Chapter Forty-Six: The Mysterious Power

“Let’s surround him first. He’s strong; if we attack one by one, we definitely won’t win.”

“I agree.”

Hearing their conversation so loudly, Li Yan thought they must be fools, deliberately making their plan so obvious.

Did they really think Li Yan was trapped in a cage and couldn’t hear them?

Li Yan smiled.

The strange creatures closed in around him.

In his hand appeared his large blade.

He swung it fiercely, cutting down several of the creatures.

The others, seeing Li Yan was still so formidable, immediately launched one-on-one attacks against him.

Frowning, Li Yan swiftly slaughtered them all.

Only a few trembling creatures remained, hesitant to approach.

The leader of the creatures, furious at the scene, roared at them, “Are you just here to eat and do nothing? Attack him! You have so many of you—can’t you defeat just one? If you don’t fight, don’t bother coming back. Think about your families!”

The creatures, initially wavering about whether to continue fighting Li Yan, decisively chose to press on after hearing their leader’s words.

If they didn’t kill Li Yan or die here today, then even if they survived, their families would perish.

This time, instead of surrounding Li Yan, several creatures joined forces to unleash a group attack.

Pooling their power, they summoned a black protective shield.

The shield moved swiftly toward Li Yan’s position.

Li Yan glanced at the shield and immediately knew it was poisonous.

Entering the shield meant death; breaking it to release the gas inside also meant death.

He hesitated, unsure how to proceed.

But the creatures gave him no time to think.

While Li Yan was pondering, they struck and wounded him.

Startled by the pain, Li Yan snapped back to attention.

He looked at his wound and angrily demanded, “Which one of you did this?”

But none of the creatures admitted it.

Li Yan’s gaze shifted to the black shield, now growing larger, and his heart tightened.

He resolved to deal with the creatures first before figuring out the shield.

He swiftly slashed at them with his blade.

They were quickly killed off.

Just as Li Yan was about to breathe a sigh of relief, the creatures he had slain reappeared.

They attacked him again.

This time, the revived creatures were significantly stronger.

Li Yan struggled noticeably against them.

Frowning, he thought of a way to eradicate them once and for all.

He quickly smeared his own blood onto his blade and attacked the creatures again.

Though his killing speed slowed, the creatures he killed this time no longer resurrected.

After a long struggle, Li Yan finally eliminated them all.

Turning his attention back to the black shield, he had expected it would dissipate once the creatures were dead.

Instead, it accelerated its growth.

Frowning, Li Yan realized that if this continued, the shield would soon burst.

That was unacceptable.

But he found no way to make the shield disappear or halt its expansion.

He tried channeling his energy into the shield.

To his dismay, it only grew larger.

The leader of the creatures chuckled upon seeing this, clapping his hands.

With a smug tone, he said, “You might as well wait here to die. This is the price for betraying me.”

After speaking, he left and sealed off the area.

Li Yan desperately tried to stop him but failed.

Feeling despair, he carefully checked and confirmed every exit was sealed.

His energy was powerless to break the barrier.

With no other option, Li Yan focused on finding a way to dispel the black shield.

If he failed, he would certainly die here today.

He contemplated purifying the gas inside the shield or siphoning it elsewhere to prevent an explosion.

But the problem was—where could he find something else to hold it?

After deep thought, Li Yan touched his body and realized his dagger might be useful.

He took it out, then erected a protective barrier around himself.

Using his energy, he made the dagger float and pierced a corner of the black shield.

The gas inside leaked instantly.

Carefully, Li Yan guided the escaping gas into the dagger.

To his astonishment, the dagger absorbed the gas.

Overjoyed, Li Yan hastened the absorption.

The unstable shield warned him he had to speed up, or it would shatter before the gas was fully contained—and then he would die.

He didn’t know what this gas was but was certain it was malevolent.

Otherwise, the dagger wouldn’t have absorbed it.

When he first received the dagger, he was told it could absorb resentment and similar substances.

This gas was likely the same.

Just as the gas inside the shield was nearly absorbed, an unexpected event occurred—the dagger suddenly fell to the ground, escaping Li Yan’s control.

Worse, it flew directly toward him.

Li Yan was terrified.

If the gas returned to his body, he would die.

He desperately used his energy to stop the dagger’s approach.

Yet an unseen force opposed him.

Li Yan didn’t know where this force came from.

He briefly suspected the creature leader had returned but saw no sign of him in the hall.

Li Yan fought with all his might, but against this invisible power, his strength was insignificant.

Soon, the dagger arrived before him.