231: Chapter 231 The True and False White Snake Cult

Moreover, this was an extremely sophisticated and wide-ranging large-scale illusion formation, capable of passing off as reality.

It could not only distort sight and hearing but even simulate the auras and faint life fluctuations of so many people.

If not for Su Chen's sharp divine sense and the Power of the Human Emperor he possessed, which made him exceptionally sensitive to such things...

...he likely would have foolishly exposed his location and fallen into the enemy's trap.

Who was it?

Who dared to set up such an elaborate scheme near a secret realm directly under the Hall of Valor?

Su Chen's mind raced as his internal spiritual power quietly circulated, analyzing the current situation.

After the Heroic Spirit Contract Ceremony, he had offended quite a few people.

It was hard for him to judge exactly who was making a move against him.

The "Instant Teleportation" skill he had just acquired was ready to be activated at any moment.

But he didn't immediately try to break the formation or charge through.

Given the strength of his divine sense, for this illusion formation to pull him in unknowingly, the array master's cultivation must be far above his own.

The priority was to lure out the person who set the trap and break this formation.

Otherwise, if the "Instant Teleportation" skill couldn't take him out of the illusion, he would truly be at a dead end.

With this in mind, he pretended to notice nothing and continued walking toward the city area.

Just as he reached a fork in the road...

...and the surrounding pedestrians happened to converge, faintly forming an encirclement...

...Su Chen moved.

His powerful divine sense condensed into a beam and suddenly projected in one direction.

In an instant.

The surrounding scenery rippled violently, like the surface of water after a stone was thrown in.

The fake streets, buildings, and green belts quickly dissipated.

The pedestrians also vanished like ripples.

The true environment was revealed before Su Chen.

He was standing in the middle of a narrow, filthy, and dark alley.

And all around him...

...at the alley entrance, on the walls...

...even behind the broken windows of the buildings on both sides...

...pitch-black figures suddenly emerged silently.

Their bodies were entirely shrouded in hoods, and their faces were covered by smooth masks with no features, revealing only pairs of cold, heartless eyes.

A quick glance revealed no fewer than twenty people.

The weakest among them had a Tenth Rank cultivation.

The leading few were even more unfathomable.

The pressure they exerted on Su Chen was no less than that of the eleventh and Twelfth Stage experts who had come to demand accountability during the Heroic Spirit Contract Ceremony.

One could say that this lineup had no rivals below the level of a Transcendent Heroic Spirit.

It was only because Su Chen possessed exceptional skills; otherwise, whether he could walk out of here alive today would be highly uncertain.

What made Su Chen's gaze freeze even more...

...was that the attire of these Men in Black was exactly the same as that of the so-called "White Snake Cult" believers who had suddenly appeared and attacked everyone at the Heroic Spirit Contract Ceremony.

Was it really the White Snake Cult?

Did they hate him that much? After failing to strike in the secret realm, they had actually chased him here?

How exactly had he offended them?

Several thoughts flashed through Su Chen's mind as he struggled to maintain a calm expression.

He slowly scanned his surroundings, his gaze finally landing on the Man in Black directly in front of him, who had the deepest aura.

He spoke in a low voice.

"Everyone, going to such great lengths to set an ambush here."

"I wonder where I, Su, have offended the 'White Snake Cult'?"

Hearing this, the leader of the Men in Black showed no emotion in his eyes behind the mask, like still water.

His voice had also been processed by some external force, making it impossible to identify his age or gender.

"How did you recognize us... Heh?"

"If I remember correctly, I should have never met you."

"No, to be precise, this should be the first contact between our White Snake Cult and you..."

Su Chen's heart tightened.

First contact?

So the people who chased me all the way in the secret realm weren't you guys?

No, that's not right.

For a moment, several thoughts flashed through Su Chen's mind.

From their perspective right now, he should be no different from a dead man.

They had no reason to lie to him.

That meant...

...the group of Men in Black Robes before him were not the same group as those who had hunted him in the secret realm.

Furthermore, only one side was truly from the White Snake Cult.

One of them must have lied.

While Su Chen's thoughts were racing, the other party spoke again.

"Heh... Who we are and whether we've met isn't important."

"You only need to know that today, we are here to take your life."

Su Chen's heart sank.

They were indeed after him.

But he also keenly captured some key information in the other party's words.

The other party did not deny being part of the White Snake Cult.

Moreover, the Man in Black Robe's tone was flat.

It didn't sound like there was a deep-seated grudge; it felt more like they were executing a mandatory mission.

"Take my life?"

"There should at least be a reason, right?"

Su Chen fully activated his "Instant Teleportation" skill, calculating the optimal timing and direction for its activation.

Meanwhile, he continued to stall, attempting to extract more information while ensuring his safety.

"I, Su, have never met any of you, nor have I ever had any conflict with the White Snake Cult."

"Could it be... that someone hired assassins to take my life?"

"A reason?"

The leader of the Men in Black sneered.

"A dying man doesn't need to know too much."

"You only need to know that your existence itself is a mistake."

"Today, we shall correct this mistake."

As his voice fell, he gave a slight wave of his hand.

All at once, all the surrounding Men in Black moved simultaneously.

Various spiritual light and strange weapons shot out from the hands and sleeves of the twenty-plus Men in Black.

Su Chen was startled. He accelerated the charging of his skill while observing the weapons and techniques used by the Men in Black.

The spiritual light was mostly green and white.

And the weapons, such as short daggers, were mostly silvery-white, with small snake emblems embroidered on the tips of the blades.

"It seems these people... are likely the authentic White Snake Cult?"

Su Chen stood calmly in the middle of the alley, as if he didn't see the lethal attacks aimed at him at all.

That was a combined strike from over twenty experts of at least the Tenth Rank.

Among them were several eleventh-rankers, and possibly even higher.

Such an offensive—not to mention Su Chen, who had only recently entered the seventh rank...

...even an ordinary Eleventh Rank peak expert would find it extremely difficult to survive if caught off guard.

Just then.

Su Chen suddenly looked up.

He gave the Men in Black Robes a mocking smile.

"You want my life? Just with you bunch of rats hiding your heads and showing your tails?"

"In your next life, remember to keep your eyes peeled."

"Your Grandpa Su's life—not to mention you lot—even the immortals, gods, and the King of Hell wouldn't dare take it!"

This sudden roar and extremely insulting provocation momentarily stunned the Men in Black.

The leader of the Men in Black was the most shocked.

The Man in Black had expected Su Chen might surrender or resist to the death.

He just hadn't expected Su Chen to hurl insults.

For a moment, the light orb in her hand—which she had intended to throw to protect Su Chen according to the mission agreement—didn't even have time to be cast.

Now was the time.