Chapter 37 - 37 Assassination_l
After kidnapping Lin Yiyin, Cui Pingyu cautiously probed and discovered that there was no major power behind her, only an old man in a cloak.
Lin Yiyin was disguised as a middle-aged man, Cui Pingyu felt that the person might not be an old man, possibly her brother or sister. After some probing, he confirmed that Lin Yiyin had an older sister, and she was only at the Pihai Realm.
Cui Pingyu thought this was his good fortune, allowing him to capture two peerless beauties as concubines before returning to the Sect, ah, sisters… tsk tsk…
Though he had dallied with many pairs of sisters, he had never seen, let alone played with, peerless sisters like Lin Yiyin.
Cui Pingyu had already decided that once Lin Yiyin’s sister came to rescue her, he would capture her too and forcefully take her as a concubine. One at the Innate Realm, the other at the Pihai Realm, how could they resist him?
If no rescue attempt was made, he would simply take Lin Yiyin back to the Sect. Although it was a pity, Cui Pingyu didn’t want to take any more risks—what if her sister brought a God Refining Realm true person?
The possibility was very small, but Cui Pingyu would never overlook it.
After drinking two more pots of liquor, Cui Pingyu felt somewhat restless, which made his brows furrow and a faint sense of foreboding arose in his heart.
After some thought, he put down the wine pot and strode towards the small courtyard where Lin Yiyin was imprisoned, wanting to see if any thieves had slipped past the guarding Formation to steal her away.
Half a quarter hour earlier.
Han Li, dressed in black with a black cloth covering his face, arrived silently on the roof of a house outside The Cui Manor. Underneath the black cloth was a mature man with a national face.
In a flash, Han Li reached the outside wall of The Cui Manor. The patrolling guards inside and out did not notice him. After careful observation, Han Li’s brows slightly furrowed.
The guardian Formation of The Cui Manor was of the seventh rank, capable of holding off a great master of the Gangyuan Realm for a while. Han Li was only an eighth-rank Formation cultivator, and breaking through this Formation would take a lot of time.
Sighing softly, a bead appeared in his hand, covered with intricate patterns. This was a seventh -rank Formation Breaking Bead he had acquired at a significant expense, which could be used twice and silently break through a seventh – rank Formation.
This bead cost him fifty thousand Lower Grade Spirit Stones, and it would be gone after two uses. Han Li felt the pinch; had he not recently sold a large number of pills and weapons to earn hundreds of thousands of Spirit Stones, he would have been reluctant to purchase it.
Between fifty thousand Spirit Stones and the Lin sisters, Han Li did not hesitate to choose the latter.
A stream of True Yuan infused into the bead—activating it. The power of the Formation enveloped Han Li completely.
He carefully stepped forward, not triggering The Cui Manor’s guardian Formation, then vanished outside the wall with a flicker.
Han Li had already figured out where Lin Yiyin was imprisoned—it wasn’t a secret. But instead of heading to the small courtyard, he lay in wait elsewhere.
This was the inevitable path Cui Pingyu would take from his sleeping chambers to the small courtyard. Cui Pingyu made the trip daily, and Han Li planned to strike here, betting that Cui Pingyu would never expect someone to sneak in
Originally, Han Li intended to act outside The Cui Manor, but after observing for two days, he noticed that the man hadn’t left, uncertain of his activities.
It was just as well to take action inside The Cui Manor. In the event of a battle with Cui Pingyu, even if others came to assist, the Formation would delay them, buying Han Li time to subdue Cui Pingyu.
Running the Breath Concealing Method to its fullest, Han Li lay in wait, ready to strike at any moment, preferably with a single, lethal blow.
Before coming, he had made full preparations and had almost no risk of exposure; otherwise, Han Li would never venture to put his life in danger.
As time ticked away, Han Li suddenly became alert, readying himself—he heard strong, robust footsteps approaching.
Cui Pingyu’s face showed signs of drunkenness, his eyes somewhat blurry, as he strode toward the small courtyard where Lin Yiyin was held, seemingly without a trace of wariness.
