39: Chapter 39 Stealth Rescue, Blood Sacrifice and Shocking Change

The fierce battle high in the sky was in full swing, with Sword Qi crisscrossing and Spells roaring; that was a battlefield for Foundation Establishment or even higher-level Cultivators, far beyond what Lin Ye could reach.

But the narrow valley before him, this group of sneaky men in black, and that gaze of a fellow Disciple who had once offered a glimmer of warmth were right before his eyes, within reach.

Blood sacrifice... using the essence, blood, and soul of living Cultivators as an offering to accelerate the breaking of a demonic sword's seal or to achieve other evil purposes; such conduct is intolerable to heaven.

Moreover, it was Xiao Yun.

That silent girl who, in the Miscellaneous Chores Courtyard cafeteria, had once secretly given him an extra half a bun and quietly handed him medicine when he was bullied.

Although they had no deep relationship, that bit of kindness was enough to be remembered in this cold and cruel world of cultivation.

Lin Ye's gaze was cold and stern; he hesitated no longer.

Saving people might be dangerous, but it was also an opportunity to strike at the Yinkui Sect and disrupt their plans.

Moreover, his strength had greatly increased, and with his two rings and bone spike at his side, he was not without the power to fight.

He took a deep breath, adjusted his state to the best, activated his Qi Concealment Technique, and his figure seemed to merge into the shadows of the mountain wall as he slid down the mountain silently, sneaking towards the narrow valley entrance where the group of men in black had disappeared.

The narrow valley was deep, with steep rock walls on both sides and dim light.

Like the most seasoned hunter, Lin Ye hung far behind the men in black, keeping a safe distance while using rocks and bushes as cover.

There were six men in black in total, with cultivation levels between Qi Refining Stage 4 and 6, escorting five captives.

Besides Xiao Yun, there were three men and one woman, all wearing the uniforms of Qingyun Sect Outer Sect Disciples, their auras withered, clearly having had their cultivation sealed.

The leader was a scarred man at Qi Refining Stage 6 with a sinister gaze, who scanned his surroundings vigilantly from time to time.

"Hurry up! Shadow Envoy is still waiting for the blood guide over there!" the scarred man urged, his voice hoarse.

"Boss, I heard this blood sacrifice is no small matter; it requires invoking the Origin power of the 'Holy Sword'. These few Cauldron probably aren't enough, right?" a short, fat man in black whispered.

"Shut up! Do your job!" the scarred man scolded, but a flash of worry crossed his eyes, "Even if they aren't enough, they have to be! The higher-ups have their own arrangements."

Lin Ye felt a chill in his heart upon hearing this.

Blood guide? Cauldron? They were indeed conducting a blood sacrifice!

And it seemed that because the ritual at Black Wind Valley had failed, they were short on manpower or resources, so they had temporarily grabbed these low-level Disciples to make up the numbers.

He became even more cautious while observing the terrain of the valley.

At the end of the valley was a naturally formed grotto with a narrow entrance, where firelight flickered inside, and the smell of blood and eerie chanting could be faintly heard.

Outside the grotto, there were two more men in black standing guard.

The scarred man brought his team to the front of the grotto, exchanged a few words with the guards in low voices, and then escorted the captives inside.

Lin Ye lurked behind a giant rock at the valley entrance, his brain working at high speed.

Force his way in? There were eight of them (including the guards), and he was at the Middle Stage of Qi Refining Stage 4.

Although he could launch a sneak attack, he couldn't guarantee he wouldn't alert a potentially stronger Cultivator (Shadow Envoy?) inside the grotto.

Lure the tiger away from the mountain? What could he use to lure them? He only had some miscellaneous items on hand.

His gaze swept over the rock walls on both sides of the valley, and he suddenly noticed a few loose boulders high up on the wall, entangled with vines, which seemed ready to roll down at any moment.

Got it!

He quietly circled to one side of the valley, climbed up the rock wall, and came to a huge, teetering rock.

Using his bone spike, he carefully cut a few main vines and moved a few small stones to wedge under the boulder, creating a simple trigger device.

Then, he returned to the valley entrance, picked up a fist-sized stone, aimed at a protruding, seemingly fragile stalactite on the opposite rock wall, and threw it with all his might!

