Shen Feng was about to escape from the confined space when he was suddenly suppressed by a five-times gravity field, slowing him down. He was then entangled by thorny vines, rendering him immobile. However, these hidden assassins could not resist the gravity, as it directly affected their bodies, impacting their bones and internal organs.
The assassins had all fallen to the ground. Based on the sounds they made when they fell, there were five of them.
Fortunately, Shen Feng held a sharp long sword. He immediately swung his sword, cutting through the surrounding vines and temporarily preventing them from attacking him.
"This won't do. The enemy is in the dark, and I am in the light. This is disadvantageous for me!" Shen Feng thought to himself. He knew he couldn't stay in a conspicuous place. He should seize the opportunity while these people were not paying attention to relocate. Once he determined the enemy's position, he would attack.
Just then, a dark cloud drifted across the sky, obscuring the moonlight. Shen Feng had a sudden idea. He unleashed "Eye of the Hurricane," and a gust of wind swept through the area near the hot spring. The cut thorny vines on the ground scattered everywhere. Strangely, many vines disappeared upon landing.
This made it clear: areas on the ground without vines must have invisible people. Because they were invisible, anything they touched also became invisible. Therefore, Shen Feng could not see any figures. Having found traces of the enemy, Shen Feng did not attack directly. Instead, he instantly unleashed "Furious Wind," creating hundreds of invisible wind blades within the hot spring, which then attacked the bathing area.
However, the assassins were already prepared for the wind blade attack. As the wind blades were continuously fired towards the blank areas on the ground, they struck an invisible wall. The sound of "ding-ding-dang-dang" impact was heard, and the wind blades were rendered ineffective again. If the enemy had a thick shell, the wind blades could not cause effective damage.
"Bang, bang." At this moment, all the light bulbs in the bathing area exploded. The dim light that was present disappeared, and as the dark cloud passed overhead, the area was plunged into darkness.
"Quickly block all exits, we can't let him escape!" When the bathing area was completely dark, a female voice emerged.
Shen Feng, hiding in the darkness, heard the voice and was suddenly stunned. He thought, "Could the enemy's commander be a woman?"
Shen Feng did not understand what they were saying. He just wanted to seize the opportunity to leave this disadvantageous place. It was clear that the enemy had chosen this specific moment to attack him. The terrain was narrow, the space was limited, and the enemy could create transparent walls, which was extremely unfavorable for Shen Feng.
However, when Shen Feng tried to leave through a gap, he found that the gap had been blocked by a wall. It would be impossible to leave through there without getting seriously injured.
"Damn it, I can't go through the sky, and I can't get out through the gap. Do I have to go through the entrance on the opposite side?" Shen Feng thought helplessly.
Currently, the surrounding area was under Yue Hengyi's gravity field, severely affecting Shen Feng's speed. Yue Hengyi was likely also encountering enemies, otherwise, he wouldn't have used his abilities. Shen Feng wanted to change the environment to fight, but he was trapped by invisible walls. After the dark clouds dispersed, he would have to face continuous ambushes.
There was only one exit from the bathing area, leading directly to the inn's accommodation. However, Shen Feng was now forced to the side of the pool. If there were no gravity field, Shen Feng could have walked straight across. But now, the gravity field was constantly pressing down on him. Fortunately, Shen Feng had a strong physique and could barely move under the gravity. If he entered the water, he would surely sink.
"What should I do?" Shen Feng fell into a dilemma.
The dark clouds in the sky gradually dispersed, and light was about to shine on the ground. At this moment, a black shadow flashed by, followed by a "plop" sound of something falling into the water. The assassins quickly shouted, "Block the exit over there too!"
Finally, light shone into the bathing area. Through the thin mist above the pool, a black shadow could be vaguely seen in the water. It was not a person, but a hammer!
Seizing this opportunity, Shen Feng, who was hiding in the dark, exerted his full strength. "As the Wind Follows" was executed to its extreme. In this situation, Shen Feng's speed reached supersonic levels, and he slammed into the fence on one side.
"Boom!" The wooden fence was violently broken, and Shen Feng escaped through the gap. Since there was no exit, he created one himself. As Mr. Lu Xun said, there was no path in the world to begin with, but when many people walked, a path was formed.
"How dare you trick us! This is unforgivable," a Japanese curse came from the darkness.
The battle in the hot spring was planned. To deal with wind elementals, everyone knew it was best to fight in a confined space. Thus, the assassins had prepared extensively. However, they never expected that the gravity field would appear at this moment, forcing everyone to the ground, making movement almost impossible. Moreover, they didn't know where Shen Feng had gone, so they could only wait in the area.
"It seems we have to wait until Mr. Urashima finishes off the other elemental user, otherwise, the gravity field won't disappear," someone said helplessly.
...
Yue Hengyi had intended to stay at the temple and continue discussing Buddhist scriptures with the abbot. After killing someone, he finally understood why so many people sought refuge in gods and Buddha. It was all because after doing something wrong, their hearts were filled with turmoil, and to seek psychological comfort, they needed a narrative to help them. Buddhist teachings served this purpose.
