CH 21

He counted the footsteps, there were three of them. Previously, when the mercenaries were divided into search teams, Si Di had informed him. One sentinel paired with a guide formed the first group, one sentinel with a regular person for the second group, while the third and fourth groups each consisted of three regular individuals.

Since it was a trio, that’s manageable, Xiao Zhenyun consoled himself. Regular folks lacked sharp senses; they couldn’t hear his deliberately muffled breath, nor could they catch the faint guide element he couldn’t completely hide.

Soon, the silhouettes of the three mercenaries entered Xiao Zhenyun’s sight. They searched meticulously, leaving no corner unchecked. A sudden jolt passed through Xiao Zhenyun as he noticed one of them holding a thermal imager. It seemed to provide a full 360-degree view, leaving no room for luck.

Can’t let them get close here.

Xiao Zhenyun qucikly made a decision. Tian Lu materialized behind the trio, its sharp antlers thrusting directly into the back of one while disappearing abruptly before the other two could react and fire at him.

Blood immediately stained the attacked man’s lower back. He cursed, then nervously sought cover and aimed his gun around.

There couldn’t be deer on this isolated island in the ocean, let alone a deer that would actively attack humans and teleport. The squad leader among the three mercenaries took out a walkie-talkie and called out, “Leader, spotted an unrelated target beyond the mission, a spiritual body in the form of a deer. Judging by the spiritual entity’s type, it’s a guide.”

The voice on the other end of the walkie-talkie was slightly chaotic, taking a while before responding, “Eliminating the mission target is the top priority. If other obstacles appear, eliminate them all.”

“Understood.”

A spiritual entity taking heavy damage would also severely affect its host’s spiritual power. Xiao Zhenyun knew that after Tian Lu’s unexpected strike, these mercenaries would be much more alert. They wouldn’t give him the same chance twice. He swiftly opted for the second plan of action – a majestic stag emerged from a direction completely opposite to where he was, its head poking out briefly before swiftly retreating.

Bullets immediately struck where it had appeared just moments ago. One of the mercenaries subconsciously moved to pursue, but his teammate held him back, shouting to their squad leader, “This is clearly a bait and lure tactic.”

“Indeed, a very obvious bait and lure tactic,” the squad leader concurred, “…but the issue is that it’s overly obvious.”

Is it truly a bait and lure tactic, or is it pretending to be one? Or could it be a ploy to split them into two groups and pick them off one by one?

After several seconds of contemplation, he decisively led his team in pursuit of the departing stag.

Throughout this time, Xiao Zhenyun had been perched in the tree, holding his breath as he observed. Seeing the people temporarily depart finally allowed him to exhale. Luckily, these three had some brains; they were pondering on multiple layers. Otherwise, his own idea might have turned against him.

However, his brief relaxation was shattered by a series of gunfire and deafening explosions in the distance, clearly coming from the seaside. Something had gone wrong on Si Di’s side. Xiao Zhenyun carefully shifted among the tree branches, making no sound. The spot where the yacht had been docked was now veiled in post-explosion smoke. He was about to focus his gaze when suddenly, the sound of flapping wings reached his ears from afar.

A sense of ominous premonition instantly enveloped him. Xiao Zhenyun quickly turned around, only to see a small bird with brown feathers perched on a branch next to him. The bird had white circles around its eyes that extended backward, forming narrow lines that were typical of a ‘Huamei’ bird. Its call was incredibly loud.

In the next moment, I heard the melodious chirping of the bird piercing through the entire rainforest, the sound echoing: “He’s here!”

Without a second thought, Xiao Zhenyun somersaulted and leaped from the tree. Drawing from his previous experience of falling, this time he instinctively shielded vital areas, especially the back of his head. At the brink of life and death, a person’s potential truly shone. When he landed on the ground, he couldn’t feel the pain at all. He summoned his Tian Lu and swiftly hopped onto the back of a stag, gripping its antlers tightly, and hunched down as the stag raced through the wilderness.

He heard the roar of a bear shaking the forest, along with the ground trembling beneath the weight of its five to six hundred kilograms as it ran.

The bear must have been getting closer, and to make matters worse, the persistent Huamei bird was following closely behind, continuously signaling to its companion in mid-air.

Neither the sentries nor the guide had appeared yet. He was, surprisingly, being chased away by two spiritual entities. Xiao Zhenyun swore that if he made it out alive this time, he would tear apart any book related to the guide’s tactics, vowing never to be a pawn on the chopping block again.

However, reality seemed unwilling to grant him such an opportunity. The deer agilely leaped and dashed through the forest. Just as it was about to create a distance from the bear using its speed advantage, a sniper bullet suddenly whizzed through the air. The vigilant Tian Lu had an exceptionally strong intuition for incoming danger. It lifted its front hooves abruptly, throwing Xiao Zhenyun off its back. Its golden, round eyes gazed toward the direction of the bullet, but it couldn’t evade in time, and he watched helplessly as the bullet penetrated its body.

Tian Lu let out a mournful cry and fell to the ground, blood splattering around.

At the same time, Xiao Zhenyun’s head felt as if it had been struck by a heavy bell, ringing and buzzing. Multiple overlapping images appeared before his eyes, and in a daze, he violently spat out a mouthful of blood, the world spinning around him.

