Chapter 361: Pursuit

Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation

Liang Zhongpu’s eyes widened involuntarily, the corners almost splitting. While the Yashan Sect was considered a major sect in the vicinity, it didn’t boast an abundance of Aperture tempering realm cultivators, nor did it have any late Aperture tempering realm powerhouses.

For the Yashan Sect, a cultivator in the early Aperture tempering realm was a precious combat asset, let alone someone in the mid Aperture tempering realm. Within the entire sect, there were only three cultivators at the mid Aperture tempering realm.

Not too long ago, during the siege of Shang Wu City, one of them had been injured and was currently recuperating in the City Lord’s Mansion.

And now, Ji Zhuowen had been killed before Liang Zhongpu’s very eyes, leaving him struggling to accept this reality.

Hong Yuanfeng’s eyes narrowed slightly, and his gaze turned cold as he looked at Chen Fei.

Killing someone right in front of him, was Chen Fei planning for a life-or-death showdown? In Hong Yuanfeng’s view, even if the fish died, the net would remain intact.

Chen Fei didn’t say a word. He glanced at Liang Zhongpu and Hong Yuanfeng, retrieved the spiritual weapon from Ji Zhuowen’s hand, and then with a swift movement, dashed toward the outskirts of the city.

This was a military camp, and soldiers were gradually closing in. If he were completely surrounded, it would put him in a very unfavorable position.

“Stop, you thief!”

Liang Zhongpu roared in anger, his figure flashing as he pursued Chen Fei. Was he planning to kill a member of the Yashan Sect and just leave like this?

Hong Yuanfeng remained silent and followed behind Liang Zhongpu. Today, Chen Fei had to die.

Ji Zhuowen’s killing took Hong Yuanfeng by surprise. Chen Fei’s strength exceeded Hong Yuanfeng’s expectations. After all, he was a genuine mid Aperture tempering realm cultivator. Although Ji Zhuowen had recently broken through to the mid Aperture tempering realm, the realm was there.

Chen Fei had just recently broken through to the Aperture tempering realm, so how could he kill a mid-aperture tempering realm cultivator? If he continued to grow like this, what heights could he reach?

If Chen Fei managed to escape today and took refuge in the Primordial Sword Sect, Hong Yuanfeng wouldn’t have a chance to take action against him. Informing the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect about the threat posed by Chen Fei was also not a feasible option. Currently, the greatest threats to the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect were the Divine Flame Sect and the seemingly neutral Yu family.

Attacking the Primordial Sword Sect was out of the question since Chen Fei had killed someone from the Yashan Sect, and the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect had suffered no losses. In the eyes of the high-ranking members of the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect, Chen Fei’s mid Aperture tempering realm cultivation and strength were not significant.

What the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect lacked were combined aperture tempering realm cultivators; they had no shortage of mid aperture tempering realm cultivators, and they even had several peak aperture tempering realm powerhouses.

To put it bluntly, a peak aperture tempering realm cultivator, if handled properly, could gradually wear down the entire Primordial Sword Sect without suffering any damage themselves. This was their confidence.

Therefore, Hong Yuanfeng had to kill Chen Fei today. Otherwise, he would have to watch Chen Fei grow stronger without any good solutions. If Chen Fei reached the late Aperture tempering realm someday, Hong Yuanfeng would have to be careful about his own safety. After all, in the eyes of the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect, as long as the Primordial Sword Sect didn’t make any major mistakes, they were tolerable.

Hong Yuanfeng’s personal interests were not the same as the overall interests of the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect. Unless the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect found out that Chen Fei had killed someone from their sect, there was no real reason for them to take action.

Hong Yuanfeng couldn’t allow Chen Fei to pose a constant threat by staying by his side. He seized the opportunity today, while they were in Qinhai City, to silently kill Chen Fei without anyone noticing.

By doing so, the Primordial Sword Sect wouldn’t be able to find any evidence, and the alliance with the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect wouldn’t be significantly affected. Plus, he could completely eliminate this hidden danger.

Otherwise, Hong Yuanfeng wouldn’t be able to sleep and eat in peace!

