The group of cultivators sped through the tunnel.
Both sides fell silent for a time, an invisible pressure filling the air, as if everything could explode at any moment.
Just as they passed through three tunnels, Li Yan and his companions suddenly felt something, and their flight speed immediately slowed.
Only a moment later, a figure suddenly dashed out from ahead, with a large, oppressive black mass of two-winged Dark Spirit Demon Bats pressing in from behind.
This person nearly collided head-on with Li Yan's group.
The figure came to an abrupt halt. When both sides saw each other clearly, the person's expression was hesitant at first, but he quickly rushed towards Li Yan and the others.
"Fellow Daoists, Fellow Daoists, my name is Yan Tantuo. We've had the pleasure of meeting once before. Now that we are all being pursued by these Demonic Beasts, can we temporarily join forces to kill them?
"Afterwards, I can give you a detailed account of everything about this place, and then we can leave together."
The newcomer saw at a glance the menacing swarm of Dark Spirit Demon Bats pressing in behind Li Yan. He immediately assumed that these cultivators were also being hunted by the bats.
He was already seriously injured and had searched for a long time without finding Song Rongdao and the others. He knew that if this continued, it wouldn't be long before he died here.
Moreover, with his own skill in formations, even if he broke through the demon bats' pursuit, he likely wouldn't be able to break the restriction to get out.
Who would have thought he would run into those few cultivators from the plaza here?
He had clearly seen at the time that although these people claimed this was their cave residence, they too were chased into the tunnels by the Dark Spirit Demon Bats. They were obviously spouting nonsense.
Now, seeing these people also in a "frenzied escape," with a large swath of Dark Spirit Demon Bats in hot pursuit, he seized the opportunity to propose joining them, thinking there was a high chance they would agree.
He was a mid-rank cultivator, after all. Seeing the desperate way they were fleeing, anyone would understand the principle of strength in numbers.
He even blurted out that he knew the situation here, using it as bait so they wouldn't want to abandon him, hoping they would want to learn the way out from him.
He also guessed that nine times out of ten, their group had the same goal as his own: to hunt for treasure.
As long as he could temporarily evade the chase, with his silver tongue, he was confident he could integrate into their group and then escape to safety.
Seeing that the newcomer was one of Jiang Baibi's group, Xing Ming and Feng Moru both looked to Li Yan. In their opinion, it was best to just kill him directly.
However, they also vaguely understood that the Dark Spirit Demon Bats here wanted to force invading cultivators into the final tunnels for some unknown purpose.
Therefore, the final decision was left to Li Yan. After all, he held the life of one of their strongest cultivators in his hands.
Li Yan, of course, also recognized the newcomer. He snorted coldly in his heart and had no intention of dealing with him.
He was about to fly straight past, but when he heard the man's words clearly, he immediately stopped and fixed his gaze on the approaching cultivator.
"What did you say your name was?"
Li Yan's question also stunned the cultivator surnamed Yan who was flying over, as the focus of the question was completely out of place with the current situation.
He once again carefully scanned the faces of the people opposite him. They were all strangers; he was sure he had never dealt with them before.
"My name is Yan Tantuo. Could it be that Fellow Daoist knows me? If so, that would be wonderful!"
He felt that he had been around the border for many years, and it was possible that the other party had heard of his name.
Though he said this, and a look of pleasant surprise appeared on his face, he was actually uncertain and suspicious in his heart. The other party's tone made it impossible for him to tell if they were friend or foe for a moment.
He was terrified that he might have once killed or violated the other party's relatives or friends.
Li Yan thought about it again in his mind and finally confirmed it.
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'That's right, that's the name. Senior Sister once said that when she was healing, she was almost captured by a Golden Core cultivator.'
At the time, Li Yan could hear the immense hatred in Zhao Min's tone.
He knew that Zhao Min had a cold personality; she would simply kill her enemies.
Even if her opponent was stronger than her and pursued her, she might not necessarily hold it in her heart later. If she couldn't win, she couldn't win.
But when she said the name "Yan Tantuo," a rare look of disgust and displeasure appeared on Zhao Min's face.
Li Yan was a deep and calculating person. After asking Zhao Min a few more seemingly casual questions, he knew that the man had harbored lustful thoughts and wanted to possess Zhao Min.
Thus, he had committed the name to memory.
"Oh, Fellow Daoist Yan Tantuo, is it? I have indeed heard of your name!
"I remember it was twenty-three years ago, at a cultivation manor on the border. I was invited by the host family there to capture a woman in white, but it turned out to be for nothing.
"It was said that after that person was captured by you, Fellow Daoist, you took her away instead of handing her over to the manor. Fellow Daoist, you caused me to lose a large sum of spirit stones!"
Hearing this, Yan Tantuo was first startled, then he chuckled lightly.
He certainly remembered that incident. It was precisely because that woman in white had a mysterious background and possessed extremely powerful Gu-insects—the kind that ordinary cultivators could not possibly own—that he had fled from there, fearing the power behind her.
It turned out this person had also been invited by that cultivation family. In that case, the woman in white had really escaped. They actually thought he was the one who had captured and taken her away.
"Oh... so Fellow Daoist and I are of the same path. And what might your name be, Fellow Daoist?
"That matter was a great injustice to me. That woman had many vicious methods. In a moment of carelessness, I was injured by her Gu-insect and had to find a hidden place to heal.
"It's truly shameful to speak of. I was actually injured by a junior, so I was too embarrassed to return to my sect. That's why I traveled far away..."
