71: Uncle Snake's enthusiasm, invitation to Ghost Crying Gorge

At the Konoha front line, in a dark and damp underground base.

The air was filled with a strange mixture of formaldehyde and earth, and water droplets seeped from the walls, like the constant cold sweat of this cavern.

Orochimaru extended his long tongue, and with an almost reverent posture, gently licked the glass dish containing the grayish-white “skin” sample.

A cold sensation came from the tip of his tongue, making his narrow golden vertical pupils flicker with a morbid fanaticism, more intense than when he saw any S-rank forbidden Ninjutsu scroll.

Immortality? No, no, no.

What a shallow word that was.

Edo Tensei summoned a mix of dust and souls, and Impure World Reincarnation craved a fresh vessel.

Both had unavoidable flaws.

But this sample was different.

It displayed the ultimate art of solidifying and preserving life and Chakra at the rule level! It was the complete transformation of fleeting vitality into eternal “existence”! The mysteries within it far surpassed all of his current research.

“Sarutobi-sensei is still so naive, actually only treating it as a Bloodline Limit, warning me not to act rashly…” Orochimaru let out a hoarse, low laugh, which echoed in the empty base, carrying a hint of mockery.

He casually tossed the Hokage’s secret letter into the brazier, and the scarlet flames immediately devoured the paper, watching it curl, char, and turn to ash.

“Hehehe, this isn't some ‘murderer,’ this is a guide.”

He turned, his gaze falling on the shadow in the corner. There, a figure knelt on one knee, as silent as a stone statue.

“Kidōmaru.”

“At your service, Lord Orochimaru.” The Ninja named Kidōmaru raised his head, a hint of sinister confidence on his face, as if no mission in the world could stump him.

“Take your ‘Fifty Men’ and go to Duanfeng Pass in the Land of Wind.”

“The target is?”

“Sunagakure’s Tang Yan.” Orochimaru’s tone suddenly became full of allure, each word like the whisper of a venomous snake, “I want him alive. If not…” He paused, his golden vertical pupils slightly narrowed, “That ‘Pluto’ puppet that can cast ‘Petrification’ Ninjutsu must be brought back. Remember, that’s not just a puppet, that might be a… key to the realm of gods!”

…

At the same time, Duanfeng Pass.

In stark contrast to the gloomy coldness of the Konoha base, it was bustling with activity here, and the air was filled with an optimistic scent of “advantage is mine.”

Two months of high-intensity tug-of-war not only didn't exhaust the Sunagakure side, but instead made them fight with increasing vigor under Tang Yan’s leadership.

“Get moving! Haven’t you eaten?!”

On the training ground, Zi Luo, shirtless, his bronze muscles glistening with sweat, roared at a group of new recruits amidst the dust, “What is the essence of Sunagakure-style Taijutsu? It’s water! You must be like water! Soft when you need to be soft, and hard when you need to be… hard enough! Do you understand?!”

“Understood, Instructor!” The recruits roared until their voices were hoarse.

These were all sent by Ryosuke, Tang Yan’s direct troops. Their Ninjutsu was decent, but their Taijutsu was terrible. Now, they were howling under Zi Luo’s training, looking at him with a mix of awe and fear.

In the command tent not far away, Qian was methodically processing intelligence.

The captured Konoha secret documents and battlefield data were efficiently integrated by her, establishing a brand new battlefield early warning system.

She was now like a high-precision human radar; no disturbance could escape her eyes.

And at the center of all this, Tang Yan, was in the temporarily modified workshop.

The inventory of Ci Hua Fortress, plus his own private collection, had all transformed into the spider puppet before him.

He held a specially made miniature wrench, his fingertips twisting, precisely screwing a silver bearing engraved with runes into the spider puppet’s rear leg joint.

The temporary workshop was brightly lit, casting his focused profile onto the cold metal casing.

This new puppet was vastly different in style from his previous works. Its eight long legs were slender but concealed deadly intent. Its abdomen was raised, and its surface was not a smooth carapace, but rather composed of hundreds of small hexagonal plates, each shimmering with a different metallic luster.

