Chapter 494: Chapter 432: Setting Up Traps

"Six!"

Everyone gasped when they heard this.

They couldn’t imagine what method Zhao Lin had used to kill six Earth Dark Sect cultivators in such a short amount of time.

But no one questioned him. Zhao Lin had already displayed more than enough strength, even holding his own against a powerful Transformation Realm cultivator.

"This is great! They only have six people left now, less than half of us."

"Yeah, it looks like we might actually complete this mission."

A sense of relief washed over the group, and they started to chat and laugh.

Zhao Lin, however, was not so optimistic. He looked around at the group and asked, "Matsuo’s Water Mirror skill is quite strange. Does anyone know anything about it?"

Everyone shook their heads. After a moment of thought, Chao Duan said, "I have heard that there is a high-tier Magic in the sect that can reflect enemy attacks."

"But it’s said that it can only reflect fifty percent of the force at most, and the direction is difficult to control."

"From what I saw of Matsuo’s Water Mirror, the reflected Magic was almost as strong as the original, retaining at least seventy or eighty percent of its power. And it was extremely precise. So I’m not sure what to make of it."

Du Zhen suddenly slapped his forehead and chuckled. "Now that Elder Chao mentions it, I remember a Tier Three Magic that a teaching elder demonstrated back when I was studying at the Spirit Dao Institute."

"A Tier Three Magic?"

Zhao Lin was taken aback. ’Only someone at the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment can cast Tier Three Magic, but Matsuo is a Transformation Realm cultivator, which is equivalent to the Peak of Qi Refining. It should be impossible for him to use a Tier Three Magic.’

But then he thought, ’The Magic of our two sects isn’t exactly the same. Perhaps there’s some overlap.’ He then said, "Please, go on, Fellow Daoist Du!"

Du Zhen nodded and continued, "This Tier Three Magic is called Reverse Arms, or sometimes the Turncoat Skill. It can reflect incoming Magic or artifacts."

"Magic is divided into six tiers. Tier One can only block an opponent’s Magic. Starting from Tier Two, it can reflect Magic. Each subsequent tier adds ten percent to the reflected power, up to a maximum of fifty percent of the original spell’s power!"

Zhao Lin grew even more confused. ’If our own sect’s Tier Three Magic is like that,’ he thought, ’how can the Earth Dark Sect’s Tier Two Skill be even more powerful?’

After a moment’s thought, he asked, "Then does the Turncoat Skill have any weaknesses, or a way to counter it?"

Du Zhen recalled for a moment. "The Turncoat Skill is actually a special type of defensive Magic. It can’t block every attack."

"If it’s hit with a particularly powerful Magic, or one with a wide area of effect, it might not be able to reflect it."

"It’s like a shield. It can block a sword or a spear, but against a heavy warhammer or a legendary weapon, the shield will shatter and its wielder will perish."

Zhao Lin stroked his chin, pondering. ’It seems the only way to break the Water Mirror is for multiple cultivators to attack at once, overwhelming Matsuo with their combined Mana.’

’Unfortunately, Matsuo’s Body Technique is too fast. It won’t be easy to find such an opportunity.’

"Fellow Daoist Zhao, Matsuo may have left for now, but there’s no guarantee he won’t come back for the kill. What’s our next move?"

Chao Duan asked with a worried expression. His duty was to protect the four Array Masters, and an opponent like Matsuo was his worst nightmare.

After a moment of thought, Zhao Lin turned to Sun Jue. "Fellow Daoist Sun, tell me, dismantling traps is the dangerous part, not setting them up, correct?"

"The former, of course."

Sun Jue answered crisply, "During the dismantling process, if Earth Dark Sect cultivators attack us with Magic, we can’t fight back or even use defensive Magic. Doing either would trigger the trap."

"Setting them up is much easier. That’s only a risk for the brief moment of activation."

Zhao Lin understood. He nodded and said, "Just as I thought. In that case, let’s keep setting up our own traps. That will keep them from moving around freely."

"As for the Earth Dark Sect’s traps, we’ll leave them for now. If we start dismantling them, it will immediately give away our position."

Everyone agreed this was a sound plan.

Next, the four Array Masters led the group into an unexplored area. They found a suitable spot a hundred zhang from Sea Ridge and began to set up their traps.

Zhao Lin adjusted their defensive formation. The cultivators split into three groups of three, forming a triangle that enclosed the four Array Masters in the center.

