Chapter 21: The Mantis and the Cicada, the Twin Evils of Spring and Autumn
"Only at the fourth layer of Qi Refining, yet he dares to wander here alone. He's truly seeking death."
"Big Brother, do we kill him?"
Not far from Gu Xiu, two figures were hidden in the shadows. One of them had drawn a bow, aiming an arrow directly at Gu Xiu's back.
These two were no ordinary bandits. One had reached the Great Perfection stage of Qi Refining, while the other was at the eighth layer. Both were powerful late-stage Qi Refining cultivators. However, their auras were chaotic and unstable, clearly indicating they had just survived a fierce battle.
In fact, the bloody scene Gu Xiu had witnessed was their handiwork.
They were Cen Chunshan and Cen Qiushan, the notorious 'Spring and Autumn Twin Evils'.
They were infamous in this region for ambushing weaker cultivators. Whether the victims were rogue cultivators, disciples of sects or major clans, or even small rchant caravans—none were spared.
Their cultivation levels weren't exceptionally high, but they were incredibly slippery, especially in escape techniques. They always targeted the weak. The mont a powerful opponent arrived, they would flee without hesitation. This made many people loathe them intensely, yet remain powerless to catch them.
Today, hearing that a Wanbao Pavilion rchant caravan was passing through, the brothers set an ambush. They managed to kill quite a few people. However, the Wanbao Pavilion was formidable. Even this small team was protected by a Foundation Establishnt cultivator.
Fortunately, the brothers had prepared well. With a surprise attack and seamless coordination, they successfully killed the early-stage Foundation Establishnt protector.
But victory ca at a cost. Both brothers were severely injured and had expended a great deal of energy. Moreover, several caravan mbers had escaped. They knew this place was not safe to linger.
However, the Wanbao Pavilion's goods were stored in a 'Wanbao Box'. Without the specific secret thod, outsiders couldn't even touch it, let alone open it.
Just as the brothers were struggling to break the box's restrictions, Gu Xiu arrived. Already as jumpy as startled birds, they hid imdiately. Only after Gu Xiu appeared did they realize he wasn't from Wanbao Pavilion but was rely a fourth-layer Qi Refining cultivator.
Faced with his younger brother's question, Cen Chunshan narrowed his eyes, observed for a mont, and finally nodded. "Kill him!"
Cen Qiushan prepared to loose his arrow, but Cen Chunshan suddenly stopped him. "Wait!"
Puzzled, Cen Qiushan followed his brother's finger. "That kid seems to have so skill; he's actually trying to undo the restrictions."
Cen Qiushan looked closely. Indeed, Gu Xiu, back turned and seemingly unaware of their presence, was writing and drawing sothing on the box. The Wanbao Box emitted faint glimrs of light, the glow weakening with each stroke.
"I never thought we'd underestimate this kid. Only at the fourth layer, yet he knows how to undo such restrictions. Could he be a talisman master?"
"Whether he's a talisman master or not doesn't matter. This gives us the chance to be the oriole behind the mantis stalking the cicada!"
"Hehehe, true. We were just worrying about how to break these restrictions when this kid shows up. Let him work hard to undo them; we'll play the oriole afterward!"
The brothers made their decision instantly. They held their fire, keeping a close watch on Gu Xiu while slowly recovering from their injuries.
However, after waiting for quite so ti, Cen Qiushan frowned. "Is this kid even capable? Why is he so slow? What if Wanbao Pavilion's people arrive before he finishes?"
"Big Brother, why don't we kill him and try to undo it ourselves? Otherwise, this kid is just wasting our ti."
"Wait a little longer," Cen Chunshan shook his head. He was anxious too, but recalling their earlier helplessness against the Wanbao Box, he suspected they wouldn't fare any better than this minor cultivator.
Still... they waited another long while.
"Big Brother, it's been so long already! I bet Wanbao Pavilion's people are getting closer!" Cen Qiushan urged again. "If we let this fool waste any more ti, we'll miss our chance!"
After all, so caravan mbers had escaped. Once reinforcents arrived, they would be dood.
"No more waiting! This idiot!" Cen Chunshan cursed, preparing to give the signal.
Cen Qiushan nocked his arrow again.
But...
"Wait!" Cen Chunshan stopped him once more.
Cen Qiushan: "???"
He looked back and saw that Gu Xiu had just undone another layer of restrictions. Imdiately after, Gu Xiu muttered softly, "Only four layers left now. Too bad my cultivation isn't high enough. If I were at the late stage of Qi Refining, it definitely wouldn't take this long."
Hmm?
Gu Xiu spoke very softly; if not for the Twin Evils' intense focus, they might not have heard him at all.
The brothers exchanged glances.
So... that fourth-layer cultivator actually knew how to undo the restrictions? He was just slow because of his low cultivation?
