historical

"What is going on here? Explain it to me!" Yue Mingluan demanded, his face contorted in confusion.

"It's like this..." Xoung He began, explaining how more than 200 disciples had gathered in one place and were led by a senior figure to a labyrinth, with the promise of finding an inheritance. The senior had also promised additional rewards to those who made the greatest contribution.

As Xoung He's words sank in, Yue Mingluan's face twisted into a scowl, his brows furrowing with displeasure. Suddenly, everything made sense, and he felt like he had just broken through a dense fog of confusion.

"The senior that Xoung He mentioned is nothing but a duplicitous agent of the opposing faction," Yue Mingluan snarled, his voice dripping with contempt.

"Hmm, it seems the opposite faction has caught wind of our plan to destroy them. And that 'senior' they met in the labyrinth, he's likely a formidable opponent. If he's already taking out our elite disciples, then he must be in the late stages of Innate Realm. A Core Formation disciple wouldn't need to go to such lengths to gather in a maze labyrinth as he can directly kill all those Elite disciples. We'll need to tread carefully." Yue Mingluan's expression hardened as he realized the gravity of the situation.

Yue Mingluan's voice boomed through the air like thunder, sending shivers down the spines of his followers. "Enough is enough!" he bellowed. "We can't let this 'senior' continue to wreak havoc on our faction. It's time to take matters into our own hands and put a stop to this madness before more of our comrades fall."

Yue Mingluan realized that the worst possible scenario had come true. He couldn't believe what he was seeing: the large red dot on the map indicated that their faction's elite disciples had been killed and their orbs taken. It was clear that the perpetrator was the so-called "senior" who had been mentioned earlier. All the orbs were now in the hands of a single individual, represented by the ominous huge red dot on the map.

Yue Mingluan seethed with anger, "When I get my hands on him, I'll flay him alive and subject him to all manner of torture!"

"Don't let your emotions cloud your judgement, boss. We need a plan to take him down," one of his followers advised.

"Indeed, catching that guy won't be easy. The red dot on the map doesn't pinpoint his exact location, and this maze and its traps only make it more difficult," Yue Mingluan said, his expression grave. "We can't afford to waste time trying to find a way out and summon reinforcements from a Core Formation Realm senior. By then, that guy would have likely killed all of our disciples here. Our top priority now is to save the rest of the disciples. According to Xoung He's explanation, they are scattered. We need to gather them in groups."

Yue Mingluan looked around at his followers, a determined glint in his eyes. "We have a total of 18 people, so I suggest we divide into three groups of six members each. We will head in different directions to warn the remaining disciples about the trap and to gather them in groups. Only by working together can we ensure their survival."

As Yue Mingluan made his suggestion, his followers nodded in agreement. They knew it was their best chance to escape the trap they found themselves in.

"Once we've gathered the remaining disciples, we can turn the tables on our hunter and make them the hunted," Yue Mingluan added with determination.

With a final nod, the group split up and headed off in different directions, each determined to do their part in saving their fellow disciples and taking down their enemy. "We will meet again," they said to each other before disappearing into the maze.

....

Wang Chen gazed at the orb that showed the three groups of six red dots moving in different directions. "Have they become aware of my trap and started to move?" he wondered aloud.

He fell into a contemplative silence for a moment before muttering to himself, "Yue Mingluan, your plan is not bad at all. You want to take me down and save the remaining disciples, but what if I take you down first? Who will warn those disciples then, hehehe."

With that, Wang Chen used cloud step technique and headed towards the group that was moving southward.

....

Six cultivators were sprinting with incredible speed through the maze when suddenly, one of them noticed something on his orb and abruptly stopped in his tracks. The others quickly followed suit.

"What's wrong, Brother Zhu? Why did you stop?" one of them inquired.

"Look at the orb!" Zhu responded tersely, and the others quickly took out their own orbs and inspected them. It became immediately clear why Zhu had stopped.

"Get ready for a fight!" Zhu warned the others. "Our enemy is probably close by, since he's been following us."

The six comrades were on high alert, swords unsheathed and spells at the ready. But as the minutes ticked by, the tension in the air grew thicker and thicker.

"Weakling, come out and face us like a man!" one of them shouted, trying to provoke the enemy.

Another chimed in, "Or are you too scared to face us head-on?"

But their taunts fell on deaf ears, and the only sound they could hear was the rhythmic drip-drip-drip of something hitting the ground.

When they looked at the source of the sound all the remaining five disciples' eyes widened in horror as they saw the fallen comrade, lying on the ground with blood gushing out of his neck. "Brother Quang!" cried one of them, rushing to his fallen friend's side.

Wang Chen stood calmly with his sword still dripping with blood, observing the terrified disciples with amusement. "My my, aren't you all a bunch of brave warriors," he taunted, a wicked grin on his face. "Your words were sharp, but your skills...not so much."

One of the disciples roared, his face flushed with anger. "You coward, attacking us from behind like a thief in the night!"

The disciples gritted their teeth, their anger and fear boiling inside them. One of them stepped forward, his weapon at the ready.

"You may have taken one of us down, but you won't get away with it so easily!" he yelled.

Wang Chen just smirked and twirled his sword in his hand. "Oh, I'm not planning on getting away so easily. In fact, I was hoping for a little entertainment."