Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation
Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Wutian, Han Tian, and Little Tian traveled at speed through the dense forest, avoiding demonic beasts as best as they could by not making a sound.
A scream suddenly rose ahead. Birds were alarmed and flew away. The three of them stopped in their tracks, hid, and peeked out from behind a large rock.
A thousand feet away in a vale stood a figure dressed in a black robe. Black light covered the figure’s face.
Under the feet of the figure, a twenty-something young man lay in a pool of blood. A long, sharp sword, burning with flames, was in his chest.
“Another good meal.”
The figure smirked, and his voice was hoarse. Black light might have shrouded his face, but his eyes glowing in a scarlet light were clearly visible. They were cold-blooded. If the figure were to reveal himself, it must be an extremely heinous face.
The black-robed figure spread out his hands, which looked exceedingly pale as if the hands of the dead without a tinge of sanguinity.
He moved his fingers to make a complex mudra. Right then, plumes of black mist rose from both his hands and arms, very much like demonic energy, flooded the vale, turning the area into a hazy, ghastly place.
The mudra was suspended in the air, exuding excessively cold energy. Gradually, a series of cry rose, as if the scream of an avenging spirit, sorrowing and wailing.
The black-robed tapped with his finger and the mudra descended on the young man. Following that, a ghastly scene happened.
The mudra spewed out plumes of black smoke, which formed into a heinous, distorted face, much like a devil that crossed over the realm to this world.
The ghostly face’s whine was terrifying. It poked out a dark, long tongue and licked the body of the young man. Its black eyes were gleaming, extremely creepy.
As its mouth was wide open, a plume of black smoke engulfed the young man’s body. As if the smoke was highly corrosive, the body quickly melted, turned into plumes of blood-red Essence Qi, and rushed into the ghostly face’s mouth.
The ghostly face’s eyes dimmed as if it was immersed in a hearty meal.
Not long after, nearly half of the flesh of the young man’s body was gone. It had all gone into the ghostly face that became larger after consuming the body.
“That’s an evil secret manual. I didn’t know the Fire Cloud Clan could be this cruel and performing such an inhuman act,” said Hantian quietly.
“Human-eating, taking blood for their own use; this sounds like a demonic manual!”
A sense of disgust and murderous intent were in Wutian’s eyes. The Fire Cloud Clan was utterly devoid of humanity. Eating the demonic beasts was all right, but cannibalism was downright unacceptable. If not for fear of waking the sleeping dog too soon, he would have acted now and ground the figure’s evil bones to dust.
While they spoke, the ghostly face had finished cannibalizing the young man’s body. Not even a bone was left except for the hair and the bloodstained clothes.
The black-robed figure snickered. He moved his fingers again and the ghostly face turned into a plume of black smoke and disappeared back into his body. Now his body was shrouded in black mist, the gleam in his scarlet eyes even more intense.
“So good. My cultivation base is rapidly rising, so too my strength. I would complete the Gamma stage and enter the Reborn Omega stage within a few days. I wonder who will be next!” He licked his lips ravenously before fading into a plume of black mist and disappeared into thin air.
“Son of a bitch! I should have killed him!” Han Tian jumped out and blurted out furiously but quietly.
“The Fire Cloud Clan is snatching recruits from all over the place. There is a lot more to it than meets the eyes. They must be up to something,” said Wutian.
“Who cares? When the clan elders arrive, I swear I will skin them alive, cut them into pieces, and feed them to the dogs!”
“Don’t jump the gun. Lead the way quickly!” Wutian shook his head.
“We shall see!” Han Tian waved with his hand and pointed in the direction as shown by the emblems.
On the way, they again bumped into a few Fire Cloud disciples, who used the same outrageous method to cannibalize blood and flesh to enhance their strength. Their act was absolutely detestable. Besides, the three of them had also discovered that these people were specifically targeting humans and not interested in demonic beasts.
Another hour had passed, Wutian, Han Tian, and Little Tian avoided the demonic beasts and the Fire Cloud disciples to come to a hill.
“Keep your voice down. The target is right up ahead,” said Han Tian in a low voice.
The hill was about 500 feet high, lush green, overgrown with bushes and the incessant chirp of the insects. The three crawled on the ground and slowly made their way up while making sure they did not make a noise.
In a matter of a-few-dozen breaths, they finally made it to the top. They hid in the bush and looked down. Down under the hill was a massive rock, black, laying in the middle of the forest. A burly man sat cross-legged on the rock. His short hair stood erect with stubble on his face. His body was glowing, while his skin was dark and looking healthy.
“He looks like an honest man, but deep inside, he is a devil.” Han Tian pouted.
Wutian scanned around. “This man exudes a powerful aura. He must be Elder Wu. But where are Huoshi and Liuyan?”
“They must have gone to the Zhao family residence, I guess.”
“Mark this location. We are leaving now,” said Wutian.
The aura of this burly man was horrific. It felt as intimidating as a menacing mountain peak. By Wutian’s rough estimation, this man’s strength was at least 150,000 lbs. If they got spotted, they would be dead.
