Chapter 154 Picking Up a Bargain

Lu Yuan had told Gao Wu that he would follow behind to watch over him.

Gao Wu had no idea where Lu Yuan was. A Yin spirit was capable of perceiving spiritual light and the aura of Source Force, but anyone who had reached the level of a Martial Master could seal their own aura, which was more than enough to shield themselves from the observation of a Yin spirit.

This was a new discovery Gao Wu had made concerning Rama and his companions; it was only when the opposing party had closed in to a very short distance that he sensed something was amiss.

That perception stemmed from the intuition of the Qilin Divine Hero Incantation, and only afterward did his Yin spirit pinpoint their exact location.

A distance of less than two hundred meters was practically face-to-face for Martial Masters.

He might have had a chance to escape relying on the mechanical warhorse, but the enemy's ranged attack was truly terrifying. A single thunderous blow instantly blasted the mechanical warhorse into scrap metal.

Gao Wu had initially thought Lu Yuan wasn't following, but now he was praying for Lu Yuan to arrive quickly. If he didn't, both he and little Song would be done for.

"Using spiritual power to shield one's own aura doesn't look all hard..."

Observing the three enemies closely with his Yin spirit, Gao Wu instantly grasped the secret behind masking their auras: all three of them compressed their spiritual energy into a tiny domain, minimizing any leakage of their aura.

Gao Wu felt that such a technique should not be difficult; in essence, it was still about drawing one's externalized Martial Avatar inward.

Realizing this now, however, was a bit too late!

The Qilin Divine Hero Incantation could sense misfortune and fortune, but it only provided a warning a few seconds in advance, which was rather annoying...

"If Master Lu doesn't come, we'll split up and go our separate ways. They are after me, so splitting up gives us a chance..."

At this critical moment, Gao Wu's mind remained exceptionally clear. He had no idea how Rama had managed to track him down, though he figured it must be some sort of special tracking technique.

In any case, this was definitely no chance encounter. In such a vast expanse of land, how could they possibly stumble upon several Martial Masters by sheer coincidence?

It was true that Martial Masters could conceal their auras, but the moment they made a move, their Source Force reactions would be exposed immediately; there was simply no hiding it.

Rama and the others had maintained their ambush and remained completely still, clearly targeting him from the start.

Song Minyue gave a rare shake of her head in refusal, clutching Gao Wu's hand tightly to convey her unwavering determination never to give up.

"Fine, then we'll live and die together as a pair of ill-fated mandarin ducks..." Gao Wu had not expected the usually calm little Song to be so unyielding. Instead, he smiled, reached out, and pinched her cheek. "You are truly beautiful!"

Song Minyue did not reply; she simply summoned the Frost Moon Sword to full power.

Her resolve was as firm as iron; even faced with hopeless despair, she would fight with all her might.

Gao Wu felt a stirring of emotion. Perhaps due to the awakening of his past life memories, his mind raced with countless thoughts at this juncture of life and death.

Since little Song refused to leave, there was nothing to do except fight to the bitter end!

Gao Wu drew the Mandate Sword while simultaneously tossing out a flash grenade. This specially crafted flash grenade ignited and illuminated rapidly under high-speed friction, blooming into a brilliant flare in the night sky.

Before the thrown incendiary bomb could ascend into the air, it was shattered by a projectile, bursting violently into a ball of flame at a height of seven or eight meters.

Rama, accompanied by two human martial powerhouses, had closed in at high speed. Their target was Gao Wu, and they had no time to waste exchanging idle chatter with him.

There were still several Martial Grandmasters in this area, and time was precious.

The warrior charging at the very front wore deep black armor. Judging by its style, it was clearly a biochemical armor crafted by human technology, completely different from Rama's innate exoskeleton shell.

This warrior was tall and sturdy, wielding a long sword. As he moved up and down, he possessed a dragon-like agility and flexibility, evidently practicing a cultivation technique belonging to the Nine Dragon Forms.

The other warrior was relatively slender, also clad in full-body armor, with a pair of upright goat horns on his helmet and a row of short spears strapped to his back, looking very much like an expert proficient in throwing.

The bug-man Rama brought up the rear, his pace unhurried and steady.

Suddenly, a piercing screech tore through the air. Zheng Ming, the divine priest charging at the front, couldn't help but startle. He looked up to see a deep blue streak of light plunging from the sky like a shooting star.

In the center of the deep blue meteor was precisely a martial powerhouse clad in armor and wielding a spear—no, it was the Martial Grandmaster Lu Yuan!

Zheng Ming was horrified; Lu Yuan had arrived far too quickly!

