However, this look made Gou Da believe he had guessed the correct answer; the other party was surprised, hence the look.
"Triple, I'll give you triple. We're all friends in the jianghu. I know your rules. You just want money, and I'll give it to you."
Wan Lei remained silent and swung his hammer at Gou Da.
It's over. These people have "professional ethics" and won't betray whoever hired them. It seems I'll have to fight for my life today.
"You, you shouldn't be cultivators from my Eastern Lands, should you? I don't care where you come from or who hired you. Today you've offended me and don't follow the rules of the jianghu, so don't blame me for disabling you!"
Even now, Gou Da didn't intend to kill Wan Lei and the other. Firstly, they hadn't shown any intent to kill, and secondly, he wanted to interrogate them about their origin and who their employer was.
After speaking, Gou Da's eyes shot out with brilliance, revealing two three-leaf clover runes drawn in a single stroke. As soon as the fiery red clover runes appeared, Gou Da's aura surged again, his body turning fiery red, as if boundless flames were about to erupt from within.
The high temperature radiating from his body melted his clothes piece by piece, and his hair, eyebrows, and armpit hair all burned to nothing. In this moment, he resembled a rune monster, brimming with power.
He went bald, and he grew stronger.
"Little thieves, today I'll show you the might of my Eastern Land runes!"
Gou Da advanced towards Wan Lei with imposing momentum, his steps shaking the ground.
Fang Xiaoyu stood ready.
Wan Lei lowered his head, glanced at Gou Da's lower half, and clicked his tongue, shaking his head.
"So small."
Fang Xiaoyu looked at Wan Lei with surprise. Why was this guy's focus so peculiar?
"Huh?"
Gou Da's emotions were instantly disrupted. His imposing aura dissipated, and he looked down at himself, suddenly understanding, and then became enraged.
"Little thieves, die!"
He was truly furious.
"Actually, I have runes too."
Wan Lei chuckled, and the Bing Fire Divine Thunder within him transformed into runes, instantly filling his body. His innate divine ability, Thunderous Fire Burst!
His runes were somewhat different from Gou Da's.
The runes of the Eastern Land cultivators were the result of generations of effort, continuous evolution, and gradual exploration. Wan Lei's runes, however, were formed by drawing upon primal thunder and referencing universal laws to gain combat advantages.
Although his runes utilized laws and were very powerful, their upper and lower limits were fixed.
The upper limit of the Eastern Land cultivators' runes was almost infinite; as long as there was wisdom, they could continue to evolve. Therefore, it was difficult to say which was inherently better.
Runes themselves couldn't be judged by strength or weakness, but the people who used them could.
The Thunder Emperor Hammer in Wan Lei's hand suddenly melted, transforming into countless nanoparticles that settled on his fists, forming a pair of gauntlets.
Wan Lei and Gou Da charged at each other. Flames billowed around both of them, their rune enhancements identical. At this moment, they were like two cannonballs shot from their barrels, colliding fiercely.
This kind of direct confrontation, devoid of any fancy techniques, depended entirely on whose physique and strength were superior.
BOOM!!!
After a deafening roar, both were pushed back. The instantaneous shockwave created by their collision flattened all the houses on the mountaintop.
Fortunately, the other cultivators were watching from a distance in mid-air and dared not get too close; otherwise, the lingering aftermath of this battle could have annihilated them.
After the initial probing, both sides recognized the other's formidable power. Wan Lei changed his strategy, ceasing to engage in meaningless direct confrontations and instead employing Lightning Slash to break through the opponent's defenses.
Wan Lei transformed into a sharp blade, his body enveloped in lightning and flames, and lunged directly at Gou Da's forehead.
Seeing this, Gou Da let out a cold snort and punched out, intending to shatter Wan Lei's momentum.
Just as they were about to collide, Wan Lei suddenly unleashed Wind Cries Crane Calls. Gou Da, caught completely unprepared, felt a sharp whistling and crane cry suddenly assail his ears, his mind buzzing and his soul wracked with excruciating pain.
Temporarily losing control of his body, Gou Da was powerless against Wan Lei's attack. Wan Lei landed a punch on his forehead, and Gou Da spat blood, falling to the ground.
Wan Lei was even faster. The gauntlets in his hands transformed into a long whip, channeling the Metal Thunder within his body and integrating it into the whip.
Under the whip of order, Gou Da's internal cultivation quickly disintegrated, leaving him severely injured.
Soon, Wan Lei's assault concluded. He took out a rope and tied Gou Da up as well.
Thus, all three of the Net Mountain Oddities were captured.
Wan Lei picked up Gou Da and tossed him next to Gou Er and Gou San. The three brothers sat in a row, a complete family.
Wan Lei squatted in front of Gou Da, looking at him with a smile.
"Didn't you want me to see how powerful you Eastern Land cultivators are? I've seen it, and you're not that powerful."
"Hmph, today we are outmatched. We lost, so be it. Whether you kill or flog us, we will accept it. We jianghu cultivators can afford to lose, but do not insult me. A scholar can be killed, but not humiliated!"
"I won't kill you. I only want one thing from you. If you give me the item, I will spare your lives."
Wan Lei's tone was casual, as if he were asking what they wanted for dinner.
"What thing?"
Gou Da was taken aback. Wasn't this person an assassin hired by someone?
"Taishang Carving Knife."
Seeing this, all three Gou brothers' eyes widened, filled with disbelief mixed with sudden understanding.
"Did that hypocrite from Xiangren Sect hire you? Could that pauper afford to hire you? Impossible!"
Gou Da exclaimed.
"It has nothing to do with that old scoundrel. Stop blabbering. Where is the carving knife? Hand it over, and I'll leave immediately. Or I'll kill you and find it myself."
Wan Lei did not want to expose his connection with Xiangren Sect, fearing it would endanger them.
Seeing that the other party was after the Taishang Carving Knife, Gou Da breathed a sigh of relief.
"No, brother, if you wanted the carving knife, you should have said so earlier. I'm not stingy, and I always help those who need it.
Why did you attack right away? It damages our relationship, which is not good. Let me go, and I'll get the carving knife for you."
"Where is the carving knife? It's not on you?"
"Why would I carry such an important item on me? It's kept in our secret chamber.
Our secret chamber isn't located on Net Mountain. To be precise, it's a small, severed space that only we three brothers can open. We usually keep our valuables there, so even if something happens to one of us outside, the items won't be lost.
Moreover, it's extremely safe. We do our rune carving there, so we don't have to worry about being disturbed."
As if fearing Wan Lei wouldn't believe him, Gou Da explained desperately.
"I can go get it for you now."