novelsite Chapter 12 Dead End
Chapter 12 Dead End
"I'm warning you, don't go too far!"
Li Ai gritted her teeth, clenching her fists tightly: "Even if I'm just a weakling at the fourth level of Body Tempering, I will never submit to you!"
Li Ai's red eyes widened, humiliation, anger, and resentment erupting completely at this moment: "Come on! Let's see who dies!"
"Hmph, what an arrogant and ignorant piece of trash!"
A cold voice suddenly came from the mist, and then a black shadow broke through the miasma. It was so fast that it left only a blur. A violent punch, accompanied by a devastating force, suddenly slammed into Li Ai's back!
【careful!】
A red light flashed, and suddenly a large number of simple and easy-to-understand icons appeared in front of Li Ai's eyes.
Li Ai's expression changed, and almost instinctively followed the reminder, turning around and crossing her arms in front of her, fully circulating the qi and blood in her body.
boom!
The fist slammed into her arm, the enormous impact spreading outwards like a heavy hammer blow.
The force surged through his arm and into his internal organs, sending Li Ai flying uncontrollably backward, crashing heavily into a tree five meters away.
Boom!
The tree trunk creaked under the weight, cracking with countless spiderweb-like patterns, and leaves fell in a rustling sound.
"puff!"
Li Ai spat out a mouthful of blood, the crimson blood mist splattering on the grass in front of her. Her heart and lungs felt like they were about to explode, and the pain caused her to convulse all over, making it difficult for her to even breathe.
This time it wasn't an act; I was genuinely severely injured in a single blow!
She struggled to look up, her vision blurring, but the golden information box that popped up in front of her remained clear:
[Zhou Siyuan, Second Level of Meridian Opening, Estimated Strength: 8 tons; Evaluation: Skilled in speed and attack, irritable and easily angered, with a strong desire for control.]
"Brother Lin Fan, brother, what brings you here?!" Zhou Siyu suddenly changed to a look of great surprise and ran to Zhou Siyuan's side, then turned to look at the distance.
Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw a noble-looking young man walking slowly towards them.
He was dressed in a uniform with a pattern of intertwined green bamboo and a gold-embossed "林" (Lin) character, exuding an extraordinary air. Behind him followed three martial artists with composed demeanor.
With the addition of Zhou Siyuan, who had just ambushed Li Ai, a five-person team was formed.
All five of them carried a faint smell of blood, clearly indicating that they had just been in a battle.
"We accepted a mission to hunt down the filthy beasts and were on our way to wipe out their nests nearby when we heard some noise here, so we came to check it out."
Lin Fan greeted the students around him with a smile, his voice as gentle as a spring breeze, but his gaze lingered briefly on Li Ai—deep within those gentle eyes lay a chilling coldness, like the icy cold of the twelfth lunar month.
His gaze shifted to the team leader, Teacher Zhao, who immediately stubbed out his cigarette, his face unusually gentle, and nodded in greeting: "Student Lin."
"Hello, Teacher Zhao, you're the team leader today." Lin Fan nodded slightly, his demeanor elegant and proper, displaying the style of a young master from a prestigious family.
As soon as he appeared, he became the focus of everyone's attention. Even Teacher Zhao took the initiative to go up and chat with him, and the students around him immediately surrounded him, with voices of flattery rising and falling.
"Young Master Lin! Why did you come to such a dangerous place yourself? Do you need our help?"
"We happened to be here, just about to go out and collect spiritual plants."
"It's all because of this Li Ai who caused trouble and wasted everyone's time. Please don't take offense."
Lin Fan smiled amiably, his eyes filled with just the right amount of gratitude: "Then I'll trouble you all. I'll treat you all to dinner at Zuixianlou after the mission is over."
"Young Master Lin, you're too kind! Dealing with this vile beast is everyone's responsibility!"
"Young Master Lin volunteered for such a dangerous mission as clearing out the lair of the vile beasts; he truly cares about the people. How can we stand idly by?"
