PCJ – Chapter 419 Treachery

Every day, Zhang Jiaohua would secretly go to Luoa Ridge to watch Master Wang set up the formation. He saw Master Wang insert various colored triangular flags along the dam of Luoa Pond. It seemed that the placement of these flags was very deliberate. Every time Master Wang and Bai Daxian inserted a flag, they would first measure with a compass for a long time. Sometimes, they would discuss with Bai Daxian for a long time before placing the flag. It was clear that they were being very cautious.

“Jiaohua, do you know what they are doing?” Zhang Yuanbao asked curiously.

“I don’t know, they must be setting up a formation. This giant fish is so powerful, they must be afraid they can’t handle it, so they’re setting up a trap to lure it out. Once the giant fish enters the trap, they should be able to kill it,” Zhang Jiaohua guessed. He had always followed the old Taoist for incense offerings, but had never seen the old Taoist use a formation to deal with evil spirits.

“These two Taoists are really skilled. They even know formations,” the mute person said in admiration.

“Skilled? It’s just some evil and crooked practices. No matter how powerful a formation is, it’s not their own skill,” Chen Crazy suddenly appeared from nowhere.

“Chen Crazy, you say they are evil practices, so why don’t you go deal with the giant fish?” Zhang Jiaohua scoffed at Chen Crazy.

“I just don’t want to deal with this giant fish. It stays here and doesn’t harm anyone. Why should I deal with it? Besides, it’s just like me, a spiritual being cultivating the way. Why kill each other?” Chen Crazy shook his head.

“Chen Crazy, don’t forget, five children from our village have died because of this giant fish. How can you say it doesn’t harm anyone?” Zhang Jiaohua said in dissatisfaction.

“That’s because you guys went to provoke it. If you hadn’t gone to bathe in Luoa Pond, how could this have happened? Besides, there’s something strange about the events from back then. I don’t think those children in your village were killed by this spiritual turtle,” Chen Crazy said.

“If not it, then who? Is there someone more powerful than the giant fish in Luoa Pond?” Zhang Jiaohua didn’t believe it at all.

“I’m just telling you the facts, whether you believe it or not. Since these two amateurs are going to deal with the spiritual turtle, maybe we’ll get the chance to find out the truth later,” Chen Crazy said, showing no interest in explaining further to Zhang Jiaohua.

Master Wang and Bai Daxian spent two days setting up the formation. On the third day, dozens of water pumps were turned on simultaneously, and the massive rumble almost shook the entire Luoa Ridge.

The water level dropped very quickly, and the preparation was thorough, starting at full power. However, as soon as the pumps started, all the technicians ran away. The previous experience had left them shaken. The unlucky guy who got injured last time was still lying in the hospital.

After a few hours, the water level in Luoa Pond reached the spiritual turtle’s warning level. But this time, the spiritual turtle did not rush out immediately. The serious damage from the last lightning strike made it act more cautiously.

“What’s going on? Didn’t we say that once that stone is seen, the spiritual turtle would rush out?” Bai Daxian asked in confusion.

“Maybe it’s learned its lesson after last time. It doesn’t dare come out easily,” Master Wang laughed.

“Mm, maybe it knows Master Wang is here and doesn’t dare come out to die,” Bai Daxian teased Master Wang.

“Even if it’s afraid, it should be afraid of Daoist Bai. Daoist Bai’s cultivation is profound, even the demon world has heard of you,” Master Wang laughed loudly.

Zhang Jiaohua was also puzzled. “Why doesn’t the giant fish dare to come out?”

“It’s a spirit ghost, not a giant fish. It’s not foolish enough to stick its head out when it knows there’s danger. It must be hiding and unwilling to come out,” Chen Crazy observed the movements in Luoa Pond.

After a while, the water level in the pond dropped even further, revealing many stones that had never been exposed before. Fish and shrimp began to jump on the dry mud. Only the central area of the pond, about ten meters long and wide, still had water. This was the deepest part of the pond. Many of the water pumps couldn’t draw water because their pipes were no longer submerged. The technicians had to use long bamboo poles to stabilize the pumps and dig a trench in the pond to help drain the water.

Crash!

A loud noise suddenly came from the center of the pond. The spiritual turtle finally couldn’t hold back and emerged from the water.

“It’s out! It’s out!” Zhang Yuanbao shouted, pointing at the pond.

“Shh! Don’t call attention to it and bring the giant fish over,” Zhang Jiaohua quickly warned.

