Xiao Man led the way, and Jin Yao followed with his men.
A glint flashed in Xiao Man's eyes. She suddenly stepped on a mechanism, and countless hidden weapons rained down from ahead. Xiao Man performed a backflip, swiftly dodging the incoming projectiles.
"Second Young Master, be careful."
Jin Yao had not expected traps and mechanisms inside. Fortunately, his cultivation was not weak, and he had been vigilant, so he was unharmed, but several of the guards he brought had been lost.
"Damn it, who set up this trap?"
"Second Young Master, could it be the people from the Beast Taming Sect?" Xiao Man inquired. Outer sect disciples from the Beast Taming Sect were also here this time, and these outer sect disciples naturally followed Wen Ting's orders.
"Wen Ting, you've gone too far!" Jin Yao was furious. "I'd like to see how capable he is to dare challenge us alone!"
Jin Yao moved forward quickly, while Xiao Man followed leisurely behind. She glanced at Nangong Yu, who was hiding in the shadows, and then quickly caught up with Jin Yao.
The guards brought by Jin Yao were constantly dwindling. Nangong Yu's attacks were fast and precise. Coupled with others who had sealed their hearing, they didn't even notice people around them disappearing.
It wasn't until Jin Yao casually glanced back and discovered that only two of the guard squad he had brought remained that his expression changed drastically. He stopped and turned around, "Who's playing tricks here, show yourself!"
Then, no one answered Jin Yao. Jin Yao released his spiritual energy but could not detect anyone's trace. The guards who had sealed their hearing, seeing the people beside them vanish silently, were terrified. They all released their hearing, but as soon as they regained it, they heard a sharp, piercing sound entering their eardrums.
"Ah!" The remaining two guards covered their ears, their faces contorted in pain. Jin Yao was shocked and scanned his surroundings for the enemy's trace. The two guards soon bled from all seven orifices and fell to the ground, motionless.
"Second Young Master, what's happening?" Xiao Man looked at Jin Yao. Jin Yao, seeing his guards in trouble, had sealed his hearing and couldn't hear Xiao Man. He regretted bringing his men and felt he should have left.
"Second Young Master, what do we do? Everyone is gone."
Jin Yao's face was tense. He drew his sword, his gaze sharply sweeping the surroundings. Seeing Xiao Man's flustered expression, he was displeased and rebuked, "What are you panicking about, like you've seen a ghost?"
After speaking, he realized he was being foolish. They had all sealed their hearing, so Xiao Man couldn't hear him. He immediately reached out to pull Xiao Man, positioning her in front of him. If attacked, Xiao Man would be the best human shield.
A cold killing intent flashed in Xiao Man's eyes. Suddenly, Jin Yao struck backward, at a black-clothed figure: "Hiding your head and tail, afraid to show your face, I'd like to see..."
Before Jin Yao could finish his sentence, he was struck by a knife. However, his reaction was swift. He unleashed a palm strike towards Xiao Man, who quickly dodged it.
Jin Yao forced back the black-clothed attacker and looked at Xiao Man incredulously, "You dare to ambush me!"
Xiao Man smiled faintly, "Second Young Master, are you stupid? Didn't you see me ambushing you with your own eyes?"
"Xiao Qin, how dare you!" Jin Yao regained his hearing and glared at Xiao Man menacingly. "You dare to betray me!"
"Second Young Master, I have never been loyal to you, so how can there be betrayal?" Xiao Man flicked the blood from her dagger and said calmly, "It's just that the conditions offered by Young Master Wen are more enticing, and he doesn't intend to kill me immediately."
"As expected, the people of the Seven Sects are spineless dogs. Whoever gives them bones, they will fawn over!" Jin Yao was furious. However, he also understood that Elder Chen was not here, and he was injured. Fighting two against one would be difficult. A wise man doesn't fight when the odds are against him. He would retreat for now and, once out of this trial ground, he would tear this person into a thousand pieces!
Seeing Jin Yao trying to escape, Xiao Man would not allow it and immediately pursued him. Jin Yao clutched his wound and fled, unable to head towards Elder Chen's location, as there were likely ambushes there. He glanced back at the relentlessly pursuing Xiao Man, gritting his teeth in anger. He never expected to be defeated by this scoundrel!
Jin Yao was in a panic, only thinking of how to escape from Xiao Man. However, Xiao Man was best at stealth and tracking, so escaping from her was not an easy task for Jin Yao.
Xiao Man's speed was extremely fast. She drew her sword and charged, intending to kill Jin Yao with a single blow. However, a red light erupted from Jin Yao, sending Xiao Man flying. Nangong Yu caught her, preventing her from making close contact with the ground.
"Be careful, this kid has a protective artifact on him."
"Chase him. If we don't kill him, the consequences will be endless."
If it were just Xiao Man, Jin Yao would have fought her to the death. However, Nangong Yu was also present. The two of them, working together and both ruthless, coupled with his injury, made him no match for them. He could not afford to linger and could only retreat, seeking only to protect himself.
In their chase, Jin Yao, in his panic, blundered into the cave of an eight-headed python. When Jin Yao crashed into the python's mountain-like body, he was dumbfounded. He wanted to retreat before the python woke up, but Xiao Man had caught up and immediately unleashed a volley of hidden weapons.
"Xiao Qin, you bastard!" Jin Yao immediately flew to intercept Xiao Man's projectiles. If this eight-headed python woke up, they would all be finished. Xiao Man's death was insignificant, but he was the young master of the Jin family, had not yet become the patriarch, and had not reached the pinnacle. How could he be willing to die?
However, despite his best efforts, he missed one projectile. That projectile, as if by fate, pierced the eight-headed python's eyelid!
The eight-headed python let out a pained hiss and opened its eyes. Its bell-like pupils glared fiercely at Jin Yao, who stood before it trembling. It head-butted him, sending Jin Yao flying. Fortunately, Jin Yao was wearing the family's secret treasure, the Qilin Armor, otherwise, the enraged strike of the eight-headed python would have been fatal.
Xiao Man had not expected such a terrifying demonic beast to be inside, and she had even woken it up with her hidden weapons. Not daring to linger, she turned and pulled Nangong Yu away. Jin Yao, after landing, somersaulted to his feet and fled rapidly. The space inside was narrow, and falling into the hands of the eight-headed python meant certain death!
Thinking of this, Jin Yao deeply resented Xiao Man. He had never suffered such a significant loss in his life, not even at the hands of Jin Ling. Yet, it was this unremarkable person, whom he had overlooked and treated as a mere pawn, who had inflicted such a great defeat upon him!