Two figures moved through the dense forest in a straight line, one ahead and one behind, both rushing at full speed.
Xie Zhaolin pushed her movement technique to the limit. Her divine sense stayed razor sharp as she chased the faint thread of star power that You You had sensed through the You Ming Bracelet. That barely noticeable remnant pointed firmly toward the northeast, almost impossible to detect without guidance.
Elder Chou followed close behind. She was full of questions, but when she saw how clear Xie Zhaolin's direction was, along with the cold killing intent rolling off her, she didn't dare ask anything. She poured all her strength into keeping up, staying alert to every shadow around them.
Thankfully, You You's sensitivity to star power was terrifyingly accurate. Even though their target had used a high level concealment method, the unique origin ripple from the core treasure stood out like a firefly in pitch black, guiding Xie Zhaolin without fail.
"Three miles to the left front, the trace is fresh!"
"Go around that rocky ridge, the aura's getting clearer!" You You called out in her mind, one point after another.
They sprinted onward. After about the time it took an incense stick to burn, faint voices and spiritual fluctuations spread from ahead.
Xie Zhaolin's eyes sharpened. She immediately signaled for Elder Chou to suppress her presence. They moved silently, slipped behind a giant boulder, and used their divine sense to probe forward.
Six people stood in an open clearing between the trees.
All six wore matching moon white robes embroidered with crystalline snowflake patterns. A cold chill spread from their bodies. They were disciples of the Northern Ice Palace.
When Xie Zhaolin's gaze fell on the person leading them, she froze for a moment.
A tall man stood at the front, his features sharp and cold.
He looked about twenty seven or twenty eight, with sword brows, bright eyes, a straight nose, and tightly pressed lips. His cultivation had already reached late Golden Core, his aura solid and overwhelming, far stronger than ordinary peers.
Ling Chuan.
So it was him.
Xie Zhaolin felt a flicker of surprise. She had seen him several times in her past life as Yun Qingyue. They had even worked together briefly inside a ruined cultivator's cave.
His talent was frightening. He had broken through to the Golden Core realm before he was two hundred years old. Even Hua Qiluo had praised him highly.
She didn't expect to meet him here.
What made her expression sink even further was the old man standing half a step behind him, his hair and beard completely white, his appearance old yet steady. His aura was deep like a bottomless ocean. A faint Law fluctuation rippled around him. He was a Nascent Soul elder sent to protect Ling Chuan, a genius disciple of the Northern Ice Palace.
The other four disciples were all mid Golden Core, their eyes sharp, their pressure strong.
The lineup was overwhelming. With a Nascent Soul elder present, they could crush most contenders in this secret realm without effort.
At that moment, Leng Tianhan held a jade box in his hand.
The box was open, revealing a dark blue crystal that seemed to contain countless slow turning star swirls inside it. Pure star power radiated from it. It was exactly the treasure You You had sensed, the Star Core Essence.
Hidden in the shadows, Xie Zhaolin's heart sank.
A Nascent Soul elder, a late Golden Core genius, four mid Golden Core cultivators… With this kind of lineup, she had absolutely no chance. Not even if she had her peak late Golden Core cultivation from before, and not even with Elder Chou's help.
Stealing it by force would be suicidal.
"Master… this is bad…" You You whispered nervously. It clearly sensed the deadly pressure coming from the Nascent Soul elder. "That old man's terrifying… we can't beat him."
Elder Chou's face turned pale. She felt the same fear toward the gray robed elder.
She glanced at Xie Zhaolin, silently urging her not to try anything reckless. Fighting a Northern Ice Palace group guarded by a Nascent Soul elder for the sake of a treasure was just begging to die.
Xie Zhaolin's expression darkened. That treasure had been right within reach… and it had fallen into the hands of someone she couldn't possibly rob.
The frustration made her furious.
But she wasn't stupid. The gap in strength was too large. A head on fight only ended one way.
She stared at the Star Core Essence in Leng Tianhan's hand, reluctant and unwilling. That thing was crucial for refining high level puppets.
Was she supposed to give up just like that?
No… there might still be a chance.
Her gaze swept quickly over the six Northern Ice Palace members as her mind raced.
She couldn't rob them, but maybe there was another way.
Trade? Did she have anything the Northern Ice Palace would want?
Or wait until they split up?
Even in a secret realm, no Nascent Soul elder would stay glued to their disciple at all times. Maybe she could create chaos and fish in troubled waters.
Several plans flashed through her mind, only to be dismissed immediately.
Trading was too risky. Waiting for a chance was unreliable. Creating chaos was almost impossible under a Nascent Soul elder's watch.
Finally, logic won over impulse.
She drew a deep breath and crushed her greed. No matter how great the opportunity, she needed to live to make use of it. She signaled Elder Chou to withdraw.
They held their breath and suppressed every trace of aura, slipping back like drifting smoke without making the slightest sound.
Just as they withdrew about a hundred meters and were about to leave the elder's divine sense range, the Nascent Soul elder, who'd been sitting with his eyes shut, twitched his eyelids. He opened them slightly. His cloudy yet sharp gaze swept faintly toward the direction where they had hidden earlier.
A subtle curve lifted the corner of his mouth before he closed his eyes again, as if nothing had happened.
Two little bugs who know when to leave… that saves him the trouble of killing them.
In a secret realm filled with ants, he didn't care enough to crush every one he saw.
Xie Zhaolin and Elder Chou kept flying until they were nearly a hundred miles away. Only when they were certain no one followed did they stop in a hidden mountain hollow.
"God…" Elder Chou let out a long breath, still pale. "That Nascent Soul elder definitely sensed us."
Xie Zhaolin stayed silent, her eyes icy. She had also sensed that final brush of the elder's killing intent. A Nascent Soul cultivator's intuition was terrifying.
If they hadn't retreated immediately, they'd already be corpses.
"Recover your breath for a moment," Xie Zhaolin said hoarsely. She walked off on her own, turned her back, and flipped her wrist. A simple looking jade slip appeared in her palm, the one Yingsha had given her earlier.
She sank her divine sense into it and sent out a message.
"Spread the news: Ling Chuan of the Northern Ice Palace obtained the Star Core Essence at Fallen Star Lake. He's being escorted by Nascent Soul protector Elder Hanji and five disciples. Their location is…" She sent the coordinates and a full description of their formation. "Send this secretly to every strong team in the secret realm, especially Xuantian Sect, Ten Thousand Beast Mountain, and those lone Nascent Soul old monsters."
After finishing, she put the jade slip away, her eyes growing cold.
She couldn't take it by force? Fine, then she'd stir the water until no one could.
She might not be able to fight a group escorted by a Nascent Soul elder, but other people could. There were few Nascent Soul cultivators in the secret realm, but not none.
Xuantian Sect and Ten Thousand Beast Mountain likely had Nascent Soul elders here. There were even a few unpredictable lone Nascent Soul wanderers.
Once multiple sides got involved, everything would spiral out of control. Even if Elder Hanji was late Nascent Soul, he wouldn't be able to hold out against several cultivators of the same realm. He might even die.
And she could hide in the shadows and steal the treasure during the chaos.
Even if she didn't get it, seeing the Northern Ice Palace lose a limb or two was still satisfying.
As for whether the information would point back to her…
Xie Zhaolin didn't worry. Yingsha had countless ways to spread messages without leaving a trace.
And in a secret realm, where killing and robbing were the norm, who'd bother to trace the source of a rumor?
Fate never comes to those who wait. It belongs to those who fight, steal, and snatch it.
If she couldn't take it openly, then she'd take it in the dark. If she couldn't beat them head on, then she'd borrow someone else's blade.