"These dummies aren't perfect - you can tell they're false images just by probing them with your soul from a short distance. Still, it does the job. These Godhunters are afraid to come near me. They won't be able to tell that something is wrong from a distance. Drawing the Godhunters away won't be a problem for me. All you have to do is stay behind and hide their auras. Then, after hiding here for a while, take them to escape in another direction. Problem solved!" Han Shuo said with a smile.
"What about you? Once those Godhunter leaders arrive and surround you, wouldn't you be a dead man?" Andrina asked worriedly after thinking for a moment.
Upon hearing these words, Fanny and the other ladies began to disagree with Han Shuo's plan out of concern for his safety.
These ladies might have had faith in Han Shuo, but it was no longer absolute and unquestionable, especially after arriving on Elysium and seeing first hand how powerful the experts were in this world. They were worried about him.
"I'll be fine! I know I'm no match for them, but no one can stop me from leaving if I want to!" Han Shuo said smiling, "You should know that I am one of the best of the best when it comes to the art of escape!"
"Are you sure you can escape from the encirclement of these people?" Andrina was still rather sceptical as she had the experience of almost being killed by those leaders.
Han Shuo nodded and said with full confidence, "Absolutely!"
After hesitating for a moment, Andrina agreed to Han Shuo's proposal. "Very well then. As long as you can lure those God Hunters away, I guarantee that they will arrive in the City of Shadows safe and sound." After all, she couldn't think of a better idea.
Most importantly, she felt that the mysterious Han Shuo was hiding many more secrets that could ensure his own survival. After knowing Han Shuo for so long, she knew that Han Shuo definitely wasn't someone who would boast or lie. He definitely wouldn't have made such a promise without absolute confidence.
"Bryan, we are sorry to burden you," Ayermike said in an embarrassed and dejected manner. Back on the Profound Continent, he was a character who could cause the rise and fall of empires. He never expected the day to come when he would be so helpless and reduced to dead weight.
"It's all right. Ladies and gentlemen, don't be downhearted. Given your talents and abilities, it is only a matter of time before you achieve great things in this vast world. In the near future, you will all reach godhood and won't have to live in such constant fear! Han Shuo said smiling.
"We are truly lucky to have you. If we had come to this plane of gods alone, I'm afraid none of us would have lived long enough to reach godhood!" Stratholme shook his head in lament. He had fully realised the importance of having powerful friends.
"All right, that's enough. Save these words for the future!" Han Shuo took out a bag of black crystal coins and handed them to Andrina. He reminded, "These are for you to buy an airship. Don't eat them!"
"You are such a punchable person," Andrina put the crystal coins away and groaned resentfully.
"Goodbye, everyone! See you all in the City of Shadows!" Han Shuo waved his hands and left with the group of dummies made up of his demon generals.
Without Ayermike and the others dragging him down, Han Shuo was able to travel at a much faster speed, even though he continued the journey on foot.
Some of Han Shuo's demon generals took the form of Andrina and the rest of the group, while some of the demon generals remained in an immaterial state and scattered around him. These demon generals monitored every single activity within a hundred mile radius. Even the slightest swaying of the grass caused by the slightest breeze couldn't escape Han Shuo's detection.
The Godhunters spread out, surrounding Han Shuo from all directions while keeping their distance from him. These godhunters were of various strengths, with the majority being Early and Mid-stage Midgods. There were no Highgods present yet.
They were all very careful to keep a distance from Han Shuo and avoid detection, probably being wary of Andrina.
Using the visions of his demon generals, Han Shuo determined where the godhunters were weakest and thinnest and travelled in that direction. He would also disrupt their steps, forcing them to change their approach and course.
This went on for five days. Han Shuo and his dummy figures made from demon generals had travelled close to the centre of the mountain range. It was around this time that one of the demon generals discovered that a godhunter with Highgod strength had arrived to join the party.
He was an ugly young man with unkempt long golden hair and ragged clothes. His face was bumpy and scarred, as if he had been badly burned. He cultivated in the energy of darkness. Upon his arrival, many of the Godhunters around him approached to greet him, to fawn over him, and to respectfully inform him of the latest developments.
Since Highgods possessed extremely keen senses, Han Shuo ordered the demon generals in the area to keep their distance from the Highgods so that he would not detect the presence of the demon generals. As a result, Han Shuo could only vaguely see their figures, but could not hear the content of their conversation.
It was obvious that they were afraid of Andrina. Even after the Highgod arrived, the godhunters did not immediately launch an attack, but continued to surround and stalk Han Shuo.
In order to draw the godhunters further away from Andrina and her party, Han Shuo headed for remote and uninhabited regions. The Godhunters would move and keep a good distance from Han Shuo if he got too close.
