The Legend of the Princess' Counterattack

Chapter 381 A New Crisis Emerges

Yun Yao and Chu Mochen were still immersed in the joy of breaking through the Nascent Soul Realm, and the whole sect was also jubilant because of the advancement of their strength. The disciples gathered around them, their eyes full of admiration and envy, asking them for advice on cultivation, looking forward to reaching such a realm one day. The elders were also pleased and nodded in praise. In their eyes, Yun Yao and Chu Mochen had become the mainstay of the sect's future rise.

On this day, the sun was shining brightly and the breeze was blowing gently. Yun Yao and Chu Mochen came to the quiet valley behind the sect. With birds singing and flowers blooming, and the springs gurgling, it was their favorite place to rest on weekdays. The two walked side by side by the stream, sharing their insights after the breakthrough and planning their future cultivation path.

"Yun Yao, now that we have entered the Nascent Soul stage, our control over spiritual power has become more sophisticated, and many of the previously obscure techniques can now be mastered. I think that if we retreat for a while longer, we may be able to take our strength to a higher level." Chu Mochen's eyes were shining, revealing his desire for a higher realm.

Yun Yao smiled and nodded, a strand of hair fluttering in the wind. She raised her hand and gently brushed it behind her ear, saying, "I feel the same way. The speed at which the Yuanying Realm absorbs the spiritual energy of heaven and earth is much faster than that of the Judan Realm. It feels like every time I practice, I gain something new. However, the sect is developing rapidly now, and as core disciples, we have to worry about the sect's affairs."

While they were talking, a black shadow suddenly flashed across the sky at an extremely fast speed, disappearing in the blink of an eye. The two of them were instantly alert and looked at each other with vigilance in their eyes.

"What was that just now?" Yun Yao frowned, her beautiful eyes full of confusion.

"I'm not sure, but he is not friendly, so we have to be careful." Chu Mochen's expression was grim, and his right hand subconsciously grasped the sword at his waist.

They immediately used their spiritual power to chase in the direction where the shadow disappeared. However, the shadow seemed to be very familiar with the terrain here, turning left and right, and soon disappeared. Yun Yao and Chu Mochen searched the area for a long time, but found nothing, so they had to return to the sect with doubts in their hearts.

After returning to the sect, strange things happened one after another. First, a disciple heard an inexplicable eerie sound while patrolling at night, as if it came from the underworld, which was creepy. But when everyone rushed to check, they found nothing. Then, a large number of precious spiritual plants in the sect's spiritual plant garden withered for no reason. The disciples in charge of taking care of them were so anxious that they burst into tears. They cried and said that they had not slacked off at all, and they really didn't know why this happened.

Yun Yao and Chu Mochen felt even more uneasy after hearing these things. They knew that behind these seemingly scattered anomalies, there must be a huge crisis hidden. The two took the initiative to find the head of the sect and reported everything they had seen and heard in recent days.

The head of the sect frowned and looked solemn. He paced back and forth in the hall for a long time before he spoke: "This matter is very strange. Our sect has developed rapidly in recent years. I am afraid that it has attracted the covetousness of some unscrupulous people. The two of you have greatly increased your strength now. You are the hope of the sect. You must be more careful."

Yun Yao and Chu Mochen followed the order and decided to start the investigation from the mysterious black shadow. Relying on their memories, they carefully searched for clues around where the black shadow disappeared. One day, in front of a hidden cave, Chu Mochen found some weak spiritual power fluctuations.

"Yun Yao, look here." Chu Mochen waved his hand to signal Yun Yao to come over.

Yun Yao squatted down and sensed it carefully. After a moment, her face changed slightly: "This spiritual power fluctuation is very strange. It doesn't seem to be left by a righteous technique. It seems to have been distorted by some evil force."

The two walked into the cave carefully. It was dark and damp, and filled with a foul smell. The walls were flickering with green phosphorescence, like will-o'-the-wisp. They moved cautiously, alert to the dangers that might appear at any time.

Deep in the cave, they found some messy footprints and some strange runes. These runes twisted and swirled, emitting a disgusting aura. Yun Yao tried to decipher them, but felt dizzy.

"Don't force it to interpret. This rune seems to contain an evil mental shock." Chu Mochen hurriedly supported Yun Yao and said with concern.

