Chapter 56 The Behind the Scenes

"The deeper we go, the higher the level of the monsters, but the fewer other participants there will be." Shen Lian unfolded the map. "We'll avoid the known dangerous areas and proceed along this route. About thirty miles away, there's a 'stone forest,' where the terrain is complex, suitable for concealment, and easy to ambush and deal with our pursuers."

"You want to fight back and kill them?" Lin Feng asked, his eyes flashing.

"Not entirely," Shen Lian said. "The main thing is to confirm whether anyone is following us. If so, we'll deal with them in the Stone Forest and eliminate any future trouble."

Chu Wen nodded slightly: "Passive defense is not as good as proactive attack. We've scouted the stone forest terrain in advance, which will give us a greater advantage in terms of terrain and our chances of winning."

The four finalized their plan and set off immediately.

The Black Mist Forest appeared even more eerie in the morning fog. Visibility was less than fifty feet, and all around was silent, not even the chirping of birds could be heard. This silence was unsettling, as if something lurked in the mist, ready to pounce at any moment.

Shen Lian walked at the front, his steps steady, but his muscles were taut, ready to deal with any unexpected situation. His [Combat Power Detection] ability was limited in the fog, only able to detect targets within a thirty-zhang radius, which made him even more vigilant.

After traveling about ten miles, Shen Lian suddenly stopped.

"What's wrong?" Chu Wen asked in a low voice.

Shen Lian pointed to the ground. On the damp soil, there were several fresh footprints, about the same size as the four of them, but with larger strides, indicating a faster pace.

"There are people ahead of us." Shen Lian crouched down to examine them carefully. "They passed by about half an hour ago. There were three of them, all male, and they were quite heavy. They should be strength-type martial artists."

Lin Feng also squatted down: "Can you tell which county it's from?"

Shen Lian shook his head: "The footprints are very ordinary, without any special markings. But they are heading in the same direction as us, towards the stone forest."

"Is it a coincidence or...?" Chen Yun asked.

"It's hard to say." Chu Wen frowned. "I'm worried that we're being watched, and there might be someone waiting for us ahead."

Shen Lian stood up: "Whether it's a coincidence or not, we need to be careful. Let's change our route and take a detour to the Stone Forest."

The four turned southeast, deviating from their original route.

Shen Lian deliberately chose a more difficult path, where thorns grew thickly, requiring him to constantly cut through them to clear a way, but this would allow him to hide his tracks as much as possible.

After walking another five miles, Shen Lian found some more footprints.

"It's not a coincidence," Lin Feng said coldly. "They've got their eyes on us."

Chu Wen frowned and said, "The other party is very professional. They know to keep their distance and avoid being discovered. If Brother Shen hadn't been so observant, we wouldn't have noticed at all."

Shen Lian licked his lips and said, "Since they want to play, we'll play along. There's a swamp ahead with complicated terrain; we'll set up an ambush there."

The swamp is one of the most dangerous areas in the Black Mist Forest.

Shen Lian had read the detailed description and knew that the edge of this swamp was relatively safe, but the terrain was complicated and it was easy to lose one's way.

Half an hour later, the four of them arrived at the edge of the swamp.

Dead trees stood crookedly in the murky water, a layer of pale purple mist floated on the surface, and a sweet, rotten smell permeated the air.

"Be careful, this purple mist is poisonous." Chu Wen took out miasma-repelling talismans and distributed them to everyone. "Place them on your chest, and they will protect you from the poisonous miasma for two hours."

Shen Lian affixed the talisman and indeed felt his breathing become much easier. He observed the swamp terrain and quickly selected an ambush location. In the middle of the swamp was a small patch of dry land, surrounded by mud.

"Brother Chu, you're skilled at setting traps, so set up a few here," Shen Lian said. "Lin Feng, you hide behind the dead tree on the left. Junior Sister Chen, the right side is yours. I'll take care of the front."

"Are you going to be the bait?" Chen Yun asked worriedly.

Shen Lian nodded: "They've been following us for so long, they must be trying to confirm our location. I deliberately exposed myself to lure them here."

Chu Wen quickly set up the trap.

Several simple tripwires and traps, though crude, worked extremely well in the swampy environment. Lin Feng and Chen Yun also took cover.

Shen Lian stood in the center of the open space, pretending to survey the terrain, and occasionally squatted down to examine the soil.

The waiting time felt exceptionally long.

The poisonous miasma in the swamp flowed slowly, with occasional bubbles rising from the muddy water, making gurgling sounds. Further away, the faint roars of unknown monsters could be heard.

About fifteen minutes later, Shen Lian's [Combat Power Detection] finally reacted.

三个红点出现在探测边缘，正缓慢靠近。战力数据分别是32~40、30~38、29~36，与昨晚袭击者的实力相仿。

"Here it comes," Shen Lian said in a low voice, his right hand slowly pressing on the hilt of the knife.

The three emerged from the mist. They were visibly taken aback when they saw Shen Lian standing alone in the open space, and then cautiously surveyed their surroundings.

