Chu Qingcheng gave him a long look and smiled, "I know your style so save it. You've been in the Luo clan for so many years and not once have you used your evil tendencies on them."
"Zhuo Fan, she has you down pat. Now that she mentions it, you never were mean to your people in the sect either. I can see why you are with her… ha-ha-ha, so you must be close."
Fiend Yang looked from Chu Qingcheng to Zhuo Fan with a knowing smile.
Zhuo Fan's face fell, glared at Fiend Yang, and then said, "Desperate times call for desperate measures. Staying any longer will lead to our doom. It's better we leave at once!"
"What about young master and the elders? We can't just leave them!" Shui Ruohua cried.
Fiend Yang mocked her for the idiot she was, "Stay here and let the guy play you like a fiddle. While leaving will make him sour and force his hand. We'll draw him out, turning the tables. If you can't see even this logic, Mystical Heaven Sect is hopeless."
Shui Ruohua lowered her flushed face.
Fight fire with fire, in this case, demonic cultivators against demonic cultivators. [They have more experience and should listen to them.]
Shui Ruohua cupped her hands, "I leave it all to you."
"Then let's…"
Sss~
Sizzling cut off Zhuo Fan's words as the fog slipped in through the cracks everywhere he looked, like a demon's claw, ready to maim.
Everyone flustered and jumped back, looking apprehensive.
"W-what about the barrier? How did the fog slip in?" Shui Ruohua turned to Zhuo Fan.
She found this man the only one reliable here, despite being a stranger.
Zhuo Fan explained, "Didn't the rest get taken at night?"
"Yes!" Shui Ruohua replied.
Zhuo Fan sighed, "The guy wants to take initiative, taking us all before leaving."
"What?!"
"Why then, is it in the evening, it's not the right time…" Zhuo Fan mulled, "Have any of your disciples been captured lately?"
Shui Ruohua frowned and shook her head, "No, not since we set up the barrier."
"Ha-ha-ha, the guy is brilliant. You saw it yourself, your barrier is useless. He had his own reasons for staying his hands so far." Zhuo Fan's eyes sharpened, "Did any disciples vanish while you had the elder tied up?"
Shui Ruohua pondered, "You're right, there were none. Does that mean it's the old man's doing and not the youth's?"
"What utter nonsense. The elder could have snapped your necks at any time."
Zhuo Fan sighed, "The guy must've been afraid of the elder, but that variable is now gone and he's free to act."
Shui Ruohua and the rest were speechless. Never for the life of them would've concluded the same guy they had tied up was their lucky charm, and now the charm just flew out the door.
[If only we knew, we'd have treated the mister with respect. How can we be so blind?]
Shui Ruohua's gang was wallowing in self-pity.
Zhuo Fan picked up on it at a glance. He turned to the encroaching fog with a frown, "What's done is done. Stop feeling sorry for yourselves and get upstairs. We need to put some distance from the fog."
Zhuo Fan pulled Chu Qingcheng's exquisitely soft hand and was first to go.
Chu Qingcheng gave him a look and let him take her fine hand with a brilliant smile.
[He's always cold to me, but at least he has me in his heart…]
"Steward Zhuo, w-what about us?" The rest followed after him.
Almost all, since Kui Lang's gang was stiff as a board, they had a pretty tough time moving with any grace. He watched the incoming fog like a beast's maw, ready to tear into him.
Kui Gang and Yue'er pleaded, "Master, can you release our poison until this is over?"
The fiends nodded.
The situation was grave and they had no time to dally with training.
Zhuo Fan thought, scoffed, "Ha-ha-ha, release you? My word is golden, and nothing in the world will ever change that. So you better put that energy into running and not waste words!"
"Eh!"
The victims were in tears. There was no way they could escape in their stiff predisposition. All felt like death was better off; at least they wouldn't suffer as much.
