbing spikes.
Pffft!
The demonic wolf didn't even have time to scream before it was instantly impaled by countless blood-colored spikes. It turned into a mass of pure energy and was absorbed by the light barrier. At the same time, the spikes that had lit up on the barrier dimmed, and a small area of the restriction vanished.
"There really was a trap!" Jiang Yifan frowned. "And it's an incredibly powerful chain killing restriction! If we had barged in recklessly, we probably would have suffered a great deal!"
"Keep throwing!" Li Nanzhu decided decisively.
Duan Xianxing and Jiang Yifan immediately threw the second and third demonic wolves into different positions on the light barrier one after another.
Pffft! Pffft!
The same thing happened again. The demonic wolves were strangled by the traps, and the blood-colored runes in those areas were completely triggered, erupting with terrifying energy turbulence!
Lightning, flames, and wind blades raged.
Those three demonic wolves didn't even have time to let out a cry before they were instantly torn to shreds by the violent power of the restriction, dissipating into four clouds of blood mist!
With the sacrifice of these four "living triggers," the violent energy in that area seemed to find a vent. After the mad outpouring, the blood-colored light quickly dimmed and calmed at a visible rate.
Even those dangerous runes on the ground gradually faded from view.
A safe passage appeared right before their eyes!
"Haha! It worked! Junior Sister, you're amazing!" Duan Xianxing slapped his thigh in excitement. "Using these demonic wolves as scapegoats helped us clear the minefield!"
Jiang Yifan and Zhu Yinxi also looked at each other, their eyes filled with wonder and smiles.
This method was truly... both effortless and safe!
Li Nanzhu clapped her hands, her small face full of pride. "I told you, keeping these guys around would definitely be useful! It's called putting waste to good use!"
High up on the platform, the expressions of the high-level members of the various sects watching this scene through the water mirror became quite interesting once again.
What kind of madness was this!
Rate on N.U.
