Chapter 8

Unexpected yet somehow predictable — there was no one guarding the teleportation array outside the Guiyuan Sword Sect.

What awaited Chun Chou and the others were four rogue cultivators hoping to scavenge—or even kidnap—them.

The four looked to be in their twenties or thirties, all at the eighth or ninth level of Qi Refining. Among Chun Chou’s group, the highest cultivation levels belonged to Ling Wuji and Qiao Linglong, both only at the fifth level of Qi Refining.

The moment Chun Chou saw their cultivation levels clearly, he pushed Ling Wuji’s wheelchair and ran. Ling Wuji said nothing, throwing offensive talismans backward while pasting Speed Talismans and Light-Body Talismans onto Chun Chou.

“Split up!” Chun Chou shouted.

Since the five of them were clearly outmatched, splitting up would give them a better chance of survival.

Qiao Linglong and Xu Xiao had never encountered a situation like this before—nor opponents with such cultivation who killed without hesitation. They failed to react in time. One raised a sword, the other a blade, trying to block an attack.

But how could weapons from the mortal world—unranked artifacts—compare to those in the cultivation world? Their sword and blade were instantly cut in two.

Xu Xiao froze.

Qiao Linglong turned and ran, continuously throwing talismans behind her. A sinister-looking man laughed loudly as he chased after her.

The youngest, Liu Ting’er, reacted almost as quickly as Chun Chou. As soon as the teleportation array’s isolation formation fell and she saw the situation clearly, she chose a different direction from Chun Chou and fled.

A young man in his twenties immediately pursued her, clicking his tongue. “Oh? Young, but quite pretty. Little sister, don’t run. Stay by big brother’s side for a few years, how about it?”

If he kept her for a while and later married her—once he found her powerful sect family in the cultivation world—then wealth and longevity would naturally be his.

Only Xu Xiao truly had no experience. He failed to escape in time and was intercepted by the only female cultivator among the four.

She chuckled and toyed with him like a cat playing with a mouse, attacking as she chased, asking what his family name was in the cultivation world and what status they held.

Xu Xiao clenched his teeth and endured.

He couldn’t answer. Because to these rogue cultivators, he had no value at all. If he spoke, he would die.

As for the leader—a man in his thirties—he had, the moment Chun Chou started running, decisively hoisted a broken long blade and chased after Chun Chou and Ling Wuji.

In his eyes, first, Chun Chou reacted too quickly and ran too fast—he must have good treasures on him. Second, Ling Wuji was disabled yet still dared to come to the cultivation world—clearly he had powerful backing. Following them couldn’t go wrong.

Chun Chou and Ling Wuji ran at full speed.

Chun Chou thought to himself that this was probably the fastest he had ever run in both his lifetimes.

But even with Ling Wuji constantly pasting Speed and Light-Body Talismans onto him, he was still only a fourth-level Qi Refining rookie. The one chasing them was a ninth-level cultivator.

Ling Wuji said in a low voice, “Chun Chou, head to the demon beast forest.”

Chun Chou paused, then pushed Ling Wuji toward the demon beast forest.

The burly man chasing them sneered. “So you’re really fools from the mortal world. Don’t you know the demon beast forest is more dangerous than I am?”

But Chun Chou understood Ling Wuji’s meaning. Chun Chou’s wood spiritual root was exceptionally outstanding. Not only was he skilled at cultivating spiritual plants, but in certain aspects he could even discern patterns from the distribution of spiritual vegetation and judge whether fierce demon beasts were nearby.

Chun Chou moved to stand beside Ling Wuji. No longer pushing the wheelchair, Ling Wuji grabbed him with one hand and threw talismans backward with the other as they ran.

Chun Chou, meanwhile, pasted Speed and Light-Body Talismans onto Ling Wuji while observing the forest, guiding the ninth-level cultivator into areas that were not overly dangerous.

Talismans would eventually run out. And for a rogue cultivator at the ninth level of Qi Refining—born in the cultivation world—capturing two small fries without Speed Talismans was not effortless, but neither was it difficult.

When Ling Wuji realized the Speed Talismans were gone, he immediately flung Chun Chou’s hand away.

The two didn’t even have time to exchange a glance. Ling Wuji turned and directly confronted the ninth-level cultivator, startling him.

Chun Chou leapt aside. While the ninth-level cultivator was engaged in combat with Ling Wuji, Chun Chou circled behind him. Thinking that the poison soaked into the intoxicated fish vine might not be strong enough, he wrapped his whip together with the intact vine and lashed it toward the ninth-level cultivator!

Ling Wuji did not immediately use the Storm Pear Blossom Needles. Instead, he relied on his ice spiritual root and the multiple mechanisms hidden within his wheelchair to fight the ninth-level Qi Refining cultivator.

They were aiming to kill that ninth-level cultivator—only regretting that their cultivation was insufficient!