Flattery and fawning filled the air, but no one paid attention to Li Ai struggling in the corner, and no one saw the cold calm surging in her eyes.
[...This unfolded exactly as expected.]
"Yes, your decision... is right." Li Ai raised her head, all hope gone.
"Are you alright?" Li Hui floated to her side, his tone unusually devoid of teasing.
He tried to help her up, but his hand passed right through Li Ai's body, and he then remembered that he was now just a spirit.
"I won't die." Li Ai wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth.
"...If you're not going to die, get up already!"
Li Ai gritted her teeth and shakily got up, clutching her chest and coughing violently.
She turned and walked toward the tent, seemingly wanting to avoid this place of trouble.
"Wait, Li, junior." Lin Fan suddenly called out to her, his tone still gentle, like a senior who cared about his junior.
"Xiaoyu told me you're very experienced at finding things. We need someone to help us find the entrance to clear out the filthy beast's lair, why don't you come with us?"
Five meaningful gazes fell on Li Ai simultaneously. Zhou Siyuan and the others wore ambiguous smiles, their eyes filled with amusement and malice, as if they were looking at prey about to fall into a trap.
Li Ai slowly raised her head, meeting Lin Fan's gaze, her voice hoarse as if it had been sanded: "Why?"
She believed she had done nothing wrong, yet the Lin family was determined to kill her.
First, there was nearly a year of torment, bullying, and humiliation; now, they are openly plotting to kill her.
"What are you saying, junior?"
Lin Fan walked slowly to Li Ai and gently patted her shoulder: "I'm just here on behalf of my cousin Weiwei to say hello to you."
"Tch!" Li Ai clenched her fists.
Lin Weiwei, my "good senior," turned her back on me after three years of friendship without even giving me a decent reason.
She knew very well that this was not a friendly invitation at all, but a trap set against her.
Whether you go or not, you won't find a way out.
"Say yes." Li Hui's tone was very serious, with a hint of barely suppressed anger.
This is not yesterday's chase; it's a true crushing defeat.
With Lin Fan, a cultivator at the Condensation Realm, and four cultivators at the Meridian Opening Realm present, she had no choice.
"Okay, I'll go," Li Ai said in a low voice, her tone devoid of emotion.
A triumphant smile flashed in Lin Fan's eyes. He grabbed her hand, and Li Ai instinctively tried to break free, but he held it tightly.
Without a word, Lin Fan led her to the armored off-road vehicle next to him: "Let's go, ride in our car, it'll be faster."
Zhou Siyuan got into the driver's seat, stepped on the gas, and the SUV roared as it crashed through the dense black thorns by the roadside and drove deeper into the black thorn forest.
The miasma grew thicker, the surrounding light grew dimmer, and the shadow of death quietly descended.
Lin Fan unfolded a yellowed, old map, laid it on his lap, and asked with a smile, "Junior, you're a native of Hanchuan, you should know a lot about Hanchuan's geography, right?"
Li Ai replied in a deep voice, "Yes... Hanchuan is located in the Ice Lake Mountains in the northern part of Canglong Kingdom. It is covered in snow all year round, and the snow only melts from May to August."
"Two thousand eight hundred li north of Hanchuan lies the 'Bingyan Fortress,' also known as Yanmen Pass, one of my country's nine major fortresses, specifically designed to defend against the hordes of filthy beasts from the north."
"Not bad, junior, you know a lot." Lin Fan nodded in satisfaction, his fingertip landing on a dot marked in red on the map.
"Actually, Hanchuan has another secret that no one knows about—the largest heart stone mine in the country used to be here, but unfortunately it dried up decades ago."
He looked up at Li Ai, his smile still gentle, but his eyes were devoid of warmth: "The place we're going to is the old site of the mine—the Star Moon Mine."
"That place is teeming with filthy beasts, and the miasma is so thick it could kill you. Tell me, what would happen to someone who got lost there?"
Li Ai did not answer, but felt a chill run from the soles of her feet to the top of her head, as if all the blood in her body had frozen at that moment.
She bit her lower lip hard and tasted a faint metallic taste of blood.