Chapter 526: Chapter 469: Surprise? No, Shock!

The calm sea surged due to nine rapidly moving figures, a strong whooshing sound piercing the air. As they flew westward, shadows continuously shifted on the dark sea surface, numbering in the dozens.

Soon, one of the shadows slowly broke through the surface, revealing a giant whale, over ten zhang in length, its massive body constantly swaying on the sea surface.

Three figures stood proudly at the head, and the Peddler glanced around, frowning slightly, "Is this all the formation we have?"

Counting up, there were only about thirty giant whales. If they let them escape again, who knows when they’d find them next.

The Endless Sea Domain was vast, and it wasn’t always easy to locate them quickly each time. The doctor still didn’t take his words seriously.

There were clearly more Puppet Beasts, yet they brought so few.

The doctor curled his lips; in fact, such a formation was no small matter already. They were just capturing someone, not attacking the Celestial Dao Sect, hardly worth deploying all forces.

Moreover, he indeed had many Puppet Beasts, but not all were such big ones!

The ones serving as his eyes included a tiny fish, a fish so small it couldn’t be any smaller, now following behind the giant whale at a speed unbefitting its size.

Fish species like these, primarily used for spying, were the most numerous, while giant fish were the least. There’s a reason for that—the resources, time, and effort required to refine such a giant whale were immense.

So the Peddler’s words left him feeling slightly slighted, what did he mean by just this formation, he was already doing his best!

"It’s enough."

He spoke with some annoyance.

The Peddler pursed his lips, inexplicably annoyed. After Han Yu’s escape, he had an uncomfortable feeling deep down.

At first, he thought it was because the other party destroyed his island, causing pent-up frustration, yet now as they were about to recapture the person, he still felt a deep unease.

This peculiar feeling lingered, unsettling him greatly.

Beside him, the doctor was full of confidence, "Just wait, and let’s give that little fellow a surprise shortly!"

The Peddler remained silent, merely staring ahead. Gradually, a light appeared in his eyes...

Soon he noticed something amiss. It wasn’t his eyes lighting up, but a dazzling light sweeping toward them with terrifying momentum.

Without thinking, he turned and retreated a li away. Duopo shuddered all over and hurriedly followed, but only the doctor was left stunned, too slow to react, finally diving into the body of the giant whale.

The light struck the whale, instantly stirring a hundred-zhang high wave, with a deafening sound resounding.

As the waves turned into drizzling rain gently descending, they finally saw nine figures quickly encircling them.

The Peddler and Duopo’s faces turned instantly sullen, and the doctor was momentarily stunned when he crawled out from the bloody hole the whale had been blasted into.

"Bastard, is this the surprise you wanted to give him?"

The Peddler couldn’t help but curse as he wiped the seawater off his face; this was a fright meant for himself.

He was supposed to find Han Yu, but instead, he found himself in someone else’s ambush.

Seeing the smile on the old Taoist’s face, the Peddler suddenly felt a deep sense of powerlessness. Damn, what a headache!

...

Han Yu was also feeling a bit exhausted at the moment.

The Artifact Spirit wore a look of disbelief, "You got lost even with a Compass?"

Yes, Han Yu was lost again, which was simply absurd, especially since he managed to get lost while holding a Compass.

Han Yu’s face was extremely dark, the veins in his hand holding the Compass bulging, yet he dared not force it, having already circled in place for nearly half a two-hour period.

He was supposed to circle to the northwest, but now he couldn’t get out. Following the Compass towards the northwest for a while, the pointer suddenly pointed southeast, a complete discrepancy.

"It might not be me walking incorrectly, or it might not even be the Compass’s fault."

After trying for so long, he gradually sensed something was off. If it was really the Compass’s fault, the situation wouldn’t be the same every time, and there’s no way he could be at fault, as he was following the Compass as well.

Which left the possibility of a problem with this stretch of sea.

A Maze Array?

Or perhaps an Illusion Array?

"Who the hell’s got nothing better to do but set up such a laborious and thankless setup in such a large sea domain."

The Artifact Spirit, too, cursed at this possibility.

Han Yu said with a weird expression, "Surely it’s someone who doesn’t want others to intrude; can you guess who it might be?"

Corpse Refining Lineage?

Or Celestial Dao Sect?

Another vexing choice, though this time Han Yu decided not to make a choice.

Whatever it was, couldn’t he just not go in?

He wouldn’t be foolish enough to think he’d run into a pushover like a split soul every time; if he encountered someone stronger, then he’d be in trouble.

"Let’s go; we’ll change direction."

Han Yu turned and flew in the opposite direction without looking back, but after a quarter of an hour, his face turned dark again.

He was lost again!

This time flying southeast, yet the Compass stubbornly showed he was flying northwest.

Stuck in a dilemma, he couldn’t advance, but neither could he retreat.

"Crazy! What’s the point of such a setup, to let people go or stop them?"

Han Yu cursed angrily; as his temper flared, a sea of flames engulfed around him, scorching everything within a li, leaving it all distorted...

...

At this moment, Liu Zongyuan watched leisurely as Splitsoul writhed on the ground. The Soul Removal Array enveloped him like a persistent sore, the pain of soul extraction tearing so excruciating it was unbearable.

In a mere instant, Splitsoul felt as if an eternity had passed; this pain only known from memory, experiencing firsthand, was a first.

The useless Splitsoul watched this embodiment expressionlessly; that bastard had always had it easy without experiencing this agony. Let him have a taste.

The result was miserable; less than a quarter of an hour later, Splitsoul surrendered.

"I confess, stop, I confess..." Splitsoul rolled as he pleaded.

"Bah, coward." The useless Splitsoul beside him spat at him, mocking as he returned the words verbatim.

This scene was more novel than obtaining intelligence from the Eighth.

How often in life did one get to witness this absurd self-tormenting spectacle, extraordinarily ridiculous.

Liu Zongyuan and the people beside him laughed heartily, not expecting the next moment for a muffled sound to echo from the sky outside.

"The Array’s been tampered with!"

Someone’s face changed.

And judging by the commotion, it wasn’t minor but grandiose. The Array being ten li away from here and reaching like this suggested an immense scene ten li beyond.

"Was it you?"

The first thought Liu Zongyuan had was to glare viciously at Splitsoul, knowing only three of them remained here, making it reasonable for Splitsoul’s other forms to rescue himself.

"Don’t wrong me!"

Splitsoul had just stopped rolling and was caught off guard, instantly claiming injustice.

"You brought me here blindfolded, how could I know the location."

This was true; regardless of which Splitsoul form was brought in, they remained exceptionally cautious, fearing exposure of the location.

Knowing this bastard had many forms, if the one here learned the location, those outside would likewise know, potentially bringing Yama Hall’s men in force to create havoc.

"Let’s go together and see!"

Liu Zongyuan’s face darkened; if not Splitsoul, then perhaps someone from Yama Hall had arrived!