Duan Xianxing hurriedly cupped his hands in a salute, his face filled with gratitude.
"Thank you, Junior Sister Ling, for coming to my rescue! I am unharmed, just a bit overextended in terms of spiritual energy. If you hadn't arrived in time, I’m afraid I would have met my end at the hands of that old bal—cough, Master Huineng."
Thinking back to the danger just now, he still felt a lingering fear.
Just as Ling Suxin was about to say something more, Duan Xianxing’s expression changed abruptly again, his face clouding with urgency.
"That's right! My junior sister! She was being chased by members of the Mingguang Sect too. I don't know how she is doing now!"
Upon hearing this, Ling Suxin’s expression also shifted slightly.
The Five Elements Dao Sect already had very few members, not to mention that Li Nanzhu herself had saved her life before...
Just then, a figure broke through the mist as Jiang Yifan arrived at high speed.
He looked at Duan Xianxing, who was regulating his breath, and Ling Suxin, who was guarding him, then scanned the surrounding traces of battle and the fluctuations of Buddhist spiritual energy, his brows furrowing slightly.
Detecting an approach, Ling Suxin’s lotus lamp flickered with blue light as she instinctively went on guard. However, after seeing that the newcomer was Jiang Yifan, she gave a slight nod in greeting.
"What happened?" Jiang Yifan asked succinctly, his gaze falling on Duan Xianxing.
Duan Xianxing quickly recounted how Huineng had been relentlessly pursuing him and how Ling Suxin had appeared in time to repel the monk. He then added urgently, "Fourth Senior Brother! Junior Sister is also being chased by two monks from the Mingguang Sect! We need to go help her right away!"
After hearing this, the expression on Jiang Yifan’s cold face grew even more solemn. He looked at Ling Suxin and cupped his hands. "Thank you, Fellow Daoist Ling, for your assistance. The Five Elements Dao Sect will remember this debt."
"Fellow Daoist Jiang is too polite. This is only right between allies," Ling Suxin replied with a return salute.
Duan Xianxing was already burning with anxiety. He activated his Soul-Sound Bell once more, putting all his effort into sensing Li Nanzhu’s position and status.
However, this time, there was no response from her.
"This is bad! Junior Sister isn't responding! Did something happen?!" Duan Xianxing’s face turned pale instantly.
Jiang Yifan and Ling Suxin’s expressions also darkened.
"There's no time to lose. Let’s move out!" Jiang Yifan said without hesitation.
"I will go with you," Ling Suxin stated immediately.
The three of them spoke no further. Led by Jiang Yifan and Ling Suxin, who were in the best condition, they cleared a path while Duan Xianxing followed closely behind, rushing toward the last known location of Li Nanzhu’s fluctuations. The atmosphere turned incredibly heavy.
However, they had only been traveling for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn when the Soul-Sound Bell in Duan Xianxing’s hand suddenly vibrated violently and clearly!
"Wait! There’s a response! It’s Junior Sister! She sent a signal that she's safe!"
Duan Xianxing stopped abruptly and cried out in surprise, carefully sensing the information from the bell. "She says she’s fine and has already shaken off the pursuers. She’s waiting for us to meet up at a safe place! She even gave us a new set of coordinates!"
Jiang Yifan and Ling Suxin both breathed a sigh of relief, their tense expressions relaxing.
Now certain of Li Nanzhu’s safety, the three of them adjusted their direction and headed toward the new meeting point she had provided.
With two Golden Core stage cultivators leading the way, they moved extremely fast. In just a few moments, they crossed through layers of mist and arrived at a relatively hidden mountain hollow.
There, Li Nanzhu stood poised on a large boulder, waving to them with Suisui following beside her. She appeared completely unharmed, even wearing a relaxed smile on her face.
"Junior Sister!" Duan Xianxing was the first to rush over, looking her up and down. "Are you okay? Where are the people who were chasing you?"
"I’m fine, I’m fine," Li Nanzhu said with a giggle, waving her hand. "A bit of a problem, but it’s already been solved. It’s good that you’re okay, Seventh Senior Brother. I sensed you were being chased by that Golden Core monk earlier; it scared me to death."
She saw Jiang Yifan and Ling Suxin approaching. Seeing Ling Suxin, a flash of surprise crossed her eyes before turning into understanding and gratitude.
She stepped forward quickly and gave Ling Suxin a solemn salute. "Thank you, Senior Sister Ling, for helping my Seventh Senior Brother."
Li Nanzhu was clever; she guessed most of what had happened just by looking at the situation.
Ling Suxin reached out to steady her. "There is no need for such ceremony, Junior Sister Li. It was my duty."
Since Ling Suxin, an outsider, was present, both Li Nanzhu and Duan Xianxing tactfully avoided mentioning how they had dealt with their pursuers, simply exchanging a look that signaled everything was fine.
Li Nanzhu looked at Ling Suxin and issued a sincere invitation. "Senior Sister Ling, why don't you travel with us from now on? We can look out for each other, and it will be safer."
She remembered the alliance with the Hehuan Sect, and since the other party had just saved her senior brother, it was only right to invite her.
Ling Suxin paused for a moment before nodding with a smile. "Very well. The Mist Secret Realm is full of hidden dangers; traveling together is indeed more stable. And..."
She shifted the topic, providing a crucial piece of information. "On my way to find Junior Brother Duan, I vaguely sensed an unusually rich spiritual energy fluctuation toward the southeast. There was the aura of a powerful guardian beast; it’s very likely there is a flag there. I was in a hurry to save him then, so I didn’t investigate closely."
Everyone’s eyes lit up upon hearing this.
Jiang Yifan looked at Li Nanzhu and Duan Xianxing. Seeing them both nod, he said, "In that case, we shall go investigate. If the flag we find belongs to one of our own sects, it will go to that sect. If it does not belong to our sects, we will take turns acquiring them in order. How does that sound?" This distribution plan was relatively fair.
Li Nanzhu and Duan Xianxing naturally had no objections. Ling Suxin also nodded. "That is as it should be."
With the plan decided, the four of them and the bone spirit were guided by Ling Suxin toward the southeast at high speed.
Sure enough, before they had gone far, a heart-shaking pressure began to permeate the surrounding mist. Low roars of a beast could be heard faintly.
Soon, they saw a marshland shrouded in mist. In the center of the marsh, on a patch of dry ground, stood a flag radiating a halo of light!
However, everyone's gaze lingered on the flag for only a split second before being pulled away by the colossal creature guarding it, their hearts trembling violently!
It was a beast so massive it occupied nearly half of the clearing.
It resembled a giant crocodile, but its entire body was covered in thick, dark-green armored scales that shimmered with a metallic luster. A row of menacing bone spurs grew along its spine.
"This... this is..." Duan Xianxing’s voice was dry, his face turning pale. "A green-armored dragon crocodile?! Looking at its size and pressure, it’s at least at the tier 3 peak, maybe even... tier 4?!"
A tier 4 demonic beast was the equivalent of a human at the Nascent Soul stage!
The faces of the other three also instantly became incredibly solemn, their eyes filled with shock and wariness.
The gap between the Nascent Soul stage and the Golden Core stage was like a heavenly chasm!
It was not something that could be easily bridged by numbers or minor tricks. Facing a powerful beast that had stepped into the Nascent Soul level, the chances of victory were slim, and the price of failure could be devastating.
For a moment, the atmosphere became extremely oppressive.
Should they give up?
Facing such a powerful beast, logic told them the wisest choice was to retreat immediately and find another target.
But if it was their own sect's flag, and it ended up being taken by another sect later...
They couldn't just let it go!
Should they wait for others to arrive?
Rate on N.U.
