Immortality Cultivation

Fang Hao crouched behind the withered woods, still as a stone statue, not daring to even breathe heavily. He pushed his Ethereal Art to its limit, suppressing his aura until it was no different from the rotten wood beside him. He squinted, his Clear Spring Spirit Eyes fixed intently on the five Yougui Sect Disciples busy on the earthen slope, muttering to himself.

These guys were acting shady; they definitely weren’t up to any good! Looking at the Formation they were setting up, the lines were twisted and crooked, exuding an evil aura. The skulls and small banners buried at the Formation core were even emitting black smoke with a ’hissing’ sound—clearly nothing righteous. This setup didn’t look like they were entering the marsh to hunt for treasure. It was obviously a trap laid out, waiting for some unlucky soul to jump right in!

"Damn it, trying to ambush someone?" Fang Hao sneered inwardly. He had originally planned to detour around this Ten Thousand Poisons Marsh, preferring to avoid unnecessary trouble. But now that he had bumped into this dirty business, he wasn’t in a rush to leave anymore. What if these bastards were ambushing someone he knew, or perhaps even aiming for him? He had to see clearly before deciding.

He patiently remained crouched. The five Yougui Sect Disciples busied themselves for nearly half an hour before finally setting up the Formation. The horse-faced Golden Core Cultivator in the lead checked the Formation Flags and the Formation core once more. After confirming everything was correct, he took out a pitch-black small flag and waved it at the Formation.

Hum—!

A barely perceptible ripple flashed, and the earthen slope, along with the Formation on it, vanished into thin air! It hadn’t truly disappeared, but had been covered by an extremely sophisticated illusion Formation, undetectable by the naked eye or ordinary Divine Sense! If Fang Hao hadn’t watched them set it up with his own eyes and possessed the Divine Ability of the Clear Spring Spirit Eyes, he would definitely not have seen through it!

"What a sophisticated illusion Formation!" Fang Hao felt a chill in his heart. This Yougui Sect truly had some tricks up their sleeves.

After setting the trap, the five guys didn’t go far. Instead, they scattered, hiding in the depressions or behind piles of rocks around the earthen slope, each casting concealment Spells to hide themselves. It seemed they were prepared to wait for the prey to come to them.

"They’re really going to camp out here?" Fang Hao became interested. He wanted to see which sucker would stumble into this. He moved to a more concealed position, hiding himself deeper, only daring to release a tiny sliver of his Divine Sense to cautiously sense the surroundings.

The edge of the marsh was quiet, with only the sound of toxic miasma rolling and the "gurgle" of mud bubbles. Time passed bit by bit. After waiting for nearly an hour, he hadn’t even seen a ghost. Fang Hao’s legs were starting to go numb from squatting, and he wondered if he should just withdraw; waiting like this wasn’t really a solution.

Just as he was getting impatient, his ears suddenly twitched! A sound of breaking air faintly came from the sky to the southeast! Someone was coming!

Fang Hao’s spirits lifted, and he quickly focused his gaze. Three streaks of light flew in from the horizon, not very fast, looking as if they also intended to cross this Ten Thousand Poisons Marsh. The lights retracted, landing at the edge of the marsh, revealing three people.

Fang Hao looked closely. Good heavens, it was an acquaintance! It was three of the four people from the Thunder Sword Sect in Jizhou that he had "played the oriole behind the mantis" to at the Hundred Flowers Medicinal Garden! The Female Disciple at the Foundation Establishment Stage was missing; she had probably either withdrawn from the Secret Realm after being injured or had perished. The remaining three were the Square-faced Youth Senior Brother and two other Disciples at the Early Golden Core Stage. The three looked a bit travel-worn, their complexions not very good; they had likely suffered quite a bit in the Secret Realm.

"Heh! It’s actually these greenhorns!" Fang Hao almost laughed out loud. This was truly a case of enemies meeting on a narrow road! He hadn’t expected the Yougui Sect to be camping them! It seemed there was likely some bad blood between the Thunder Sword Sect and the Yougui Sect.

The three from the Thunder Sword Sect clearly hadn’t discovered the trap. The Square-faced Youth looked at the marsh filled with toxic miasma ahead, frowned, and said to his two Junior Brothers, "This Ten Thousand Poisons Marsh is dangerous. Let’s rest for a moment and recover our Qi before crossing." As he spoke, he walked naturally toward the earthen slope covered by the illusion Formation, seemingly looking for a high, dry place to meditate.

The five Yougui Sect Disciples hiding around the earthen slope were probably overjoyed! The fish had taken the bait!

