Breaking the Masked Man

He only cares about the final result.

“I have accurate information. That kid has no shortage of pills, and in large quantities. Moreover, he is carrying two storage rings, one of which is a top-level storage ring!”

The mercenary leader chuckled, a greedy glint in his eyes.

No one doubted his words, because this wasn't the first time the mercenary leader had organized something like this. The fact that he could say this meant he had accurate information. The only problem was Yao Yan's identity. No one was sure if he had someone backing him, and this was crucial. If they lost the gamble, they would almost certainly die.

Of course, if they win the gamble, the rewards are enormous, enough to transform them completely and even allow them to save up enough for a boat ticket to leave the Shennong Mountains.

Just like Shennong City.

There are spatial wormholes in the floating islands above, which can be used to travel to other regions by spaceship, but the tickets start at a million, a price that is enough to deter most people.

The Shennong Mountains are quite unfriendly to low-level cultivators. Good resources are almost entirely monopolized by sects and the Medicine Clan. Even the slightest relic that appears can attract a Dou Zong-level expert to seal off the space. Not to mention the high-level magical beasts in the mountains, those without talent have to compete with low-level magical beasts for the remaining scraps. Their situation is unimaginable.

But they just can't get away.

The effeminate young man gave a cold laugh and said, "Then let's gamble. Let's hope our luck isn't bad this time!"

As soon as the words fell, the six people no longer hesitated and walked together in the direction where Yao Yan had left.

All six were experts at the Dou Ling level. They had cooperated many times and even once joined forces to kill a Dou Wang who was in poor condition. Unfortunately, that Dou Wang was too poor and had few valuables on his body, far less valuable than Yao Yan, whom they were going to deal with today. However, the risks of the two things were completely different.

But how could they not be tempted by Yao Yan's wealth and weak strength?

It wasn't just their group.

At the same time, two other groups of people were also eyeing Yao Yan!

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 25 Hunter and Prey

The autumn wind is bleak, and the forests are ablaze with color.

Under the golden sunlight, the entire mountain forest seemed to be draped in a layer of golden gauze.

Yao Yan led Ling'er through the area, his gaze occasionally following the fallen leaves in the autumn wind. For a moment, he couldn't help but fall into memories. It seemed like almost a year had passed since he came to the Shennong Mountains. Since becoming Hun Xuzi's disciple, time seemed to have been put on a fast-forward button.

More than three years have passed in the blink of an eye.

It truly proves the saying: Cultivation makes one oblivious to the passage of time.

"Susu~"

A slightly chilly autumn breeze swept by, causing the withered leaves in the forest to rustle, as if playing a somber melody.

Yao Yan stopped and turned his gaze away from the surrounding scenery, calmly focusing on the people blocking his way. He was slightly surprised. He hadn't expected that anyone in Shennong City would actually dare to make a move against him. Had the name of the Yao Clan lost its deterrent power?

That's one of the most powerful clans on the Dou Qi Continent.

"Boo-boo"

Ling'er opened her eyes wide warily and scanned the newcomer. She keenly sensed the newcomer's ill intentions. Her bright green eyes darted around, and then she nimbly jumped off Yao Yan. In a few leaps, she landed on a tree trunk to the side under Yao Yan's watchful gaze.

slip away~

Yao Yan's lips twitched when he saw this scene.

This little guy really treated him like a zookeeper. He was lazy and gluttonous, and would run away whenever there was trouble. All those days of raising him were wasted.

Fortunately, he didn't expect Ling'er to be able to help him in any way.

Yao Yan looked at the six people blocking his way and asked politely, "What brings you here?"

"Young man, are you from the Medicine Clan?"

Upon hearing this, the leader grinned and cupped his hands in greeting as he inquired.

Yao Yan nodded, waiting for the other party to continue.

The leader took a deep breath, his expression turned serious, and he said in a deep voice, "We six brothers saw that you were going to the Shennong Mountains alone, and we were worried that you might encounter danger there, so we came here to help you. We wonder if you need any mercenaries? All six of us brothers are experts in the Dou Ling realm, and together we can handle even an ordinary Dou Wang!"

That's a good excuse... Yao Yan said she had learned something and politely replied, "No need, thank you."

"...Does young brother have guards? If so, then my six brothers and I have been meddling."

The leader's expression stiffened, his smile vanished, and he spoke slowly.

"you guess?"

Instead of answering, the doctor asked a question.

This slightly playful remark instantly silenced the scene. The leader could no longer continue his act. He had originally organized his brothers to ambush them, and this performance was meant to test their mettle. Who would have thought Yao Yan would be so cheeky? It was precisely because of Yao Yan's composure that they dared not move for a moment.

"If you have nothing else, I'll be leaving now."

Yao Yan said softly, then turned to leave.

"Squeak~"

The sound of their feet crunching on the withered leaves was deafening, each step pressing down on the hearts of the six people, an invisible pressure that made them hold their breath.

at last.

