Chapter 61: The Creek Lake Trap

"Happy? Heh, honestly, I was neither willing nor did I want to get involved! If not for your repeated pushing, it wouldn't have ended like this!"

Mo Xuan did not care to explain much, but regarding the Chen family's affairs, he could not and would not judge. Such is the world; the victors are kings and the losers are villains. In the end, the Chen family indeed lost, and completely at that.

He simply bypassed them and reunited with Meng Yao, while Chen Pengfei stood there in a daze. In the end, he still gave a cold, unconvinced snort: "Have a good time now, you'll get what's coming to you soon enough!"

On a boat along the banks of Phantom Creek!

"What took you so long, why were you so slow!" Meng Yao was growing somewhat impatient from waiting.

Mo Xuan shook his head, "I was held up by something, but it's fine now."

For the next period of time, he taught Meng Yao pharmacist knowledge right there on the small boat drifting across Phantom Creek.

Around Phantom Creek!

People were becoming fewer and fewer, creating an eerie atmosphere. Gradually, the only people left were those on the boat Mo Xuan was occupying, while everyone else had departed one after another.

The morning had not yet drawn to a close.

Chen Pengfei was still waiting near the lakeside, his eyes fixed on the boat where Meng Yao was, a flash of emotional complexity crossing his gaze.

"They've all left!" Two other individuals, apparently Chen Pengfei's subordinates, reported back to him after finishing their tasks.

"Alright, you two may withdraw!" Hearing this, Chen Pengfei occasionally glanced toward Mo Xuan's position on the boat. He felt only hatred for Mo Xuan, yet somehow could not truly bring himself to hate him. After all, from beginning to end, Mo Xuan had been an outsider, a catalyst in this whole affair who had merely engaged in passive self-defense. Originally, he was ready to let other matters go, but this time...

Meng Yao was learning very quickly, grasping most concepts almost instantly, and their study session soon came to an end!

After the boat docked at the shore!

As soon as Mo Xuan stepped onto the land, he felt that something was amiss. Why was there not a single soul around? It was dead silent, quiet enough to send shivers down one's spine, and a chilling gust of wind swept in from behind, sending a tremor of cold fear through him.

Meng Yao, however, paid it little mind, seemingly unaware of any anomaly and maintaining her usual demeanor.

Naturally, given her status, even if she truly encountered danger, she would likely take it with ease, protected as she was by high-level martial artists in the vicinity.

Mo Xuan merely cast a couple of lingering, sentimental glances at Meng Yao. Put that way, Meng Yao was indeed the least likely person to come to harm—was he simply overthinking things?

It was only when he caught sight of Chen Pengfei that all the mysteries around him unraveled; this person must have hatched some kind of scheme.

"Did you do this?" Mo Xuan's expression turned stern as he gazed at Chen Pengfei with heavy vigilance.

"Don't make it sound so ugly, you're the one who insisted on coming!" As soon as his words fell, Chen Pengfei flashed forward, appearing directly in front of Mo Xuan.

The cultivation base of the Earth Spirit Realm suddenly erupted, an oppressive and intimidating aura locking onto Mo Xuan, as if a duel were about to begin.

Sensing the trap, Mo Xuan dared not press forward rashly; he knew Chen Pengfei's repertoire of tricks did not end here.

Meng Yao, on the other hand, was losing her patience, sensing nothing out of the ordinary as she looked at Chen Pengfei with undisguised contempt.

Yet panic suddenly surged within Mo Xuan's heart. He felt acutely that something was wrong, though he could not pinpoint where the exact problem lay.

Chen Pengfei directly summoned his long spear, unleashing a fierce, lightning-fast attack that thrust straight at Mo Xuan.

However, the blow was intercepted by Meng Yao, who shouted a warning, "A defeated foe dares to block the way? Watch how I teach you a lesson!"

"Get back!" Mo Xuan never expected that Meng Yao, a young lady, would be so lacking in restraint, charging right into the fray the moment she was provoked. What if it was a trap? *Sigh.*

Given the current situation, Mo Xuan could not figure out the enemy's intent and hesitated for a fraction of a second.

The two began clashing not far away.

No matter how one looked at it, this fellow did not seem to be here for a genuine duel. After widening the distance slightly, he suddenly deployed a Stasis Domain, freezing Meng Yao in place, and with blinding speed, whisked her away to a spot much farther from Mo Xuan.

*Oh no!*

Meng Yao wasn't entirely defenseless against this technique, but before she could mount a counterattack, a spatial rift tore open behind her. A pair of hands reached out from within, gently tapping her, and Meng Yao immediately lost consciousness.

Then, with a powerful tug, she was dragged straight into the fissure.

In truth, Mo Xuan had been well aware of Chen Pengfei's maneuver just moments ago, yet he was still a step too late.

Mo Xuan had not anticipated that their target this time would actually be Meng Yao. In his panic, he could no longer afford to worry about Chen Pengfei.

That spatial rift displayed a capability exclusive to a Heaven-Three Realm expert, and the only person he could associate with the Heaven-Three Realm was that singular individual.

Releasing his divine sense, he pursued them at full speed.

The culprit was hiding within the spatial rift, allowing Mo Xuan to perceive only the general direction rather than their exact coordinates.

Xue Yue had been trailing them all along. Though she hadn't noticed the developments at first, by the time she realized what was happening, it was already too late, and she had set off in pursuit a step before Mo Xuan.

Though slightly behind, she kept close on their heels, completely abandoning any thought of dealing with Chen Pengfei for now.

Mo Xuan's speed was relatively fast; bolstered by the Seven Hearts Technique, the pace he could achieve was beyond the reach of ordinary experts. Eventually, he tracked them to a ravine region among the mountain ridges far away from Phantom Creek Town!

