Chapter 292 Wan’er, A Trap Within a Trap (4000)
The moon hung high above the branches.
In Jade Pass City, the lamplight gradually died down. Under the extreme temperature difference of the Gobi Desert, night and day forced travelers still wandering the streets to don thick cloaks. If one listened closely, the sounds of men and women breathing heavily could be faintly heard from the dark alleys.
Ye Anping stood by the window of his private room, watching the pedestrians on the street, his mood a little complicated.
Although it was often said that one could emerge unstained from mud, he felt that if he stayed in this city for too long, even a snow lotus would likely be turned into a black rose.
“Whether they caught the person or not, we’ll leave tomorrow. It’s not good for Junior Sister and Feng Yu Die to stay here any longer.”
He inexplicably felt a fatherly concern, as if he had brought two daughters to a dark place full of prostitutes, and he even had the urge to cover Junior Sister and Feng Yu Die’s eyes and ears.
Ye Anping shook his head and looked up at the sky.
The cold wind of the Gobi Desert night stirred up some sand and dust. In the vast starry sky, it seemed like patches of dark clouds, giving people an ominous feeling.
From the news of the Jade Sand Pavilion Master earlier, the Demon Race attack should be happening within these few days.
“The Demon Race… The main quest is getting more and more troublesome, sigh—”
Recalling the events that might happen in the future, and the seductive fox among the Demon Race, Ye Anping felt a headache. He finally put aside the matter of the Demon Race for the moment and shifted his focus back to Su Wan’er.
“I hope I can catch her.”
To be honest, he was confident he wouldn’t be robbed by Su Wan’er, but he wasn’t confident he could catch her.
Su Wan’er’s “Star Plucking Art” was, after all, a marvelous divine ability, almost on the same level as Feng Yu Die’s Nine Heavens Sword Art. It was indeed very powerful.
Ye Anping sighed, checked the traps he had set in the room, and then lay down on the bed, closed his eyes, and pretended to sleep while cultivating his Qi to pass the time.
After an unknown amount of time, the strange noises on the street had disappeared. Suddenly, two tinkling sounds of jade bells startled Ye Anping, who was already half-asleep.
*Ting-a-ling~~ Ting-a-ling~~*
Here she comes!
Ye Anping slightly opened a gap in his left eye and glanced towards the window of the room.
A short figure, entirely clad in white and wearing a fox mask, was already standing by the round table in the center of the private room. She looked incredibly composed, showing no signs of being a thief at all, as if this was her own home.
Su Wan’er picked up the teapot on the round table, pulled her mask up a few inches, revealing her soft, cherry-like lips, bit down on the teapot spout, and took a big gulp.
“Gulp, gulp~~ Ah—”
“… …”
?
Ye Anping genuinely wanted to applaud her now.
This fellow had truly subverted his ingrained impression of a “thief.”
When ordinary thieves entered someone else’s house, wouldn’t they be nervous, walking with a stooped posture, afraid of making the slightest sound that might wake the homeowner?
But this one…
It could only be said that her remaining at large was indeed a testament to her skill.
Su Wan’er put down the teapot, put her mask back on, turned to look at Ye Anping, who was lying motionlessly on the bed, and then turned to look at the four corners of the private room.
“Hmm… Not entirely foolish. At least you know to paste some talismans in the room, better than those two girls from the Xuan Xing Sect earlier. It’s just that the placement of these talismans is too obvious…”
As she spoke, she flicked her finger, and the talismans that were originally pasted in the four corners of the room instantly levitated and moved into her fingers.
Su Wan’er looked at the four talismans in her hand. She had expected them to be common talismans like the “Diamond Talisman” or “Binding Talisman” that ordinary cultivators carried when traveling.
However, on these four talismans were drawn things that resembled doodles. The characters and symbols originally written in the center had turned into:
“You.”
“Die.”
“Fixed.”
“Here.”
?!!
Looking at the words on the four talismans, a pale color gradually spread across Su Wan’er’s face beneath her mask, her eyes almost bulging out.
Without any hesitation, she used her escape technique, and in an instant, she transformed into a white light and shot out through the window of the private room. She landed on the roof of the opposite building, crouching there, stealthily observing the movements in Ye Anping’s private room window, while also being ready to escape at any moment.
However, Su Wan’er stared at the window of Ye Anping’s private room for a long time, but there was no movement from inside.
“… …”
She now understood that she had been tricked. Her eyes twitched with anger.
“Good heavens, playing tricks on me? Pasting four fake talismans to bluff me?”
Su Wan’er thought to herself, she would definitely strip “Liang Aliu” completely naked later. But as she murmured this, she suddenly felt her right hand being grabbed.
?
At the same time, a young girl’s voice, filled with laughter, entered her ears:
“The Immortal Thief is you, isn’t it? Young Master Ye told me to wait here, saying you would definitely use your escape technique to come to this rooftop.”
