Chapter 38

Returning to the dark forest, it was already midnight.

Zhao Yun sat cross-legged, and before closing his eyes, he glanced in the direction of the river, wondering if the little fatty had broken the witchcraft spell.

The sorcerer was very strange, his witchcraft was very sinister, and he was undoubtedly a master at providing support.

After a sigh, he closed his eyes.

This time, without the soul-capturing bell to disturb his mind, he felt much more at ease and could calm down.

This night was not peaceful.

The sorcerer did not leave, moving like a shadow through the forest, looking for the little fatty and Zhao Yun. After years of leading corpses, this was the first time he had been tricked.

"The spell mark is broken."

At some point, he settled down, his brows slightly furrowed. The witchcraft spell he had planted in the little fatty's body had disappeared, or rather, had been broken.

"Run?"

The sorcerer let out a cold snort, waved his sleeve, and hundreds of paper figures cut from yellow talismans flew in all directions, each inscribed with runes.

These were paper talismans, a secret method for finding people. With hundreds of little paper figures, there was strength in numbers!

Crack! Crack!

In the dark forest, the sound of bones colliding was continuous.

It was Zhao Yun training his body.

His realm was thoroughly stabilized, and he could focus on multiple tasks, studying the mysterious Heavenly Book while tempering his physique.

"Thunder!"

He muttered to himself, wishing for another rainy day, which might help him advance to the ninth level.

Thunder from the sky was a good thing.

His several breakthroughs had benefited from lightning, which, feared by the world, had become nourishment for him.

Whoosh!

Suddenly, a gust of wind passed by.

To be precise, it was a little paper figure, appearing from somewhere, moving through the dark forest.

Hmm?

Zhao Yun suddenly opened his eyes, and with a flick of his hand, he threw a flying knife, accurately pinning the little paper figure to a tree.

Ah...

A scream seemed to come from the paper figure, followed by a wisp of green smoke dissipating.

"Little paper figure."

Zhao Yun frowned, reached out to take it, and his eyes flashed with a sharp light.

He also took out a little paper figure from his pocket, identical to this one.

"It's you."

Zhao Yun's eyes glowed with a cold light.

It was not surprising, as the reason his spirit veins were severed years ago was related to this paper figure.

To this day, he still kept the little paper figure, hoping to one day find the person who had plotted against him.

Now, he had found him.

"Damn, have the guts to fight one-on-one."

A loud curse echoed from deep in the forest.

By the sound, it was the little fatty.

Zhao Yun remained silent, put away the two little paper figures, and darted into the dark night. He was not interested in the little fatty but was interested in the owner of the paper talismans, who might be nearby.

Deep in the forest, the little fatty was crawling and rolling.

Once he entered the river, he broke the spell mark. Just as he climbed out of the water, he encountered the paper talismans, and soon the sorcerer came.

Not only the sorcerer, but also several zombies, controlled by the sorcerer, could jump several feet high, had mechanisms on their bodies, and could spit out flying needles, which were not ordinary needles but highly toxic.

His left shoulder was already black, hit by a zombie's flying needle, and the poison was spreading.

"Young man, where are you going?"

The sorcerer's figure was eerie, chasing and killing, and he scattered a sky full of copper coins, each as sharp as a knife.

The little fatty's face changed, and he stopped, using his true essence to form a sword, which he wielded vigorously.

The sound of clashing was continuous.

Most of the copper coins were deflected by him, but a few hit him directly, cutting several bloody gashes in his fat body.

Clang! Clang!

The zombies controlled by the sorcerer arrived, forming a neat row, with the yellow talismans on their foreheads removed, and each spitting out flying needles.

"Damn."

The little fatty cursed, waving his long sword. There were too many flying needles, as fine as cow hair, and it was hard to see them in the dark. He might have been too deeply poisoned, and his vision was blurred, and the pain was unbearable.

Soon, the flying needles stopped.

The little fatty was swaying, barely able to stand, one arm hanging, the poison spreading. If not for his resistance with true essence, it would have already invaded his heart meridian.

"Running, why aren't you running now?"

The sorcerer laughed eerily, approaching step by step, with three little paper figures circling around him.

It was not an exaggeration to say he was more terrifying than the zombies. In the moonlight, his expression was particularly sinister.

"Six against one, what kind of skill is that?"

The little fatty shook his head, his consciousness already blurred due to the poison, swaying like he was walking on a sponge, with blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, black, and his body pierced by countless flying needles, the poison overwhelming.

"Turning you into a puppet should be good enough." The sorcerer laughed sinisterly, a talisman floating out of his sleeve, a binding talisman that could restrict movement, similar to a stasis talisman, known by few.

The little fatty gritted his teeth, trying to cut the talisman with his sword, but he was powerless, his whole body numb.

However, at that moment, a hand suddenly came from behind, pulling him to the side.

Clang!

Then, the sound of a sword, and a cold sword light flashed, cutting the talisman in half.

It was Zhao Yun.

Coming early was not as good as coming at the right time.

"Damn, great benefactor!"

The little fatty swayed and fell, recognizing Zhao Yun, who had saved him twice.

"It's you again."

Seeing Zhao Yun, the sorcerer gritted his teeth, a burst talisman almost blowing him away.

"Is this little paper figure yours?"

Zhao Yun said calmly, holding a paper talisman between his fingers.

"So what if it is?"

