Xiao Chen dashed madly without stopping to check how far he had run. In the end, he couldn"t help coughing up blood. Even though Zuoqiu Ze"s sword didn"t land completely on him, the attack was enough to damage his heart meridians. Earlier, he had been counting on a very slim chance of survival in trying to strike fear into Zuoqiu Ze"s heart. That was the only reason he managed to escape from that sword attack.
If Zuoqiu Ze was ready to give up his life as he was, it would be impossible for him to run away from that attack.
Murong Xian"er immediately propped him up. "Brother Xiao Chen, are you injured?"
Xiao Chen shook his head. The reason why he forcefully pretended that he was fine all along was to prevent Zuoqiu Ze from noticing that he was injured. Had Zuoqiu Ze noticed, he would have thrown all caution to the wind and chase after him. Right now, Zuoqiu Ze had become determined to kill him and Xiao Chen himself had made up his mind to eliminate his opponent in this forest. Otherwise, they would really end up dying here if they allowed Zuoqiu Ze to call for experts from his family.
However, it was all quiet around him. There was an indescribable sense of eeriness. He didn"t know what danger was lurking in this forest. With his heart meridians hurt, it would take him quite some time to recover. How nice would it be if Muxue was here.
The moment he remembered Li Muxue, he felt a sharp stab of heartache. Murong Xian"er pulled him closer to her when she noticed his increasingly pale face. "What"s wrong, Brother Xiao Chen?"
Xiao Chen shook his head, but he knew that it must the Heartless Curse at work. He had been able to suppress the curse with his existing strength but it proved impossible after he sustained injuries. He must not think of Li Muxue anymore. Whenever he thought of her, he would feel intense pain in his heart.
He scanned his surroundings and found a secluded path. They continued down that path for several hours. The sky had already darkened, sinking the forest into a death-like silence. There was even no cry of birds or insects. However, the moon had appeared overhead the forest that saw no sunlight year round. The moonlight was exceptionally cold and sinister, making the forest appear even more secretive.
Xiao Chen sat cross-legged inside a cave, activating his energy and Qi to heal his injuries. Murong Xian"er was holding up a formation and a Barrier to help conceal his breath. Meanwhile, over at the Zuoqiu Manor in Canglan City:
"Young Ze has been out for so long. Is he still not home yet?"
The one speaking was an old man in a grey robe. He appeared a little pale, but a strange glint would appear in his pupils every now and then. This man was none other than Zuoqiu Ze"s grandfather, Zuoqiu Ping.
Standing inside the room was another man dressed in a cyan robe. He was the middle-aged man who appeared in the House of Intoxicated Immortals during the day and advised Zuoqiu Ze not to cause trouble. He said, "Young Ze ran off to chase after Xiao Chen. I think he"ll be back very soon."
Zuoqiu Ping shook his head, sighing. "Young Ze is too rash sometimes. Xiao Chen is incredibly crafty, putting even Ling Jingshan in trouble earlier. How can he alone be a match for Xiao Chen?"
"Well… Let"s consider this as practice for Young Ze."
Zuoqiu Ping continued to shake his head and sigh. In the end, he said, "Tell me how Xiao Chen managed to offend the Ling family."
The cyan-robed man was silent for a while before raising his head and replying, "I heard he stole Ling Yuxuan"s Spiritual Meridians."
Zuoqiu Ping"s expression turned steely. "That kid knows how to steal Spiritual Meridians?" He closed his eyes as he spoke. While nodding, he continued, "I"ve previously met Ling Ruoxu several times, hoping to take a look at his Meridian-seizing Method. But that old thing kept refusing. In his quest for power, he must have stolen the Spiritual Meridians of quite a few people. Who would"ve expected that his family member would have his Meridians stolen? Hehe!"
Toward the end of his sentence, he suddenly realized something and his expression changed. "Since that kid knows how to steal Spiritual Meridians… Young Ze is in trouble!" His figure instantly blurred out of view as he turned into a drawn-out light and disappeared out of the window.
Inside the mountain cave, Xiao Chen breathed out deeply. After allowing his energy and Qi to flow for a few hours, his complexion had improved a fair amount. He raised his head and looked out of the cave. He could faintly sense Zuoqiu Ze"s breath. He said solemnly, "Since you want my life, don"t blame me for being rude!"
When Murong Xian"er heard his voice from the entrance of the cave, she immediately ran in and asked, "Are you feeling better now, Brother Xiao Chen?"
Xiao Chen nodded. "Yeah, I"m fine now. We can"t stay here for long. Let"s go." He pulled her hand and led her out of the cave.
The forested path down the mountain looked endless in the cover of the night, making it difficult to distinguish north from south. Xiao Chen held his breath and focused on his surroundings until he finally found the direction Zuoqiu Ze was coming from. He was searching for a spot to ambush Zuoqiu Ze when he suddenly detected an extremely potent breath drifting from afar.
This breath was very strange as if it didn"t originate from a living creature. It was rather frightening. Xiao Chen"s sensitivity to spirits had always been superior to most people. He could feel that strange breath vividly, making him feel a jolt of fright deep inside. He didn"t dare to use his Divine Sense to sweep in that direction, lest he accidentally disturbed that unknown but terrifying existence in the darkness. Even so, this gave him an idea.
He roughly estimated the location of that existence and whispered, "Xian"er, can you keep quiet no matter what you see later?"
Murong Xian"er was completely obedient to him now. She instantly nodded without saying a word of protest. Under the moonlight, they saw a thick layer of dried branches and withered leaves on the ground. If they walked over there on foot, they would surely make noise. But if he unleashed the Phoenix"s Wings, he would surely expose his whereabouts.
