Hidden Shadow – CH 133

Chapter One-Hundred-Thirty-Three: A Chain Formation

A sudden fog rolled in through the forest, obscuring visibility in a short time.

Chu Dingjiang slowed his pace slightly, waiting for the others behind him.

“My Lord, this fog is rather strange,” said a shadowy figure similar in build to Chu Dingjiang. “Could it be poisonous?”

“No.” Chu Dingjiang dared not be careless. “Quickly rendezvous with the trial participants.”

Recently, Chu Dingjiang had suffered a truly unjust fate. Previously, when he led the Konghe Army in the trial, they were ambushed. In that situation, it was only thanks to his quick and appropriate response that he managed to preserve some of his strength. However, the leaders of the Konghe Bureau still targeted him, and after that, everyone pushed him down, and he was gradually pushed down in the Divine Martial Team. If another accident occurred this time, he would likely be thoroughly destroyed.

An Jiu warned, “That Wei Yuzhi understands the weaknesses of mental strength very well. He taught the people from Piaomiao Mountain Mansion to disguise themselves as trial participants. Be careful.”

Chu Dingjiang hummed in agreement, tightening his grip on her arm. “Stay thirty chi away from the target. Be on alert.” The others also heard An Jiu’s words and understood the meaning of his order—if they discovered these people were impostors, a battle was inevitable.

“Lord Chu!” A female voice came from the thick fog.

Lou Mingyue had the strongest mental strength among the trial participants. She had already detected Chu Dingjiang when he entered the formation, but the formation’s paths were complex, and they dared not wander around, so they stayed put and waited.

“It’s me.” Chu Dingjiang stopped.

Six people ran out from the thick fog.

An Jiu looked at the figures, her gaze sharpening, her killing intent suddenly locking onto them.

Chu Dingjiang raised an eyebrow, drew his longsword, and charged forward like an arrow. Even with An Jiu’s eyesight, she could hardly see how he moved. By the time she stopped, the six black-clad men were already on the ground. The other shadowy figures of the Konghe Army were stunned by the immense pressure An Jiu had suddenly unleashed, taking a long time to recover. They could not help but cast inquisitive glances.

They had previously seen Chu Dingjiang constantly embracing a woman, and while they felt his actions were rather arrogant, they had not paid much attention. Within the Konghe Army, it was acceptable to have lovers to satisfy certain needs, and mutual assistance during missions was permitted. This meant that many would use their bodies to please the strong in exchange for protection.

However, An Jiu’s sudden burst of strength was clearly no weaker than Chu Dingjiang’s!

The Transcendent Realm… was extremely rare, especially since she seemed to be a very young woman!

“My Lord? What has happened?” Lou Mingyue noticed the situation. “We seem to be trapped in a formation within a formation, unable to escape.”

Judging from the current situation, Wei Yuzhi had set up a formation within a formation, trapping the trial participants. However, being so close, they could hear each other’s voices, allowing the assassins from the Piaomiao Mountain mansion to take advantage of the opportunity to launch a sneak attack.

“Overestimating yourself!” Chu Dingjiang said.

Even dozens more would not be enough for him to strike with his sword.

He gestured for Lin Qihan to go and investigate, glancing back at the path they had come from. “A formation within a formation, huh, well done, Wei Yuzhi.”

When they entered, everything on the outside was normal. But now Chu Dingjiang was almost certain that Gu Jinghong, who was on the outer perimeter, was now trapped inside the formation.

Lin Qihan was sweating profusely. “My Lord, this kind of interconnected formation has many variations. If we try to break it haphazardly, we might create a deadly formation.”

“How can you break it?” Chu Dingjiang asked.

“Finding an exit is easy, but…” Lin Qihan bowed and said, “This formation cannot be broken in ten days to half a month.”

Chu Dingjiang frowned and pondered for a moment, then looked at An Jiu. “Tie a rope to the end of your arrow and shoot.”

Everyone instantly felt immense pressure for An Jiu. The night was deep and foggy, just two zhang away, meaning she had to shoot blindly. The trees ahead were so dense. Finding a gap under these conditions was no less difficult than climbing to heaven. However, An Jiu said nothing, simply drawing a thin strand of dark silk and tying it to the end of the arrow.