As the fog crept over, they gnashed their teeth and pushed on faster. When the going gets tough, the tough get going. Spurred on by the imminent threat looming behind them, they gained speed, though hardly much, but faster than your average human.
Zhuo Fan raised an eyebrow, "Well done. I think I didn't give them the proper incentive to work hard till now."
"Zhuo Fan, this is no time for training. Who knows what the fog is hiding? I don't want to end up with only you at Double Dragon Gathering!"
At the incoming fog on the stiffies, the fiends were further on edge.
Zhuo Fan waved their worry away, "All the more reason to let them test the waters."
Sss~
Even Mystical Heaven Sect's gang gasped at his cruelty.
[Is he human or devil? He's throwing his fellow comrades to the wolves. Won't they die?]
[Such a savage demonic cultivator is a rarity!]
Fiend Yang eyed him, "Y-you're crazy! What about Double Dragon Gathering, what if it fails?"
"Lighten up, didn't we guess the guy's intentions? He's only playing. I believe he'll only capture them. Though I'm all a quiver on how he'll take them away. No matter how strong, wiping a town clean of its residents is harder than it looks. It's easier to kill them all."
Zhuo Fan's eyes glinted, "This is the only way for us to leave through the fog."
All switched to looks of adorations.
[His mind is so sharp, his heart steeled. Able to keep calm in the most serious danger like this.]
[Demon Scheming Sect has brought up a true talent. So that's why the venerables defer to him.]
Fiend Yang wiped his brow, "You're right. They'll be fine for a while. This tactic is so much better. I just forgot myself there…"
"Agh… save… save me…"
On cue, the wails of the first victim echoed through the inn. Kui Gang, the slowest slowpoke got caught, letting out one single cry before vanishing.
Zhuo Fan's eyes took in everything with deadly calm.
"Gang'er!"
Kui Lang wailed at his son's misfortune, even charging right into the fog after him.
His cry snuffed out the instant he touched the fog.
The fog pressed on after the rest, swallowing the fearful prey as they shouted.
The scene drove an even more desperate fear in the survivors, trembling as the fog went up the stairs.
Only Zhuo Fan watched with a twitchy ear, "Peculiar, the taken don't look like dead nor captives so why can't we sense them… "
Sss~
The eerie fog swallowed the stiffies and their cries in a jiffy, now creeping in higher.
The others were panicky, looking at Zhuo Fan for a solution. Fiend Yang was sweating, "I just can't tell what this thing is. Even Ethereal Stage experts will have a hard time passing through it."
The people's hearts thumped in their chests. [Where does that leave us, dead?]
"Calm down and watch." Zhuo Fan pulled Chu Qingcheng higher. She followed him with a carefree smile, her eyes only seeing her man.
The fiends were annoyed, "Zhuo Fan, you threw ten disciples to the fog, yet you want more? We'll all soon end up dead."
"Take it easy, we didn't hear anything when the fog took them because they're caught. I'll save you as soon as I figure out this process." Zhuo Fan waved his hand.
The fiends were stumped, "U-us? What's that supposed to mean?"
"Since I can't tell what's happening right now, I'll need more live subjects until I do. You decide who gets to go. I'll soon save you anyway." Zhuo Fan raised an eyebrow.
The fiends' faces twitched, cursing, "Why the hell don't you try it yourself?"
"I could die, you know, rushing into the unknown." Zhuo Fan taunted, "You take me for a fool? You should die first, humph!"
Pff!
Chu Qingcheng giggled at the side. [You don't want to go so you're making others do it. Just like old times, you haven't changed one bit.]
The fiends were dumbstruck, "And you're saying we are the fools?"
"Of course not, just that among everyone here, I am the one with sharper eyes and can refine pills and raise barriers. What can you do? Only alive can I save you, while with me gone you'll soon follow. That leaves the crucial mission of testing the fog to you. While I wait behind in safety." Zhuo Fan showed his trademark evil smile with an exasperating raise of the eyebrow.
