186: Chapter 186 The Fifth Life, The Blazing Sun Illuminates the Martial Path (134)

Qiu Feng shouted, sword light flickering as he continuously carved shallow wounds onto the Yao Beast, yet he could never break through its main carapace.

Chu Shi frowned slightly.

Although the blinded Black Iron Back-Armored Beast had lost its accuracy, its defense remained astonishing; coupled with its heightened strength while in a berserk state, fighting it head-on was still not cost-effective.

After a moment of thought, he immediately had an idea.

"Don't take it head-on, wear it down! It's losing too much blood, it won't last long!"

The three of them immediately scattered, circling the Yao Beast in a triangular Formation.

Chu Shi struck out with a Blazing Sun Fist Seal from time to time, specifically targeting the wound on its forehead, the scorching medicinal power continuously eroding its vitality.

The Core Disciple Qiu brothers, relying on their agile movement techniques, took turns thrusting their twin swords at its joints, abdomen, and other areas with softer armor, slowly whittling away its stamina.

The Black Iron Back-Armored Beast had brute strength to spare, yet could not even pinpoint the location of its enemies, and could only roar frantically and ram about in place.

Blood flowed continuously from the wound on its forehead, and combined with the excruciating pain of its blinded eyes, its movements became slower and slower, and its breathing gradually grew heavy.

After nearly two quarter-hours of attrition, accompanied by a final, unwilling low roar, this Black Iron Back-Armored Beast at the Copper Bone Realm Mid-Stage Peak finally collapsed with a boom, its massive body shaking the ground as it twitched a few times before falling still.

Only when it completely lost its breath did the three of them heave a sigh of relief, all of them somewhat out of breath.

"Good heavens, this beast is too durable."

Qiu Feng leaned on his sword, wiped the sweat from his face, and looked at the giant beast's corpse on the ground with lingering fear.

"It could still jump around for so long even with its eyes blinded; it almost exhausted me to the point of collapse."

Qiu Yang also nodded, his gaze towards Chu Shi becoming increasingly admiring:

"Senior Brother Chu's tactics are truly impressive. If it were just us two, let alone killing it, we wouldn't even be able to break its armor."

Chu Shi smiled, didn't reply, and turned to walk into the depths of the crevice.

The four remaining Cold Marrow Jade Ganoderma grew quietly in the rock crevices, fine cold beads condensed on their lustrous white caps, and the golden Qi was so dense it had almost solidified.

He carefully dug out the four Spiritual Plants by the roots, packed them into jade boxes, and stored them in his Storage Pouch before turning to walk out.

"The meat of this Black Iron Back-Armored Beast is good stuff; it's rich in Qi and blood, and roasting it is the best way to nourish oneself."

Qiu Feng's eyes lit up, and he hurried over to the corpse with his sword in hand.

"Especially the tenderloin area; it's very tender and has no gamey smell."

As he spoke, he set to work, his sword light flashing as he quickly cut off tens of catties of prime meat from the Yao Beast's hind legs and back, wrapping them in oil paper and stuffing them into his Storage Pouch.

Qiu Yang was not idle either, prying off a few of the most intact back carapace plates.

These things were excellent Materials for forging armor and could be sold for quite a few Origin Stones outside.

"That's enough, let's go."

Chu Shi glanced at the chaotic battlefield around them and frowned slightly.

"The commotion just now was too great; it might have already attracted people. This place is not suitable for a long stay."

Subsequently, the three of them dared not delay, quickly packed up, turned and dived into the nearby dense forest, and disappeared into the depths of the mountain forest after a few leaps.

Less than half an incense stick of time after they had left, two figures appeared by the battlefield.

Looking at the giant Yao Beast corpse on the ground and the mess everywhere, the two exchanged a glance, both seeing surprise in each other's eyes.

"The Black Iron Back-Armored Beast was killed by someone? And the Cold Marrow Jade Ganoderma are gone too..."

