Chapter 5 Yan Shuangling, [Smiling Devious Face]

"My Lord, someone is coming," Zhang Fei suddenly spoke up to warn him.

Gu Ye frowned and stood up, looking outside the cave. At this time, anyone who dared to wander around outside was either an idiot or had absolute confidence in their strength; he didn't want to encounter either type.

A woman slowly walked out of the darkness, followed by a two-meter-tall humanoid creature. As she drew closer, Gu Ye finally saw who it was, and his expression turned solemn.

"Yan Shuangling!"

"Why is it this woman?"

Yan Shuangling wore a black tight-fitting combat suit that perfectly outlined her graceful and tall figure.

Her ink-black hair was tied high in a ponytail, looking neat and heroic, which further set off her icy, jade-like skin. Her expression was cold, her eyes devoid of ripples, and her entire body radiated a freezing aura that kept people at a distance. Her red lips parted slightly:

"This cave belongs to me now."

Her words were concise and blunt, devoid of any emotion.

"Heh."

People really do laugh when they are speechless.

"Get lost. Who do you think you are?"

After saying that, Gu Ye walked back into the cave without looking back, preparing to continue his rest.

"Elegant Blade!"

The humanoid creature behind Yan Shuangling instantly vanished from its spot.

*Clang!*

When it reappeared, Elegant Blade's sword had already collided with Zhang Fei's spear, sending sparks flying. The soil beneath their feet sank, and a wave of air sliced through the surrounding weeds. A flicker of surprise flashed in Yan Shuangling's otherwise emotionless eyes.

"Come back."

At Yan Shuangling's command, Elegant Blade sheathed its sword and returned behind her. Yan Shuangling then turned and left with Elegant Blade.

Witnessing this scene, Gu Ye was completely bewildered; he had thought there would be a tough battle to fight.

"My Lord, it's very strong!" Zhang Fei commented on the Elegant Blade from just now.

"She is the little princess of the Yan Family, after all. How could her card not be strong? If it weren't for my Card Master level being too low and restricting Zhang Fei's strength, it would just be a green card—I could easily beat it."

"Ha~" Gu Ye yawned and continued,

"General Yide, I'm going back into the cave to rest for a while."

"Leave your safety to me, My Lord," Zhang Fei said, patting his chest.

Gu Ye had great faith in Zhang Fei's strength. Five hours passed.

The blood moon rose. Guimian Cliff in the north of the [Blood Fiend Mechanical Forest].

Gu Ye checked the map in his hand and looked down at the bottomless cliff below. The bottom of the cliff was shrouded in mist, and no information could be detected.

"Is this the place that produces [gui blood crystals]? Can we go down?"

"Don't worry, My Lord. [Dark Cloud Treading Snow · Black Steed] has a floating concealment effect. I'll let it go down first to investigate."

Zhang Fei found a random monster to kill, triggering the trait [Skilled in Martial Arts and Riding] to take effect, and summoned the [Dark Cloud Treading Snow · Black Steed].

"Go!"

The Black Steed leaped down the cliff and flew back up a short while later.

*Whinny—!*

Gu Ye watched Zhang Fei communicate with the Black Steed. After a few minutes, Zhang Fei told him the information he had gathered:

"My Lord, there's only a group of humanoid gui souls at the Bronze Rank 1 level wearing strange smiling face masks down there. I didn't see any [gui blood crystals] like you mentioned."

"Those gui souls must be the [Laughing Face Fiends] the unscrupulous merchant mentioned."

Gu Ye looked thoughtful and eventually decided to go down and take a look. Zhang Fei carried Gu Ye and flew to the bottom of the cliff. The bottom was very narrow, allowing at most four people to pass side-by-side. The [Laughing Face Fiends] within seemed to have caught the scent of food and crazily charged toward them.

In just a few encounters, the [Laughing Face Fiends] all became souls under Zhang Fei's spear, and not a single card-making material was dropped.

The two of them walked toward the depths of Guimian Cliff...

"Young Master Li, the positioning shows he's at Guimian Cliff." A youth with a pair of thin-framed glasses on his nose and a book in his hands spoke slowly. He appeared somewhat green, yet he couldn't hide the steadiness and certainty in his eyes.

"Let's go. We'll deal with him. The Domain Token for the [Blood Fiend Mechanical Forest] is still waiting for me!" Li Jie had a mocking smile on his face and a lazy expression, as if dealing with Gu Ye was just like casually stepping on an ant, insignificant.

