Chapter 124: Saved Once More

Blue Stone Valley.

Jiang Min remained hidden in the shadows, her gaze fixed on the scene unfolding in the valley below.

Liu Fenglian, who had not been seen for days, stood upon a golden lotus, suspended high in the air. With a look of innocent delight, she raised her hand and gestured toward a wooden puppet floating before her.

From the puppet, a vast, bloody black mist billowed out. Accompanied by shrill, mournful cries, the mist enveloped a dozen people on the ground, draining their blood and essence. They wailed as they collapsed, and within moments, only piles of white bones remained—a truly gruesome sight.

Several other cultivators stood nearby, clutching their heads in terror, unable to muster even the thought of resistance. When the girl finished killing those people, she paid the survivors no mind, put away her puppet, and turned to leave.

"You... you aren't going to kill us?" one of the cultivators, finding the courage, called out to her.

Liu Fenglian’s golden lotus faltered. She turned back, a careless curl to her lips, and replied in a childish voice, "You carry no karmic debt of slaughter, so I shall not kill you."

With that, she flew off.

As for offering advice on not killing the innocent or warning against further bloodshed, she had no interest in preaching. She had long ago abandoned the savior complex, choosing instead to respect the fate of others.

However, she had traveled only a few yards when—

*Whoosh!*

A streak of red light shot toward her like lightning, transforming into a massive, sky-covering net. It ensnared her instantly, tightening rapidly as flames of pure Yang erupted from its surface, wrapping around her.

Caught off guard by the ambush, Liu Fenglian showed no trace of panic. With a cold snort, golden light burst from her body, invoking the "Indestructible Body" technique to resist the flames. The exquisite puppet in her arms opened its mouth, exhaling a thick black mist that clung to the net, rapidly corroding it.

*Hiss, hiss, hiss!*

The crimson net was continuously eroded by the puppet’s bloody mist. The flames flickered out as black rot spread across the mesh, tearing hole after hole. But even as the net began to fail, eighteen formation flags flew in from all directions, plunging into the valley floor. By the time Liu Fenglian broke free of the net, a grand formation had fully manifested across the entire Blue Stone Valley.

*Hum!*

Eighteen beams of light erupted from the edges of the formation, instantly linking together to create a field of energy. The air grew thick and viscous, making every movement a struggle. Unable to maintain her position on the golden lotus, Liu Fenglian was forced to the ground. Countless spiritual chains surged from the earth, binding her limbs and body, while others latched onto the puppet, ripping it from her grasp.

"Xiao Guai!" Liu Fenglian cried out. She watched helplessly as the puppet was swallowed by the spiritual chains. The doll tried to emit black mist to erode the bindings, but the chains poured forth in an endless stream, submerging it completely.

The few cultivators whom Liu Fenglian had spared, having not yet managed to escape, were pierced through by the chains. Their eyes went blank, and their lives were extinguished.

"Damn it!" Seeing those people killed without even knowing who their assailant was, a cold glint appeared in Liu Fenglian’s dark eyes. A formation of this scale required the coordination of many; specifically, a formation with eighteen anchor points meant there were at least eighteen attackers!

*Whoosh!*

Within the formation, the wind shifted and the clouds churned. Boundless spiritual energy howled and gathered. Liu Fenglian looked up to see eighteen spiritual spears, each several yards long, manifesting above. Every spear radiated a terrifying sharpness, an oppressive force that made it difficult to look directly at them. Even a peak Foundation Establishment cultivator would likely struggle to survive such an assault.

The eighteen spears solidified, their tips gleaming with a piercing, icy light, and shot toward the shackled Liu Fenglian.

She did not wait for death. Narrowing her eyes, she chanted a cryptic and difficult mantra.

"...Gala-pi-la-cha-la-cha-mo-mu-xie..."

As the mantra was recited, the golden light on her body grew even more intense, radiating such brilliance that it felt as if a god or buddha had descended to protect her. Just as the golden light reached its zenith, the eighteen spears struck.

*Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!*

Even with the protection of the mantra, her cultivation was limited. The massive, awe-inspiring spears pierced through her golden defenses and drove straight into her chest.

Then, a shocking thing happened.

Her body suddenly became ethereal and translucent, as if neither truly real nor entirely phantom. The spears passed through her as easily as if they were piercing air. Yet, this was not without cost; Liu Fenglian’s face turned deathly pale, and it was clear she had suffered heavy internal injuries.

