Ruan Lan and Li Li's expressions changed drastically. They, too, saw that the previously empty construction site was now filled with a large number of blurry figures wandering about.

The closest figure was just three meters away. They could clearly see it was a No-Face—a being with no facial features but a body structure identical to a normal person's. The entities even wore uniform black dresses. Looking down past the hems of their skirts, the women saw that these No-Faces had no feet; they were all floating in mid-air!

This eerie scene drenched all three women in a cold sweat.

"Let's go!" Ruan Lan shouted, her scalp tingling with fear. "We need to leave, now! It's not safe here."

Even as brave as Yu Xiaoxiao was, she couldn't take it anymore. She scrambled to her feet and tried to run, but all the shadowy figures on the construction site turned toward them, their gazes locking firmly onto the three women cowering in the corner. Although the No-Faces had no eyes, the women felt their icy stares land upon them like daggers.

"Run!" Ruan Lan screamed, forcing herself to bolt.

But Li Li was so terrified that her leg cramped up, making it impossible to even stand. She cried out, "Ruan Lan, Xiaoxiao, save me!"

The other two, who had already run about ten meters, didn't hesitate for a second. They spun around, hoisted their friend up, and started running together.

However, that brief delay was all it took for their escape route to be completely cut off. In every direction—front, back, left, and right—the path was now densely packed with ghastly, floating No-Faces, their long, pale hands constantly reaching for them.

SCRAPE—

A hand raked across Yu Xiaoxiao's leg, leaving a long, bloody gash. A surge of pain and fear made her kick out reflexively. But something hair-raising occurred. Her foot passed right through it, hitting nothing but air!

Instead, the nearest No-Face grabbed her leg, its neck stretching an entire meter until its blank visage was inches from Yu Xiaoxiao's. That featureless face began to twist and contort, morphing into a perfect replica of Yu Xiaoxiao's own face before letting out a chilling, "Hehehe..."

"Ahhhhh!" Yu Xiaoxiao shrieked, the whites of her eyes showing as she fainted dead away.

Glancing around at the swarm of No-Faces, all of which now wore Yu Xiaoxiao's face, Ruan Lan and Li Li were overcome with terror and fainted as well. Just as quickly, the features on the swarm of "Yu Xiaoxiaos" faded away, reverting them to blank-faced No-Faces.

SWOOSH!

With a soft sound, Duan Yan and Jiang Fu appeared before the fainted trio.

Jiang Fu's gaze swept over Ruan Lan and Yu Xiaoxiao. Smacking his lips, he said, "Not bad-looking at all. Great legs, pretty faces."

His eyes began to burn with desire, but he kept his hands to himself. The Young Master's plan was at stake. Any slip-up would mean a death with no proper burial. But if they succeeded, any kind of Supreme beauty would be theirs for the taking.

Duan Yan, however, scoffed. "Three sorry specimens. A woman under three hundred pounds has no charm whatsoever."

Jiang Fu was speechless. Elder Duan, your taste is… questionable.

Duan Yan squatted, bit his finger to draw blood, and began painting a circle around the three women, filling it with strange, arcane symbols. The runes began to flicker, mesmerizing Jiang Fu. He was puzzled but didn't dare ask any questions, fearing he might disturb Elder Duan.

A full half-hour passed before Duan Yan finally stopped. His aged face was etched with fatigue, but his eyes gleamed with excitement. He pointed at Ruan Lan and declared, "This woman's body contains a massive amount of Spiritual Energy—she's a Spiritual Body! Using her as the blood anchor for the Formation will increase its power by another thirty percent!"

Jiang Fu was overjoyed. The stronger the Formation, the greater their chances of capturing Xu Lai and Tan Chang alive.

Everything was ready. All they had to do was wait for Xu Lai to walk into their trap.

"They're here." Duan Yan's gaze turned icy as he looked toward the construction site. With a stomp of his foot, a thick Mist began to rise and swirl through the area.