He swiftly carried Xian"er and unleashed his family"s lightness skill, the Heaven-scaling Steps. The tip of his toe touched every dead flower and leaf as it landed on the ground but his movements were so lithe and gentle that he put zero pressure on the flowers and leaves. He was stepping on the branches as he walked, allowing him to move forward without making a single noise.
In a flash, they were several hundred feet away. Xiao Chen landed on the back of a boulder. It was only after he ensured that they were far from that unknown existence that he gently put Murong Xian"er down. He placed a finger to his lips to remind her to be quiet and then poked his head out to look in the direction of their previous location.
Under the moonlight, a human silhouette gradually appeared in front of the cave they were previously in. This person was none other than Zuoqiu Ze. He was now wearing a gloomy expression. He had been walking back and forth in the forest but it was now nightfall and there was still no sign of Xiao Chen. It wasn"t until Murong Xian"er lifted the formation that he could detect the breath that Xiao Chen left behind.
"B*stard! Did you hide in a sh.e.l.l somewhere?!" Zuoqiu Ze bellowed in anger. He aimed a sword attack at the cave, sending rocks flying everywhere.
"I"ll flatten this place today and see where you can hide." He hacked the forest mindlessly, causing sword radiance to flare up messily and the withered branches and leaves in the forest to toss in the air.
Zuoqiu Ze ended up in the middle of the forest after his bout of mindless hacking. In the first place, the forest already stunk due to the withered flora piled up all year round. After his hacking, however, the smell in the air became even more pungent.
Unfortunately, his Divine Sense was significantly less sensitive than Xiao Chen"s, so he couldn"t determine Xiao Chen"s exact location. Perhaps he was also traumatized by Xiao Chen"s frequent ambushes. Whenever he saw a suspicious spot, he would hack in that direction without fail.
In the distance, Xiao Chen repeatedly sneered deep inside. Zuoqiu Ze would still act so ostentatiously when the enemy was hidden in the dark. It was as if he didn"t know how to conceal himself. Xiao Chen didn"t know if Zuoqiu Ze was too stupid or too confident in his ability to kill him.
"Hehe! Wanna play, don"t you, b*stard? I"ll play along until you"re satisfied! Come out here, b*stard!" Zuoqiu Ze screamed, once again slashing a ma.s.sive dead tree nearby.
The longer he failed to find Xiao Chen, the angrier he became. With his level four Core Forming Realm cultivation and his set of seal talismans, he was rightfully superior to a Foundation Building Realm cultivator. However, Xiao Chen had remained dreadfully crafty the whole time, putting him in an unprecedentedly pathetic condition. His resentment of Xiao Chen was now ingrained deep into his bones.
Right then, he finally sensed a faint wisp of breath somewhere up ahead. He sneered and slowed his pace to make a quiet approach. Then, he abruptly activated the True Energy in his body and viciously slashed in that direction.
The attack was imbued with his greatest strength. A ma.s.sive shadow of a sword instantly obscured the moon in the sky as majestic Nascent Soul Realm power exploded. The entire mountain shook with its force as a loud explosion resounded. A crack appeared on the ground, so deep that one couldn"t even see its bottom. The withered forest had essentially perished in an instant.
However, the slash of the sword received no response in return. Zuoqiu Ze narrowed his eyes. "Did my attack disintegrate that b*stard"s body?"
It was at that moment that a shadow emerged from the crack on the ground. Under the moonlight, one could clearly see that it was a terribly putrefied corpse.
Its head had decayed completely, leaving only two eyeb.a.l.l.s hanging out of its socket. There was a large, gaping hole at the center of its chest.
Stunningly, the decayed corpse was able to stand upright and glare at Zuoqiu Ze. Even the faraway Xiao Chen could feel a chill creeping up his back. He was very sure that the terrifying breath he sensed earlier originated from this decayed corpse. Judging from the large, gaping hole in the corpse"s chest, he could tell that it was in the Nascent Soul Realm. Moreover, its Nascent Soul was forcefully taken from him while he was still alive.
Zuoqiu Ze gasped in shock. He instantly retreated by more than 30 meters. His previous attack, capable of killing any Core Forming Realm expert, surprisingly didn"t harm this decayed corpse in the slightest. At that moment, he could finally understand the horribleness of this corpse.
"You! What the heck are you?!"
Suddenly, the decayed corpse spoke. "What"s this… Had the Corpse Refinery Sect lost all of its skilled members after several hundred years? To think they actually sent a Core Forming Realm cultivator here…"
Zuoqiu Ze trembled all over. Even though he didn"t know what the corpse was talking about, a deep-rooted sense of fear was rapidly spreading all over his body. Only one word was on his mind now—Run!
He couldn"t be bothered with killing Xiao Chen anymore. Right now, all he wanted to do was run back to the Zuoqiu Manor and to his great-grandfather and grandfather. But the moment he turned around, the decayed corpse suddenly said, "Steal—spirit—claim—soul!"
Zuoqiu Ze had just taken a step forward when he lost control of himself and began floating. Then, his face began contorting until he couldn"t even speak.
He was now suffering unspeakable pain. He felt as if his soul was being forcefully taken out of him. Taking advantage of the moment before he lost consciousness, he used the final sliver of his strength to tear off the gem hanging in front of his chest and spit out, with much difficulty, "Great-grandfather… save me…" With a loud thump, he crushed the jade letter in his hand.