Immortality Cultivation

Chapter 229: Saving Someone Again

Fang Hao couldn’t spare a thought for the ’battle heaven axe fragment’ anymore; his own life was the priority! He ran for dear life through the thick fog, alternating between Shrinking the Ground to an Inch and Divine Spirit Steps, wishing his parents had given him a pair of wings. His back burned with a searing pain where the residual poison spray from the Three-Headed Profound Serpent had grazed him. Despite the protection of the Hundred Refinements Golden Body Art and Chaos Qi, which prevented complete corrosion, the injury was still severe. The venom relentlessly burrowed deeper into his flesh, leaving half his body somewhat numb. The black tortoise spirit shield was utterly ruined, its spiritual nature completely extinguished, no different from a broken tortoise shell. He stored it away with a pang of heartache.

In the distance behind him, he could faintly hear Zhao Wuji’s distorted, agonized screams, along with the furious hisses of the giant serpent and earth-shaking commotion. It seemed Zhao Wuji was locked in a death struggle with that beast, likely with little hope of survival. Fang Hao felt not a shred of sympathy, only relief and lingering fear. Damn it, a Fourth-Rank Demonic Beast! That was on the level of a Nascent Soul Old Monster! He really had been insanely bold to provoke it! Fortunately, he ran fast, and luckily, Zhao Wuji that unlucky bastard had drawn most of its fire.

"However, that fragment... seems I can’t get it back." Fang Hao felt a sting of loss. That was the second ’battle heaven axe fragment’! But then he reconsidered. The fragment being in the serpent’s lair was better than falling into the hands of Zhao Wuji or others. At least, it would be difficult for anyone else to retrieve. When his strength increased in the future, or if he found a way to counter the serpent, he might still come back for it. For now, he’d just consider it deposited in a bank—though this bank was rather dangerous.

He didn’t dare stop, running until the commotion behind him had completely faded and his spiritual power was nearly depleted. He found a hidden natural tree hollow formed by massive tangled roots and ducked inside. At the entrance, he quickly set up several simple warning and concealment Restrictions. Then, he immediately sat cross-legged, swallowed a handful of Medicinal Pills for healing, detoxification, and Qi recovery, and began circulating the Chaos Derivation Art with full force to expel the poison and heal his wounds.

The serpent’s venom was truly formidable—insidiously cold, tricky, and carrying a strange power that corroded the Divine Soul. It was only because Fang Hao’s Chaos Qi had strong absorptive properties and was backed by the Hundred Refinements Golden Body Art that he managed. Anyone else would have been in deep trouble just from these residual toxins. It took him a full day and night to completely expel and refine the venom that had invaded his body. The wound on his back had also mostly healed, leaving only faint black scars.

"Phew—finally alive again." Fang Hao let out a long breath, feeling much lighter all over. Although this ordeal was dangerous, it had tested his strength and adaptability. With his Late Golden Core Stage cultivation, combined with various Divine Abilities and trump cards, he should have no major issues protecting himself within the Secret Realm, as long as he didn’t encounter a Nascent Soul Old Monster or get surrounded by a large group.

He checked his gains from this venture. The two Storage Pouches taken from the Black Tiger Gang’s ’Third Brother’ contained a miscellaneous assortment of items: Spirit Stones, Medicinal Pills, Materials, and Low Grade Magical Artifacts. Altogether, they were worth tens of thousands of Low-Grade Spirit Stones—a decent little windfall. Most importantly, he had confirmed the existence of the second ’battle heaven axe fragment’ and learned about its potential to attract powerful Demon Beasts (or its connection to them). This information was crucial.

"It seems there’s some connection between these ’battle heaven axe fragments,’ or between the fragments and certain powerful entities within this Secret Realm," Fang Hao pondered. "Could the black water pond guarded by that serpent be a location related to the ’War Heaven Clan’? Did throwing the fragment in disturb it?"

There were too few clues to figure it out. He shook his head, deciding not to dwell on it. The immediate priority was to recover his condition, then continue exploring to find more fragments and clues. At the same time, he needed to be even more cautious. The Sun Family and Zhao Family were surely still searching for him throughout the Secret Realm. Moreover, after the black pond incident, if Zhao Wuji miraculously survived (unlikely) or if other members of the Zhao Family found out, they would undoubtedly hold a deep grudge against him, and the pursuit would become even more frenzied.

