Chapter 374: The Gathering Place

Seeing that Zhang Nuo remained silent, neither the skinny old man nor the scholar-dressed man dared to leave on their own. After a long while, Zhang Nuo finally gave a faint smile:

"Since you have both spoken, I shall keep my word! You may leave now!"

It appeared that Zhang Nuo had no murderous intent, as if he truly intended to let the two of them go! The old man and the scholar exchanged a glance, and in their panic, they turned and fled, fearing that Zhang Nuo might change his mind!

Watching their retreating figures, a cold sneer appeared on Zhang Nuo's face. He then slowly descended to the ground and, under the cover of the night, pursued them on foot in the direction they had fled!

Despite traveling on foot, Zhang Nuo's speed was by no means slow! He sprinted through the mountain forest like a bolt of lightning, disappearing into the depths of the dense woods after a few turns!

He pursued them until the sky began to brighten, when he saw the two figures flying through the air descend onto the mountainside of a small hill, after which they disappeared into the mountain!

Zhang Nuo had secretly left a Divine Sense Mark on the two of them, so he was not afraid of them escaping. After standing in place and thinking for a moment, he decided to go over and take a look! With a flicker of his figure, he vanished from where he stood!

After the scholar-dressed cultivator and the skinny old man landed on the small hill, they circled the mountain a few times before stopping in front of a large boulder. The two looked around, and seeing nothing unusual, they reached out and patted the boulder three times in succession!

Instantly, the surface of the boulder rippled like water, and the two of them dove straight inside without a second thought! Just as their figures vanished into the boulder, a pair of eyes not far away saw everything clearly! This person was none other than Zhang Nuo!

A cold sneer appeared at the corner of his mouth; he had not expected that an Illusion Array would exist on this seemingly unremarkable small hill! It seemed this must be their gathering place!

After the scholar and the old man entered the boulder, they passed through a long, narrow corridor and instantly appeared in an underground Cave Abode. The area here was over a hundred zhang wide, and there were more than forty cultivators sitting cross-legged inside. Half of them were at the Golden Core stage, while the other half were Foundation Establishment cultivators.

At this moment, one of the female cultivators sitting in meditation suddenly opened her eyes. Seeing the two return, her heart stirred! She hurriedly rose and stepped forward to ask:

"Tell me, why have you two returned so quickly?"

The woman who asked looked to be about twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, wore a silver-white palace dress, and was quite attractive!

"Oh! Fairy Wu, this time we two nearly didn't make it back!"

Upon seeing the woman in silver, the skinny old man immediately pulled a bitter face and recounted his encounter with Zhang Nuo! The palace-dressed woman was first startled, then her expression turned pensive. After her bright eyes blinked for a long time, she suddenly let out a cry of surprise, her face filling with rage!

"You two useless things who ruin more than you accomplish! This time, you have gotten all of us killed!"

The woman's voice was very sharp, echoing for a long time within the enclosed underground Cave Abode! The others were also awakened by the woman's cry; they all stood up and surrounded the three of them!

"Fairy Wu! What do you mean by this? It is already good enough that we were able to return alive!"

Seeing the woman treat them this way, the scholar-dressed man was clearly somewhat displeased.

"She is right! None of you will be able to leave!"

Before the palace-dressed woman could speak, a cold and crisp voice rang out from the narrow passage! Instantly, the complexions of the skinny old man and the scholar-dressed man became extremely ugly! Because this voice was very familiar—it was the very Nascent Soul Stage cultivator who had intercepted them the day before!

Following the voice, a young man in a green robe appeared at the entrance of the Cave Abode. He stood firmly at the entrance, directly sealing off the exit! In his eyes, there was not a shred of emotion, only biting murderous intent!

"Zhang Nuo!"

The moment the woman in the silver palace dress saw Zhang Nuo, she recognized him! Her heart instantly went cold! A person's name is like the shadow of a tree; in recent years, Zhang Nuo had been making waves at Yulong Immortal Mountain, and the battle in which he slew Ji Gui, in particular, had made this name known to countless cultivators!

Biting her red lips, the palace-dressed woman stared fixedly at Zhang Nuo, her heart pounding wildly. Now that the only exit was blocked by Zhang Nuo, their hope of escaping was slim!

In the underground Cave Abode, many people did not know Zhang Nuo, but after hearing the palace-dressed woman call out that name, their expressions changed drastically, and some even felt their legs go weak! For a time, the dozens of people fell into a dead silence; after a moment, heavy breathing could be heard one after another.

"I didn't expect someone here to actually recognize me!"

Zhang Nuo looked coldly at these people, his expression unreadable. The Illusion Array at the entrance of the Cave Abode was no obstacle to him at all, so without much effort, Zhang Nuo had walked straight inside! After sweeping the interior with his Divine Sense and finding no Nascent Soul Stage cultivators, he had boldly revealed himself!

"Look at the fine mess you two have made!"

The palace-dressed woman glared at the skinny old man and the scholar-dressed man, wishing she could tear them to pieces! If it weren't for these two rushing back, they wouldn't have led this god of plague, Zhang Nuo, here!