However, the discussion had not lasted long when the abbot suddenly sent someone to bring sake, saying, "Please have some wine, sir. This is brewed by the temple itself. It is mellow and has been aged for two years. The spiciness has also been reduced."
Yue Hengyi was stunned by this statement and asked, "Can temples brew wine? Are you monks of pleasure?"
In Yue Hengyi's mind, monks were not supposed to eat meat or drink alcohol. Yet, here, the monks in the temple were openly brewing wine, which seemed incorrect.
As Yue Hengyi was confused, Lan Zi explained, "Lord Yi Hengyue, customs vary in different regions. In Japan, monks can not only drink and eat meat but also marry and have children. In some places, when a temple's business grows, it can even become a family business."
Yue Hengyi gave an awkward smile, feeling that this matter was beyond his imagination. It was one thing for monks to marry and have children, but to make it a family business? Then being a monk would just be a job. What kind of ascetics were they?
Afterward, Yue Hengyi did not refuse. A young monk brought a few side dishes, including fried peanuts and cold cucumber salad. For the meat dish, there were small fried yellow croakers. Then, the two of them drank and chatted in a room. Although Yue Hengyi was fond of drinking, his tolerance was not high, and he was soon drunk. Even so, he kept clamoring for more.
Yue Hengyi soon fell asleep on the table. Taking advantage of this, Lan Zi exchanged a look with the abbot, and then the abbot followed Lan Zi out of the room.
"You have done an excellent job with this matter. Rest assured, we will give you what we promised. Continue to stay here, and you can leave once the battle begins!" Lan Zi said to the abbot with satisfaction.
Lan Zi was very pleased with the progress of events, as everything was developing according to her plan. Shen Fuyao had gone to the hot spring inn, where she had prepared many beautiful women. Based on her understanding of Shen Fuyao, he was now indulging in pleasure. As for herself, Yi Hengyue had been gotten drunk. Once the Tokyo elemental users arrived, defeating these two would be a sure thing.
"Uncle Matsushita, I have gotten one elemental user drunk. I plan to leave here first. The rest will be up to you," Lan Zi said after making a phone call, preparing to leave immediately.
She arrived outside the temple, where the driver had been waiting for her. After getting into the car, the driver quickly drove away, preparing to leave this place of trouble.
Except for a few people who knew Lan Zi's plan, no one else knew what was about to happen, including the staff at the hot spring inn. They only felt that they had found a high-paying job, serving the great elemental users in the mountains, unaware that danger would soon follow.
Sitting in the car, Lan Zi couldn't help but feel proud of her plan, murmuring to herself, "So what if they are elemental users? Aren't they still played in the palm of my hand? Today, I will avenge those who died in Kagoshima!"
In the car, Lan Zi couldn't help but smile. She was now the sole heir of the Fujino family, and with her grandfather's death, the entire city protected her. Now, as long as she killed the enemies in Kagoshima, she would be a hero. Once she obtained the extraterrestrial elements, she could also become an elemental user, which was a huge gain.
While lost in thought, the car drove into a dense forest. The trees cast deep shadows, and it was dark everywhere. Only the car's headlights could illuminate the path ahead.
"Roar..." Suddenly, a low growl came from the forest. The driver froze upon hearing the sound, muttering, "Are there wild beasts in the forest?"
Lan Zi also heard the roar, and her face turned a little pale. She then said, "Someone had already checked this forest before. Even if there were mutated beasts, they would have been killed. Now, there shouldn't be any fierce beasts around, right?"
However, just as they were filled with doubt, a huge black shadow suddenly leaped out of the forest, landing directly in front of the car. The bright headlights shone forward, revealing a giant leopard. Its body alone was three meters tall, appearing on the road and occupying more than half of it.
"Ah..." The driver was startled by the appearance of the leopard and dared not charge forward. Just seeing the leopard made his heart pound. He had no choice but to violently swerve the steering wheel and drive into the mountainside.
"Crash!" In the dark forest, the direction was completely unclear, and the car crashed directly into a tree trunk. The hood popped up, and black smoke billowed out. The car could no longer start.
The leopard had already locked onto its prey inside the car. In the forest, it had always been a leopard's paradise. Its stomach was rather shriveled, clearly indicating that the leopard was hungry. It would eat whatever it saw.
With a light leap, the leopard landed on top of the car, instantly caving in the roof. Such a heavy mutated beast landing on the car roof was like a water buffalo. This was not an armored vehicle, and it was impossible to withstand the leopard's weight.
Seeing this scene, the driver immediately opened the car door and dashed away. He kept muttering, "I don't want to die, I don't want to die, I want to live!"
However, after the driver had run only about ten meters, he heard rapid panting from behind him, followed by a sharp pain, and he lost consciousness completely.
Lan Zi, sitting in the car, watched the driver dash out and then saw the leopard bite the driver to death. At that moment, Lan Zi was filled with extreme fear. She didn't know how to kill such a powerful monster. She could only quietly open the car door and dash out in the opposite direction.
Lan Zi was terrified because she had never expected to encounter such a terrifying monster. The army had cleared this forest before, yet now, a powerful leopard appeared here. She had no intention of resisting because she knew that even with a gun, she would not be a match for a mutated beast.