The fusion state he had achieved due to heightened emotions vanished as Tian Lu suffered severe injuries. The exhausted stag lay within the spiritual domain, barely breathing.

The massive body of the bear cast a shadow behind him, its deafening roar startling the birds in the rainforest. Xiao Zhenyun struggled to prop himself up from the ground, and as he raised his head, he saw the bear’s thick claws raised high. With one swipe, those claws could shatter even solid rocks, let alone his fragile skull.

Just then, a pitch-black figure suddenly leaped onto the bear’s shoulder. Sharp claws dug deep into the fur, and Tai Ji opened its jaw full of sharp teeth, mercilessly biting into the bear’s head. In the next moment, it tore off one of the bear’s ears.

The bear roared in pain, thrashing its body, and Tai Ji, dripping with blood, leaped off its shoulder. After a roll on the ground, it swiftly stood up, casually chewing on the bloody ear before swallowing it whole. Then, it growled menacingly at the bear.

The Huamei bird was surprised and fluttered its wings, letting out a mournful cry in the sky. Suddenly, a bullet hit its chest, and the demise of the spiritual entity was like a balloon being punctured, blood-soaked feathers scattering in all directions as the Huamei disappeared.

The bear grew even angrier, its roar earth-shattering. But Tai Ji remained fearless, seizing the opportune moment to pounce and engage the bear in a fierce battle.

Si Di swiftly emerged from a tangle of vines, having managed to snatch several weapons from the enemy in the meantime. The moment they met, he handed Xiao Zhenyun a gun, the same one he had used to take down the Huamei bird. His face and body were covered in blood, and drops of blood still fell from the dagger he held in his left hand. Thankfully, from Xiao Zhenyun’s estimation, this blood didn’t belong to Si Di; it was the enemy’s blood. He looked up at him, seeing the face of a demon on his expression, blood flowing from his forehead down his eye sockets, resembling a trail of blood tears.

His condition was grim, not physically injured but mentally extremely unstable. Even when standing upright, his posture remained hunched. His eyes were bloodshot, and he managed to utter a faint ‘keep moving’ to Xiao Zhenyun. However, he swallowed the rest of his words upon seeing Xiao Zhenyun’s excessively pale face.

Xiao Zhenyun understood what he wanted to say, shaking his head. His mental strength was damaged, leaving him unable to voice anything.

Unconsciously grinding his teeth, Si Di’s neck was adorned with prominent veins. He glanced at Xiao Zhenyun for a moment, trembling, then half-knelt as he clutched onto Xiao Zhenyun’s collar, burying his face to breathe deeply. The once pristine white clothing of Xiao Zhenyun was now smeared with soiled bloodstains.

There were traces of guide element remaining on the clothes. He realized this and attempted to take off his upper garment to hand it to Si Di. However, the sentinel refused, holding onto it desperately as if a dying person gasping for air, finding solace in this antidote that temporarily eased his headache.

Tai Ji and the brown bear wrestled for several rounds, gradually losing their advantage. Tai Ji knew that if it got injured, it would deal an irreparable blow to its master’s spiritual domain. It hastily retreated upon landing, disappearing from the spot with a swift turn.

The brown bear wasn’t faring any better. It swayed a couple of times and, under its master’s instruction, returned to the spiritual domain.

“I’ve taken down five. The guide should be incapacitated temporarily due to severe injuries, leaving four remaining,” Si Di finally released the now disheveled clothing. Enduring the pain, he continued, “Two sentinels, two regular individuals. The sentinels are both A-rank, not easy to handle. I don’t have any other options. I’ll have Tai Ji guide you out later. You still have a trace of guide element on you. After the frenzy, Tai Ji won’t attack you first if there are other targets… You really need to take care this time.”

Xiao Zhenyun immediately realized Si Di’s intention to provoke his mental frenzy proactively. During this state, he would disregard pain and launch indiscriminate attacks in a ferocious state that was difficult for his normal self to compete with. This was his desperate attempt against an enemy that had become almost unbeatable in his normal state.

However, this would inevitably lead to Si Di’s end.

The remaining enemies were closing in on them. Even without the sentinels’ warning, Xiao Zhenyun could sense the rapidly approaching chilling murderous intent. Nevertheless, he firmly grasped Si Di’s wrist, closed his eyes, and attempted to delve into the mental link between the two.

Each attempt to utilize his guide powers felt like thousands of needles poking at his brain. Despite clenching his teeth to withstand this intense pain, it was followed by a dull ache akin to a pestle stirring his brain matter. Seeing Xiao Zhenyun’s face drenched in cold sweat, even his eyelashes moist, Si Di urgently spoke, “Stop! If you continue like this, your spiritual domain will collapse again!”

Xiao Zhenyun paid no heed to his advice. In a life-or-death moment, everyone fought for their lives. The slightest hesitation could mean the difference between survival and demise. Compared to life, everything else seemed trivial. Moreover, his spiritual domain shouldn’t be that fragile.

The author has something to say:

Si Di: What are you doing?

Zhenyun: Grilling a bird.

Hello, everyone ヾ(＾∇＾). I hope you enjoyed the story! If you’re feeling generous, please buy me a coffee, share/comment on my translated works! Check out the link below for early chapters.  (๑>ᴗ