Chapter 95: "Dimensional Suppression Kill":
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After sending the message, the figure couldn't help but speculate on the value of this target. The higher the value of their assassination target, the greater the reward they would receive.
Unfortunately, they hadn't obtained specific intelligence on this trial target. Otherwise, they could have directly intercepted a high-value target.
He Shaogang had originally planned to ambush and eliminate several top-ranking core disciples of Qinglu Sect. However, when he attempted to execute the plan, he realized that he had no way of tracking their movements.
After all, once those core disciples accepted a mission, the details—when they departed and from where—were completely unknown.
He Shaogang didn't even know which missions the core disciples had taken, as these were assigned randomly. Not to mention him— even the sect's high-ranking members wouldn't know who had taken which task. It was clear that this was a protective measure by Qinglu Sect for their disciples going on external trials.
Faced with this situation, He Shaogang had no choice but to reinstate the abandoned large-scale ambush plan. He had already deployed members of his sect's assassination squad to lie in wait outside Qinglu Sect. As soon as they spotted a disciple accompanied by a protector, they would strike—first restraining the protector, then sending others to kill the target.
As for killing the protector outright, that was obviously not an option at this moment. If a protector were to suddenly die, it would cause a major upheaval within Qinglu Sect, ruining their ambush operation. Instead, using an illusion to control the protector would prevent immediate detection.
Over time, the sect would eventually realize something was amiss, but by then, they would have already eliminated their targets.
Similarly, if too many trial disciples died, it would raise suspicions. However, He Shaogang had no choice but to cast a wide net and try to eliminate as many trial disciples as possible before Qinglu Sect could react.
If they were lucky enough to find any of the core disciples, they would assign extra manpower to ensure their deaths.
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"Hm? Why isn't the protector following?"
While flying, Gu Mo instinctively turned his head to look back. The protector's role was to guard them, so he shouldn't be too far away. If he was, he might not be able to respond in time in case of an emergency. Of course, he also wouldn't be too close—normally, he should stay just outside the sensing range of Qi Refinement cultivators.
But for Gu Mo, who had already formed his divine sense, that distance was actually very close. In theory, he should have been able to detect the protector's presence.
Yet at this moment, Gu Mo couldn't sense him at all. This felt off. A Qinglu Sect protector wouldn't possibly be slacking off at a time like this.
After thinking for a moment, Gu Mo released his divine sense—and his expression immediately turned grim. He had detected several Qi Refinement late-stage cultivators approaching, one of whom had even reached the peak of Qi Refinement.
Technically, this was outside Qinglu Sect's territory, so encountering travelers wouldn't be unusual. However, Gu Mo could clearly sense the killing intent from these people. They were undoubtedly coming for them.
"Run!"
Gu Mo transmitted his voice to Yuan Niya and Chu Feifei.
The two women were startled. Though they didn't understand the situation, they trusted Gu Mo completely. Without hesitation, they immediately activated their sword-riding techniques at full power. In an instant, their flying swords turned into streaks of light, shooting forward at high speed.
"They noticed us!"
The assassins in pursuit were shocked. They had ensured they were outside the targets' sensory range, so how had they been discovered? There was no time to think. They immediately accelerated in pursuit.
"There are people behind us!"
As the assassins closed in, Yuan Niya and Chu Feifei also became aware of them.
Sensing the cultivators behind them, both women's expressions grew solemn. The weakest among their pursuers was already at the late stage of Qi Refinement. Yuan Niya was confident in taking on a late-stage Qi Refinement opponent, but the problem was the one at the peak of Qi Refinement—he was beyond her capability.
"No Foundation Establishment cultivators? Could it be that our protector lured them away?" Gu Mo scanned the surroundings with his divine sense. He wasn't too concerned about the Qi Refinement assassins—now that he had divine sense, dealing with them was a matter of dimensional suppression.
His real concern was whether there were any Foundation Establishment enemies.
Thinking about the missing protector, Gu Mo reasoned that any Foundation Establishment enemies were likely engaged elsewhere. If that was the case…
"Junior Brother Gu Mo, why did you stop?" Yuan Niya asked anxiously when she saw Gu Mo suddenly halt.
