Consuming Earths, Devouring Skies

"Someone's breached the formation!" Ying Sumain shouted, alerting the others. Yan Zaizen was the first one to respond, as he wasn't asleep, and he immediately rose. His brows furrowed as his spiritual sense circulated in the surroundings. With his acute spiritual sense, he could observe the presence of a group of eight men standing behind a transparent film of Qi.

"The formation?"

It seems the formation that Ying Sumian set up was a Qi barrier. It was likely connected to something which is why she realized there were individuals attempting to breach the formation. However, what surprised him was that there was a youth, about twenty years of age, was kneeling as he sent out Qi symbols into the air. A formation slowly took form.

"A formation specialist?" He muttered. However, when Ying Sumian and the rest heard his muttering, their expressions turned pale. "They have a formation specialist with them?" Ying Sumain asked, her voice clearly filled with panic. Yan Zaizen only slightly nodded in response.

"Did they place a barrier?" She asked, this time her voice was filled with urgency.

Place a barrier? Did she mean her barrier?

Seeing his confusion Ying Sumian clarified, "I didn't set up a barrier. I set up a repulsion field!"

Hearing this, he was shocked. No wonder he didn't sense any barrier when he entered earlier. However, there was a light feeling of resistance, but since he was chasing after the Katori, there was little time to consider such a weak feeling. He nodded once more in confirmation. Ying Sumian's expression dropped immediately.

Normally, that repulsion field would keep rank two beasts out, not rank three, and definitely not someone with Yan Zaizen's extremely strong mortal body.

"Shit! We need to escape!" Bai Wangzhe yelled. However, Ying Sumian didn't move. She looked upwards, her eyes flashing with a radiant light. She was using an internal-class perception-based Qi Art unique to formation specialists. It was like her eyes were stars in the night sky. Her expression that didn't seem like it could drop further turned dull. One could tell this Qi Art drained her considerably, and probably the situation itself.

"It's a World Entrapment Barrier. A rank four formation." Her voice solemn. The others all revealed pale expressions on their faces, except for two people. No one was noticing, but Yan Zaizen released his spiritual sense outwards scanning the area. This charming young girl, Su Fengyan, was eyeing him with worry. However, it didn't feel like she was anxious about his safety or his willingness to protect her, but seemed like she worried about him being here.

He didn't get much time to think about it before laughter filled with haughtiness and ill-intentions resounded. They all focused their attention towards its origin. Eight men, dressed in full hunter gear, appeared with one ahead of the rest. His aura was brilliant, revealing the strength of a late-Essence Formation cultivator. The rest were within the Essence Formation, but a mixture of initial and mid.

The leader of this group of men was exceptionally handsome, seemed to be about 24-25 years of age had auburn hair, muscular physique, and a brilliantly white smile. His radiant eyes looked towards the group, sensing their cultivation levels, and couldn't help but laugh once more.

"Brilliant. Little Sister, you truly are extraordinary! You always know how to pick'em." His words confused the group, but Yan Zaizen looked towards Su Fengyan who still stared at him with an uneasiness in her eyes. She executed a movement-based Qi Art, completely catching the rest in shock, and appeared beside the handsome young man.

When one looked close, they truly had similar features such as their hair color and good-looks.

"Su Fengyan?!" Xing Xuehan felt completely shocked and blindsided by events. She just couldn't comprehend what was happening.

"I see." Ying Sumien's expression was solemn, yet contained a sort of calm. "You planned this from the beginning, didn't you?"

"..." Su Fengyan remained quiet, looking at Yan Zaizen.

"Haha! Fools, of course we did. Why risk our lives fighting these beasts when we can simply let you idiots do the work. Hahaha!" The young man, named Su Shinyan, couldn't help but be jubilant. Sending his sister to scout out hunters, form a group, then have them hunt for months gaining spoil after spoils then taking them was a hell of a lot better than them risking their lives.

"However," A sly, sinister smile appeared on his face. "If you're willing to please my brothers for a while, perhaps we can let you off, and grant you something for your efforts." His words caused the others in his entourage to laugh. However, the formation specialist youth among them remained quiet.

"Mister, if you leave, we can offer you a great share of our profits." Su Fengyan offered. This caused the laughter of the group to fall silent, each of them looked at Su Fengyan in bewilderment. From what they recalled, this charming girl was an incredibly vicious and greedy rose, and she wouldn't even let a dog flee if it meant a penny in hand for its death. Yet, here she was, proposing a deal to someone to share their profits.

Su Shinyan's eyes narrowed as he looked towards this sister of his, and then at Yan Zaizen. It was a fairly skinny youth with an aura at the Initial-Qi Revolving Realm. He was inconsequential. However, unlike some brainless individuals, he was far shrewder in thinking. Observing his sister's expression and words, he turned to Yan Zaizen and assumed he had a great status. Her unwillingness to offend him lead to her proposal.

"Sir, may I know your name?" He asked politely, obviously taking this seriously. The rest of the group, including Ying Sumian's, looked towards Yan Zaizen.

"Haha, my name?" He asked with a hint of playfulness, not an ounce of fear in his heart. "Han Zaiji." Deciding that since the Yan Family were allied with the Soaring Cloud Sect, it'd be too risky to announce his true name to others, so he took the clan and family name of his master - Han Genji.

Hearing this, everyone came up with a blank.

Han Clan?

Ji Family?

Never heard of it!

"If I asked you to leave, would you do so?" Yan Zaizen said with a slight smile. In truth, he didn't care much about these people, but they were going to be his guide. He even wanted to fight, his eyes filled with battle intent.

However, his words made silence fall. Su Shinyan's eyes turned fierce, and he looked towards Su Fengyan. Was this guy really as much of a threat as she assumes? But what happened next surprised him greatly.

"If we can have the Katori corpse, we'll leave immediately." Su Fengyan decisively stated.

Katori?

A Katori corpse?

The group of men was in shock. A Katori was a rank three beast, and one that rivaled a peak-mid Essence Formation Cultivator, but what more, it was wood-attributed giving it a home-field advantage. If they were to try to hunt one, they may suffer some loses, and it may even escape. Yet, there was a corpse here?

Yan Zaizen was surprised at her decisiveness but nevertheless maintained his smile.

"And if I say no?"

"Then, just the Cerulean Python corpse." She negotiated.

"No."

"Then-"

"No."

He wanted to fight, but he wasn't one to fight and kill just because. However, if they made the first move or displayed killing intent, he would be absolutely vicious. He was also unwilling to give anything to these bandits, those who betray the people who trusted them were scum, and those who took advantage of that trust to reap lives were worse. Determining his stance on the matter, Su Fengyan's expression fell, but she wasn't a fool.

"Brother, since Mister Han refuses. Let us leave." She looked towards her brother, her eyes filled with resolve and pleading. To her, Yan Zaizen was someone who could kill a Katori with one blow, someone who possessed a mysterious background and comprehended an upper-world law. No matter what, she didn't wish for today to be the day she dies. The attitude and intent in Yan Zaizen's eyes were clear.

Want it? Let's fight!

However, her brother wasn't as willing. He shouted, "What are you talking about? You planned this, and...if we kill him, then whoever is behind him won't matter. The dead tell no tales."

Yan Zaizen's eyes lit up, and his fists clenched. "I'll give you three seconds," he said, his body filling up with powerful vital energy and lifeforce. Hearing those words, the others were incensed. They looked like bulls who saw red, waiting for the gates to open to smash Yan Zaizen to bits.

"Three…"

"Two…"

"One…"