Gu Ye and Zhang Fei walked and stopped periodically until a dilapidated temple appeared. [Laughing Face Fiends] were active in clusters around the temple. At the steps of the temple's main gate sat a [Xiao Mian Gui General] with its eyes closed. Its figure and aura were much stronger than the other [Laughing Face Fiends].

Their arrival also alerted these [Laughing Face Fiends]. The [Xiao Mian Gui General] opened its eyes and let out a long howl.

All the [Laughing Face Fiends] looked at them and let out eerie laughter. When Gu Ye heard this laughter, he suddenly felt dizzy and lightheaded.

"Begone!"

Zhang Fei stood in front of him and roared.

Trait [Generals Heart] activated!

Immune to mental attacks!

Seeing that their mental attacks were ineffective, the [Laughing Face Fiends] all charged at them with great momentum. However, under the dance of Zhang Fei's eighteen-foot serpent spear, they all turned into card-making materials.

Seeing this scene, the [Xiao Mian Gui General]'s eyes widened, and its aura surged. It leaped into the air, and a beam of light condensed in its mouth, which it then blasted toward them. A tearing sound echoed in the air. Zhang Fei smiled disdainfully, spun his eighteen-foot serpent spear into a fan-shaped defensive posture, and easily blocked the attack.

"My turn."

Zhang Fei grinned and roared:

"I am Zhang Yide, Man of Yan! Who dares to fight me to the death?"

Skill [Roar I] activated!

The moment the [Xiao Mian Gui General] landed, it was bound by an invisible force. As a gui soul body, its black muscles bulged as it tried to break free from the restraint with brute force. However, Zhang Fei's skill [Roar I] had a binding effect; once bound, one could only wait for death.

Zhang Fei teleported in front of it, raised his eighteen-foot serpent spear, and struck down hard on its head.

"First Break! Crouching Dragon Leaves the Mountain!"

Gu Ye walked forward and searched the corpse of the [Xiao Mian Gui General], obtaining three card-making materials.

Two green [gui blood crystals] and one green [Damaged Gui Mask].

It seemed there really were [gui blood crystals]; that unscrupulous merchant hadn't lied to him.

"The harvest is decent."

In a short while, Gu Ye collected all the dropped card-making materials. Most were white-tier, with only three green ones. One could only say the drop rate was still pathetic.

Gu Ye put away the card-making materials and looked at the tightly closed temple gates. The temple's exterior looked very dilapidated, but if one observed carefully, they would find wisps of golden light leaking from inside. Within the golden light, there were also small traces of black, which was quite eerie.

Although he had learned from the unscrupulous merchant that there were even more [gui blood crystals] inside the temple, his Card Master's sixth sense was thumping wildly, telling Gu Ye how terrifying the temple was. Unknown things were the most frightening, so for the sake of his own life, Gu Ye decided not to enter.

"Sigh~"

No longer lingering, Gu Ye and Zhang Fei prepared to return the way they came when a mocking voice rang out:

"Found you, Gu Ye!"

Li Jie walked out from the path they had come with two lackeys. One was Tang De, whom Gu Ye was familiar with. At Li Jie's feet was a monster that looked like a leopard. Tang De's card was Zhang Fei's former form, the [Heavy Armored Soldier], while the other was the youth holding a book.

Seeing the book in the youth's hand, Gu Ye frowned and retreated behind Zhang Fei.

"Battle Card Master!" A derivative Card Master profession that focused on fully equipping oneself. It required excellent physical fitness, and the equipment summoned by the cards had to be good; otherwise, one would die before even touching a monster. Gu Ye's two brothers were both of the Battle Card Master profession, so he had some understanding of it.

Battle Card Masters could skillfully use weapon techniques and combine them with skills, often possessing extraordinary combat power.

Li Jie saw Zhang Fei in front of Gu Ye and mocked:

"So you have a new card, no wonder you dared to participate in the Card Domain Trial."

"But so what if you have a new card? You're still going to die."

A venomous look appeared in Li Jie's eyes. He pointed forcefully at Gu Ye and commanded:

"Fiery Flood Leopard, kill him."

"Aooo~~"

The [Fiery Flood Leopard] let out a low growl and crouched low. Tang De's [Heavy Armored Soldier] also charged up the skill [Pierce], while the other lackey didn't make a move. Gu Ye's sharp eyes noticed him quietly taking a step back.