Then...
"If only soone could help..."
"I wonder how long before soone cos."
Gu Xiu spoke again, his words making the brothers hesitate once more.
But while they wavered, Gu Xiu stood up with a sigh. "Forget it. If I get it, it's my fortune; if I lose it, it's my fate. Ti to leave."
With that, he actually prepared to depart!
This finally made the Twin Evils lose their composure completely. After fumbling around for so long without understanding anything about the restrictions—if Gu Xiu left now, how would they ever open this Wanbao Box?
"Fellow Daoist, please wait!"
Without hesitation, Cen Chunshan leaped out, blocking Gu Xiu's path.
His sudden appearance clearly took Gu Xiu by surprise. Gu Xiu looked startled, then imdiately wary—a reaction which amused Cen Chunshan greatly.
What use is vigilance for a minor fourth-layer cultivator? I've been watching you for ages. If I hadn't revealed myself voluntarily, could you have detected ?
But Gu Xiu's reaction also confird for Cen Chunshan that the boy likely had no idea about their presence.
"Fellow Daoist, I saw you earlier trying to undo the restrictions on this box?" Cen Chunshan asked with a smile.
"This... Fellow Daoist, what business do you have?" Gu Xiu asked hesitantly.
Smiling, Cen Chunshan inquired further, "Don't worry, Fellow Daoist. I'm just passing through but overheard your muttering earlier—you need soone with higher cultivation to help undo the restrictions?"
Ti was tight; he didn't want to waste ti beating around the bush.
However, his directness made a frown appear on Gu Xiu's face. He remained silent for a mont before asking, "How do you propose we split it?"
"How to split?" Cen Chunshan smiled back. "You tell us."
" seven, you three?"
"Of course, acceptable," Cen Chunshan replied smoothly.
"You don't mind?"
"Of course I don't mind—you have the real skill, I just provide the brute force. Let’s hurry up," Cen Chunshan urged impatiently, inwardly sneering.
Seven-three split? Dream on! Once the box opens, the first thing I'll do is kill you right there! Want a share? Go ask King Yama for a share!
Gu Xiu seed oblivious to these murderous thoughts. After confirming the split, he imdiately said, "Since Fellow Daoist is here, please help out then—your spiritual power is deep, surely you can manage."
"What should I do?" Cen Chunshan asked.
"Very simple." Gu Xiu pointed towards the box, where a segnt of finger bone had sohow appeared. "Just pour all your spiritual power into this segnt of finger bone here."
"What finger bone?" Cen Chunshan was puzzled—he had studied the box earlier and hadn't seen a finger bone.
anwhile, Gu Xiu busily pointed around while casually explaining, "It appeared automatically after undoing a few layers of restriction—it’s the formation eye."
Cen Chunshan nodded, though he was sowhat puzzled why a restriction would involve a finger bone. But since the expert said so, he didn't hesitate and imdiately poured his spiritual power into it.
But...
Hmm???
Cen Chunshan was stunned. He discovered that when he poured spiritual power frantically into the bone, the energy instantly vanished like a stone sinking into the sea, completely absorbed!
This... so terrifying? Is this really part of the restriction?
"Fellow Daoist, don’t get distracted! Exert your full strength, I'm starting to undo the restrictions now!" Gu Xiu spoke up tily.
Helpless, Cen Chunshan could only obey, frantically pouring spiritual energy into the finger bone, afraid that not using enough strength would hinder progress.
But... using spiritual energy so frantically caused his originally depleted reserves to bottom out instantly.
If Gu Xiu hadn't genuinely kept undoing restrictions right before his eyes—even undoing two more layers—Cen Chunshan might have suspected the boy was fooling around.
Even so, he couldn't hold on much longer. "Fellow Daoist, not done yet?"
"Wait a bit longer, your spiritual power is still insufficient. Fellow Daoist must not hesitate now, otherwise, everything will fail!" Gu Xiu replied firmly.
These words made Cen Chunshan grit his teeth—his spiritual energy was almost gone!
"You wait!"
Cen Chunshan imdiately took out a handful of spirit stones from his storage ring. Gritting his teeth, he started recovering, then took out a bottle of pills, gulping down mouthfuls.
Since the minor cultivator said so, even if he couldn't hold on, he must grit his teeth and persevere! Once the box opened, all resources would belong to him anyway! Not a loss!
However, he didn't notice that during his actions, Gu Xiu glanced an extra ti at his storage ring...
Fortunately, hard work pays off. After persevering until his spiritual energy was nearly depleted again, the flickering restrictions were finally undone!
As the restrictions fell, Cen Chunshan's face revealed a triumphant smile, looking towards Gu Xiu with a gaze full of mockery.
But surprisingly, Gu Xiu turned back and looked towards him too, his face revealing the exact sa smile...
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