Three more days passed. Several more Godhunters had arrived in the mountain range. Among the new arrivals were two Highgods - one was a muscular man who cultivated in the Edict of Destruction, while the other was an old woman with grey hair who cultivated in the Element of Death. From his limited understanding of the Godhunter Alliance, Han Shuo guessed that the muscular man cultivating in the Edict of Destruction was Brovst, whom he had met earlier in the valley.
After the Highgod of Death, Darkness, and Destruction arrived at the mountain range, another group of Mid- to Late-stage Midgods, numbering around a dozen, joined the hunting party. The force currently gathered around Han Shuo could rival any large family clan in the City of Shadows. Finally feeling ready to strike, they began to tighten the circle around Han Shuo.
Han Shuo immediately went on high alert when he realised that the Godhunters were closing in. All the while, he had been moving towards the most vulnerable and weakest part of their encirclement. Suddenly, Han Shuo had the demon generals disguised as Andrina and the others dematerialise and hide among the lush leaves and branches of the large trees.
After they were out of sight, Han Shuo immediately concealed his own aura and hid atop a large tree.
"Lord Brovst, our targets have all suddenly disappeared!" a Midgod cultivating in the Edict of Destruction rushed up to the muscular man and reported in a low voice.
"Disappeared?" Brovst knitted his thick eyebrows. His eyes sparkled as he nodded and said, "Andrina's powers are extraordinary. It seems she discovered us and must have used special methods to hide her auras. They can hide, but they cannot escape. We just have to constantly and gradually reduce our encirclement and we will find them!"
"That's right. We have already confined them to a small area. There is no way they can sneak out of our encirclement. We have to find Andrina, even if she hides three metres under the ground. Her threat to us Godhunters is simply too great. Our Godhunter Alliance will suffer even greater losses if she remains alive," the ugly young man said angrily.
"Everyone stay alert and report back immediately if you spot the slightest movement. Huehue, they are carrying a group of ants that have not even reached Lowgod strength. There's no way they can escape," the old woman said with a devilish laugh.
Having heard the words of their leaders, the Godhunters quickly left to pass on their orders. The Godhunters, who had occupied every geographical advantage, continued to shrink the encirclement bit by bit. They were all well trained and accustomed to hunting people's in the mountains. They operated with good rapport and excellent coordination.
Unfortunately for them, Han Shuo could see every move they made. Without Stratholme and the others tying him down, in this region where there were towering trees and numerous places to hide, it would be next to impossible to find Han Shuo who could see their every move!
Under the shade of a tall, dry tree, Han Shuo dug a small hole. It was just large enough to accommodate his entire body. Holding his breath, he closed his eyes and focused his mind. He opened his soul and emptied his consciousness. He became one with his surroundings.
The Godhunters passed by him one by one and none of them spotted Han Shuo hiding underground just a few steps away from them. Even the Highgod of Darkness was oblivious as he passed by.
Soon, the circle of Godhunters gathered in the centre.
"We found nothing!"
"Nothing on our side either!"
"Nothing at all!"
The Godhunters reported their
non-discovery to each other.
""How is that possible?" the ugly-looking young man shouted in a low voice, "They were obviously within our encirclement. It's impossible for a group of that size to disappear like that!"
"Don't worry, Gallas. They have definitely not left this region yet. Andrina has probably set up certain boundaries to hide their auras and presence. Given their strength, it's not surprising that we're passing by where they're hiding," Brovst said in a deep voice after thinking for a moment.
"Then what should we do?" the Highgod who cultivated in the element of darkness, Gallas, asked quietly.
"Simple - we spread out and attack in all directions. Any barriers or seals would cause a reaction if attacked," the old woman said with a sinister smile.
"Exactly. Everyone disperse and attack everywhere! You don't have to waste much of your divine energy - even a small bone arrow will let you know if there is a barrier! Brovst instructed.
The Godhunters began to carry out the order and spread out, travelling back along the path they had just taken. Myriads of attacks were fired in every direction, covering the entire region in dust and sand. They tried to locate the non-existent barrier where they assumed Andrina and her party were hiding.
Damn, lucky I have a big brain and left them behind. Otherwise, under such a thorough search, no matter how miraculous Andrina's barrier was, there's no way we could remain hidden from these people! Han Shuo remarked inwardly as he emerged from the underground.
Han Shuo had already escaped their encirclement. If he were to simply fly away and leave, none of the Godhunters would be able to stop him or even detect him.
On the other hand, if Han Shuo were to escape silently right now, the Godhunters would definitely not give up and would search the entire mountain range. Andrina and her group would be in danger as long as those Godhunters were in the mountain range.
Therefore, Han Shuo did the best he could and deliberately drew attention to himself. Snap! A decent sized tree suddenly fell.
It made a distinct sound. The Godhunter closest to Han Shuo immediately called out, "Here! Over here!"
Several shadows streaked through the forest. Terrifying auras began to converge on Han Shuo from all directions.