?
Su Wan’er turned her head to look and only then noticed a young girl with silver-white hair crouched beside her. Her mind was filled with questions.
—When did she get beside me?
—When I escaped just now, why didn’t I see anyone on this rooftop?
—No, it’s because my attention was all on that window earlier, so I was careless and didn’t notice this girl has been lurking on this rooftop, concealing her presence…
—Also, she said she’s been waiting here?
“Hiss—”
Su Wan’er took a deep breath. She felt a sense of unease and immediately prepared to use her escape technique again to flee. But seeing the white-haired girl tightly gripping her wrist, she froze again.
“You…”
Feng Yu Die grinned, revealing her teeth:
“Young Master Ye said that your escape technique is very powerful, and told me to grab your hand so you can’t run? Your Six-Pointed Star Escape Technique is fast and far-reaching, but it can’t take someone with you, right?”
Su Wan’er’s apricot-colored eyes under her mask widened in disbelief:
“How do you…”
But in the next moment.
*Boom—*
A dull thud instantly rang out on the rooftop.
Feng Yu Die maintained her grip on Su Wan’er’s wrist with her right hand, while her left hand formed a fist and swung directly at Su Wan’er’s abdomen without holding back.
Although it was a small fist like a steamed bun, the gust of wind it generated completely blew away the roof tiles around them.
Su Wan’er’s eyes widened in horror. She never expected a cultivator at the Mid Foundation Establishment stage to deliver such a fierce punch. But her right hand was tightly held, preventing her from dodging, so she could only use her spirit taming to protect herself and rely on the physical body of a Core Formation stage cultivator to forcibly take the punch.
She thought that after this girl sent her flying, she could immediately use her escape technique to break free.
However, she never expected that as Feng Yu Die’s left fist struck out, her right hand also forcefully pulled her towards herself.
*Bang—*
The punch hit her chest directly, making her already barren chest even more unable to bear the weight. The force landed squarely on Su Wan’er’s ribs, and the thunderous spiritual energy traveled through her body along her bones and veins, then exploded out from her back.
The apricot-colored eyes within the mask’s eyeholes instantly filled with bloodshot veins.
“Cough—”
This punch was the only one she had taken in decades, and therefore, the heaviest one.
Su Wan’er knew her own limits. Since embarking on the path of cultivation, all her energy had been focused on her escape technique and Star Plucking Art. Even her Core Formation was achieved through Heavenly Treasures plundered from various sect treasuries.
If she encountered cultivators of the same realm, she had no chance of winning in a frontal confrontation.
Even against cultivators one realm lower than her, as long as they were skilled enough, she couldn’t face them head-on.
From that punch just now, the white-haired girl in front of her was definitely an absolute top-tier among Foundation Establishment stage cultivators.
Su Wan’er’s eyebrows furrowed. Her free left hand formed a sword finger and with a slight flick, she directly took Feng Yu Die and used her escape technique.
In an instant, their figures transformed into a white light and crashed directly into the wall of the second floor of the inn across the street.
*Boom—*
A large hole was created in the wall, with Feng Yu Die pinned beneath Su Wan’er.
The feeling of her back hitting the ground was quite unpleasant, causing Feng Yu Die to gasp for breath, but her hand still held Yuan Wan’er’s wrist tightly.
“Cough—”
“Let go!!”
“No way!!” Feng Yu Die frowned and shouted, then turned to look at Ye Anping, who had just gotten out of bed, “Young Master Ye!! Help me…”
“Ye…”
Hearing this, Su Wan’er glanced at Ye Anping, who had just gotten out of bed, still wondering: Wasn’t he Liang Aliu?
Ye Anping looked at the two people who had crashed through the wall and flown in. He sighed slightly, then formed a sword finger and took out a spirit sword from his storage bag. He flashed by Su Wan’er’s side and swung the spirit sword towards her.
“Heh…”
However, upon seeing him take out the spirit sword, Su Wan’er’s face under the mask couldn’t help but smile. Her free left hand formed a sword finger and with a slight flick.
*Swish—*
The room was silent for a moment. The next instant, the spirit sword in Ye Anping’s hand instantly teleported into Su Wan’er’s hand.
Feng Yu Die, who was pinned beneath her, saw Ye Anping hand her a sword and her eyes widened in surprise.
“Ah?!”
Ye Anping calmly reminded her: “Protective stance.”
Under normal circumstances, if the sword in your hand suddenly disappeared while swinging it, anyone would be stunned.
So, Su Wan’er naturally ignored Ye Anping, raised the sword in her hand, held it like a dagger in her left hand, and pointed the tip at Feng Yu Die, intending to force her to let go.
But just as she stabbed downwards with the sword, a brilliant flash of fire lit up the surface of the spirit sword.
*Boom—*
The talisman Ye Anping had preemptively affixed to his spirit sword exploded.
