50: Chapter 50 A Man of Both Wisdom and Courage, Breaking Through the Difficult Situation

At the very instant the rain of arrows descended to shroud them, Gu Yan moved!

He did not draw his sword to parry, nor was he foolish enough to attempt to take them head-on.

He wrapped an arm around the slender waist of Liu Ruyan, who had long since turned pale with fright, and with an explosion of True Qi beneath his feet, his figure shot forward like an arrow released from the bow, advancing instead of retreating!

His target was the massive pillar in the center of the banquet hall, wide enough for three people to encircle with their arms!

Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!

Dozens of poison-tipped arrows, barely grazing their clothes, slammed into the floor and tables where they had stood just moments before, emitting a teeth-grinding thud.

The delicacies on the table instantly sizzled as the poison corroded them, turning into pools of black liquid.

"What fast movement technique!"

From the main seat, a flash of astonishment crossed Town Mayor Zhao Hong's eyes.

He had not expected that even with thirty percent of his strength suppressed by the Earth Net Formation, the opponent could still react with such agility!

But, that was all.

"Hmph, a cornered beast fighting back!"

He sneered and shot a glance at the three Guest Elders who were already poised and ready.

"Attack!"

Three figures, like three agile leopards, silently flanked the pillar from three different directions!

Behind the pillar, Gu Yan shielded Liu Ruyan behind him, his back against the cold surface of the pillar. In his ears, the sound of the enemies' footsteps, heavy with Killing Intent, grew closer and closer.

Liu Ruyan's body trembled slightly with fear.

"Do not be afraid." At this moment, Gu Yan's voice was as calm as a deep pool, clearly resonating directly within her mind through sound transmission.

"Ruyan, listen to me."

"In a moment, I will rush out and engage them. Ignore everything else; you only need to gather all your Profound Yin Qi and wait for my signal."

"When the time comes, spare no cost and unleash your purest Profound Yin Qi at… Town Mayor Zhao Hong!"

Liu Ruyan shuddered upon hearing this!

Although she did not understand tactics, she understood Gu Yan's trust!

At such a life-or-death moment, he had actually… entrusted the key to breaking the deadlock to her?!

An unprecedented warmth of being needed and trusted instantly dispelled all the fear in her heart!

"I… I understand!" she replied firmly in her heart.

"Kill!"

At that moment, the attacks from the three Guest Elders arrived simultaneously from three directions!

Blades flashed, swords danced, and fists whistled!

They wove together into an airtight net of death!

However, Gu Yan's figure was even faster than them!

With a tap of his feet, he flashed out from behind the pillar like a ghost!

He did not go to engage the three Late Stage cultivators.

His target was the elite guards who were forming a battle formation and closing in step by step!

Capture the leader first?

No!

In the face of an absolute disparity in strength, capturing the leader was equivalent to courting death!

The correct approach was… to first clip his wings and disrupt his formation!

Gu Yan's figure, like a bolt of cyan lightning, instantly charged into the guards' battle formation!

The ordinary iron in his hand, infused with the thick True Qi of Qi Refining Stage 6, erupted with unprecedented, brilliant radiance!

Blazing Fire Art, activate!

A ball of scorching, orange-red flame suddenly ignited on the blade of his sword!

"Fire Snake Art!"

He let out a low shout and swung his sword!

A ferocious fire snake, composed of pure flame, roared and lunged into the crowd!

"Ah—!"

How could the mundane guards have ever seen such immortal methods?

The battle formation was instantly thrown into chaos!

The two men hit head-on by the fire snake didn't even have time to scream before they were burned into two charred corpses!

Having succeeded with one strike, Gu Yan did not linger; his figure flashed again, killing his way toward another spot!

He was like a fierce tiger that had charged into a sheep pen; every swing of his sword was inevitably accompanied by the explosion of flames and the withering of life!

"How dare you, brat!"

Seeing this, Town Mayor Zhao Hong was furious!

He had not expected that while besieged by three experts, Gu Yan would not only fail to flee but would dare to actively attack his subordinates!

How arrogant! How… disrespectful to him!

"The three of you, go and stop that woman for me!"

"Leave this brat to me!"

Town Mayor Zhao Hong roared and, unable to hold back any longer, entered the fray himself!

His cultivation at the Peak of Level 8 Qi Refining erupted with a boom!

An Aura, more overbearing and tyrannical than anyone else's, surged into the sky!