After finishing his meditation, he removed the Restrictions and cautiously peeked outside. The fog remained thick, and silence prevailed. He took out the ’star evolution plate’ and infused it with spiritual power. The compass needle trembled, still pointing deeper into the Secret Realm. And in the direction he guessed was the black pond, on the fuzzy map in his mind, there seemed to be an extremely faint, danger-marked halo? Was this a new function of the compass? Or had its sensitivity to similar auras or dangerous areas increased after he absorbed that fragment (the Chaos Qi had made contact when he obtained it)?

"This compass really isn’t simple." Fang Hao felt a secret thrill. Being able to warn of dangerous areas was a lifesaving Divine Ability!

He identified a direction, choosing a path different from both the black pond and his original route, and continued advancing deeper into the Secret Realm. This time, he was even more vigilant, constantly scanning with his Clear Spring Spirit Eyes and almost continuously using the Shadowless Evasion Technique.

After walking for most of the day, he successfully gathered several good Spiritual Plants and killed a few foolish Third-Rank Low Grade Demon Beasts along the way. Just as he was passing through a wetland covered in giant ferns, his Clear Spring Spirit Eyes suddenly detected extremely faint Formation fluctuations in the fog ahead, and... a faint scent of blood?

People! And a fight had just occurred?

Fang Hao immediately halted, convergence his aura, and stealthily moved closer. Pushing aside a large, banana-leaf-like fern frond, he saw a small, mostly shattered protective Formation set up on a slightly drier patch of ground ahead. In the center of the Formation lay three corpses. Judging by their attire, they seemed to be disciples of some minor Family, all at the Foundation Establishment Stage. Their deaths were gruesome, as if torn apart by sharp claws. At the edge of the Formation, a young female cultivator covered in blood and on the verge of collapse was slumped. Her clothing matched the three dead. She was clutching her bloodied abdomen, struggling to bring a Medicinal Pill to her mouth.

Standing a few zhang away from the female cultivator were two people. Fang Hao recognized them! They were the saber-wielding Loose Cultivator whose hand he had crippled earlier at the crimson essence fruit location and his whip-wielding companion! The saber-user had his right wrist bandaged, his face pale, eyes filled with venom. The whip-wielder also had minor injuries but was in much better condition. The two were menacingly approaching the severely injured female cultivator, clearly intent on killing her for her treasures and venting their earlier frustrations.

"Big Brother, this little girl must have good stuff on her. That ’Purple Cloud Ginseng’ from earlier is definitely with her!" the whip-wielding Loose Cultivator said, licking his lips.

"Hmph, we’ll take her things, then deal with her properly! To vent my hatred for my severed hand!" the saber-wielding Loose Cultivator rasped, his voice hoarse with hatred. He didn’t dare seek revenge against Fang Hao and Zhao Wuji, so he was taking his anger out on someone weaker.

Despair flashed across the female cultivator’s face. She tried to crush a communication talisman, but the whip-wielder lashed out, sending it flying.

Watching this scene, Fang Hao frowned slightly. He had no goodwill towards these two Loose Cultivators, nor did he feel anything for the female cultivator. In the world of cultivation, the strong preyed on the weak; such events happened daily. He couldn’t intervene in everything, nor did he want to. He was about to quietly detour to avoid trouble.

Just as he turned to leave, his gaze inadvertently swept over a mud-stained jade pendant that had fallen from the female cultivator’s waist. The pendant’s design was ordinary, but it was carved with a single character—’Liu’.

Liu? Green Wood Sect? Someone connected to Liu Yunfeng?

Fang Hao’s steps halted. He remembered Liu Yunfeng’s refined, courteous demeanor at the Azure Dragon Society meeting, and how Liu Yunfeng had even nodded to him in greeting. Although they weren’t close, they had at least met once, and Liu Yunfeng had left a good impression on him. If this female cultivator was truly from the Green Wood Sect, a fellow disciple of Liu Yunfeng...

He looked again at the two Loose Cultivators, so confident and ready for a cruel kill, and a sliver of his limited ’compassion’ was stirred. More importantly, these two Loose Cultivators knew about his encounter with Zhao Wuji and the Black Tiger Gang (though not the details). If they survived and left, they might leak information about his whereabouts and methods. The possibility was small, but it was still a potential risk.