Meanwhile, on a mountain ridge overlooking the valley, an elderly man with a thin frame, gray robes, and gray hair hid behind a boulder, his face showing a trace of shock.

"How is this possible?"

He knew the little girl was a Buddhist cultivator. But in Buddhist arts, wasn't this technique, known as the "Colorless Body," something that required a much higher cultivation level to execute?

The gray-haired man was the mastermind behind this ambush, known as Yun Qianli. He ranked fourth on the List of Villains, behind the Black and White Eagles and the Silver Wolf. He was the third ancestor of the Yun family of Yulin, in the Dacheng Prefecture of the Great Hong Dynasty. He was the strongest in his family, but his lifespan was nearing its end, and he had yet to find the opportunity to form a Golden Core. Thus, he had traveled a great distance to the City of Villains to risk his life in the Villain Games.

He sought only the top three rewards—the "Essence of Heavenly Yang," a treasure that would assist in forming a Golden Core. After Yan Honggu died, he had been bumped down to fourth place, and with the gap to fifth place being quite small, he had begun to take desperate risks, hunting down the high-ranking lone wolves on the list.

Liu Fenglian was his chosen prey.

He was a cautious man who did not strike lightly. Once he made a move, he had to ensure absolute victory. He had spent days tracking Liu Fenglian and had prepared a trap laden with contingencies. He had intended to kill her in one blow and claim her Villain Token.

"The Colorless Body is not invincible. Strike again!"

Eighteen more spears pierced through Liu Fenglian. Hidden in the shadows, Yun Qianli and his men remained safe, while her divine sense and Buddhist arts were restricted by the formation. She could not locate her attackers and was forced to play defense until she was tortured to death.

This was the power of a formation!

The path of formations is profound and obscure, utilizing the power of heaven and earth. While they cannot be deployed instantly in the heat of battle, if prepared in advance and fueled by the combined strength of many, they can surpass the power of the individual, allowing one to defeat enemies of a higher realm.

Inside the formation, Liu Fenglian grew weaker, her ethereal form barely holding together.

"Good, she can't hold on much longer. Again—"

Before Yun Qianli could finish his sentence, his voice died in his throat. His eyes widened.

A sword beam, faster than lightning, arrived behind him and hovered steadily at the back of his head.

The mere sharpness bleeding from the blade made the back of his neck ache violently.

*Such a fast sword!*

*Who is it?!*

There was no one by this name in the City of Villains.

Cold sweat drenched Yun Qianli. He hurriedly raised his voice to ask, "Who might you be, Excellency?"

Just as he prepared to reach for his own defensive measures, an unrecognizable, hoarse voice echoed from behind him.

"Don't try anything clever. Killing you would be effortless for me. Hand over all the Villain Tokens you possess, then dismantle the formation and leave. I will spare your life."

Jiang Min was cloaked in invisibility, so Yun Qianli could sense no presence behind him, only the voice. This meant he didn't even have a chance to fight back...

But all his Villain Tokens represented months of hard work by him and his fellow Yun clan cultivators. How could he be willing to hand them over just like that?

"Excellency—"

Jiang Min gave him no chance. She said coldly, "I am counting to three."

"Three."

"Two."

"I'll hand them over! I only ask that you keep your word and let us live."

Yun Qianli gritted his teeth. He was unwilling, but he was not impulsive. *As long as the green hills remain, there is no need to worry about firewood.* With his life in another's hands and no hope of resistance, he could only obey and hand over the tokens, gambling that this person was not a bloodthirsty killer.

"Dismantle the formation!"

Though they did not know why Yun Qianli had ordered the retreat just as they were about to kill Liu Fenglian, the Yun clan members were well-trained. The massive formation vanished in an instant. Liu Fenglian collapsed to the ground, her face as pale as paper and her breathing shallow. The wooden puppet flew over immediately, checking her injuries with concern.

Jiang Min, having obtained the tokens, cautiously confirmed that the Yun clan members were far away and not returning before she slowly made her form visible. She walked toward Liu Fenglian.

Liu Fenglian lay half-reclined, struggling to swallow a medicinal pill. A hint of color returned to her face. She looked up at Jiang Min, whispering weakly, "Big sister, it's you... you've saved me again."

Even though she knew clearly that Jiang Min had likely waited until she was half-dead before stepping in to drive away the assailants, primarily to claim the Villain Tokens, a rescue was still a rescue.

Jiang Min was frank. She stood at a safe distance, holding her sword behind her back, and extended her left palm in a clear gesture. She smiled faintly. "Then, are you willing to repay this life-saving grace?"