191 Chapter 190: It’s a Trap! (1/2)
By the time we reached the venue, it was late into the night. it felt like a lifetime ago when we fought against the Golden God of Fire and the Incendiary Ifrit Sect that I almost couldn't believe that all this was happening in the same day.
I recognized the place as where the Blood Blades hunted down the Divine Shadow Sect. This was where I slew Gray Shadow, and where the rest of the Blood Blades wiped out so many of Divine Shadow Sect's members, who had unwittingly used this abandoned mansion as their base. I didn't expect to be back here after half a year.
Being abandoned, the floor was covered with dust and cobwebs, and faint traces of blood lingered, those stains that weren't cleaned out by the cleaning crews half a year ago. The empty mansion appeared to be deathly still under the silvery moonlight.
For some reason, Blood Shadow chose not to reside inside the mansion and was waiting in the courtyard outside. He was wearing a hideous mask, probably to make himself look terrifying (though I suspected that his real face beneath the mask would probably be more grotesque and scarier than the mask), and sitting on the grass under the trees.
Nearby, beside one of the trees, both Tang Qi Hong and Lian Rou were present, tied up and bound tightly to their respective trunks by what seemed like blood-red snakes. They watched Blood Shadow in terror as he stirred.
The old man opened his eyes and stared in the direction of the entrance. He narrowed them, his pupils shrinking in a predatory manner and gleaming with murderous bloodlust. A cold smile spread across his wrinkled face.
Blood-colored tendrils seemed to snake out of the shadows cast across the courtyard, slithering underneath the moonlight like living things.
”They're finally here,” Blood Shadow rasped, his voice thin and reedy. He seemed to melt into the shadows, disappearing from view.
Perhaps because of that, the atmosphere around the mansion seemed to grow even more frightening. However, unaware of his antics, Lang Xie's group approached the mansion cautiously, looking out for Blood Shadow.
”This is the place, huh? I remember attacking Divine Shadow Sect here half a year ago. I didn't think I would be returning.”
I recalled that Hai Rong was part of the group detached to attack Divine Shadow Sect, but that time it was led by Elder Zhao, so I didn't recognize her. Thanks to Blood Blades being masked and dressed as ninjas for some reason (probably because it looks cool), I wouldn't have been able to pick her out anyway.
But clearly she had been one of the ninja-dressed Blood Blades with wide bamboo hats and a cloth mask who came with me and Tong Xue to wipe Divine Shadow out from Tushan City back then. I guess none of us really knew each other back then.
Hai Rong shook her head as she calmly entered the premises of the derelict mansion. Even though she clearly didn't like the place, she was still the first person who entered the courtyard, gesturing for me and Tong Xue to stay back.
As our instructor, she couldn't allow us to risk ourselves and so took point. If we were ambushed, she would stand a higher chance than either of us to survive the attack.
Even so, Tong Xue and I followed behind her, staying close. Let it not be said that we shirked from danger.
While we did so, Lang Xie remained hidden. He had concealed himself in the darkness and was silently monitoring the situation. The moment Blood Shadow or any of Divine Shadow Sect members showed up, he would immediately launch his own ambush.
”So you're Instructor Hai from Blood Blades?”
Blood Shadow's voice hissed from the shadows. Tong Xue and I exchanged a glance and kept our eyes out, but despite my Heaven and Earth senses, I still couldn't pinpoint his exact location.
Rather, it felt as if Blood Shadow was occupying the entire space. His presence seemed to extend over the mansion, filling each and every inch with his qi. It was almost as if he wasn't human, but a gigantic invisible monster.
Oh boy…we're way in our heads this time…
Gulping, I kept my eyes peeled, but to no avail.
”And…what's this? You've brought children with you?” Blood Shadow laughed, still unseen. ”Has Blood Blades been reduced to such a pathetic state that you're forced to rely on children to fight your battles?”
”Nah, we just thought you weren't worth the manpower,” I replied. I bet Blood Shadow was narrowing his eyes at my remark, for the next words he spat out of his mouth were dripping in a caustic tone.
”You'll regret that.”
I shrugged. ”Maybe. I don't mind taking the place of the current hostages. Perhaps you'll find that you'll have more leverage using me as a hostage over the girls.”
”Ah…” Blood Shadow sounded as if he suddenly understood. ”So you're Fei Wu, that boy with so much promise, the one the Nine-Tailed Fox Sect pinned the hopes of their future on.” He chuckled. ”Well, you have spunk if nothing else.”