The leader made a gesture, and the three of them spread out in a fan shape, slowly approaching.

Shen Lian feigned panic, retreating repeatedly: "Who are you? What do you want?"

"Hand over the jade talisman, and I'll spare your life," the man in the middle said coldly, his voice disguised, hoarse and unpleasant.

"My companions will be back soon, you'd better leave!" Shen Lian continued to retreat, already approaching the trap area.

The three exchanged a glance, then suddenly accelerated and charged forward!

The moment they stepped into the trap, Chu Wen suddenly pulled the rope.

The ground suddenly collapsed, creating two deep pits beneath the feet of the two men. They cried out in alarm and fell into the pits, the bottoms of which were covered in sharpened wooden splinters.

But the leader reacted extremely quickly, leaping into the air the instant the pit collapsed, thus avoiding the trap.

"Make your move!" Shen Lian shouted.

Lin Feng and Chen Yun charged out from both sides, their long swords aimed directly at the two people in the pit. Trapped in the pit, the two had no choice but to raise their swords to parry.

Clang! Clang!

As the weapons clashed, the two people in the pit, already at a disadvantage, were further shaken by the force of Lin Feng and Chen Yun, causing their hands to crack and their weapons to slip from their grasp.

At the same time, Shen Lian met the leader.

With his opponent suspended in mid-air, unable to gain any leverage, it was the perfect opportunity to attack. Shen Lian pushed off with his feet, launching himself into the air like a cannonball, his longsword transforming into a cold glint.

"Mountain-Slaying Style!"

Shen Lian immediately unleashed the "Demon Subduing Blade Technique," sweeping out a horizontal slash that aimed directly at the leader, its momentum fierce.

The man was immediately alarmed and quickly swung his knife to block.

clang!

Shen Lian knocked the long knife out of the man's hand. The man screamed and fell from the air, crashing heavily onto the muddy ground.

The battle ended quickly.

The two people who fell into the pit were also subdued by Raymond Lam and Chen Yun.

Shen Lian pointed his long sword at the other man's throat: "Take off your mask."

The man gritted his teeth, reached out and pulled off his mask, revealing a young face, about twenty years old, with a slightly pale complexion.

"Which county are you from?" Shen Lian asked coldly.

The young man kept quiet.

Lin Feng walked over and, without any hesitation, stomped on his wound. The young man screamed in pain, breaking out in a cold sweat.

"Speak," Lin Feng said coldly.

"Black...Heishan County." The young man finally broke down.

Shen Lian and Chu Wen exchanged a glance, both seeing surprise in each other's eyes. Heishan County and Qinghe County are neighbors, and although there is some competition, there has never been such a fierce conflict.

"Why did you attack us?" Shen Lian pressed.

The young man gasped, "It was... Zhou Yang who made us do it. He said Qinghe County performed too well this year and had to be suppressed. Especially you, Shen Lian. You defeated Zhang Kui, which made him feel threatened."

"Zhou Yang?" Shen Lian recalled the genius from Heishan County who had provoked him at the guesthouse. "Where is he?"

"I don't know. We split up. He took another team to deal with other targets..." The young man's voice grew weaker and weaker, and blood continued to flow from the wound on his shoulder.

Shen Lian looked at the young people, "Where are your jade talismans?"

The young man's expression changed: "You...you're going to steal our points?"

"It's just a matter of reciprocity," Shen Lian said calmly. "Hand over the jade talisman, and we'll spare your lives. Otherwise, the poisonous miasma beasts here would be more than happy to have an extra meal."

The three men turned pale and finally handed over the jade talisman.

Shen Lian took the three jade talismans and touched them to his own.

The jade talisman flashed, and the three people's points were transferred, totaling forty-two points, averaging fourteen points each. It seems they had hunted quite a few monsters.

Shen Lian's score has now reached 63 points.

"Get lost." Shen Lian tossed the empty jade talisman back to the three of them. "Remember, if you dare to follow and attack again, next time it won't be as simple as just getting injured."

The three of them felt as if they had been granted a pardon, and they helped each other escape from the swamp without daring to look back.

After they had gone some distance, Chu Wencai said, "Brother Shen, are we just going to let them go like this? They'll definitely tell Zhou Yang when they get back."

"I'll let Zhou Yang know that messing with us will come at a price," Shen Lian laughed. "They'll become targets for the other contestants. After losing points, they'll be eager to accumulate them again, which might expose the locations of the others from Heishan County."

Raymond Lam rarely showed an expression of agreement: "Using someone else to do the dirty work, not bad."

Chen Yun worriedly said, "But this would completely offend Heishan County. There are still six days until the trial, and they might retaliate."

"We'll meet force with force and water with earth." Shen Lian sheathed his longsword. "Let's go to the Stone Forest to rest first. After these two battles, we need to recover our strength."

The four left the swamp and continued towards the stone forest.

After this confrontation, they not only eliminated the trackers but also gained a large number of points. However, Shen Lian knew in his heart that Zhou Yang of Black Mountain County would not let the matter rest.