Chapter 48: Insect Master
Dense and strange sounds came from underground, like scissors cutting stone one after another. The erupting black smoke grew thicker and thicker. Li Weiyi did not dare to be careless and quickly held his breath.
“Be careful of underground! It’s fierce insects, and there’s an insect tamer nearby.”
The reminder came from the spirit tablet on the table.
Li Weiyi had heard Spirit Tablet Senior talk about “fierce insects” and “insect tamers.” Who would have thought that Chang Lin Gang actually had such a person?
So he quickly retreated, raised his sword, and leaped into the air.
He climbed along the trunk of the old poplar tree, stopping only several zhangs above the ground.
……
Insect tamer—also a cultivator on the spiritual god path, a minor category of mind master.
Leaving the nether realm aside for now, in the living realm, the ground was dominated by human race strong practitioners and fiend demon demon kings, but underground was the world of the insect race.
Insect tamers often roamed barren mountains, great marshes, underground rivers, and abysses, searching for various rare and strange insects, taming and controlling them. Sometimes, one insect tamer could rival an entire state army, capable of attacking cities and seizing territory alone, even sweeping under heaven with one’s own power.
In eras of warfare, legendary insect tamers often emerged.
……
“Swish!”
A strand of white spider silk as thick as a hair shot out from the soil like an arrow, wrapping around Li Weiyi’s left ankle.
The spider silk was extremely resilient, tightening more and more, pulling downward.
Li Weiyi mobilized five springs magic power, and with a bang, he broke free from it.
This explosive power dragged a fist-sized spider out from underground.
It had eight legs, but its back was like a turtle’s with a hard shell, and its teeth were sharp and jagged like constantly opening and closing scissors. Being bitten by it would definitely tear off a large chunk of flesh and blood.
He swung his sword and cleaved it in half instantly.
“It’s a soldier-level fierce insect, ao spider. Be careful of the spider silk they spit from their abdomens. Any level of martial arts cultivator below five seas realm has the possibility of being bound and killed. One ao spider is not hard to deal with, but a group is terrifying.” Spirit Tablet Senior said.
“Swish! Swish!”
One after another, ao spiders burst out of the ground in the courtyard, densely packed, all shooting spider silk toward Li Weiyi on the poplar tree.
If caught by several strands, or even dozens at once, the consequences would be unimaginable.
Li Weiyi urged the Yellow Dragon Sword with magic power. A bright glow appeared on the sword edge. He swung and danced the sword swiftly, absolutely not letting the spider silk get close.
The ao spiders on the ground were like an army. Suddenly, over a dozen separated and rushed toward the room where Zhao Meng and the others were hiding. At the same time, seven or eight fast-moving shadows appeared on the courtyard wall.
Two of the shadows held crossbow-like weapons, aiming at him.
Li Weiyi immediately executed Yellow Dragon Ascends to Heaven, stepping on the void and flying toward the courtyard wall six or seven zhangs away.
The crossbow-like weapons launched flying needle-like windless heavy arrows, but with two dings, Li Weiyi, who was prepared, swung his sword and knocked them flying.
The two Chang Lin Gang members who fired the windless heavy arrows were shocked. The heavy crossbows in their hands were divine weapons, killing four springs or five springs was a trivial matter. Caught off guard, even six springs or seven springs strong practitioners could die unexpectedly.
What exactly was this kid?
Did the scout get the intel right?
There was no chance to fire a second shot. Li Weiyi arrived above them like a ghost. They were terrified and trembling, about to jump over the wall to escape, but the yellow sword edge had already sliced through the night curtain right in front of them.
“Pfft!”
First sword beheaded.
Second sword pierced the heart.
The two four springs gang members, along with the heavy crossbows in their hands, fell from the zhang-high courtyard wall.
Li Weiyi’s figure moved quickly on the courtyard wall, killing from south to north, one sword per person. The night was filled with screams. After a few breaths, all seven or eight black shadows had fallen.
The next moment, he leaped to the stone steps in front of the house where Zhao Meng and the others were hiding, swung his sword toward the ground, intercepting those ao spiders.
“Sss!”
More and more ao spiders crawled out from underground, with spider silk constantly landing on him.
Wrapped around the wrist, even if he could break free, the speed of swinging the sword would slow down. Wrapped around the legs, movement and dodging would become sluggish.
Even seven or eight ao spiders were teaming up to weave a web.
At this moment, Li Weiyi finally understood what Spirit Tablet Senior meant: any level of martial arts cultivator below five seas realm could be bound and killed. If he didn’t have the Yellow Dragon Sword, his situation would be even more dire than now.
Spirit Tablet Senior’s voice came: “Ao spiders fear cold! Use the ghost flag to freeze them.”
“Ghost flag?”
Li Weiyi was puzzled.
The ghost flag from Yu Tuo Nan, Li Weiyi had urged before, could only release nether mist, with at most some defensive effect.
“Martial arts cultivators at open four springs and open five springs urging magic tools have different power. The magic power in the body has undergone essential improvement.” Spirit Tablet Senior clearly had some understanding of that ghost flag.
Li Weiyi took out the ghost flag. The magic power surging from the five spring eyes in his body ran through the sixty veins and all poured into it. Immediately, nether mist and cold air erupted out like black clouds, enveloping most of the courtyard.
Not long after.
