The Pastoral Life of a Cultivation Master

Chapter 3249 Unable to Move
"Elder Qian, what should we do?" Zhou Zixing frowned and asked Qian Ying telepathically through the flame channel.

His tone carried a hint of anxiety. The number of martial artists in the camp area was dwindling. If this continued, they would collapse on their own without the shadowy figure even needing to intervene, and the entire expedition team might be completely wiped out.

Besides, there are his family members among them. If anything were to happen to them, it would break his heart. Although he is nearing the end of his life, he brought the Zhou family members on this expedition with the intention of bringing them out safely. But so far, only six people remain in the entire Zhou family team. It would be heartbreaking to lose even one more.

Qian Ying took a deep breath, her face solemn. After a moment of silence, she slowly replied via telepathy: "Have those martial artists at the tenth level of the Acquired Realm immediately stop the dismantling work and go back to help the people in the encampment defend the area. The two of us will stay here and personally dismantle the wood, removing as much as possible to ensure there is enough timber to keep the fire burning."

He knew that the defense of the encampment area had reached a critical moment. If no one provided support, the warriors would not be able to withstand the next sneak attack from the shadowy figure, and even more people would die.

As innate masters, the two of them possess formidable strength and are capable of handling the sneak attack from the shadowy figure alone. They can also dismantle the wood themselves at a much faster pace, allowing them to remove enough timber in a short time to support the camp area.

After it's all over, it might take time and pills to recover my strength, which feels a bit painful! But I have no choice but to do it now, so there's nothing I can do even if it hurts.

"Is this enough wood to burn?" Zhou Zixing asked again via telepathy, his tone tinged with worry. They had already removed quite a bit of wood, but the fire in the camp needed constant replenishment to maintain its flame. Moreover, the shadowy attacks were becoming more and more frequent, and the fire was being consumed more and more. He was worried that this amount of wood wouldn't last long.

"If we want the flames to burn brightly and defend against the shadowy attacks, this amount of wood is far from enough," Qian Ying replied telepathically, her tone tinged with helplessness. "So, the two of us need to speed things up and remove more wood. It would be much better during the day, when the light is bright and we can see clearly what's happening outside the house. Removing wood would be much easier, and we wouldn't have to worry about the shadowy attacks. Unfortunately, it's night now, so we can only proceed cautiously and quickly."

Zhou Zixing nodded and replied telepathically, "Alright, that's the only way! Let's dismantle the wood as quickly as possible and try to get some rest soon."

After the two finished their discussion, Qian Ying raised her head, her gaze sweeping over the post-natal tenth-level martial artists who were working hard to demolish the buildings, and said loudly, "Everyone, stop for now! The timber we've dismantled is enough to last for a while, but the situation at the campsite is critical and we need manpower to support them. Everyone, stop the dismantling work immediately, move the timber we've already dismantled over there, and join the people there to defend the campsite and defend against the shadowy attacks!"

After saying that, he looked at Qian Wantong and said in a deep voice, "Qian Wantong, you take everyone over there and make sure to organize the defense well. It's best to coordinate in pairs and support each other. Never face the shadow alone to avoid being ambushed by it!"

Upon hearing Qian Ying's order, Qian Wantong immediately stopped what he was doing, cupped his hands in a respectful bow to Qian Ying, and replied, "Yes, Elder! I will certainly live up to your trust and lead everyone to guard the camp area!"

After saying that, Qian Wantong turned around, waved to the other martial artists at the tenth level of the Acquired Realm, signaling them to follow, and walked towards the camping area.

They dared not delay for a moment, nor stray even half a step from the fiery passage. The shadowy figures in the darkness were too powerful and numerous. Once they left the protective range of the flames, they would be completely unable to deal with the shadowy figures' sneak attacks. They could only proceed cautiously along the fiery passage. After all, their lives were at stake; in this perilous place, survival was the most important thing. But what Qian Wantong did not expect was that before they even reached the camp area, another accident occurred.

Several dark figures suddenly darted out from the direction opposite Chen Mo's position. They used the same tactic as before, throwing the injured figure hard against the wall of flames. The injured figure crashed heavily into the wall of flames, creating another gap. Then, the figures flashed and were about to rush into the gap to launch a sneak attack on the warriors led by Qian Wantong, hoping to wipe them out in one fell swoop.

This time, Chen Mo was already prepared.

He had been keeping a close eye on the movements in the darkness. Upon noticing the shadowy figure's unusual movements, he didn't hesitate at all. He immediately bent down, picked up a burning piece of wood, and threw it at the shadowy figure rushing in. His movements were incredibly fast and precise.

The first dark figure to rush into the gap had no time to react before being struck by burning wood. The raging flames instantly spread to its entire body, scorching its skin and making a sizzling sound. The dark figure let out a shrill scream and could only retreat quickly, desperately rushing into the darkness to extinguish the flames on its body. If the flames were allowed to continue burning, it would soon be burned to death.

Another dark figure, reacting quickly, dodged the burning wood Chen Mo threw and continued charging towards the warriors in the camp area. Its sharp claws gleamed with a cold light as it pounced on a warrior at the edge of the group, moving so fast that no one had time to react.

Just at this critical moment, a smaller burning piece of firewood suddenly flew from the side and struck the shadowy figure's arm precisely. The raging flames instantly engulfed its arm, and the burning sensation caused the shadowy figure to let out a painful roar. The claws that had been reaching out towards the martial artist were instantly retracted.

It instinctively rushed in the opposite direction of where it had been hit, trying to avoid the scorching flames. And in that direction stood two martial artists, one of whom was Ouyang Ding.

"A-Ding, retreat quickly!" Ouyang Jun was the first to spot the dark figure rushing towards them. He turned pale with fright and ran towards the interior of the camp while shouting loudly to Ouyang Ding.

At this moment, the group of them were huddled together. Although the space was cramped, there was still a sliver of space. If Ouyang Ding reacted quickly enough and retreated into the camp, he could avoid the shadowy figure's attack and save his life.

To Ouyang Jun's surprise, although Ouyang Ding heard his shouts and showed an expression of extreme tension and fear on his face, his body seemed to be nailed to the spot, unable to move even a finger.

His eyes were wide open, filled with panic and despair. He desperately tried to circulate his internal energy, wanting to move his body and escape, but no matter how hard he tried, his body did not react at all, as if he were locked in invisible shackles.