The bug-man Rama barked in a low voice, "You can't run! Pin him down, and I'll kill Gao Wu!"

Yang Mu, the other divine priest, nodded. The two of them joining forces might be able to hold off Lu Yuan; if they couldn't, it would come down to whoever had the good fortune to escape with their life.

Entering this pre-set battle zone prepared by the enemy, they were naturally well aware of the risks involved. Yet Lu Yuan had arrived so swiftly that all three of them were caught off guard, leaving them unable to retreat even if they wanted to.

One could only say that Lu Yuan had seized the timing to absolute perfection; he must have been trailing right behind Gao Wu all along.

In truth, Rama didn't care much about Gao Wu—a minor martial artist with some fame among humans. He couldn't quite understand why the High Priest cared about Gao Wu at all.

As an alien, he didn't care much for the human High Priest's plans either. However, since he needed human assistance in this world, he had no choice but to cooperate with the scheme.

It was by locking onto Gao Wu's life aura from their previous encounter that Rama had been able to track him down amidst the vast wilderness.

Now it seemed the opponent also understood Gao Wu's significance and used him as bait. It was a thoroughly simple and straightforward strategy, yet exceptionally effective!

Yang Mu drew two short spears and hurled them fiercely at Lu Yuan. Lightning blazed across the short spears like a bolt slashing across the sky as he unleashed every ounce of his Source Force.

When he had bombarded the warhorse earlier, he had held back, fearing he might skewer Gao Wu to death with a single strike. Facing Lu Yuan, however, he burned his acupuncture points and unleashed the God Lord's secret arts to their utmost.

His cultivation realm was that of a Martial Master; relying on divine arts to burst forth with Source Force, he was nearly comparable to Lu Yuan, with the only gap lying in their martial realm.

Lu Yuan, plummeting like a meteor, gave his spear a shake, and the short spears shooting forth like flashes of lightning were blasted away.

Both Yang Mu and Zheng Ming felt their hearts sink; Lu Yuan's response was far too composed. The situation was looking ominous!

Abandoning all other thoughts, Yang Mu drew another two short spears and hurled them directly at Gao Wu. Fearing that Rama was moving too slowly, he decided it was safer to handle the matter himself.

Blazing electrical arcs flashed through the air, and with the distance between them being merely a few dozen meters, the two short spears shot right before Gao Wu in the blink of an eye.

The intense lightning crackling on the short spears illuminated Gao Wu's heroic face, as well as the brilliant green light shining within his pupils.

The lightning-charged short spears suddenly experienced a slight, momentary lag.

The Mandate Sword in Gao Wu's hand gave a soft hum, slicing left and right with precision to strike both short spears. Sparks showered and lightning burst as the Source Force fluctuations on the short spears were shattered. They grazed past Gao Wu's body, piercing consecutively through multiple massive trees with a deafening roar...

Yang Mu was stunned. Gao Wu had actually managed to ward off his thrown spears! Although aided by a psychokinetic master, it was still utterly incredible.

Before Yang Mu could make another move, the spear in Lu Yuan's hand had already thrust right before his face. Yang Mu once again unleashed his divine art, the light of his Source Force blazing fiercely around his body. He drew two short spears to meet Lu Yuan head-on.

The three spears clashed together. Yang Mu's dual spears were violently forced open by an inch, while the long spear in Lu Yuan's hand darted forward like a striking snake, its dark blue triangular spearhead sinking directly into Yang Mu's chest.

Yang Mu's armor was pierced as easily as thin paper, and his flesh and blood were completely skewered by that single thrust.

Having his bodily structure ruined, Yang Mu was even less capable of withstanding the high-frequency Source Force vibrating along the dark blue spearhead; his upper body exploded instantly into a mist of blood.

With a single exchange, Lu Yuan had run Yang Mu through with his spear.

The Martial Grandmaster Lu Yuan thoroughly displayed the profound heights of his martial realm at this moment. Although their levels of Source Force seemed roughly comparable, their understanding of combat was simply on completely different planes.

Such divine might filled Zheng Ming, who had turned back to offer reinforcements, with terror, and his pace naturally slowed down.

Lu Yuan paid Zheng Ming no mind whatsoever. Channeling his armor's Source Force vibration, he surged toward Rama in a flash.

Rama had anticipated this long ago. Facing the straight-thrusting spear, he threw a punch directly forward.

The deep blue spear as dynamic as a soaring dragon danced through the air, its blade bypassing Rama's fist to pierce straight for his chest. This simple yet marvelous transition left Gao Wu's eyes blazing with excitement; this move was clearly the "Overwhelming Dragon Crossing the River" variation from the Nine Dragon Forms.

