After gathering the Corpse Bees onto the main passage leading in one direction, Fang Guangjun first sealed the swarm within a certain range. Then, he went after the Feng family disciples who had headed that way.
After entering, these disciples had also slowly split up, which gave Fang Guangjun an easier way to kill them.
There was a Feng family branch head in this direction. Although his strength was considerable and he led three others, he stood no chance against absolute power. Furthermore, the four of them had no defenses up against Fang Guangjun. When Fang Guangjun saw them, he didn't hide his tracks, instead strolling over openly.
When this family head heard someone approaching, he was initially very vigilant. But when he saw Fang Guangjun's figure appear, he immediately relaxed. The family head and the other three hurriedly bowed in greeting. What they could never have dreamed of was that at the very moment they bowed, they would be sneak-attacked by a senior. They all perished in utter confusion.
The smooth progress of it all left Fang Guangjun extremely satisfied. It was only when he was killing Tang Tian's group at the end that something unexpected happened.
When he caught up to Tang Tian's group, Fang Guangjun, of course, targeted the strongest of the three, Tang Tian, first. To his surprise, Tang Tian actually had an extremely powerful defensive magical treasure, one that could resist the attack of a Foundation Establishment cultivator.
In the moment he was stunned, Tang Tian had already leaped up, grabbed Wu Yizhen, and fled, leaving only Tian Denghu, who had been trailing behind.
The youth was frightened silly in that instant, not understanding why Martial Uncle Fang had attacked Tang Tian the moment he saw them, causing a brilliant spiritual light to erupt from his body.
In the moment Tian Denghu was dazed, Tang Tian had already passed by him as he turned to flee. He said only a single sentence before quickly vanishing without a trace. It was this sentence that made Tian Denghu a scapegoat.
"This man is a spy who has infiltrated the Falling Star Valley! He wants to kill us! I'll lead him away. You run far away and call for the Feng family to help! Quickly, I can't hold him off for long!"
Tian Denghu was jolted to his senses. How could he dare to follow Tang Tian? He fled desperately down another passage, screaming "Help!" at the top of his lungs as he ran.
Now, there was no way Fang Guangjun could let him get too far. If they were in the outside world, he wouldn't even have to move; a single long-range spell would have finished Tian Denghu. But in the tomb-cavern, Tian Denghu vanished into the winding passages after just a few turns. Enraged, Fang Guangjun had to spend three breaths' time to chase him down and slay him.
By the time he turned back, Tang Tian, in his desperate flight, had already escaped quite a distance.
Fortunately, everything was still within his calculations. In the end, he intercepted Tang Tian without issue on the main path he had to take.
All he needed to do now was go find some Feng family members and let them know that a passage in this direction had been overrun by a suddenly gathered swarm of Corpse Bees. The cultivators in that passage had all been killed on the main path as they tried to return. By the time he arrived, it was too late. The corpses of the Corpse Bees scattered across many forked paths were the proof.
What's more, Tang Tian's lower body was still standing there. He imagined that although the Feng family had lost quite a few people, they wouldn't be able to say much. Was he not even supposed to try to save a disciple of the Falling Star Valley?
Finally, as long as he assisted the Feng family in killing the Foundation Establishment ghostly creature that had escaped during the day and took over the three large tomb-caverns, what would the deaths of a few Feng family members matter? In comparison, the benefits they would gain were far greater. At that time, they would find even more reasons to explain the deaths of Tang Tian's trio.
This was also why he hadn't targeted Feng Zaiyu's group. He could sense that Feng Zaiyu's true cultivation was likely very strong, and as the current person in charge of the Feng family, he couldn't believe Feng Zaiyu didn't have any life-saving measures. He was unwilling to take the risk. Even if he did kill Feng Zaiyu, the situation might become completely different. The Feng family's ancestor would not let the matter rest afterward. Once he began a serious investigation, the things he had done might not be so flawless. Everything had to be completed in the most secure way; only that was perfect.
'I let that Zhang Ming off easy. Otherwise, I could have had some extra benefits!'
Fang Guangjun stood where he was, his eyes flashing for a few moments as he thought of Li Yan. This person was also on his kill list. It was a pity that Zhang Ming had left Tang Tian's team at the last minute.
"Zhang Ming, Zhang... Ming..."
Fang Guangjun muttered the name twice. That was a disciple of the Falling Star Valley, but he could only let it go.
Immediately, he turned and flew towards the other passages. He had to go and call some Feng family disciples over.
Although the Foundation Establishment ghostly creature's tomb-cavern was only fifty li in size, the passages and forked paths within crisscrossed. There were only twenty-one people in their group in total. Unless they deliberately stuck together, they would be very spread out once they dispersed. Even if he intentionally went looking for them, he would have to wind his way through many turns.
Just as Fang Guangjun had flown less than a li, a figure suddenly appeared in his line of sight. This figure had not been detected by his Divine Sense before.
Fang Guangjun was startled. Regardless of whether the figure was human or ghost, it wasn't far from where the Corpse Bees had appeared.
'Could it be that Tang Tian's cries for help were heard, alarming someone who came to investigate?'
In his urgency, Fang Guangjun didn't have time to think about whether the other party was human or ghost. It would be for the best if it was a ghostly creature.
The next moment, Fang Guangjun actually let out a silent laugh. Locked on by his Divine Sense, the figure was none other than Zhang Ming. It seemed he had just turned out of a forked path and ran headlong into him.
"So it's Martial Nephew Zhang. Why have you appeared here all alone?"
At this moment, murderous intent had already risen in Fang Guangjun's heart. No matter what, this person might have heard Tang Tian's cries for help. Tang Tian had been calling him by his full name.
