Chapter 2048: Saving w.a.n.g Hu
After standing on the side of the river for a while, Zhao Hai turned around and left. Just as he turned around, a large tongue curled out of the river towards him. Zhao Hai felt the winds behind his back and knew that something wasn’t right. He quickly rolled away while erecting a mud wall behind him.
Zhao Hai knew that the attack couldn’t come from a cultivator. There were no cultivators around him. Therefore, the only source of the attack was the demon beasts on the river. Most likely, it came from the frog beast that he just saw.
Although he only saw a glimpse of the beast, Zhao Hai can be sure that it was definitely above the Earth Monarch Stage. If it was really that beast who attacked him, the only thing he could do was run, run as fast as he can.
Just as he rolled forward, Zhao Hai heard a crash from the earthen wall that he erected. He didn’t even look back and immediately got up and ran away. He entered the nearest pa.s.sage and disappeared.
After going through several caves, Zhao Hai slowed down. He could hear that the beast was no longer chasing him. Then he let out a long breath.
Zhao Hai looked around him and saw that he entered a medium-sized cave. The cave was no different from other caves. However, the atmosphere of the cave was quite moist. There was also the smell of decay.
The decayed smell wasn’t a putrid stench. Instead, it was a decayed smell that came from a swamp. It was the smell coming from rotting plants which spoiled the air.
Zhao Hai knit his brows and continued to move forward. He wanted to see why there was such a smell.
After walking for half an hour, Zhao Hai felt his sight go dark. When he looked around, he found that it wasn’t because there was no light around him. Instead, it was because the light from the cave was dimmer than before.
He was now standing on a swamp. Everywhere was covered in mud which emitted a decayed smell. The entire area was filled with deathly stillness, there was no noise.
Zhao Hai had a fuzzy feeling. It feels like there was an eye staring at him, looking at where he would go.
Upon noticing this feeling, Zhao Hai didn’t hesitate and quickly flew back. Then he turned around and left. Although he was curious about the swamp, he knew that he would only be courting death with his current strength.
At the same time, Zhao Hai wondered how the rogue cultivators survived in this dangerous place. Zhao Hai was certain that if any rogue cultivator entered the previous two places, they were guaranteed to not return. Despite this, there were rogue cultivators who were able to come back to this place every year. They even regard this place as a source of livelihood.
After walking for about half an hour, Zhao Hai finally got rid of the feeling of being stared at. Then he slowed down. At the same time, his heart was full of questions. He couldn’t understand how the rogue cultivators were able to live well in the labyrinth.
While Zhao Hai was thinking, he heard the sound of fighting in front of him. Zhao Hai stared. He initially has no intentions of going over, but then he hears a familiar voice, “Three Monsters of Kun Mountain, you b.a.s.t.a.r.ds. You actually dared to ambush me. You’re dead!”
Hearing this voice, Zhao Hai couldn’t help but stare. He was familiar with this voice, it belonged to w.a.n.g Hu. From w.a.n.g Hu’s breathless voice, it was clear that he wasn’t doing very well.
“Gegege. w.a.n.g Hu, we wanted to get rid of you a long time ago. You even organized a small alliance. I really want to see if someone comes to save a pretentious person like you. Where are your brothers now? Tell them to come out.” The voice of a woman answered. Her voice was sweet, but her words were resentful. It made people uncomfortable listening to it.
Zhao Hai could ignore other people, but he couldn’t ignore w.a.n.g Hu’s situation. In a way, w.a.n.g Hu could be considered as his benefactor. He can’t watch w.a.n.g Hu being killed.
Zhao Hai quickly moved towards the source of the sound. In less than five minutes, he arrived at the cave where w.a.n.g Hu and the Three Monsters of Kun Mountain were fighting.
As soon as he arrived, Zhao Hai saw three cultivators attacking w.a.n.g Hu. There were two men and one woman. The clothes they wore were special. They didn’t look like warrior clothing but instead they looked like robes. Their hairstyles were also quite strange. They have patterns painted on their faces. They were similar to how barbarians were made to look like on the television.
In the middle of the three people was w.a.n.g Hu. He held two hammers in his hands and his complexion was quite pale. There was also a long wound on his abdomen that was dripping with blood.
