novelhome Chapter 344 - 183: Obtaining the Core Formation Spiritual Object: The Upheaval in Hezhou (3)
Chapter 344 - 183: Obtaining the Core Formation Spiritual Object: The Upheaval in Hezhou (3)
As for the Anti-Demon Faction, its members had either returned to their respective families or gone to the front lines to earn points.
They were basically impossible to command now, with only a nominal presence remaining within the Commerce Association.
In other words, the cultivators who remained were basically unopposed to trading with the Divine Fire Sect.
’This simplifies things,’ Xiao Chen thought. ’I no longer need to figure out who’s who.’
’I can just catch them all in one fell swoop later. I guarantee none of them will be innocent.’
’And it looks like they’re planning to split up, which makes it perfect for me to take them down one by one.’
In truth, with Xiao Chen’s strength, he didn’t need to be so cautious.
But the appearance of the Spirit-Locking Smoke had been a wake-up call.
The Huidong Commerce Association had backing from the Eastern Domain, with the Golden Dawn Sect providing them with all sorts of strange trump cards.
Who knew what kind of powerful, killer moves they might possess—things never before seen here in the Southern Domain.
Setting others aside, the president, Li Yongfeng, had to have at least one dose of Spirit-Locking Smoke on him, if not an even more powerful life-saving measure.
That was why Xiao Chen hadn’t made a move directly, instead planning to find an opportunity for a one-on-one fight.
’With no one else to interfere, I can use the Small Three Talents Sword Formation to force out his trump cards.’
「Not long after.」
The Foundation Establishment Cultivator who had come to report the situation turned and left.
A short while later, Li Yongfeng also left the rear hall. He went to the side rooms to get the resting Foundation Establishment Cultivator, and the two of them flew west together using Sword Control.
Based on the intelligence Xiao Chen had gathered earlier, they were likely headed to the new stronghold in the Black Flame Mountain Range.
’Bad news: a one-on-one fight seems to be off the table.’
’Good news: now there are only three Foundation Establishment Cultivators left guarding the warehouse at the Huidong Commerce Association headquarters.’
’Should I follow Li Yongfeng, or stay behind to secure the Five-Colored Jade Coral? What a tough choice.’
Xiao Chen hesitated over this for a full second.
In the end, he decided to secure the Five-Colored Jade Coral first.
He stealthily approached the perimeter of the warehouse and even waited for a moment to make sure no Foundation Establishment Cultivators were suddenly returning.
Only then did he take out his various Magical Artifacts. He first deployed the Sword Array to his left to trap one person, then threw the Immortal Binding Rope to his right.
Finally, wielding the Golden Melon Thunder Hammer, he charged toward the Foundation Establishment Cultivator in the middle.
Speaking of which, ever since obtaining his Body Refining Cultivation, Xiao Chen found this pair of hammers more and more useful.
They were especially handy for smashing people.
The sudden attack immediately caught the three cultivators on guard duty completely by surprise.
The cultivator in the very center reacted to the ambush by instinctively dodging backward and taking out a Magic Shield to parry.
At the same time, he shouted a warning, "Enemy attack!"
Empowered by his Magical Power, the sound instantly spread throughout the entire stronghold.
.
It had to be said, his reaction was quite fast.
Unfortunately, he was just a bit too slow and couldn’t dodge in time.
"BANG!"
A loud crash echoed.
It was followed by a sharp "CRACK!" as the Upper Grade Magic Shield in his hand split apart with a shattering sound.
Xiao Chen followed up with a backhanded swing of the hammer.
The man had just pulled an Array Flag from his robes and was struck squarely before he could even unfurl it.
"SNAP!"
The flagpole instantly broke. The great hammer smashed into his chest, sending him to his death on the spot.
It was only then that Xiao Chen realized this opponent was only at the third layer of Foundation Establishment.
If a cultivator deliberately concealed their aura, other cultivators could only gauge their approximate Realm unless the difference in Cultivation was vast.
Xiao Chen, in particular, had deliberately not used his Spiritual Eye Technique for Investigation to avoid alerting the enemy.
He had prepared for battle under the assumption that he would be facing three Great Perfection Foundation Establishment Cultivators.
Who would have thought the Huidong Commerce Association would assign an Early Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator to guard the warehouse?
Xiao Chen turned his head to the left and saw a sixth-layer Foundation Establishment Cultivator trapped inside the Small Three Talents Sword Formation.
The man was desperately holding on, relying on the Top Grade Magic Robe he was wearing.
He then glanced to his right. The Immortal Binding Rope had already tied up the only eighth-layer Foundation Establishment Cultivator present, binding him tightly.
’That’s it?’
Before making his move, Xiao Chen had been prepared for a major battle.
He never expected his opponents to be so laughably weak.
Actually, that wasn’t entirely fair.
In theory, three Foundation Establishment Cultivators working together with the warehouse’s Defense Array should have been able to hold out for at least two hours, even against two Great Perfection Foundation Establishment Cultivators.
But firstly, Xiao Chen’s strength far surpassed that of an ordinary Great Perfection Foundation Establishment Cultivator.
The three guards hadn’t even had time to activate the Defensive Array before they were crushed with overwhelming force.
And secondly, the Huidong Commerce Association was currently split by internal factions and extremely short on manpower.
Furthermore, they hadn’t managed to recruit many cultivators in the first place, so they couldn’t even scrape together three late-stage Foundation Establishment Cultivators.
It was important to remember that although Hezhou had more Foundation Establishment Cultivators than Li State, their total numbers were still not very high.
The Huidong Commerce Association wasn’t a Major Sect like the Lingyuan Sect; how could it possibly have so many Foundation Establishment Cultivators at its disposal?
Xiao Chen quickly figured this out and couldn’t help but chuckle in amusement.
He had previously been either on the front lines of the war between righteous and demonic factions or in a Secret Realm.
He was always surrounded by Foundation Establishment Cultivators, so it was natural to feel like late-stage ones were everywhere.
But on second thought, if the Huidong Commerce Association could really spare three Great Perfection Foundation Establishment Cultivators to guard a warehouse, it would have long been famous as the fourth major power in Hezhou.
With the guards taken care of, the small Defensive Array remaining inside the warehouse naturally couldn’t stop Xiao Chen.
"BOOM! BOOM!..."
With the roar of Li Huo Thunder, the western wall of the warehouse was instantly blasted to dust.
Then, a flash of Sword Light cut a path through the flames.
Xiao Chen charged directly into the warehouse, his Divine Sense spreading out rapidly to search for the Five-Colored Jade Coral.