He was delighted. It was best to get close to the other party as quickly as possible. With his life on the line, he didn't bother to think about concealing things anymore.
Their exchange was very quick, and by now, the distance between them was very close.
But as he spoke, Yan Tantuo suddenly realized something was wrong. The first thing he felt was that the atmosphere around him was not right.
As he rapidly approached the other party, "everything" in front of him came to a halt.
"Not right!"
Yan Tantuo hastily stopped his flight and quickly looked around. Only then did he discover the reason for his unease.
The large group of Dark Spirit Demon Bats that had been chasing the other party had stopped behind those few cultivators and had not taken the opportunity to attack.
And although the group of two-winged Dark Spirit Demon Bats behind him had also surrounded him, they had also slowed down and did not immediately pounce.
Looking at the few cultivators on the other side, especially the young man who was talking to him, the corners of his mouth slowly curled up, revealing a cold smile that sent a chill down his spine.
He immediately pointed a trembling finger at the other party.
"You... you... you really are the cultivators of this cave residence?"
The strange lack of an attack from the surrounding Dark Spirit Demon Bats made him think of what the other party had said in the plaza.
He was completely surrounded. Yan Tantuo felt as if he had fallen into a bottomless abyss in an instant.
Immediately, his eyes darted around, and he forced a smile.
Even at this point, he still believed that his biggest mistake was that he shouldn't have appeared in the underwater cave residence, transgressing upon the other party's taboo.
This caused him to ignore what Li Yan had said before. The reason for this psychological state was precisely that he was trapped in a heavy encirclement at this moment.
The shock of seeing these cultivators and the Dark Spirit Demon Bats coexisting so strangely was so great that it prevented him from connecting his perilous situation with the young man's earlier words.
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"Fellow Daoists, I came here under duress from Song Rongdao. He is the lord of the 'Black Forest Manor,' and his cultivation is extremely formidable.
"I am just a Rogue Cultivator, ye... yes, a Rogue Cultivator. This point, this fellow daoist here also said it just now, I left my sect a long time ago.
"Song Rongdao placed a restriction on my body, so I have no choice but to obey him. I am willing to lead you to level the 'Black Forest Manor'..."
Yan Tantuo spoke quickly. He wanted to gain their trust, so he made no mention of how many Dark Spirit Demon Bats he had killed.
Instead, he shifted the focus to Song Rongdao. If someone from the other side came to inspect his body, it would definitely be a Golden Core stage cultivator.
He could still put up a fight. He might be able to capture one of them as a hostage, which was better than sitting around waiting to die.
He also vaguely saw that the group seemed to be led by this initial-stage Golden Core cultivator. If he could get close to this person later, his chances of survival would be much greater.
He quickly calculated in his mind, but before he could finish speaking, Li Yan opposite him suddenly waved his hand and let out a soft laugh.
"Hehehe, I've only heard of this person's name, I have no Immortal Fortune with him. You all can do as you please. We're leaving!"
At the same time, he sneered repeatedly in his heart.
'This is truly the cycle of the Heavenly Dao. I originally thought I would never meet you again and would be unable to avenge Senior Sister. Who would have thought we would be so 'fated'! Hmph, a pity I can't do it myself here.'
"Fellow Daoist... Fellow Daoist..."
Yan Tantuo's urgent voice came over, but Li Yan had no intention of paying him any more attention.
His pleas and the subsequent venomous curses were quickly drowned out by a series of explosions.
This time, not only did the two-winged Dark Spirit Demon Bats that had been chasing him pounce again, but even a four-winged one from behind Li Yan led dozens of others to surround him.
They were already extremely furious at being coerced by Li Yan. Now, seeing that this person was not part of that group, they could no longer suppress the anger in their hearts.
...
After about half an incense stick's time, their group arrived at another tunnel. This one looked no different from the ones Li Yan and the others had passed through before.
It gave them the same feeling.
And it also split into several forks. If Li Yan's group of three had come here, they would have certainly flown right past, their Divine Senses detecting nothing.
"Old Fourth, you... you go over and open the restriction!"
Meng Zhiyuan said somewhat weakly. However, as he spoke, a hesitation appeared in his eyes, and the gaze he directed at Li Yan was now tinged with more vigilance.
A four-winged Dark Spirit Demon Bat that had been following behind immediately flew out, but it only hovered in the air, looking at Li Yan and the Spirit Power-bound Meng Zhiyuan.
"Big Brother, just open the restricted passage like this? When are you going to release my Big Brother?"
The first half of its sentence was directed at Meng Zhiyuan, but for the second half, its pair of emerald, ethereal eyes were fixed firmly on Li Yan.
"A female?"
Li Yan glanced at this four-winged Dark Spirit Demon Bat. Although its appearance was still ferocious and terrifying, its voice was crisp and pleasant.
This time, before Meng Zhiyuan could speak, Li Yan had already spoken.
"Fellow Daoists, you wouldn't just bring us to some random place and say it's the exit, would you? I don't see any hope of getting out.
"Also, putting other things aside for now, even if you cast a spell and an exit appears, how can you guarantee where the opened exit leads? What if this is a fourth final tunnel?"
Li Yan's meaning was clear: you don't trust us, and I don't trust you.
"You... human cultivators are truly cunning and fickle. We don't have as many tricks as you.
"The exit here is definitely the exit. Where would a fourth final tunnel come from? Then how can you guarantee that we can trust you!"
(End of Chapter)