Chapter 45: Returning After Leaving

(It has been almost a month since the new book was released. Chui Zi knows this book lacks innovation; he simply enjoyed *Mortal's Journey to Immortality* and *Purple Mansion* and has wanted to write something similar for years. He is only writing it now. Even though the data is incredibly abysmal, he will persist until the end. Seeing book friends actually casting recommendation votes and giving tips makes him feel a small surge of excitement. Here, he shamelessly asks the readers for more collections and recommendations. Even if it fails, he wants to strive to fail gracefully.)

The Large-Sized Freak snorted angrily, "What, are you out of Vajra Talismans? The Earth Spirit Shield won't hold for long either. Just wait for death!"

Despite his words, the Large-Sized Freak was secretly vexed. This damn alchemist had prepared so many escape and defensive talismans, along with a massive amount of spirit stones to replenish his mana. He had killed nearly thirty of his Shadow Ants in succession. Looking at the pile of Shadow Ant corpses on the ground, the Large-Sized Freak's heart twitched; it would likely take a long time to raise the numbers of these dead ants back up.

Several head ants had also sustained varying degrees of injury. To quickly restore the combat effectiveness of these Shadow Ants, he would have to sacrifice a vast amount of essence blood. He had never found killing opponents this taxing before.

The spirit insects he raised with his essence blood had suffered such heavy casualties that he naturally loathed Lu Xiaotian, the perpetrator, to his very bones. He wanted to kill him immediately.

"Fortunately, this kid is running low on talismans, otherwise he wouldn't be using the inferior Earth Spirit Shield! Let's see how this fellow dies in a moment," the Large-Sized Freak thought maliciously.

At this moment, Zou Xin, trapped within the Shuyuan Formation, had failed to break out after a prolonged attack and was instead left dizzy and ringing from the vibrations of the formation's light shield. The Giant Ape, also in pain, sat beside Zou Xin, rubbing its aching head.

"Well done, Large-Sized Freak! Kill that hateful fellow!" Fortunately, this formation only had the effect of trapping people and possessed no offensive power. Through the light shield, Zou Xin saw that Lu Xiaotian was clearly at a disadvantage, surrounded by the Large-Sized Freak's ant swarm. Zou Xin felt a surge of joy; as long as Lu Xiaotian died, he should be able to break free before long.

At the same time, Zou Xin was secretly amazed by Lu Xiaotian's ferocity. Not only had he trapped him, but he could also hold his own against the Large-Sized Freak for so long. Such ability was not something an ordinary cultivator possessed.

Fortunately, Fan Qing had run away fast enough earlier. Otherwise, if they had been working together, Zou Xin would have been trapped while the Large-Sized Freak was tied down by Lu Xiaotian, and it would have been their squad that was wiped out. Thinking of this, Zou Xin felt a wave of lingering fear, but also smiled inwardly. This kid was hiding his strength quite deeply; even Fan Qing, a teammate, didn't know his true background. It was a stroke of irony that Fan Qing's caution had instead landed Zou Xin in a death trap!

Although separated by the formation and unable to hear the fighting outside, the light shield did not prevent him from seeing the situation.

After the time it takes to burn an incense stick, the talismans in Lu Xiaotian's hands were exhausted. Several head ants and the remaining Shadow Ants quickly tore the Earth Spirit Shield to shreds. Although he had fought desperately to charge at the Large-Sized Freak during the process, the Shadow Ants' containment allowed the freak to dodge easily.

Seeing that victory was hopeless, Lu Xiaotian turned to flee in panic, while simultaneously using spells to try and sweep away the Shadow Ants surrounding him.

"Trying to run now? It's too late!" The Large-Sized Freak screamed with a face full of malice. He quickly gave chase, the Shadow Ant swarm following Lu Xiaotian like maggots on a bone. Having killed so many of his spirit insects, how could the Large-Sized Freak let him go?

"Ah!" Lu Xiaotian cried out in panic. As the last spiritual shield collapsed, dozens of Shadow Ants surged through the broken barrier, swarming Lu Xiaotian with fierce bites. Lu Xiaotian used his short sword to desperately hack away at over a dozen, but the number of Shadow Ants was too great to drive them all back.

After being bitten by the Shadow Ants, Lu Xiaotian's movements suddenly froze, his face filled with panic and despair.

"Since I have fallen into your hands, I have nothing to say. Kill me if you must!" After a long pause, Lu Xiaotian said coldly.

"You killed so many of my spirit insects! I will make you wish you were dead, and after I have tortured you enough, I will carve you into a thousand pieces!"

Seeing Lu Xiaotian being bitten repeatedly by over a dozen Shadow Ants, the Large-Sized Freak breathed a sigh of relief. To him, a cultivator who could not circulate their essence was no different from an ordinary person and posed no threat at all.

Lu Xiaotian simply closed his eyes and stopped speaking.

Inside the Shuyuan Formation, Zou Xin shouted at the Large-Sized Freak, but unfortunately, the other party could not hear him. Zou Xin grew anxious, scratching his head in frustration. If the Large-Sized Freak took Lu Xiaotian's storage bag, there would be nothing left for him; even if there were, it would only be scraps of no value.

