Chapter Sixty-Nine: The Ball of Light

Shortly after parting ways with Du Lili and the others, Shen Lie retrieved an off-road motorcycle from his space gourd. He had traded food for it—along with two large canisters of gasoline—from a small faction within the main caravan.

He was still over 150 kilometers away from Yang City. Walking would take several days, even if he encountered no danger, but with the motorcycle, he could reach it in a single day. As for whether the sound of the engine might attract monsters, he could no longer afford to care; his heart was consumed by desperate anxiety for his cousin's safety.

The motorcycle performed far better on the rugged terrain than a four-wheeled vehicle. He roared forward, soon reaching a highway, and after confirming his heading, Shen Lie accelerated to top speed.

"Brother Hua, look, is that a motorcycle on the road?" In the fields below the highway where Shen Lie was speeding, a small team was quietly trekking. It was nearly dawn, and a faint light had begun to appear in the sky. A boy with wide eyes pointed at Shen Lie’s figure and spoke to a dark-faced man in his twenties beside him.

"Oh? You're right," the dark-faced man glanced toward the road and curled his lip, continuing to walk with his head down. "Is that kid out of his mind? Daring to head toward Yang City at a time like this? And being so reckless about it?"

"Brother Hua, shouldn't we warn him? There are plenty of lantern monsters foraging further down that road. If he keeps barreling along like that, he’s bound to run into them."

"Tch, are you stupid? Do you have any idea how much effort it took for us to escape Yang City? You want to go back? Besides, that guy is riding so fast, do you think you could even catch up to him? Keep your mouth shut. If you annoy Boss Hu, don't blame me when you get kicked out of the team!"

The dark-faced man’s words made the wide-eyed boy stick out his tongue in silence. He cast a look of pity at Shen Lie’s retreating back before carefully following the pace of his group.

Shen Lie was, of course, unaware of this small encounter. He was internally relieved that he hadn't encountered a single spider monster for such a long stretch. With the highway completely devoid of other vehicles, he twisted the throttle to the limit, pushing the bike even faster.

Shen Lie felt as if he had turned into the wind itself, almost as if he were flying. Yet, even so, it didn't feel fast enough. He wished he could teleport instantly to Yang City to see if his cousin’s family had fallen into danger.

Suddenly, Shen Lie’s eyes caught sight of numerous glowing orbs in the distance. They were floating, emitting a soft blue light, shifting positions as they drifted. Occasionally, one would erupt in a display of light shaped like a peacock’s tail, looking hauntingly beautiful.

Shen Lie’s heart tightened instinctively. He hurriedly let off the throttle and hit the brakes, wanting to stop the bike. He knew that in this world, the more beautiful something appeared, the more dangerous it tended to be; one did not simply approach the unknown.

But the motorcycle was moving too fast. The brakes couldn't bring it to an immediate halt. Not only did it skid for a long distance, but a loss of control caused the bike to tip over, sliding sideways along the pavement with Shen Lie still clinging to it.

The moment the bike went down, Shen Lie activated his bloodline power. His entire body turned a brilliant gold; though he looked disheveled, he was uninjured. However, as he moved to stand up, he realized he had already arrived directly beneath those glowing orbs.

From a distance, these things had looked like mere balls of light, but up close, Shen Lie realized they were bizarre, head-shaped creatures.

Each was roughly the size of a human skull and possessed facial features. At the top of each head was a long tube from which colorful substances occasionally sprayed, creating the peacock-tail light displays.

Unsure if they were hostile, Shen Lie dared not move recklessly. However, he noticed a light beam from one of the orbs suddenly stretch out, not upward, but toward the field beside the road with incredible speed.

A scream pierced the air. Shen Lie’s heart tightened as he saw a figure emerge from the tall grass of the field—a survivor who had somehow wandered here and been spotted by the orbs.

The thin, elongated beam of light struck the survivor’s head with precision. The survivor, seemingly mesmerized by the beauty of the light, stood frozen, unable to resist. Then, the woman’s body appeared to elongate and soften, turning as limp as a noodle, and was sucked into the orb through that long tube!

The orb that had consumed the survivor swayed slightly before falling still. It didn't grow in size, but its light became noticeably brighter.

Shen Lie witnessed the entire process. He hadn't expected such beautiful things to be so lethal. It reminded him of the "Peacock Plume" from the old novels—a deadly threat hidden beneath a beautiful exterior, ready to claim your life before you could even react.

Striking first had always been Shen Lie’s specialty. Without hesitation, he remained on the ground and unleashed his "Hammer of World Destruction," enveloping several of the orbs above him in the attack!

A massive, golden phantom hammer manifested in the air, wreathed in flickering bolts of lightning. It slammed down toward two of the closest orbs. The strike was swift, hitting the targets before they could react.

Shen Lie felt a surge of joy, surprised that the orbs were so slow. He feared speed-based and flying monsters most of all, but these orbs were slow and couldn't fly high, meaning he could at least hold his own.

However, the scene that followed left him stunned. His Hammer of World Destruction struck the two orbs, but it passed through them as if they were made of nothing but air! The hammer’s phantom image crashed into the ground nearby, leaving a deep crater, while the orbs remained completely unscathed.

"What is this? Spell immunity?" Shen Lie stared, dumbfounded, a chill creeping up his spine.

His Hammer of World Destruction was a magical-type, high-damage lightning attack; the golden phantom was essentially a construct of pure electricity. That such an attack was ineffective against these orbs was a grim revelation.

These orbs didn't seem to be physical entities. If the hammer was useless, his "Savage Charge" would likely be even less effective, and since the orbs were airborne, he couldn't reach them anyway.

This effectively neutralized two of his major abilities. All he had left was his black spear, but his star power was limited, and he couldn't use it many times.

Unwilling to accept defeat, Shen Lie unleashed the Hammer of World Destruction again, but the result remained the same. The orbs seemed to be formed of nothing but light; his skills couldn't inflict a single point of damage.

"Run!" What else could he do? Obviously, run.

Shen Lie turned and bolted without a second thought, abandoning his motorcycle. A wise man doesn't fight a losing battle; he had no stake in these things, nor was he bound to this specific path. It wasn't worth provoking them.

But Shen Lie’s movements were clearly a step too late. The two previous attacks had thoroughly agitated the orbs. Just as he began to move, two of the orbs collided; one was sent flying, soaring over Shen Lie’s head and landing directly in his path.

The orbs seemed to be mimicking each other. They began to collide in a playful, child-like manner, and after a series of flashes, they shifted positions, perfectly surrounding Shen Lie.

Shen Lie had seen this coming, but he was powerless to stop it. He watched, helpless, as he was encircled. With a grim expression, he drew his black spear, watching them vigilantly.

"Chirp, chirp!"

Perhaps it was his imagination, but Shen Lie seemed to hear a faint sound from the orbs, as if they were excited. Then, the tubes atop the two closest orbs bent, aiming directly at him, and unleashed their peacock-tail-shaped beams of colored light!