The sorcerer's lips curled, taking a step back. As he retreated, five zombies advanced.

"Be careful of the zombies' flying needles."

The little fatty warned, if not for the ambush, he might have escaped.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

As he spoke, the five zombies trembled, and flying needles, as fine as cow hair, shot at Zhao Yun.

Clang!

Zhao Yun instantly drew his sword, moving vigorously. He could clearly see the flying needles, as he was not poisoned and his vision was clear.

The flying needles were deflected, and the five zombies advanced, two spitting out yin qi, three spitting out yin fire.

Zhao Yun sneered, stepping the Wind God Step, moving like a black shadow, passing through the gaps.

"Good movement."

The sorcerer's eyes narrowed, underestimating Zhao Yun.

Clang!

In a moment of distraction, another clang was heard.

It was a flying knife.

The flying knives Zhao Yun threw were all attached to burst talismans, one for each of the five zombies.

Then, explosions followed.

The power of the burst talismans was overwhelming, and the zombies controlled by the sorcerer were blown to pieces.

"Where did you get so many burst talismans?"

The sorcerer snorted, flying away.

Clang!

In the lingering smoke, a cold light appeared, a flying knife shooting straight at him.

"Take a loss once, and suffer twice?"

The sorcerer said coldly, forming a seal with one hand in his sleeve.

Suddenly, a strong wind blew.

He used the Wind Escape technique, sweeping away the flying knife, which exploded several dozen feet away.

"Besides burst talismans, what else do you rely on?"

The sorcerer's smile was more terrifying than a ghost.

"Enough to destroy you."

Zhao Yun attacked, lightning splitting from his sword, the wind aiding the lightning, the attack powerful.

"Lightning too?"

The sorcerer's face changed, knowing the power of Zhao Yun's sword, which could either kill or severely wound.

After all, the sorcerer was not skilled in combat.

In a flash, he shook his copper bell, the eerie sound disturbing the mind.

Zhao Yun's head ached, and his powerful sword lost most of its power.

His speed also slowed down.

This moment was enough for the sorcerer to escape, leaping onto a large rock, shaking the bell, and forming seals with one hand, casting spells.

His techniques were indeed eerie.

Seeing Zhao Yun's feet, the hard ground suddenly turned into a mud pit, and Zhao Yun's lower leg sank in.

"Old Taoist, you know a lot!"

Zhao Yun sneered, his movement restricted, and it was difficult to lift his feet.

"Little one, dare to bully me."

The sorcerer laughed eerily, changing the seal in his hand, and a large, illusory talisman appeared above Zhao Yun's head, which would seal him once it pressed down.

Zhao Yun said nothing, disappearing in a flash.

"Earth Escape?"

The sorcerer's eyes narrowed, finding it hard to believe that a small Condensation Essence Realm could have such depth, with beast fire, burst talismans, lightning, and now even the lost Earth Escape technique.

Without hesitation, he leaped up, throwing a yellow talisman down, which merged into the ground.

Zhao Yun was forced out.

At the same moment, he threw out a dozen flying knives, each attached to a burst talisman.

The sorcerer's face turned pale.

Standing high was not always advantageous, as he was now a live target in mid-air.

Boom! Bang! Boom!

Explosions echoed, the sound pleasant, and the power was immense.

Zhao Yun's face also turned pale.

He had used twenty burst talismans, draining more than eighty percent of his dantian true essence.

Seeing the sorcerer, he was still alive.

The sorcerer was standing on the large rock, swaying, his body black and charred, his robe half destroyed, and one arm crippled.

"Is the sorcerer so resilient?"

The little fatty looked, amazed, as that was over a dozen burst talismans.

"The little paper figures protected him."

Zhao Yun muttered, seeing hundreds of little paper figures around the sorcerer, falling and burning as they were hit by the burst talismans.

"Good, very good."

The sorcerer sneered, blood trickling from his mouth, grateful for his quick thinking in using the little paper figures as a shield, or he would have been blown to pieces.

At that moment, he was in pain!

So many little paper figures, his lifetime accumulation, were blown away by the burst talismans.

"Peak True Spirit Realm."

Zhao Yun thought, finally seeing the sorcerer's cultivation.

The sorcerer was not skilled in martial arts.

Throughout, the sorcerer maintained a distance, even at the Condensation Essence Realm, he did not dare to engage in close combat.

Zhao Yun was confident that if he could get close, he could beat the sorcerer to tears.

Unfortunately, he could not get close.

The sorcerer's soul-capturing bell was too eerie, the closer he got, the more it disturbed his mind.

"How much true essence do you have left?"

The sorcerer laughed sinisterly, using so many burst talismans, the Condensation Essence Realm could not sustain the consumption.

"You guess."

Zhao Yun stepped the Wind God Step, a powerful palm strike, the wind force intense.

The sorcerer did not dare to resist, retreating again, forming a seal with one hand, and a large, illusory talisman appeared, colliding with Zhao Yun, with a cold wind howling.

Boom!

Zhao Yun's palm shattered the talisman, forcing the sorcerer to retreat, his face turning pale.

Damn, is this guy really at the Condensation Essence Realm? Why is his palm so powerful?

Running was the best option.

The sorcerer, injured, turned and fled, his legs moving quickly.

"Run?"

Zhao Yun raised his sword, chasing after him.

"You damn, save me first!"

The little fatty cursed, fainting.