Han Shuo ran away at lightning speed, leaving deliberate tracks behind him. Every now and then, he would break a branch or leave a few footprints on the ground.
The Godhunters, not suspecting anything, pursued Han Shuo relentlessly. After about half a day, Han Shuo stopped leaving breadcrumbs and again concealed his presence.
When the Godhunters discovered the last trail left by Han Shuo and realised that there were no more trails to be found, they began to get anxious as their pursuit became much more difficult.
"What should we do?" asked one of the midgods.
"They're carrying a large group of burdens, so they can't be too far away. There is only one way they could have stopped leaving tracks!" Brovst grinned and said, "They must have gone into hiding again. Everyone spread out and continue the search using the method we used before. I think all the running and chasing has worn them out more than it has us. They must be too tired to go anywhere!"
"Search meticulously, boys. Remember, as long as Andrina is alive, it's your lives that are at stake!" Gallas barked.
The group of Godhunters stopped talking and went into action. The three Highgods, each taking a few of their own subordinates, spread out and searched in three directions. The rest would disperse and search on their own.
Han Shuo knew every move they made by watching them with his demon generals. He quietly waited for an opportunity.
This time, since there was no encirclement, their search expanded from the centre outwards. Instead of shrinking their encirclement, the Godhunters found themselves further and further apart.
The Godhunters thought they were after Han Shuo, Andrina and a group of inconvenient mortals. It was because of this assumption that they had made one mistake after another in their judgements and decisions. Allowing the group to disperse was a grave mistake, leaving the Godhunters vulnerable to Han Shuo's predation.
One of the godhunters bombarded the area around him with the divine energy of darkness, sending clouds of dust and sand into the air. He cautiously ventured forward and looked around with his eyes wide open, searching for any abnormal scenes that might indicate the presence of a barrier.
"Damn, they are really good at escaping," the Godhunters muttered, cursing. He had unknowingly walked some distance away from the person closest to him. He had been so focused on the search that he had not noticed.
He arrived at an ancient tree, lifted his head, saw the lush growth of leaves, and casually released a burst of dark divine energy. Ka-chack! Some of the branches snapped off.
He moved forward slowly and cautiously. After passing under the large tree he was testing, he shot a burst of Darkness Divine Energy into the small pond in front of him.
"Damn, still nothing!" he cursed, before suddenly noticing that there were no other Godhunters around him.
Did I get too far away from the others? he thought. Finally realising that he was a long way from his group, he wisely turned on his heels and began to move towards the nearest Godhunter.
At that moment, a dozen dark, shadowy figures suddenly descended from the lush foliage above his head and entered his body. He was instantly frozen and didn't even have a chance to scream!
Swoosh...
Han Shuo gently slid down from the tree as the Cauldron of Myriad Demon flew out of his body and covered the Godhunter's skull. Creak! Han Shuo's demonic blades had pierced his abdomen. Demonic Yuan entered his body, instantly destroying his innards. At the next instance, the Cauldron of Myriad Demon was activated, collecting his divine soul.
The dozen or so shadow figures left the Godhunter's body and flew away like bats. Han Shuo opened his palm and the Cauldron of Myriad Demon returned to his body. The lifeless body received a gentle push and collapsed to the ground like a fallen statue.
"Congratulations, you are the first!" Han Shuo said before his figure became blurred and disappeared into the shadow of the tree.
On the other side, another Godhunter, who had also strayed too far from the others, stepped onto the soft ground. Just as he realised that something wasn't quite right with the ground, a hand suddenly appeared from the earth and grabbed his feet. A terrifying surge of energy entered the Godhunter's body, silencing his ability to scream.
Immediately, a dozen or more shadow figures flew into the scene and swarmed around the Godhunter, freezing his body completely.
The Cauldron of Myriad Demon flew out of Han Shuo's palm and into the Godhunter's chest. Thud Thud. The Godhunter's divine body exploded and his divine soul was sucked into the Cauldron of Myriad Demon .
Han Shuo left silently and went back into hiding, continuing his search for his next victim. He sneered in his mind, "You bastards want to hunt me down? Let's see who will be the real prey here!
By using Demon Generals to observe the surroundings, Han Shuo was basically all-seeing. Coupled with his talent and ability to hide in this mountain range, where there were plenty of places to hide, Han Shuo had become the Godhunters' worst nightmare. He targeted those with below-average strength who were relatively isolated from other Godhunters. And once he had scored a kill, he would retreat from the area and wait for his next prey. In a very short time, he managed to slaughter seven Godhunters.
"Arghhh..."
A deafening scream came from the distance.
The Godhunters rushed towards the source of the sound, only to find one of their comrades lying on the ground, completely lifeless.
Soon after, the Godhunters discovered more bodies of their comrades. The Godhunters, who had originally been hunting with confidence, began to panic as they found more and more of their fellow Godhunters killed, while getting no closer to finding their stealthy opponent.