"We can't just keep running forever without dealing with these tailing us," Gu Mo said, pointing at the assassins closing in.
"That's true, but they're too strong. We can't win." Yuan Niya understood his logic, but their strength just wasn't enough.
"I'll handle the peak Qi Refinement assassin. Can you two take care of the rest?" Gu Mo asked.
"You underestimate your senior sister." Yuan Niya glared at him before hesitantly adding, "But, Junior Brother Gu Mo, that's a peak Qi Refinement cultivator… you—"
While Yuan Niya was worried, Chu Feifei had already begun setting up an array. From her understanding of Gu Mo, whenever he spoke confidently, no matter how ridiculous it seemed, it was best to trust him.
"They stopped."
Seeing their targets halt, the pursuing assassins rejoiced. Then, they saw Chu Feifei rapidly setting up an illusion array. Using a formation disk, she managed to complete a low-tier illusion formation in record time.
"Charge in!"
The peak Qi Refinement assassin didn't hesitate. A mere first-tier illusion formation wasn't enough to make up for their overwhelming advantage. Hesitation might let the targets escape again.
As soon as the assassins entered the illusion array, Gu Mo raised two fingers. A sharp, golden sword aura erupted from his fingertips. Although he had a mid-grade magic sword, when it came to sheer lethality, his mist-state spiritual energy combined with his perfected Minor Gengjin Sword Technique was far more powerful.
If the enemy hadn't included a peak Qi Refinement cultivator, Gu Mo would have opted for his magic sword to conserve spiritual energy. But given the presence of a peak Qi Refinement opponent, he had to go all out.
"What?!"
Yuan Niya was shocked by the aura emanating from Gu Mo's sword energy. It was something she had only sensed from peak Qi Refinement senior brothers. But Gu Mo was clearly…
"Focus."
Gu Mo reminded her before dashing forward. The assassins, unaware of the illusion's full effect, didn't realize Gu Mo's exact movements.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
Sword energy slashed through the air. Several late-stage Qi Refinement assassins were instantly killed. With Gu Mo's divine sense locking onto them, they had no way to dodge, while their own attacks seemed sluggish and full of flaws in his perception.
Leaving one assassin for Yuan Niya, Gu Mo shifted his attention to the peak Qi Refinement cultivator.
"What's happening?!"
Realizing his companions had suddenly perished, the peak Qi Refinement assassin was stunned. But he quickly composed himself, convinced that Gu Mo had used a one-time life-saving treasure.
Now that it was used up, the target was doomed.
Just as that thought crossed his mind, an intense sense of danger surged through him. In the next instant, his vision was filled with an incredibly sharp sword aura.
Instinctively, he tried to evade, but the attack locked onto him like an inescapable force. At that moment, he recalled sparring with a Foundation Establishment elder from his sect—the feeling of being completely suppressed by a divine sense was identical.
"You're at Found—"
His shocked words were cut off as Gu Mo's sword aura slit his throat.
If he had focused on defense, Gu Mo might have needed some effort to break through. But since he chose to go all-in on offense, it gave Gu Mo the perfect opportunity for an instant kill.
With a swift motion, Gu Mo sidestepped his attack and sliced cleanly through his throat.
"Ah!"
Meanwhile, agonized screams echoed from behind—the enemy's final cries. Yuan Ninya had successfully slain a late-stage Qi Refinement assassin. With that, the three of them had successfully thwarted the ambush.
It was Gu Mo's first time taking a life, yet he felt no discomfort. As a cultivator who had condensed his divine sense, his powerful soul gave him perfect control over his body, preventing any feelings of nausea or revulsion.
Yuan Ninya, too, showed no signs of unease after her first kill. Instead, her eyes sparkled with excitement.
Ordinarily, she would have boasted about defeating an opponent at a higher cultivation level. But the moment her gaze landed on the beheaded Qi Refinement Perfection assassin, along with the other late-stage Qi Refinement assassins slain by Gu Mo, her excitement vanished. At that moment, she felt as though the talent she had always prided herself on had been mercilessly trampled by Gu Mo.
"Damn it! Junior Brother Gu Mo, you tricked me so badly!" Taking a deep breath, Yuan Ninya shot him a fierce glare, using it as a way to suppress the shock in her heart.
