The Trap

Liu Hong and Liu Guan Tao stood immobile looking at Ye Mo in hesitation.

They planned to make quick work out of him but in a short time, two of their members were out already.

Six months ago he was still a mortal but now he could fight with their group by himself and hold his ground. If they didn't witness it themselves they wouldn't believe it.

In the world of martial arts, strength stood above all else. Without minding Ye Mo's questionable ways, the two corpses were clear for anyone to spectate.

The results were explicit and spoke for themselves about his capabilities.

Tricks and underhanded blows were a kind of strength as well, only a fool would mind using them when his life is at stake.

The one who fell for them in the first place are the real loser, in a battle of life and death the smallest mistake was unforgivable.

Liu Deng nervously stood behind them with his palms raised, a few inchs separating them. He was ready to use the Chasing Soundwave at all time.

By his side, Liu Shanhe observed the scene with terror in his eyes. These big sisters seemed so dependable saying they would protect him and their cultivation were much higher than his but in a breath of time they were already dead.

He has seen Ye Mo's cruel surprise attack against Liu Jiali and his despicable move to kill Liu Yujia, in the blink of an eye lives were taken. This day he truly understood how scary were battles between cultivators.

In his eyes, Ye Mo was no less than a devil sent by the king of hell to take their lives and he prayed in his heart for Liu Hong and Liu Guan Tao to remain victorious.

But these two instead were reconsidering their next courses of action.

"Although we're four remaining in reality only Liu Hong and i are fighting, Liu Deng and Shanhe can't help us."

Previously, he and Liu Hong brimmed with confidence moving forward with assured steps but here he became aware of how truly dangerous Ye Mo was.

The patriach orders were clear to all members, if there's a chance you must capture him at all costs and bring him back but if he's gonna escape and you don't have the choice then outrightly kill him!

However now they were only two battling and for either options he knew they would need to risk their lives.

At the same time if Ye Mo was left alone, his threat would only keep growing at an alarmous rate for the Liu clan.

Hence the stalemate occuring where no one moved but both sides probed each other.

Suddenly Ye Mo took a step, his body drifting like a falling petal.

Both leaders were stunned for an instant before they reacted.

"Want to leave? Not on my watch."

"He must be tired, don't let him escape!"

Liu Hong and Liu Guan Tao instantly ran after, engaging Ye Mo in a relentless chase.

Liu Deng was penibly following with Liu Shanhe on his back.

Originally, Liu Hong and Liu Deng were wary of Ye Mo and unwilling to make the first move but now that they saw him running away, all their apprehensions dissipated as they pursued him like ravenous predators, their mind overcome by all kinds of heated emotions.

Running away was an admission of weakness. It was evident he didn't want to confront them.

"Wether he lacks qi, injured himself someway or just fear to fight us it doesn't matter, he won't get away!" Liu Guan Tao assured himself firmly in his mind.

Liu Hong roared in laughter, "Turns out you expended all your means to deal with these two. Now that you must face us, you are nothing more than a coward!"

Ye Mo didn't react to their words sprinting soundlessly.

Yet contrary to their expectations, he stopped a few hundred meters further in an inconspicuous area.

The group following him closely stopped as well.

"Done running, huh!" Immediately Liu Hong seized the opportunity and jumped towards a tree with unconceivable speed.

Taking support on the tree, Liu Hong lept again jumping all around Ye Mo like his legs became springs.

It looked like a bullet bouncing on every surfaces, imprisoning Ye Mo at the center.

The Skybound Leaping battle skill was one of the best among movement types of the Liu clan and used the moment you stepped on the ground to gather energy and drastically increase your speed.

But like all battle skills it had its strenghts and weaknesses.

The first default was that it used jumps to travel but you couldn't change direction while in the air. If an opponent was able to follow your speed he could target you at this time. The advantage of the battle skill was also its weakness and the user would end up in a vulnerable situation.

The second was that it needed a clear area to be used effectively or you would just crash into every obstacle on your way. In this case not only would you slow down but you might also hurt yourself.

"As if it could stop me!" Liu Hong roared in his mind.

He reminisced a few years ago after a decade of dedication to the clan, he used all the merits he painstakingly gathered to exchange for the Skybound Leaping battle skill.

He was so happy he used every little free time he had to exert himself in this martial art.

After months of hard work he became very proficient in the battle skill and would use it daily even for the smallest distances he had to travel.

