Chapter 125: The Du Family Relinquishes Control

At a little past six in the evening, only Hanhan and Gu Feng were having dinner. They were enjoying a delicious wild hare, while Long Xue'er and Gu Dongliu were busy cultivating.

Suddenly, Gu Feng stopped eating and looked toward the canyon. Only three people were approaching, but all of them were Spirit Venerables—one at the third level and two at the first level. Such a formidable trio would have been difficult for Gu Feng to handle under normal circumstances. It was not that he couldn't fight them, but if they were determined to harm the others, he would have no way to protect them.

The three had never imagined there would be an ambush in the narrow canyon, and they charged into it at high speed. As they crossed the ten-kilometer stretch of empty space, Gu Feng did not detonate his spirit energy bombs; he waited until they reached the center.

Feeling the timing was right, Gu Feng triggered the spirit energy bombs in their vicinity, detonating four or five at once. With a series of thunderous booms, the shockwaves—normally only a threat to Great Spirit Masters—were unable to dissipate within the confined space. They bounced back and forth, inflicting continuous, devastating damage upon the victims. This outcome was something even Gu Feng hadn't fully anticipated.

"Damn it! It's an ambush!"
"Charge! Speed up and push through! There are people at the far exit!"

They were now absolutely certain that the people at the exit had laid the trap. What angered them even more was that the four people at the exit—the strongest being Gu Feng, only a ninth-level Great Spirit Master—had managed to make them look so pathetic.

As they pressed forward, Gu Feng continued to detonate bombs, triggering them in advance to block their path. If they insisted on rushing forward, they would be driving themselves straight into the shockwaves, which were doubly lethal within the narrow canyon. The massive explosions caused quite a stir, and the energy, having nowhere else to go, surged upward.

"Fly up!"

The three men ascended to escape the potential explosions below. Gu Feng hadn't actually placed any bombs above. Just as he felt frustrated, Long Xue'er, awakened by the commotion, stood beside him. Watching the three men fly upward, she whispered, "If they keep flying up, they're essentially committing suicide."

"Why?"
"Because the space above belongs to that group of creatures."

At that moment, a swarm of bloodsucking bats, disturbed by the massive explosions, released ultrasonic waves inaudible to human ears and dove at the three Spirit Venerables. One bat's ultrasound might be negligible, but what about ten thousand? Or tens of thousands?

The invisible, unstoppable ultrasonic waves struck the trio directly. As they reeled in dizziness, tens of thousands of bats swarmed them. With razor-sharp fangs, they would have been picked clean to the bone had they been fully swarmed. The third-level Spirit Venerable regained his senses, saw the overwhelming swarm, and in a panic, grabbed his two companions and dove back down.

Strangely, as they descended to about twenty meters from the canyon floor, the bat swarm stopped at the edge, screeching but never daring to fly lower. Gu Feng asked curiously, "What's going on here?"

Long Xue'er replied calmly, "See that yellow substance on the cliff walls? All bats despise it. It emits an odor only bats can smell, and if they inhale too much of it, they die."

"I see. So this stuff is a treasure. I might explore caves in the future, so I should collect some."
"You think no one has thought of that? This substance is peculiar; it turns black and loses its efficacy as soon as it leaves the cliff wall."
"Oh! That must be due to improper storage. I think I can manage it. We'll see in a moment."

Once the three Spirit Venerables landed on the ground, they looked wretched. The two weaker ones had tattered clothes and were covered in bite wounds from hundreds of bats. Afraid to move at the bottom of the cliff, they glared at Gu Feng’s group. The third-level Spirit Venerable shouted, "Why did you ambush us?"

"Disciple, I leave the answer to you."
"Yay! Master, watch me!"

Clearing her throat, Zhu Han stepped forward, hands on her hips, and replied in a sweet voice, "In Master's words, it's because you look too ugly and scary, and you frightened the bats, so we had to ambush you!"

"Disciple, when did I ever say such a thing?"
"Huh? Master, wasn't it you?"

At that moment, thinking Gu Feng and his companions had let their guard down, the three Spirit Venerables suddenly accelerated and charged. In reality, the distance between them was less than fifteen miles; with the burst of speed from a Spirit Venerable, they could arrive in the blink of an eye.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The moment they moved, a string of spirit energy bombs detonated. The terrifying shockwaves overlapped again, dealing them massive damage.

"System, redeem a top-grade bow."
"Ding! Recommendation: Flame Bow. Top-grade intermediate weapon. Value: 1,000,000 points."
"Redeem it. Put the points on credit."
"Ding! Loan of 1,000,000 points granted. Loan period: one month. Interest: 100,000 points."

Gu Feng didn't even mind the 100,000-point interest. Compared to heaven-defying techniques that cost hundreds of millions, a few million was nothing. He drew the Flame Bow; it was a weapon of burning fire, and a wave of scorching heat hit him, raising the surrounding temperature instantly. It shone like a small sun, illuminating the area for over ten miles.

Long Xue'er and Gu Dongliu were stunned. Such weapons were rare; they hadn't expected Gu Feng to possess one. In the center of the bowstring sat a Fire Stone. Gu Feng gripped it, infused it with fire-type spirit energy, and drew the bow. A flame arrow emitted a dazzling light and intense heat, its pressure so formidable that the three companions had to retreat further back.

Seeing such terrifying power, the three charging Spirit Venerables looked over, their expressions changing in horror. Gu Feng whispered, "Incinerate." It was the innate skill of this top-grade spirit weapon.

Bang!

The bowstring snapped, and a flame arrow, resembling a long spear and trailing a long tail of fire, flashed before the third-level Spirit Venerable. They were already caught in the blast range of the spirit bombs, and the targeted third-level Spirit Venerable was furious—not only were they not finished with the previous assault, but now they were under further attack.

While this attack might not kill him, it was a genuine threat. He couldn't fathom how a ninth-level Great Spirit Master possessed a top-grade spirit weapon, and not just an ordinary one at that. Every top-grade spirit weapon in the Sun-Moon Empire or the Desolate Dragon Empire was famous and held by celebrities, and master blacksmiths would always boast about their best creations to prove their worth. Yet, he had never heard of this fire-type top-grade spirit weapon.

He drew a shield wreathed in green light—a fine-grade intermediate spirit weapon.

Bang!

The arrow struck the shield. The immense force sent the third-level Spirit Venerable stumbling back three steps. The extreme heat visibly corroded the shield, its green light dimming until it finally vanished. The third-level Spirit Venerable was struck with terror; his spirit shield had only managed to block a single arrow.