Chapter 289: The Schemer Gets Outschemed

Chapter 289: Chapter 289: The Schemer Gets Outschemed

The Seven-Colored Glazed Treasure Tree was surrounded by a halo of light that looked like a barrier.

The moment he heard the White Fox say the gathered butterflies had Combat Power comparable to the Void Realm, Chu Fan had already devised a plan.

They wanted to use him to do their dirty work and then reap all the rewards. Now that Chu Fan knew their plan, how could he possibly let them have their way?

In reality, the halo wasn’t some protective aura from the Seven-Colored Glazed Treasure Tree. It was formed from the overflowing Thunder Power of the gathered butterflies, creating what appeared to be a misty glow.

Up close, one could even see faint blue arcs of electricity flickering constantly within the halo.

Chu Fan stepped forward, drew his Juntian Sword, and with his left hand clasped behind his back, he slashed directly at the halo.

KRACK—

With a deafening noise, the halo condensed into an arm-thick blue arc of lightning that shot toward Chu Fan.

Chu Fan sidestepped, dodging the arc, but it unexpectedly stuck to him like a shadow, moving with incredible speed.

He didn’t try to lead the danger toward the crowd. When escape was no longer an option, he summoned the Celestial Dragon Armor.

The arc of lightning slammed into the Celestial Dragon Armor and dissipated into nothing.

’Huh? The Celestial Dragon Armor can do that?’

Since the Celestial Dragon Armor could block the lightning, Chu Fan didn’t hesitate. He raised his Sword and went back to work.

After several more slashes, the halo finally dispersed.

He then raised his Sword and walked toward the Seven-Colored Glazed Treasure Tree. Before he could get close, the butterflies on the tree took flight. They swarmed around Chu Fan, and the arcs of lightning they shot at him formed what looked like a pale blue web of light.

The Celestial Dragon Armor absorbed the arcs of lightning. Seeing this, the butterflies began flapping their wings once more.

To the absolute astonishment of the crowd, the butterflies gathered together, forming a Giant that stood a full head taller than Chu Fan. In its hand, it held a Long Sword over five feet long.

The Long Sword itself was also formed from thousands of butterflies.

The sight was enough to make anyone with a fear of swarms feel their skin crawl.

Chu Fan was no different. It wasn’t that he had a fear of swarms; he was simply shocked and fascinated by the butterflies’ abilities.

’No wonder the White Fox said that when these butterflies gathered, they could unleash the Combat Power of a Void Realm expert!’

The next moment, the Giant formed from butterflies raised its Sword and slashed down at Chu Fan.

Before the Long Sword even reached him, a bolt of Sword Qi formed from lightning curved through the air, slashing toward Chu Fan like a blade of Sword Aura.

Chu Fan dodged to the side just as the arc of lightning slammed into the ground. With a BOOM, it blasted a trench over ten feet wide into the earth.

Seeing this, the hundred or so disciples from the various Sects couldn’t help but feel a chill run down their spines.

’Thank goodness we didn’t rush in blindly!’

That strike was too powerful.

Chu Fan gave a cold smirk, raised his Sword, and engaged the "Giant" in battle. He wasn’t using his full strength, however. Instead, he was subtly luring the Giant toward the crowd.

After several dozen exchanges, he had thoroughly enraged the butterflies.

The next moment, he cast the Inner Binding Seal Divine Technique, and his body vanished.

His sudden disappearance left the butterflies confused for a moment, but in their enraged state, the "Giant" charged toward the crowd.

The "Giant" slashed out, and an arc of lightning cut off the escape route for dozens of people.

"Holy shit, where’s Chu Fan? That bastard is too damn sneaky!"

"Damn it, Chu Fan, I hope you die a miserable death!"

"He’s turning it on us! Luring the tiger from the mountain... Brothers, let’s work together and take this thing down!"

