Chapter 274

Chapter 274: A Critical Moment

The Qing Snake transformed from bamboo was not only sharp and unmatched, but its power was on par with a Fifth Rank Flying Sword. Moreover, they were all highly venomous; a single bite could leave even the Wind Tribulation Immortal shedding a layer of skin!

These green snakes were especially cunning. Some boldly attacked head-on, while others burrowed underground, flew through the air, or even launched surprise attacks from behind. They were all green, blending perfectly into the lush bamboo forest, making them highly concealed—one careless mistake could lead to an ambush.

Faced with tens of thousands of these terrifying poisonous snakes, the two Wind Tribulation Immortals dared not slack off. They activated their protective treasures and even cast multiple protective Dao magic spells, sacrificing their attack frequency to do so.

Seeing this, Mr. Suan Mei also quickly adjusted, lowering his attack intensity several levels and not applying more pressure.

After all, his goal was simply to buy time and wait for Fang Lie. There was no need to fight desperately against these two.

Noticing Mr. Suan Mei’s actions, the two men immediately understood and exchanged a knowing glance, thereby reducing their attack intensity as well, merely going through the motions. They had their own calculations; they aimed to buy time too. The information had already been sent back, and reinforcements would arrive soon. Joining forces would be far easier than facing this formation alone.

With both sides working together in this way, the battle within the Green Bamboo Formation seemed fierce but was actually just for show—purely a performance.

Poor Man-Eating Demon Monk was trapped inside the formation, relying solely on sounds and Spiritual Pressure to gauge the situation outside. Upon sensing strong magical fluctuations, he thought a great battle was about to begin and did not realize anything was amiss.

However, Mr. Suan Mei’s peaceful time did not last long. Just over half an hour later, the reinforcements from the Chongming Ancient Temple disrupted their plans.

The first group of reinforcements comprised eight Wind Tribulation Immortals. Though Man-Eating Demon Monk had more than ten under his command, many were out busy working, leaving only eight to guard the stronghold. The other two had to stay behind.

Besides them, several hundred Cultivators of the Purple Palace rank were on their way aboard the treasure ship, but their speed was too slow; it would take at least over an hour before they arrived.

Nevertheless, the arrival of the eight Wind Tribulation Immortals posed a grave threat to Mr. Suan Mei. He realized it was too late to leave and could only fight with all he had, hoping Fang Lie would arrive before he succumbed.

Fortunately, these eight Wind Tribulation Immortals were not eager to be puppets under the Man-Eating Demon Monk. Instead of recklessly attacking, they surrounded the Green Bamboo Formation and observed.

But unfortunately for them, even if they wanted to delay, the Man-Eating Demon Monk was not inclined to agree.

Though he was trapped in the formation and attacked by the Seven Dragon True Immortals, he seemed to sense the poison he had unleashed. The moment the reinforcements arrived, he became aware.

Initially, he thought they would charge in immediately, so he didn’t say much. However, after waiting for some time and seeing them lingering outside without attacking, he became furious and shouted, "You deadweights, what are you waiting for? Break the formation and save me now! Let me tell you, if anything happens to me, you’ll wish you were dead!"

"Ah~" The eight Wind Tribulation Immortals were shocked and immediately stopped hesitating. They cried out and rushed into the Green Bamboo Formation.

With all eight Wind Tribulation Immortals attacking at once, Mr. Suan Mei found it hard to hold on.

As the formation master, he could absolutely challenge opponents of higher levels after setting it up, so trapping two or three Wind Tribulation Immortals of his rank was not a problem at all.

However, once there were more than five, he began to struggle. Adding the previous two in, there were now ten Wind Tribulation Immortals in total. No matter how powerful Mr. Suan Mei was, he could not handle ten at once!

The two initially trapped individuals quickly sensed that reinforcements had arrived. They abandoned their tacit understanding with Mr. Suan Mei and attacked with all their might. With the addition of the new eight, the ten Wind Tribulation Immortals began to wreak havoc within the Green Bamboo Formation.

Sword shadows flashed, and fire crackled—various terrifying destructive energies erupted within the formation. Large swathes of the bamboo forest became barren.

Although these clearings quickly grew back and the endless green snakes continued their frenzied attacks, Mr. Suan Mei’s situation became increasingly difficult.

He noticed that the sheen of the thirty-six bamboo rods began to dim, and several severely damaged ones even developed cracks.

The Fifth Rank wood element formation rods were too fragile. They could handle a few Wind Tribulation Immortals, but if the numbers exceeded that, they were at risk of destruction.

Facing this unfavorable situation, Mr. Suan Mei felt heartbroken, but he did not give up. Gritting his teeth, he pulled out a large handful of new bamboo rods.

This Green Bamboo Formation was originally intended to create 666 rods, but the required resources were so terrifying that Mr. Suan Mei had only managed to craft a little over 200 by now.

