Chapter 31: This Is What You Call a Strategic Retreat

The young couple had been under the observation of the Priestess for quite a while now.

They didn’t seem like any disciples of a specific sect, but rather self-taught individuals collecting resources, akin to scatterers like Murong Yun. This type of practitioner was indeed common in the Ancient Spirit Realm, representing a significant portion, at least over half.

The method of judgment was simple; the disciples from recognized sects, like Du Zhe, along with the three from Guiyuan Sect, all wore the same uniforms and even sported certain emblems representing their status.

Apart from the diverse clothing styles, the quality of the scattered practitioners varied widely. While most were mediocre and constantly troubled by resource acquisition, there existed hidden talents whose strength reached levels of “Seeking Immortals” or even “Longevity.”

This classification is broad, as everyone present here, excluding the three from Guiyuan Sect, could be considered scattered practitioners, including Ling Feng and Bai’er. After all, while the Yin-Yang Office pays salaries, it doesn’t guide internal members in training, making it quite different from a true sect.

—At least that’s what Miss Ling Feng said.

But this young couple, looking like a pair of lovebirds… how to put it, they gave Miss Vilyric a strange feeling.

From their unabashedly luxurious attire, they clearly didn’t lack wealth, making it unlikely they were there for official rewards.

The only remaining possibility was that they were seeking the opportunity represented by the Holy Beast Qilin, but…

The girl named Yuan Zhi, her ignorance and clumsiness were not feigned, and her aura was genuinely weak—this Miss Vilyric had confirmed through repeated observations.

To say this foolish rookie had ulterior motives would be to underestimate the diligent villains in this world.

Yet strangely, the magistrate Wen Fu still allowed her to partake in this exploration, placing her in a group with a powerhouse like Miss Vilyric, which could definitely be seen as favoritism.

As for the young man named Yuan Hong, his level was actually quite decent, possessing keen insight and experience. Though taciturn, he indeed qualified to join this operation.

During the recruitment assessment, Wen Fu had inexplicably allowed the two to team up, with Yuan Hong somehow dragging Yuan Zhi through the tests against two opponents.

Despite the significant disparity between them, according to Miss Vilyric’s covert observations, in this “couple,” it was evident that Yuan Zhi was the leader, with Yuan Hong merely responsible for her protection.

This somewhat odd relationship resembled more of…

“Prince… Little Zhi!”

Seeing Yuan Zhi’s calf caught by a bony claw and hearing her loud cries for help, Yuan Hong evidently panicked, hastily smashing the pale claw with his staff, instinctively calling out in surprise, which was caught by the keen-eared Priestess in the chilly valley.

Prince…?

What prince?

What could it be?

Ah, so that’s how it is. No wonder they looked so foolish.

Upon capturing this crucial information, the black-haired girl’s lips couldn’t help but curl slightly. If she were still sporting those fox ears on her head, they would probably be flapping up and down joyously right now.

Of course, it was probably only the Priestess who had the leisure to pay attention to such trivial matters at the moment.

The attacks from the undead bone demons were not limited to just one or two individuals.

The ghastly white claws kept emerging from the damp, cold walls, the ground, and the strange rock angles around them. Though merely bones, they were sharp and swift, each laced with lethal intent, targeting vital points directly.

While Murong Yun and the others were exceptionally strong, they were restricted by the environment and the difficulty of locating their true bodies, capable of only hasty dodging, unable to mount an effective counterattack.

After all, these claws were clearly just disposable limbs of the bone demon. Even if they broke and shattered under strikes from palm force, bronze swords, and long staffs, they wouldn’t deal any real damage to the main body.

“Whoosh!”

Slightly sidestepping, feigning to dodge an attack from behind—one that Miss Vilyric had already detected—the black-haired girl casually grabbed the claw’s wrist and, before it could retract or even struggle, “Crack!” she broke it in an instant.

Then immediately followed up with a stylish spin kick, striking the wall where the claw had just retracted.

“Bang!!!”

With a violent shake of the wall and a strange crunching noise, the area quieted down quickly.

Though she hadn’t used any particularly powerful abilities, smashing that bone demon that dared to attack a certain Priestess was already more than sufficient.

“Tch, gross…”

Standing back upright, Miss Vilyric examined the now-motionless, mud-stained, and dirt-encrusted bony claw for a moment before casually tossing it to the ground and crushing it underfoot.

Turning her head, she looked at the foolish dear who had sat down in such a setting, crying and applying medicine to her wounded calf, clearly still under Yuan Hong’s protection, with a slight frown.

Hey, hey, this is too ridiculous, right? Miss Vilyric isn’t here to babysit certain people!

In her musings, Murong Yun had already smashed another incoming claw and loudly issued commands to his teammates behind him.

“Don’t get attached to fighting! We’ll only attract more evil demons if we stay in a protracted battle; we need to escape this horde of undead bone demons quickly!”

Everyone naturally understood the logic behind this, but whether they could execute it was another matter entirely.

This hastily formed temporary team was divided into four parts: Murong Yun leading the official team, Miss Vilyric, Ling Feng, and Bai’er, three youths from Guiyuan Sect, and the final subgroup of Yuan Hong and Yuan Zhi, the “couple.”

To break free from the bone demon’s entanglement and continue onward, it was simply a matter of fighting while running. Murong Yun and Miss Vilyric’s groups had no issues with this, but the remaining five from the other two factions, especially the incomprehensible Yuan Zhi…

However, Murong Yun was indeed a decisive person, not hesitating to waste time standing still.

After shouting loudly, he shot an inquiring glance at the black-haired girl, seeing her unresponsive and seemingly unwilling to step in, he quickly took action, charging ahead.

“Move! Everyone, keep up!!!”

The white-clad middle-aged man’s palms turned into shadows as he slammed down on several bone claws protruding like barriers from the stone walls, shattering them into dust before striding ahead.

Miss Vilyric naturally took this opportunity without hesitation, followed closely by Ling Feng and Bai’er. Though the three youths from Guiyuan Sect hesitated, they quickly recognized the situation and hurriedly followed while slashing at the evil bones with bronze swords.

“Eh? Eh! You, you, you, you guys…”

That one who remained squatting on the ground, still whining about the claw’s scratch on her delicate skin like it was a picnic—Yuan Zhi, unsurprisingly, reacted the slowest, seemingly not expecting the group to abandon her without hesitation. For a moment, she was both startled and furious, merely shouting in place, still failing to take any adequate action.

“Oops… Little Zhi, my bad!”

Fortunately, the young man, Yuan Hong, who looked somewhat dull, could still clearly see the situation. As he noted his companions growing distant, he gritted his teeth and threw Yuan Zhi over his shoulder, using one hand to swat away the bone claws while hurriedly chasing after the others amidst her heightened screams.

Led by Murong Yun, the group was sprinting through the dark, damp passage, but the further they went down, the wider it became, until they burst out of a tunnel’s mouth into a wide underground lake cave. The swarm of bone claws that had been persistently pursuing them finally came to an abrupt stop, gradually retracting back into the passage.

“Hmm…?”

As the group stopped, Miss Vilyric calmly turned her gaze forward.

This place was rather intriguing.

She could sense that the relentless skeletons pursuing them didn’t want to cease their attacks but were forced back by another powerful aura that dwelled there.

It was a bane for evil, similar to the power contained in ghost-repelling charms, but far more grand and formidable.

The girl’s silver-blue eyes finally fell onto the limited area of what seemed like an artificially carved underground lake.

Is it… down there?

   

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