CHAPTER 183: CHAPTER 51: HUNTING DOWN LI ZHANBIAO [PART 1]

Qi Han was the Array Master of the Greedy Wolf Mercenary Corps. Over the years, he had helped the Greedy Wolf Mercenary Corps solve many problems with his arrays, and many powerful targets were also dealt with through his arrays.

His accomplishments in array mastery were not only recognized in Daxing City but also ranked in the entire Yuehua Prefecture, which was why he enjoyed good treatment in the Greedy Wolf Mercenary Corps!

Previously, when Li Zhanbiao called him up in the middle of the night, he was quite annoyed. It wasn’t until Li Zhanbiao explained the situation that he reluctantly got up to set up the array, while inwardly vowing to teach the intruders a harsh lesson.

Thus, he chose his best array, the Four Elephants Killing Formation. Even a ninth-stage master could be killed if caught in it. Even if they didn’t die, they’d be severely injured, greatly reducing their strength, making them nothing more than prisoners!

He was very confident in his array and could already imagine their struggle trapped within it.

Unfortunately, this time he encountered Nan Hua.

After Nan Hua found the array’s core, she completely ignored the surrounding attacks and went straight to its location. With a light flick of her Glazed Frost Flower Fan, the core was instantly destroyed, the array broken, and the surroundings changed, revealing them in the courtyard.

"Pfft!" In the flower hall, Qi Han, who was confidently waiting to claim credit from Li Zhanbiao after the intruders got injured or died, suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood, clutching his chest with disbelief in his eyes.

"Qi Han, what’s wrong?" Li Zhanbiao was very confident in Qi Han. He, like Qi Han, believed Gu Qingqing’s group couldn’t possibly break through Qi Han’s array. Seeing Qi Han spitting blood, his face changed drastically, and he hurriedly asked.

"My array has been broken!" Qi Han said through gritted teeth, his face ashen.

Hearing this, both Li Zhanbiao and Hu Li’s expressions turned grim. They exchanged a glance, and Li Zhanbiao stood up from his chair.

"How are these people so formidable? Weren’t they just a group of young ones? How are young people nowadays so powerful?" He muttered discontentedly as he paced back and forth.

"Captain, what should we do next?" Hu Li shuddered, recalling the corpses from last night, and quickly asked Li Zhanbiao.

"Have everyone come over. I refuse to believe with so many of us, we can’t take them down in one go!" Li Zhanbiao gritted his teeth, sat back in his chair, and said viciously.

"Yes, I’ll go right away." Hu Li replied, and hurriedly left, his face looking quite unpleasant.

...

After the array was broken, Gu Qingqing and her team advanced into the estate as if unchallenged.

All the mercenaries blocking their path were swiftly dealt with by Yue Zhao and the others, leaving corpses scattered across the courtyard.

Soon, they reached the place where Li Zhanbiao and his crew were gathered, about a hundred people blocking their path in front of the flower hall.

Li Zhanbiao and Hu Li, hiding in the rear of the group, glared fiercely at Gu Qingqing and her companions, as if wishing to devour them whole.

"We have so many people here; I suggest you surrender quickly so we might leave you with a whole corpse. Otherwise, the only path for you is death!" Li Zhanbiao said with confidence, looking at the human wall in front of him.

Yue Zhao and his group merely glanced lightly at Li Zhanbiao, their eyes sliding over the human barricade in front.

"It’s noon, time for lunch," Yue Zhao remarked, seemingly unrelatedly after checking the sky.

The others instantly understood, exchanged glances, and attacked simultaneously.

As Yue Zhao’s Flowing Light Zither appeared, his hands on the strings, a rapid, intense melody flowed from his hands, resonating through the courtyard. Sound Blades flew from the zither, targeting the members of the Greedy Wolf Mercenary Corps ahead.

The Glazed Frost Flower Fan transformed into a sword and Nan Hua flashed in front of one person. Before he could register it, she slit his throat. He collapsed silently, breathless, never imagining his end would be this swift.

Mu Chen twirled the Red Flame Spear in his hand, jumped into the crowd, and with a sweep from the Gun God, a circle of flames erupted. Those too close turned into burning figures instantly.

Jun Wu wielded his scimitar, each slash claiming a life.

The Mixed Immortal Silk weaved through the crowd, appearing soft yet deadly, claiming numerous lives.

Yun Ran’s Silver Whip whistled through the air, capable of taking down a person in just a few strikes.

Zhuo Tingqiu’s swordsmanship had improved significantly since entering the Sub-immortal Realm, shedding its flamboyance for simplicity yet formidable strength.

In a short confrontation, about thirty members of the Greedy Wolf Mercenary Corps were dead. Just moments before, Li Zhanbiao and Hu Li appeared to have the upper hand, but seeing this, both panicked.

"Captain, what do we do?" Hu Li edged closer to Li Zhanbiao, looked around during a distraction, and whispered in his ear, "Captain, what if... we escape!"

Li Zhanbiao swiftly turned around to glance at Hu Li, his gaze uncertain.

He was inherently a selfish person. When it didn’t involve his own safety, he could be very generous and treat his comrades well. But when it concerned his own safety, his first thought was about himself.

Seeing how things were unfolding with Gu Qingqing and the others, his subordinates wouldn’t be able to hold them off for long!

