Seven Mysterious Spaces: My Rise to Power in the Cultivation World

Chapter 39 Something’s not right

Leaving the place of trouble, Zhuang Yu and Wang Yao continued their journey of cultivation.

Despite having experienced a fierce battle with Li Hei, Zhuang Yu knew that the cultivation world was fraught with danger and dared not let his guard down in the slightest.

"Brother Zhuang, should we continue forward?" Wang Yao asked, her brows furrowed as she gazed at the faintly visible mountain range ahead, a sense of unease creeping into her heart.

In her eyes, those rolling mountains seemed to harbor countless unknown dangers.

Zhuang Yu naturally understood Wang Yao's concerns. He stopped, raised his eyebrows slightly, and gazed into the distance with deep eyes. He pondered, "According to the map, once we cross that mountain range ahead, we will reach the next town."

“But…” Wang Yao hesitated, feeling that the mountain range looked familiar, but she couldn’t remember where she had seen it before.

"What's wrong? Yao'er, have you discovered something?" Zhuang Yu keenly noticed Wang Yao's unusual behavior and asked with concern.

Wang Yao shook her head, bit her lower lip, and said softly, "I just feel that there's something wrong with that mountain range, but I can't quite put my finger on what it is."

"Something's not right?" Zhuang Yu's heart skipped a beat, and a sudden flash of inspiration struck him. "Could it be..."

He suddenly remembered that the place where he had fought Li Hei before seemed to be near that mountain range.

Could it be that they have unknowingly approached Li Hei's lair again?

Thinking of this, Zhuang Yu frowned, a strange unease rising in his heart.

Li Hei is a treacherous and cunning man. Having suffered such a great loss last time, he certainly won't let it go easily.

If they trespass into Li Hei's territory again, they will likely cause even greater trouble.

"Brother Zhuang, what's wrong?" Wang Yao felt even more uneasy when she saw Zhuang Yu's serious expression.

After a moment of contemplation, Zhuang Yu had made up his mind.

He looked at Wang Yao with unwavering eyes and said in a deep voice, "Yao'er, we can't go any further."

"Why?" Wang Yao asked, puzzled.

“If I’m not mistaken, that mountain range ahead should be Li Hei’s lair,” Zhuang Yu said solemnly.

"What?!" Wang Yao exclaimed in shock. "Then we must leave here immediately!"

As she spoke, Wang Yao pulled Zhuang Yu and turned to leave.

However, Zhuang Yu stood still, and no matter how Wang Yao pulled him, she couldn't budge him an inch.

“Brother Zhuang, you…” Wang Yao looked at Zhuang Yu in confusion, wondering why he refused to leave.

Zhuang Yu took a deep breath and said with a firm gaze, "Yao'er, we can't run away anymore. As long as Li Hei isn't eliminated, we won't be able to cultivate in peace. Rather than waiting to be killed, we should take the initiative and strike first!"

“But…” Wang Yao wanted to persuade him further, but Zhuang Yu waved his hand to interrupt her.

"I know what you're worried about, but don't worry, I know what I'm doing." Zhuang Yu's tone was gentle, but her eyes were unusually firm.

He gently patted Wang Yao's shoulder and softly comforted her, "Trust me, I will protect you."

After saying that, Zhuang Yu resolutely turned around and walked towards the rolling mountain range.

Seeing this, Wang Yao was filled with worry, but she could only grit her teeth and quickly follow.

The mountain wind howled, and the shadows of the trees swayed.

Zhuang Yu and Wang Yao carefully made their way through the dense forest, taking each step with extreme caution.

"careful!"

Suddenly, Zhuang Yu, who was walking in front, reached out and pulled Wang Yao behind him. At the same time, he drew his long sword and a sharp sword aura shot out.

"boom!"

With a loud bang, a huge rock in front of them exploded, sending debris flying everywhere.

"Who is it?!" Zhuang Yu's eyes flashed like lightning as he scanned his surroundings and asked in a deep voice.

However, the only response he received was the howling of the mountain wind.

"It seems we've been targeted," Zhuang Yu thought to himself, his brows furrowed.

"Brother Zhuang, what do we do now?" Wang Yao gripped Zhuang Yu's sleeve tightly, her pretty face slightly pale.

Zhuang Yu pondered for a moment, a glint of light flashing in his eyes, and said in a deep voice, "Since they want to play, then we'll play along with them!"

Before he finished speaking, Zhuang Yu grabbed Wang Yao and sped off in the direction from which the sword energy had come.

He knew that the real danger had only just begun...

The two traveled quickly and finally arrived at the entrance to a valley.

However, just as they were about to enter the valley, a powerful spiritual pressure suddenly emanated from within, stopping them.

"who?!"

With a furious shout, a dark figure flew out from the valley and blocked Zhuang Yu and Wang Yao's path.

The person who arrived was none other than Li Hei!

"It's you?!" A hint of surprise flashed in Zhuang Yu's eyes, but he quickly regained his composure.

"Hmph, kid, I didn't expect you to dare to come knocking on my door!" Li Hei said through gritted teeth, his eyes flashing with resentment.

"You managed to escape last time, but this time it won't be so easy!" Li Hei sneered, and a black longsword suddenly appeared in his hand, its blade shrouded in black mist and exuding a chilling killing intent.

"Is that so? Then let me see what you're really capable of!" Zhuang Yu sneered, flicking his longsword and unleashing a sharp sword intent that soared into the sky.

A war is about to break out!

As expected, Li Hei had already set a trap around them. As soon as Zhuang Yu and Wang Yao got close, they triggered a hidden restriction.

In an instant, the tranquil valley seemed to turn into a boiling swamp of poison, with thick fog surging in from all directions, surrounding the two of them.

