Chapter 84
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Chapter 84: Mechanized Flying Kite
Li Hui seized the opportunity to rest. He didn’t know when, but suddenly he felt the bag of treasures weigh down, jolting him awake to find the sky lightening with the first hint of dawn.
“It’s almost bright. At this speed, we should have reached Yin Wind Gorge by now.”
The nine heads had enjoyed a midnight snack and still had energy left by morning. However, since the enemy lurked in the shadows, he had to conserve their strength.
Li Hui leaped down from the air, retrieving the heads to determine their direction when suddenly his pupils constricted. Three small black dots appeared in the sky, flying extremely fast and rapidly enlarging in his field of vision.
He had never seen such large flying objects; the spiritual eagles of Hidden Sky Sect looked like infants compared to them.
Shock filled him beyond measure!!!
“Mechanized flying kites? Yes, it must be that! The unique flying tool of the Flying Kite Sect. But the kites recorded in the texts are not this large; it seems mechanical art has been developing continuously, while the outside world spreads rumors that the Jade Symbol Sect has not documented this new type of talisman. Does this mean the Jade Symbol Sect has fallen behind the times?”
What does a sect fear the most? They fear becoming complacent and living off old achievements. Even if they have a stable income, it leads to gradual decline and ruin.
Li Hui took two steps back, then turned and dashed toward Yin Wind Gorge. Regardless of whether he was exposed, he had to reach advantageous terrain in the shortest time possible; otherwise, it would not bode well for sudden incidents.
Running on the ground could not compare to flying in the sky, especially with the three mechanized flying kites spreading their wings to a length of fifty paces. Although their main bodies were quite narrow and elongated, the narrower the body, the faster their speed.
They moved too quickly; comparing them to the nine heads, the heads’ speed was merely a fraction of these flying kites.
The shadow of Yin Wind Gorge hadn’t yet emerged, but the sound of breaking air approached as someone in the sky called out, “Monk, why are you running?”
As the voice came, five figures landed ahead, with the leader narrowing his eyes, unconcealed pressure locking onto Li Hui from a distance of ten paces.
“You demon cultivators really can cover the sky with your hands! To chase after this poor monk, you’ve exhausted all your cunning!” At that moment, Li Hui’s acting skills reached their peak. He clasped his hands together, reciting a Buddhist incantation, as five golden lotus Dharma clouds emerged beneath him, instantly lifting to form golden petals that layered upon him, creating golden armor, resembling the Warrior Buddha descending to the world.
The newcomers paused slightly, and one started to speak, unsure of whom he was addressing: “Check if there are any signs of demon cultivators nearby.”
“Yes, activating the Sky Search Treasure Mirror,” came the reply from above as three mechanized flying kites slowed and hovered in mid-air. A ripple of red light was emitted from one of the kites, quickly sweeping over nearby mountains and rivers, causing Li Hui’s heart to race and palms to sweat.
“Beep beep beep!” After the sounds, a voice from the air spoke: “Senior brother, there are indeed two demon cultivators behind us; their malice and resentment cannot be concealed. However, they were exceptionally cautious and escaped by the skin of their teeth the moment we detected them. We are reconfirming their position; they won’t get away.”
“Haha, so they do exist!”
The brother from the Flying Kite Sect, Cold Smile, looked Li Hui up and down with disdain: “I’ve long heard that the Jade Symbol Sect is chaotic, but I didn’t expect it to be this disordered. To dare chase and kill a Buddhist practitioner in broad daylight; they must be the only ones to do so in the Daling Dynasty.”
Li Hui thought to himself: “So that ambusher really is a demon cultivator? And he’s not alone; another one is hiding nearby.”
In that fleeting thought, he quickly joined his hands in thanks: “It seems this poor monk was mistaken. Recently, I’ve been hunted mercilessly, stumbling upon traps and poisons. Thank you all for lending a hand and scaring off the evil ones.”
The man smiled insincerely, nodding: “Well said, I am Feng Chaoyun, a fifth Inner Sect Disciple of the Flying Kite Sect. Meeting is a form of fate; helping others to the end is the way to do things. We are on our way to Giant Shell City, and your path is very similar to ours. Why don’t we take you along?”
What a nice person! He thinks of others upon meeting, fully displaying the demeanor of a senior sect disciple; however, Li Hui saw through his facade and knew the trouble he was in.
“Oh no, despite hurriedly fleeing, I still haven’t escaped the encirclement. It’s fortunate I have played the monk role successfully, and now I have two demon cultivators backing me. This guy speaks sweetly about bringing me along, but in reality, he aims to strengthen the blockade and control all cultivators within the Jade Symbol Sect’s territory. This way, it will tighten around us, and sooner or later, we six will be uncovered.” Li Hui wanted to refuse, but it was unclear how many Inner Sect Disciples had come, plus the aerial dominance of the three kites. If he didn’t agree, they would surely force a response.
Suddenly, a voice from above inquired, “Senior brother, we have prepared the Demon Slaying Needle; should we send a flying kite to chase and launch it?”
Feng Chaoyun waved his hand to give the order, and immediately a kite turned around to pursue.
Li Hui felt bitter, estimating his chances of escape were almost zero. These kites obviously had strange searching abilities, capable of locking onto cultivators from a great distance. His only option left was to board a kite and seek an opportunity to flee.
“Thank you, benefactor.”
Confronted by the Flying Kite Sect’s imposing pressure, Li Hui could only leap high, using the force of the lotus Dharma clouds beneath him to ascend several times before landing on a flying kite.
Once on board, he realized that this giant flying kite also had an interior chamber, housing a dozen cultivators; he was not the first to enter.
The interior was quite cramped. Li Hui walked down the steps slowly, glancing around at everyone when he heard someone bursting into laughter: “Hahaha, the Flying Kite Sect isn’t even sparing monks! Are they planning to send grandpas of ours to the mining area? The Jade Symbol Sect is truly useless; in just one night, they crumbled, not giving us any chance to escape to other lands!”
Next to him, a cultivator sighed: “Old Xu, complain less. Nowadays, we are the fish and they the cleaver. If we want to keep our lives, we must endure whatever they command.”
The one called Old Xu cursed in despair: “Damn it! You see, even the monks are coming in; it seems a bleak hope for us to leave.”
Li Hui leaned against the wall and noticed a thin little beggar sitting across from him, looking no older than thirteen or fourteen—it felt oddly familiar.
The cultivator chatting with Old Xu continued, “What’s a monk worth? They even captured a little beggar ahead! The child is small; he only has some skills he picked up by coincidence, and they won’t let him go. It’s utterly devoid of conscience!”
Hearing this, Li Hui’s heart stirred, and the Dragon Horn pattern on his forehead flickered. A sudden insight struck him, and he exclaimed mentally: “What child? No wonder he looks familiar; that’s Zhang Tianhua! He’s contracted his body to appear as a child. If I hadn’t seen him use his abilities, I would never have been able to connect that little beggar to the Zhang family.”
Li Hui, now thin and with a dignified presence, looked no younger than forty, even if not quite fifty, with aged skin and noticeable wrinkles at the corners of his eyes. Zhang Tianhua, however, did not recognize that across from him was Li Yingjun, the handsome youth famed for his good looks.