"Fight? My ass! The Combat Power of this Giant made of butterflies is probably beyond the Integration Realm! Attacking it is a suicide mission! Let’s just run!"

"Run!"

The hundred-plus people scattered, fleeing in all directions.

But what they hadn’t anticipated was that while scattering meant the first "Giant" could only chase one or two of them, they hadn’t even made it out of the forest when new swarms of butterflies appeared, so dense they blotted out the sky.

The swarms converged into one "Giant" after another, completely sealing off the forest.

The hundred or so people were now trapped like rats in a cage.

Never mind them—even Chu Fan hadn’t expected so many more butterflies to be hidden all around.

Bolts of Thunder flashed and crackled. The hundred-plus chosen disciples from the various Sects scattered and fled, none daring to engage the "Giants." They either ran for their lives or frantically swung their weapons in a desperate defense.

The sound of Thunder echoed throughout the forest.

Meanwhile, Chu Fan, after his moment of shock, remained invisible and drew close to the Seven-Colored Glazed Treasure Tree.

Then, he grabbed the Treasure Tree and ripped it straight out of the ground, roots and all.

As the Seven-Colored Glazed Treasure Tree was uprooted, the "Giants" became even more frantic. Several of them abandoned the Martial Artists they were fighting and charged toward the Treasure Tree’s location.

Still invisible, Chu Fan held the Treasure Tree and used Shrinking Inches, tossing the Treasure Tree to the White Fox.

The White Fox caught the Treasure Tree and, without a moment’s delay, transformed into a streak of white light and fled into the distance, leaving Chu Fan with only a single sentence.

"Brother, you hold them off! I’m going to refine the Treasure Tree and I’ll come find you after!"

Chu Fan hadn’t expected that from the White Fox, but he let it go. He turned back to see the chosen disciples being battered by the "Giants." Although he felt a sense of satisfaction, he didn’t intend to let them all die here.

’Teaching them a lesson is one thing, but if most of them actually die here, wouldn’t I end up offending more than a hundred Sects and Noble Families?’

He let his Invisibility fade, revealing himself as he flew into the air, Juntian Sword in hand.

"How’s it going? Need any help?" Chu Fan asked, looking down on them with a light chuckle.

"Chu Fan, I hope you die a miserable death!"

"Oh? So you don’t need my help? In that case, I’ll just enjoy the show."

"Chu Fan, you bastard! Don’t let me get my hands on you, or you’re dead!"

’Still talking tough at a time like this?’

By now, every one of the hundred-plus people was injured. Some even had their hair fried by the lightning, making it stand on end.

Most of them had large, scorched patches on their clothes.

"Don’t think for a second I didn’t know what you were planning. You wanted me to fight these things so you could just swoop in and reap the rewards, didn’t you? You even planned to turn on me once I was exhausted."

They were stunned to hear Chu Fan’s words. They couldn’t understand how he knew their plan.

’Could there be a traitor among us?’

"I’ll be straight with you," Chu Fan threatened. "I can handle these butterflies on my own. You just need to tell me who the mastermind behind all this is, and I’ll solve your little problem here. Otherwise, you can all just wait to die!"

"Really?" someone asked, clearly tempted.

In the face of death, concepts like loyalty and betrayal suddenly seemed unimportant.

"Silence!"

Du Xiuli shouted, berating the few who were ready to give in.

"Du Xiuli, if you want to kiss Guo Zi’s ass, that’s your business! But I’m not about to follow you down this dead-end path, damn it!"

"So it was Guo Zi, was it?" Chu Fan said with a cold laugh.

Knowing Guo Zi was the one scheming behind his back was enough. Nothing else mattered now. Ignoring their squabbling, he raised his Sword and charged toward the outermost "Giant."

As for the "Giant" chasing the miserable-looking Du Xiuli, Chu Fan would, of course, be saving that one for last.

He would save them, but he would save them on his own terms. He truly didn’t intend for them all to die, but that didn’t mean he was the type to repay malice with kindness.