“My ao spiders! My ao spiders…”
A hoarse voice, accompanied by hurried footsteps, rushed into the courtyard.
How could Insect Tamer Master Qi not be anxious?
He had spent decades painstakingly cultivating nearly a hundred ao spiders, allowing him to stand equal with five seas realm experts, enjoy treatment above others, and even have the Chang Lin Gang gang leader respect him by three points.
But at this moment, in the nether mist.
All the ao spiders on the ground were frozen stiff, unable to move, each covered with a thin layer of frost.
“Swish!”
The tip of the Yellow Dragon Sword pointed at his throat.
Master Qi was tall and thin, wearing a white loose robe, with deeply sunken eye sockets. Even though Li Weiyi could take his life at any time, there was no fear in his eyes.
“Hua!”
He gnashed his teeth, hatred surging.
The forehead spirit realm at his brow lit up like a lamp, launching a mind force attack.
Mind force was formless and shadowless, yet like a sword, it could directly attack the enemy’s soul spirit.
But his mind force attack landed on Li Weiyi, not only failing to kill the enemy, but instead, bell sounds appeared in his own mind, shaking his consciousness into brief confusion and frenzy.
It was just like being counterattacked by a five seas realm martial arts cultivator’s battle intent.
“Five seas realm… you’re five seas…”
Master Qi collapsed to the ground, hands clutching his head, expression in pain, face white as paper.
Li Weiyi was pondering why this old man called him five seas realm when two strong wind sounds came to his ears. So he swung out a palm, first knocking Master Qi unconscious.
“Swish! Swish!”
The two middle-aged men who had been at the third layer window side of the brothel arrived swiftly. They were Chang Lin Gang guest elders, both open seven springs figures.
For tonight’s action, they had no intention of making a move at all, only wanting to amuse themselves and incidentally help watch, preventing anyone from escaping and causing unnecessary trouble.
This kind of small job, with Master Qi’s methods, could be done silently, finished in less than a quarter hour. It wouldn’t alarm the city defense camp, or even the nearby residents. The next day, everyone would only think this group of outsiders died a non-lifely death from a fierce insect attack.
No one would investigate, and no waves would be stirred.
Master Qi fed the insects, they got the money, everyone happy.
But now, the commotion was too big. Just in this brothel alone, many people were already looking over like watching a spectacle.
If not resolved soon, city defense camp people would probably arrive.
From the sound of their rapid movement breaking the wind, Li Weiyi judged their cultivation levels, inwardly alarmed, and raised twelve points of spirit.
Two open seven springs spring gushing realm peak?
One against two?
The last time he solo-killed the open seven springs Fang Tong, he had borrowed the immensely powerful evil camel bell and black iron seal. But now, who knew how many pairs of eyes were watching this side; he didn’t dare be too flashy.
As for the ghost flag and Yellow Dragon Sword…
The might of these two seemed only like low-tier magic tools. Even if exposed, the influence would be limited.
After all, who among those who had stepped into five seas realm didn’t have one or two low-tier magic tools?
The middle-aged man with a black mole on his brow rushed in from the main gate, speed fast as an afterimage, punching out. The air caved in forward, then boomed explosively.
Fist energy overbearing, like a cannonball.
Li Weiyi took this punch head-on, his body flying backwards with the momentum, swinging his sword at the thick-bearded seven springs strong practitioner who flipped over the wall, preparing to attack Zhao Meng and the others.
These two both had battle wisdom, not reckless brutes who only knew brute force.
One restrained him from the front, the other wanted to grapple his companions, making him unable to attend to both ends, thus easier to deal with.
Since Li Weiyi saw through it, he naturally went along with the plan, preparing to take this opportunity to heavily injure one first, avoiding one against two with enemies on both flanks.
Therefore, the sword he swung at the thick-bearded seven springs strong practitioner used all his body power, drawing an arc-shaped sword mark in the darkness.
The thick-bearded seven springs strong practitioner never expected Li Weiyi to come so fast, inwardly shocked.
But after all, he was a figure immersed in the martial way for nearly jia zi, with an extremely steady mentality. Even at this life-and-death juncture, he could respond calmly.
He swung out the crescent short knife in his hand, clashing with the Yellow Dragon Sword’s sword edge.
“Szz!”
Sparks flew, friction ear-piercing.
The two separated in an instant.
Li Weiyi landed in front of the door of the house where Zhao Meng and the others were, looking at the blood sliding off the Yellow Dragon Sword’s sword edge, then at the thick-bearded seven springs strong practitioner who had rolled to the bottom of the steps. A trace of disappointment appeared in his eyes.
Just a little short.
The middle-aged man with the black mole on his brow chased up, and Li Weiyi had lost the chance to follow up with another sword.
With his current cultivation, even with magic tool assistance, even caught off guard, wanting to one-sword instant-kill a seven springs martial cultivator was still as hard as ascending to heaven.
The thick-bearded seven springs strong practitioner quickly stood up, touching his neck—his hand full of blood.
He looked again at the crescent short knife in his hand; a deep notch had appeared on the blade.
It must be known that this was no ordinary weapon, but an extremely dense heavy soldier. Even a magic tool wanting to damage an extremely dense heavy soldier was absolutely not easy.
This mark was a bit tough!
The two exchanged a glance and simultaneously attacked from left and right.
The target of the attack was not Li Weiyi, but the building behind him.
What the opponent wanted to protect most was what they had to attack.
