Chapter 191: Wait for Me (Two Chapters Combined)

The horse-headed creatures were nearly annihilated; other monstrous beings no longer wished to serve as cannon fodder and lingered at the canyon's entrance, watching.

Qiu Luoye took the lead himself, leading a dozen or so loyal subordinates into the canyon; with each step he took, the entire valley trembled.

Li Banfeng ran toward the canyon's mouth and soon spotted Qiu Luoye's silhouette.

Li Banfeng manipulated the pendulum on the cliff wall, severing a vast expanse of vines.

Massive boulders bound by vines tumbled down; one boulder, roughly the same size as Qiu Luoye, struck him directly.

Oo~

Qiu Luoye flicked his nose like swatting a fly, shattering the boulder into fragments.

"Shu Yongquan, come out! Show me your real skill!"

His pace never slowed; he kept charging forward.

Though his body was enormous, Qiu Luoye's speed was not slow; according to Li Banfeng's estimate, he would exit the canyon in at most five minutes.

What to do about the remaining seven minutes?

What could stop him?

The gate could hold him for three minutes.

Could the traps along the way delay him for four minutes?

Li Banfeng leapt onto a sheer cliff and manipulated a paper doll to leap onto the opposite cliff.

How are there still paper dolls?

Weren't all the paper dolls shattered?

These were printed paper dolls; these were painted ones, secretly hidden inside his portable dwelling.

Li Banfeng spent two and a half days painting three pictures; the paper dolls within carried his own essence and were vastly different from the printed ones.

These three paper dolls, if standing still, could last half an hour; in intense combat, they could endure three minutes.

The paper dolls and Li Banfeng on the cliffs alternately severed vines, triggering traps, while the pendulum assisted from the side.

Dozens of massive nets woven from vines appeared one after another, blocking Qiu Luoye's path.

These were the meticulously crafted traps of the centipede mother and daughter; Li Banfeng had tested them—these vines were incredibly sturdy, even the pendulum couldn't cut them.

Qiu Luoye walked straight ahead, colliding with the vine nets like a man stumbling into a spiderweb—merely annoying, with no effect on his speed.

The dozen massive nets shattered in succession; Qiu Luoye's steps showed not a moment's pause.

Not a single second was delayed.

This is a Land God.

5: 1 a. . Qiu Luoye, in less than two minutes, traversed five li within the valley.

Around the next bend lay the second ambush point—this one was critical!

On the ground were pits—dug by the wild boar and two bears for Li Banfeng.

The pits were twenty meters deep; the centipede mother and daughter had disguised them with exquisite care—no trace could be seen from the surface.

With his size, if Qiu Luoye fell in, getting out wouldn't be easy.

But with a Land God's experience, would he fall for a trap?

The centipede mother and daughter had only third- or fourth-level cultivation—how could they deceive a Land God?

Boom!

Qiu Luoye stepped onto the trap and fell into the pit.

He actually fell in.

As Shu Yongquan said, Qiu Luoye wasn't very clever.

That's also why he preferred fighting in his true form—if he turned into a ghost flame, he might easily be tricked.

But now he'd been tricked by Li Banfeng; this deep pit, according to Li Banfeng's estimate, would trap him for at least one minute.

Li Banfeng was wrong.

Five seconds later, Qiu Luoye lifted his head, flicked his trunk, drew his limbs together, and leapt out of the pit.

Five seconds—the wild boar had spent an entire day digging that pit, and it only delayed him five seconds!

But those five seconds gave Li Banfeng his chance to act.

In his hand, the old teapot's water had boiled!

Two barriers rose in the valley—one in front, one behind—trapping Qiu Luoye.

Qiu Luoye slammed into the barrier.

The old teapot coughed several times: "This old elephant—strong as hell."

Tea water surged rapidly from the ground, flooding up to the elephant's ankles.

The old teapot was the key to the second ambush point.

Though he'd lost most of his memories, the old teapot had full confidence: "Brother, I thought a Land God would never give me a chance to act—but if I succeed, I can hold him for at least two minutes!"

Two minutes!

How precious those two minutes would be!

The tea water quickly rose to his knees; the elephant stared at it for a moment, then extended his trunk into the tea.

Sip!