When he arrived, Mo Xuan caught only a glimpse of a retreating figure—the mysterious person had abducted both Xue Yue and the unconscious Meng Yao.

There were traces of an array formation here!

Yet strangely, there were no signs of a struggle. Logically speaking, Xue Yue possessed formidable strength; even against a Heaven-Three Realm adversary, it should have been impossible to leave behind zero traces of a fight.

Only one explanation remained: the mysterious person had utilized the local array formation to trap Meng Yao within it, and breaking open even a small opening in this formation was something that could not be accomplished in a short time.

Thus, the mysterious person had seized upon this weakness to use it as leverage. Xue Yue cared above all else for Meng Yao's safety, so even if she wished to resist, her hands were tied, and she had no choice but to submit.

Following some residual clues, Mo Xuan pressed on with his pursuit. At times, he deliberately leaked a trace of his own aura; if the enemy paused even for a moment, he would find a way to effect a rescue.

Yet the culprit ignored him completely, which he found highly unreasonable. Mo Xuan was familiar with that mysterious person's aura, having been targeted by him twice before.

His sudden shift in focus toward these two individuals piqued Mo Xuan's curiosity. After all, if he could use Meng Yao to threaten Xue Yue, he could certainly use her to threaten Mo Xuan as well, yet the adversary had chosen not to do so.

*Damnable!*

Now Mo Xuan was utterly baffled—what on earth was the meaning of this?

Chasing all the way to the side of a small stream, Mo Xuan's path was blocked by a strangely dressed stranger.

The person was clad in ordinary civilian attire, standing with his back turned to Mo Xuan, yet his voice came through with crystal clarity: "If you wish to save them, head in this direction!"

"Who on earth are you, and what is your purpose?" Mo Xuan demanded defensively, staying on high alert.

However, the figure merely flashed away and vanished, leaving behind a lingering echo: "Believe it or not, as you wish!"

Regardless of who he was, the stranger's aura was entirely unfamiliar. If his intent truly was to target Mo Xuan, there would have been no need to offer such guidance, and given the formidable strength the stranger had just displayed, escape would have been nearly impossible for Mo Xuan.

After a brief weighing of options, he set off in the indicated direction.

A more distant expanse of mountainous terrain!

This place was already very far from Phantom Creek Town.

Outside the mouth of a cave, Mo Xuan was yanked into the tall grass by a sudden, peculiar force!

"Shh, don't make a sound, it's me!"

Stabilizing himself, Mo Xuan looked up in shock to find it was Lan Bing: "Why are you here?"

"I'm not even sure myself. I was meditating when I was suddenly struck by an unknown attack and passed out. When I woke up, I was lying right here... Later on, I saw someone enter this cave. That person's aura felt very familiar—it must be that same mysterious person who ambushed you twice before." Lan Bing gestured helplessly, unable to offer a clearer explanation.

"Were there two people with him?" Mo Xuan asked anxiously.

"There was one, seemingly the girl from Meng Yao's side. I really don't understand how she managed to get herself captured," Lan Bing voiced her genuine confusion.

Mo Xuan knew the reason, but right now, formulating a rescue plan took precedence!

He looked around; the area clearly possessed an energy barrier designed to conceal presences—no wonder Lan Bing had managed to remain undiscovered.

Xue Yue had saved Mo Xuan twice, so regardless of the underlying reasons, he could not simply stand by and do nothing. He resolved to enter.

Yet he was reined in by Lan Bing: "If you just walk in there like that, aren't you walking straight to your death?"

"I have to go!" Mo Xuan refused to entertain second thoughts. At this moment, his resolve was absolute, unbreakable. He shook off Lan Bing's grip and strode directly into the interior.

"You stubborn child!" Lan Bing naturally understood his feelings, and though she could no longer hold him back, she refused to sit idly by and immediately set her mind to a different contingency plan.

The cave was not very deep, but the space within was vast, and within mere moments, they were nearing the end.

Deep within the cavern!

Xue Yue's entire cultivation base had been sealed, and she was imprisoned inside a transparent square vessel. At this moment, she could no longer maintain her human form, having been forced back into her true shape by a bizarre, oppressive power!

Nearby!

That same mysterious person was executing a secret technique, attempting to extract Xue Yue's inner core.

"Ah..." Xue Yue writhed in agony within the vessel, suffering intensely as her very essence felt as though it were being ripped away, leaving her utterly powerless to resist.

Extracting the inner core of a Heaven-Heart Realm beast was no easy feat; simply slaying the beast was far from sufficient to obtain it.

The man spoke in a haughty tone, "To think you are actually a spirit fox, and a legendary Snowy Night Spirit Fox at that. I wonder what kind of existence that brat is to make you risk your life to this extent."

"I will submit to whatever you do with me, just please let her go!" Xue Yue pleaded, compromising as she locked eyes with the man.

"Heh, truly amusing. Just how long do you think you can resist in your current state? If you willingly surrender it of your own accord, I might consider sparing your life—keeping a spirit fox as a pet sounds rather pleasant." The man clearly had no intention of negotiating in good faith and completely rejected the compromise.

"You dare! If any harm comes to her, both you and the forces behind you will die!" Xue Yue had initially hoped to use herself as a bargaining chip, but given the man's vile demeanor, she resolved to fight him to the death with everything she had.

The man had no desire to waste any more time: "Hmph, ungrateful wretch!"

A thick, violent vortex of spiritual energy, carrying razor-sharp swirling gales, bore down upon Xue Yue, attempting to forcibly strip away her inner core.