The Extreme Alchemist of the Mighty Cauldron - Chapter 183
Chapter 183: Chapter 183: The Last Resort
Translator: 549690339
Atop the White Elephant Mountain, Fang Lin and the others were constantly running towards the peak, with a dozen or so black-clad men fiercely chasing after them not far behind.
As Fang Lin ran, he tossed jade bottles filled with poison smoke behind him. Acquired over time, his stash of poison was plentiful. In face of imminent danger, regardless of whether he wished to parts with the poison or not, his own survival was paramount.
The poison smoke indeed had some effect. Despite the formidable skills of the black-clad men, they were not immune to all forms of poison. Inhaling the smoke would surely spell doom for them.
With the hindrance of the poison smoke, the black-clad men were unable to catch up with Fang Lin and the others instantaneously. However, the distance between the two sides was still progressively being closed.
Looking over his shoulder, Fang Lin inwardly cursed. Only heaven knew where these black-clad men sprouted out from. To have the audacity to pose such a threat on Purple Mist Sect’s territory was a clear disregard of the sect.
However, such thoughts were futile under the current circumstance. Their relentless pursuit implied their intent of silencing any potential leak of information, most likely due to their fear of being exposed by the Purple Mist Sect.
If Fang Lin were alone, his abilities would have allowed him to escape this predicament a long time ago.
However, he had a group of disciples from the Pill Sect trailing behind. It was impossible for Fang Lin to abandon them and look out only for his own survival. What would he become if he did that?
“If you don’t want to die, then run for your lives!” Fang Lin bellowed. Several exhausted Pill Sect disciples immediately gritted their teeth, trying their best to keep from being left behind.
While Dugu Nian ran, she looked back from time to time. Unlike the others, she didn’t show fear and instead seemed to find the chase thrilling.
“Fang Lin, can Elder Dong and Elder Xu come up and save us?” A panting young man asked.
Fang Lin barely spared him a glance, replying, “Things aren’t looking good for them. I reckon they must have been killed by now.”
Upon hearing this, a chill ran down everyone’s spine. Their faces were filled with terror and despair.
If even the two elders were killed, how then could they survive?
The group was now placing their hopes on Fang Lin. His calm composed expression offered them a flicker of reassurance.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Several flashes of cold light materialized aiming directly at the Pill Sect disciples at the rear. Two disciples were struck in the back by flying daggers, piercing their hearts.
With a cry of agony, the two men fell to the ground. At the sight of this, everyone gasped in fear.
“Keep moving!” Fang Lin ushered them on. The two disciples pierced by daggers were beyond saving. There was no point in wasting precious time on them.
With the deaths of the two companions, a shadow fell across the group’s hearts. They ran uphill with all their might. No one wanted to be the next target of the flying daggers.
Finally, the group reached the mountainside without pause. It was littered with arrays, potentially able to hold back the black-clad men.
However, Fang Lin knew that the common arrays would only provide temporary respite. Relying on them for survival was certainly a lost cause.
As expected, though the black-clad men were momentarily detained by an array, they immediately retaliated and demolished it.
In less than the span of a tea ceremony, the array was destroyed and the black-clad men resumed their chase.
Fortunately, due to the actions of the woman who had triggered all the arrays on the mountain, the black-clad men kept encountering them. Meanwhile, Fang Lin and the others, being unaffected by the arrays, slowly disappeared from open view.
At the foot of the mountain, an old man and a young woman surveyed the bodies lying on the ground. The woman couldn’t help but feel an pang of pity, though the old man seemed nu-phased.
“Who are these people?” The woman abruptly asked. The black-clad men were summoned by the old man, but she had no idea who they were.
The old man spared her a look before shaking his head, “You don’t have to know. ”
Staring at the old man, the woman asked again, “Who are they, really?”
With a sigh, the old man replied: “Telling you would bring you nothing but misery. Now that the nuisances are gone, you can take what you came for.”
Seeing the old man’s refusal to disclose the identities of the black-clad individuals, she turned and headed towards the White Elephant Mountain.
The old man followed slowly but surely behind her.
The woman was swift, moving like a spirit monkey. Despite the old man’s seemingly slow and heavy steps, he was never left behind.
On the mountain, the woman and the old man came upon two bodies of Pill Sect disciples. They also spotted a few black-clad men, incapacitated by the poison smoke.
The black-clad men seemed to be in no immediate danger. They were just paralyzed momentarily by the poison.
Hesitant, the woman attempted to remove the masks from the faces of the black-clad men, only to be stopped by the old man.
“If you see their faces, their fate is sealed. Moreover, you’ll attract big troubles,” the old man warned her seriously.
The woman, having never seen the old man this stern before, paused her hand.
“Let’s move on.” The old man shook his head, proceeding further to the mountain peak.
Meanwhile, Fang Lin and the others had reached the peak. They were at a dead-end with the black-clad men encircling them from down the mountain. The situation was so dire that there was neither an avenue towards heaven nor any to duck underground.
“Fang Lin, what should we do?” The group was at a complete loss, their hopes resting on Fang Lin.
Looking at these terrified Pill Sect disciples, Fang Lin sighed inwardly. These people hadn’t experienced such turbulence before. He had already done his part by leading them this far.
“Stay calm, everyone. Stand around that white elephant and do not touch it,” Fang Lin commanded.
The group was confused. They didn’t understand what the point of standing around the stone statue was. Could the statue actually save them?
Seeing them stand idly, Fang Lin got irritated. He roared, “If you don’t want to die, then do as I say. Move over there!”
Dugu Nian was the first to go behind the stone statue. The other Pill Sect disciples then congregated around it, forming a circle.
Fang Lin stood in the circle as well. Just then, black-clad men emerged from all directions, coldly sizing up Fang Lin and his companions, reminiscent of vicious beasts preparing for a hunt.
Fang Lin took a deep breath. Pushed to such a state, he was left with no choice but to gamble with the stone statue, hoping that it would perform as he hypothesised.
As the black-clad men charged towards them, at the moment everyone was petrified, Fang Lin slapped the stone statue.
Boom!!
A deafening rumble resonated, making their ears ring as though they were standing next to a thunderclap.
Suddenly, the stone statue radiated a dazzling white light, and under the radiant glow, a giant white elephant materialized..