After replacing the nearly damaged bamboo rods with new ones, Mr. Suan Mei continued to activate the Green Bamboo Formation, refusing to let anyone break through.

In truth, Mr. Suan Mei was willing to do this partly because of Fang Lie’s temperament and nature. The Fang Family were straightforward and generous. Judging by the treatment of the Seven Dragon True Immortals, once they became disciples and fought one battle, they acquired immense benefits, even receiving a Seventh-rank formation flag each.

Such a generous and forthright employer was exceptionally rare.

Mr. Suan Mei knew very well that even if the losses were severe this time, Fang Lie would definitely not treat him unfairly and would surely repay him double, or even triple, five times over. Moreover, the key point was that Fang Lie genuinely had the financial means to do so. For others, 200 fifth-rank treasures represented a staggering amount, but for Fang Lie, it was nothing at all. He would never ruin his reputation over such a small sum!

Due to his strong confidence in Fang Lie, the usually stingy Mr. Suan Mei surprisingly became generous for a while, exhausting all the bamboo rods he had to hold them off for two hours, thus winning precious time for the final victory.

The ensuing battle could truly be described as brutal. Seeing that he could not hold on much longer, the Man-Eating Demon Monk threatened and urged the Wind Tribulation Immortals to break the formation and save him. Under his coercion, the top ten Wind Tribulation Immortals went mad, attacking at all costs and unleashing powerful Dao magic. The explosions within the Green Bamboo Formation never seemed to stop.

As a result, Mr. Suan Mei had to change his bamboo rods almost every little while. As the number of rods in his hands grew fewer, the cold sweat on his forehead gradually turned into a stream, continuously flowing down.

Finally, after more than an hour, with a series of booming sounds, the Green Bamboo Formation was finally shattered. Along with it, 36 fifth-rank bamboo rod treasures were also destroyed. Once the Formation broke open, the Seven Star Soul Lock Formation revealed itself, and at the same time, Mr. Suan Mei’s disheveled figure appeared.

At this moment, Mr. Suan Mei no longer resembled his former self. His hair was messy, his face pale, blood was lingering at the corners of his mouth, and the bright red bloodstains on his chest displayed the fact that he had suffered heavy injuries.

In contrast, on the side of Chongming Ancient Temple, not only were the top ten Wind Tribulation Immortals unscathed, but their reinforcements had also arrived. A treasure ship stopped in the distance, while hundreds of Cultivators above the Purple Palace controlled their magical tools, flying through the air to form a formation behind the ten Wind Tribulation Immortals.

Looking at that imposing formation across from him, Mr. Suan Mei felt immensely despondent and thought to himself, "Could it be that I will truly die here this time?"

"Hahaha, old Suan Mei, I didn’t expect you to have such a day!" sneered the white-browed scoundrel triumphantly. "Let’s see how you can stop us now!"

"Truly overestimating yourself!" the man in flower-patterned clothing added with a cold laugh. "It’s a shame that you are a dignified Wind Tribulation Immortal yet are willing to be a lapdog for a newcomer. Aren’t you embarrassed?"

"Exactly, we are ashamed to be associated with you!"

"This is so humiliating!" The other Wind Tribulation Immortals chimed in with mocking ridicule.

However, at this moment, Mr. Suan Mei suddenly threw his head back and laughed, "Hahaha~ How amusing! At least I am still a disciple; I can come and go as I please, enjoying my freedom and dignity. But what about you? Summoned by the Man-Eating Demon Monk, you can be struck or killed at will. If he becomes unhappy, he might even use you as food. Tell me, what do you think you are?"

"To put it bluntly, you are even worse than dogs, merely reserve food for a demon!" Mr. Suan Mei scoffed coldly. "You are ashamed to be associated with me? Oh please, do not flatter yourselves; not everyone has the right to stand with me!"

"Hahahaha~" The Seven Dragon True Immortals burst out laughing.

"Well said, these people are even worse than dogs, just food reserve for a demon, and they still have the audacity to consider themselves superior? Truly shameless!"

"I’ve seen shamelessness, but I’ve never seen such shamelessness!"

"In this world, there are indeed those who take pride in being livestock for a Great Demon; what an eye-opener!"

Provoked by their derision, the cultivators from Chongming Ancient Temple became furious, their anger boiling over! Suddenly, someone shouted in a frenzy, "Damn it, charge and kill them all!"

"Kill~" Following that, the scoundrels roared and rushed forward!

At that critical moment, a mocking voice suddenly rang out, "Oh dear, so many lapdogs! Quite loyal too! Since that’s the case, let me help you show your loyalty!"

As the voice faded, five streams of five-colored Sword Energy appeared out of thin air among the crowd. With a single sweep, dozens of them were instantly sliced into several pieces, and among them was even a Wind Tribulation Immortal!