The surviving gunmen hastily fired, their bullets striking the Yin Shi with a metallic clang, only to be repelled. One man holding a compass, unable to dodge, was beheaded by a ricocheting bullet.
"The bullets are useless, fall back, everyone fall back!" the old man shouted loudly.
Everyone retreated to avoid the Yin Shi's attacks. The Yin Shi killed anyone they saw, and soon the injured gunmen lying on the ground were torn to shreds.
Hiding in the distance, the old man showed a pleased expression. The Yin Shi followed the living's yang energy. The fact that the Yin Shi had rushed out of the tomb meant that there were no living people left inside.
Before being ordered to set a trap to ambush Long Xiao, he had received information about Long Xiao, who was described as extremely powerful, capable of killing several mid-stage Earth realm experts alone, and likely already at the peak of the Earth realm.
Ambushing someone at the peak of the Earth realm was incredibly difficult. Without the help of a master at the Great Completion of the Earth realm, the only option was to set a trap and use the Yin Shi against him.
After watching Long Xiao and his group enter the tomb from afar, the old man immediately led his men to the tomb entrance. He first threw in a lit medicinal packet, then sealed the stone door from the outside.
He dispatched men to guard the tomb passage entrance and then, with the remaining men, buried magical artifacts around the Ge family's ancestral graves and activated the煞 (sha) gathering array he had long prepared.
In the old man's eyes, this deadly trap was foolproof. Once the煞 gathering array was activated, the Yin Shi inside would emerge from their coffins in no time.
The Yin Shi would be attracted by yang energy; anything with yang energy would become a target for the Yin Shi.
Long Xiao and his group, trapped in the tomb, would either be killed by the Yin Shi or exhausted to death.
The yang energy outside the tomb chamber was too strong, and after killing a few people, the Yin Shi retreated back into the tomb chamber.
The old man, leading the remaining few, returned to the tomb entrance. Glancing at the dark opening, he said, "The people inside might all be dead. Let's dismantle the煞 gathering array, and we'll go in again tomorrow."
"Boss, let's go. We can report back to Long Nian directly, saying Long Xiao was killed by the Yin Shi."
The old man shook his head and said, "No, we must take photos of Long Xiao's corpse. Otherwise, Long Nian won't believe us."
He left two bodyguards hidden near the graves to keep watch, while the rest returned to the Ge family inn to rest and come back tomorrow.
Long Xiao and Xiao Ming retreated into the tomb chamber and called out Ge Xin and the others. He instructed them to hide in the side chamber with Xiao Ming and Ji Yuelan, while he lured the Yin Shi into the tomb chamber after they returned to the passage.
The煞 gathering array had been dismantled, and the Yin Shi could not replenish their Yin煞 energy, their attack strength weakened considerably.
Long Xiao fought and retreated, entering the first tomb chamber where he engaged the Yin Shi in a struggle, buying time for Xiao Ming and the others to escape.
After hiding in the side chamber for a few minutes, Xiao Ming and the others rushed out of the Ge family's ancestral graves once Long Xiao had lured the Yin Shi into the main tomb chamber.
As soon as they emerged from the Ge family's ancestral graves, Xiao Ming saw the two bodyguards sitting under a tree not far from the entrance.
The two bodyguards also saw Xiao Ming. Before they could even draw their guns, Xiao Ming had already drawn his Black Iron cleaver and stood before them.
With a flash of the blade, the two bodyguards' gun-holding hands were severed by Xiao Ming.
Screams echoed through the mountains and wilderness. Xiao Ming shouted, "Stop screaming, it's really annoying."
Looking at the dark Black Iron cleaver, the two bodyguards dared not cry out loudly anymore.
Blood gushed out. Ji Yuelan tore strips of cloth from the corpses on the ground and tied up the arms of the two bodyguards.
Looking at the two bodyguards trembling in pain, Xiao Ming asked, "Where are the others?"
One bodyguard, gritting his teeth in pain, couldn't speak. The other said, "They returned to the Ge family inn."
There weren't many small inns in Ge family fort, so it was easy for the Ge siblings to find a few outsiders.
"I'll go find people, you wait here for Long Xiao to come out," Ge Xin said.
Ge Long Fei nodded and said, "Go, but don't alert them."
After Ge Xin left, not long after, Long Xiao ran out of the Ge family's ancestral graves, with the Yin Shi following behind him.
"Everyone, hurry up, this guy is chasing us out!" Long Xiao shouted as he ran.
Everyone ran down the path leading out of the valley for a kilometer. Looking back, the Yin Shi couldn't catch up and returned to the Ge family's ancestral graves.
Long Xiao looked at the two bodyguards with severed hands, treated their wounds, and took them back to the Ge family manor.
Not long after returning to the Ge family manor, Ge Xin also returned. She had inquired about the situation of the remaining people.
Ge Tian Long sent Ge family members to capture them. For safety, Long Xiao had Xiao Ming accompany them.
In less than an hour, the remaining people were captured and brought back to the Ge family manor.
The old man was surprised to see Long Xiao, he never imagined Long Xiao could leave the ancient tomb alive.
"You, Long Xiao, you dealt with the Yin Shi?" the old man asked curiously.
Long Xiao smiled and shook his head, "Not yet, but it should be dealt with before dark."
"The Yin Shi are impervious to blades and bullets, how did you deal with them?" the old man asked curiously.
Long Xiao said, "You don't need to worry about that. Tell me, who ordered you to set this trap for me?"
"Can I refuse to say?" the old man asked.
Long Xiao nodded and said, "Of course, Xiao Ming, chop off his hands and feet and leave him to fend for himself on the street."
Xiao Ming took out the Black Iron cleaver from his backpack and swung it towards the old man, preparing to act.
"No, don't do that, Long Xiao, I was joking with you."
"Alright, I'll consider it a joke this time, but my patience is limited. If you take the joke seriously, your hands and feet will be gone."
The old man told Long Xiao that they were sent by Long Nian to set a trap for Long Xiao. The old man was Long Nian's subordinate, and the others were hired by the old man at a high price.
"It's Long Nian again. It seems I need to teach him a lesson, or this will never end," Long Xiao muttered to himself.
"Long Xiao, this matter has nothing to do with us, please spare us."
"You set a trap and almost killed me. You say it has nothing to do with you, do you expect me to believe that?" Long Xiao said displeasured.
"You, what do you want?" the old man asked.
Long Xiao smiled and called Ge Xin over, saying, "Does your Ge family need free laborers?"
Ge Xin smiled and said, "My family farms a lot, and we need people to carry manure and dig land."
Long Xiao pointed at the captured people and said, "Break all their legs and have them work for your family to repay their debts."
"Long Xiao, I didn't owe his family any debt, why should I work to repay it?" the old man asked.
"You dug up their ancestral graves and sold the relics. You still say you don't owe them."
"What if I return the money from selling the relics?" the old man said.
"The money must be returned, and the debt must also be repaid. The Ge family will handle this matter properly."
Long Xiao handed the old man and his subordinates directly over to the Ge family. Long Xiao knew that the Ge family was not as simple as it appeared. These people had dug up someone's ancestral graves, and the Ge family would not let them off easily.
After lunch and a rest until after three in the afternoon, Long Xiao, accompanied by Xiao Ming, Ge Xin, and Ge Yu, returned to the Ge family's ancestral graves.
During the day, the yang energy outside was too strong, and the Yin Shi dared not come out. After dark, it would be troublesome if the Yin Shi emerged, so they had to deal with the Yin Shi before nightfall.