Seeing this, Zhao Hai coldly snorted, then he took out his blade and shouted, “Brother w.a.n.g Hu, let me lend you a hand.” After saying that, he joined the battle.
Zhao Hai used the Rolling Rocks Technique. Although the technique was only a medium-level blade manual, it has a very strong momentum. With the technique’s momentum as well as Zhao Hai’s surprise attack, he quickly broke through the encirclement and rushed to w.a.n.g Hu’s side.
When w.a.n.g Hu saw Zhao Hai, he couldn’t help but stare. Then his expression lightened up as he said, “Junior Brother Zhao. Thanks. I owe you one.”
Zhao Hai changed his blade technique to the Eight Gates Goldenlock Technique. At the same time, he took out a jade bottle and pa.s.sed it over to w.a.n.g Hu while saying, “Brother w.a.n.g, let’s talk later. Use this medicine. You can take it directly.”
w.a.n.g Hu wasn’t polite and immediately removed the bottle’s cover. To his surprise, the jade bottle contained a liquid potion. But he didn’t have the luxury to be surprised. He quickly poured the potion over his mouth. As soon as the potion entered his body, it immediately turned into a warm current. At the same time, he could feel an itchy feeling from the wound on his abdomen.
While this was happening, Zhao Hai used the Eight Gate Goldenlock Technique to protect w.a.n.g Hu. The pressure he endured couldn’t be underestimated. This was because the Three Monsters of Kun Mountain had the same level of strength as w.a.n.g Hu, all of them were in the Soul Fusion Stage.
The Three Monsters of Kun Mountain were also surprised. They were tracking w.a.n.g Hu for a long time. They only acted at this time because they knew that he was alone. They didn’t expect that when they were about to succeed, someone would arrive. Although this person was only at the Clone Stage, his blade technique was very powerful. They also noticed that w.a.n.g Hu’s injuries were visibly healing. If they let this happen for long, then w.a.n.g Hu would recover.
The three had no choice but to strengthen their attacks. Zhao Hai also released his clone who used the Eight Gates Goldenlock Technique. The main body and the clone body were doing all they could to defend.
Half an hour pa.s.sed, Zhao Hai was still defending while the Three Monsters of Kun Mountain were also attacking. w.a.n.g Hu actually closed his eyes to recover faster. Zhao Hai wasn’t worried. Although the attacks of the enemy were very powerful, they wouldn’t be able to break through his defenses soon. Moreover, from Zhao Hai’s calculations, w.a.n.g Hu’s injury should be healed soon. The potion he took out wasn’t ordinary. It was improved multiple times by the s.p.a.ce. It allows cells to grow faster, stimulating them to heal damaged tissue.
Hou! A loud roar was heard along with a sound akin to thunder. Then w.a.n.g Hu, who had been sitting motionless all this time, opened his eyes and glared at the enemies. Then he said, “Three Monsters of Kun Mountain, you b.a.s.t.a.r.ds. I’ll make sure that you die without a place to be buried!” After saying that, he swung his hammers and attacked the three.
The three seem to be very afraid of w.a.n.g Hu. When they saw that w.a.n.g Hu had recovered, they were stunned. Now they can’t retreat even if they wanted to. When w.a.n.g Hu began his attacks, Zhao Hai also showed his offensive blade techniques. The three were now trapped. If they wanted to leave, then they would need Zhao Hai’s permission to do so.
With w.a.n.g Hu’s addition, Zhao Hai became more relaxed. His blade was completely unfolded, covering the three enemies with blade light. At the same time, w.a.n.g Hu’s fierce attacks were endless. w.a.n.g Hu’s style was to completely overwhelm the enemy. This made it impossible for the Three Monsters of Kun Mountain to escape.
The five fought each other for an hour. The three were completely unable to defeat Zhao Hai and w.a.n.g Hu. One by one, they were struck down by the two. Zhao Hai didn’t receive the corpses and turned them into Undead. He plans to hand them over to w.a.n.g Hu. But w.a.n.g Hu still gave it to Zhao Hai. In the end, the Three Monsters of Kun Mountain were sent to the s.p.a.ce.