All the tea on the ground was drained!

"Not bad!" the elephant burped.

The old teapot was startled: "This old elephant… I'm afraid I can only hold him for one minute."

Without tea, the old teapot assumed his barrier could last a minute.

He was too optimistic.

Boom!

The elephant swung his trunk and slammed his tusks into the barrier.

The old teapot shuddered—the barrier cracked.

Oo!

The elephant roared and slammed into it again.

The old teapot spat out a jet of tea water, then fell silent.

The barrier shattered; the old teapot sank into deep slumber!

Qiu Luoye shattered the old teapot's barrier with only two strikes!

"Body cultivator!" the wine gourd exclaimed. "I've never seen such a formidable body cultivator!"

As soon as he spoke, the wine gourd shot into the air and poured out all the remaining wine.

Li Banfeng struck a match, ready to ignite it—when the elephant swung his trunk and sucked all the wine mist from the air.

The wine gourd gritted his teeth: "Get him drunk, you bastard!"

This was the Medicine King's wine!

Qiu Luoye swayed slightly, rubbing his eyes with his trunk.

Drunk him?

No.

"Good wine! Strong!" Qiu Luoye kept walking forward; his skin reddened slightly, but otherwise showed no change.

What kind of monster is this?

Even the Medicine King's wine didn't work?

What could possibly stop him?

Li Banfeng recalled his original tactic: leading ten thousand archers, ambushing both sides of the valley, killing with a storm of arrows.

Now he understood why his wife had laughed at him.

Even if you lined up two rows of cannons, would they do any good?

Even if you placed two rows of missiles here, would they help?

The paper doll Jiaoniang severed a vine, causing a cascade of boulders to fall.

The boulders didn't harm Qiu Luoye—the paper doll Jiaoniang shattered.

The strain was too great; she'd reached her limit.

The fox arrived beside the elephant and pointed at the cliff: "Master, there's someone on the cliff!"

She saw Li Banfeng.

Qiu Luoye sneered: "A worthless scrap—I saw him long ago."

The fox begged to attack: "Master, we should capture him first!"

"No need!" Qiu Luoye's strategy was clear: "Don't linger in the valley. Get to Shu Yongquan's territory, raze his stronghold, dig up the contract, and leave him a wandering ghost."

The elephant roared forward, followed by a dozen monstrous creatures charging ahead!

The main force still watched at the canyon's mouth; since the first victory was out of reach, they waited for Qiu Luoye to break through before advancing.

Li Banfeng glanced at the calendar's back—5: 3 a. .

Two minutes had passed; for one and a half minutes, Qiu Luoye had simply walked.

The second ambush point was meant to delay him two minutes—it only held him for half a minute.

What to do about the remaining seven minutes?

Li Banfeng had no time to think—he rushed toward the third ambush point.

The third ambush point lay eight li into the valley, just two li from the canyon's entrance.

At this ambush point, Li Banfeng had to act himself.

He ran ahead of Qiu Luoye and saw Qiu Luoye approaching from afar, his entire body trembling along with the ground.

Facing the Earth God directly was a difficult thing.

Li Banfeng tensed his body, controlled his trembling hands, and dashed into a tangle of vines.

……

Ku Po walked along the yellow earth path of Kucaizhuang and saw a leaf fall beside her foot.

Used luck again?

For the second time?

This kid has clearly run into a lot of trouble.

……

Li Banfeng burst out from the vines; Qiu Luoye arrived in an instant, saw the thick wall of vines ahead, and swung his long trunk, sending the vines flying in all directions.

Li Banfeng emerged from the vines and unfurled a calendar tablet before Qiu Luoye.

He was over ten meters from Qiu Luoye—if Qiu Luoye didn't stop, Li Banfeng would be too late to flee.

Because when using the calendar tablet, Li Banfeng couldn't move—that was the tablet's price.

Not only could he not move, but nothing sentient in the surroundings could move either.

Magic treasures couldn't move; spiritual entities couldn't move.

Once anything moved, the tablet's power would fail.

Qiu Luoye retracted his trunk and glanced at Li Banfeng: "You came to die?"

He moved—and spoke.

But did he really move?

No.

Li Banfeng didn't answer; the beauty inside the calendar tablet spoke: "Stop!"

