84: Chapter 84 The mantis stalks the cicada

Silent all the way, the crowd moved forward in silence.

Along the way, they occasionally encountered one or two Demonic Beasts, all at the early to mid stages of the First Rank, which were easily killed by the group.

Until the third day, they entered an endless dense forest.

The night grew deeper.

"Let's rest here tonight."

The Bald Man looked up at the night sky and chose to pitch camp by a small stream near a water source.

The others naturally had no objections, and you, acting as an insignificant background person, were directly ignored.

You found a fairly flat bluestone, flicked your sleeves slightly, and used your spiritual power to brush away the dust on it. Then, resting your chin in your hands, you sat down peacefully, quietly watching that group of people busy pitching camp with a calm expression, as if you were an outsider.

These few people reeked of strangeness everywhere.

With your divine sense, which far surpassed the early Foundation Establishment Stage, every move they made along the way was under your control.

The urgency on Han Xuan's face did not seem faked, and the woman in the carriage clearly had an extraordinary relationship with him.

Then why didn't he take her alone to Duanlong City for treatment, instead choosing to travel with these people of unknown origin and waste time for nothing?

The sharp-faced, monkey-cheeked young man acted submissively and obsequiously towards the Bald Man and his group on the surface, yet there was not a trace of fear in the depths of his eyes, and he occasionally sized up the few of you with a sinister gaze.

On the contrary, those three fellows who seemed to be up to wretched deeds behaved the most "normally". Their eye contact had not stopped the whole way, diligently plotting some scheme.

"Fellow Daoist Lianhuan, come over and have a bite together?"

The trio had already set up a campfire, and the aroma of roasted meat drifted in the night wind as the Bald Man warmly greeted you.

Mhm, your name is currently Shen Lianhuan.

"Thank you, Bald Brother."

You revealed a subtle smile, shifted your lotus steps lightly, and slowly walked over to sit by the campfire.

"I've already told you my surname is Liu."

"Alright, Bald Brother."

"..."

You took the roasted meat he handed over, took a gentle small bite, and found the taste was not bad.

Mhm... and they even added a bit of Spirit-Restricting Powder?

It's a pity the medicinal power was too weak; it most likely could only work on cultivators in the Qi Refining Stage.

However, it didn't matter. For you, even without mobilizing your spiritual power, your physical strength alone was enough to crush this entire group to death.

Seeing you eat it, the smile on the Bald Man's face grew a bit more eager, and then he handed another piece of roasted meat toward Han Xuan.

"Fellow Daoist Han, you've worked hard on the journey, have some too."

Han Xuan nodded, reached out to take the roasted meat, and paused slightly as his gaze swept past you. At that instant, you clearly caught the flash of pity in his eyes.

This kid really did see through it.

To actually not use voice transmission to remind you and play the hero saving the damsel in distress? No wait... you don't seem very pretty right now.

Then it's fine.

Because judging others by oneself, if it were you, you wouldn't save them either...

After taking the roasted meat, Han Xuan did not eat it right away; instead, he got up and walked toward the beast carriage. Everyone was long used to this. After all, these past few days, if he had nothing to do, he usually stayed inside the carriage.

Time ticked away bit by bit.

Until you swallowed the last piece of roasted meat, you still lightly licked your red lips with lingering satisfaction.

Your gaze swept across those three people, who no longer concealed the sinister smiles on their faces at this moment. You sighed silently in your heart: With this culinary skill, wouldn't it be better to honestly open a roast meat shop instead of doing this business of licking blood off the blade?

"Fellow Daoist Lianhuan, have you eaten well?"

"I've eaten well, thank you, Bald Brother."

You still thanked him in a gentle and soft voice.

"Hahaha, did you hear that? She even wants to thank me!"

Hearing this, the Bald Man grinned, his smile appearing exceptionally ferocious under the firelight.

Spiritual power churned at your fingertips, and you were just about to send this group off to the cycle of reincarnation when suddenly, an extremely chilly aura entered your divine sense range.

Your gaze narrowed, and you quietly withdrew your momentum, choosing to hold your ground for the time being.

"You... what are you guys going to do?"

Your voice trembled slightly, your complexion instantly turned pale, and your petite body shrank backward while shivering, pitiful and helpless.

"Where is my spiritual power... Wuwuwu... Help me~"

"Hehehe! Scream all you want, even if you scream your throat out, no one will save you."

Another man licked his chapped lips, looked you up and down, and a naked desire and greed ignited in the depths of his eyes.

"Wuwuwu, broken throat~ broken throat~"

"..."

The scene was shocked into silence for a moment by your shouts.

"Is this little chick mentally defective?"

The Bald Man scratched his shiny forehead, wearing an expression as if looking at a fool.

"Screw it, I'll have some fun first!"

Another man's gaze firmly locked onto your exquisite curves outlined by your long dress as you sat fallen on the ground. His Adam's apple kept rolling, as if he would pounce on you in the next second.

"Sigh~"

At this moment, a sigh sounded out.

"Han still advises a few of you to leave as soon as possible, otherwise you won't be able to leave later."

Hearing the sound, several people turned their heads to see that Han Xuan had somehow already stood outside the carriage, looking toward the depths of the dense forest with a solemn expression.

"Playing the ghost and acting mysterious."

The Bald Man's whole body shuddered, involuntarily shivering, and then he became angry out of humiliation, roaring sternly at Han Xuan:

"Kill him first!"

The three exchanged a glance, their figures suddenly moving as they violently rushed toward the carriage together, the magical tools in their hands emitting biting cold gleams under the moonlight.

Seeing this, Han Xuan furrowed his brow slightly.

These three were all experts in the Late Qi Refining Stage. If they fought here, weapons had no eyes, and it was feared it would affect the carriage behind him.

Just at this moment, a gust of eerie wind blew over, the campfire in the center of the clearing flickered, and finally went out abruptly with a "chi" sound.

"Wuwuwu~"

A low sobbing came faintly from the depths of the dense forest, making one involuntarily feel a chill run down their spine.

Several people instinctively looked toward you, seeing that you were not crying, but staring blankly at the distant dense forest, your complexion as pale as paper as if you had seen some filthy thing. Immediately, they all shivered together, and an ominous feeling crawled up their spines.

The night wind gradually stopped, the sounds of insects and birds chirping in the forest also quietly disappeared, and the air seemed to have become much thicker.

"Gulp~!"

The trio's Adam's apples rolled, swallowing a mouthful of saliva in unison, and their footsteps silently moved backward.

Judging by their experience of robbing for many years, that thing of unknown origin was definitely not something they could afford to provoke.

"Wuwuwu~"

That sobbing sound was near and far; after a few breaths, as if teleporting, it had already arrived at the exit position from the depths of the dense forest.

Everyone finally saw the true face of that thing clearly.

A figure dressed in blood-red clothes slowly emerged from the forest, barefoot and suspended in the air, with dark hair like a waterfall cascading down to her waist, half-covering a bloodless face.

Her neck was crooked, as if it had been snapped raw by someone, and she just hovered quietly before everyone's eyes.

After a moment of dead silence, an eerie smile suddenly bloomed on that pale face.

The next instant, a fierce wind rose in the forest, and the ghost shadow had already disappeared without a trace.

An icy and low voice sounded in everyone's ears:

"Hehehe... Let me take a bite, okay?"