In fact, this was just a facade; his mind was very clear. He intentionally showed weakness to baffle the enemies lurking in the shadows, such as Lin Yiwu and a possible Great Master from the Gangyuan Realm.
He was uncertain whether anyone had evaded the formation and lay hidden, but he knew that caution was the parent of safety and that he absolutely must not capsized in a drain.
As he walked, Cui Pingyu’s sense of foreboding grew stronger; the next instant, he suddenly hurled himself to the side.
After Cui Pingyu entered the ambush zone, Han Li didn’t hesitate. True Yuan surged into the furnace in his hand. The mouth of the Body-Cultivating Furnace emitted a brilliant beam of light, which seemed to possess the power to slay gods and exterminate immortals, and in an instant, it struck towards Cui Pingyu.
Although Cui Pingyu sensed it, he had no time to prepare and was forced to hurl himself to the side, trying to dodge the attack.
Boom!
A multitude of rockeries exploded, all the debris was annihilated, and the area was levelled, startling everyone at The Cui Manor, as all the guards quickly rushed towards the commotion.
Such a commotion at The Cui Manor alarmed nearly half of Zhenyi City, drawing the attention of powerhouses from all directions.
The Grandmasters from the city lord’s residence and military barracks had intended to take action, but seeing that the incident involved The Cui Manor, they immediately stayed their hands, even making eye contact with some of the other Grandmasters who were about to go and investigate, indicating that they should not meddle.
They could not find an opportunity to execute Cui Pingyu, but if someone else took on the task, the Daqian Empire would be more than happy to see it done, and just needed to clean up the aftermath.
rlkvvo cultivators who had a good relationship with Cui Pingyu furrowed their brows tightly, but they did not dare go to help, with five or six Grandmasters watching them. The two exchanged glances and heaved a sigh.
Within The Cui Manor,
Han Li still lay in hiding, not pursuing his enemy relentlessly but waiting for the dust to settle, constantly circulating the Sacred Heart Scripture and holding a Divine Sword in his right hand, having pocketed the Body-Cultivating Furnace.
“Cough cough-”
As the dust was nearly clear, a series of coughs rang out, revealing Cui Pingyu’s ashen face.
At this moment, his injuries were severe, blood dripping from the corner of his mouth, his face and body covered in wounds, the most crucial being that his left hand was severed, and his right calf was missing…
After being attacked, he struggled to defend himself but to no avail; he suffered serious injuries. However, he did not tend to his wounds or seek an opportunity to flee but channelled his energy with all his might. If the enemy dared to follow up and chase into the dust, he would strike with full force, hoping to inflict severe injuries on them.
But the enemy was too cunning, not falling for the ruse. Cui Pingyu was infuriated, having been attacked without even seeing the enemy, only Imowing that they hid on the other side.
He wanted to flee, but he dared not, knowing that escaping would give his enemy the opportunity, and that it would undoubtedly lead to his death.
“He’s not dead?” Han Li muttered to himself.
Out of caution, he did not capitalize on his victory but just waited for the outcome, always on the lookout, knowing it wouldn’t be long before the dust dispersed.
The Body-Cultivating Furnace was a Heaven-Level Lower Rank magical treasure, its attacking power equivalent to Earth-Level Lower Rank treasures but still immensely powerful.
This was a weapon that only a Hollow Realm Master could fully activate. Its power was so immense that any cultivator at God -Refining Realm, caught off guard, would perish, or at the very least would be severely injured.
Clearly, Cui Pingyu had some treasure that had blocked the blow, but the treasure had been exhausted, or else he wouldn’t have been injured so gravely.
This situation was also within his plan; Han Li was not surprised. He would only use the Body-Cultivating Furnace once, as using it again might reveal his presence to other Great Masters.
Now, with Cui Pingyu seriously injured and his strength greatly reduced, how could he withstand Grand Ancestor Han at the Peak of Gangyuan Realm?