Qiu Luoye froze: "You tell me to stop, and I stop?"

"I'm just a weak woman—I beg this brave man to pause. Won't you?"

Yet for some reason, hearing the beauty say this, Qiu Luoye actually stopped.

The fox beside him startled, glancing at Li Banfeng holding the calendar tablet.

De Xiu?

The beauty on the calendar tablet continued: "Why are you entering the valley?"

Qiu Luoye answered her seriously: "Today is the day of battle—I'm allowed to enter!"

The beauty pointed to the calendar at the bottom of the tablet: "The day of battle is tomorrow—you've misremembered the date!"

"Tomorrow?" Qiu Luoye stared blankly for a long time.

Did I really misremember the date?

He turned to look behind him and asked a pine tree covered in needles: "Isn't today the day of battle?"

The pine tree thought long and hard, then replied: "I don't know what a date is—I know what a year is. Every year, I grow a little thicker…"

"Get lost, useless thing!" Qiu Luoye turned back to the calendar tablet and roared, "You say I'm wrong, and I'm wrong?"

The beauty on the calendar tablet snapped: "I am the calendar tablet—I say you misremembered the date, and you did!"

She made perfect sense!

The calendar tablet never misremembers dates!

The beauty continued scolding: "You broke in before the date arrived—you don't follow the rules. What kind of Earth God are you?"

Qiu Luoye felt ashamed, wishing he could leave immediately.

He lowered his head and saw the fox at his feet—but the fox wasn't speaking, wasn't moving.

This fox was about to wake up.

The calendar tablet was forged by Hong Lian using the Song Girl's Flower and Pan Dehai's folding fan; Li Banfeng named her Meng De.

The moment Li Banfeng unfurled the calendar tablet, Meng De plunged Qiu Luoye and his followers into a dream, and used De Xiu's technique to plunge Qiu Luoye into deep self-reproach.

It was risky—Song Girl's Flower's level couldn't possibly make Qiu Luoye fall into a dream so quickly.

But Pan Dehai's fan was of high level; under Hong Lian's forging, Meng De's level matched the fan's, giving her a chance to make Qiu Luoye dream.

How great that chance was depended on Li Banfeng's luck.

But even though Qiu Luoye had entered the dream, it wasn't foolproof.

If even one of Qiu Luoye's subordinates hadn't fallen into the dream—if that one moved—the dream would shatter.

Just now, Qiu Luoye was speaking to the tree-man—he seemed to be moving.

But he wasn't moving—he was speaking to the tree-man in the dream, standing right where he was, right before Li Banfeng.

Li Banfeng's luck was good—Qiu Luoye and all his subordinates had fallen into the dream.

Now he held the calendar tablet, sweat dripping down; the back of the tablet still showed a clock face, the time reading 5: 5.

Qiu Luoye had stood in place for over a minute—the calendar tablet had already exceeded its task.

For Li Banfeng, the wisest choice now was to immediately retract the tablet and flee.

But Li Banfeng wanted to stall a little longer.

Less than two li from the valley mouth, if Qiu Luoye kept charging forward, he'd burst out in under a minute.

Luo Shuimen could only hold for three minutes—what would they do with another minute and a half?

Stall!

Stall one more minute, and hope would appear.

But Li Banfeng hadn't expected—the fox beside Qiu Luoye had already woken up, because this fox was also a Dream Cultivator.

Though his cultivation was only at Level Two, this fox had extremely high spiritual awareness and was Qiu Luoye's trusted lieutenant.

From the moment he entered the dream, he sensed something was wrong; now his consciousness had broken free—but he didn't rush to wake Qiu Luoye.

This fox's thinking differed from Qiu Luoye's—he always believed they should eliminate the valley's threat first before attacking the Water Spring territory.

And this Li Banfeng—deceitful, persistent—was the one who must be eliminated first.

He pretended to still be dreaming, planning to kill Li Banfeng first, then wake Qiu Luoye, to prevent Li Banfeng from escaping.

The moment the fox's toe touched the ground, making a faint sound, the Thread-Ear Earrings immediately warned: "Movement!"

Li Banfeng retracted the calendar tablet and turned to flee; the fox leapt, lunging at Li Banfeng's back—Tang Dao flew in and severed the fox's head.

