Chapter 113: Laying Traps Step by Step

Ever since those Swiftwind Wolves mysteriously turned on each other and then scattered, that old Wan Tianjue fellow seems to have learned the trick as well.

Wang Shan, with Li Hu and Zhang Mei, darted through the forest, clearly feeling the pressure of the pursuit lessen; at least the sensation of being tightly locked onto by a beast, like a blade against the back, had temporarily vanished.

"Brother Wang, do you think that Wan Laogui has given up?" Li Hu, shouldering his spear, wiped his brow, a hint of luck on his face. "These past few days of hiding here and there, I feel like I'm turning into a monkey."

Wang Shan shook his head, his gaze sweeping the dense trees around: "Give up? You're overthinking. He'll only become more cautious and more ruthless."

Zhang Mei whispered in agreement: "Hmm, people from the Wan family certainly won't give up easily." She recalled the disfigured Bounty Notice, and a shiver ran through her.

"He now probably already knows we have some unusual methods," Wang Shan continued, "especially those targeting beasts. So he won't readily use beasts to strike us directly."

Li Hu scratched his head: "Then what does he want to do? Play hide‑and‑seek with us? This Man Yun Mountain Range is so vast; can he even find us?"

"He can," Wang Shan said confidently, "He is probably now pondering how to set a trap for us."

Sure enough, in the following days, although they no longer encountered packs of beasts chasing them, bizarre situations kept arising.

That day, as they advanced along a dried riverbed, Wang Shan suddenly halted.

"What's wrong, Brother Wang?" Li Hu looked around warily.

"Ahead… something's odd," Wang Shan said, pointing to a seemingly calm rocky shoal not far ahead, "the flow of Spiritual Power there feels off."

Li Hu stared wide‑eyed for a while but saw nothing: "Spiritual Power? Why don't I sense it?" His cultivation is not yet mature, so his perception of Spiritual Power is far less sharp than Wang Shan's.

Wang Shan gave no further explanation; he quickly exchanged a lowest‑grade Tracking Mouse Talisman from the system Mall, activated it, and tossed it onto the ground. The paper mouse squeaked twice, turned into a faint light, and cautiously scurried toward the rocky shoal.

Just as it reached the edge of the shoal, the faint light from the Tracking Mouse Talisman was suddenly drawn in as if by something, vanishing instantly with no trace left.

Li Hu gasped, and though he dislikes the term, his reaction was exactly that: "Good grief! What on earth is this? Not even a sound?"

"It's some kind of binding Array, or perhaps a naturally formed dead‑spirit zone," Wang Shan analyzed, "That old fox Wan Tianjue must have calculated that we'd pass here, intending to trap us to death, or at least drain our Spiritual Power."

Zhang Mei's face paled slightly: "Then… what should we do?"

"Go around it," Wang Shan said decisively, "In a place like this, entering would be like catching a turtle in a jar."

They carefully bypassed the shoal, adding a dozen or so li to their journey.

Another day, they discovered a few rare spirit herbs at a valley mouth, with several beast corpses nearby, seemingly killed in a scramble for the herbs.

Li Hu's eyes lit up: "Brother Wang, we've struck gold! These spirit herbs aren't young at all!" He rushed forward to harvest them.

"Hold on!" Wang Shan grabbed him.

"What's up, Brother Wang? Is this a fake?" Li Hu asked, puzzled.

Wang Shan pointed at the beast corpses: "Look at their wounds."

Li Hu leaned in, examined closely, and frowned: "Huh? These wounds… look like they were killed with a single strike by a person. Moreover, these beasts aren't low‑rank; they were dealt with so cleanly…"

"It's Wan Tianjue," Wang Shan continued, "He deliberately left the herbs and beast corpses to bait us. If we covet the herbs, we'll likely fall into his pre‑set ambush."

"That old bastard, he's way too cunning!" Li Hu fumed, "He even thought up such a dirty trick!"

Zhang Mei, still shaken, patted her chest: "Fortunately, big brother Wang, you were careful, otherwise…"

"As they say, nothing falls from the sky like a pie," Wang Shan warned, "The more a benefit looks within easy reach, the greater the hidden danger."

Repeatedly seeing through Wan Tianjue's setups left the three of them mentally exhausted. Though they hadn't engaged directly, this intangible game drained them just as much.

"Brother Wang, the Talisman and pills you bought are probably almost used up, right?" Li Hu looked at Wang Shan with concern. He knew Wang Shan's investigations and warnings consumed a lot.

Wang Shan didn't answer directly, only saying, "Use them sparingly; they'll last a while. However, we can't stay passive forever."

He could feel Wan Tianjue like an invisible giant net, tightening bit by bit. The old fellow was extremely patient and cunning, constantly probing and draining them with various tactics, trying to force them onto his predetermined battlefield.

"Li Hu, Zhang Mei," Wang Shan halted, his expression solemn, "From now on, we may have to take routes that look even more dangerous."

Li Hu was startled: "More dangerous routes? Brother Wang, what are you…"

"Wan Tianjue wants to push us toward open terrain, or drive us into areas he knows well," Wang Shan said, a spark in his eyes, "Then we'll go the opposite way, deliberately choosing places he doesn't expect, or even he dares not tread lightly."