This skill was the mirror of all his efforts and as his proficiency increased he also understood its disadvantages.

But Liu Hong refused to be hindered by such inconvenients.

He picked all kinds of missions venturing in forests, valleys, hills or near mountains battling against beasts and cultivators.

Sometimes he won smoothly and sometimes he was wounded but he kept going until he developed a new battle style.

There was no stronger battle skills, the worth you would get from it depended on the cultivator.

Humans had unbound wisdom, capable of creating new ways to continually develop themselves.

What Liu Hong showed currently was all the mastery gained over years through exertion and direct practice of the Skybound Leaping battle skill.

Liu Hong sneered, "No one has ever survived this technique since i started to grasp it."

The trees, rocks and the earth before Liu Hong looked like they were crashing into him but he would quickly turn around landing on his feet nimbly then he would push with his legs and propel himself again.

His speed was very fast even for him and he injured himself many times crashing on rocks and trees in the past before he could master these movements.

"Im oriented towards offense, it would be too difficult for me to capture him currently. I will just kill him instead and bring his head back, it should be good enough for the elders." Liu Hong thought radiating deep killing intent.

Ye Mo watched solemnly as he could barely follow Liu Hong's figure with his eyes.

"Hmm, its gonna be a bit more complicated than i thought."

Since his eyes couldn't help him Ye Mo closed them and focused on his other senses.

He could feel the wind shooting outwards with each jump, the tremors of the ground under his feet every time Liu Hong stepped on it and he could hear the trees tremble when he used them to land and leap up again.

"Giving up? Then i will deal with you quickly, you won't feel anything!" Seeing Ye Mo close his eyes, Liu Hong could feel victory so nearby.

He jumped on a tree behind Ye Mo then taking assist on the trunk he flew in his direction at full speed, clenching his hands around the handle of his saber.

Ye Mo's figure grew bigger and bigger as Liu Hong prepared to draw a line on his neck with his blade.

However at this moment Ye Mo retrieved something from his pouch and threw it behind him without turning around.

In the air a black machete was rotating, the same he used to kill the red leopard in the past and was threatening to cut Liu Hong's flesh.

Liu Hong blocked the machete with his saber but lost momentum and Ye Mo using Wind Flow moved out of his trajectory.

But Liu Hong who was originally flying head first towards Ye Mo, saber in hand was now met with the ground!

"This!" Liu Hong's pupils shrank, a bad feeling emerging in his heart.

He quickly rolled down with his body putting his feet at the front right before landing on the earth.

As he crashed on the ground Liu Hong lost balance, his body bounced and rolled multiple times on the earth but with a small push of his hands he was back on his feet and sustained only light injuries.

Ye Mo quickly shortened the distance between them and used the Stone Breaking Punch precisely choosing to hit with a right hook.

Liu Hong with his current position could only endure the attack and used the flat side of the saber to block, supporting the end of the blade with his left hand.

Immediately a huge force overflowed like a stream and sent him sliding towards Ye Mo's left side for multiple meters his feet leaving two deep lines on the ground.

"Well done surviving till now, you can be proud of yourself. But you lost your chance, this time i will definitel...."

Liu Hong yelled maliciously, gathering qi in his legs he was ready to shoot up the moment he stopped.

Yet as he moved back, still bearing the brunt of the attack, a maw the size of an elephant left the depths of the ground and swallowed Liu Hong in the middle of his sentence.

"A high-tier flesh devourer sleeping plant!" Liu Guan Tao exclaimed dumbfounded a distance away.

When Liu Hong used his Skybound Leaping battle skill to handle Ye Mo, he stood by Liu Deng and Liu Shanhe's side. If he was too close, rather than helping, he would only hinder Liu Hong's movements.

At the start there were movements coming from the inside of the maw and huge bulges would appear here and there but it quickly ceased. In the meantime the flesh devourer sleeping plant gradually returned inside its nest and used its roots to stir the earth, covering itself once again.

Liu Guan Tao swallowed loudly.

"This place is a trap, he led us here because he knew there were flesh devourer sleeping plants. He sent Liu Hong in this direction with his strike because he was aware a high tier one was hiding right there!"

At this moment Liu Guan Tao understood.

They weren't the one to prey on Ye Mo all this time but he was the hunter using himself as bait and laying traps, taking them out one by one.

Still in shock, he suddenly felt a chill as a pair of cold eyes rested on him.

"Only three remaining."