Chapter 97

"Then it's a pity..." As he spoke, Guangxiao began to slowly move forward a few steps. With each step, countless sparks burst from his body. After just a few short steps, the countless sparks had completely enveloped him.

Watching Guangxiao approach, Gui BuGui chuckled and said to the pillar of sparks, "When I was your senior back then, you didn't have the ability to break this restriction. I didn't expect that after a hundred years, your skills have improved so much. If another thousand years pass, will you catch up to me?"

The closer Guangxiao walked, the more difficult it became. Responding to Gui BuGui gave him a chance to catch his breath. After stopping, the pillar of sparks said to Gui BuGui, "Senior Gui, you flatter me. This is just for self-protection. Everyone knows I will eventually leave the Fangshi sect. I also have a few formidable enemies. Before, the Fangshi sect shielded me, so anyone who wanted to harm me had to think twice. Now that I've left, I have to rely on myself..."

Gui BuGui laughed and then asked, "Do you include Guangren and the others among your formidable enemies?"

Guangxiao also laughed and then said, "Before, some people said I was skilled in diplomacy and strategy. Now, in front of Senior Gui, it's nothing. One word from you has made me a public enemy of the Fangshi sect. I can barely handle one Great Fangshi, let alone several more. That would mean certain death."

After chuckling, Gui BuGui looked at Guangxiao, whose body was still crackling with sparks, and said, "Are you rested? If you are, keep moving forward. We can't waste too much time. The second wave of Guangren's people will be here soon."

After taking a deep breath, Guangxiao nodded at Gui BuGui and said, "I won't keep Senior Gui waiting..." With that, he took another step forward.

As Guangxiao approached again, Wu Mian's condition had improved a bit. He leaned against a large tree, staring at the approaching Guangxiao, and said to Gui BuGui, who still had one foot on Guan Wuming, "Old man, your restriction is quite special. It looks familiar, like a variant of the technique Xu Fu used to imprison you, right?"

Gui BuGui looked at Wu Mian with some surprise, then chuckled and said, "You know I was imprisoned by that old man for over a hundred years. Even if the mountain was large, I would eventually get bored. So, I started thinking about all sorts of things. This restriction is one of them. To be honest, even Xu Fu himself would have to walk step by step like Guangxiao, though he might walk a bit faster."

Almost as soon as Gui BuGui finished speaking, Guangxiao finally emerged from the restriction. Despite the short distance, his clothes were drenched in sweat, and he was breathing heavily.

Seeing Guangxiao's slightly disheveled state, Gui BuGui finally moved his foot from Guan Wuming and winked at him, saying, "Go find your master. He's here to avenge you. When a child is beaten, the father will surely fight back. But if your master gets beaten, who will avenge him..."

Guan Wuming ignored the crazy Gui BuGui, walked silently to Guangxiao's back, and treated him as if he were air. After a moment, Guangxiao smiled at Gui BuGui and said, "Senior Gui, this restriction must have cost you a lot of your techniques. I wonder how much of the techniques given to you by Yan Aihou remain. Is it enough for us to spar..."

"Not much, but not too little," Gui BuGui grinned at Guangxiao and said, "I think we can hold out until the second wave of Guangren's people arrive. I'm also curious if Guangren will come. By the way, you said your disciple killed his disciple and found out that the Duanzheng Sword is not in his possession. If you were Guangren, what would you do? Such a big matter, you would have to eliminate the witness, right? Even as a Great Fangshi, you would have to do it."

As Gui BuGui spoke, Guan Wuming took a step forward, aligning himself with his master. Their intention was clear: they would join forces to deal with Gui BuGui first. The exhausted Wu Mian had no strength to fight back. Before the second wave of Guangren's people arrived, they would take Wu Mian away, find a place to hide, and slowly figure out how to extract the seed. Once the seed was refined, even if Guangren brought all the Fangshi sect members, the self-established Guangxiao would not be afraid.

However, unlike what Guan Wuming expected, Guangxiao did not seem eager to act. He chuckled and said to Gui BuGui, "Senior Gui, you have a good plan. But if someone, like Guangyi or Guangti, who are almost as powerful as a Great Fangshi, were to intercept Guangren, how long do you think they would hold him back? Do you guess why I am a bit late..."

After these words, Gui BuGui's expression changed. He rolled his eyes a few times and sighed, saying, "You went to Guangxiao and Guangti with a copy of Guangren's bamboo slips. Although you left the Fangshi sect, they still covet the position of Great Fangshi. But who will you give the Duanzheng Sword to, Guangyi, who is close to you, or Guangti, who no one dares to provoke..."

"Once you don't enter the cycle of rebirth today, you will eventually know who the next Great Fangshi will be," Guangxiao smiled at Gui BuGui and then looked at Wu Mian, who was still leaning against the tree. After a pause, he continued, "The situation is set today. I don't want to hurt our relationship. If you let us take Wu Mian, you will know who the next Great Fangshi will be..."

"Alright, I didn't expect you to team up with Guangyi and Guangti. This time, I'm one step behind..." As he spoke, Gui BuGui turned to Wu Mian and smiled bitterly, then continued, "If you were me, what would you choose?"

Wu Mian looked at the old man with a half-smile, took a deep breath, and said, "I also want to see what the cycle of rebirth is like..."

Wu Mian's reaction was as expected by Gui BuGui. The old man looked at the young man who had bullied him for years, sighed, and said, "Since it has come to this, I have one last request. If we get through this, will you speak to me nicely in the future... just words, no actions?"

"No, if we get through this, why be polite to you..."

This answer made Gui BuGui close his eyes in frustration. After a long pause, he said, "Now I understand, you plan to bully me until I die..."

As he finished speaking, the old man suddenly disappeared. At the moment of his disappearance, Guangxiao had already positioned himself in front of Guan Wuming. Just as he thought Gui BuGui had attacked, a burst of fire appeared behind them. A red-haired young man appeared behind the two, holding two measuring rods and striking Guan Wuming's back. Guan Wuming, who had been injured by Gui BuGui, barely managed to dodge the attack, but was still hit by the wind from the rods, forcing him to retreat several steps. The red-haired man swung his rods again, attacking Guan Wuming.

By the time Guangxiao noticed and turned to deal with the man, a figure appeared before him. Gui BuGui had already appeared, pouncing on him without any technique. He grabbed Guangxiao's white hair with one hand and extended two fingers to stab his eyes.

Just as Gui BuGui was about to stab Guangxiao's eyes, a white light enveloped Guangxiao's body, forcefully pushing Gui BuGui away. Guangxiao barely managed to turn the tide. Just as he was about to turn to save Guan Wuming, Gui BuGui appeared again, pouncing on him.