'Perhaps he just entered a tomb-cavern where some restriction blocked my Divine Sense, which is why I didn't discover his presence.'
Fang Guangjun thought to himself. He had been anxious to kill those few just now. Although he had used sneak attacks and covert schemes, he had been extremely careful, scanning with his Divine Sense before each move to minimize the chances of them calling for help. However, he admitted to himself that he wasn't too familiar with the tomb-cavern's environment, so it was inevitable there would be loopholes. Thus, he could only continuously perfect his plan.
As he spoke, Fang Guangjun did not slow down. With a flash, he was already in front of Zhang Ming.
Zhang Ming was clearly stunned. He then looked questioningly down the passage Fang Guangjun had come from, but he had already replied.
"Oh, I was just planning to switch to another passage to have a look."
"Oh? Did Martial Nephew hear any strange sounds just now?" Fang Guangjun asked with a smile, but the killing intent in his heart was thick. He didn't notice that the other party hadn't even called him "Martial Uncle" upon seeing him, let alone bowed in greeting.
As he spoke, Spirit Power was already surging in the hand he held behind his back, a glow pulsing from it.
Seeing the questioning look Zhang Ming cast behind him, he knew this person must have heard something and was just pretending to be calm.
Fang Guangjun's shoulder tensed as he prepared to strike.
"You want to kill me?"
Suddenly, Zhang Ming retracted his gaze. The next moment, he stared coldly at Fang Guangjun's face, all expression having vanished from his own.
Fang Guangjun's elbow, which had already begun to bend, froze. Zhang Ming's question had stunned him, and his expression was frozen on his face. He was confident that, let alone a sneak attack, even if he attacked openly, Zhang Ming wouldn't have time to react. He would certainly die without ever knowing who killed him.
"Wh-what did you say?"
"What else could it be? You want to kill me?"
Zhang Ming just stared quietly at Fang Guangjun. In an instant, the space around them also seemed to freeze, making Fang Guangjun suddenly feel a bone-chilling cold all over.
He was a cunning man. After a moment of shock, his face remained relatively calm as he hurriedly scanned the other party repeatedly with his Divine Sense.
But the Zhang Ming opposite him seemed completely unaware that someone was probing him, and just continued to stare coldly at Fang Guangjun.
"Martial Nephew Zhang, have you gone mad? Spouting such nonsense, you have lost all courtesy!"
As Fang Guangjun's Divine Sense scanned, his tone became extremely severe. But he still didn't attack immediately. He was now feeling that something was not right.
"Hehehe, why exactly did you develop killing intent towards me? Back in the Feng family's fortress, you already had killing intent towards me? Do we know each other? Have we had a quarrel?"
Zhang Ming's tone became increasingly calm, but his words struck Fang Guangjun like a club to the head. He couldn't help but retreat several steps, pointing a trembling finger at Zhang Ming.
"You... you... you're not Zhang Ming! Who are you? Oh... no, you... who... who on earth are you?"
As a tempestuous wave crashed through his heart, his words became incoherent. He didn't even realize he was contradicting himself. Because he really had developed killing intent towards Zhang Ming's group in the great hall of the Feng family's fortress. At that time, he felt that the Feng family's ancestor inviting him to the Yin Tomb Mountain in the back hills was a golden opportunity. In his excitement, he had leaked a trace of killing intent, but he immediately caught himself and returned to normal in an instant.
It was only for a fleeting moment. Even the two Feng family ancestors sitting beside him had not noticed. But how could this Zhang Ming have sensed it?
His mind was in turmoil now. He wondered if Zhang Ming had been quietly possessed by a ghostly creature during the great battle outside the fortress, but it didn't seem likely. That's why his questions were also somewhat chaotic.
"Who I am is not important. What's important is why you have killing intent towards me. I can see you are not a foreign cultivator who has infiltrated the Falling Star Valley. Are you with those people who have been ambushing sect disciples outside the Valley recently?"
Zhang Ming still had a faint, indifferent look, but his words sent more and more terror through Fang Guangjun.
Suddenly, Spirit Power erupted from Fang Guangjun's body. At the same time, a black shield appeared behind Zhang Ming, slapping viciously towards the back of his head.
"Die for me!"
The terror on Fang Guangjun's face instantly turned savage, a stark contrast to his fear and trembling just a moment ago.
Among the cultivators who survived on the Forsaken Continent, how many were easy to deal with? Everyone knew the fate of falling into an enemy's hands—it would be a state where you couldn't beg for life, nor wish for death. Without being suppressed by absolute power, it was still unknown who would emerge victorious. Even an ant clings to life, let alone a Foundation Establishment cultivator like him.
Faced with Fang Guangjun's sudden violent outburst, Zhang Ming's figure didn't even twitch where he stood. There wasn't much surprise on his face either.
He suddenly gave a silent laugh.
"You are too close to me!"
The moment his words sounded, the black shield that had suddenly appeared to strike the back of his head, an attack with heaven-shattering momentum, had the rampant Spirit Power on its surface drained in a single instant. Then, with a "clang!", it smashed heavily onto the ground, sending sparks flying.
At the same time, the savage expression on Fang Guangjun's face froze. His hands, which were forming a seal, were struck as if by lightning. His body trembled violently, and all the strength within him vanished like smoke. With an expression of utter disbelief, he fell backward.
In his mind, Zhang Ming's words still echoed, "You are too close to me! What does that mean?"
Zhang Ming suddenly chuckled softly. With a wave of his hand, he rolled up the shield behind him. The next moment, it had vanished, stored away by him.
And Fang Guangjun, lying on the ground, felt even greater terror. He hadn't seen the flash of a storage pouch, nor felt the slightest spatial fluctuation.