Chapter 407 - 377: Interception
Strange as it was, Li Qian didn’t dwell on the matter. He knew it was pointless to overthink things right now.
’If the school had other objectives, they must have made thorough preparations—for instance, a contingency like the Dean of Congming Mountain.’
No matter how much I complained or griped now, it would be useless. All I could do was wait and see.
The group raced onward, pushing their speed to the absolute limit. Along the way, a few witless Pet Beasts occasionally tried to block their path, but with their limited strength, they didn’t cause much trouble.
"I hope the rest of the trip is smooth, with no more Little Butterflies," Lu Tianjiao couldn’t help but mutter while in flight.
It was as if the guy was a true jinx. The moment the words left his mouth, twenty or thirty Pet Beasts suddenly shot out from the air in front of them.
Judging by their composition, the Pet Beasts were a hodgepodge of all different types. Furthermore, their Potential was not low; they were at least Commander Level.
This suggested that the Pet Beasts were almost certainly not wild but had been contracted by someone.
’The question was whether they belonged to Beast Masters already exploring the area or to the first-year students in the competition.’
Whichever group it was, for Li Qian and his companions, they were in big trouble.
These Pet Beasts had suddenly appeared to block their path; it couldn’t be for no reason. The moment he saw them, Li Qian was reminded of Dongning’s group of five.
Li Qian guessed they had most likely run into the same situation. At this thought, he immediately gave Qizai an order, "Descend."
’These newcomers meant trouble. A fight was likely unavoidable. Staying on Qizai’s back was dangerous, and it would only hinder the Pet Beast.’
Seeing this, the others also had their Pet Beasts descend. And just like that, the group found themselves in a standoff with the Pet Beasts that had suddenly appeared.
Tensions were high, the atmosphere taut. Dongning’s brow furrowed. "Who? Who is it? Who’s so foolish as to block us now? Aren’t you afraid of being buried with us in the Skeleton Sea!"
"Stop shouting, it’s useless," Li Qian reminded her, shaking his head in resignation as she yelled, trying to reason with their unseen foes. "Have you forgotten what happened to you all before?"
As it turned out, her actions were completely useless. No matter how loud she shouted, there was no response.
Dongning understood immediately upon hearing Li Qian’s words, and her expression turned ugly. "It’s the Blood Demon Sect!"
"We can’t linger here. We need to end this fast!" Li Qian continued. "Fighting these Pet Beasts is pointless. We have to find the Beast Masters controlling them. Only by dispelling the Blood Spirit Gu in their bodies can we stop this conflict."
At the very moment Li Qian spoke, the twenty or thirty Pet Beasts across from them moved as one, launching their attack.
All sorts of Skills rained down on them as if they were free.
Without a moment’s hesitation, Li Qian and the others summoned their own Pet Beasts to counter the assault.
As they fought back, they desperately searched for the Beast Masters orchestrating the attack from behind the scenes.
There was no point in getting bogged down fighting the Pet Beasts without dealing with the Beast Masters behind them.
As the battle began and everyone summoned their Pet Beasts, Li Qian caught sight of the ones belonging to Ferich and Li Kun.
’Three Mid-Tier Commander Pet Beasts!’ Li Qian was inwardly surprised when he saw them.
’Not only was their strength exceptional, but their Potential was also terrifying. As far as he knew, they all had clear evolutionary paths leading directly to the Emperor Level, or even the Saint Spirit Level.’
’This further convinced Li Qian that their identities were anything but simple.’
’On top of that, the two bodyguards were acting strangely.’
’Although they had summoned Pet Beasts, Li Qian could see that the beasts they released weren’t their own Contracted Beasts.’
’Instead, they had been released from Beast Taming Balls.’
’Just like me and Chicken Hair. It was a temporary employment relationship, at best.’
’It was as if they were deliberately hiding their Pet Beasts, and by extension, their identities.’
The battle was incredibly intense. The opposing Pet Beasts fought recklessly, as if they were tireless and felt no pain.
This puzzled Li Qian.
Just then, Ferich called out a warning, "Be careful, everyone. The Blood Spirit Gu’s corruption is extremely potent. Once a Beast Master’s mind is corrupted, it affects their Contracted Beasts to some degree."
Hearing this, Li Qian had a flash of insight. It all made sense now.
The battle raged for about three minutes when Yan Qiuyang suddenly pointed in a direction and yelled, "I found one! There’s someone over there!"
Hearing the shout, Li Qian didn’t even try to verify it. He ordered Chicken Hair to immediately cast a "Blessing of Light" on the location.
"AHHHH..." As the gentle glow of the Blessing of Light shone down, agonized screams immediately erupted from the thicket Yan Qiuyang had indicated.
Immediately after, the group saw a figure come stumbling out of the thicket.
Bathed in the light of the Blessing of Light Skill, a visible black gas began to rise from the person’s body.
The man clutched his head, howling like a wounded beast, his face a mask of pure agony.
He staggered away, trying to escape the radiance of the Blessing of Light, but under Li Qian’s command, Chicken Hair gave him no such opportunity.
The Blessing of Light remained active, hovering right above the targeted man’s head.
No matter how horrifically the man wailed or how much pain he was in, Li Qian remained unmoved, feeling not a shred of pity.
He knew full well that this agony was a necessary trial to save the man’s life.
Finally, after about three minutes under the light, the targeted man let out a great retch and violently spat out a mouthful of black blood.
A large, blood-colored, fleshy worm writhed and struggled within the black blood, a horrifying sight to behold.
Under the continuous light of the Blessing of Light, it wasn’t long before the Blood Spirit Gu went still, ultimately disintegrating into a puff of ash.
Not far away, Dongning and her four companions watched, their expressions turning sour. It was hard to imagine that such a terrifying, blood-colored Gu Insect had once resided within their own bodies.
The blood-colored Gu Insect was destroyed by Chicken Hair’s Blessing of Light, and while a wave of relief washed over the group, Li Qian’s expression didn’t relax in the slightest.
His brow was tightly furrowed, his expression grim. ’This isn’t sustainable,’ he thought. ’Chicken Hair already used up most of its Energy casting True Sun Flame earlier. It just rested in the Beast Taming Ball for a bit and recovered some Energy, but even so, it won’t be able to keep this up for long.’