Xu Yanxin approached the injured Cheng Hengzhong and saw that he had already been taken away by other soldiers for treatment, temporarily out of immediate danger. His heart eased slightly.

However, the extent of Cheng Hengzhong’s injuries left Xu Yanxin somewhat chilled. He wasn’t aware of how Chen Fei had managed to inflict such damage on Cheng Hengzhong in just a few moves, but they had received the message from the City Lord’s Mansion and arrived shortly after. The time they spent getting here was extremely short.

Yet in this brief time frame, Chen Fei had not only severely injured Cheng Hengzhong but also killed Ji Zhuowen in front of them.

This level of combat prowess was simply unimaginable for an ordinary mid Aperture tempering realm cultivator.

Thinking about Liang Zhongpu and Hong Yuanfeng, who were currently chasing after Chen Fei, Xu Yanxin hesitated for a moment before gritting his teeth and following suit. While Chen Fei was strong, Liang Zhongpu was no weakling. He was at least much stronger than Ji Zhuowen, who was also in the mid Aperture tempering realm.

And then there was Hong Yuanfeng, a master who inherited the top techniques of the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect. He was already much stronger than an average mid Aperture tempering realm cultivator.

Together, they would surely be able to capture Chen Fei.

After all, based on the information they received, Chen Fei had only recently broken through to the Aperture tempering realm, roughly three years ago. For many cultivators at this stage, that time would be barely enough to stabilize their cultivation and open one or two additional acupoints.

Chen Fei’s current displayed strength had far exceeded this category, reaching the level of the mid Aperture tempering realm. However, it was likely that this was already his limit.

Facing the combined assault from Liang Zhongpu and Hong Yuanfeng, Xu Yanxin didn’t believe that Chen Fei could create any further waves.

Xu Yanxin thought this way, and Liang Zhongpu and Hong Yuanfeng shared the same sentiment. Achieving the mid Aperture tempering realm within three years was already quite astonishing, and during this time, other aspects of cultivation were likely to be comparatively weaker.

Of course, this talent was still terrifying. Given enough time to grow, who knew how far Chen Fei could progress.

Now that both sides were mortal enemies, there was no possibility of reconciliation. In that case, they had to take advantage of the fact that Chen Fei hadn’t become stronger yet and eliminate him here.

Otherwise, Chen Fei would not only be a threat to Hong Yuanfeng but also a major concern for the entire Yashan Army.

Chen Fei’s main body transformed into a phantom and, with a few leaps, landed outside the city walls. Upon reaching this point, Chen Fei didn’t stop but continued running forward.

Liang Zhongpu and Hong Yuanfeng also leaped over the city walls, closely following behind Chen Fei to ensure he didn’t leave their sight.

After a moment, Xu Yanxin finally landed outside the city walls. He looked at the three figures in the distance, now reduced to mere specks. Seeing that Chen Fei was still running, Xu Yanxin felt more at ease. Apparently, Chen Fei was concerned about not being able to defeat the two of them, which was why he was fleeing.

At this moment, inside Qinhai City, Chen Fei’s clone, along with several members of the Ruan family, leaped out from another section of the city walls and eventually came to a stop in a mountain valley.

This location was more than ten miles away from Qinhai City, with no obstructed visibility between them and the city. If anyone were to chase them, they would be easily spotted.

“Big Brother Chen, are you a clone?” Chu Lan cautiously asked, and the other members of the Ruan family also looked at Chen Fei.

Just moments ago, things happened so quickly in the military camp that they were caught off guard. However, they more or less understood the situation. The person before them and the one who appeared later both seemed to be Chen Fei.

Such lifelike appearances, almost like real people, were beyond imagination in the world of martial arts and filled them with awe. Unfortunately, those who could truly touch this realm were always a tiny minority among the few.

“Yes, the main body has lured them away,” Chen Fei nodded.

ii

Is it dangerous?” Chu Lan asked nervously. In her impression, there were many mid Aperture tempering realm cultivators in the Yashan Sect, while Chen Fei was a newly promoted mid Aperture tempering realm cultivator in the Primordial Sword Sect.