This way, whichever group Matsuo encountered, they could at least hold him off for a time.

He himself ascended several dozen zhang, positioning himself to guard against any attacks from above.

Zhao Lin hovered in the mid-water depths, taking out a Spirit Pearl to circulate his energy and restore his Spiritual Power. At the same time, he sent out ultrasonic waves to monitor his surroundings.

With no obstructions, the ultrasonic waves could travel a great distance. Even with Matsuo’s powerful Divine Sense, it would be impossible for him to detect Zhao Lin first.

’Zhao Lin really wanted to head to Qingyang Beach and launch a surprise counter-attack. He might even succeed. But unfortunately, the four Array Masters were more important.’

’How can I get rid of this menace, Matsuo?’

Zhao Lin pondered this question as he circulated his energy.

Matsuo moved like the wind, his Magic was bizarre and unpredictable. As long as he was alive, they had to be constantly on guard. The slightest mistake could cost the Array Masters their lives, which would mean mission failure.

’Ganging up on him won’t work. If Matsuo can’t win, he can simply flee.’

’The Mind Stabilizing Skill can’t be used on a Transformation Realm cultivator; it would only backfire.’

’The Thunder Shadow Clone might work on other cultivators, but against Matsuo, he’d just pick them off one by one.’

Zhao Lin felt a sense of helplessness. With just his speed, Swordsmanship, and the Water Mirror skill, Matsuo was practically invincible.

’How could I fight him?’

While Zhao Lin was vexing over this, Matsuo was in a thunderous rage.

"Didn’t I warn you before I left? Stay together, don’t split up! And look what happened! Did my words just go in one ear and out the other?!"

Matsuo’s face was grim. ’He had killed three of their cultivators, only for Zhao Lin to use the same tactic on him—and kill double the number.’

He had planned to pick off a few more Chenghua Sect cultivators, and then his entire force could press forward and annihilate the enemy in one fell swoop.

Now the tables had turned. How could he not be furious?

’Matsuo had another question nagging at him: ’How did Zhao Lin dare to sneak into Qingyang Beach? Wasn’t he afraid of triggering the traps? How did he manage to kill six people and retreat completely unscathed?’’

After a long moment, one of the cultivators asked cautiously, "Lord Matsuo... what about Seniors Chunying and Ji Zhang?"

Matsuo hesitated for a moment before deciding to tell them the truth. "I’m afraid the two of them have... died for the sect. As for who did it, I’m sure you can guess."

The five remaining Earth Dark Sect cultivators looked at each other in horror.

Matsuo snorted. "There’s nothing to fear! At this point, we’ll likely be executed even if we make it out of here alive. Our only path to survival is to kill Zhao Lin!"

"Now is the time to repay the sect!"

The five cultivators’ expressions grew solemn. "We obey your command, my lord!" they shouted in unison.

...

A powerful pulse of Mana washed over them.

"The trap is set!"

A look of joy flashed in Zhao Lin’s eyes. ’The trap is set!’ He scanned his surroundings before diving down to the seabed.

"Fellow Daoist Zhao, the trap is set."

Sun Jue approached with the other three Array Masters, a slight smile on his face.

As he spoke, he pointed back over his shoulder. "It’s right behind that reef. Coordinates: horizontal one-twenty-five, vertical seventy-eight."

The Sea Map used a grid system, dividing the entire shoal into squares with sides of ten zhang to mark locations.

The coordinates Sun Jue gave, horizontal one-twenty-five and vertical seventy-eight, marked the trap’s location, ensuring it could be found again even if the terrain shifted.

"Excellent!"

Zhao Lin praised him, committing the location to memory. "What kind of Magic does the trap use?" he asked.

Sun Jue laughed. "Thousand-Layer Water Spears. Most underwater traps are based on the water or earth elements, so there are only a few to choose from."

Zhao Lin’s interest was piqued. He recalled once using a trap with Thousand-Layer Water Spears to kill an Earth Dark Sect cultivator. He asked, "Fellow Daoist Sun, can the trap be triggered from the outside?"

"Absolutely not."

Sun Jue shook his head firmly. "A Mana fluctuation can prime the trap, but it has to lock onto the source of the Magic before it will actually attack."

He chuckled. "Otherwise, you could just clear a path with an artifact and set off every trap along the way, right?"

"I see."

Zhao Lin nodded, a thoughtful expression on his face.

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