Chapter 59: Infiltrating the Blood Fiend Alliance

One of the young men, whose appearance was quite unremarkable, had blue flashes wildly flickering in his eyes. He casually traced several incantations, forming a massive shield of light that enveloped the area. Then he bared his small tiger teeth with a grin. “They’re all gone. Is this the secret entrance to the teleportation array you mentioned?”

The other, a burly man built like an ox with a thread of goat beard under his chin, hurriedly bowed. “Young master… Even if Yang Jian were braver, he would never dare deceive you. This is indeed where the secret teleportation array leading to the headquarters of the Blood Fiend Alliance is located.”

He still seemed unaccustomed to being someone’s servant, but with both his vital essence and a fifth of his spirit bound in the other’s hands, the taste of being so constrained was bitter. He had tried several times in secret to break the seal by channeling his power, but it never worked. Little did he know that the Prison Seal Technique ranked among the finest sealing arts in this realm. Now, Yang Jian had no choice but to bow to Lei Xiang, whose cultivation was lower than his own.

Lei Xiang smiled faintly. “How does a mere late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator like you know such high-level secrets about the Blood Fiend Alliance headquarters?”

Yang Jian forced a smile. “Young master, you may not know, though I haven’t formed my core, I’m one of the top alternates for the Eighteen Blood Killers. You eliminated several Blood Killer members, so I was promoted as a substitute and allowed to participate in some significant organizational decisions. Supposedly, none of the Eighteen Blood Killers know the secrets of the main headquarters, but I came across some information by accident. After piecing and analyzing it together, I’m about seventy percent certain.”

“Only seventy percent? When you pledged allegiance to me, you promised you could lead me straight to the headquarters.”

Sensing Lei Xiang’s discontent, Yang Jian hurried to explain, “Young master, in the Eastern Yue Kingdom, the Blood Fiend Alliance has been the most mysterious organization for the past century. To have seventy percent certainty is already the limit. Please understand.”

Lei Xiang knew this well; he was only probing the truth of Yang Jian’s words. “Who is the leader of the Blood Fiend Alliance? Judging by how he just handled things with his spirit projection, I have an odd feeling—this person should know me.”

Seeing Lei Xiang’s tone soften, Yang Jian wiped his cold sweat. “That, I truly don’t know. Even those who’ve followed the leader for decades have only ever heard his voice, never seen his true face.”

Lei Xiang nodded thoughtfully, convinced of Yang Jian’s honesty. “Very well. Let’s begin searching for the entrance.” With that, he released his spiritual sense, scanning every inch, and Yang Jian did the same, not shirking his part. The two began a meticulous search.

The area spanned only a dozen yards, and they swept it three times in moments, but found no secret passages or hidden walls. Lei Xiang focused his attention on the pine wood statue.

He watched as blue light flickered in his eyes, moving across the statue inch by inch, until the blue glow finally rested at the center of the grotesque, decaying figure—a thumb-sized spot resembling a navel.

“Step back!” Yang Jian responded and retreated three yards. Lei Xiang extended his index finger but didn’t press it in immediately; after considering, he withdrew his hand, then formed another series of incantations and reached out again. This time, his index finger was as translucent as white jade.

He stopped half an inch from the circular hole, channeled his spiritual energy, and forced a thread-thin chill from his fingertip straight into the opening.

It was precisely the Cold Yin Finger technique taught to him by Du Gu Yi Xiao.

A few faint, crisp clicks sounded as the chill of the Cold Yin Finger was shredded by something unknown within the hole. Lei Xiang’s expression remained unchanged, but behind him, Yang Jian gave a helpless smile before returning to normal.

With his cunning, Yang Jian naturally guessed there must be a trap within the hole. He hadn’t warned Lei Xiang, hoping that Lei Xiang would stumble into danger, giving him a chance to strike and regain his freedom. But Lei Xiang was so cautious—far more cunning than his youthful appearance suggested, even surpassing old foxes by several times. Yang Jian was forced to temporarily abandon thoughts of escape.

At this moment, Lei Xiang entered several more incantations and sent in another wave of Cold Yin Finger chill. The mechanism inside the hole was now under control; the chill passed freely, stretching and retracting without hindrance. Lei Xiang relaxed, confident in his Prison Seal Technique. He finally pressed his index finger into the hole.

