Translator: CinderTL
Though Song Wen repeatedly changed his escape route, he remained within the outer fringes of the Rotting Miasma Ridge.
He dared not venture too deep into the ridge, fearing encounters with sixth-tier demon beasts or swarms of poisonous insects. That would truly leave him "between a rock and a hard place," with formidable enemies ahead and relentless pursuers behind.
Soon, Song Wen had fled tens of thousands of miles.
His tightly wound nerves finally began to relax slightly.
At such a distance, with the miasma and the Two-Faced Buddha jointly concealing his aura, even a Void Refinement Stage cultivator would likely struggle to track him.
Suddenly, a sharp, urgent sound of air being torn apart erupted from behind him.
A black arrow, radiating a heart-stopping pressure, hurtled straight toward Song Wen's back.
His heart clenched violently, as if he had been marked by a venomous serpent. A deathly shadow enveloped him, chilling him to the bone.
A silver Talisman instantly appeared in his hand.
As the Talisman shattered, a burst of silver light erupted, engulfing Song Wen's figure.
The arrow pierced through the silver light, yet drew not a single drop of blood.
In the next instant, Chi Qi's figure materialized at the spot where the silver light had flashed.
He watched the fading silver glow and the drifting fragments of a silver talisman, his voice tinged with surprise.
"Hmm? It's some kind of instant teleportation talisman. This junior's methods are quite remarkable. Could his origins be extraordinary?"
Even as Chi Qi marveled, his Divine Sense rapidly expanded, searching for Song Wen's location.
Regardless of the youth's background, Chi Qi resolved to capture him first and ask questions later.
Moreover, Song Wen's Incarnation Art and teleportation talisman had piqued Chi Qi's interest.
When Song Wen reappeared, he was already three hundred li away, near a small mountain.
He dared not linger for even a moment. His right hand transformed into a withered, black claw, which he thrust upward, piercing through his jaw and exiting through the crown of his head, tearing through his skull.
Activating his life-substitution art, Song Wen teleported another two hundred li.
The miasma in this area interfered with his Divine Sense, limiting the maximum distance he could teleport using the life-substitution art.
Immediately afterward, a dense Blood Mist erupted from his body as he activated the Blood Escape Technique, instantly fleeing another eight hundred li.
In the blink of an eye, Song Wen had escaped nearly fourteen hundred li.
A flicker of surprise crossed Chi Qi's eyes.
His Divine Sense had detected the shattered remains of Song Wen's Substitute Puppet and noticed the lingering Blood Mist left by the Blood Escape Technique.
Yet when he arrived at the Blood Mist, he couldn't sense Song Wen's final location.
"This appears to be some kind of Blood Escape Technique? The surprises you keep giving me are truly endless!"
Chi Qi's eyes suddenly glowed with an eerie crimson light, sweeping across the swirling miasma.
In truth, Chi Qi had been able to track Song Wen across tens of thousands of li not because the Two-Faced Buddha had failed to completely conceal his aura, as Song Wen feared.
Rather, it was because Chi Qi's cultivated Dreamfloat True Eye allowed him to see the unique traces Song Wen left behind as he moved through the poisonous mist—much like how smoke shifts its shape after someone passes through it.
Half an incense stick later, Song Wen's heart was filled with terror.
He had already used two Minor Teleportation Talismans, five Substitute Puppets, and cast the Blood Escape Technique eight times, yet he still couldn't shake off Chi Qi.
He couldn't understand how Chi Qi was tracking him.
The Blood Escape Technique might leave traces of his aura along the way, but the Minor Teleportation Talismans and Substitute Puppets were methods of instantaneous teleportation. Within the distance covered by these teleportations, no residual aura should remain.
Yet no matter how he used these three escape techniques, Chi Qi would catch up in an instant.
Just as Song Wen felt utterly helpless, Chi Qi's voice echoed from behind:
"Youngster, stop wasting your energy and surrender. Hand over your Incarnation Art and Teleportation Talismans, and I'll spare your life."
Having witnessed Song Wen repeatedly use Minor Teleportation Talismans and Substitute Puppets to evade his lethal strikes, Chi Qi no longer rushed to attack. Instead, he pondered how to trap Song Wen, denying him any chance to use these escape methods.
Naturally, Song Wen didn't believe Chi Qi's words. He activated another Substitute Puppet, fleeing over two hundred miles.
Then, while Chi Qi was still catching up, he cast the Blood Escape Technique.
As soon as he teleported to the next location, he immediately cast the Blood Escape Technique again.
Although the Blood Escape Technique couldn't instantly teleport like the Minor Teleportation Talisman or life-substitution arts, its advantage lay in Song Wen's abundant blood essence, allowing him to use it continuously. Moreover, it was significantly faster than his other escape technique, the Thunder Escape Technique.
Suddenly, Song Wen sensed unusual Spiritual Qi fluctuations ahead, indicating a battle in progress.
A flash of Thunderlight enveloped him as he flew toward the source of the disturbance.
After traveling over fifty kilometers, his Divine Sense detected two Divine Transformation Stage cultivators fleeing desperately about two hundred kilometers ahead.
The male cultivator was at the late Divine Transformation Stage, while the female cultivator was at the early Divine Transformation Stage.
Trailing closely behind them was a swarm of bizarre-looking poisonous insects.
These insects had dual wings, double mandibles, and a sharp proboscis. Ranging in size from a fist to a human head, most were between Second-Tier and Fourth-Tier in strength, with a few reaching Fifth-Tier.
What truly set them apart was their astonishing speed.
They seemed to be enveloped in a strange energy field, each insect carrying the next in a relentless swarm that swept toward the fleeing cultivators like a living hurricane, leaving no stragglers behind.
Poisonous Scythe Insects!
Song Wen instantly recognized the poisonous insects.
Having ascended some time ago, Song Wen had purchased numerous jade slips in Shangchu City detailing Spirit Grass, Spirit Mines, demon beasts, and poisonous insects. He possessed a decent understanding of the common poisonous insects found in the Rotting Miasma Ridge.
The man and woman facing him also noticed Song Wen's presence.
They exchanged a glance, both seeing a flicker of joy in each other's eyes—the desperate joy of spotting a lifeline in a hopeless situation.
Without hesitation, they charged toward Song Wen.
However, to their utter astonishment, Song Wen suddenly took his own life, piercing his skull.
Moments later, they saw Song Wen's figure abruptly reappear several miles ahead, rushing toward them head-on.
Confused by Song Wen's actions, and with a swarm of Poisonous Scythe Insects closing in from behind, the pair didn't attempt to stop him. Instead, they split apart, creating a narrow passage.
Song Wen darted between them, plunging directly into the swarm of poisonous insects, where he was torn to shreds.
The scene unfolding before them left the pair utterly bewildered.
As they stood in stunned silence, a streak of light shot toward them from the distance.
A Void Refinement Stage cultivator!
Understanding dawned on them instantly, and terror flashed in their eyes.
In the next instant, a razor-sharp arrow struck like lightning. The female cultivator, whose cultivation level was relatively lower, had no time to react before her body exploded into pieces.
(End of the Chapter)
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