Chong Kui's antennae weren't eaten for nothing!

"Every strike takes the enemy's head!" Tang Dao praised himself, then chased after Li Banfeng to escape.

From the moment the fox moved, Qiu Luoye had awakened.

He crushed a vast stretch of vines beneath his feet; before reaching the valley exit, Li Banfeng triggered his final trap.

This trap's effectiveness was uncertain—and the odds of failure were extremely high.

Ahead of him stood a paper doll woman holding a judge's brush, drawing a circle, waiting inside it.

Li Banfeng dashed through the circle—the paper doll didn't move.

Qiu Luoye charged into the circle—the paper doll shouted: "Fly!"

The judge's brush didn't move either—he was too lazy to move.

Didn't move? Fine—Li Banfeng never expected much from the judge's brush anyway.

Qiu Luoye swung his trunk again, smashing the second paper doll woman; the judge's brush fell to the ground.

……

In Kucaizhuang, Ku Po saw another leaf fall before her.

Used up the third luck?

Used on something good—something of no low level.

Ku Po smiled.

Big nephew, you're going to have to pay your debt again.

……

Qiu Luoye kept charging forward—and stepped squarely on the judge's brush.

"Oh, damn…" That step hurt the judge's brush badly.

He got angry.

He suddenly lifted Qiu Luoye into the air.

Qiu Luoye was walking forward when suddenly his feet left the ground.

Before he could understand what happened, he was already flying backward over two li.

What had just pricked his foot?

Qiu Luoye looked down—didn't see the judge's brush.

The judge's brush had hidden in the grass—he knew if Qiu Luoye caught him, he'd be dead.

Carrying Qiu Luoye two li, the judge's brush exhausted every ounce of accumulated strength he'd saved over the years.

He lay quietly in the grass, silent.

Those two li bought Li Banfeng one minute.

……

Li Banfeng had reached the canyon mouth and raised the Waterfall Gate.

He unfolded the calendar and glanced at it.

The dial on the back showed 5: 6.

All he could do was hope autumn leaves fell slower.

At 5: 7, Qiuluoye hadn't arrived; his tree-man rushed over.

Li Banfeng stopped waiting and ordered the last paper maiden to pour two jin of water onto Shuiluo Gate.

Water trickled down the lintel; Shuiluo Gate took root instantly, and an invisible barrier spread toward both sides of the valley.

Before the barrier sealed, the tree-man slammed into it.

Li Banfeng, bracing the door from behind, was thrown off-balance; the tree-man's head poked through the gap and jabbed toward his chest.

Whoosh!

Tang Dao slashed once, severing half the tree-man's head.

After three strikes, Tang Dao retracted into Li Banfeng's pocket.

The tree-man felt no pain and kept pushing forward; Li Banfeng swung his sickle, hacking wildly at it.

The paper maiden threw her arms around the tree-man from behind with all her strength; together, they forced it back half a step.

He turned, grabbed the paper maiden, tore her into shreds, then turned back to confront Li Banfeng—only to be blocked by the barrier.

The barrier had formed!

The calendar's dial now read 5: 7: 8.

Done!

Success!

Shuiluo Gate could hold for three minutes—until 5: 0!

The tree-man slammed wildly against the barrier; Li Banfeng pressed hard against the door from behind.

Shuiluo Gate was powerful; despite the tree-man's frantic assaults, Li Banfeng felt only slight tremors in his arms—most of the force had been absorbed.

Li Banfeng relaxed. All he needed now was to wait until 5: 0, then flee, then return to Shuiyongquan for what he owed—if he refused…

Boom!

Li Banfeng flew out from behind the door and landed on his back.

The two doors opened—over a foot wide.

Qiuluoye stood outside.

He'd merely kicked the barrier casually, sending Li Banfeng flying.

Li Banfeng scrambled up, rushed to the door, and slammed it shut.

Boom!

Another kick; Li Banfeng flew out again.

The impact broke two of his ribs; his consciousness blurred.

Squeeeee—

The two doors slowly opened again; Li Banfeng rose from the ground and rushed to close them.

The doors must not open three feet—otherwise the barrier would vanish.

Boom!