The trio nodded in the end.
[The damn kid is a pain, but why must he be so bloody right?]
Leaving this place alive would only be possible through him and his expansive wisdom.
The trio resigned themselves. But they'd be damned if they'd be the first to take this retarded option of dying.
Their eyes swiveled to Mystical Heaven Sect, "With the fog creeping in and cutting our space, who'll go first?"
They all gulped, shaking their heads like their lives depended on it. It made one wonder which was worse, the fog or the three venerables' threat.
"Humph, you started this. Our disciples just fell victims and now you're freaking grasping at straws? Get out there and test the fog!"
Fiend Yang shouted, "Either you do it or I make you!"
Fiend Yang's aura exploded, flexing his 4th layer Ethereal Stage cultivation on these hapless Profound Heaven disciples.
[Is this demon taking his anger on us?]
They shook there in their corner, inching back as the fog grew closer while watching the venerables in fear.
They were stuck as to the 'right' course of action.
"Please don't force them, seniors. I will go." Shui Ruohua stepped out with dignity, glancing at Zhuo Fan with a plea, "We got into this mess and I thank you for coming to our rescue. I only hope my sacrifice will be of help to you and my fellow disciples in leaving here alive."
Zhuo Fan nodded and gave a cold wave of his hand to get to it already.
[Quit dawdling and die already. I'll be sure to watch every second of it.]
Shui Ruohua lamented and sighed. [He's so cold.] A sinking feeling took hold of her heart.
Chu Qingcheng muttered, "Senior sister, should I go instead?"
"Whatever for?" Zhuo Fan frowned his grip harder on her hand.
Sensing his care, Chu Qingcheng's heart grew fuzzy, "I've been under senior sister's care ever since I came to Mystical Heaven Sect. Now it's my turn to help."
"Junior sister, it is my duty as the leader of Mystical Heaven Sect's group. I have to do this." Shui Ruohua spoke with conviction and pride.
Zhuo Fan's eyes darted from her to Chu Qingcheng, and pointed at Fiend Yang, "Neither, you will go!"
"Screw you, you infatuated sap! Why should I go?" Fiend Yang exploded.
Zhuo Fan shrugged, "You're the Ethereal Stage expert here. I feel like wanting to see the fog's effect on one. Will it be the same as the rest or you'll put up a fight? Is it toxic fumes or an array? Letting those weaklings go won't get me any answers."
Fiend Yang's heart beat out of his chest, his face miserable, yet no way to retort.
Turning to Fiend Gui and Fiend Yin, they found the walls much more interesting than him.
"Mhm, the kid makes sense. You go."
"Fiend Yang, your sacrifice is much needed to show us brothers the way.
The two sold him out and Fiend Yang was fuming, "You rotten piece of… You side with him and leave me to die? This is what I get for having you brothers for centuries."
"Venerable Fiend Yang, you won't be dying. Don't you trust me?" Zhuo Fan beamed.
Fiend Yang sighed, "Rather be safe than sorry, though it hardly makes a difference. If you can't get anything out of my going, you'll be following soon enough anyway. Besides, I survived Double Dragon Gathering so I can survive anything!"
Fiend Yang walked on with conviction.
The rest admired him. [These demonic cultivators are foul beyond reason, yet quite heroic when the need arises.]
Not like Mystical Heaven Sect's disciples, all shying from danger, more scared than a woman.
It was the least respect they could give these foul miscreants.
Whoosh!
Fiend Yang struck the fog with a palm attack.
The mighty blow boomed into the fog yet had no effect whatsoever.
Fiend Yang's heart tensed, giving the fog enough time to grab him. Just a touch was all it needed and Fiend Yang cried, "Zhuo Fan, this is…"
Whoosh!
His voice was cut off, and his body was engulfed in front of the shocked audience.
"Fiend Yang!"
The other two fiends shouted. A powerful expert like Fiend Yang fell just like nothing.