Zhang Mei, a bit nervous, asked, "But… would that be even more dangerous?"

"We seek wealth through risk," Wang Shan said, "Moreover, some places that seem dangerous may actually be opportunities for us."

Li Hu and Zhang Mei exchanged glances, seeing trust in each other's eyes.

"Brother Wang, we'll follow you!" Li Hu pounded his chest, "If you say go east, we'll never go west!"

Zhang Mei also nodded heavily: "Brother Wang, I trust you."

These days' experiences made them admire Wang Shan's judgment to the point of bowing down.

Thus, under Wang Shan's lead, the three set off toward remote, beast‑infested parts deep within the Man Yun Mountain Range.

…

Elsewhere, Wan Tianjue's face darkened as he stood beneath a sheer cliff.

His close aide whispered, "Family Head, that kid is slippery; he's evaded all the points we set."

"Hmph, he does have some skill," Wan Tianjue sneered, a hint of admiration in his eyes, "If he can slip out from under my control, he's no ordinary foe. It seems the Beast Taming Sect inheritance he possesses is more refined than I imagined."

He squinted, surveying the cliff before him. The sheer wall rose into the clouds, its surface smooth and almost barren. He had originally intended to set a cascading rolling‑stone trap here, using a few climbing‑adept beasts for an ambush.

"Since that kid knows some methods to disturb a beast's mind, ordinary beasts likely can't trouble him," Wan Tianjue mused, "Unless… we can find beasts with low spiritual intelligence but thick hides, or those with special talents."

As he pondered, his gaze unintentionally swept over a vine‑covered nook beneath the cliff.

"Hmm?"

After the vines, he seemed to notice faint markings on the stone wall.

Wan Tianjue's heart stirred; he stepped forward and waved his hand, cutting away the obstructing vines.

On the exposed stone wall, ancient, blurry symbols were etched. Their simple lines exuded a desolate, timeless aura.

"What is this…" Wan Tianjue examined carefully, his heart pounding more with each glance.

These symbols, resembling descriptions of Ancient Yushou Sect Runes he had read in his family's texts, were surprisingly similar—

Even more primitive and more… arcane than the known runes!

"Could this be… a relic of the Ancient Yushou Sect?" a wild thought surged in Wan Tianjue's mind.

"Ha— ha… hahahaha!" Wan Tianjue burst into a loud laugh, his voice full of greed and rapture, "Wang Shan, Wang Shan, you truly are my lucky star! Not only do you possess great treasures, but you also can guide me to such opportunities!"

He originally only wanted to catch Wang Shan, seize the elixir, Talisman and any possible Beast Taming Sect secret techniques on his body, but now his goal has become far grander.

"If this truly is an undiscovered site of Ancient Yushou Sect Inheritance…" Wan Tianjue licked his cracked lips, a terrifying glint in his eyes, "Then my Wan family, wouldn't we soar to the heavens?"

He immediately ordered his trusted subordinate: "Send the order, seal off this area! No one may approach! Also, increase the effort to capture that kid Wang Shan, but remember, try to keep him alive! The secrets he carries are far more than we imagined!"

The subordinate took the order and left.

Wan Tianjue looked again at the Ancient Rune on the stone wall, his heart ablaze. He vaguely felt that these runes might let his Ten Thousand Beast Method break through to a higher realm.

"Wang Shan… everything on you, together with the secrets of this mountain range, will be mine!"

At this moment, Wang Shan, of course unaware of Wan Tianjue's new discovery, was trudging with Li Hu and Zhang Mei along the edge of a swamp suffused with miasma.

"Brother Wang, this place… it's so disgusting, right?" Li Hu covered his nose, looking at the bubbling black mud pit beneath his feet with a scornful face, "It's full of poisonous insects and toxic plants; if we fall in, the bones will be reduced to nothing."

Wang Shan's expression grew solemn: "Watch your step; the miasma here is poisonous, try to hold your breath, or cover your mouth and nose with a damp cloth." He himself was fine, having reached the ninth level of Body Refining, granting him some resistance to this degree of toxic miasma.

Zhang Mei took several clean pieces of cloth from the bundle, dampened them with water from the Water Bag, and handed them to Wang Shan and Li Hu.

"Brother Wang, are we really going to cross from here?" Zhang Mei stared at the misty expanse ahead, the endless swamp beyond, feeling a pang of fear.

"Yes." Wang Shan nodded, "Wan Tianjue never imagined we'd choose to traverse the poisonous miasma swamp. Though dangerous, if we're careful, there may still be a chance."

He looked up at the sky: "Moreover, night is falling. Spending the night in the swamp makes us harder to track than in the forest."

"Fine." Li Hu sighed, "We'll just follow you, Brother Wang. But you better watch the path; I don't want to end up as swamp fertilizer."

Wang Shan ignored his teasing, pulled a freshly exchanged First Order Guide Bee Talisman from his chest, whispered a few words, and the Talisman transformed into a fist‑sized golden bee that buzzed toward a direction deep within the swamp.

"Follow it."

The three stepped into the unknown peril, one foot deep, one foot shallow.