Fang Hao watched from the shadows, feeling a bit conflicted. Should he warn these fools from the Thunder Sword Sect? Although there had been some minor friction before, they were, after all, part of the Righteous Path Sects, and it felt uneasy to watch them get killed by these underhanded Yougui Sect members. But if he spoke up to warn them, he would expose himself and surely get dragged into trouble. The Yougui Sect was not to be trifled with; being targeted by them would bring endless trouble.

While he was hesitating, the three from the Thunder Sword Sect had already reached the foot of the earthen slope. Seeing that they were just a few steps away from stepping into the Formation’s range!

At this critical moment! A sudden change occurred!

The Square-faced Youth’s footsteps halted abruptly, as if he had sensed something, and he shouted sharply: "Something’s wrong! Ambush! Retreat!"

He reacted extremely quickly, lightning flashing on his body, ready to retreat violently! His two Junior Brothers also instantly became alert, their swords already out of their sheaths!

Unfortunately, it was too late!

"Attack!" A cold, harsh shout came from the Void Realm!

Hum—!

Black light flared instantly on the previously empty earthen slope! That hidden evil Formation suddenly activated! Countless pitch-black tentacles emerged from the ground, wrapping around the trio’s feet! At the same time, a powerful binding force and mind-disturbing illusions enveloped them! The skulls at the Formation core spewed greenish ghost fire, and the small banners shook, emitting ear-piercing wails of ghosts!

The three from the Thunder Sword Sect felt as if they had fallen into a quagmire; their movements instantly became sluggish, and illusions appeared before their eyes!

"It’s the Yougui Sect’s ’Hundred Ghosts Confinement Formation’! Form the Three Talents Thunder Sword Formation!" The Square-faced Youth remained calm under pressure and roared. The three stood back-to-back, lightning flashing from the long swords in their hands. They instantly formed a small sword Formation, and streaks of lightning Sword Qi crisscrossed, barely resisting the entanglement of the black tentacles and the erosion of the ghost fire!

"Hehe, quick reaction! Unfortunately, once you’ve entered my Formation, don’t even think about leaving!" Amidst the sinister laughter, the five Yougui Sect Disciples emerged from their hiding spots, surrounding the earthen slope. The horse-faced Golden Core Cultivator held a soul-summoning banner, shaking it continuously to drive the Formation. The other four each wielded Magical Artifacts, launching fierce attacks at the Thunder Sword Sect Disciples inside the Formation! Various poisonous smokes, ghost shadows, and cursing Spells were hurled at them!

The three from the Thunder Sword Sect were trapped in the Formation, their strength greatly diminished. Having to resist the Formation’s erosion while also dealing with external attacks, they were instantly in precarious danger! The light of the sword Formation flickered violently, and it looked like it wouldn’t be able to hold on much longer!

"Senior Brother! The Formation is too powerful, we can’t hold on for long!" one Thunder Sword Sect Disciple shouted anxiously.

"Fight them to the death!" A flash of determination appeared in the Square-faced Youth’s eyes, as if he were about to use some forbidden Spell!

Fang Hao shook his head from afar. These Thunder Sword Sect guys had strength, but they were too straightforward and easily fell for traps. Looking at this situation, if no one intervened, they would likely perish here today.

"Damn it, should I intervene or not?" Fang Hao gritted his teeth. Watching someone die without helping went a bit against his principles. But if he did intervene, he would bring trouble upon himself!

His eyes flickered as he quickly weighed the pros and cons. Suddenly, his gaze swept across the battlefield, and he saw the soul-summoning banner in the horse-faced Golden Core Cultivator’s hand and the few evil Magical Artifacts at the Formation core. His heart stirred!

"Got it! Fish in troubled waters!" A thought popped up. He couldn’t openly help the Thunder Sword Sect, but he could stir up some trouble for the Yougui Sect! For example... secretly sabotage a Formation node? Or snatch those few evil Magical Artifacts that looked decent? He could save the Thunder Sword Sect people, gain some benefits for himself, and if he did it discreetly, he might not even be discovered!

Thinking of this, a flash of cunning light appeared in Fang Hao’s eyes. He quietly summoned his phantom shadow sword; this sword was as thin as a cicada’s wing, nearly transparent, and best suited for such sneak attacks! At the same time, the Shadowless Evasion Technique was quietly activated, his figure merging into the shadows as he moved silently toward the edge of the battlefield...

His target was a Formation Flag at the edge of the Formation where the energy fluctuations were slightly weaker! Test the waters first!