The Large-Sized Freak glanced at the still-trapped Zou Xin and chuckled. Zou Xin was trapped. Lu Xiaotian was someone he had taken at a great cost, so the spoils of war would naturally be picked over by him first.

Unsure how long this strange formation could keep Zou Xin trapped, and seeing Lu Xiaotian's posture of closing his eyes to await death, the Large-Sized Freak decided to avoid any further delays or complications. He swaggered toward Lu Xiaotian, reaching out to grab the spiritual sword in Lu Xiaotian's hand and the storage bag at his waist.

However, it was at this exact moment that Lu Xiaotian's eyes snapped open, flashing with a terrifying cold light. The spiritual sword in his hand lunged toward the Large-Sized Freak's chest like a bolt of lightning.

The Large-Sized Freak was instantly terrified out of his wits and hurriedly muttered an incantation.

The spiritual sword pierced the opponent's chest, but Lu Xiaotian's brow furrowed. The sword seemed to have pierced a piece of wood. How was this possible?

Before Lu Xiaotian could wonder for long, a dark shadow shot backward in pain. Lu Xiaotian looked closely and saw that the object pierced by the sword was an object that looked neither entirely gold nor entirely wood, but something in between.

The two stared at each other in horror. What the Large-Sized Freak couldn't understand was that his Shadow Ants, which had never failed him, had clearly bitten Lu Xiaotian over a dozen times. Even for a cultivator at the late stage or even the Great Perfection of the Qi Refinement stage, their essence would be unable to circulate, making them unable to use any power.

Yet, Lu Xiaotian seemed completely unaffected; it was entirely a ruse to lure him close before striking. However, Lu Xiaotian's expression when bitten by the ants had not seemed fake at all. Having raised Shadow Ants for many years, the freak knew exactly how an enemy would react after being bitten. Even if it were an act, it should not have escaped his eyes.

What the Large-Sized Freak did not know was that Lu Xiaotian had been bitten by Shadow Ants before, which allowed him to mimic such an expression.

To Lu Xiaotian's immense shock, this sword strike had clearly been on the verge of piercing the opponent's actual body, yet the Large-Sized Freak had used a crafted substitute to save his life. Though he didn't know what kind of treasure it was, it was certainly no ordinary item.

Inside the Shuyuan Formation, Zou Xin's terror was no less than the two men's. He had no idea the Large-Sized Freak possessed such a skill for escaping death in a crisis. Neither of these two was easy to deal with. Now that he had seen through the Large-Sized Freak's secret, Zou Xin felt a sense of wariness. He wondered whether the two would be friends or foes once they left the formation. It seemed he would have to be on high guard in the future, lest he be killed by treachery without even knowing how.

The Large-Sized Freak clutched his bleeding chest. The timing had been too rushed; the wooden puppet had not been able to block all the damage. The spiritual sword had still pierced nearly an inch into his chest; a bit deeper, and it might have hit his internal organs.

"Your trick failed! Let's see what other stunts you have left!" It seemed a hard battle was coming. The Large-Sized Freak took out his Meteor Hairpin, his face grim as he met the rushing Lu Xiaotian.

"I don't need tricks to kill you!"

Lu Xiaotian gave a cold laugh. From the moment the Large-Sized Freak realized something was wrong and retreated, Lu Xiaotian had dropped the humanoid puppet and sprinted toward him, sword in his right hand and a stack of low-grade talismans secretly prepared in his left. To lure the opponent into the trap, his "Vajra Talismans" were nearly exhausted, but he had not used a single one of his offensive talismans.

Everything happened in the blink of an eye. He would use the opponent's injury to kill or heavily wound him in one stroke, giving him no chance to breathe!

The Large-Sized Freak swung his Meteor Hairpin to clash with the spiritual sword in Lu Xiaotian's hand. His cultivation was ultimately higher; even though he was injured, it wasn't fatal, and he could still deal with this infuriatingly difficult enemy.

*Now!* With a sinister smile playing on his lips, Lu Xiaotian suddenly unleashed the talismans in his hand.

"Fireball Talisman!" "Golden Spear Talisman!" "Ice Arrow Talisman!" "Earth Spike Talisman!" "Wind Blade Talisman!" "Entanglement Talisman!" "Fire Rocket Talisman!"

Dozens of low-grade talismans released their spells in rapid succession, sweeping toward the Large-Sized Freak like a mad tide.

Amidst a series of explosions, flashes of fire, and shattering ice, the Large-Sized Freak's face appeared, filled with disbelief and fury. The Earth Spirit Shield he had hastily formed did not last a second before being torn to shreds by the violent magical onslaught.

With no time for further reaction, the Large-Sized Freak roared and swung his Meteor Hairpin, desperately parrying the ice arrows, fire rockets, and golden spears. Because of the excessive expenditure of mana, his slightly dark face turned bright red. He swung the Meteor Hairpin to its limit, creating over a dozen illusions to block the attacks, but a golden spear and an earth spike still pierced his left arm and abdomen. *Boom!* An exploding fireball scorched his clothes black and burned away most of his hair and beard. The Large-Sized Freak cried out in pain as blood sprayed like a fountain.

