103: Chapter 103 Each Flees

Shortly after the Yao Race reinforcements appeared, the two joined forces to slay the Silver-backed Demonic Ape.

However, the Tier 3 Yao Beasts among the Yao Race reinforcements had already arrived.

"You flee first," Master Moxuan instructed all the Foundation Establishment Cultivators.

Hearing this, Chen Changqing and the others immediately escaped. Since Master Moxuan and his companion allowed them to flee, why wouldn't they run?

Apart from two Tier 3 Yao Beasts holding back Master Moxuan and his companion, the remaining Yao Race reinforcements set their sights on Chen Changqing's group and pursued them relentlessly.

Chen Changqing and the others glanced back to see a vast swarm of thousands of Yao Beasts closing in on them. Yet this was only natural; as the Yao Race's rapid response reinforcements, their speed far surpassed ordinary Yao Beasts. Although the Tier 1 Yao Beasts couldn't keep up at all, it was enough for the dozen or so Tier 2 Monster Beasts to catch up and tie them down.

"Everyone, let's split up and run," said a ninth-layer Foundation Establishment Cultivator in the group. After the others nodded in agreement, he took the lead by bringing out a flying vessel, quickly departing alongside another ninth-layer Foundation Establishment Cultivator.

The remaining Foundation Establishment Cultivators were all surprised. One of them spoke up, "So those two had already planned this together. Farewell, everyone!" He also produced a flying Magical Artifact and sped off, leaving the main group.

Following that, each Foundation Establishment Cultivator chose a direction, with some departing in groups of two or three.

Chen Changqing chose to go alone. With his escape technique, having anyone beside him would only hold him back.

However, he did not immediately take out the wind and cloud wings to leave; instead, he stepped onto the xuanyu sword and turned into a streak of light, flying into the distance.

The horde of Yao Beasts behind immediately split into several groups, chasing after the slowest Foundation Establishment Cultivators.

Chen Changqing was also among their targets.

...

A few days later, beside a deep, quiet lake, Chen Changqing took off his tattered green robe. With a thought, a brand-new green robe appeared on his body.

A few days prior, he had been entangled by several Tier 2 Monster Beasts and hunted all the way to the former border of Zheng Country and Lu Country. Although he barely escaped by activating a Top-Grade Tier 2 escape talisman, he hadn't expected other Tier 2 Monster Beasts to be lying in ambush along his escape route.

If not for his wind and cloud wings and the enemy misjudging his strength, he might have really struggled to leave alive.

Still, the others fleeing in different directions had probably encountered similar ambushes, right? After all, these Yao Beasts had failed to provide timely reinforcements several times, so it was impossible for them not to alter their strategy for trapping and hunting them.

He was now completely separated from the others, and even the positioning jade pendant in his hand hadn't lit up for some time. He wondered how the border was doing. If these Yao Beasts were busy hunting down Human Race Cultivators, he might be able to take the opportunity to return.

However, his current location was tens of thousands of miles away from the Yan Country border. At his escape speed, even traveling at full speed, it would take over a month.

Normally, with a Foundation Establishment Cultivator's speed, it shouldn't be possible to penetrate tens of thousands of miles into the heart of the Yao Race territory in just half a month. However, they had initially used the Formations of the three Nascent Soul Sects to arrive here, as it was the only way to bypass the front line and avoid encountering the Yao Race.

Furthermore, those Formations were one-time use, meaning that these Cultivators trapped deep within Yao Race territory could only return via the border. This was also why the major factions had promised that if they agreed to go, their clan members would be allowed to retreat to the rear to rest and recover.

"Hmm?" Chen Changqing sensed a loud booming sound coming from the distant horizon.

Two figures were chasing each other across the sky, rapidly approaching Chen Changqing's position from afar.

Chen Changqing had seen one of them before—it was Master Bingyou of the Xuantian Sect, who had led her subordinate forces into battle.

Who was the other?

Chen Changqing's eyes widened. Wasn't that the evil Cultivator who had attacked the Taihe Market years ago? What was he doing here?

Chen Changqing immediately had Bai Yuqing suppress his aura to its absolute minimum.

"Yuqing, what is the cultivation level of those two?"

Bai Yuqing usually spent her time sleeping, awakening only when Chen Changqing needed her. Her voice carried a lazy tone: "Master Bingyou's cultivation is roughly at the third layer of the Purple Mansion, while the other person has already reached the fifth layer of the Purple Mansion. Master, I've suppressed your aura so well that even a seventh-layer Purple Mansion Cultivator won't notice you unless they deliberately pay close attention to your surroundings."