“Click.”

The last part clicked into place, fitting perfectly. Tang Yan put down his tools, stepped back two paces, and surveyed his masterpiece.

The inventory of materials confiscated from Ci Hua Fortress had been almost completely emptied by him. Those rare metals and Chakra alloys, sealed for many years, had now become part of this predator.

It lay there quietly, like a hunter that had waited for thousands of years, just waiting for a command to awaken.

It was a brand new puppet, with eight spider legs, and complex Tang Clan mechanisms at its joints, clearly designed to adapt to extremely complex terrain.

He was not only an invincible commander, but also, relying on the miraculous medical abilities of [Apothecary - Diligence], he had become the “divine doctor” who could bring the dead back to life for the entire camp, his prestige having long surpassed that of the former ‘Commander’ Sato.

Just then, the tent flap was violently thrown open by a great force.

A scout stumbled in, his sand armor covered in scratches, his face filled with panic and exhaustion: “Lord Tang Yan! A Konoha unit of dozens of people has been spotted! Not many in number, but extremely powerful!”

The atmosphere inside the tent instantly solidified.

Qian was the fastest; she had already marked the enemy’s route on the sand table based on the scout’s brief report, her brows tightly furrowed: “This path… is too tricky. They completely avoided our three main patrol routes and all our secret sentries. Their objective is extremely strong.”

Sato and the other officers gathered around, their expressions tense.

“They’re coming directly for the command center! Lord Tang Yan, immediately put everyone on alert and defend the pass to the death!”

“It’s just a team of dozens of people, no need to be so nervous, right? Do they dare to attack the defense line?” A young officer was somewhat dismissive.

Qian gave him a cold glance: “A ‘squad’ that can precisely pass through our three layers of dynamic defense? Their intelligence source, or rather, their tracking and enemy-seeking ability, has already exceeded our understanding.”

Tang Yan slowly put down the charcoal pencil in his hand, his gaze shifting from the complex and precise puppet blueprints.

He didn’t look at the sand table, nor at the panicked scout, but rather scanned the people inside the tent.

His voice was calm, but it made everyone’s hearts sink.

“They are not here to probe, nor to harass.”

Tang Yan stretched out a finger and gently tapped the very center of the sand table, on the mark representing their current location.

“They are here for a beheading. The target is me, what a strange way to attack.”

Tang Yan put down the charcoal pencil, walked to the sand table, his gaze sweeping over it, and a slight curve appeared at the corner of his mouth.

This was not a conventional military counterattack; it was a “kidnapping” or “assassination” aimed at him personally.

“Hold fast?” Tang Yan shook his finger, “No, that’s a coward’s tactic. If I don’t go out, they can’t break in anyway, after all, their numbers are too small. Orochimaru must have guessed that I would go out to meet them, rather than send troops to encircle and suppress.”

“Then, isn’t Orochimaru afraid that we will send Ninja troops to encircle and suppress?” Sato asked the question in his heart at the appropriate moment.

“Then he will send a large force to attack ‘Duanfeng Pass’ to tie up our troops. Our Ninjas are already fewer than Konoha’s, and ‘Duanfeng Pass’ might not be able to support a two-front war.”

His fingertip gently tapped a treacherous gorge on the sand table, where three characters were marked in red ink — Guiku Gorge.

“Since guests have come uninvited, we must fulfill our duties as hosts.” His voice was not loud, but it instantly silenced all the tense discussions in the tent. “Sato, you guard the pass with your men to prevent any follow-up Konoha troops. Qian, continue monitoring the battlefield, report any anomalies immediately.”

“What about us?” A young officer couldn’t help but ask.

Tang Yan looked at him, the amusement in his eyes making the officer’s heart skip a beat.

“We go to ‘Guiku Gorge’ to prepare a grand welcoming gift for our esteemed guests who have come a long way.”

The plan quickly took shape.

When Zi Luo received the mission, his eyes shone frighteningly, and his bronze muscles tensed slightly with excitement.

