Knife splashing

Chapter 382 Dark Forest Night Attack
"This is…"

The spy Gong Qian's expression immediately turned ugly.

He took a deep breath and said solemnly, "This is my fault. We should not stay here for long. Let's leave immediately!"

"Hey~ what's the hurry?"

Li Yan shook his head slightly. "It will be dark soon. We finally have a place to stay. Let's rest for a night first."

After saying that, he took the lead and went towards the ruined temple.

When I arrived at the temple, I took a look at the couplet and laughed out loud.

The spy Gong Qian frowned and asked, "Why is Mr. Li laughing?"

Li Yan pointed at the broken couplet and said, "I have also seen Xu Shu's temple near Xiangyang. There it says 'Recommended Ge and divided the country into three parts, which will be passed down through the ages. Selected virtuous people and appointed capable people, and unified the country for ten thousand years.'"

"And here it says 'He sang a song to recommend himself in Xinye, but said nothing when he arrived at Cao's camp'. It was indeed erected by a member of the Xu family, who refused to use Zhuge's name."

Gong Xun's eyes twitched, and he advised: "Young Master Li, now is not the time to talk about this. If you want to wait and kill the enemy, we should make arrangements in advance."

As expected of a spy from the Duwei Division, he immediately figured out Li Yan's intention.

"Not urgent."

However, Li Yan just replied and quickly entered the temple.

The others followed closely, but Wu Ba followed Lu San's order and carried the bruised and swollen macaque.

This temple is not big. After several surrounding rooms collapsed, only the main hall is left standing alone.

On the brick altar in the hall, the statue of a scholar dressed in Hanfu has lost its head and is covered with cobwebs and dust.

The surrounding walls were mottled and moldy, and the murals had long since fallen off. Only one area had been cleaned and some straw was placed there, with an extinguished fire in the center.

Li Yan took a look and all his doubts were dispelled.

The straw pile was full of the scent of spies. It seemed that he had been living there for a long time, but he did not know the secret techniques, so he was followed.

As for the others, they also moved quickly.

Sharifei gathered the firewood and piled all the sundries in the ruined temple in the middle, then he jumped onto the beams and made a few holes to serve as shooting holes...

When Lu San whistled, Rat Rat Er immediately rushed out of the ruined temple. After a while, a squeaking sound was heard in the dense forest...

Wang Daoxuan laid out a number of magical instruments, apparently to set up a simple altar, while the strong Wu Ba stood by his side...

Although it seems careless, the whole team is well organized.

Gong Xun was secretly surprised, and then he remembered that the team in front of him was very famous in the whole Ezhou, and even the imperial court and Zhenwu Palace were willing to pay a large sum of money to hire them.

Thinking of this, he immediately adjusted his mentality, bowed respectfully and said: "Young Master Li, if you have any arrangements, just tell me!"

"Not urgent."

Li Yan smiled slightly, sat back and lit the bonfire, then said, "Who knew you were coming out to help us this time?"

Gong Xun understood immediately and whispered, "Young Master Li suspects that there is a traitor in the Duwei Division?"

Seeing Li Yan nod in agreement, he pondered for a moment and said, "The fact that Young Master Li came to Nanzhang cannot be hidden from others, but what he is here for is a secret."

"The Duwei Division was arranged by Captain Huang himself, and no one else knew about it. After I received the order, I immediately hid my tracks and waited nearby..."

"Zhenwu Palace is cooperating with the Baokang army in the battle. Only a few high-ranking generals in the army know about it..."

“It is not possible to determine which party leaked it.”

Li Yan was not surprised. He looked at the sunset outside the temple and said in a deep voice, "We must act secretly to cross the battlefield and enter Shennongjia. If we don't find the person, it will be a major hidden danger."

"Let's see who attacks later, and interrogate them after we catch them."

"If you can't get anything out of me, I will immediately disappear from sight, leave from the forest path, and not come into contact with anyone."

"Just follow what Young Master Li wants."

Gong Qian nodded seriously.

He knew that Li Yan had something else to say.

If this happens and his whereabouts are revealed, then there is something wrong with him!
Li Yan smiled slightly and said no more. After walking out of the ruined temple, he looked around, took out the compass, found five places, and planted the "Five-sided Luofeng Flag" respectively...

…………

Unconsciously, the night is getting darker.

Knowing that there would be no peace tonight, everyone simply ate some dry food, then took their weapons and sat by the campfire.

Seeing that the atmosphere was somewhat dull, Li Yan asked, "Brother Gong, since the court has sent you to be our guide, you must be very familiar with Shennongjia. Can you tell me about it?"

Gong Qun nodded and said, "Young Master Li is right. I do know Shennongjia quite well."

