Chapter 9: Jiang Ning Appears

Erhuang was still completely oblivious at this moment. He followed Li Qiaochan along the way, wagging his tail, rubbing his little head against her, utterly delighted.

“Little one, you’ll have to put up with some discomfort soon,” Li Qiaochan chuckled softly, her slender hand stroking Erhuang’s head, which he enjoyed immensely.

He didn’t yet grasp the meaning behind Li Qiaochan’s words; he simply found the aura around her comforting and couldn’t help wanting to stay close.

Guiding her rainbow light, Li Qiaochan soon arrived at the base of the Fifth Peak.

Wang Shuo and his companions had been waiting there for quite some time.

“She’s here!”

As they spotted the little yellow dog in Li Qiaochan’s arms, their spirits were immediately lifted.

In that instant, Erhuang suddenly sensed an extremely pleasant fragrance. Behind Wang Shuo and the others, several spiritual fruits had been placed.

His first instinct was to rush over, but seeing Wang Shuo and his group, he stopped himself.

With his level of intelligence, he naturally knew these weren’t people to be trifled with. He was afraid of bringing trouble to Jiang Ning, so for a moment, he hesitated, crouching in Li Qiaochan’s embrace, gazing longingly with wide eyes.

“If you want it, go take it…” Li Qiaochan said softly, sighing gently.

Erhuang hesitated for another moment. Tilting his little head in serious contemplation, he finally couldn’t resist and leaped straight for the fruits.

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed that Wang Shuo and the others made no move to stop him. Overjoyed, he sped up, his eyes fixed solely on those enticing spiritual fruits.

Wang Shuo and his companions cast him a glance, their expressions tinged with mockery.

Just as Erhuang approached the fruits, he was suddenly overtaken by an intense sense of danger!

It was a primal reaction, a conditioned reflex—his hackles raised.

Though not possessed of great intelligence, he knew at once that the fruits before him spelled trouble!

In a flash, his inherited secret art activated, and in the next moment, the scene before him transformed.

In Erhuang’s eyes, this was no longer the Idle Cloud Sect—suddenly, it became a place of utmost peril.

Gray mist filled the air, obscuring his vision; a deadly aura surged toward him.

Within that swirling gray fog, shadows coalesced into starving wolves, their eyes glinting coldly as they emerged from the mist.

“Woof, woof, woof…”

Erhuang grew frantic. He used his secret art to traverse space, but remained trapped within this realm, unable to escape.

The gray mist stretched endlessly in all directions, the surroundings shrouded in uncertainty. All he could see were the hungry wolves drawing closer, death in their breath, their eyes cold and blue as sapphires glinting in the darkness.

…

“Thank you, Senior Sister Li Qiaochan,” Wang Shuo and the others said as they watched Erhuang become ensnared. To their eyes, he was now thoroughly trapped in the formation.

He remained before the spiritual fruits, tail raised, lost and uncertain, as if seeing something truly terrifying.

He kept trying his secret arts, but still couldn’t break free.

Li Qiaochan descended gracefully from the sky, drawing the rapt attention of Wang Shuo, Zhao Feng, and the rest.

They made no effort to conceal the burning heat in their gazes.

“What a stunner…” Wang Shuo swallowed but knew better than to make a reckless move.

Li Qiaochan’s cultivation far surpassed his own—a beauty he could only look at, never touch.

“One day, I’ll have her beneath my feet…” A feverish light flickered in his eyes.

Li Qiaochan noticed, but seemed unfazed.

“There’s no need to thank me. I simply wish to see just how strong Junior Brother Jiang Ning truly is… What formation is this?” she asked, brows slightly furrowed in suspicion.

“It’s a maze formation. Those within see their most feared visions, trapping enemies with their own minds,” Zhao Feng explained, stepping forward from behind Wang Shuo.

He carried less of Wang Shuo’s killing intent, his manner gentler—a reflection of the different paths they pursued.

“There won’t be any unexpected injuries, will there?” Li Qiaochan pressed, frowning.

“Don’t worry, Senior Sister. It’s only a maze, it won’t cause real harm,” several of Wang Shuo’s followers hastened to assure her.

They had promised that if Li Qiaochan brought Jiang Ning’s little yellow dog, there would be no accidental harm.

As for the battle with Jiang Ning, that was another matter entirely.

Li Qiaochan’s eyes gleamed as she gazed at Erhuang within the formation. She nodded slightly and stepped aside, saying no more.

Wang Shuo and Zhao Feng exchanged a glance, and a cold glint flashed in Wang Shuo’s eyes once more.

He sneered, rose upon his rainbow light, and hovered atop the mountain.

“Jiang Ning! Your dog is with me—if you have the guts, come out and fight!”

“Come out and fight!”

His voice thundered like a drum, echoing endlessly.

Within his shout was woven a thread of his own Dao comprehension, reverberating across all 108 peaks.

“If you have the guts, come out and fight!”

Instantly, everyone was roused!

Some soared over on rainbow lights; others, startled in their residences, looked on in surprise.

A great clamor spread!

The Idle Cloud Sect was known for its tranquility and emphasis on quiet cultivation.

Seldom did inner disciples challenge one another with such pomp.

Of course, the sect made no move to stop them; cultivation required constant tempering. So long as no lives were lost, battles among disciples were seen as part of their training.

“Wang Shuo is challenging Jiang Ning!”

Jiang Ning was already unpopular among the inner disciples—he was simply too evasive.

He drew attention, but his cunning ways left others exasperated.

Now that someone was openly challenging him, everyone felt a sense of satisfaction, eager to see Jiang Ning taken down a peg.

Moments later, streaks of rainbow light filled the sky as disciples gathered atop every peak, all waiting to see if Jiang Ning would appear.

“Even Jiang Ning’s little yellow dog is here.”

“And trapped—it’s a binding formation!”

“Looks like Wang Shuo is determined to force Jiang Ning out. Even Senior Brother Zhao Feng and Senior Sister Li Qiaochan are here…”

The mood was that of spectators at a play.

“Surely he won’t just hide and not show…” Wang Shuo’s companions were growing restless. With such a show of force, time passing, and Jiang Ning still unseen, they were at a loss.

Even Zhao Feng was uncertain now. He looked up at Wang Shuo atop the peak.

Wang Shuo nodded at him.

Zhao Feng smiled faintly, raising the formation core in his hand, his fingers weaving intricate signs.

At that moment, the trapping formation erupted with a killing intent that shook the heavens!

“Jiang Ning, if you don’t show yourself, your dog will die today!” Wang Shuo shouted again.

Meanwhile, within the formation, threads of light intertwined with profound complexity, one beam falling directly upon Erhuang.

He threw his head back and howled, as if struck by an invisible force, coughing up a mouthful of blood!

In that instant, Erhuang’s aura shriveled; he lost consciousness entirely!

“It’s not just a binding formation—there’s a killing array hidden within!”

Everyone was shocked.

“Jiang Ning, if you don’t come out, you’ll be collecting a corpse!”

Li Qiaochan’s expression changed. She stepped forward, about to speak.

Suddenly, a thunderous voice rolled forth.

“Dare you!”

Jiang Ning appeared!

He flew on rainbow light at a breathtaking speed, heading straight for the Fifth Peak!

“Isn’t he supposed to be below the Spirit Gathering Realm? How is he flying on rainbow light?”

Once again, an uproar swept through the crowd.