Chapter 403 - 257: Undercurrent 2

Chapter 403: Chapter 257: Undercurrent 2

Stealth-type Martial Artists like Duan Hong immediately slipped into the shadows. Members operating in small teams drew closer, vaguely forming offensive or defensive formations.

The smaller, weaker teams also began to retreat, while the unaffiliated Martial Artists had already started fleeing for their lives.

The ecosystem changed the very instant the Grandmaster left.

Without supervision, the Dark Forest descended in an instant.

Yu Fei understood that from now on, the contest for the [Chiming Flowing Light] would inevitably involve bloodshed.

’This [Thousand Mountain Crater] is like a giant Gu-rearing pit. To survive, you need to be exceptional in at least one area: strength, luck, or connections.’

Yu Fei thought for a moment before heading away from the area. It wasn’t that he was scared, but he needed time and a hidden location to move all the [Chiming Flowing Light] from his sea of consciousness into his storage space.

’This stuff puts a lot of pressure on the soul if it stays in the sea of consciousness for too long.’

He was determined to get the [Chiming Flowing Light]. It was key to whether he could cultivate quickly, and his goal was to obtain at least a hundred strands.

He wouldn’t even consider that purple flowing light; it was clearly not something he should be messing with right now.

As for the upcoming battles, he wasn’t worried.

’Mere life-and-death combat? Please. You’re talking to the combat class monitor of the Shenhan Celestial Pride Class.’

During the two days of volcanic eruption, no one could enter to explore. Yu Fei watched from a distance. The [Chiming Flowing Light] that had descended during that time lay quietly on the ground, uncollected. There looked to be at least fifty or sixty of them.

The shimmering streams of light were surprisingly beautiful. Everyone stared at them intently; this was the best opportunity.

Once the environment improved slightly, someone—it was unclear who—made the first move. It was as if an invisible starting pistol had been fired. Countless Martial Artists charged out like wild horses breaking free, each rushing toward their own target. All for the sake of a single strand of [Chiming Flowing Light]—the entry ticket to the Grandmaster realm.

Yu Fei was already prepared. The instant everyone started running, he made his move.

A line of fire flashed through the air and vanished. He activated [Burning Void Escape] at full power for the first time, crossing ten kilometers in an instant and snatching a strand of [Chiming Flowing Light] along the way.

Then, he sprinted at full speed, grabbing two more in succession. With another flash of fire at his feet, he leaped another ten kilometers. This new area held four more strands of light.

"Fuck! That animal!"

"That’s that Crab Man! Son of a bitch..."

"Kill him!"

Even among Gang Qi Martial Artists, few possessed a Speed Burst Secret Skill as outstanding as [Burning Void Escape], capable of crossing the battlefield in a short time.

The Gang Qi Martial Artists giving chase from behind hadn’t even gotten far before a chaotic battle broke out among them. Some, whose own Body Techniques were lacking, would rather drag others down with them.

In this scramble, only those with outstanding stealth abilities or superior Body Techniques had a chance to partake in the feast.

Yu Fei had planned his route in advance and managed to snatch eight strands of light. This made the Martial Artists who had gotten nothing burn with envy. Malicious thoughts instantly surfaced in many of their minds, especially when they saw he was only at the Inner Qi Realm.

"You think... that Crab Man could be one of the prodigies from the Seven Greats?"

Liu Yi asked Zhang Cheng. The two of them had cooperated with their teams just now, and each had secured a strand of light. It was a decent start.

Zhang Cheng’s eyes were downcast, his thoughts hidden. He just said in a low voice:

"He must be. Have you ever seen an Inner Qi Martial Artist with that kind of power?"

"Then... should we..."

Hesitation appeared on Liu Yi’s stern face; he was unsure of what to do.

"We go after him! It’s just a fair contest for treasure. Even if he has backers, they can’t attack us for this. The most they’ll do is save his life!"

Zhang Cheng then added slowly, "The Seven Greats have to maintain their reputation... right?"

In the end, it was Liu Yi who slammed the hilt of his longsword into the ground. "Let’s do it! How are we supposed to get by otherwise? That kid is too damn hateful. He took more than half of the light strands before!

’I don’t get it, what does a mere Inner Qi practitioner need this stuff for anyway? I’ll go contact Number Five and the others. We’ll set a trap, drive this bastard out, or at least beat him half to death. Otherwise, things are going to be really difficult for us later on!’

’If he sticks around and refuses to leave, we’ll all be left eating his dust!’"

With that, he turned and left. "Fuck... what the hell is this!"

