Chapter 583 - 583: Respectfully Inviting Emperor Guan's Possession

The reception hall was spacious, but it offered no cover from bullets. The enemy's sudden volley of gunfire sent Zhao Yuan and his group scrambling in a panic.

At the critical moment, Ying Ji retrieved the Raccoon Dog Hide from her Storage Ring.

Her Raccoon Dog Hide had only been roughly tanned and was still a single, uncut piece. It was so large that when held up, it served as a shield—a massive one, at that!

Bullets striking the Raccoon Dog Hide produced a series of ear-piercing CLANGS, as if they were hitting a thick metal barrier. A shower of sparks flew, but not a single bullet penetrated it!

The defensive power of the Ancient Beast Hide was terrifyingly strong!

Having narrowly escaped death, Ying Ji didn't even have a moment to catch her breath before shouting, "Everyone, get behind me!"

"Coming!"

Hao Li and Cheng Haoyu were the closest and immediately dove behind the Raccoon Dog Hide she held up, avoiding the hail of bullets. Yue Tianchi, Elder Shan, and Shan Han followed suit. Even though they were Cultivators, they were in a sorry state after facing such a chaotic spray of gunfire. Shan Han's left shoulder was stained crimson with blood.

Zhao Yuan ducked behind it as well. Although he was wearing Raccoon Dog Skin Armor under his coat, it only protected his vital organs. A bullet anywhere else would still injure him.

Seeing the blood on Shan Han's shoulder, he asked with concern, "Are you hurt?"

"Just a little bite from a bullet. I'll live," Shan Han said calmly, as if she'd been bitten by a mosquito, not hit by a bullet.

Peeking out from behind the Raccoon Dog Hide, she asked with worry, "Your companion is still out there. Aren't you going to call her back?"

Shan Han was referring to the Bone Woman, who hadn't taken cover and was instead continuing her charge outside!

The Bone Woman was wearing the Raccoon Dog Skin Armor Zhao Yuan had made, which protected her vital areas. As long as those spots weren't hit, bullet wounds to the rest of her body wouldn't cause significant damage. That was why she dared to brave the storm of bullets and continue slaying enemies!

But the Bone Woman was not fighting alone. At that moment, Ying Ji released her Ghost Spirit.

The moment the Ghost Spirit was out, it dove into the body of an enemy who had been stunned by electricity, seizing control. The body scrambled up from the floor, raised its gun, and began spraying bullets at the surrounding enemies!

The attackers never expected one of their own to turn on them in the middle of a fight. Several of them were gunned down, sparking cries of shock and confusion.

"What are you doing? Why are you shooting at your own men?"

"This bastard is a mole!"

"Kill him! Kill him now!"

The man possessed by the Ghost Spirit was immediately gunned down by his comrades. But the Ghost Spirit had already slipped away a moment before, already seeking its next target.

A sharp glint flashed in Zhao Yuan's eyes; he had just been inspired by the Ghost Spirit's Combat Technique.

With a flick of his hand, he pulled out a handful of Mirage Talismans and Enchanting Talismans from his Storage Ring Space and unleashed them all at once.

In an instant, the enemies outside were either bewildered by the illusions of the Mirage Talismans or hypnotized by the Enchanting Talismans. One by one, they raised their guns and started shooting their own comrades.

Even those who weren't affected were thrown into complete disarray. To save their own skins, they had no choice but to eliminate their comrades first!

The scene instantly descended into chaos. A symphony of curses, roars, shouts, and wails rose and fell, accompanied by the incessant sound of gunfire.

The four Qi Listening Realm masters were also hit by the Mirage and Enchanting Talismans, but their superior strength allowed them to quickly break free from the Talismans' influence. "Everyone, calm down!" one shrieked. "Don't be fooled by the enemy's illusions!"

Unfortunately, their comrades were already lost in a killing frenzy and couldn't hear their warning. The only response they received was a hail of whistling bullets that forced them to dodge pathetically and retreat into an underground tunnel.

A minute later, the reception hall fell silent.

Hao Li peeked his head out and saw that all the enemies were down. The vast majority of them had died at the hands of their own comrades!

Zhao Yuan issued a warning, "The four Qi Listening Realm masters are still alive. Be careful!"

The words had barely left his mouth when the four strongest enemies crawled out of the tunnel.

This time, they had none of their previous imposing airs. They were all covered in dirt and dust, looking utterly wretched.

Looking at the bodies scattered haphazardly across the floor, the faces of the four Qi Listening Realm masters turned as black as the bottom of a pot. They had thought coming here with fifty or sixty men to seize the Thousand-Day Wine would be a simple, effortless task. Never did they imagine they would pay such a painful price!

In that moment, the eyes of the four Qi Listening Realm masters turned red with rage.

Gritting their teeth, they roared with overflowing Killing Qi, "A blood debt must be paid in blood! We—Yanbei Village, Nesting Magpie, Pheasant, and Chicken Milk—swear an oath here and now! We will kill every last one of our enemies and offer their heads to our fallen brothers!"

Yanbei Village? Nesting Magpie? Pheasant? Chicken Milk?

Zhao Yuan's eyebrow twitched. As someone who grew up in the countryside, he immediately recognized these four strange names as phenomena from the Seventy-Two Phenomena.

These definitely weren't their real names, but their codenames!

'Using the Seventy-Two Phenomena as codenames... does that imply that the Ant Thieves have at least seventy-two masters at the Qi Listening Realm or above?'

Their oath complete, the four Qi Listening Realm masters roared and launched their attack.

With the rain of bullets gone, Zhao Yuan and his group no longer needed to hide. They all charged out from behind the Raccoon Dog Hide to meet the powerful enemy!

The two sides quickly clashed, engaging in a fierce battle.

Although Zhao Yuan's side had the advantage in numbers, they were a notch below in terms of pure strength.

All four of their opponents were experts at the middle to Late Stage of the Qi Listening Realm, and they were all Martial Dao masters well-versed in practical combat!

On Zhao Yuan's side, while there were three Qi Listening Realm Cultivators, Zhao Yuan himself had only entered the realm a few days ago. And although Yue Tianchi and Elder Shan had reached the middle to Late Stage of the Qi Listening Realm, they were not combat-oriented Cultivators.

As for Ying Ji and the other two, along with Shan Han, they were Marrow Cleansing Realm Cultivators, putting them at an even greater disadvantage! Even with the Bone Woman and the Ghost Spirit fighting alongside them, they were quickly overpowered and forced onto the defensive!

Even so, Zhao Yuan's group didn't lose heart. They all gritted their teeth and held on for dear life!

They knew that if they couldn't hold on, they would die! Only by enduring could they find a chance to turn defeat into victory!

"Let's end this quickly! We can't let these guys drag it out and cause any more surprises!"

Yanbei Village roared, took several steps back from the fight, and slammed his heavy Guan Gong's Great Saber into the ground. He began rapidly chanting a strange Spell. His face instantly twisted into a ferocious scowl, veins bulging on his forehead as if he were enduring excruciating agony.

A few seconds later, his body began to shake violently, as if he were having an epileptic seizure.

At the same time, a voice so deep it was bone-chilling emerged from his mouth: "I respectfully invite the great Emperor Guan to possess this body!"

Elder Shan's expression changed drastically. "Oh no!" he exclaimed in horror. "It's a Divine Strike! Stop him, quickly!"