[What the hell is this thing?]
Zhuo Fan's brows were tight in thought, "This fog is not deadly by far, or it wouldn't leave its victim to even make a peep. By the looks of it, Fiend Yang found something. Maybe this thing prevents any sounds from escaping, holding them in place for the mastermind to tie them up."
"It's certain that no one inside is dead, just frozen and unable to speak. What matters is how to go in and save them." Fiend Yin continued.
The others rejoiced to learn the fog didn't take lives, though vexed as to how to deal with it.
It all came down to how to cross it without falling prey.
Zhuo Fan's gaze drifted, "Just what is this odd thing…"
The creepy fog drifted closer, making those that were too close turn slack and then swallow their saliva without so much as a peep.
Every time it inched closer it buried a deeper dread in the hearts of these people, making them scurry and shuffle further away even when they had no place to go.
The only exception was Zhuo Fan, staring with a frown and ever hopeful for the tiniest hint that would help unravel this mystery.
The fog's devouring continued unabated, its struggling and erratic prey would halt all movements, even their eyes glazed the instant they got close before sinking into the great white beyond.
Zhuo Fan caught every minute expression and muttered, "It's so obvious now. The kid almost played me."
"Did you find a way?" From Zhuo Fan's cocky outburst, Chu Qingcheng smiled.
The rest looked with hope, Fiend Yin asking, "You know what this is?"
"Sure, this thing's looks got us all fooled. This is no fog, nor is there any poison inside. Better yet, it doesn't exist." Zhuo Fan explained.
Zhuo Fan snickered, "Recall our analysis of the guy? Ha-ha-ha, he is truly just playing around. He set up the fog to scare and confuse us before it swallowed us all up. When in fact, it's nothing but an expanding barrier, that of a bewildering array. Once inside it, you'll be taken by illusions and won't be able to escape regardless of being swallowed by it."
"So that's why. Fiend Yang's attack had no effect because it was empty to begin with. He must've come to the same conclusion when he shouted, but the illusion took hold just as he started."
Fiend Gui figured it out as well, "The same happened to all those who were taken, their eyes dulled and didn't even cry as they were overcome by the illusions. But it sure is an impressive array for not even an Ethereal Stage expert to escape it."
Despite being harmless, the fear still remained in the hearts of all remaining, since the array could deal with Ethereal Stage experts. They turned to Zhuo Fan with a pleading and tearful look.
[What did we ever do to deserve this fate?]
Zhuo Fan squinted at the fog still, muttering, "Not to worry, the guy ain't so tough. This array is definitely above 7th grade and quite intricate, but even that's not enough to take hold of an Ethereal Stage expert so fast. I bet…"
"What?" Shui Ruohua asked.
Zhuo Fan had a nasty grin, "He used a special way to raise its effect. The most logical explanation is using sacred stones."
"What?!" Everyone cried, "But that's…"
"Quite."
Zhuo Fan raised an eyebrow, "Of the entire western lands, only the middle and superior three sects can have them. The middle three sects would get too little to waste like this. No elder in their right mind would throw them away on something as wasteful as an array. It only goes to shoe it's a demonic sect from the superior three sects, the number one demonic sect in western lands, Hellion Flame Sect."
"Ha-ha-ha, quite the head you have on your shoulder, despite the low cultivation. You guessed it!"
A cackle echoed from the fog, startling the average disciple.
Zhuo Fan grinned, "I was wondering what trick you used to take all townsfolk without a sound when it's just a mere illusion to make them leave by themselves."
"Humph, punk, you're not bad, the first to have seen through my little game. Though what good will that do against a 7th-grade array set up with sacred stones? Nothing, that's what, ha-ha-ha…"
While he mocked, the rest turned to Zhuo Fan, having given them a trickle of hope, yet now he only had a cold smile.
They took Zhuo Fan for being scared and their hearts sank. Only Chu Qingcheng had endless faith and a cute smile for her man.