「」

A black Mercedes-Benz commercial van pulled to a stop. Old Jiang Ba, Su Daiyi, and Xu Lai stepped out.

"Mr. Xu, this is the place," Su Daiyi said, instinctively hiding behind him.

Despite his age, Old Jiang Ba felt his own scalp prickle. "They're probably inside the Mist."

Xu Lai surveyed the scene with a disappointed expression. He had assumed this was the work of ghosts or ghouls, but it turned out to be nothing more than a Formation someone had set up on the construction site—and a crude one at that. To be precise, it barely even qualified as a Formation. The creator had simply used the most common type of Spiritual Energy to conjure a group of seemingly terrifying No-Faces. At best, the creatures could all detonate at once, using the burst of Spiritual Energy to attack an enemy.

But… how did Ruan Lan end up here?

Xu Lai frowned. His gaze pierced through the layers of Mist, and he saw the three unconscious women—Ruan Lan among them—lying at the heart of the Formation. He took a single step forward, entering the construction site.

Old Jiang Ba and Su Daiyi hesitated for a moment before gritting their teeth and following him in.

「」

"This Mist is powerful enough to block all sight, including the Divine Sense that only a Martial Ancestor possesses! Anyone below the Ninth Grade will lose all sense of direction within it," Duan Yan said with absolute confidence, his hands clasped behind his back. "The core of the Formation is that small, blood-colored flag. Unless the core is destroyed, no one can escape!"

Jiang Fu started to feel a flicker of doubt. In his line of sight, Old Jiang Ba and Su Daiyi were walking steadily toward the core of the Formation. And Xu Lai, who led the way, walked without the slightest hesitation. In less than thirty seconds, he was standing before Ruan Lan.

With a single kick, he sent the small, blood-red flag—which had been expertly concealed beneath the ground—flying through the air.

From hundreds of meters away, Jiang Fu asked, his expression baffled, "Elder Duan, what is…"

Duan Yan was stunned for a moment before sneering, "They just got lucky!"

Was it really just luck? Jiang Fu felt something was wrong, but after thinking it over, he couldn't come up with any other explanation. After all, an Array Master of Duan Yan's caliber was exceedingly rare in this world. How could someone like Xu Lai, who was in his twenties at most, possibly understand Formations?

"Relax. It was only the Mist that dissipated," Duan Yan said calmly. "My Formation is called the Myriad Souls Slaughter Formation! Ten thousand No-Faces detonating simultaneously generate a force comparable to the peak strike of an Eighth Grade Martial Ancestor!"

"However, since you want him captured alive, I've modified it slightly."

Duan Yan continued, "The moment Xu Lai touches any of those three girls, they will instantly turn into shriveled husks. Their blood will be completely absorbed by the Formation, which will then transform into a blood prison to capture him alive!"

Jiang Fu's expression was one of utter shock. He truly is worthy of the name Yama. The power of his Formations is completely beyond my imagination!

Still reeling in amazement, Jiang Fu asked, "Elder Duan, how would one even break a Formation like this?"

Duan Yan shot Jiang Fu a look one might give an idiot. The method to break a Formation was a secret that he, like any Array Master, would take to his grave. It was a matter of life and death, of one's very livelihood.

Jiang Fu immediately realized his slip of the tongue and quickly apologized. "Elder Duan, please forgive my indiscretion."

"Hmph." Duan Yan didn't seem to take offense, instead adding with a grin, "Now, prepare to witness a miracle. This is my proudest creation."

Jiang Fu looked on with great anticipation.

Just as Xu Lai kicked the blood-red flag away, the thick Mist covering the construction site vanished, revealing the countless No-Faces within. The sight made Su Daiyi scream. A violent shudder ran through Old Jiang Ba.

Only Xu Lai seemed not to see them at all, his gaze fixed solely on Ruan Lan.

He confirmed that his sister-in-law had suffered no injuries before letting out a sigh of relief. Then, he touched a finger to her forehead.

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