Chapter 227: Taking Advantage of Another's Peril

Golden light receded like a tide, and Zhang Cheng's body crashed heavily to the ground. He let out a muffled groan, struggling to get up, only to find his whole body weak and powerless, as if he had fallen apart. Looking around, the evil creatures were held at bay by an invisible force, temporarily not daring to approach, while the mysterious old man stood proudly, like an insurmountable mountain, guarding in front of him.

"Senior..." Zhang Cheng opened his mouth, his voice hoarse, his breath as faint as a thread.

"Hurry, I can't hold on for long." The mysterious old man said without turning his head, his voice low and solemn, as if bearing enormous pressure.

Zhang Cheng's heart tightened; he knew this was no time for idle talk. He gritted his teeth, endured the severe pain wracking his body, and crawled backward using both hands and feet.

"Trying to escape?" The hidden expert of the Blood Night Demon Family, who had been lurking in the shadows all along, saw Zhang Cheng's movement and a cruel smile curled at the corner of his mouth. He moved silently toward Zhang Cheng's direction, like a venomous snake, waiting for the right moment to strike.

Zhang Cheng felt a chill behind him, and an intense sense of crisis surged in his heart. He desperately wanted to dodge, but his body felt as if filled with lead, unable to move.

"Careful!" The mysterious old man seemed to sense something and turned his head sharply, but it was already too late.

"Thud!"

Unable to dodge in time, Zhang Cheng's foot found empty air and his whole body plummeted downward. He looked down and his face instantly turned deathly pale.

This was a massive trap, bottomless, filled with sharp spikes that glinted with a cold, eerie light.

"Hahaha! Truly heaven is helping me!" The hidden expert of the Blood Night Demon Family saw this scene and couldn't help but laugh aloud, "Boy, just accept your fate!"

Zhang Cheng's body crashed heavily onto the bottom of the trap. The sharp spike-like objects pierced through his clothes, leaving trails of blood on his body. The excruciating pain made him groan involuntarily, but he had no time to attend to it, because he knew that greater danger still lay ahead.

He struggled to stand, only to find both his legs pierced through by a thick spike. Blood gushed out, dyeing the bottom of the trap red.

"Damn it!" Zhang Cheng cursed under his breath, his eyes filled with unwillingness and despair.

Above the trap, the hidden expert of the Blood Night Demon Family slowly walked over. He looked down at Zhang Cheng from above, his eyes full of mockery and cruelty. He licked his lips, as if he could already see the gruesome sight of Zhang Cheng being tortured to death.

"Boy, weren't you quite the fighter? How come you're now like a stray dog?"

The hidden expert of the Blood Night Demon Family approached the edge of the trap step by step. He extended his hand, fingers spread wide, and a ball of black energy condensed in his palm, exuding a heart-palpitating aura.

"Die!"

The black energy ball, carrying a destructive aura, smashed viciously down toward Zhang Cheng...

The black energy ball, carrying an aura of heaven-destroying, earth-shattering power, descended like the Death God, smashing ruthlessly toward Zhang Cheng. Despair spread through Zhang Cheng's eyes; he tried to move but in vain, able only to watch helplessly as death approached.

"Boom!"

The expected severe pain never came; instead, there was a deafening explosion. Above the trap, the hidden expert of the Blood Night Demon Family was blasted back by a powerful force. He looked at the scene before him in disbelief, flames of anger burning in his eyes.

"It's you! You damned bitch!"

Kelinda, the lord of the demon planet, at this moment had a pale face, with a trace of blood still at the corner of her mouth, clearly still not healed from her previous injuries. But she still stood firmly at the edge of the trap, using her not-strong body to shield Zhang Cheng.

"Despicable coward, only daring to take advantage of people in peril — what kind of hero does that make you!" Kelinda rebuked angrily. Her trembling hands tightly gripped a dagger that flickered with a faint blue glow.

"Hmph, still running your mouth when death is at your door!" The hidden expert of the Blood Night Demon Family was furious. He never expected that his carefully laid plan would be ruined by this gravely injured woman. His eyes were bloodshot, his killing intent fully exposed, clearly having resolved to kill Kelinda.

"You won't hurt him!" Kelinda charged recklessly at the hidden expert of the Blood Night Demon Family. The dagger in her hands traced eerie arcs, like a ghost from hell, carrying an icy aura of death.

Although the hidden expert of the Blood Night Demon Family was formidable in strength, he didn't dare let his guard down at this moment. Kelinda's attacks were unpredictable and carried a resolute will, forcing him to respond with everything he had.

The two were locked in combat, momentarily unable to determine a victor. Although Kelinda was gravely injured, her combat skills were proficient, and she was thoroughly familiar with the Blood Night Demon Family's techniques, always able to neutralize her opponent's attacks at critical moments.

Zhang Cheng watched this scene anxiously from the bottom of the trap. He knew that in his current state, he couldn't intervene in this battle at all. He struggled to stand, but the severe pain made him fall again and again.

"No, I can't just sit here and wait to die!" Zhang Cheng gritted his teeth, enduring the severe pain. His gaze fell on the walls of the trap, where some ancient text and patterns seemed to be carved.

"Those are..." Zhang Cheng roused himself and carefully examined the patterns on the wall.

"Boy, don't waste your effort, you can't escape!" The hidden expert of the Blood Night Demon Family kept track of Zhang Cheng's movements while entangled with Kelinda.

"Is that so?" Just then, a low voice sounded from above the trap.