"Let's go, chase! Judging by the direction, they went downstream towards the river valley; we might still be able to catch up!"

The two figures sprinted through the dense forest, fallen leaves flying beneath their feet; they were the two who had arrived at the battlefield earlier.

The man in front, wearing grey-white clothes, had his brows tightly locked as he followed the residual footprints and broken branches on the ground, but after chasing for three or four li, the tracks suddenly became messy, crisscrossing here and there, and when they reached a rocky ridge, they disappeared completely.

"How is it, can we still catch up?"

The person behind panted as he caught up, his tone carrying a hint of anxiety.

The person in front squatted down, his fingertips brushing over the gravel on the ground, and said with an ugly expression: "We lost them.

The other party is very experienced; they intentionally dove into the rocky pile, shattering their footprints as soon as they stepped, and there are too many forks ahead; there's no way to find them."

The person behind immediately let his face fall, sighing: "How can we explain this to Senior Sister?

We had our eyes on the Cold Marrow Jade Ganoderma days ago, specifically saving it for when Senior Sister finished her closed-door cultivation.

We thought it was foolproof, but we arrived a step too late, and now both the people and the herbs are gone."

"What else can we say? Let's just tell the truth."

The person in front stood up, his gaze sweeping across the surrounding dense forest, his expression solemn.

"To be able to kill the Black Iron Back-Armored Beast and erase their tracks so quickly, the other party's strength is not weak, at least at the level of the Copper Bone Realm Mid-Stage Peak.

We two are no match for them; let's head back and report the situation first."

Subsequently, the two searched the vicinity for a while longer, but still found nothing, and could only turn back, unwilling.

At the same time, in the dense forest on the other side of the rocky ridge, three figures were quickly moving through, using the cover of the trees.

Qiu Yang suddenly paused, listened intently for a moment, and said in a low voice: "The aura behind us has weakened; they have stopped."

Chu Shi also stopped, turned back to sense, and nodded slightly: "Hmm, they aren't chasing anymore."

"Ha, I told you taking this route was the right choice!"

Qiu Feng immediately became smug, patting his chest and shaking his head.

"My brother and I discovered this rocky ridge last month; it's full of empty crevices underneath, so it's impossible to leave complete footprints.

Back then, that grandson Zhou Lie brought three people to chase us, and it was right here that we shook them off. Playing at tracking with us, they're still a bit too green."

"Stop showing off."

Qiu Yang rolled his eyes at him, but also let out a sigh of relief.

"The other party clearly had their eyes on that crevice long ago; they might even have more companions.

This place is not safe; let's go hide in the cave where we used to stash things. That place is hidden and ordinary people can't find it, so it's perfect for absorbing the Cold Marrow Jade Ganoderma with peace of mind."

After saying this, he took the lead, guiding Chu Shi towards a hillside.

Along the way, he specifically chose steep and difficult sections, making several confusing detours, and finally stopped in front of a cliff wall covered in emerald green vines.

Qiu Yang reached out and pushed aside the layers of vines, revealing a cave entrance that only allowed one person to pass through by bending over; it was pitch black inside, but had no musty smell at all.

"This is the place."

Qiu Yang squeezed in first, lighting a small flame at his fingertips to illuminate the inside of the cave.

"The place isn't big, but it's safe.

My brother and I used to hide here when we were hanging around this area, and we were never discovered by anyone."

Chu Shi bent down and walked into the cave; it was only about a zhang square, the ground was level, and in the corner were some hay and a few pieces of air-dried beast meat, showing it was a frequent resting spot.

The cave entrance was tightly blocked by vines, preventing light from entering, but it also completely concealed the fluctuations of the golden Qi inside, making it an excellent hiding place.

Qiu Yang turned back to put the vines back in place and set up two simple concealment Formations at the entrance to hide their aura, then turned around, a faint smile on his face:

"Alright, now it's completely safe.

Senior Brother Chu, shall we rest for the night, recover our state, and absorb the Cold Marrow Jade Ganoderma tomorrow?"