"Shennongjia has an ancient origin. It is said that Shennong tasted hundreds of herbs here, built a wooden altar, and flew into the sky on a crane, hence the name Shennongjia. It borders Zhushan in the north, Badong in the south, Baokang in the east, and Wushan and Wuxi counties in the west."

"I am from Badong, my family has been hunters for generations. I followed my father into Shennongjia when I was young, and later I was introduced to the Duwei Division."

"The ancient trees there are towering and form a fortress-like structure. We call it the 'Wooden City'. It is surrounded by thousands of mountains and has a changeable climate. Sometimes you can experience wind, frost, rain and snow in one day."

“There are three common dangers.”

"One is the wall of ghosts. After entering the forest, thick fog often rises, and the compass becomes ineffective. People are often trapped in it and cannot get out until they die. Even experienced old hunters dare not go too deep..."

"The second is the wild beasts in the mountains. Jackals, tigers, leopards, bears and leopards are nothing. There are also some strange beasts that I have never even heard of. Some animals in the mountains have also turned white and often show supernatural powers..."

"The third is some mountain gods and spirits, who are very hostile to outsiders. They are the masters of the forest, and once they are discovered, they will continue to harass..."

"In recent years, only Medicine Saint Li Shizhen, with the help of several Xuanmen masters, has been able to enter and exit safely several times."

"I see…"

Li Yan said thoughtfully: "We are going to enter Shennongjia to find an evil dragon. Are there any alpine lakes there?"

"Have!"

Gong Qun said confidently: "I once climbed a high mountain with my father and looked out from afar and saw a large lake."

"My father said that the place is called Jiulong Lake. It is said that when Xue Gang rebelled against the Tang Dynasty, he stationed troops by the lake to train. But the area is surrounded by swamps and one could easily fall into them. I have never been close to it."

"In addition, there are some hidden large lakes, sometimes hidden deep in the mountains, which can only be seen in special weather conditions..."

Listening to Gong Xun's story, Sharifei suddenly had a headache and said, "This money is not easy to earn. It's troublesome to pass through the chaotic land. It's probably even more dangerous after entering Shennongjia."

Li Yan shook his head and said, "It's okay. According to the information from the treasure hunter, he heard that the trapped dragon is not far from Baokang County. We don't need to go too deep."

Gong Xun quickly said, "I do know a secret path that can avoid the war zone and enter Shennongjia from the uninhabited forest area..."

"Squeak!"

As he was speaking, Shu Da suddenly called out.

Lu San immediately reminded in a low voice, "Someone is coming, and there are quite a few of them!"

"Be careful."

Li Yan gave an instruction, then closed his eyes and lightly flicked his little finger. Immediately, a Chu Ling paper figurine flew out from the leather bag on his waist and disappeared into the night silently.

Today, the Chu Ling paper man is even faster, like a white shadow, shuttling quickly between the trees in the dense forest.

Through his perspective, Li Yan also quickly saw the enemy.

It was a huge group of men, all in dishevel, with black scarves covering their faces, sharp blades hanging from their waists, bows and arrows in their hands, about sixty or seventy of them, marching in disarray. Bandits?

Li Yan frowned suddenly.

He guessed the identities of these people at a glance.

Their team's intelligence must have been leaked.

Isn't sending these people here to die?
When they arrived outside the dense forest, the bandits stopped immediately. A skinny man said to the leader, "Boss, this is it!"

The leader was a burly man with a tall and strong build, bare chest, black hair all over his belly and chest, a fierce face, a beard, and holding a long Miao knife.

He didn't notice Li Yan was watching him secretly. He looked at the forest with his sinister triangular eyes and whispered, "Did you find out everything?"

"Absolutely no problem."

The skinny man said quickly: "I am familiar with this area. The dilapidated temple those people mentioned is only here!"

"Boss, let's charge in!"

A short and fat man nearby quickly responded.

"Kill the hell!"

The leading man said coldly: "Five thousand taels of silver is not so easy to take. Those people may be difficult to deal with. Don't rush into the forest. Be careful of an ambush."

"Set fire, force them out, and shoot them to death!"

"Yes, Boss!"

The bandits responded in unison, then took off their bows and arrows, wrapped cloth strips with kerosene, and prepared to set fire to the forest.

"Humph!"

Inside the ruined temple, Li Yan immediately opened his eyes and told the story again, "Brother Lu, it's up to you. These people are covering up, and there must be someone hiding in the dark preparing for a sneak attack."

Lu San didn't waste any words and just patted the magic gourd.

hum!
A dense swarm of poisonous bees suddenly rushed out.

The demon gourd has been upgraded now, especially recently the poisonous bees have devoured a large number of "Jiao Gu", the toxicity has become more severe, each one is as thick as a finger, pitch black, and difficult to see at night.

Accompanied by the buzzing sound of wings, the bandits rolled on the ground crying and shouting before they could even react.