As for the ninth-level cultivator, he wanted to capture the two of them alive, so he did not strike with lethal force. Moreover, the long blade in his hand was already damaged. As a rogue cultivator, repairing a magical artifact required a great many spirit stones. He had no intention of worsening the damage to his blade for the sake of two little nobodies. Thus, the two of them were able to gain a slight chance to catch their breath.

The cultivator was also well-experienced. When Chun Chou’s first lash of the whip came swinging toward him, it nearly struck his arm. He immediately noticed that a vine was wrapped around the whip and sensed something was wrong, so he kept avoiding that whip afterward.

Seeing this, Chun Chou swung the whip even faster.

After all, the cultivator was only one person. If he focused on dealing with Chun Chou, he would naturally neglect Ling Wuji somewhat. Yet he did not let Ling Wuji off easily either. Instead, he released his spiritual beast—a spirit tiger no bigger than a cat.

The spirit tiger pounced straight toward Ling Wuji!

“Careful!” Chun Chou shouted at once.

Seizing the moment, Ling Wuji finally put the Storm Pear Blossom Needles hidden in his sleeve to use. Thirty-six icy needles shot out without hesitation toward the spirit tiger!

The spirit tiger suddenly felt its entire body grow limp and woozy, as if drunk, overwhelmingly sleepy. Before it could even fall from midair, Ling Wuji fired another arrow from the armrest of his wheelchair.

The arrow pierced straight into the spirit tiger’s throat!

With a wail, the spirit tiger breathed its last.

The ninth-level Qi Refining cultivator had never imagined that merely trying to capture two little nobodies from the mortal world would cost him the spiritual beast he had spent most of his spirit stones to buy. He let out a furious roar, rage blazing, and hefted his long blade to kill Ling Wuji.

Chun Chou seized the opportunity and finally lashed the cultivator’s back with the spiritual whip wrapped in intoxicated fish vine.

The cultivator’s clothes split open at the back, revealing blood-streaked flesh beneath.

Chun Chou’s eyes lit up.

The ninth-level cultivator was startled at first, but then realized this was no gut-rotting poison—only a faint sensation of drunkenness. He immediately resolved to kill Ling Wuji first. As for capturing someone alive, his companions would surely manage that. He only needed to leave one of the weaker ones alive.

Chun Chou struck the cultivator’s back with another whip. In return, the ninth-level cultivator slashed across Ling Wuji’s chest. Fortunately, Ling Wuji reacted quickly—otherwise that blade had been aimed straight at his heart.

Chun Chou’s eyes instantly reddened. He took out the four Spirit Condensation Pills sent by Xu Xiao’s family and swallowed them all in one gulp. Then his whip strikes became sharper and increasingly unpredictable in angle.

By ordinary means, Chun Chou naturally could not defeat a ninth-level Qi Refining cultivator. But he did not claim to be a gentleman. He had just lashed the man again, and only then did the cultivator belatedly realize he was growing increasingly drowsy, with a drunken haze clouding his senses. The more that happened, the more chances Chun Chou had to land his strikes.

Ling Wuji, gravely injured, retreated of his own accord, yet his gaze remained locked unblinkingly on the two of them. The Storm Pear Blossom Needles were still hidden in his sleeve.

Chun Chou’s whip strikes rained down more and more frequently. The cultivator suddenly slashed his own arm with his blade to clear his mind—proof of how ruthless he was.

Chun Chou shot Ling Wuji a glance.

Ling Wuji inwardly thought, This is bad. Sure enough, Chun Chou did not take a reckless risk. Instead, he emptied all the remaining offensive talismans from his storage pouch at the cultivator in one go. At the same time, Chun Chou seized the moment to circle behind him and strike at the wound on his back—the very one already injured.

The cultivator froze for a brief instant, unable to react in time.

Ling Wuji grasped the opportunity. The remaining seventy-two Storm Pear Blossom Needles shot out all at once toward the cultivator’s front—

Chun Chou’s long whip immediately coiled around the cultivator’s neck. Gripping it tightly himself, he pulled hard. While the cultivator was weakened by poison, Chun Chou strangled him to death.

There was no other choice. Who knew whether this ninth-level rogue cultivator still had some hidden trump card?

People like them, who came from the mortal world, simply could not outscheme these seasoned schemers.

Once the cultivator died, Chun Chou sat down to catch his breath. Spotting a sharp stone nearby, he immediately picked it up and slashed his own arm to stay conscious—there was no helping it. When he strangled the cultivator, his own hands had been pricked by the whip and the intoxicated fish vine. He, too, had been poisoned =口=

Ling Wuji did not think Chun Chou was wrong. In that situation, he would also have chosen to kill the ninth-level cultivator first.

Enduring the pain, Ling Wuji took out the cultivator’s storage pouch and handed the medicine bottles inside to Chun Chou one by one.