Chu Feifei was equally shaken. As the controller of the illusion array, she had personally witnessed the entire process—not just Gu Mo killing, but instantly killing those assassins. That level of terrifying combat prowess made her suspect that Gu Mo had already reached the Foundation Establishment stage. Only a Foundation Establishment cultivator could slaughter a Qi Refinement Perfection assassin as effortlessly as breaking the neck of a chicken.
"Hurry up and check their backgrounds." Gu Mo merely smiled, offering no explanation. His situation was not something he could easily clarify. Using lies to cover it up would only lead to more lies—too much trouble.
Of course, this discretion applied only to Yuan Ninya and Chu Feifei, two people he trusted. If it were anyone else, he would have concealed his strength and simply attributed his rapid progress to a reward from the sect leader's spiritual pills.
"Right, right!"
Seeing that Gu Mo had no intention of explaining, both Yuan Ninya and Chu Feifei chose not to press the matter further. They quietly suppressed their shock. Right now, they had more urgent matters to attend to.
An ambush so soon after departing? They had to investigate. Once they identified the mastermind, the sect elders would surely take revenge.
The Qinglu Sect might have declined in strength, but it was still not an organization that just anyone could ambush. Unfortunately, these assassins were highly professional—no identifiable clues were found on them. The only things of value were a few mid-to-high-grade artifacts of unknown origin, which could at least be considered a small gain.
After gathering the bodies of the assassins, Gu Mo raised his hand and released a Minor Flame Wave, reducing the corpses to ashes—nourishing the land with their remains.
With that done, the three of them faced two choices: continue with the mission or abandon it and seek reinforcements.
As for returning immediately? Gu Mo dismissed that idea outright. He remembered that the protector assigned to them had vanished. That meant a Foundation Establishment cultivator was involved in this assassination attempt. If they went back now, they might run straight into a battle between Foundation Establishment experts.
Unless the protector reappeared, returning would be too risky. It would be better for Yuan Ninya to use a transmission talisman to request assistance from a sect elder.
However, the final decision rested with Yuan Ninya. After all, this was her personal trial as an inner disciple. If she abandoned the mission now, there was a chance she would be disqualified from becoming a true disciple. And the significance of being a true disciple was clear—it was an opportunity to reach the Golden Core stage.
Every true disciple of the Qinglu Sect was given a set of resources to aid in forming their Golden Core. Such an opportunity was priceless.
"Gu Mo, I want to become a true disciple. I want to grow stronger." Yuan Ninya locked eyes with him. "I know continuing the mission might bring more danger, but I don't want to give up."
She was about to say that if things went south, Gu Mo could take Chu Feifei and leave her behind. But before she could finish, Gu Mo cut her off.
"Then let's continue the mission."
Since Yuan Ninya had made her choice, Gu Mo would stand by her. This mission also concerned his ability to accumulate enough sect contributions to exchange for a second-tier spiritual farmland.
Checking his stockpile within the Black Mist Space, Gu Mo was confident. As long as they didn't directly encounter a Foundation Establishment cultivator, and as long as he had time to prepare, he could even handle an ambush from one.
Just now, he had only revealed his personal combat strength. But his true power lay in the plants at his disposal.
With their decision made, Chu Feifei dispelled the array. The battle had ended swiftly, and thanks to her illusion formation, Gu Mo believed no one should have noticed their fight. As for the organization behind the assassins, even if they eventually realized something had gone wrong, they would have already fled by then.
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Meanwhile, in another location—
"Why is there still no news?" The Foundation Establishment cultivator controlling Rong Guangsheng frowned as he stared at the transmission jade talisman in his hand.
Killing three mere Qi Refinement cultivators shouldn't take this long. The longer it dragged on, the higher the chance the targets would break free from the illusion. The mission needed to be executed swiftly.
But with no response from the jade talisman, he couldn't act recklessly. A premature move could cause the entire operation to fail.
"Hm?"
Just as the Foundation Establishment cultivator was distracted by the jade talisman, the previously lifeless Rong Guangsheng's eyes suddenly gleamed with a fierce light. In the next moment, a surge of wild spiritual energy erupted from his body.
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