Chapter Forty-Two: A Misunderstanding!

Qiu Yiqiu’s expression was dazed; she knew there was no way to avoid what was coming, and a sudden urge to escape into her inner sanctuary surged within her. She forced herself to suppress the thought. She absolutely could not enter her sanctuary here and now! She refused to be a deserter. Even if she could not withstand these three attacks, she would have to face them head-on.

A burst of multicolored spiritual light erupted from her body as she instinctively called upon the powers of her five spiritual roots. As the three spells descended upon her, a flash of gray-white light swept across the battlefield. The icy eyes of the three black-robed demonic cultivators instantly lost their luster, and their bodies shattered in midair, falling to the ground in broken pieces. Three clusters of mist shot out from the fragments of their corpses, only to be swept away and obliterated by the gray-white brilliance.

Above Qiu Yiqiu’s head, a handkerchief radiating a pentagram array glowed with emerald light, enveloping the three spells and silently devouring and digesting them. In barely a few breaths, Yao Zhimei had eliminated the three black-robed demonic cultivators and cleared the surrounding hundred meters of enemies.

The male cultivator clutched his severed shoulder, blood streaming down, and swallowed pills to stave off the pain. He sat dazed upon the ground, his eyes vacant. Qiu Yiqiu withdrew her shield’s colorful glow and summoned her Cloud Brocade. “It truly is a peerless defensive artifact; it even protects its master automatically!”

At that moment, the summoning token at her waist flashed incessantly. She glanced down, and the tally of military merits on the token had abruptly risen to one hundred. Within the gray-white mist, Yao Zhimei licked her lips with lingering satisfaction and turned her gaze toward Qiu Yiqiu, her eyes blazing with fierce battle spirit.

Before Qiu Yiqiu could grasp what had happened, Yao Zhimei’s voice sounded in her mind. “Your Majesty, these trifling tasks from the Celestial Derivation Sect—I will handle them for you!” Qiu Yiqiu was startled and immediately looked around. She spotted a nearly imperceptible mist weaving through the chaos of battle. Wherever it passed, only the corpses of black-robed demonic cultivators and shocked disciples of the Celestial Derivation Sect remained.

Meanwhile, the summoning token at her waist flashed with growing intensity. She quickly hid it within her robes. In this situation, should anyone see her token accumulating merits so mysteriously, she would be beset by the crowd, demanding to know her secret techniques. She must not reveal Yao Zhimei’s existence!

Qiu Yiqiu felt the summoning token in her bosom radiating heat and light, her brow twitching in agitation.

This task meant nothing to her; her only purpose was to leverage the sect’s power to pass through the checkpoints around Qunan City. Yet Yao Zhimei seemed to have other ideas. She had gone off to slay enemies, and Qiu Yiqiu could not even find her! She had not yet reached Foundation Establishment and lacked the technique to transmit messages; contacting Yao Zhimei was troublesome.

But she could not allow Yao Zhimei to continue her rampage! As a mere five-spiritual-root nobody, if her achievements grew too outstanding, everyone would scrutinize her, suspecting something amiss. She had no wish to be dragged off by the sect’s hall masters, peak lords, or elders to be studied! Then, the treasures in her storage ring would surely be confiscated.

Qiu Yiqiu’s mind raced, and she resolved to track down Yao Zhimei—she could not let her continue this slaughter. These military merits were more than enough for a lowly Qi Condensation cultivator like herself!

“Ah, ah, ah! I can’t just sit here! Earlier—it was just a mistake, yes, just a momentary lapse; otherwise, he wouldn’t have been able to hurt me at all!” The one-armed male cultivator clawed at his head with his remaining hand, ruining his neatly tied hair. Qiu Yiqiu was nearly startled by his abrupt outburst, but thankfully, Yao Zhimei, a ghost cultivator, had often frightened her, so she was now somewhat desensitized.

Out of humanitarian and sect solidarity, Qiu Yiqiu decided to offer some advice. “Senior brother, you need to take a Bone Mending Pill quickly, or your new arm will never regrow.” Cultivators, unlike ordinary mortals, possessed formidable regenerative abilities. Losing an arm or a leg could be remedied, provided a Bone Mending Pill was taken in time.

Having spoken rapidly, Qiu Yiqiu prepared to pursue the direction where Yao Zhimei had gone. As she passed the one-armed male cultivator, he grabbed her. “Are you heading to the depths of the mine veins? I’ll go too! That’s where the most demonic cultivators are—I’ll kill them all!” He had already reached the twelfth level of Qi Condensation.

Qiu Yiqiu struggled to break free but could not. Her face paled. “No, I wasn’t planning to go anywhere…!” However, the crazed cultivator paid her no heed, dragging her toward the collapsed entrance to the mine.

Qiu Yiqiu was so furious she nearly coughed up blood. Why had she spoken so much just now? She should never have meddled!

The one-armed cultivator moved swiftly, wind beneath his feet, his single hand gripping her tightly as he charged into the mine. Recklessly, he smashed through the giant boulders blocking the entrance with his head, his eyes turning crimson, blood streaming down his forehead in thin rivulets.

Qiu Yiqiu focused her senses on his face and realized he had fallen into a demonic haze, plagued by inner demons, his mind almost lost. Apparently, being maimed by the demonic cultivator had dealt him a severe blow.

She recalled that his adversary was only at the ninth Qi Condensation stage, yet had managed to sever the arm of a cultivator three stages higher—a remarkable feat. That demonic cultivator’s attack was ruthless and decisive, his speed uncanny; perhaps it was for these reasons that the one-armed man had lost.

…

Deep within the mine.

“Hurry after him! Stop fighting! The brat who stole the cultivation technique has run inside!” Jiang Shuangyan’s almond eyes flashed as she whipped her head around, her tassels jingling, and flung her plum blossom branch toward the gaunt figure ahead.

The flower’s stamens released a fragrant aroma, the petals blooming proudly, shooting forward like needles and blades. The gaunt figure did not pause, and as he neared the mine’s branching tunnels, he suddenly leapt inside.

A muffled groan echoed. The plum blossom branch wavered, its flowers trembling. Jiang Shuangyan raised her hand and recalled it; a spot of deep crimson could be seen upon the pink blossoms. She barked, “He’s injured! After him!”

At her command, her most trusted confidants acted swiftly, slashing off the head of a black-robed demonic cultivator before them; blood rolled across the ground. “Where do you think you’re going? Have you asked for the opinion of Ming Haohua of the Holy Sage Sect?” From the left branch tunnel, black mist billowed, and the leader, his face naked to the air, bore a scabbed scar across his cheek.

At the same time, teams emerged from the other three intersecting tunnels. Among them were disciples in Celestial Derivation Sect robes and demonic cultivators in black.

Jiang Shuangyan’s gaze quickly locked onto Xia Changhan, leader of the fifth team. She called sweetly, “Senior brother Xia, help me hold them off—we can share the cultivation technique once we get it!”

Xia Changhan’s eyes narrowed, and his Soul Bell swayed, releasing bewitching notes. He urged, “Junior sister Jiang, swear a heart-demon oath and then leave this place!” His disciples behind him immediately summoned their artifacts, confronting the demonic cultivators.

Ming Haohua’s eyes glinted with murderous light, utterly unaffected by the bell’s song, and he sneered, “Jiang Shuangyan, the little vixen—she certainly has her own allure!”