*Ugh...* A figure blurred past him. The Large-Sized Freak felt a sudden chill in his throat, and his movements came to an abrupt halt.

As Lu Xiaotian sheathed his sword, blood erupted from the Large-Sized Freak's throat like a fountain, and he collapsed to the ground with a face full of resentment.

Dozens of low-grade spells exploding at such close range—to survive most of them with only minor injuries was quite an achievement. What proved fatal was Lu Xiaotian's sword strike, delivered at the exact moment the Large-Sized Freak's old strength was exhausted and his new strength had not yet regenerated from blocking the spells.

In terms of individual cultivation, Lu Xiaotian felt he had no certainty of victory. He had taken the antidote beforehand, so his most relied-upon Shadow Ants were useless against him. Given that he was already injured and then ambushed at close range by dozens of low-grade talismans, Lu Xiaotian felt the Large-Sized Freak was quite unlucky.

Having finally killed his opponent, Lu Xiaotian breathed a sigh of relief. He took the gourd containing Shadow Ants and the storage bag from the Large-Sized Freak's waist. He did not check the contents, instead turning his attention back to Zou Xin, who was still trapped in the formation.

Lu Xiaotian's expression was uncertain. To kill the Large-Sized Freak, he had exhausted all his trump cards. The man in the brocade robe was not weak, with cultivation similar to his own and a black ape with strength equivalent to the third level of Qi Refinement. A fight might not be a guaranteed victory. However, more than half an hour had passed, and the man in the brocade robe would soon break free. If he left now, the man would likely think he was heavily depleted and pursue him even more aggressively. Furthermore, the recent fierce battle had consumed much of his essence, and he might encounter other unexpected situations once he left the woods.

More importantly, he had only escaped the pursuit of the two men thanks to the Shuyuan Formation.

The Wangyue Mountains were full of dangers, and he could encounter other cultivator squads at any time. Now that he was alone, if he were discovered by another squad, those with lower cultivation could not catch him, but those with higher cultivation would not let a lone prey go. He might very well encounter a similar pursuit.

Returning to Wangyue City would not allow him to find another reliable squad to join in a short time, which meant giving up his chance to join a sect this year. His aptitude was mediocre; every year delayed would decrease his chances of successful Foundation Establishment. He would not give up easily. Therefore, he could not simply abandon this formation.

"I cannot give up!" Lu Xiaotian smiled slightly. He took two low-grade spirit stones from within the barrier, held one in each hand, and sat down to meditate.

As expected, Lu Xiaotian's fearless actions sent a chill through Zou Xin's heart.

After the time it takes to burn an incense stick, most of his depleted essence had been recovered. At this time, the spiritual energy of the Shuyuan Formation was also exhausted, and the light shield gradually grew thin.

Seeing this, Zou Xin was overjoyed. He swung his mace, smashed through the fragile light shield, leaped out with the black ape, and quickly fled without looking back.

"That saved me from a fierce battle."

Lu Xiaotian also breathed a sigh of relief; avoiding unnecessary trouble was always better. After meditating for a while longer until his essence was fully restored, Lu Xiaotian stood up and collected the formation flags. But at that moment, the hair on his neck stood up. Looking closely, he saw that the man in the brocade robe, who had just left, had actually returned. It seemed his earlier flight had merely been a probe.

Zou Xin surveyed Lu Xiaotian gloomily. From the time Lu Xiaotian severed He Tuozi's arm and poisoned him, to now, when the Large-Sized Freak had also died at his hands—aside from this formation and having more talismans, this young opponent did not seem to have many powerful methods, only a very deep and calculating mind.

Normally, Zou Xin would never want to engage in a life-and-death struggle with such an enemy. However, setting aside the fact that Lu Xiaotian was an alchemist with significant wealth, the spiritual items in the Large-Sized Freak's storage bag alone made him salivate.

The Large-Sized Freak had already collected several types of demon cores and spirit herbs required to join the Taiqing Sect. Combined with what he had collected himself, he might have been close to meeting the sect's mission requirements. These were enough to make him fight to the death. The earlier flight was also a test; the fact that Lu Xiaotian had not pursued him suggested that Lu Xiaotian was also unwilling to fight further, likely because his talismans were nearly exhausted. Otherwise, there was no reason for him to let him go so easily.

Having thought this through, Zou Xin mustered his courage to turn back and strike, laughing lowly at Lu Xiaotian, "Actually, I don't want to fight you either. Our strengths are roughly equal, and a fierce battle would likely leave us both wounded. However, the Large-Sized Freak has a few things I want. If you can share some with me, we can naturally live in peace."

"Since they are in my hands, there is no possibility of sharing them out." Lu Xiaotian sneered. Did he take him for a fool? Although he was unwilling to fight the man in the brocade robe, their cultivation levels were similar, and since he had already killed the Large-Sized Freak, why would he care about having one more enemy?

(End of Chapter)