“Look, there is a stele in the bush beside the black rock. It looks like a Stele of Spiritual Incarceration. The Stele of Soul’s Incarceration, Stele of Corporeal Incarceration, and Stele of Spiritual Incarceration; it seems our supposition is correct,” said Han Tian quietly.
The stele was hidden in the bush. If not looking carefully, it was difficult to spot it.
“The Stele of Spiritual Incarceration must be incarcerating the spirit of the Primordial Scorpion.” Wutian looked at the stele, thoughts flashing through his mind.
“We will come back and study it later. We have got to go now,” said Han Tian.
He slowly crawled backward, then halted suddenly. His eyes landed on something beside his legs and his face froze.
“What’s up?” Wutian was puzzled. He followed Han Tian’s eyes and was shocked.
It was a ten-foot-long snake with a body’s diameter about the size of an adult’s arm. Its skin had seven colors that emitted a fuzzy glow, suggesting it was venomous. Half of its body stood up with its slender eyes glinting, tongue flicking with glistening saliva.
This snake was extremely beautiful, the seven colors looked as gorgeous as colorful satin. But the expression of Wutian and Han Tian could not have been worse, they looked as if they had seen ghosts.
Little Tian narrowed its eyes and looked around nonchalantly.
“What a bad day to bump into a Seven-step Killer Snake!” Han Tian mumbled while remaining motionless.
By the sound of its name, the Seven-step Killer Snake was anything but friendly. It was not particularly big, but extremely aggressive. Its glinting fangs could rival that of Little Tian. Of course, what made it so deadly was its speed.
It was called Seven-step Killer Snake because of how fast it moved. It could catch up with its prey within seven paces, as long as the prey was within its field of vision.
If not for the presence of the burly man, Han Tian and Wutian would not have been afraid of the snake. They could easily handle it. But if they made any noise, it would alert the burly man and they would be in deep shit.
What were they going to do?
Their minds were racing, trying to find a solution. But they could not think of anything.
The Seven-step Killer Snake was flicking its tongue as if it was studying the three of them. When the snake looked at Little Tian, its pupils contracted slightly. Apparently, it was a bit wary of Little Tian.
“Caw!” Little Tian went up and cawed quietly, waving with its claws as if it was saying something.
The Seven-step Killer Snake hissed, sometimes shaking its head, sometimes nodding. Its cold glinting eyes looked a lot softer now.
Little Tian pointed at Wutian and Han Tian, then itself. It then put his claws on its hips, looking like a boss.
The snake hissed and shook its head, its softened eyes suddenly looking menacing. It swayed its tail and flicked its tongue as if the negotiation had broken down, and it was going to attack.
“With our speed, Wutian, can we outrun the burly man?” asked Han Tian.
Wutian shook his head.
“Then there is only one way left.” Han Tian sighed after thinking for a moment.
He took out two crystalline objects from his Mustard Pouch, each the size of a chicken egg, grayish, angular with a tiny storm spinning on it with a strong Wind elemental vibe.
“These are the Wind elemental essence elixirs. I was thinking of reserving them for forming the Wind elixir. But now it seems I don’t have the chance.” He gave one to Wutian. “The Wind elemental essence could increase our speed tenfold. But it was just a quick burst, ten breaths to be exact. If we still can’t get away in ten breaths, we could only fight our way out.”
Right then, the negotiation between Little Tian and the snake broke down. The snake charged forward, coming down as quick as lightning with its four sharp fangs at Han Tian’s leg.
“Run!”
Han Tian popped the Wind elemental essence elixir in his mouth and kicked with his leg. He hit the snake’s head but was bounced ten feet backward.
He could not have cared less to retaliate. As if carried by the wind, he disappeared from sight.
At almost the same time as Han Tian fled, a pair of whirlwinds formed under Wutian’s feet. He felt his steps were several times lighter as he made over a thousand feet with each step. He gripped Little Tian in his hand and literally ran on air.
The Seven-step Killer Snake hissed and gave chase. It was no slouch either as it followed close behind Wutian and Han Tian.
As soon as Wutian and Han Tian disappeared, a shadow appeared on the hill. He was physically strong, standing at eight feet tall, his strength unfathomable.
“Seven-step Killer Snake?” The burly man frowned. He had only seen the Seven-step Killer Snake but not Wutian, Han Tian, and Little Tian.
“This is no ordinary snake. Let me catch and bring it back. It could be a pet for the young.” The burly man pursued the snake, traveling a thousand feet with each step.
“Not good! The burly man is running behind us. He must have spotted us. Seven breaths more. Run!” Han Tian was shocked. The aura of the man behind them was so powerful that he could sense it without even looking.
Wutian’s face looked grave. It took three breaths to run just one and a half miles. How far could he run with just seven breaths left? The two behind him could run at this speed all the time.
“Go to the river.” Wutian thought of the river near Mount Scorpius. That was their only chance.
The river was two miles away. Seven breaths should be enough to get there.
The three changed their course and headed straight toward the river.