Chu Lan’s cultivation level was not high, but she still had some knowledge of cultivation. Compared to those mid Aperture tempering realm cultivators who had practiced for many years, Chen Fei was expected to have a significant gap in strength.

“It’s alright,” Chen Fei reassured her, ruffling Chu Lan’s hair and smiling.

Dozens of miles away, Chen Fei’s main body ran into a dense forest and stopped on a rock, turning to look back. If Chen Fei wanted to, with his perfected Soaring Heaven Technique, Liang Zhongpu and Hong Yuanfeng wouldn’t be able to catch up to him at all.

Chen Fei had been keeping Liang Zhongpu and Hong Yuanfeng hanging by a thread earlier for a simple reason: he intended to leave them stranded here forever.

In the military camp just now, anyone who had seen Chen Fei was already killed by him. Today, as long as he killed Liang Zhongpu and Hong Yuanfeng here, then returned to kill all the mid Aperture tempering realm cultivators in the Yashan Army, this matter would be considered resolved.

Just as Hong Yuanfeng dared to set a trap and try to kill Chen Fei in Qinhai City, it was because this place was too far from Immortal Cloud City. Many things were difficult to convey to Immortal Cloud City as long as the general situation was neatly resolved from start to finish.

When Liang Zhongpu saw Chen Fei come to a stop ahead, his eyes narrowed slightly, and he became cautious. However, when he glanced at Hong Yuanfeng beside him, Liang Zhongpu relaxed a bit.

The Immortal Cloud Sword Sect’s influence extended for thousands of miles, and having cultivators in the combined aperture tempering realm was a key factor. However, the cultivators in the aperture tempering realm from within their sect were also stronger than those in most other sects of the same level.

This was due to the inherent advantages in their cultivation techniques, which were difficult for other sects to match. This advantage became even more pronounced in the late aperture tempering realm.

“Not running anymore?” Hong Yuanfeng looked at Chen Fei and taunted.

Based on Chen Fei’s displayed agility earlier, Hong Yuanfeng was genuinely concerned that Chen Fei might keep running, and if something unexpected happened in the process, they might lose track of him. Now that Chen Fei dared to stop and confront them, while Hong Yuanfeng had a cold smile in his heart, he also felt somewhat relieved.

As for the possibility of Chen Fei counterattacking them? Did he think all those years of his cultivation were for nothing? Moreover, Liang Zhongpu, who was standing beside Hong Yuanfeng, had also been in the mid aperture tempering realm for many years.

With the combined strength of both of them, could they not handle one Chen Fei?

“This distance is far enough!” Chen Fei said, looking at Hong Yuanfeng. The surrounding spiritual energy trembled, and a black sword formation descended from the sky, exuding immense pressure in all directions, shrouding the two of them.

“The Zhongyuan Sword Formation? I’ve been wanting to experience it!” Liang Zhongpu shouted, and a sword shadow soared into the sky. Within the sword shadow, waves surged, and it was none other than the Sea-Sealing Sword. Compared to the one displayed by Ji Zhuowen earlier, Liang Zhongpu’s Sea-Sealing Sword had an even more imposing aura.

The surging waves crashed against the shore, as if there were indeed a vast sea, sealed within it by Liang Zhongpu, and crashing towards the Zhongyuan Sword Formation.

Hong Yuanfeng took a step forward with his left foot, preparing to charge at Chen Fei with force, but suddenly, his expression froze, and he looked up above.

In Hong Yuanfeng’s expectations, the Zhongyuan Sword Formation, which should have been blocked by Liang Zhongpu’s Sea-Sealing Sword, was now rapidly overpowering Liang Zhongpu’s sword shadows. In the next moment, the black sword formation covered all directions.

Liang Zhongpu’s face turned slightly pale, his breath became disordered, but what was even more chaotic than his breath was Liang Zhongpu’s state of mind.

The Sea-Sealing Sword was used for both defense and offense. Even though the head-on attack just now wasn’t the most potent state of the Sea-Sealing Sword, it was still difficult for Liang Zhongpu to accept that it had been easily broken through.

In Liang Zhongpu’s perception, that sword formation felt like a real mountain bearing down on him, and he couldn’t resist it..