The stone cut through the air and hit the base of the stalactite with precision.

Bang! Crash!

The stalactite broke and rolled down into the valley, making quite a loud noise.

"What was that sound?!"

The two guards outside the grotto immediately became alert, one of them peering in the direction the sound came from.

"Might be a rockfall, I'll go take a look," the other guard said, walking toward the other side of the valley.

Now is the time!

Lin Ye climbed up the rock wall again, came to the boulder he had rigged, and kicked away the stone wedged underneath with a fierce kick!

Rumble—!

The unsupported boulder, along with a large amount of debris and dust, rolled down along the steep rock wall towards the entrance of the grotto!

"Not good! It's a cave-in!"

"Quick, get out of the way!"

The guards outside the grotto and the one who had just walked halfway were shocked and scrambled to dodge.

Inside the grotto, they were also startled by the sudden loud noise, and chaotic footsteps and shouting could be heard.

Chaos was exactly the opportunity Lin Ye had been waiting for!

Like a ghost, he slid down from the shadows of the rock wall, using the cover of the swirling dust to silently approach the entrance of the grotto.

His gaze swept the area, and the entrance was temporarily unguarded as everyone was dodging the falling rocks.

He flashed inside!

The grotto was more spacious than imagined, and in the center was an eerie Formation drawn in fresh blood, exuding a strong smell of blood and cold fluctuations.

Several black flags (similar to those in Black Wind Valley) were planted around the Formation, and five captives were tied to stone pillars at the edge of the Formation, including Xiao Yun.

The scarred man and four other men in black were standing on the periphery of the Formation, looking toward the entrance with suspicion and uncertainty.

"What's going on?!" the scarred man asked sharply.

"Boss, there's a cave-in outside!" a man in black replied.

"Damn it, what a time to pick! Go check the situation, don't let the Cauldron run away!" the scarred man cursed, walking toward the entrance himself.

Just at that moment, Lin Ye moved!

He did not attack the scarred man, but instead moved like lightning, lunging straight at the nearest man in black at Qi Refining Stage 5 who had his back to him!

The bone spike stabbed out silently, the tip of the bone spike infused with cold spiritual power, flickering with a deadly cold light, striking straight for the opponent's heart!

[Severing Flow]! A fatal blow!

Puchi!

The bone spike pierced accurately through the back and through the heart, the cold spiritual power instantly freezing the opponent's vitality.

The man in black didn't even grunt before falling limply to the ground.

"Enemy attack!!" the scarred man reacted extremely quickly, shouting angrily, a ghost-head blade already in his hand, hacking towards Lin Ye!

The other three men in black also drew their weapons and surrounded him.

Having succeeded with one strike, Lin Ye did not stop, his body like a swimming fish, maneuvering and dodging in the narrow grotto, avoiding the scarred man's blade.

At the same time, his left hand flicked his fingers repeatedly, and several condensed strands of cold spiritual power, like flying needles, shot towards the other three, not seeking to injure the enemy, but only to interfere.

His goal was clear—save people, destroy the Formation!

He lunged at the stone pillar where Xiao Yun was tied, waved his bone spike, and severed the ropes.

"Xiao Yun, it's me! Don't make a sound, come with me!" Lin Ye urged in a low voice, while his hands didn't stop, severing the ropes of another male Disciple nearby.

Xiao Yun's originally dim eyes suddenly lit up when she saw Lin Ye.

Although she was extremely surprised, she immediately gritted her teeth and nodded, struggling to stand up.

"Want to leave? Stay here!" The scarred man saw Lin Ye's intention and his blade became even more aggressive, and the other three also shook off the interference of the ice needles and surrounded him.

Lin Ye, fighting one against four while having to protect two newly untied and extremely weak captives, felt his pressure increase instantly.

A fierce look flashed in his eyes; he would hold back no longer!

The power of the second layer of Mystic Jade Body erupted.

He took the scarred man's blade head-on (the blade cut through his shoulder, but was mostly blocked by his jade-like skin), and at the same time, the bone spike in his right hand traced an eerie arc.

The [Hidden Edge] Sword Intent was contained within, appearing plain and unremarkable, but at the moment it clashed with a man in black's long sword, it erupted suddenly!

