SFS Chapter 315 Poison Miasma
Chapter 315 Poison Miasma
The wind howled and the rain poured down. The raindrops as big as beans hit the leaves of the makeshift shelter hard, making a deafening sound. Gao Xingchen frowned, and the feeling of uneasiness in his heart became stronger. This sudden rainstorm was by no means a simple natural phenomenon.
The rainstorm continued all night long. Gao Xingchen and his family members huddled in the shelter, anxiously waiting for dawn.
The next morning, the rainstorm finally stopped, but the sky was still gloomy, as if a huge gray curtain covered the entire trial field. Gao Xingchen couldn't help but take a breath of cold air when he walked out of the shelter. The familiar mountains and forests were now completely unrecognizable. The rushing flood washed the land, and the originally flat road became muddy, with trees and boulders washed down by the flood everywhere.
"It seems that this rainstorm has completely changed the terrain of the trial field." Gao Xingchen said in a deep voice, "We must find a new place to stay as soon as possible to replenish food and water."
The crowd trudged along the muddy road with difficulty, their clothes and shoes were soaked with mud and water, but no one complained or felt tired. They knew that in this dangerous trial field, only unity could overcome all difficulties.
"Brother Xingchen, look ahead!" Xuanfeng, who was walking in front of the team, suddenly exclaimed.
Gao Xingchen looked up and saw a team coming towards them not far away. After a closer look, Gao Xingchen found that this team was composed of Sun family members, and the leader was the Sun Gongzi who had a feud with him before.
"Hey, isn't this Master Gao?" Young Master Sun said sarcastically, "Why are you in such a mess? It seems that this rainstorm has had a significant impact on your Gao family!"
Gao Xingchen looked at Master Sun coldly. He knew that Master Sun was deliberately looking for trouble.
"Mr. Sun, we'll talk about our affairs later." Gao Xingchen suppressed his anger and said in a deep voice, "The most urgent thing now is to find a safe place to stay."
"A safe place to stay? This is the only relatively safe high ground around here." Young Master Sun pointed to a small hill behind them, a sly smile on his face, "Why, Master Gao wants to grab our territory?"
Gao Xingchen's heart sank. He knew that a conflict was inevitable...
Gao Xingchen clenched his fist tightly, his knuckles slightly whitening from the force. Sun Gongzi's provocation was so obvious, it was clear that he was deliberately trying to provoke a fight between the two families. He took a deep breath and tried to suppress the anger in his heart. Now is not the time to tear the face with the Sun family. The most important thing is to preserve strength and successfully complete the trial.
"Mr. Sun, you are joking," Gao Xingchen kept a polite smile on his face, "This trial field is so big, it's just a high ground, why bother fighting for it? Our Gao family will set up camp at the foot of the hillside and not interfere with each other, how about that?"
"Master Gao really knows how to deal with the current situation." Young Master Sun raised his eyebrows in surprise, but a trace of contempt flashed in his eyes. He waved his hand, signaling the Sun family members behind him to set up camp on the hillside.
Gao Xingchen suppressed his unhappiness and asked his family members to find a relatively dry place at the foot of the hillside and start to build a temporary camp. He knew that Master Sun would not let them go easily. This conflict was only temporarily suppressed and would break out sooner or later.
"Brother Xingchen, this Sun family is going too far!" Xuanfeng walked to Gao Xingchen angrily and whispered, "They are clearly looking for trouble on purpose!"
Gao Xingchen patted Xuanfeng on the shoulder, signaling him to calm down. "I know, but now is not the time to act rashly." He lowered his voice and looked serious. "Our first priority now is to find water and food, and recover our strength as soon as possible to face the next challenge."
"But..." Xuanfeng wanted to say something, but was stopped by Gao Xingchen's eyes.
At night, the forest was silent, with only the occasional chirping of insects breaking the tranquility. Gao Xingchen sat by the campfire, frowning, with a lot of thoughts in his mind. The Sun family's provocation this time was by no means accidental. They seemed to know everything about the Gao family's actions, and there must be something fishy going on.