”So how about it?” I asked. Tang Qi Hong and Lian Rou watched me from the trees where they were bound to, and shook their heads desperately. Apparently they had been gagged, but I couldn't see any cloths in their mouths.
No. from both my glasses and my qi senses, I could detect their qi being clogged up and hindered by something. Blood Shadow must have injected them with something that blocked the circulation of their qi and not only prevented them from using teir techniques, but also robbed them of their ability to move or speak.
No wonder their restraints seemed pretty…loose. A single snake-like blood tendril was binding their waists to the tree trunks, but that was all. I could easily freeze and break it if I was given the chance. Knowing Blood Shadow, however, I wasn't careless enough to rush forward and seize them. Tong Xue too was resisting the urge to dash forward as well, clearly knowing that the notorious assassin would have laid some traps.
Blood Shadow burst out laughing.
”Why trade hostages when I can take all of you as hostages?”
”Are you underestimating me?” Hai Rong snarled as she drew her Spirit Weapon, which was a short sword. ”Hurt any of the children, and I swear I'll kill you.”
”Oh, but you shouldn't move carelessly.” Blood Shadow mocked, still invisible. ”You don't want anything to happen to these girls, do you?”
As if to illustrate his point, the snake-like blood tendrils tightened around Tang Qi Hong and Lian Rou's waists. Hai Rong stiffened, but she lowered her sword a fraction.
”If you refuse the exchange, then we'll kill you.” I turned to Tang Qi Hong and Lian Rou, who were watching me and Tong Xue, frightened and in anguish. ”We'll make sure to avenge your deaths, at least.”
”Ha ha ha! You talk big for a youngster!” Blood Shadow guffawed. ”Do you really think you have the ability to kill me and avenge your women's deaths?”
”No, but Instructor Hai does.”
Blood Shadow snorted. ”I'm sorry to disappoint you, but your instructor isn't strong enough to kill me. That's why…” his amusement was audible. ”I'll be able to take all of you as hostages.”
”You can try,” Hai Rong snapped.
”Oi!” Tong Xue whispered urgently. ”Don't provoke the lunatic! What will you do if he really kills Lian Rou and Qi Hong?”
”As I said,” I replied simply. ”We'll avenge them!”
”What use is that if they're dead?”
”Psychological warfare, dude,” I hissed back. ”Just play along and hope that he calls our bluff, and we'll all be able to get out of this alive.”
Tong Xue wisely fell silent after that.
”And besides,” Blood Shadow was continuing, not paying any attention to the exchange between my friend and me. ”Why would I want to take a guy hostage? I would much rather take these beautiful girls hostage instead.”
That was when I realized something. Glancing at Tang Qi Hong and Lian Rou, I swept my gaze across the other trees and saw that they were empty.
”Where's Hu Mei Er?” I demanded as the coin finally dropped. ”There are only two of the hostages. Where's the third?”
”Hmm? Was there supposed to be a third girl?” Blood Shadow mocked me. ”I'm sorry, but I don't remember. Perhaps I've already sucked her dry?”
Tong Xue frowned. ”Something's not right. Hu Mei Er shouldn't be…”
Thinking hard, I shook my head and decided to bite the bullet. Raising both my hands, I stepped forward and indicated that I was unarmed. Even though I couldn't see Blood Shadow, I could feel his scornful gaze on me.
”Brat, I don't care if you're unarmed. Like I said, I have no intention of exchanging hostages. If you want these girls back, you'll have to persuade your sect to surrender to the Martial Arts Alliance.” He snickered. ”These girls are blacksmiths and not Blood Blades, so they won't be killed. I can't guarantee that the fates awaiting them would be better than death, though…”
I took another step forward, and reached out with my qi. In an instant, all the blood tendrils in the area were frozen, including the ones that bound Tang Qi Hong and Lian Rou. As the ice shattered, Tong Xue darted forward and snatched both of them.
”You…!”
Blood tendrils snaked out from the shadows to strike the three of them, but I raised a hand and froze the blood appendages into ice.
”…!”
I felt the spiritual feedback surge into me as I struggled to stop Blood Shadow's attacks. Hai Rong was right – this bastard was extremely powerful. More so than Gray Shadow and Black Shadow combined. It was taking me everything just to stop his attacks in his tracks, never mind coming up with a counterattack.
”You actually stopped my attacks?” Blood Shadow sounded shocked. ”A brat who's merely at the Qi Fusion Stage?”