He stomped his foot, and his entire body shot into the air like a cannonball. His hands formed claws, and with a sharp whistle that tore through the air, he descended from above, aiming directly for Gu Yan's head!

"Goshawk Hunting Rabbit!"

This claw strike was heavy with power and as fast as lightning!

Alarm bells rang loudly in Gu Yan's heart!

He dared not be the slightest bit negligent and immediately abandoned his pursuit of the guards. His footwork changed rapidly, and he narrowly slid backward several meters, dodging this fatal blow!

Boom!

Town Mayor Zhao Hong's eagle claws landed on the ground where Gu Yan had just been standing.

The hard bluestone floor, like tofu, was forcefully gouged with five finger holes several inches deep!

What powerful force!

Gu Yan's heart was heavy.

"Let's see where you can run this time!" Having missed his strike, Town Mayor Zhao Hong did not stop. His figure followed like a shadow, pressing in again. His pair of eagle claws transformed into a sky full of claw shadows, completely sealing off all of Gu Yan's retreat paths!

Gu Yan could only wave the Blazing Fire Art sword in his hand, struggling to hold on.

His cultivation was already two minor Realms lower than his opponent's.

Coupled with the suppression of the Earth Net Formation, for a time, he was driven back step by step by Town Mayor Zhao Hong, having only the ability to parry with no power to strike back!

"Hahaha! Gu Yan! Aren't you very arrogant?!"

"Where are your immortal methods?"

Town Mayor Zhao Hong laughed madly while launching fierce attacks, enjoying the thrill of a cat playing with a mouse.

He seemed to already see the beautiful scene where Gu Yan was torn to shreds by him, and all the secrets on his body became his own!

Gu Yan feigned defeat, retreating as he fought.

His footsteps, seemingly panicked, always managed to avoid fatal vital points at the most critical moments.

And the direction of his retreat was, unknowingly, constantly drawing closer to the… pillar where Liu Ruyan was!

Opportunity!

A fierce light flashed in Town Mayor Zhao Hong's eyes!

He saw that after a clumsy parry, Gu Yan's defenses were wide open, revealing a huge, fatal flaw!

This was a once-in-a-thousand-years opportunity!

He no longer held anything back and condensed all the True Qi within his Dantian into his right hand!

"Die!"

He let out a hideous roar, and with the strongest claw strike, condensing his life's cultivation, he viciously clawed toward Gu Yan's heart!

And at this very moment!

Deep within Gu Yan's "panicked" eyes, a glint of successful calculation suddenly erupted!

He used all his strength to shout hoarsely in the direction behind the pillar:

"Now!"

Liu Ruyan, who had long been poised and ready, moved without hesitation the moment she heard the signal!

She flashed out from behind the pillar. Her peach-blossom eyes, which should have been tender and soft, were now filled with determination!

She opened her cherry lips and released the mouthful of Profound Yin Qi she had accumulated her entire life, purified to the extreme, and of the purest Origin. It transformed into a visible white cold current that seemed capable of freezing the air, and without warning, she sprayed it toward the back…

Town Mayor Zhao Hong!

A sudden, bone-chilling cold exploded from Town Mayor Zhao Hong's back!

He didn't even have time to react before the extremely cold current destroyed everything in its path, breaking through his protective True Qi and invading his Meridians!

Pfft!

Town Mayor Zhao Hong's body stiffened violently!

His forward momentum came to an abrupt halt!

A mouthful of scalding blood uncontrollably sprayed from his mouth!

The fatal blow he had gathered all his strength to land on Gu Yan's heart was therefore deflected upward by several inches, whistling past Gu Yan's shoulder!

A once-in-a-thousand-years opportunity!

Gu Yan seized this brief moment while Town Mayor Zhao Hong's True Qi was backflowing and his mind was in chaos!

The Blazing Fire Art sword in his hand let out a clear sword chime, and he backhanded a strike, slashing viciously into Town Mayor Zhao Hong's chest, which was wide open because his old strength was exhausted and his new strength had not yet arisen!

Slash!

A huge, bone-deep wound extended from Town Mayor Zhao Hong's left shoulder all the way to his right abdomen!

Blood gushed out wildly!

"Ah—!!!"

Town Mayor Zhao Hong let out a scream of extreme pain, his body no longer able to stand steady, and he stumbled backward!

Having succeeded with the strike, Gu Yan did not linger!

He grabbed Liu Ruyan, who was pale and swaying from exhausting her Origin energy, and with an explosion of True Qi beneath his feet, he charged fiercely toward the corner of the encirclement that had just been torn open!