A strange green light mingled with the mist, emanating a nauseating stench. Upon closer inspection, it was discovered that the light contained corrosive spiritual energy, greedily devouring everything around it.

Wang Yao's clothes accidentally touched a sliver of green light, and in the blink of an eye, a hole was corroded in them. Terrified, she cried out and hid behind Zhuang Yu.

"A mere trick, yet you dare to show off your skills before an expert!" Zhuang Yu sneered, shielding Wang Yao behind him while quickly extending his divine sense to carefully observe the surrounding spiritual energy fluctuations.

Having learned from his previous experience breaking the restrictions in the cave, he quickly discovered the weakness in this restriction.

He condensed a pure spiritual energy at his fingertips, which transformed into a golden lightning bolt that struck a corner of the restriction with perfect precision.

"Boom!"

After a loud bang, the barrier shattered, and the surrounding mist vanished completely.

Zhuang Yu, holding Wang Yao's hand, rushed out of the mist unharmed.

"Damn it!" Li Hei, who was hiding in the shadows, was so angry when he saw this scene that he gritted his teeth.

He never expected that Zhuang Yu would break through his trap so easily.

"Boss, what do we do now?" Ah Da asked cautiously, looking at Li Hei's gloomy face.

"What are you afraid of? I still have a backup plan!" A ruthless glint flashed in Li Hei's eyes. With a wave of his hand, he led Ah Da and Ah Er out from behind a boulder.

He looked at Zhuang Yu with a sinister smile on his face and slowly said, "Kid, you managed to escape last time, but it won't be so easy this time!" "Do you think you can easily escape my grasp?" Li Hei looked at Zhuang Yu with a sinister smile on his face, as if victory was in his grasp.

Zhuang Yu retorted defiantly, "You're trying to make a futile struggle again." As soon as he finished speaking, spiritual energy surged around him, his longsword was drawn, and its light was like a rainbow, pointing directly at Li Hei.

Tensions rose again between the two sides, and a fierce battle was imminent.

"Boss, this kid is really weird, let's all go for him!" Ah Da looked at Zhuang Yu's sharp eyes and felt a little scared, so he couldn't help but suggest to Li Hei.

He suffered a lot when he fought Zhuang Yu last time, and he still feels lingering fear.

Li Hei snorted coldly, a hint of contempt flashing in his eyes: "What are you afraid of? There are three of us, why would we be afraid of just one?" Although he said this, he was also wary of Zhuang Yu's strength, so he did not act rashly, but planned to let A Da and A Er test him first.

"Go!" Upon receiving Li Hei's instruction, A'Da immediately brandished his broadsword and charged towards Zhuang Yu.

He learned from his previous experience, and this time his attack was even more fierce, ruthless, and deadly.

Zhuang Yu dared not be careless, skillfully dodging A Da's attacks while looking for an opportunity to counterattack.

He knew that with his current strength, it would be difficult to deal with Li Hei and the other two at the same time. He had to finish the battle quickly and defeat them one by one.

Seeing that A-Da was locked in combat with Zhuang Yu, A-Er took the opportunity to brandish his longsword and launch a sneak attack on Zhuang Yu from the side.

For a time, Zhuang Yu was attacked from all sides and faced a perilous situation.

Seeing this, Wang Yao was extremely anxious, but she knew that her strength was too weak and that staying here would only be a burden to Zhuang Yu. So she suppressed her worries and hid behind a boulder, closely watching the changes in the battle, hoping to find an opportunity to help Zhuang Yu.

"Haha, kid, your death is near!" When A-Da saw Zhuang Yu being attacked by him and A-Er, he showed a smug look on his face and swung his big knife even more vigorously.

Zhuang Yu frowned, a cold glint flashing in his eyes.

While fending off the attacks from Ah Da and Ah Er, he secretly mobilized the spiritual power within his body, preparing to unleash a powerful sword technique to take down one of them first.

Just then, a powerful spiritual pressure suddenly descended from the sky, enveloping the entire valley.

"Who is it?!" Li Hei was startled and looked up at the sky, only to see a golden light descend from the sky and appear in front of Zhuang Yu in an instant.

As the golden light faded, a handsome young man dressed in blue appeared before the crowd.

"Who are you...?" Li Hei looked at the man in blue who had suddenly appeared, feeling a vague sense of unease.

The man in blue ignored Li Hei, turned to Zhuang Yu, smiled slightly, and said, "It seems you've run into trouble."

Upon seeing the man in blue, Zhuang Yu's face lit up with surprise and delight. He quickly cupped his hands in greeting and said, "Senior, what brings you here?"

"I'll lend you a hand." The man in blue smiled faintly, his gaze sweeping over Li Hei and the other two, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes. He said coldly, "You bunch of clowns think you can hurt him?"

"You..." Li Hei was furious upon hearing this. He was about to retort when he was startled by the cold look in the eyes of the man in blue, and swallowed the rest of his words.

"Senior, be careful! This guy is at the late Foundation Establishment stage!" Zhuang Yu warned, seeing the fear in Li Hei's eyes.

"Late stage of Foundation Establishment?" Upon hearing this, the man in blue robes raised the corners of his mouth slightly, revealing a disdainful smile. "Nothing special."

No sooner had he finished speaking than he flashed into view in front of Li Hei, his right hand shooting out like lightning, grabbing Li Hei by the neck and lifting him high into the air.

"You..." Li Hei felt a powerful force binding his body, making him unable to move. His face showed a look of extreme fear. He wanted to beg for mercy, but he couldn't make a sound.

"Overestimating yourself." The man in blue smiled coldly, slightly increasing the pressure with his right hand...