Chun Chou pulled out one bottle and exclaimed in delight, “These are Recovery Pills!” Without hesitation, he poured them straight into Ling Wuji’s mouth.

Ling Wuji: “……”

His Chun Chou was always this straightforwardly adorable. It was just that… all the Recovery Pills were now fed to him.

Chun Chou checked the other bottles and shook his head. “No antidote pills.” He rummaged through the rest of the storage pouch. The cultivator was unexpectedly poor—only some talismans and low-grade spirit stones. Even his only magical artifact was that broken long blade. Chun Chou took out over a dozen talismans, including Speed Talismans, Light-Body Talismans, and Concealment Talismans.

Chun Chou said, “Ling Wuji, we need to leave quickly.”

They had no idea whether the remaining companions of that man would catch up.

After taking the pills, the wound on Ling Wuji’s chest began to heal. Chun Chou, having cut himself, managed to suppress the drowsiness and drunken haze brought on by the intoxicated fish vine. He was still able to walk.

Ling Wuji placed the corpse of the ninth-level Qi Refining cultivator and that of the spirit beast into the man’s own storage pouch, barely managing to fit them inside.

Chun Chou looked around the area, drew over some lush and strongly scented spiritual grasses, and used a growth spell to make them grow taller, doing his utmost to cover up the traces of battle. The two of them left immediately.

Though the demon beast forest was dangerous, Chun Chou relied on his perception of spiritual plants. The two hurried on for another half a day before finally resting atop a towering tree.

The tree’s canopy was dense and luxuriant—perfect for temporary concealment.

As soon as Chun Chou settled himself among the branches, he fell unconscious.

In contrast, Ling Wuji’s severe injuries had already recovered thanks to the timely Recovery Pills; only scars remained, looking rather frightening.

Ling Wuji placed a fresh Concealment Talisman on both himself and Chun Chou. He then cleaned the dozen or so fresh cuts Chun Chou had made on his own arm and applied medicine to them. His gaze darkened slightly.

This cultivation world was indeed incomparably dangerous. He could no longer remain at this level of cultivation. Once they settled somewhere, he had to advance immediately.

As Ling Wuji was thinking this, he suddenly sensed a change in the surrounding spiritual energy. Turning his head, he saw that even in his sleep, Chun Chou was continuously absorbing the spiritual energy around him.

He was advancing.

Ling Wuji was slightly surprised. Though the spiritual energy in the cultivation world was far more abundant than in the mortal realm, Chun Chou had a mixed spiritual root. Even after swallowing those four Spirit Condensation Pills, he should not be advancing so quickly.

Could it be because the surrounding trees were numerous and wood spiritual energy was especially rich?

Ling Wuji had no time to think further. He immediately used spirit stones to set up a Spirit Gathering Array atop the tree canopy, trying to minimize any disturbance in the surroundings.

At the same time, the female cultivator who had been chasing Xu Xiao had already subjected him to severe torture. Xu Xiao had never experienced such things before. Even knowing that speaking would mean death, under brutal torment, he only begged for a quick end—and in the end, he told everything. Once he had spoken, he was no longer of any use.

The red-clothed female cultivator sneered and killed Xu Xiao without hesitation.

Before dying, Xu Xiao kept his eyes open, only hoping that news of his quick death would not be told to his parents, who had always hoped he would become someone great.

The red-clothed woman then examined Xu Xiao’s storage pouch. Furious, she stomped on his corpse and cursed, “Truly a bunch of poor ghosts from the mortal world! I’ve suffered a huge loss on this trip!”

As she was cursing, she suddenly heard heavy footsteps approaching. It was the male cultivator who had chased Qiao Linglong—badly wounded and returning in a miserable state.

The red-clothed woman was shocked. “Third Brother, how did you end up like this? Who injured you? Where’s that girl?”

The man cursed, “I only hate that I let lust delay the important matter!” Then he added, “When I came back, I saw the Fourth Brother’s corpse. Fourth Brother is gone.”

Fourth Brother was the young cultivator in his twenties who had chased Liu Ting’er.

The red-clothed woman was incredulous. “How could this be? Weren’t they all trash from the mortal world?” Then she hesitated. “Then what about Eldest Brother…”

The man spat angrily, “Who knows how those people are so full of schemes—more cunning than us! But Eldest Brother is ruthless and smarter than us. Did you forget? He just spent most of his wealth to buy that spiritual beast. With a spiritual beast helping him, what’s one versus two? They’re just two pieces of trash! Eldest Brother will definitely come back. Second Sister, leave a signal. Let’s head to the city. My injuries are serious—I must go to the medical hall.”

The red-clothed woman hesitated, but seeing the severity of his wounds—and thinking that the scent of blood might attract demon beasts—she left a signal and departed with him.

And so Chun Chou and Ling Wuji passed the night in peace.

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