Flames spewed out of the second-floor window of the inn, shattering the paper windows of the neighboring houses and the roof tiles above the inn. Simultaneously, a person ignited by the talisman’s fire flew out of the broken wall of the second floor and landed heavily in the center of the street, creating a deep crater in the sandstone ground.
Su Wan’er, lying in the center of the pit, felt her head buzzing incessantly. Although her body ached, she could feel that her injuries were not severe.
After all, it was just a few talismans and a full punch from a Mid Foundation Establishment stage cultivator. She was, at the very least, an early Core Formation stage cultivator; she could withstand a few such blows.
However, she had many questions in her mind:
What was going on with this group of Foundation Establishment stage cultivators?
She had stolen from more Foundation Establishment stage cultivators than most people had eaten pills.
Most people didn’t even realize they had been robbed until several days later.
Even for the small portion of clever ones who caught her red-handed, they absolutely couldn’t defend against her Star Plucking Art or keep up with her escape technique.
Just like the young master of the Xuan Xing Sect before, he watched her intently but was utterly helpless.
But those two just now…
One knew that her escape technique couldn’t take someone with her.
The other seemed to have predicted that she would use her Star Plucking Art to snatch his spirit sword and had affixed talismans to it beforehand.
…
It was as if… they were here for her specifically, and this trap was set just for her.
“Forget it, I’m leaving first!! I’ll think about it later…”
Su Wan’er said this, propped up her aching body, got up, mobilized her spiritual energy, and prepared to escape directly from Jade Pass City.
However…
*Tap, tap—*
Light footsteps accompanied by an icy chill came from behind her.
Su Wan’er paused and saw that the street, which had originally been covered in yellow sand, was now generating wisps of snow mist in front of her.
The sand had frozen?! Instantly?!
Her eyes widened, and then she sighed helplessly and shouted:
“Oh no~~ What now?!”
Su Wan’er was somewhat dejected. She slowly turned her head to look behind her.
About twenty zhang away from her, beneath a house, a woman in a blue-green dress was holding a spirit sword of pure profound ice and staring at her.
“… …”
She wanted to escape but found that her feet were frozen to the ground by that chilling aura. Then she looked at the distance between herself and the woman.
Within twenty zhang, her Star Plucking Art could be easily used to snatch the sword from the girl’s hand.
However, beyond twenty zhang…
“Are you keeping your distance?! Come closer!!”
Pei Lianxue heard this, shook her head slightly, and replied loudly:
“Senior Brother said to stay twenty zhang away from you, or you might steal things.”
“… …”
Su Wan’er was almost angered to death by these words. Her entire face under the mask was twitching. After hesitating for a moment, she immediately knelt down voluntarily, raising her hands high:
“I’m sorry, two older sisters!! I’m sorry, eldest brother!! I was wrong!! I repent!! I surrender!! I promise not to escape!!”
At this moment, Ye Anping and Feng Yu Die also jumped down from the private room on the second floor of the inn.
Ye Anping had taken protective measures beforehand, but Feng Yu Die reacted a beat slower. Her face was now blackened by the Fire Element talismans, making her silver hair stand out even whiter.
Feng Yu Die cast a resentful sidelong glance at Ye Anping:
“Why didn’t you tell me you were going to explode?”
“How could I have known you two would fly back?” Ye Anping sighed and said, “We adapt to the situation. I really didn’t expect her to use her escape technique to fly back with you.”
“… …”
Ye Anping ignored Feng Yu Die’s resentful gaze. After contemplating for a moment, he took the initiative to step within Su Wan’er’s twenty-zhang range and said:
“Immortal Thief Miss, I am not trying to capture you to claim a reward from the Sword Gate Sect. I just have something I need your help with, and of course, there will be compensation…”
“Oh~ It’s business, then? Then why all this commotion? Have that little girl retract her spiritual energy, and let’s sit down and talk.”
Ye Anping replied with a smile:
“We can still talk. By the way, if you don’t agree, my junior sister will chop you up.”
?
Beside Ye Anping, Feng Yu Die flinched and asked in a low voice:
“Ah, Junior Sister Pei is that ruthless?”
“… …”
Ye Anping glanced at her but said nothing.
Just as he was about to continue chatting with Su Wan’er, three rays of flying sword light suddenly flew from a distance and stopped above the four of them.
A male voice, filled with the pressure of a late Core Formation cultivator, echoed from above:
“Who dares to cause trouble here?”
Ye Anping’s brow furrowed. He looked up and saw the three flying swords and their golden robes. He understood their identities.
—Inner disciples of the Xing Tian Division.
Suddenly, he felt a hint of helplessness. He took three steps back, took out his Xuan Xing Sect disciple’s Identity Token from his waist, cupped his fists, and bowed:
“Inner disciple of the Xuan Xing Sect, Liang Aliu, greeting the three seniors.”
… …
