Chapter 783: Chapter 783

Amidst laughter, several figures leapt high from the fishing boat, landing lightly like willow catkins directly in front of Hattori Yumi and her companions.

"Miss Hattori, we meet again! Do you still recognize me?"

After the figures had landed, a young man stepped forward from the group and stared coldly at Hattori Yumi as he asked.

Under the moonlight and the snow, Hattori Yumi was startled as she recognized the face of the young man—it was none other than Fang Bai, the tourist who had departed with them from Zhao Family Village to "enjoy the scenery" at Flying Dragon Mountain. She still remembered his name.

After Fang Bai and Zhao Guoqiang left Flying Dragon Mountain, Hattori Yumi had sent Mutou Ye to kill the two of them to silence them, believing it would be an easy task for Mutou Ye. Yet, to her utter disbelief, Fang Bai now stood before her.

If Fang Bai was unharmed, then it was almost certain that Mutou Ye had met with misfortune.

"That’s right, it’s me!"

With a mocking smile on his face, Fang Bai said, "Miss Hattori, weren’t you enjoying the scenery at Flying Dragon Mountain? What brings you here?"

As soon as Hattori Yumi saw Fang Bai leap from the fishing boat to the shore, she knew she had misjudged him; he was not any ordinary person, but rather a peerless master.

She was at Earth Level Perfection, yet she could not sense any fluctuations in Fang Bai’s aura, which led her to deduce that Fang Bai must be at least a Heaven Level beginner.

Her gaze shifted toward the people beside Fang Bai, and Hattori Yumi felt another shock.

To Fang Bai’s left, there was an elderly man with a glint in his eyes and graying hair and beard, exuding an aura of effortless authority. If he wasn’t the Dragon Guard leader Long Jingtian, then who could it be?

The men to Fang Bai’s right, Hattori Yumi had seen at the "World Meta-Human Elite Competition"; they were the top experts of the Dragon Guard—Long Da, Long Er, Long San, and others.

Hattori Yumi’s heart sank quickly.

She realized that since Long Jingtian and people like Long Da, Long Er, had appeared here, then the two hundred martial artists who had rushed down from the nearby hills must also be members of the Dragon Guard.

It seemed that her group’s movements had been known to the Dragon Guard for some time and they had been under constant surveillance.

They had painstakingly excavated the treasure from Flying Dragon Mountain and traveled hundreds of miles to this place, hoping to board a ship and return to Japan, only to unwittingly walk straight into the pre-arranged "Heaven’s Net" of the Dragon Guard.

Judging by the situation at hand, the Dragon Guard clearly intended to capture them all in one fell swoop.

For finding the treasure, the Hattori Clan had deployed its elite warriors, but the Dragon Guard seemed determined to exterminate them as well, sending their elites. A fierce clash between the two sides was inevitable.

Although the Hattori Clan’s martial artists were more numerous than the Dragon Guard by half again as many, the Dragon Guard had two Heaven Level martial artists at the helm, instantly balancing the numerical disadvantage.

"Leader Long, what do you want to do?"

Hattori Yumi bit her lip and asked with forced calm.

She knew that the mission of the Hattori Clan in Huaxia had surely been exposed to the Dragon Guard, and now any attempt at explanation would be superfluous. Thus, she didn’t bother to make excuses, only wondering how the Dragon Guard intended to deal with them.

"Leave behind all the treasure, incapacitate your martial arts, and I will turn a blind eye and let you leave!"

Fang Bai had never had much liking for Japanese martial artists, and he said expressionlessly.

Hattori Yumi’s face changed, she bit her lip, and said decisively, "Leader Long, you are going too far!"

Leaving behind all the treasures was something Hattori Yumi could accept, but crippling her own cultivation was something she could not.

"Going too far? So what?"

Long Jingtian laughed loudly and then his face turned cold as his gaze swept over Hattori Yumi and the others, he said sternly, "You Japanese martial artists infiltrate our Huaxia territory and steal our Huaxia treasures. Even if we eliminate all of you, it would be nothing but justice! I’m only asking you to leave behind the treasures and cripple your martial arts, which is already the lightest punishment!"

Hattori Yumi retorted, "Leader Long, you are also a martial artist, you should know martial arts are more important than life to a martial artist! Therefore, this is something we cannot do! If you push us too far, we can just fight to the death!"

Long Jingtian smiled coldly and disdainfully said, "Fight to the death? With just you people? Heh, you’re not even worthy!"

After a pause, he continued, "Since you are unwilling to cripple your martial arts, then don’t blame us for making our move!"

No sooner had his words fallen than he shot towards Hattori Yumi like a bolt of lightning.

Capture the ringleader first.

Long Jingtian knew that Hattori Yumi was the core figure of this group of Japanese martial artists. Once she was captured, even if the others didn’t surrender, their morale would be greatly damaged.

The power of a Heaven Level Martial Artist was formidable. Motionless they remained still, but once they moved, they were as fast as lightning. Hattori Yumi only saw a blur before an oppressive force bore down on her, bringing a despairing sense that she had no way to counter.

Hattori Yumi knew that with her Earth Level Perfection cultivation, she was no match for Long Jingtian. Her first reaction was to retreat and then look for an opportunity to leap into the sea.

Hattori Yumi had grown up by the sea since childhood, practicing her clan’s ninjutsu, and her escape abilities were exceptionally brilliant. Once she jumped into the sea, she would be like a fish in the water, free to travel under the vast sky, and even if Long Jingtian possessed Heaven Level Martial Artist strength, he would not dream of catching her.

With a loud explosion, Hattori Yumi, while retreating rapidly, threw something round towards the ground from her hand. When it collided with the ground, a huge puff of smoke erupted, cutting off Long Jingtian’s line of sight.

Long Jingtian, who had clashed with the Japanese martial artists more than once, knew their ninjutsu were tricky to deal with. He hesitated for a moment as a thick fog suddenly rose in front of him and exclaimed, "Not good!"

Protecting himself with True Yuan, he suddenly accelerated, dashing through the dense fog to look for Hattori Yumi, but she was nowhere to be seen.

Meanwhile, at the same time, nearly two hundred Dragon Guard members were engaged in fierce battle with four or five hundred Hattori Clan martial artists nearby.

The Hattori Clan martial artists had the numerical advantage, but on an individual level, the Dragon Guard members were stronger. For the time being, the battle was deadlocked.

However, Hattori Yumi’s escape greatly dampened the other Japanese martial artists’ morale, and they all began to think of retreat.

But they were entangled tightly by their opponents, and only a few managed to use their ninjutsu to escape.

"This woman sure knows how to run fast!"

Seeing Hattori Yumi slip away right under his nose, Long Jingtian couldn’t help feeling humiliated and stomped his foot in frustration.

As he turned his head to look for Fang Bai, he found that Fang Bai was also gone, which greatly surprised him.

But at that moment, with the Dragon Guard members and the Hattori Clan martial artists in the midst of an intense battle, Long Jingtian had no desire to investigate Fang Bai’s whereabouts. He let out a long howl and charged into the fray, unleashing his rage upon the Hattori Clan martial artists.