"Brother Xingchen, what are you thinking about?" Xuanfeng walked over with a bowl of hot soup and handed it to Gao Xingchen.
Gao Xingchen took the hot soup and took a sip. A warm current flowed down his throat into his stomach, dispelling some of the coldness. "I wonder how the Sun family knew our whereabouts?" He whispered, "For this trial, our family's plan was very secretive. Except for the core members, no one else knew about it."
Xuan Feng's expression turned serious when he heard this. "Brother Xingchen, do you mean that there is a spy among us?"
Gao Xingchen shook his head. "We can't be sure yet, but we have to be on guard." He paused and continued, "This trial is related to the future of our family. We must not take it lightly."
"Brother Xingchen, you are right." Xuanfeng nodded with a firm look, "We will definitely find the traitor and crush their conspiracy!"
Gao Xingchen looked at Xuanfeng in front of him, and his heart was filled with relief. He knew that the future of the family depended on these young people. He believed that as long as they united as one, they would be able to overcome all difficulties and finally win.
However, Gao Xingchen didn't know that while they were talking, a dark shadow was quietly listening to their conversation behind a big tree not far away.
"What is the next plan of Xingchen Pavilion..." The black shadow showed a cold smile at the corner of his mouth, "It seems that our Sun family is going to be prosperous this time..."
The morning sun shone through the gaps in the leaves, casting mottled spots of light. Gao Xingchen got up early, washed up briefly, and began to patrol the entire camp. He knew that the Sun family would not give up, so he had to remain vigilant at all times.
"Brother Xingchen, you got up so early!" Xuanfeng rubbed his sleepy eyes and walked out of the tent.
"Well, the early bird catches the worm." Gao Xingchen smiled and patted Xuanfeng's shoulder, "Go see if the other brothers are up. Get ready. It's time to set off."
"Okay!" Xuanfeng responded and turned to walk towards other tents.
Gao Xingchen's eyes swept across the surrounding mountains and forests, and he felt a little uneasy. What on earth was the Sun family plotting?
At this time, Master Sun came over with several Sun family members. With a false smile on his face, he said, "Master Gao, what a coincidence! Are you ready to leave so early?"
"Mr. Sun, you are joking. We are just making some simple preparations." Gao Xingchen replied calmly, "Mr. Sun, how come you have time to come to our place today?"
"Hahaha, Master Gao is really a forgetful person!" Young Master Sun said in surprise, "Didn't we agree yesterday that our two families will act together today and explore this area together."
Gao Xingchen sneered in his heart. This Mr. Sun was really good at acting. He was obviously looking for trouble on purpose, but he pretended to be cooperative. He was about to refuse, but Xuanfeng on the side said first: "Mr. Sun, you are joking. How can we casually reveal the action plan of our Xingchen Pavilion? Yesterday we only said that we would be active nearby, but we did not agree to act with you."
"Xuanfeng!" Gao Xingchen scolded in a low voice, thinking in his heart that something was not good. Xuanfeng was too impulsive and actually revealed their plan inadvertently.
Sure enough, when Master Sun heard the words "Xingchen Pavilion", a gleam of light flashed in his eyes. He pretended to be puzzled and asked: "Xingchen Pavilion? What is that? Master Gao, is your Gao family going to have any secret operations this time?"
Gao Xingchen cursed Xuanfeng in his heart for being reckless, but his face remained calm. He smiled and said, "Young Master Sun, you are joking. Xingchen Pavilion is just a small organization within our family, specializing in some exploration and treasure hunting. This time, they just came together to experience the trial."
Young Master Sun obviously didn't believe Gao Xingchen's explanation, but he didn't continue to ask. He just smiled meaningfully and said, "I see, it seems that I misunderstood. In this case, we will leave first, Master Gao, see you later!"
After saying this, Master Sun turned around and left with the Sun family members.
Gao Xingchen looked at Master Sun's departing back, and his uneasiness grew stronger. He knew that Master Sun would never let go of this opportunity easily, and they would definitely use the information revealed by Xuanfeng to lay out in advance and hinder their actions.