The tallest man among the six couldn't hold back any longer. A fierce glint appeared in his eyes as he said in a cold voice, "This kid saw right through us, what are you pretending for! If he really has powerful backers, do you think he'll let us go after we leave?!"

"That's right, this kid is bluffing, we almost fell for it."

The leader grinned menacingly and unleashed a powerful aura. The aura of a peak nine-star Dou Ling instantly raged outwards, and the surging power within his body calmed his previously uneasy emotions. At the same time, he launched an attack on Yao Yan, his fist, enveloped in earth-yellow Dou Qi, slamming heavily toward Yao Yan's head.

He held nothing back with this strike, unleashing his full power, pushing both speed and strength to their limits – a true pinnacle of his power.

The scene of Yao Yan being shot in the head even flashed through his mind.

"boom!"

Soon, a punch landed, the immense force causing the surrounding air to explode, creating a shockwave that sent dust billowing and dead leaves flying everywhere.

Something felt off... The leader was startled. He felt as if he had hit not his head, but an incredibly solid rock. As the dust quickly dissipated, an almost excessively beautiful face came into view, along with the other person's pitch-black eyes.

"This……"

At the same time, the others were also stunned by Yao Yan. They saw him catch the leader's violent blow with one hand without even moving his body.

Something is wrong!

The leader instantly sensed Yao Yan's unusual and strange behavior. Before he could react, an irresistible force surged from his arm, pulling him closer to Yao Yan. At the same time, Yao Yan swiftly punched him in the chest. There was no fluctuation of battle aura; it seemed to be just an ordinary punch.

But this ordinary punch made his whole body tense up, and he instinctively circulated all his fighting spirit, gathering it towards his heart.

"Boom!"

With a muffled groan and a cracking sound, the leader's gathered battle aura was instantly shattered by a punch. His chest caved in, his clothes tore in the back, and as a wave of energy spread out, everything in front of the leader went black in an instant.

Yao Yan casually tossed the corpse to the ground beside him, glanced at the fallen bamboo hat, picked it up unhurriedly, put it on his head to cover his troublesome face, and waved to Ling'er as if the others were invisible: "Let's go."

"Hey?"

Ling'er tilted her head, seemingly not understanding why it was so quick. In the past, when she encountered bad things that were chasing her, she would play with them for a long time. Why did Yao Yan stop playing after only a short while?

Unable to figure it out, she stopped thinking about it, jumped down, and in a few leaps, returned to Yao Yan's shoulder.

She leisurely waved her fox tail, her emerald green eyes curiously watching the remaining five people standing stiffly in place, not daring to move, not even holding their breath, letting Yao Yan walk past them, like five wooden figures, which looked extremely interesting.

As Yao Yan walked past the group, he suddenly remembered something, paused, and said, "Let's cut off one arm from each of them. There's always a price to pay for killing someone."

The words fell.

The young man with the effeminate demeanor suddenly turned ruthless, decisively raised his weapon, and severed his left arm. Enduring the excruciating pain, he thanked Yao Yan, saying, "Thank you for sparing my life, sir!"

Seeing this, the other four gritted their teeth, raised their weapons, and chopped off their own left arms.

"Thank you for sparing my life, sir!"

Seeing this, Yao Yan suddenly asked, "If I wanted my right arm, what would you do?"

This joke is clearly not funny at all.

Upon hearing this, the five one-armed men's faces fell instantly, completely at a loss for words.

The young man with an effeminate demeanor pondered for a moment before breaking the silence with a bitter voice: "Nothing more than death."

Losing a left arm might allow them to survive with difficulty, but if they lose both arms, they will only face certain death in a place like Shennong City. People like them have often bullied others by relying on their strength and have made many enemies. Now that they are crippled, those people will surely swarm around and tear them apart.

Good luck to you guys!

Yao Yan chuckled lightly, glanced meaningfully at the depths of the dense forest, and then led Ling'er away into the distance.

The five watched Yao Yan disappear into the distance until he was out of sight. Only then did they exchange a look of relief, each seeing the other's eyes filled with joy. Clearly, none of them had expected to survive in this way.

The effeminate man said with a wry smile, "He didn't take us seriously at all."

"Wasn't it said he only had the strength of a Battle Master? This guy is a Battle Master?!"

The burly man looked at the leader who had been killed with a single punch and couldn't help but say something.

Everyone looked grim, clearly not expecting the intelligence to be so blatantly wrong.

"It seems you have failed."

Just then, a sinister voice rang in everyone's ears. A thin man with a vicious look in his eyes slowly walked out of the dense forest in the distance. Behind him were six similarly dressed henchmen, who stared at them greedily.

The effeminate-looking man looked at the newcomer, his expression changed, and then, as if realizing something, he said, "Vulture? You've got your eyes on him too!"

The vulture did not pursue Yao Yan, but slowly walked to the leader's corpse, took the storage ring from his body, and shook his head and sighed as he examined the ring: "Many people have their eyes on this fat sheep, but few dare to make a move. You were the fastest group to make a move, but your end was a bit tragic... It seems this fat sheep is not so easy to eat."