Yu Fei remained oblivious. After the scattered strands of light had all been collected, he continued to snatch more, following the methods he had developed.

Although Zhang Cheng, Liu Yi, and the others had banded together to teach Yu Fei a lesson and drive him out, they unfortunately couldn’t find him.

It seemed the intensifying volcanic eruption caused more light to descend. Yu Fei could only focus on the ones near him. A day passed like this, with him snatching them from the shadows. Many people harbored resentment, and after asking around, they all learned of a "Crab Man" who was secretly reaping a huge harvest of light.

As a result, a strange sentiment began to connect the Martial Artists. Zhang Cheng and Sun Yi no longer dared to lead the charge. They only wanted to get Yu Fei kicked out, not offend him to the point of death and bring trouble upon themselves.

Unfortunately, the situation was already beyond their control. Among warriors, there were many who were wise enough to protect themselves and assess situations, but there were also plenty of reckless brutes who would spill blood over a moment of anger.

"That Crab Man always snatches them at a height of around thirty meters. This time, we’ll aim for that exact altitude and make our move!"

"We’ll gather our forces in the central region and lie in wait for him to come to us..."

"Kill him! I’ve already been slashed twice..."

"Fuck the Seven Greats! If they’ve got the guts, let them come kill me..."

Zhang Cheng and Liu Yi silently led their teams to guard the periphery. Perhaps because Yu Fei’s frequent moves had provoked public outrage, they no longer wanted to be part of it.

Yu Fei, however, hadn’t noticed any of this. The yield of [Chiming Flowing Light] was quite high that day, and he had secretly snatched about forty strands, bringing him closer and closer to his goal of one hundred.

Ever since the Grandmaster left, the battles for the flowing light had grown increasingly brutal. Over the course of the day, Yu Fei had seen at least thirty people die in the struggle.

The Martial Artists’ fights to the death were no longer restrained, and the number of unaffiliated individuals was dwindling.

Without a team for protection, even if a solo individual managed to grab one, they would likely be hunted down and killed by others venting their frustration.

Because he never revealed himself, he hadn’t sensed the widespread malice. Many people had probably never even seen the masked Yu Fei; they had only heard that he had snatched the vast majority of the [Chiming Flowing Light].

It was out of this jealousy and hatred that they were willing to act.

People always think there’s strength in numbers.

Another strand of light descended, its position right in the central region. A sweep with his [Void Clearing Mirror] showed Yu Fei that there were an extraordinary number of Martial Artists there.

He didn’t pay it much mind, though. The central region had the most abundant resources and was a convenient position for heading in any direction.

Without overthinking it, Yu Fei simply waited quietly for his "shipment" to arrive.

He watched as the Martial Artists once again fought to the death. He had seen this scene many times, but this time, something was different.

Yu Fei saw that these people lacked the usual life-or-death determination. Instead, their gazes were shifty, as if they were passing signals to one another.

Empowered by the [Void Clearing Mirror] and with all his sensory Secret Techniques fully activated, a golden glint shone in Yu Fei’s pupils. The [Void Clearing Mirror] filtered all sounds within a five-kilometer radius, relaying only useful information.

"Are you ready?"

"No problem. The brothers have confirmed the strike zone at a thirty-meter altitude. We’ll definitely blast that bastard into a bloody pulp..."

"Even if he gets lucky and survives, it won’t matter. We’ve gathered over two hundred people around here. He might be a prodigy from the Seven Greats, but he’s just a measly Inner Qi Realm cultivator. He can’t pull any tricks..."

"Aren’t you afraid of the consequences?"

"Fuck the consequences! What consequences? He’s trying to act tough when his skills are inferior. If he dies, he dies for nothing. And if a Guardian really does save him, we at least have to make that bastard leave behind the light he stole..."

Yu Fei’s ears twitched. He instantly understood their plan!

’A pity...’

’Last year, he would have had to flee in panic from so many Gang Qi Martial Artists. But the current Yu Fei, aside from his [All Things Return to Origin Scripture] being just shy of perfection, had reached the absolute peak of the Inner Qi level in all his other abilities.’

’With the enhancement of his many talents, this group of people really wasn’t enough to challenge him. Back then, he could have swept the entire sophomore class—and that was the sophomore class of the Celestial Pride Class.’

’Prodigies have always been able to fight a level above their own. As of last year, he already had the strength to contend with multiple Gang Qi-level combatants.’

’And now... Yu Fei was actually looking forward to it.’

’It’s just a contest for treasure. Strength and skill are all that matter. Since they want to play dirty, he was more than happy to oblige!’