Chapter Thirty-Eight: Ambush

As Li Ruoyu fended off Yu Qing’s assault, he hurriedly explained, “Senior Sister, it’s not my fault! Don’t believe this troublemaker’s words.”

After that blow, Yu Qing withdrew her hand, but her expression remained stern as she glared at both Li Ruoyu and Jing Hong. Li Ruoyu quickly clamped a hand over Jing Hong’s rosy lips, determined not to let her say another word—otherwise, he’d be in for a world of trouble.

Soon after, Li Ruoyu, Yu Qing, and Jing Hong set off together, their journey filled with playful quarrels and the constant bickering of the two women echoing along the way. As they approached the entrance to the Abyss of Fallen Demons, Li Ruoyu halted his light-travel and extended his spiritual senses over the area, immediately detecting something amiss.

The road had been unusually calm, which Li Ruoyu found odd—by rights, they should have encountered at least a few people, but the path was deserted. He suspected an ambush awaited at the exit. His suspicions proved correct, though it was by no means good news.

“What’s wrong, Little Radish?” Jing Hong asked, seeing that Li Ruoyu had stopped their flight.

“Let’s go,” Li Ruoyu replied, leading them to a hidden spot to wait. He intended to let someone else spring the trap first and spare themselves the effort. After the three had hidden for about half an hour, a lone figure approached the mouth of the Abyss. Judging by his garb and the wild aura he exuded, he was likely from the Forest Demon Sect, a branch of the Immortal Beasts.

Just as this man neared the entrance, more than twenty people sprang out, all wearing the robes of the Lifeless Sect, one of the Four Great Sects of Zhao. The Lifeless Sect disciples struck without warning, their dazzling attacks overwhelming the Forest Demon Sect man, who died instantly. After cleaning up the blood and chaos, the Lifeless Sect members concealed themselves once again, ready to ambush the next arrivals.

Li Ruoyu, Yu Qing, and Jing Hong watched in silence as another soul perished at the hands of the Lifeless Sect, each secretly acknowledging that these people lived up to their reputation—merciless, ruthless, and silent killers indeed.

In the following moments, monks from Putuo Monastery, followers of the Supreme Unity Sect, disciples of Li Ruoyu’s own Everlasting Nine Sect, and others from various factions also fell victim to the ambush. The Lifeless Sect members killed and robbed without hesitation, their practiced methods revealing that this was hardly their first time orchestrating such a massacre. Only skill honed by repetition could yield such efficiency.

At one point, Li Ruoyu spotted a group of more than a dozen disciples from the Great Dream Sect, but they too met a grisly end. The treasures they’d gained in the Abyss were plundered, and their lives snuffed out. As it turned out, there weren’t just twenty-some Lifeless Sect members at the exit, but as many as seventy. Li Ruoyu had long wondered why the Lifeless Sect had been so scarce these past ten years—it was all part of their plan. They let others search for fortune, then lay in wait to slaughter and steal the fruits of their labor, turning the entire abyss into a grim harvest for themselves.

Suddenly, from the distance, a rolling ball of flesh approached. As it drew near, Li Ruoyu realized it was no monster, but Wang Bo, the chubby scamp. After years apart, Wang Bo had grown even rounder, his bulk surpassing all previous records. If not for his familiar features, Li Ruoyu might have mistaken him for some strange beast. Quickly, Li Ruoyu used his divine sense to weave a thread of sound, guiding Wang Bo toward their hiding place.

“Ruoyu, Jing Hong, Senior Sister Yu! How did you all end up together? Don’t tell me…” Wang Bo’s voice brimmed with surprise, and a mischievous grin broke across his face.

“You little rascal, you’re asking for a beating—daring to tease me!” Jing Hong shot Wang Bo an angry glare, reaching out as if to tweak his ear.

“Wouldn’t dare, Auntie,” Wang Bo replied submissively, though the wicked smile on his face only deepened.

Jing Hong’s eyes sparkled slyly as she said, “I bumped into Little Radish by chance, but as for Senior Sister Yu and Little Radish—there might just be something going on between them!”

Li Ruoyu could only sigh. “Something going on? There’s nothing at all.” At the same time, Yu Qing fixed Jing Hong with a resentful glare, clearly annoyed. Still, having been the butt of Jing Hong’s jokes all along, Yu Qing’s patience had grown, and she managed to hold back her temper.

Wang Bo sidled up to Jing Hong, eager for gossip. “Really?”

“Would I lie to you, sharp little rascal? When they first met, Yu Qing was chasing Little Radish around with her sword!” Jing Hong’s eyes gleamed with mischief as she spilled the story to Wang Bo.

Li Ruoyu watched the two troublemakers and thought, “Nothing good ever comes from these two teaming up.”

“Ruoyu, is it true?” Wang Bo pressed, his curiosity insatiable.

Though Jing Hong’s words were misleading, they weren’t entirely false, so Li Ruoyu could only answer honestly. Fortunately, Jing Hong’s constant teasing had worn Yu Qing’s patience thin, so she managed to restrain herself—though the vein pulsing on her forehead betrayed her foul mood. She was a volcano ready to erupt at the slightest spark.

Sensing the danger, Li Ruoyu quickly changed the subject. “Wang Bo, have you found a daughter-in-law for Uncle Wang yet?”

The mention of this topic distracted Wang Bo, who replied, “Nope! I’ve spent all these years just eating my way through the Abyss of Fallen Demons.”

Li Ruoyu thought to himself that it was obvious—how else could Wang Bo have grown so rotund? From a distance, one might mistake him for a rolling ball of flesh.

“Why aren’t you waiting at the Abyss entrance to leave?” Wang Bo asked.

Li Ruoyu explained the massacre at the hands of the Lifeless Sect to Wang Bo. As the ten-year period drew to a close, more and more people arrived—some fell to the ambush, others, sensing danger, hid around the exit as Li Ruoyu and his companions had done.

Meanwhile, Li Ruoyu’s cultivation, through constant tempering and practice, had almost reached the peak of the mid-stage Dao Body realm. As the days passed, a bold plan began to take shape in his mind.

On the eve of the ten-year deadline, Li Ruoyu left Wang Bo and the others in their hiding spot and set out alone toward the Lifeless Sect’s ambush site.

The Lifeless Sect members saw Li Ruoyu approaching and unleashed a barrage of attacks. Li Ruoyu summoned the “Remnants of a Desolate Burial Ground” manifestation and unleashed the Transcendent Fist, charging straight at them. After withstanding the initial strike, Li Ruoyu declared, “This is a robbery.” He had waited until now to strike, intending to seize all the treasures the Lifeless Sect had accumulated from their years of murder and plunder.

At his audacious words, the blue-robed leader of the Lifeless Sect sneered, “Such arrogance! Kill him—together, now!”