A cool, tingling sensation spread forth—the lingering chill of the Cold Yin Finger. Lei Xiang ignored it, probing and scraping within the hole.

Suddenly, with a sharp crack, Lei Xiang quickly withdrew his finger and leapt three yards back. The blood-red wooden statue continued to crackle, and the decaying meat figure slowly began to rise, sprouting two legs beneath the rotten flesh.

The statue was now a yard taller, and its split crotch revealed a passage wide enough for one person.

Lei Xiang mocked himself, “This leader is truly perverse. To enter the headquarters, you must first suffer the humiliation of crawling between its legs.” He bent down and entered the passage, while Yang Jian’s eyes flashed with surprise—even he, the seasoned veteran, hadn’t found the mechanism, yet this young man did so with ease. He followed him in.

The passage was narrow but winding, twisting every few yards, often looping in the same direction—one could wonder if they were just circling in place. Thankfully, as they progressed, they continued forward, but the meandering route left them dizzy. Lei Xiang simply closed his eyes and relied on spiritual sense to guide his steps.

After two hours and hundreds of turns, they finally stopped before a massive array. Upon seeing the several-yard-wide formation, Yang Jian couldn’t help but cry out, “We’ve found it! This is the teleportation array to the headquarters…” He moved forward.

“Careful!” Lei Xiang shouted, sending a crescent-shaped blue blade flying, and at the same time, Yang Jian rapidly retreated. “Thud, thud!” Three featherless arrows impaled the spot where he’d just stood. He barely breathed a sigh of relief when a hand suddenly extended from beneath the array, wielding a yard-long broadsword, swinging straight for his feet.

This was the moment Yang Jian had just landed, his internal energy at its most sluggish—he couldn’t dodge in time. The enemy’s coordination was nearly mathematically precise. In a flash, the blade nearly severed Yang Jian’s ankles.

A blue light flashed; the broadsword clattered to the ground, followed by the hand itself—Lei Xiang’s blue whirlwind had saved him at the critical moment.

All of this happened in less than two seconds. Yang Jian stood dumbfounded, while Lei Xiang examined the severed hand.

The hand still gripped the broadsword tightly, but not a drop of blood flowed from the wound. Only one explanation remained.

It was not a human hand.

Lei Xiang smiled and stepped back a few paces, arms crossed in leisure. “Yang Jian, these are all traps laid by your leader. Anyone approaching the teleportation array triggers them. Now, breaking them is up to you.”

Yang Jian finally collected himself and nodded earnestly. If, at first, he’d only followed Lei Xiang perfunctorily, calling him ‘young master’ without true sincerity, after these battles Yang Jian was increasingly shaken. Lei Xiang was simply extraordinary. Especially this time, when Lei Xiang had saved him without warning, a genuine respect began to rise from within Yang Jian’s heart. “Following Lei Xiang might not be so bad.”

“Blood Fiend in full bloom, demonic desire surges to the heavens.”

After reciting this, a massive blood vessel suddenly hovered above Yang Jian’s head. He poured a series of incantations into it, causing it to swell to twice its size. A veil of blood light enveloped Yang Jian, and he advanced toward the teleportation array beneath its protection.

The attacks resumed—spear, hammer, sword, halberd, blades of cold steel, shadows of swords, flashes of chilling light and fierce brilliance. Four types of magical tools combined in a grand assault, but Yang Jian’s protective blood light easily deflected them.

Yang Jian changed his incantation, and the blood vessel spun above him, raining down countless blood arrows. With repeated cracks, the spear, hammer, sword, and halberd all snapped in two. More magical tools launched their attacks one after another, the room bursting with multicolored brilliance as the battle turned chaotic.

“Young master, all the traps here have been cleared. Shall we use the teleportation array? Please decide.” Yang Jian did not express gratitude for saving his life, but Lei Xiang could sense the change in his tone.

After carefully inspecting the teleportation array, Lei Xiang tossed out a beast-hide tent, and Yang Jian continued under his blood light. The two stepped into the array together.

There was no discomfort whatsoever.

Ordinary teleportation would cause various unpleasant sensations—at least dizziness—but this time, they were sent out effortlessly and in a very short span. Lei Xiang judged the teleportation distance was extremely short.

But as Lei Xiang stepped out of the array, he was utterly stunned.