A slight sting from these poisonous bees would cause pain like burning your skin with a branding iron, and within a few breaths, a large black and blue lump the size of a steamed bun would appear on your body.

It is so poisonous that even a strong man cannot withstand it.

Some of the bandits were hit twice and fell to the ground foaming at the mouth, while most of them jumped and fled into the distance.

Before long, a large group of people fell to the ground, wailing continuously.

The bandit leader stepped into the dark energy and was considered a good fighter, but he couldn't stand the sting of the poisonous bee. His whole face was swollen. He knew he had kicked an iron plate. He endured the severe pain and clasped his fists and said, "Please spare my life, gentlemen. I accept the defeat!"

No one responded in the dark forest.

hum!
The swarm of poisonous bees quickly left and returned to the magic gourd.

Upon seeing this, the bandit leader gritted his teeth and ran away, not caring about his subordinates who were groaning on the ground.

puff!
Just after he ran a dozen meters, his whole body stiffened, a huge bloody hole appeared on his head, and he fell to the ground with a thud.

In the darkness, three people slowly walked out.

On the left is an old nun, wearing a black cotton robe, with a livid face, covered with age spots, and emitting a strong smell of corpse...

On the right is a dwarf, who is obviously middle-aged, but wears a red bellyband, has a high braid, and has blush on his face, and is shaking his head with a smile...

The leader was a man dressed in black, with a white scarf on his head, a red belt around his waist, and a long sword on his back.

"He's really a tough guy!"

The man in black said coldly: "This bonus is not easy to take, Corpse Woman, force them out!"

The old nun with a livid face nodded slightly, and finally took out a black wooden fish from her waist, and knocked it with her eyes closed, muttering a spell, her body twitching constantly.

Call ~
In an instant, a dark wind began to blow.

In the surrounding mountains and forests, the leaves rustled and thick fog gradually rose. Figures appeared one after another. Judging from their clothes, they were ordinary people, but their faces were all dark and their heads were hung.

Boom boom boom!
The sound of wooden fish continued and the thick fog spread rapidly.

The bandits who were lying on the ground suddenly froze, then stood up straight, with dull faces, and walked on tiptoe into the dense forest...

"The Three Ghosts of Wuchang!"

In the ruined temple, upon hearing Li Yan's story, Gong Qun exclaimed in surprise and said in a hurry: "They are the most famous evil cultivators in Wuchang."

"One is called Corpse Woman, who is good at controlling ghosts. Another is called Huang Jilang, who is good at puppetry. The leader is called Long Kan, a swordsman from Longyou and a master of Hua Jin!"

"They were famous demons in Ezhou a few years ago. After committing a bloody crime in Hanyang, they were wanted by both the Duwei Division and the Law Enforcement Hall. They disappeared without a trace. I didn't expect them to join in the fun this time."

"That's great, kill him and get the reward!"

Li Yan immediately stood up and took out the Cloud Thunder God Drum which had not been used for a long time from his bag. He said, "They want to force us out. There must be an ambush outside. I will break the evil spell first."

"Brother Lu San, be careful of the puppets!"

After saying this, he hung six Three Talents Demon-Suppressing Coins and Knife Tassels on the Cloud and Thunder God Drum, concentrated his mind, made a cloud and thunder sound, and clapped it lightly.

boom!
There was a muffled thunder and the sound of drums spread outward.

He has now entered the realm of Hua Jin, and with his third level of Taoism, he can control the Cloud Thunder God Drum and exert its full power.

The sound of the drums was like thunder and like a sudden burst of wind and thunder.

The howling wind blew up the fallen leaves on the ground and swept through the dense forest in an instant. Wherever it passed, the possessed bandits fell to the ground one after another, and black smoke dispersed from their bodies.

The evil spirits that possessed them immediately destroyed their souls.

puff!
The corpse woman's magic was broken, and she spat out a mouthful of black blood and her body shook.

"Hehehe... old woman, you can't do it."

The dwarf with a ponytail next to him laughed strangely, then twisted his body, and a pale paper puppet jumped out from the bamboo basket behind him.

He took out a bamboo tube with a fuse from his arms, lit it and stuffed it into the puppet. A hint of excitement flashed in his eyes and he whistled.

Swish!
The puppet dragged a long fuse and rushed directly into the dense forest.

The corpse woman next to him wiped the blood from her mouth and said coldly: "Look at what you are capable of. You always rely on external objects."

"External things are not external things, as long as they are useful!"

The leading swordsman showed a hint of smile.

They used this trick to kill several masters, and that was why they accepted this job regardless of the consequences.

boom!
Before he could finish his words, there was a sudden explosion in the dense forest, and the forest was filled with fire, smoke, and branches and leaves flying everywhere.

However, it was Li Yan who smelled a strange smell and shot the puppet to pieces.

In the dilapidated temple, Sharifei was happy.

"Well, try this on us!"

(End of this chapter)