“Look at you, if you’re scared, don’t come,” Chen Crazy sneered at Zhang Yuanbao.

“I’m not scared. Who’s scared? I’m not afraid. I could go down and kill the giant fish myself,” Zhang Yuanbao said stubbornly, his face turning red.

“Then go quickly, or there won’t be any chance left for you,” Chen Crazy laughed.

The spiritual turtle suddenly burst out of the water, charging straight toward the dam. Upon seeing Bai Daxian, Master Wang, and Chen Jing, it immediately lunged at them, aiming to tear them into pieces. But it accidentally stepped into the trap.

Master Wang loudly recited a spell, “Nuò Nuò Yì Yè, actions without choosing a day. Follow the battle’s direction, with the gods out. Heaven turns, earth is blocked. The center’s will, I command it. Someone pursues me, causing confusion. East as west, south as east…”

The triangular flags suddenly lit up with a spiritual light. A glowing arc moved along all the flags. An invisible force wove the flags into a huge net. The spiritual turtle fell into the net as if sinking into an endless swamp, the more it struggled, the deeper it sank.

Roar!

The spiritual turtle immediately sensed the danger and let out a violent roar.

“Daoist Bai, Daoist Chen, let’s attack together. This spiritual turtle is not ordinary. I’m afraid the formation can’t hold it for long,” Master Wang shouted.

“Okay!” Bai Daxian didn’t dare delay and launched the strongest attack on the spiritual turtle. Trapped in the formation, the spiritual turtle couldn’t move and couldn’t avoid the attacks from Master Wang and others. Each of their sharp attacks hit the spiritual turtle’s body, and the turtle could only rely on its strong defense to block the three attackers.

The spiritual turtle was badly hurt. Its previous injuries hadn’t healed much, and now, the newly formed wounds were torn open again. If not for the turtle’s hard shell, it would have been torn apart by Master Wang and the others by now.

Although Chen Jing was not a Taoist, his attacks were the strongest among the three. Several times, his sword almost pierced through the spiritual turtle’s shell. Unfortunately, the turtle’s shell was not only thick but incredibly tough. Despite repeated attempts, Chen Jing could not break through the shell.

Chen Jing stayed calm, dodging the turtle’s desperate attacks while continuing to strike the same spot. The wound on the turtle’s shell grew larger.

The spiritual turtle sensed the danger and became more frantic. Though trapped in the formation, its frenzied attacks caused a lot of trouble for Bai Daxian and the others.

The turtle’s desperate attacks also drained the formation’s energy rapidly. Bai Daxian and the others depended heavily on the formation, constantly using it to dodge the turtle’s strikes. As a result, the formation’s energy consumption was rapid.

Boom!

With a violent strike, the spiritual turtle broke a hole in the formation. The formation was immediately disrupted.

Roar!

Seeing its enemies, the spiritual turtle charged at them like it was facing a mortal enemy.

“Retreat!” Bai Daxian and the others had no time for resistance. They quickly fled, throwing talismans at the turtle.

Boom boom boom!

A series of explosive sounds rang out.

Although the talismans didn’t cause much harm to the turtle, they successfully kept it in place.

At that moment, the mountain shook violently. The dam collapsed, and the spiritual turtle was launched into the air, soaring high above the Luoa Ridge, before crashing down onto the broken stones of the dam, motionless.

Buzz!

Zhang Jiaohua and the others also felt disoriented, their ears ringing from the explosions.

“Damn! They actually used bombs!” Chen Crazy was furious. He hadn’t expected to be tricked. Bai Daxian and the others never intended to kill the turtle with their own strength; their real weapon was the bomb hidden in the dam. After luring the turtle in, they trapped it and detonated it. They knew they couldn’t kill the turtle with their own power.

The mute and Zhang Yuanbao kept digging at their ears, the explosion making them both dizzy.

“Mute, Yuanbao, are you guys okay?” Zhang Jiaohua asked after a moment, feeling much better.

“I’m fine, I’m fine,” Zhang Yuanbao said, but he was stumbling and couldn’t stand properly.

“Damn, no wonder they ran so fast, they were afraid of blowing themselves up!” Zhang Jiaohua said.

“Is the spiritual turtle dead?” the mute asked. He lay on the ground, not moving.

“I don’t know, it looks like it’s dead. After such a violent explosion, it’s hard to survive,” Zhang Jiaohua said. “Let’s wait and see.”