Chen Changqing nodded. The next moment, his eyes filled with shock.

In the distance, icicles materialized out of thin air, covering a radius of ten miles in the blink of an eye. Waves of freezing cold swept through the area. Chen Changqing immediately used his magic power to dispel the chill and prevent it from invading his body, yet he was still shivering from the intense cold.

On the other side, the evil Cultivator wielded a myriad soul banner, summoning countless ghosts that swarmed toward Master Bingyou.

Bang, bang, bang!

The battle between the two grew increasingly fierce, and several stray icicles were knocked toward where Chen Changqing was hiding.

Chen Changqing was horrified. Even though these icicles had been weakened, any single one could easily slay him.

He immediately channeled his Cultivation Technique, condensing all seventy-two streaks of Azure Thunder at his fingertips to shatter one of the icicles, but three remaining icicles were still hurtling toward him.

Chen Changqing summoned the sun and moon mirror, casting down sun and moon light simultaneously, while the xuanyu sword in his Storage Pouch soared straight into the sky. Even so, he barely managed to block two of the icicles.

For the last icicle, Chen Changqing had no choice but to take out a High Grade Tier 2 escape talisman to dodge.

Where he had just been standing, the icicle exploded into a deep crater five zhang deep, and the surrounding trees were all frozen solid as the chilling frost continued to spread.

After reappearing, Chen Changqing looked back at his previous location, a chill surging through his heart. If that strike had hit him, he would have been severely injured if not killed outright.

He looked up at the two combatants, immediately summoned his wind and cloud wings, and instantly fled far away from the spot.

"Just a rat," Xiao Yun sneered. He stopped looking at Chen Changqing and turned a tender, affectionate gaze upon Master Bingyou. "Bingyou, won't you change your mind? Let me tell you this: the Yao Race has long been prepared, just waiting for you all to fall deeper into the trap. When that time comes, none of the Golden Core Masters who came here stand any chance of leaving alive. Come back with me now, and I guarantee your safety."

Master Bingyou merely glanced at Chen Changqing, thinking to herself, Is that him?

She then shifted her cold gaze back to Xiao Yun and said coldly, "Xiao Yun, the moment you sided with evil Cultivators and slaughtered our own kind, we were destined to have no future together. Prepare to die!"

The two engaged in battle once more.

As Chen Changqing fled, hearing their conversation brought deep shock to his eyes. The Yao Race had long prepared a trap for them.

This?

No, I must return to Yan Country as soon as possible, or I really will die here.

While he was still contemplating, Xiao Yun unleashed an attack at him from a distance.

A giant black hand containing terrifying power traversed several miles, striking towards him.

What? Chen Changqing was horrified. He had already escaped several miles away, yet Xiao Yun was actually able to strike him across such a vast distance!

Chen Changqing immediately unleashed all his techniques. The xuanyu sword erupted, hurling countless raindrops against the giant black hand, closely followed by seventy-two streaks of Azure Thunder. While the sun and moon light enveloped him, he also threw out dozens of glazed talismans.

However, in just a single instant, the giant black hand sequentially shattered the curtain of rain, streak after streak of Azure Thunder, and then the dozens of glazed talismans one by one.

Even the sun and moon mirror was shattered to pieces in an instant. Seeing this, Chen Changqing gritted his teeth, unleashing another seventy-two streaks of Azure Thunder, and brought out the Top-Grade Tier 2 defensive Magical Artifact, the Xuanhuang Shield, obtained from the Yuxu Sect, as well as the Top-Grade Tier 2 defensive Magical Artifact, the Dragon Scale Dark Armor, obtained from the Wanta Sect.

Yet this only bought a brief moment before both defensive Magical Artifacts were smashed to pieces. Chen Changqing directly tossed out a High Grade Tier 2 escape talisman, teleporting a hundred zhang away. But the giant black hand seemed capable of tracking him; after merely a brief pause, it struck toward him once more.

He had no choice but to execute the Azure Wood Escape and flee with all his power, with the wind and cloud wings on his back operating at full capacity.

However, the attack of a Purple Mansion Cultivator was not something a Foundation Establishment Cultivator could block after all. Just at the instant he was about to be hit, several icicles intercepted the giant black hand for him. He glanced back, his eyes filled with surprise, and turned to continue fleeing.