"Eh, aren't you scared?" Zhuo Fan smiled at her.
Chu Qingcheng shook her head, her eyes only for him, "I'll never be scared with you around."
Zhuo Fan's heart twitched and his mouth widened into a smile as his hand touched her back and let a red glow enter her, "No matter what happens, I'll never leave you."
The two fiends were speechless.
[Dude, we're your teammates here. Shouldn't you tell us how to deal with the danger? Fiend Yang and co. are awaiting rescue, yet here you are flirting with women?]
[The sect rules are right. Any demonic cultivator taken by love will lose themselves in it.]
Shui Ruohua and the others had an odd taste in their mouth. Any sect forbids men and women from getting too close. While not as strict as demonic cultivators, righteous cultivators deny it on account of messing with their cultivation.
These women were in the prime of their womanhood. Sure, they indulged in some hanky-panky now and then, but they still cultivated the rest of the time. But seeing these two in a world of their own making stirred something in their lonely hearts, a longing and desire they never knew existed.
Dan'er went beet red.
[Sister Qingcheng is like a fairy, with all in the sect adoring her, yet why did she fall for a demon?] She had no answer.
That senior sister of hers was punished for the same reason.
Dan'er began to worry about Chu Qingcheng's shaky future…
"Go die, you rotten couple! Let her go, you prick, I got dibs first. Do it now or die!"
The hatred-fueled howl came from beyond the fog.
While scared out of their minds still, the others had to admit, that these two lovebirds showing off in public needed to be talked down.
[Dude, we're on different sides, but we got your back!]
Zhuo Fan smiled, irking him on purpose, raising their connected hands, "I'm just that charming. What are you gonna do about it?"
"Hi-hi-hi, getting you separated is nothing to me, overconfident punk!"
The cackle was followed by the billowing fog rushing for them. It took the rest in its wake like all the countless victims before.
"I will have you suffer in the 7th-grade Soul Rotting Moon Array for 49 days. When I get my fill of her, I'll drop by to tell you how she fared, hi-hi-hi…"
All wanted to run away, but where?
It took little time for the fog to take them, leaving but the cute couple.
The two stepped back for as long as they could but alas, the fog was on them.
Chu Qingcheng's mind hazed over and Zhuo Fan shouted, "Qingcheng…"
His cries died out as well with his eyes glazing over.
The cackle came once again, "Fool, no matter how sharp your mind is, you're too weak! It's a waste of time toying with a puny 2nd layer Radiant Stage cultivator, hi-hi-hi…"
Pa!
Zhuo Fan's hand on Chu Qingcheng got thrown off, and then a burst of distant laughter echoed.
Too bad the guy didn't notice Zhuo's eyes sporting an extra-bright azure flame.
Roar!
The prismatic dragon roamed within his mind, surrounded by the fog yet never approaching. The prismatic shield protected it from anything. The dragon's eyes snapped open and howled as a torrent of azure flame exploded from within it into an inferno, burning away any trace of the fog.
Zhuo Fan opened his eyes, the azure flame flicking on his forehead, clearing his mind.
"Ha-ha-ha, the guy played for so long he got cocky. He has no clue of the meaning of who laughs last!"
Zhuo Fan snickered, "With the azure flame, no method will ever harm my soul. Now then, time to follow him to his lair."
Zhuo Fan then gave his white surroundings a once over and sighed, "Almost forgot, I'm still stuck in his array. If you can set one, can't I as well? I have sacred stones too. If there's one thing I don't lack, it's sacred stones, hi-hi-hi…"
With a cackle, Zhuo Fan waved his hands, and the lights released formed an intricate array.
Then formed a hand sign and shouted, "Array on array!"
Boom!
With a large quake, Zhuo Fan at the center, a dazzling light flashed, expanding in all directions.
The inexplicable fog had met its match, scattering on the spot. The empty town was now clear and regained its quiet nature.
Except for being empty…