The Blue Star Guardian, the expert who had always protected Lan Xing, now stood at the edge of the trap, his gaze burning like torches, coldly looking at the hidden expert of the Blood Night Demon Family.

"Your opponent is me." The Blue Star Guardian leaped down into the trap. He glanced at Zhang Cheng and said in a deep voice, "I'm here to help you."

"Senior..." Seeing the Blue Star Guardian risk himself for his sake, Zhang Cheng felt a mixture of emotions — guilt, gratitude, and worry all intertwined.

"Don't talk now, hurry." The Blue Star Guardian cut off Zhang Cheng's words. He held his chest, clearly having suffered no light injuries in the previous battle. But he couldn't attend to that; enduring the pain, he carefully observed the trap's structure.

"This trap... doesn't seem to be the work of the Blood Night Demon Family." The Blue Star Guardian frowned deeply. The trap's structure was intricate and complex, and carved upon it were some runes he had never seen before, exuding an ancient and mysterious aura.

"These runes, I feel like I've seen them somewhere..." Zhang Cheng struggled to crawl to the wall and carefully examined the ancient text and patterns. "Right, I remember now — that ancient stone tablet I obtained back then!"

The stone tablet Zhang Cheng spoke of was a treasure he had obtained in an accident. It was also carved with similar runes, but at the time he had been unable to decipher their meaning.

"Could it be that this trap is connected to that stone tablet?" Zhang Cheng's heart stirred, and he hastily took the stone tablet out of his spatial ring.

Just then, a seven-colored light suddenly descended from the sky, and a petite figure appeared above the trap.

It was a beautiful Elf with butterfly wings. She had crystal-clear eyes, and her delicate features were like an artwork meticulously sculpted by an artist. She curiously surveyed the people in the trap, finally resting her gaze on the stone tablet in Zhang Cheng's hands.

"The gears of destiny begin to turn. Chosen one, you have finally arrived here..." The Elf's ethereal voice echoed in everyone's ears, as if coming from beyond the nine heavens.

"Who are you?" Zhang Cheng asked warily. Although this Elf looked harmless, he didn't dare relax in the slightest.

The Elf did not answer Zhang Cheng's question. She flew in a circle around the trap, seemingly communicating with some power within it, then landed back in front of Zhang Cheng.

"To leave this place, you need to find the 'Star Mark.'" The Elf pointed to a groove at the bottom of the trap and said, "Place the stone tablet into it, and it will guide you to find the way out."

Zhang Cheng and the Blue Star Guardian exchanged a glance, both seeing the surprise in each other's eyes. They hadn't expected that the key to breaking the trap would lie with this mysterious Elf.

"But..." Zhang Cheng was about to ask what the "Star Mark" was, when he suddenly felt a palpitation.

"Careful!" The Blue Star Guardian's expression changed, and he tackled Zhang Cheng to the ground.

"Sizzle..."

A stream of dark green liquid grazed past Zhang Cheng's scalp and smashed heavily against the trap wall. White smoke immediately rose, and the wall was corroded into a charred pit, emitting a pungent stench.

The evil creature had appeared above the trap at some unknown time. Its scarlet eyes stared fixedly at Zhang Cheng, a cruel smile at the corner of its mouth, as if saying: "You can't escape!" "Damn it!" The Blue Star Guardian cursed under his breath, ignoring the pain in his body, and violently swung out an energy barrier, barely blocking that mass of dark green liquid.

"Sizzle sizzle sizzle—" The liquid struck the energy barrier, producing a teeth-grating sound. The barrier trembled violently, as if it would shatter at any moment. The pungent stench spread, making people nauseous.

"Quick, while you can!" The Blue Star Guardian shouted, but before his words had finished, the evil creature attacked again. It opened its bloody maw, and another mass of dark green liquid sprayed out, heading straight for Zhang Cheng's face.

Zhang Cheng's pupils contracted sharply. He knew how dangerous this liquid was — once it touched him, the consequences would be unthinkable. Enduring his nausea and fear, his body instinctively rolled to the side, narrowly dodging this fatal strike.

"Boom!" The liquid smashed against the wall behind Zhang Cheng, corroding an even larger pit. Zhang Cheng could even feel the scorching heat wash over him, making his hair stand on end.

"Damn it!" Zhang Cheng cursed under his breath. He wanted to break the trap using the method the mysterious Elf had described, but the evil creature's attacks were too fierce, giving him no chance to catch his breath at all.

"Boy, stop struggling. Just obediently become my food!" The evil creature let out a spine-chilling laugh. It seemed to be thoroughly enjoying this game of cat and mouse.

Zhang Cheng clenched his teeth, his gaze firm. He would never give up easily; he wanted to live—for Kelinda, and for himself!

He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. He noticed that the evil creature had a brief pause before every attack—this was his only chance!

"Senior, cover me!" Zhang Cheng shouted to the Blue Star Guardian, then without further hesitation, he rolled and charged toward the bottom of the trap.

"You're crazy!" The Blue Star Guardian turned pale with shock, but it was already too late to stop Zhang Cheng. He could only grit his teeth and fight with all his might to withstand the evil creature's attacks, buying time for Zhang Cheng.

Enduring tremendous pressure, Zhang Cheng rushed to the bottom of the trap. He glanced at the stone tablet in his hand, then at the groove the Elf had pointed out, took a deep breath, and pressed the tablet down.

"Bzzzz—"

The instant the stone tablet made contact with the groove, the entire trap shook, and a dazzling white light burst forth from the tablet, illuminating the whole trap...

"What's happening?!" The evil creature's shocked and suspicious voice rang out from above the trap, its tone filled with unease.