At this moment, a sinister laugh echoed in the cave: "You are here, you fools who have walked into our trap!"

The two men drew their swords in an instant and looked around, but saw no one.

"You coward, if you have the guts, show up and fight!" Chu Mochen shouted angrily.

The laughter became more and more crazy, and then, a black mist came from all directions and enveloped them. It seemed as if countless wronged souls were wailing in the mist, which shook people's minds.

Yun Yao and Chu Mochen hurriedly circulated their spiritual power to form a protective light shield to resist the erosion of the fog. They stood back to back, alert to the unknown enemy.

Suddenly, a black shadow came out of the mist at high speed, heading straight for Yun Yao's throat. Chu Mochen was quick-witted and swung his sword to block it, sparks flying everywhere. The black shadow flashed and disappeared into the mist again.

"What kind of strange martial arts is this?" Yun Yao asked gritting her teeth, holding the sword tightly in her hand, and spiritual power surging.

"No matter what it is, we must not let him succeed today." Chu Mochen's eyes were firm and resolute.

The two used all their skills to deal with the black shadow in the fog. Yun Yao's swordsmanship was agile, like a dancing fairy, and the fog was pushed back a little wherever her sword moved; Chu Mochen's swordsmanship was fierce, and every sword had the power to split mountains and rocks. The black fog made a "sizzling" sound under his sword, as if it was burned.

However, the black shadow was extremely difficult to deal with. It always managed to avoid their attacks at critical moments and launch surprise attacks from time to time, making it difficult for them to deal with them.

Just as Yun Yao and Chu Mochen were gradually running out of strength, the black shadow suddenly stopped attacking and the mist slowly dissipated. A man in a black robe appeared in front of them. His face was covered by the black robe, so his face could not be seen clearly, but the evil aura emanating from him was chilling.

"Humph, today I am only giving you a small warning." The black-robed man's voice was hoarse, as if it were frosted. "You two don't know how to live or die. You have repeatedly ruined my plans. Now you have broken through to the Nascent Soul stage. You can't stay."

Yun Yao glared at him: "Who are you? Why are you going against my sect?"

The black-robed man laughed harshly. "It's okay to tell you that I am the emissary of the Shadow Cult. Your sect has become more and more famous in recent years, blocking our sect's path to dominating the world of cultivation. Naturally, we must get rid of you as soon as possible. Especially the two of you, you are gifted. If you grow up, you will become a great threat to our sect."

After that, the man in black robe turned into a black shadow again and disappeared. Yun Yao and Chu Mochen sat on the ground, gasping for breath. They knew that an unprecedented crisis had arrived.

After returning to the sect, the two reported their encounter to the sect leader and elders. When they heard the name of the Shadow Cult, their faces changed drastically. The sect leader sighed and said, "The Shadow Cult has been lurking in the dark in the cultivation world for many years, acting in secret and with cruel methods. I didn't expect that it would now point its spearhead at us."

An elder said worriedly, "I heard that the Shadow Cult is good at bewitching people and practicing evil techniques. They have many disciples and their strength should not be underestimated. This time they have targeted Yun Yao and Chu Mochen, and I'm afraid they will not stop until they achieve their goal."

Yun Yao stood up, his eyes firm: "Master, elders, now that things have come to this, we can't just sit there and wait for death. Since they took the initiative to provoke us, we will fight with all our strength."

Chu Mochen also stood up and echoed, "Yun Yao is right. Although we know that the Shadow Cult is difficult to deal with, we must not retreat for the sake of our sect and the peace of the cultivation world."

The head of the sect looked at them, his eyes full of relief and determination: "Okay, in that case, from today on, the sect will be on alert. Yun Yao, Chu Mochen, the two of you go and rest first, recover your spiritual power, and we will discuss countermeasures later."

Yun Yao and Chu Mochen returned to their residence, but they had no intention of resting. They knew that the Shadow Cult was coming with such force that the days ahead would be filled with dangers. Yun Yao sat in front of the window, looking at the night sky outside. The stars were twinkling, but her heart was filled with gloom.

"Chu Mochen, do you think we can survive this crisis?" Yun Yao asked softly, with a hint of fatigue and worry in her voice.