“I’m taking people to be bait? To lure them into Guiku Gorge? Alright! Mission accomplished, guaranteed!” He patted his chest, then leaned closer, rubbing his hands, his expression somewhat fawning, “Um… Lord Tang Yan, can I have more explosive tags? Just a little bit, I want to see a big fireworks display, the bigger the better.”

Tang Yan glanced at him and tossed a thick scroll from his Ninja tool pouch.

Zi Luo fumbled to catch it, opened it, and immediately grinned from ear to ear.

The true killing move was personally arranged by Tang Yan.

Guiku Gorge, named for the sharp whistling sound the wind made when blowing through its narrow terrain, was a deadly place that even sand bandits avoided.

Tang Yan infiltrated it alone, his figure almost indistinguishable from the surrounding rocks and shadows under the effect of “Illusionary Body Obscuration.”

He extended his hands, his fingers long and slender, his nails hard.

The puppet [Apothecary - Diligence] appeared silently beside him, its long, lustrous black hair gently swaying even without wind.

Tang Yan’s fingers moved slightly, and strands of “shadowless silk” even finer than hair were drawn from the puppet’s hair. These threads, optimized and modified by his Myriad Celestial Crafts Box, had reached a terrifying level of toughness and sharpness.

His fingers flew, moving so fast they left afterimages, performing a complex and precise weaving.

Invisible threads, pulled and fixed by him with the exquisite technique of Controlling Crane Capturing Dragon, between the rock walls, crevices, and dead trees on both sides of the gorge. There was no fixed pattern, no discernible regularity; a three-dimensional killing net, crisscrossing and covering the entire gorge, was silently taking shape.

Then, he took out a specially made crystal bottle from a scroll, which contained a new type of neuro-paralytic potent poison extracted from the tail stinger of the “Golden Scorpion,” a specialty of the Land of Wind, further catalyzed by Qi Poison, making its toxicity incredibly potent.

He carefully applied the potent poison to each thread, his movements gentle, as if polishing a work of art.

The entire gorge thus became a huge, deadly mechanism.

On the other side, the elite squad led by Kidōmaru easily caught up with Zi Luo and his group, who were on the “lure” mission.

“Hmph, Sunagakure trash, all they can do is run.” Kidōmaru scoffed disdainfully.

They moved extremely fast, chasing into Guiku Gorge without hesitation.

Deep in the gorge, Zi Luo looked back at the approaching enemies, a wide smile on his face, and roared at the new recruits behind him: “Now! Blow them up, you bastards!”

Boom—!

A violent explosion resounded through the gorge. Dozens of explosive tags detonated simultaneously at preset locations, raising a sky-obscuring cloud of dust and debris, instantly completely obscuring the pursuers’ vision and perception.

Zi Luo and his men took advantage of the chaos to successfully escape through a pre-reserved small path.

Kidōmaru and the others easily passed through the dust. The power of their Cursed Seal made their skin harden, and the impact of the explosion caused no substantial damage.

“Child’s play.” He was about to give the order to harvest any “stragglers” who might still be in the dust.

But the moment he stepped into the central area of the gorge, a fatal warning, without any prior sign, shot up his spine to the top of his head!

His perception, far exceeding that of ordinary people, was frantically alarming him!

Kidōmaru abruptly lowered his head.

A nearly completely transparent thread, at some unknown point, had already tightly wrapped around his ankle.

A cold numbing sensation was frantically invading his body along his skin, and even his proud Cursed Seal power was temporarily suppressed in the face of this toxin!

He looked up in horror.

One of his companions, still in a forward-charging posture, had been instantly cut into more than a dozen pieces by an invisible sharp blade, flesh and internal organs scattered across the ground.

Another companion was frozen in place, a sinister grin still on his face, but large patches of eerie black-purple toxic patterns had rapidly appeared on his body, and his life force was draining away at a visible rate.

An unseen web of death had already tightened.

From the shadows in all directions, six pairs of puppet eyes, emitting different faint glows, quietly lit up at the same moment.