After killing their enemies, Zhao Hai and w.a.n.g Hu moved to a nearby cave to rest. While they sat down, Zhao Hai couldn’t help but ask, “Brother Hu, how did you offend those guys? They seem to know you from before? Do you share a grudge?”
w.a.n.g Hu nodded and said, “We know each other from before. One time, they were trying to rob someone from our alliance. I happened to be there so I helped that person to repel the three. From then on, they held a grudge. I didn’t expect that they would plot against me. Luckily, you were there. Otherwise, I might not have been able to survive.”
Zhao Hai replied, “It’s also luck that I’m close by. I heard sounds of fighting, so I came over to see. I didn’t expect to see you there.”
w.a.n.g Hu gave a nod and said, “I discovered a demon beast so I chased it. Right, Brother Zhao, why are you here? The forbidden region isn’t far from here.”
Zhao Hai had a confused look as he asked, “Brother w.a.n.g, where is this forbidden region? There are also forbidden lands in the labyrinth?”
w.a.n.g Hu nodded, “Of course there are. As far as I know, there are two forbidden areas close by. They are the Star Dance River and the Toxic Swamp. Brother, never venture into those areas. Powerful beasts occupy those regions. With our present strength, we would only die if we go there.”
Zhao Hai’s complexion couldn’t help but change. Then he asked, “Brother w.a.n.g, this Star Dance River, is it a wide river with a lot of fireflies flying over it? As for the Toxic Swamp, is it near the Star Dance River? Does it smell of decay?”
w.a.n.g Hu was stunned by Zhao Hai’s question. He replied, “Brother, isn’t this your first time coming to the underground labyrinth? How do you know those places? Did you go there?”
Zhao Hai gave a bitter nod. Then he mentioned his previous experience. When w.a.n.g Hu heard this, he couldn’t help but feel a cold sweat from his back. He forced a smile and said, “Brother, I must say. You’re quite lucky. Fortunately, you were able to escape quickly. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be able to escape. Star Dance River and the Toxic Swamp are famously ominous places. There’s an Earth Monarch who explored those places but wasn’t able to come back.”
“If you see anything with color in this labyrinth, immediately run away. Even if you want to go in, be very careful. If you see a skeleton mark outside the entrance, then don’t enter.” After saying that, w.a.n.g Hu drew a symbol on the ground, which was the pattern for ‘dangerous’ used by the people in the labyrinth.
Zhao Hai nodded, “I’ll take note of it. Thank you very much, Brother w.a.n.g.”As he said that, Zhao Hai recalled the entrance of the caves he entered. There really was a carving of a skeleton before the Star Dance River. But he didn’t know that it was a mark for a dangerous area. He only thought that it was a carving made by a bored cultivator.
w.a.n.g Hu waved his hand and said, “No need to be polite with me, we’re Brothers. This labyrinth is incredibly large. Even the Tyrant Blade Sect doesn’t fully understand it. There are also places that the Tyrant Blade Sect wouldn’t dare to go, not to mention Rogue Cultivators. Fortunately, there aren’t a lot of dangerous areas in the labyrinth, and most of the demon beasts are low-level. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be able to feed rogue cultivators.”
Zhao Hai nodded, “This underground labyrinth is indeed big. If I have an opportunity in the future, I will definitely explore the entire thing. Brother w.a.n.g, you might not know, but the scenery on Star Dance River is very beautiful. It’s one of the most beautiful things I’ve seen. Unfortunately, I wasn’t strong enough. Otherwise, I would have taken a swim in the river.”
w.a.n.g Hu smiled and said, “Then I’ll wait for you to be strong enough. Brother, I can see that you didn’t come to the labyrinth to earn a livelihood. You came here for a trial, right? Brother, I suggest that you leave the labyrinth as soon as possible. Besides low-level cultivators, there isn’t anything here. You will not achieve much in this trial.”
Zhao Hai nodded, “Thanks for the reminder, Brother w.a.n.g. But I’d like to explore this place a bit more before leaving. Right, it’s also fate that I met Brother w.a.n.g today. This is a jade token. If there’s anything you need help in the future, just crush this token. As long as I can help, I won’t decline.” Zhao Hai said before taking out a jade token and handed it over to w.a.n.g Hu. This token allows Zhao Hai to know the coordinates of the user once crushed. Then he could easily go over and help.