"Xuanfeng, you are too impulsive this time!" Gao Xingchen lowered his voice and said sternly, "How could you tell the people of the Sun family about Xingchen Pavilion?"
Xuanfeng also knew that he was in trouble, so he lowered his head and didn't dare to speak.
Gao Xingchen took a deep breath and tried to calm himself down. Now that things had come to this, it was useless to blame Xuanfeng. The most urgent task was to find a way to deal with the Sun family's actions.
"Pass the order down, change the plan, we will set off immediately and go to..." Gao Xingchen's deep eyes narrowed slightly, and countless possibilities flashed through his mind. In the end, he decisively ordered: "Pass the order down, change the plan, we will set off immediately and go to Black Wind Valley!"
The Black Wind Valley is an extremely dangerous place in the trial grounds. It is shrouded in thick black fog all year round. Various ferocious monsters and even highly poisonous miasma are hidden in it. Few people dare to set foot in it easily.
Gao Xingchen's decision to go to the Black Wind Valley was not a rash move, but a well-thought-out decision. Since the Sun family had already learned of the existence of the Xingchen Pavilion, they would certainly try every means to stop their actions. Instead of waiting to die, it would be better to take the initiative and lure the Sun family to the Black Wind Valley, taking advantage of the terrain and environment to catch them off guard.
"Black Wind Valley? Brother Xingchen, that's a dangerous place!" Xuanfeng's face changed drastically when he heard Gao Xingchen's decision.
"I know," Gao Xingchen said in a deep voice, "but the more dangerous the place is, the easier it is for people to let down their guard. This is also our only chance."
Gao Xingchen's eyes were firm and his tone was unquestionable. He knew that if he wanted to win this trial, he must dare to take risks and challenge his limits.
Everyone packed up their luggage and set off quickly, rushing towards the Black Wind Valley.
Along the way, Gao Xingchen always remained highly vigilant, carefully observing the surrounding environment and guarding against ambushes by the Sun family.
However, to his surprise, they did not encounter any obstacles along the way, as if the Sun family had no idea of their whereabouts.
"Has the Sun family given up?" Xuan Feng couldn't help but ask.
"Impossible," Gao Xingchen shook his head. "The Sun family will never give up easily. They may have set up an ambush ahead, waiting for us to fall into their trap."
As soon as Gao Xingchen finished speaking, a cry of surprise suddenly came from the front of the team.
"Oh no, there's a trap ahead!"
Gao Xingchen's heart trembled and he hurried over.
In front of the team, the ground suddenly collapsed, revealing a huge bottomless pit. The pit was filled with a disgusting stench, which was obviously a carefully set trap.
"Be careful!" Gao Xingchen shouted, and with a flash of his body, he pulled back a family member who was unable to dodge in time, but several members unfortunately fell into the trap, and their screams echoed in the valley.
Gao Xingchen's face turned pale and his eyes were as fast as lightning as he scanned the surrounding environment, trying to find the mechanism of the trap.
However, at this moment, a thick black fog suddenly gushed out of the trap and quickly spread around. The black fog was mixed with a pungent fishy smell, making people dizzy.
"Oh no, this is poisonous miasma!" Gao Xingchen's face changed drastically. He quickly held his breath and circulated his true energy at the same time to form a protective barrier on his body surface to resist the erosion of the poisonous miasma.
However, other family members did not have as profound cultivation as Gao Xingchen, and soon someone was poisoned and fell to the ground in great pain.
Gao Xingchen was extremely anxious. He knew that he must find a way to break the trap as soon as possible, otherwise the consequences would be disastrous.
He endured the erosion of the poisonous miasma and carefully observed the structure of the trap, trying to find its weakness.
As time passed, the poisonous miasma in the trap became thicker and thicker, and Gao Xingchen's face became paler and paler, but he never gave up hope. He knew that he was carrying the hope of the entire family on his shoulders and he must not fall here!