The Pastoral Life of a Cultivation Master

Chapter 3226 A sneak attack in the dark
The speed of a master with innate talent was on full display at this moment.

The distance of several dozen feet was covered in an instant. Qian Ying's figure left a trail of afterimages at the boundary between firelight and darkness, so fast that it almost exceeded the limits of the naked eye. His right fist, wrapped in powerful true energy, compressed the air wildly wherever it passed, emitting a sharp explosion, like a real cannonball, and slammed straight into the shadowy figure's back!
This punch contained Qian Ying's full strength; his innate energy surged like a tide through his meridians, and his momentum arrived before the fist.

However, the dark figure seemed to have anticipated this, or perhaps it simply didn't care to resist.

Instead of pausing, it accelerated its retreat in an even more bizarre manner. The movement was not like fleeing, but rather like merging into something, like a drop of ink falling into clear water, without causing a ripple, instantly blending into the surrounding darkness, becoming indistinguishable from it.

"boom!"

Qian Ying's fist struck empty air; the violent force, having lost its target, poured entirely onto the ground. With a deafening crash, a crater about a foot deep was smashed into the hard rock, and fragments of rock flew in all directions like bullets.

Qian Ying couldn't stop himself and staggered forward two steps. He suddenly looked up, his pupils contracted sharply, and all that remained before him was endless darkness, thick as ink and unfathomable.

The dark figure had vanished without a trace, as if it had never existed.

"Damn it! Damn it!"

Qian Ying's face was ashen, her eyes burning with anger, but even more so with deep apprehension.

This monster... there's more than one! Or perhaps the original exploded black shadow has come back to life?
Whichever the possibility, it implies a terrifying truth: the enemy they face is far more bizarre and troublesome than they imagined. These shadowy figures seem to originate from the darkness itself, impossible to kill or drive away; in this endless night, they are the absolute rulers.

Zhou Zixing arrived at the scene at this time. Looking at the already cold corpse on the ground and then at the furious Qian Ying, his face was solemn.

The corpse's head was tilted to one side at an eerie angle, the expression on its face still lingering in the warmth of a dream, a stark contrast to the cruelty of death. Zhou Zixing crouched down, checked its breathing, felt its pulse, and finally slowly shook his head.

“Brother Qian,” he said in a deep voice, his tone heavy with barely concealed unease, “this place is probably more dangerous than we imagined.”

Qian Ying slowly withdrew his fist, his knuckles white from the excessive force, trembling slightly. He looked around at the still-shaken martial artists, and at the boundless darkness that seemed impossible to dispel.

A deep sense of powerlessness welled up inside them. They were innate masters, beings standing at the pinnacle of martial arts, usually able to command the wind and rain, seemingly omnipotent. But in this eerie valley, in this thick darkness, they were like a group of insects trapped in a spider web, the more they struggled, the deeper they sank.

"Redeploy," his voice was hoarse and deep, brooking no argument, "Everyone, back to the barrier, facing this side of the plaza!"

"Qian Wantong, organize people to take turns on guard duty."

The martial artists hurriedly responded, hastily reorganizing their formation. But everyone knew in their hearts, could such a defense truly be effective against this eerie black shadow?
The fire was rekindled, more firewood was added, and the flames leaped higher, illuminating the surroundings brighter. But the light seemed to be suppressed by something, only able to illuminate a limited area; further away, the darkness remained thick and inky, unshakeable.

As expected, Qian Ying and Zhou Zixing's premonition was correct.

Just as they were on guard against the shadowy figure that had disappeared into the darkness, their minds were on high alert, a strange change suddenly occurred on the other side, next to several warriors who were busy moving wood and lighting the outer campfire!

A dark shadow shot out from the darkness without warning, like a black lightning bolt, and pounced straight at a martial artist who was bending over to carry firewood!
Although the amount of wood removed earlier was not much, it was enough to light a campfire around the base. However, it would probably not be enough to keep the fire burning until dawn. If the wood ran out, they would have to remove more building timber.

The warrior, with his back to the shadowy figure, was completely unaware and was still loudly calling to his companions, "Quick, move this wood over there, the fire needs..." Before he could finish speaking, he felt a bone-chilling coldness coming from behind him!
"careful!"

"later!"

Several cries of alarm rang out simultaneously, but it was too late. The black shadow was too fast, exceeding the reaction limits of even a martial artist with acquired skills. Those jet-black claws had already reached for the back of the martial artist's neck!

At this critical moment!
"Get out of the way!" A voice suddenly rang out, and then a figure rushed over like a gust of wind, his fist whistling as he aimed straight for the shadowy figure's side!
It's Ouyang Nan.

At the same time, another figure also flanked from the other side, his palm strike steady, blocking the shadowy figure's retreat.

It's Chen Mo.

It turned out that the four of them had been at a slightly farther distance. After witnessing the attack by the dark figure, they discussed it briefly and decided to enter the defensive perimeter together.

After all, their current location was quite far from the main fire. Once the outer campfires were lit, they would be isolated from the flames and left to face the endless darkness alone.

So it's better to go in and stay with all the martial artists. There's strength in numbers, and at least psychologically, it can provide some comfort.

Chen Mo didn't want to reveal too much of his strength. His divine sense was severely suppressed in this strange valley, and could only cover a range of about three and a half meters, which was far too short. If he didn't protect them properly and something happened to the three women, it would be too late to regret it.

But he didn't expect that he would run into the shadowy attacker as soon as he walked over.

The martial artist was a member of the Ouyang family, sharing the same lineage as Ouyang Nan. Seeing this, Ouyang Nan had no choice but to intervene. She immediately let out a sharp cry, her figure flashing as she threw a punch at the shadowy figure's ribs. This punch contained the full power of her peak tenth level of the Acquired Realm, its force so sharp it even produced a slight whooshing sound.

Chen Mo followed closely behind, attacking from the other side.

The two attacked from the left and right, forcefully blocking the shadowy figure's fatal blow!

The shadowy figure's claws stopped abruptly just three inches from the back of the martial artist's neck, letting out a reluctant hiss. Its scarlet eyes were fixed on Chen Mo and Ouyang Nan, and a hint of human-like anger flashed in them.

"Gah!"

The dark shadow let out a piercing howl, a sound so sharp it seemed to penetrate eardrums. Abandoning its prey, it turned and revealed its jet-black claws, lunging fiercely at Chen Mo and Ouyang Nan!

The claws were sharp and carried a foul stench, causing even the air to distort slightly in their wake.

Meanwhile, Qian Ying and Zhou Zixing also noticed the change on this side.

"There are some over there too!" Zhou Zixing's expression changed, and he immediately prepared to rush over to provide support.

In any case, he is now a master of innate level. Since Chen Mo doesn't want to show his face, then he should act as a troubleshooter and cover up Chen Mo's identity.