The door slammed into Li Banfeng's face; blood gushed from his nose and mouth, his cheekbones shattered.

As soon as he shut the door, Qiuluoye, enraged, charged forward and slammed into the barrier.

Li Banfeng was hurled through the air, landed hard, and broke his leg.

"Fuck, Shuiyongquan's old dog only knows how to use this crap!" Qiuluoye's head spun from the impact.

Squeeeee—

The two doors opened again, nearly two feet wide.

Almost three feet…

Someone had to hold the door—otherwise Shuiluo Gate would open wider and faster.

Li Banfeng never imagined this—he thought raising Shuiluo Gate was victory.

He never thought holding the door would be this hard.

The calendar lay in the grass; the clock read 5: 8.

Two minutes left.

What could hold it for two minutes?

No hope.

Gone…

…

Huh~

Inside his personal dwelling, the phonograph's breath came faint as a thread.

Honglian sighed: "Wicked woman, you ruled your life with power, yet still couldn't survive this tribulation—do you even know if that madman still lives?"

If he'd perished with you, it would've been a perfect end. But what am I, trapped here for eternity?"

…

Li Banfeng pushed himself up from the tangled grass—he was still alive.

His leg was broken; he couldn't stand. He crawled with both hands to the door.

He shut the door, then pulled a vine from his waist, threading it through both door rings.

The vine was strong—even a blade couldn't cut it.

He leaned against the door, binding himself to it with the vine.

Boom!

The door shuddered; Li Banfeng spat blood.

The blood was foul, salty.

Boom!

Qiuluoye slammed into the barrier again.

Li Banfeng's vision turned black.

Boom!

He felt no pain, nothing at all—only knew blood kept pouring from his mouth.

Boom!

I don't know your name.

You probably don't know mine either.

Boom!

Since the day we met, you called me husband; I called you wife.

Boom!

Wife, wait for me to return.

Boom!

When I came back that time, I brought the Su'e Lady into our home.

Boom!

I betrayed you.

Boom!

You sent me to the outer chamber; I stood outside, listening as you fought the Su'e Lady to the death…

I stood outside…

Boom!

I knew you were fighting the Su'e Lady,

You saved me, but I couldn't save you,

And you ended up so badly wounded.

I betrayed you…

Boom!

That time, I couldn't save you.

Boom!

This time, wait for me to return.

Boom!

The vine snapped.

Li Banfeng, a bloody ruin, lay sprawled on the ground.

Squeeeee—

The door opened.

Qiuluoye stood right behind it.

The door had opened two feet.

The door must be shut.

The time hasn't come yet.

We must close the door.

Don't let the door open more than three feet…

Li Banfeng's hand groped along the ground; he couldn't stand up.

He lifted his head, trying to see the time on the calendar.

At the canyon's exit appeared a massive figure.

Madam Suo'e…

Why would thinking of Madam Suo'e make her appear?

Hallucination?

Not a hallucination.

Ma Wu rode his Swallow straight toward Li Banfeng.

"Shuiluo Gate!" The Swallow recognized the spiritual artifact and immediately pressed against the door.

Bang!

The Swallow was thrown back slightly; Ma Wu stepped forward and shut the door.

Bang!

Ma Wu was blasted away, his left arm bone broken; Zuo Wugang rushed forward and closed the door.

Bang!

Zuo Wugang staggered back two steps; Xianxian and Qiaocui charged forward, and the three Suo'e moths together pressed against the door.

Bang!

Ma Wu charged back again.

Bang!

Xiao Genzi and Xiao Chuanzi rushed forward together and pressed against the door!

Bang!

Boom!

…

After holding for over a minute, no more sounds came from outside the door.

Has Qiuluoye stopped slamming?

Can't he break through anymore?

He can't possibly be unable to break through.

Has the door's barrier failed?

Li Banfeng looked at the clock on the calendar.

Five nineteen.

It's not yet five twenty.

How could this be…

There should still be time…

How could Shuiluo Gate possibly fail?

From midair came the sound of Shuiyongquan:

"Qiuluoye, you've lost."

A flower appeared in Li Banfeng's hand, its petals spinning around the center.

PS: My wife, wait for Banfeng's return.

(End of Chapter)