Chapter 68: Devouring Without Leaving a Trace

"That rascal Liu Run deliberately provoked me earlier, but instead of driving me away, he ended up causing Lei Jianqin, Fan Qianjun, and Tang Jiao to side with me. Now that he knows my strength, he's been restraining himself for five days, turning from aggressor to victim, pretending to be harmless and honest, and has gained Lei Jianqin's trust. If I push him too hard, it will seem as though I'm bullying him!"

On the gravel-strewn yellow sand road, Chu Feng advanced, spear in hand, slaying Thunder Beasts while pondering this dilemma.

Crack!

With powerful arms, Chu Feng twisted and snapped the neck of a Thunder Bear, his mind instantly made up.

"Only a few dozen miles remain before we reach our destination. If Liu Run tries anything at a critical moment, I won't care whose son he is—I'll kill him without hesitation!" Chu Feng roared inwardly.

From the Celestial Wood Clan, he had journeyed a great distance to the Wind and Thunder Martial Hall, braving mortal danger, enduring storms and lightning, and only now had reached this point. Of course, Chu Feng was determined to see the task through, to dispel the calamity of wind and thunder successfully.

In doing so, he would owe the Martial Hall nothing, and, as Han Mo had promised, after the calamity was resolved, the Martial Hall would reward him handsomely. With so much to gain, Chu Feng would not allow anyone to sabotage his efforts.

At this moment, the group of five had reached the final horizontal path of their "zigzag" route, only fifty miles from the site where they were to move the stones and dispel the storm.

Throughout the journey, all five had noticed one thing: the closer they drew to the destination, the stronger the wind and thunder grew, and the more numerous and fierce the Thunder Beasts became.

The wild winds and lightning were manageable. Though the wind was fierce, it merely slowed their progress, and with eyes protected, caused no real harm. The lightning was intimidating, but never struck anyone.

The true threat lay in the increasing number of Thunder Beasts.

Whoosh!

As they walked, a Thunder Sand Porcupine shot out from the gravel, aiming straight for Fan Qianjun's face. He raised his Snowflake Axe to block it, and Chu Feng's Tyrant Shadow Spear immediately followed.

Rip!

Chu Feng's spear tore the Thunder Sand Porcupine to pieces. Black poisonous fluid poured out, soaking the gravel and sending up a black smoke as the hard stones were scorched.

"Damn it, these Thunder Beasts are getting more numerous and more vicious! Things like Thunder Sand Porcupines are impossible to guard against!"

Fan Qianjun, gripping his axe, was shaken. The large beasts were difficult to handle, while the small ones were all venomous, making matters even worse.

"Everyone, be careful!" called Chu Feng, leading the way. "If there are only two or three Thunder Beasts, I can handle them alone. No need for you to intervene. But if many appear, help me keep them at bay. Move carefully, and don't attack other beasts by mistake!"

"Young Master Chu, don't worry, we can handle that!" Tang Jiao nodded, then suddenly said, "Hm? Where's Liu Run? He's gone!"

Everyone looked around—Liu Run was indeed missing.

"Hey, where did Liu Run go? That's odd, he was right behind me just now!" Lei Jianqin wondered. "Maybe he fell behind? Should we wait for him, or go back and look?"

"Damn it! That Liu Run always causes trouble! In my opinion, there's no need to wait for him—maybe he's lagging on purpose!" Fan Qianjun said irritably. "Chu Feng, what do you think?"

Though Lei Jianqin was captain of their five-person squad, when it came to advancing, retreating, or pausing while fighting Thunder Beasts, it was entirely Chu Feng's call.

If Chu Feng said advance, no one retreated. If he said stay put, no one wandered off.

"Heh."

Chu Feng responded to Fan Qianjun's question with a lukewarm smile. "If I'm not mistaken, Liu Run has gone ahead to lure beasts!"

"What, lure beasts?" Fan Qianjun was stunned.

"Young Master Chu, you mean Liu Run slipped ahead silently, deliberately attracting a swarm of Thunder Beasts to take revenge on you?" Lei Jianqin asked in shock.

"Exactly!" Chu Feng nodded. "If he were only targeting me, I wouldn't mind. What worries me is that he's not just after me—he's drawn us all into his scheme! In other words, he wants to lure a horde of Thunder Beasts to stop us, and wouldn’t mind if we died at their hands!"

"Ah?"

At this, Tang Jiao cried out. "Young Master Chu, Liu Run may have a questionable character and has offended you along the way, but… to say he’d deliberately attract Thunder Beasts to attack us—surely he’s not that depraved?"

Chu Feng didn’t bother to argue. He leapt onto the Giant Swift Crab, his spear pointing to the horizon. "Look, what are those flickering black dots?"

Following his gesture, they gazed into the distance. Amidst the endless yellow sand, a mass of black dots bounced and grew steadily larger.

Looking again, the scattered black dots had joined into a line—a thick black streak advancing toward them.

"What are those…"

Tang Jiao’s mouth dropped open. Staring hard, she saw the black streak had become a whole swath. The leaping black forms were unmistakably Thunder Beasts!

"They’re all Thunder Beasts! Damn it, I see Liu Run—he’s leading the pack!"

Fan Qianjun was furious.

By now, no further explanation was needed. Everyone saw the truth of Chu Feng’s words—Liu Run had slipped ahead while they weren’t paying attention, drawing a swarm of Thunder Beasts their way. His malicious intent was clear.

Liu Run’s actions were like tossing a blazing inferno onto Chu Feng and the others.

"Young Master Chu, what do we do? There are too many Thunder Beasts—this is a beast tide, we can’t resist!"

Seeing the horde surging forward, the ground trembling, Lei Jianqin wasted no time cursing Liu Run, instead turning to Chu Feng for guidance.

"Young Master Chu, should we retreat to the entrance of the Wind and Thunder Cavern, or fight to the death?" Tang Jiao was at a loss.

Even as they spoke, Liu Run, racing ahead of the beast tide, drew near. His movements were agile—dodging left and right like a butterfly among flowers. The beasts followed, attacking, but failed to catch him.

"Liu Run, you scoundrel! You pretended your foot was injured so we'd let our guard down, then deliberately triggered a Thunder Beast tide, hoping they'd kill us. You're hiring assassins, and you'd devour us to the bone!"

Chu Feng thrust his Tyrant Shadow Spear, shouting at Liu Run.

"Chu Feng, stop slandering me! I went ahead to scout, but accidentally encountered a few Thunder Beasts. I couldn’t clear them in time, and their numbers grew out of control—how could I stop them?"

Liu Run darted about, retorting, "Chu Feng, aren’t you so capable? Deal with these Thunder Beasts and show what you can do—isn’t that what you’ve been hoping for?"

"Liu Run, you bastard! You’d better stay away from me, or I’ll chop you down with my axe!" Fan Qianjun raged, roaring furiously.

"Senior Fan, don’t waste your anger on him."

Chu Feng patted Fan Qianjun’s shoulder, then addressed Liu Run, "You little villain, do you think a Thunder Beast tide can stop me? You underestimate your Grandpa Chu’s strength!"

With that, Chu Feng flicked his wrist, tossing a ball the size of a watermelon.

Crash!

With a sound like a huge umbrella opening, the ball exploded, its parts unfolding instantly. In the blink of an eye, a mighty puppet, strong enough to stand against thousands, appeared before Chu Feng.