"I think you are misunderstanding these two! If it weren't for them, I wouldn't have been able to find you all!"

Zhang Nuo looked at the flushed palace-dressed woman and let out a loud laugh. His laughter sounded like a death knell to the ears of these people; their expressions changed drastically, and some even secretly gripped their Magic Treasures!

"What do you want? Although our cultivation levels are not as high as yours, if we all attack together, even if you are a Nascent Soul Stage cultivator, you might not be able to withstand it!"

The palace-dressed woman was clearly no ordinary person; after a brief moment of panic, her composure returned.

Raising his eyebrows slightly, Zhang Nuo gave a meaningful "Oh," and then swept his gaze across the dozens of cultivators in the Cave Abode. Among these people, the highest cultivation was only at the Golden Core Middle Stage. He thought that if he unleashed all his divine abilities, he should be able to succeed in a short time, but the only thing that worried Zhang Nuo was the fear that someone here might use the secret technique of Golden Core Self-Detonation!

He wouldn't even need many; if there were just two, Zhang Nuo feared he might not be able to escape unscathed!

"Hmph! So, it seems you are the leader here?"

With a cold snort, Zhang Nuo's grim gaze fell upon the palace-dressed woman, and then a cluster of silver flames ignited within his eyes!

"This concubine is only temporarily leading these people!"

The palace-dressed woman felt a bit unnerved by Zhang Nuo's gaze, and her breathing suddenly became rapid.

"Since that is the case, then let us start with you!"

Just as Zhang Nuo's voice fell, he lifted his finger slightly, and two streaks of Sword Qi burst forth. The surface of the scorching Sword Qi was covered in a layer of silver flames, looking extremely eerie! The two streaks of Sword Qi struck toward the palace-dressed woman, and at the same time, Zhang Nuo flipped his other hand, and 'Autumn Water Home' flashed into existence!

With a forceful flick of two fingers, a soft 'pop' sounded, the fan opened, and countless gales of wind surged out from it.

"Whoosh!"

Using almost all his strength, Zhang Nuo fanned violently toward the crowd in the Cave Abode!

"Boom!"

This underground Cave Abode was completely hollow, with nothing to provide cover. With Zhang Nuo's sudden attack, the dozens of cultivators barely had time to react! Coupled with the 'Autumn Water Home' being driven at full power, its might was formidable!

In the blink of an eye, a series of booming sounds arrived! Violent winds rose throughout the Cave Abode, and countless Wind Blades, like sharp divine weapons, slashed directly onto the bodies of these cultivators! Cries of agony rang out throughout the Cave Abode, blood splashed, and a thick, bloody mist was whipped up by the gale!

The smell was enough to make one want to vomit! Even Zhang Nuo could not help but frown! In an instant, the area returned to normal, only to see that the surroundings of the Cave Abode were completely stained red with blood, and the ground was almost entirely covered in the severed limbs of the cultivators!

Looking around, there were fewer than three cultivators still standing! Among them, the palace-dressed woman surnamed Wu had her silver clothes already stained red with blood; she held a Magic Treasure shaped like a wooden fish, from which a curtain of light radiated to block her front!

It appeared that this Magic Treasure of the woman's was quite powerful, as it was able to protect its master even under Zhang Nuo's full-powered use of 'Autumn Water Home'!

All these changes happened in a flash, and even the three cultivators who had not perished in the Cave Abode were already scared witless by the scene!

A Nascent Soul Stage cultivator actually possessed such great power with a mere wave of his hand! Dozens of people were torn to pieces in the blink of an eye!

"Zhang Nuo! You..."

With eyes radiating a terrifying aura, the palace-dressed woman's jade hands trembled! It was her first time seeing such a scene of slaughter! Zhang Nuo did not answer; as he lifted his hands repeatedly, several streaks of Sword Qi flashed, and the two people standing beside the palace-dressed woman also fell to the ground in an instant! Until their deaths, these two had not even recovered from the terror of just a moment ago!

"Which sect are you from? What is your name?"

Zhang Nuo took two small steps forward, his body hovering in the air as if he were unwilling to let the blood on the ground stain him! Arriving before the palace-dressed woman, he asked in a calm voice.

"Heaven Sword Sect! Wu Junyan!"

At this moment, the woman's mind had suffered a massive shock, and she no longer had any ability to resist.

"Heaven Sword Sect! Hmph! I will spare your life, go back and tell your Sect Master! The Giant Spirit Pavilion of Yulong Immortal Mountain is not something he can shake! If you are sensible, then abandon this thought!"

After speaking, Zhang Nuo turned his body and vanished into the Cave Abode like a gentle breeze, leaving only Wu Junyan standing there blankly, her face devoid of any expression. It was only after a long while that she plopped down onto the ground, not even caring about the blood gurgling and flowing on the floor!

At this moment, only one thought remained in the woman's mind: Zhang Nuo is even more terrifying than the rumors suggest! He is simply a fiend who kills without blinking! In the blink of an eye, dozens of cultivators were slaughtered by him; this kind of psychological shock is far greater than any physical injury!