The Overwhelming Dragon Crossing the River was both powerful and fierce, yet it was not a rigid, head-on charge; rather, it was executed with the fluid, shifting agility of a twisting dragon body.

The spear in Grandmaster Lu Yuan's hand turned into a dragon—truly marvelous! Gao Wu had previously considered his own martial cultivation to be quite good, but now it seemed he still fell far short.

It was only because his foundational aptitude had been enhanced that he could comprehend Lu Yuan's technical variations and truly understand the fight.

The bug-man Rama, however, was far stronger than Yang Mu. He pulled his chest back, stepping back while simultaneously whipping his arm with explosive force, managing to bat the spear away just as the blade was about to pierce his chest armor.

This clash of Source Force erupted in a tremendous roar.

Leveraging the recoil from their collision, Rama shot backward like an arrow released from a bowstring. Lu Yuan gave his spear a shake to neutralize the shockwave and followed up with another thrust.

This spear thrust truly resembled a heavenly dragon extending its giant claws from above the nine heavens, possessing an all-encompassing might, speed, and ferocity.

Rama had not expected Lu Yuan to be able to execute another Source Force transition so quickly; his eyes widened abruptly, capturing every ripple of Lu Yuan's Source Force fluctuations within his vision.

"I can't dodge it!" Making his judgment without hesitation, Rama brought his hands together to grip the spear blade and shaft from front and back.

As the humming spear vibrated and twisted, Rama's fists were instantly pulverized, and the spear lunged forward smoothly, its blade piercing a massive gaping hole right through Rama's chest.

Yet Rama retreated rapidly along with the spear, the light and flame of his Source Force blazing as he forcibly suppressed the shockwave of Source Force vibrating from the weapon.

Just as Lu Yuan was preparing to exert his full strength to finish off Rama once and for all, he noticed Zheng Ming turning tail to flee, sprinting over a hundred meters away in the blink of an eye.

The wilderness terrain was complex; if that fellow truly managed to run far away, it would become troublesome to pursue him.

Although Rama was severely injured, he was not yet dead, though he no longer posed an immediate threat. Lu Yuan immediately gripped his spear and gave chase to Zheng Ming.

Lu Yuan, clad in his biochemical armor, was capable of flight; truly swift as lightning, he closed the distance on Zheng Ming in an instant.

The severely wounded Rama seized the fleeting opportunity to catch his breath. Glancing at Gao Wu not far away, he ultimately abandoned the notion of cutting him down—right now, keeping his own life and escaping took priority.

At that very moment, Gao Wu had already raised the Golden Thunder Hawk and fired continuously at Rama. With the distance between them being merely a few dozen meters, eighteen consecutive rounds blasted toward Rama within a mere 0.1 second.

Lacking both hands, Rama could only stimulate his Source Force field to withstand the bullet barrage. Just as he was about to ignore Gao Wu and turn to flee, a radiant sword wheel came slashing through the air with a piercing screech.

Rama once again churned his Source Force, batting away the spinning sword wheel.

Right then, the Yin spirit arrived, gripping a sword imbued with the eighth-layer Vermilion Bird Divine Light Incantation, now burning with a brilliant crimson glow as it slashed fiercely down toward Rama.

The speed of the sword-controlling Yin spirit reached two hundred meters per second. Rama had no way to dodge and could only muster his Source Force field once more for defense.

The searing high temperature on the blade caused the Source Force field to shimmer and distort, yet in the end, it still failed to pierce through Rama's protective field.

A thought flashed through Gao Wu's mind, and the Yin spirit shifted from a slash to a thrust. The crimson blade transformed into a single streak of flame, violently piercing straight into the Source Force field and deep into the center of Rama's widening eyes.

Where the crimson blade passed, half of Rama's head was instantly carbonized...

The bug-man Martial Master was thus slain by the sword-controlling Yin spirit.

Lu Yuan, who had just finished off Zheng Ming, happened to witness this scene and could not help but reveal a trace of astonishment.

Gao Wu raised a hand in a beckoning gesture, and the crimson blade spun through the air to fly back into its scabbard.

As Lu Yuan approached, Gao Wu cupped his fists with a solemn expression and said, "Many thanks, Master Lu, for saving my life!"

Lu Yuan looked Gao Wu up and down, remarking, "To be able to kill a bug-man Martial Master—not bad at all!"

"I just took advantage of Master Lu's opening, hehe..." Gao Wu chuckled with an honest grin.