Crack! The long sword broke, and the bone spike, its momentum undiminished, pierced the opponent's throat!

Kill another one!

But the attacks of the other two had already reached him! A black light and a bone whip struck at Lin Ye from left and right!

At the critical moment, the ancient ring "yuan sha" on Lin Ye's left hand suddenly lit up!

A pure, refined burst of Evil Qi surged out, mixed with cold spiritual power, forming a thin, gray-black ice shield in front of him!

Puchi, puchi! The black light and bone whip hit the ice shield, shattering it, but it also neutralized most of the power.

Lin Ye groaned, retreated using the force, and blood spilled from the corner of his mouth.

"This kid is weird! Form up!" The scarred man was both shocked and angry, quickly closing in with the remaining two, seemingly intending to use a combined attack technique.

Lin Ye knew he couldn't fight for long.

The longer it dragged on, the more likely the guards outside would return, or a stronger Cultivator might appear from deep within the grotto, and then it would be over.

His gaze swept over the bloody Formation in the center, then looked at the other three captives who had not yet been rescued, a flash of determination in his eyes.

"I'm sorry!" he whispered, and suddenly, pouring his entire spiritual power into the bone spike in his hand, he threw it fiercely at the most important black flag in the center of the Formation!

At the same time, he grabbed Xiao Yun with his left hand and the untied male Disciple with his right, and rushed towards an inconspicuous gap on the other side of the grotto, where a breeze seemed to be flowing in!

"Stop him! Destroying my Formation, you're courting death!" The scarred man's eyes were splitting with rage; he abandoned Lin Ye and slashed his blade at the flying bone spike.

But the bone spike was too fast, and it contained Lin Ye's entire spiritual power and [Severing Flow] Sword Intent; the scarred man's blade only hit the tail end.

Crack! The bone spike broke into two, but the front half still accurately pierced that flag!

The flagpole snapped, and the flag tore!

The entire bloody Formation shuddered violently, its light suddenly dimming, and the drawn blood lines seemed to come alive, twisting violently and emitting unstable fluctuations.

"The Formation is going to backfire! Retreat!" The scarred man's face changed drastically, and he couldn't care about Lin Ye anymore, retreating in a panic with the remaining two.

And Lin Ye had already pulled Xiao Yun and the male Disciple into that narrow gap!

The gap was extremely narrow at first, only allowing one person to pass sideways, but after going a few zhang deep, it suddenly opened up; it was actually a natural fissure leading deep into the mountain, with no idea where it led.

Behind them came the roar of the Formation's backlash, the angry roars of the scarred man and the others, and... the desperate screams of the other three captives.

Lin Ye's heart sank, but he didn't stop his feet for a second, dragging the two of them as he sprinted through the dark fissure.

He didn't know how long they had run, until there was absolutely no sound behind them, and the three of them stopped from exhaustion, collapsing to the ground and gasping violently.

"Lin... Lin Ye? Is it really you?" Xiao Yun's weak voice carried disbelief, "How... how are you here? And you've become so powerful?"

The male Disciple also cast a look of gratitude and suspicion.

Lin Ye did not answer; he was more concerned about another matter.

He had rescued Xiao Yun and one male Disciple, but he had destroyed the blood sacrifice Formation and killed people from the Yinkui Sect; he had definitely alerted the enemy.

And what made him even more uneasy was that at the moment the Formation was destroyed and backfired, through the bone ring "bone ring", he vaguely felt an extremely cold, powerful, and malicious Divine Sense sweep past from deep within the grotto.

Although it was fleeting, that feeling of being watched made his heart jump.

Was it that "Shadow Envoy"? Or some other expert from the Yinkui Sect?

They definitely wouldn't let it go!

He had to leave here immediately and find a safer place to hide.

But where did this fissure lead? Had the outside already been sealed off by the Yinkui Sect?

He looked at the two who were still shaken and said in a deep voice, "No time to explain. If you want to live, stay close to me."

Before he could finish speaking.

From deep within the fissure, a slight "rustling" sound, as if something was crawling, suddenly came from far to near.

In the darkness, several pairs of scarlet light points lit up.