562 Breaking the Rules! (1/2)
Thunderous sounds rumbled from the distant sky. Kong Dao and Zhao Yameng gradually appeared in the distant horizon. They were already traveling at extremely high speeds as they had been worried that something might happen. Zhao Yameng unleashed the array formation in her compass, which gave her and Kong Dao an additional burst of speed. That was how they managed to hurry over so quickly.
As they approached, they saw Lu Song and his teammates trembling on the ground, terror coloring their faces. They could tell that the three cultivators were at the mid-stage Core Formation realm. One of them had reached the peak of mid-stage Core Formation realm and wasn't far from advancing into the late-stage Core Formation realm. Zhao Yameng was startled at the sight. She stared at Wang Baole.
She had known all along that Wang Baole was extremely strong. Despite that, both her and Kong Dao were still shocked by the power that Wang Baole had displayed. He had faced off against three cultivators at the same level of cultivation fearlessly and managed to injure them heavily within such a short span of time. The extent of his strength was extraordinary.
Only someone at the late-stage or perfected Core Formation realm could have done that.
Kong Dao had witnessed Wang Baole's battle with the stone bat statue in the cave abode under the Sea of Fire. However, he had been focused on pushing the stone doors open and couldn't afford to spare too much attention on Wang Baole. Besides, the stone statue had been an insentient entity. That wasn't the same as fighting a living person. That was why he was shocked.
Wang Baole smiled when he saw Zhao Yameng and Kong Dao. He raised his right hand and made a grab through the air at the three cultivators sprawled on the ground. He got his hands on their storage bracelets. Then, he said indifferently, ”Now, the three of them will be hidden from the aerial map. Their legs are broken, though, and they don't have their storage bracelets with them now. They're stuck here. It doesn't matter if their presence is hidden on the map!” Wang Baole threw the confiscated storage bracelets and the other two keys to Zhao Yameng.
”Let's go. To our next target!” Having said that, Wang Baole turned and marched into the distance.
Zhao Yameng had a strange look on her face. She stared at Wang Baole, then at the three disciples from the Vast Expanse Dao Palace who were trembling silently on the ground. She smiled wryly, shook her head, and followed Wang Baole.
Kong Dao took a deep breath. After realizing how powerful Wang Baole really was, he suddenly felt that there was a chance of someone from the Federation getting into the top three in the trial. In fact, they had quite a great chance of achieving that!
The three disciples from Mie Liezi's faction released a sigh of relief when the other three cultivators left. They stared at one another. They could see the bitterness in the others' eyes, as well as shock that they were still reeling from.
”Is he really a cultivator… from the Federation, that Wang Baole?”
”He's obviously at the mid-stage Core Formation realm, but his fighting abilities… may match that of a personal disciple!”
”We've… underestimated the cultivators from the Federation! This Wang Baole is extremely powerful!” They grimaced. They knew that this meant they were eliminated from the trial. Their feelings were mixed as they struggled to sit up. Their hearts still raced with fear as they recalled the earlier battle. They waited silently for the teleportation that would occur hours later.
Wang Baole and his team, who had left them behind, were speeding off presently. They were silent as well. After a long moment, Zhao Yameng began massaging her forehead. She still firmly believed that regardless of how powerful one was, it was still necessary to have a strategy. It would increase their chances of success. After some thought, she turned and looked at Wang Baole.
”Baole, we should stay away from others now and avoid trouble. We should be more careful of those who are hidden from sight. Not everyone who's invisible on the map has lost their ability to fight. They are the hunters.”
”Yameng!” Wang Baole stopped in his tracks. He turned and looked at Zhao Yameng, a serious look on his face. He said slowly.
”All plans fall apart in the face of absolute power. The rules of this trial are secondary to that of absolute law. You shouldn't be so concerned with the rules. If this were the Federation, I would do exactly what you would do and choose the course of action that would reap the greatest rewards with the smallest amount of effort. That is because even though the Federation has entered the Spirit Inception Era, it did so recently. We cultivators are still bound by law, as rules have not completely fallen apart!
”But this is the ancient greenish-bronze sword… the true world of cultivation! I've thought it through and finally understand… Running away won't solve the problem. The strong will devour the weak. In the end… we have to rely on our strength!”
”I may not be able to hide my presence, but I'm a hunter as well!” As Wang Baole spoke, the look in his eyes grew fiercer. He raised his right hand and pointed at the map in the sky.
”Our seventh key is five hundred kilometers away from us. I'll lead you there!”
Zhao Yameng was shaken by Wang Baole's words. She admitted to being overly concerned with the rules. Array formations were, after all, another system of rules. She didn't think that her analysis was of no use, but she respected Wang Baole's decision and thus kept her silence.
Kong Dao stood at one side as he listened to Wang Baole and Zhao Yameng's conversation. He thought that there was nothing wrong with what Wang Baole had said, but he felt that Zhao Yameng was reasonable in her choice of strategy as well. He smiled wryly and said.