Lou Mingyue, hearing the conversation, cut a long branch and struck it against the opposite tree trunk to guide An Jiu.

The arrow was nocked.

Everyone watched the slender woman draw her bow, holding their breath, afraid to make the slightest sound and disturb her.

An Jiu closed her eyes.

To outsiders, she appeared to be in a meditative state, but in reality, almost every cell in her body was activated. She listened to the tapping of the branch, her mental energy covering over thirty chi in that direction, as if everything was before her. She simultaneously estimated the environmental parameters and calculated rapidly.

The world fell silent, save for the tapping of Lou Mingyue. The tapping sound seemed to strike at their hearts, making their hearts pound wildly. They gradually felt an increasingly heavy pressure, their legs went weak, and cold sweat broke out on their palms.

Whoosh! An Jiu released her grip, and the arrow, trailing a thin thread, shot out and was swallowed by the thick fog.

The oppressive force dissipated, and everyone felt a sudden lightness, involuntarily swaying.

Snap!

“Heavens!” Sui Yuntong exclaimed.

“What is it?” Chu Dingjiang asked.

Lou Mingyue immediately replied, “The arrow pierced through the striking branch and became lodged in the trunk.”

The group of shadows stared in astonishment.

A smile appeared in Chu Dingjiang’s eyes, as if everything had been expected.

Lou Mingyue and the others followed the mysterious silk threads and emerged. Upon seeing Chu Dingjiang, they all clasped their hands in a respectful greeting: “My Lord.”

“No need for formalities,” Chu Dingjiang sheathed his sword and coldly ordered, “Find the way out of the forest! Go out and wipe out the hidden stronghold of Piaomiao Mountain Mansion!”

Lin Qihan hesitated for a moment, then asked, “My Lord, should we not wait for the deputy envoy?”

Lin Qihan was Gu Jinghong’s subordinate. If they tried to reason with him politely, even if he lowered his guard, they might not be able to persuade him. Therefore, Chu Dingjiang spoke with mental pressure. “Lord Gu is known as a wise man; how could a mere formation possibly trap him?!”

Lin Qihan was only a second-tier martial artist; how could he withstand Chu Dingjiang’s mental power? His legs buckled, and he was about to collapse.

A shadowy figure flashed, and Chu Dingjiang appeared before him in the blink of an eye. As he withdrew his oppressive aura, he reached out to support him, saying, “The path in the forest is slippery; My Lord, please be careful.”

As Lin Qihan’s eyes gradually cleared, Chu Dingjiang said, “Lead the way, My Lord. We cannot linger here. We will wait for Lord Gu outside the forest.”

Lin Qihan was a shadowy figure within the Konghe Army. Although not directly under Chu Dingjiang’s command, he was still a low-ranking shadow. Chu Dingjiang addressing him as “sir” was a great honor.

After the intimidation, a way out had been laid out, and face had been given, how could Lin Qihan dare to utter a single word of dissent?

Lin Qihan was far inferior to Wei Yuzhi. Fortunately, the Konghe Army’s surprise attack had left him little time to set up an array. The hastily constructed chain formation was mostly a delaying tactic.

After wandering around for half an hour, they finally found a loophole and managed to escape the formation.

Chu Dingjiang probed around and discovered that he could no longer sense the presence of Gu Jinghong and the others, realizing they were indeed trapped as well.

For Chu Dingjiang, it would be best if Gu Jinghong were trapped here forever, saving him the trouble of preventing An Jiu from being brought into the Dragon Martial Guards.

Thinking of this, his inner energy surged again. “The people from the Piaomiao Mountain mansion have already left. You all stay here; I will be right back!”

His eyes were chillingly sharp. “Since they broke the rules, they cannot blame me!”

This hidden spot was rather remote; no one expected Wei Yuzhi to appear and disrupt the trial. Now that Wei Yuzhi had made his move, with a master of the Konghe Army in the Transcendent Realm, they could not just suffer in silence.

Everyone was speechless, thinking to themselves: Were we not the ones who started this…?

Chu Dingjiang’s figure flickered and disappeared into the night.