Chapter 338 - 171: Golden Bells and Silver Threads

Tang Huayi led Li Tianyu away, and Luo Qingyi gave chase without hesitation.

Scholar Jingtan followed close behind.

As for Dao Wuming, his actions went without saying.

Ning Jiuyuan was certain to give chase. Although Gu Shengyan was reluctant and unnerved by the surroundings, he saw that both Dao Wuming and Ning Jiuyuan had gone.

He had no choice but to dutifully follow.

And so, only Cheng Tianyang, Man Shengming, the Senior Master, and the others remained at the posthouse.

Outside, the men from Blood Saber Hall were a different story.

Xuanyuan One Slash had already climbed up from the ground. He was badly injured and supported by two of his disciples.

But he had no mind to treat his wounds. With a great wave of his hand, he ordered the Blood Saber Hall disciples to give chase.

Cheng Tianyang considered for a moment; he couldn’t just stand by and watch.

He had to leave some men behind to guard the cargo, then led the rest in pursuit.

They were a large group and the last to set out.

After following the tracks for about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, they faintly heard the sound of bells in the air.

Following the sound with their eyes, they saw a solitary human head floating in mid-air in the rainy night.

Cheng Tianyang’s brow furrowed slightly.

"Be careful! It’s an array!"

He had already figured it out. The head seemed to be suspended in the air, but it was actually connected by threads.

"It’s raining heavily tonight, so visibility is already poor. Someone has set up a thread array here to lure us into a trap.

"This person uses these threads to sever heads as easily as taking something from a pocket.

"Step inside this array, and the slightest misstep could get you torn to pieces, rent limb from limb!

"You all wait here. I’ll go in and scout it out."

"Chief Escort, you can’t!"

Someone behind him immediately spoke up.

"This place is incredibly dangerous. You can’t risk your own life."

But Cheng Tianyang shook his head.

"Young Hero Jiang and his companions are righteous heroes, a rarity in the martial world. We are already doing our friends a disservice by being constrained by our rules and unable to act freely.

"Now that we know they might be in peril, how can we just turn a blind eye?

"Enough. No more nonsense. You’ll provide support from here. I’ll be right back."

The escorts’ brows furrowed. They wanted to persuade him otherwise but knew they couldn’t, so they could only sigh.

"Then we will wait here for you, Chief Escort."

Cheng Tianyang nodded slightly. Just as he was about to move forward, he seemed to think of something and held out his hand.

"Give me a saber."

An escort immediately handed him his personal saber.

After taking the single-edged saber, he turned and stepped into the circle of the thread array.

But then he heard footsteps from behind. Turning his head, he saw Man Shengming had followed him.

Their eyes met. Man Shengming spoke softly.

"Together."

"Alright."

Cheng Tianyang gave a carefree laugh and began to cautiously advance with Man Shengming.

In the outer part of this thread array, the gaps were still large. Although it was somewhat dangerous, it wasn’t excessively so.

The two of them pressed forward and quickly found a trace. Cheng Tianyang reached out his hand, swiping it gently. A piercing pain shot through his fingertip; he had been cut by the nearly invisible thread.

A line of blood appeared as if from nowhere, only to be washed away by the rain.

Cheng Tianyang paused in thought, glanced at Man Shengming, and saw him nod slightly. Only then did he grip the saber’s hilt in a reverse grip.

With a sudden slash!

The sound of TING-A-LING-LING rang out.

In an instant, a continuous BUZZING sound came from all directions.

Cheng Tianyang’s expression changed drastically.

"Not good!!"

Not only had his slash failed to cut the thread, but it had instead caused it to recoil like a crashing wave.

Under such a counterattack, they might very well be swept up in this "wave" and torn to shreds.

Alarmed, Cheng Tianyang had no time for anything else. His footwork shifted, and he unleashed four successive Ninefold Shocking Mountain Palms.

His palm force was immense; a single strike was like a gale sweeping through.

He forcefully pushed back the threads, preventing them from instantly slicing toward them.

Immediately after, he felt a tightness on his wrist. The next moment, Man Shengming was dragging him, weaving through the threads.

For a moment, Cheng Tianyang’s face went pale with fright.

’Even using all my strength, I might not be able to fend off these deadly threads. Dashing around recklessly like this, if one of these threads snags me, I’ll be torn limb from limb.’

’This guy who’s so stingy with his words... why is he so reckless?’

As the thought crossed his mind, he suddenly heard a series of screams from not far away.

He looked up and saw that the disciples of Blood Saber Hall had also fallen into the array and were being sliced to pieces by the dancing threads.

Their martial arts were inferior to Cheng Tianyang’s and Man Shengming’s, and they certainly couldn’t dart about like Man Shengming...

Having fallen into this place, death was a certainty.

Just as Cheng Tianyang was enjoying the show, he suddenly felt his feet stop. He turned his head and found that Man Shengming had come to a halt.

Looking at the surroundings, it didn’t seem complex.

’This is... have we found life in the jaws of death?’

Cheng Tianyang was both shocked and overjoyed. He couldn’t help but look at Man Shengming, wondering how he had done it.

Man Shengming thought for a moment before uttering two words:

"Qimen... Dunjia."

"Hero Man, you’re also an expert in the art of Qimen Dunjia?

"My apologies for my ignorance!"

Cheng Tianyang hurriedly cupped his fist.

Man Shengming shook his head.

"A little... just a little... You... look..."

He pointed, and Cheng Tianyang followed his finger with his gaze. He saw that ’Li Tianxin’, Luo Qingyi, and the others were not far from where they stood.

They were gathered with Dao Wuming, Ning Jiuyuan, and their group, discussing something.

He immediately said:

"Hero Man, how do we get over there?"

"Fol... low me."

Man Shengming truly lived up to his title of Hero. Not only were his martial arts superb, but he was also exceptionally learned.

The array laid here by that old man held no secrets in his eyes.

As a result, leading Cheng Tianyang to find ’Li Tianxin’ and the others was as easy and natural as strolling through his own back garden.