"Forget it. Consider it repaying a favor to Liu Yunfeng, and By the way... taking out the trash." A cold glint flashed in Fang Hao’s eyes as he made his decision.

Just as the saber-wielding Loose Cultivator raised his intact left hand, gathering saber light, and with a vicious grin prepared to slash down on the helpless female cultivator’s head, a faint, almost mist-melding azure shadow appeared like a ghost beside him.

The saber-wielder only saw a blur, felt a chill on his neck, and then saw the world spin. His last sight was his own headless body slowly collapsing. He didn’t even have time to scream.

"Big Brother?!" The whip-wielder cried out in horror. Without thinking, he whipped around, lashing his whip towards the azure shadow!

*Crack!*

The whip struck empty air. The azure shadow (Fang Hao), as if foreseeing the move, sidestepped it in advance. Simultaneously, he pointed his fingers like a sword, the Star Shattering Finger carrying a trace of condensed Sword Intent, aimed directly at the whip-wielder’s brow!

Terrified out of his wits, the whip-wielder desperately retreated while summoning a small shield to block in front of him.

*Thud!*

The finger force pierced through the small shield (merely a Low Grade Magical Artifact), its remaining momentum undiminished, striking his forehead. The whip-wielder’s body stiffened, his eyes glazed over, and he crumpled limply to the ground. A single red dot marked his brow; he was already dead.

From the moment he struck to killing both, it took only two or three breaths—so fast that the severely injured female cultivator hadn’t even reacted. She just stared wide-eyed, dumbfounded, at this azure-robed figure who had suddenly appeared and instantly dispatched the two assailants.

Without even glancing at the corpses on the ground, Fang Hao walked over to the female cultivator, crouched down, and handed her a bottle of healing pills (his own). He said flatly, "Green Wood Sect? A fellow disciple of Fellow Daoist Liu Yunfeng?"

The female cultivator finally snapped out of her daze. Looking at Fang Hao’s impassive face, then at the two corpses on the ground, a mix of lingering fear and gratitude flashed in her eyes. She hurriedly took the pills and said weakly, "Th-thank you, Senior, for saving my life. This Junior is Liu Yiyi, an Outer Sect Disciple of the Green Wood Sect. Liu Yunfeng is... my Senior Brother. Does Senior know my Senior Brother?"

"We’ve met once." Fang Hao nodded and stood up. "Can you walk? This isn’t a safe place to linger."

Liu Yiyi struggled to stand but aggravated the wound on her abdomen. She cried out in pain and fell back down, her face turning even paler.

Fang Hao frowned, glancing at the thickening fog around them and the faint Demon Beast roars in the distance. Leaving this severely injured person here would be no different from killing her.

"Fine, might as well finish what I started." He sighed, stepped forward, and hauled Liu Yiyi to her feet (his movements not exactly gentle). At the same time, he snatched the blood-stained Storage bag from her waist embroidered with the Green Wood Sect insignia. He wiped away the original owner’s Divine Sense (Liu Yiyi was too weak to resist), found the so-called ’Purple Cloud Ginseng’ inside (a decent fourth-grade Spiritual Ginseng), glanced at it, tossed it back to her, then pocketed the remaining Spirit Stones, Medicinal Pills, and other miscellaneous items, along with the two Loose Cultivators’ Storage Pouches, into his own robes.

"Senior, you..." Liu Yiyi was stunned.

"Saving your life, taking a little reward, that’s not excessive, is it?" Fang Hao shot her a glance. "This ginseng is useful for your recovery; keep it. Consider the rest my service fee and hush money. Don’t speak carelessly about today’s events after leaving, understand?"

Seeing Fang Hao’s calm yet unyielding gaze, Liu Yiyi felt a chill and quickly nodded. "U-understand! This Junior will absolutely not reveal anything about Senior!"

"Hmm." Fang Hao said no more. Supporting her (almost half-carrying her), he chose a direction and quickly left the blood-scented wetland. He needed to find a relatively safe place for this woman to heal on her own, then go their separate ways. Carrying deadweight in this Secret Realm was far too dangerous.