Chu Mochen walked up to her, held her hand, and said softly, "We can do it. We have come all the way, through so many hardships and obstacles, and we have made it through. Although the Shadow Cult is strong, we are not without a chance of winning. As long as we work together and the whole sect is united, we will be able to protect the sect."

Yun Yao felt the warmth in her hands and nodded slightly: "Yes, you are right. We can't be afraid, there are still many people who need our protection."

In the next few days, the sect was busy. The disciples stepped up patrols and set up various defensive formations; the elders studied the characteristics of the Shadow Cult's skills in seclusion, trying to find a way to crack it. Yun Yao and Chu Mochen were also busy. While they were recovering their spiritual power, they ran around to collect information that might be useful in fighting against the Shadow Cult.

One day, Yun Yao was looking up ancient books in the sect's library when she accidentally found a book that had been sealed for a long time. The book had yellowed pages and exuded an ancient atmosphere. It recorded some ways to deal with evil forces. One of the records mentioned that in the depths of the distant Sunset Mountains, there was a strange fruit called "Lingxi Holy Fruit". After taking it, one could temporarily increase spiritual power and had a miraculous effect in resisting the erosion of evil techniques.

Yun Yao's eyes lit up and she hurried to find Chu Mochen and told him about it.

"Sunset Mountains? I heard that place is extremely dangerous. Not only are there powerful monsters, but there are also various natural traps." Chu Mochen frowned and said worriedly.

"I know, but the situation is critical now. This Lingxi Holy Fruit may be a great help to us. As long as it can improve our strength, no matter how great the danger is, it is worth a try." Yun Yao's eyes were firm and decisive.

Chu Mochen thought for a moment and nodded, "Okay, since you've decided, I'll go with you. But we have to be fully prepared."

The two found the headmaster and told him their intention. Although the headmaster was worried about their safety, he also knew the importance of the Lingxi Holy Fruit, so he agreed to their request and arranged for several elders to accompany them for protection.

After everything was ready, Yun Yao, Chu Mochen and several elders set out on the journey to the Sunset Mountains. Along the way, they were careful to avoid the territories of many monsters. But the closer they got to the depths of the Sunset Mountains, the more dangers there were.

One day, they were attacked by a group of flying blood bats. These blood bats were blood red, had sharp fangs, and were extremely fast. They came in overwhelming numbers. Yun Yao, Chu Mochen and others hurriedly used their spiritual power to resist. For a moment, light flashed and sword energy was everywhere. Although the blood bats suffered countless casualties, they were fearless and still rushed forward frantically.

An elder was accidentally bitten by a blood bat and his face turned pale instantly. Seeing this, Yun Yao quickly offered a talisman, which turned into a light shield that enveloped everyone and temporarily blocked the blood bat's attack.

"Elder, how are you?" Yun Yao asked with concern.

The elder endured the pain and shook his head, saying, "It's okay, but the blood bat is extremely poisonous. We must find an antidote as soon as possible."

Chu Mochen looked around and found a patch of purple flowers not far away. He remembered that it was a purple spirit flower, which was effective in curing blood bat poison. Without saying a word, he rushed over to pick it. But just as he approached the flowers, the ground suddenly collapsed and a huge trap appeared.

"Chu Mochen!" Yun Yao exclaimed and rushed over anxiously.

Fortunately, Chu Mochen reacted quickly, used his spiritual power to stabilize his body in time, and flew back. After a thrilling battle, they finally repelled the blood bats and found a safe place to detoxify the elder.

After many hardships, they finally arrived deep in the Sunset Mountains. In a hidden valley, Yun Yao felt the scent of the Lingxi Holy Fruit.

"It's right there!" Yun Yao pointed excitedly to the depths of the valley.

Everyone quickened their pace, but before they could get close, a huge guardian beast emerged from the ground. This guardian beast was shaped like a unicorn, with flames all over its body, majestic and awe-inspiring, with a pair of big copper bell eyes glaring at everyone and making a deafening roar.

"This is the Flame Scale Beast, its strength is equivalent to the peak of the late Nascent Soul stage, everyone be careful!" an elder exclaimed.

Yun Yao and Chu Mochen looked at each other with determination in their eyes. They simultaneously activated their spiritual power and rushed towards the Flame Scale Beast, and a thrilling battle began...