"Leader, if we don’t leave now, it will be too late," Hu Li urged more forcefully upon seeing Li Zhanbiao’s wavering resolve.

Hu Li didn’t wish to die either, but if Li Zhanbiao didn’t run and he fled alone, Li Zhanbiao would surely deal with him first. So he induced Li Zhanbiao to escape together with him!

Seeing that more than a dozen subordinates fell, Li Zhanbiao gritted his teeth, looked at Hu Li, and said in a low voice, "Let’s go!"

Taking advantage of the fact that Yue Zhao and the others were engaged in battle with his subordinates, with no attention spared for him, he immediately ran towards the courtyard at the back, with Hu Li closely following behind him.

"Someone is trying to escape!" Little Yu, who had been nestled in Gu Qingqing’s arms, was the first to notice Li Zhanbiao and Hu Li’s actions and promptly alerted Gu Qingqing.

Upon hearing this, Gu Qingqing glanced at the spot where Li Zhanbiao and Hu Li had been standing, and sure enough, their figures were gone. With a slight raise of her eyebrows, she thought for a moment, then tapped her toes and flew upwards, soaring over the crowd to chase after Li Zhanbiao and Hu Li.

"Jun Wu, go assist Qingqing," Yue Zhao, noticing Gu Qingqing’s movement and worrying about her getting hurt, directly called out to Jun Wu.

Without waiting for Yue Zhao’s instruction, Jun Wu was already following, leaving Yue Zhao and the others to deal with the remaining adversaries.

Ordinarily, Li Zhanbiao kept his most precious belongings in his Qiankun Ring, carrying it with him at all times. Now, truly fleeing for his life, he didn’t care about the concubines and children he usually doted on, and only brought Hu Li along.

When he noticed Gu Qingqing following, both he and Hu Li tensed up, assuming Yue Zhao and the others might be coming as well. But after running for a bit and realizing only Gu Qingqing and Jun Wu were following, they immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

Gu Qingqing and Jun Wu’s movement techniques were superior to those of Li Zhanbiao and Hu Li, and soon they caught up with them on the street.

Fortunately, they were in a wealthy district, with considerable distances between mansions, and relatively few people on the streets, otherwise it could have caused a panic.

They directly blocked Li Zhanbiao and Hu Li’s path, cutting off their escape.

"Where do you think you’re going!" The Mixed Immortal Silk hovered in front of Gu Qingqing, obstructing Li Zhanbiao and Hu Li’s path, as Gu Qingqing shouted.

Jun Wu stood beside Gu Qingqing, slightly angled to ensure he could protect her, standing by while letting her take the lead.

"You two alone want to stop us? Dream on!" Li Zhanbiao sneered at Gu Qingqing and Jun Wu, a trace of contempt flashing in his eyes.

Gu Qingqing hadn’t expected Li Zhanbiao to remain so confident even now, she raised her eyebrows and, with a flick of her hand, the Mixed Immortal Silk moved to entangle Li Zhanbiao.

Li Zhanbiao’s weapon was an axe half as tall as a person, a Sub-Immortal Artifact he had acquired by chance. He swung the axe to cut the Mixed Immortal Silk.

With a slight motion of Gu Qingqing’s fingers, the Mixed Immortal Silk turned from rigid to soft, causing Li Zhanbiao’s strike to feel as though it struck cotton, almost twisting his back. Seizing this opportunity, Gu Qingqing wrapped the Mixed Immortal Silk around his wrist, and the once-soft silk instantly became sharp, leaving a long wound on Li Zhanbiao’s wrist.

Gu Qingqing and Li Zhanbiao continued to exchange blows, engaged in fierce combat, while Jun Wu battled Hu Li.

Jun Wu’s scimitar, like the Mixed Immortal Silk in Gu Qingqing’s hand, was an Immortal Artifact, while Hu Li’s sword, similar to Li Zhanbiao’s axe, was a Sub-Immortal Artifact, which he had previously purchased at an auction with all he owned, taking great care to preserve it.

The scimitar in Jun Wu’s hand spun, flashing silver light, reaching Hu Li in an instant. Hu Li hastily raised his sword to block, the blade clashing with the scimitar, sparking brightly.

Jun Wu advanced, gripping the hilt tightly, forcefully colliding with Hu Li’s sword. Hu Li, sledding backward on the pavement, retreated five to six meters until he braced against a wall, leveraging the force to leap and evade Jun Wu’s scimitar, arriving behind him.

The sword aimed for Jun Wu’s chest from the back, but Jun Wu dodged, spinning around, his scimitar striking towards Hu Li’s chest instead. Hu Li’s sword blocked the scimitar, giving Jun Wu an opening to deliver a kick to Hu Li’s chest.

At such close range, Hu Li couldn’t evade, taking a hit to the chest, spitting blood, and retreating several steps.

Clutching his chest with one hand, Hu Li gazed at Jun Wu in shock, not expecting Jun Wu’s cultivation to surpass his!

Meanwhile, the skirmish between Li Zhanbiao and Gu Qingqing was equally intense.

The ground of this street, paved with blue stone slabs, had been severely damaged by the residual energy of their battle, with a large pit even chopped out by Li Zhanbiao.

Gu Qingqing was largely unharmed, but Li Zhanbiao had several long, slender wounds on his body, bleeding profusely, and staining his clothes red!