Immortality Cultivation

Chapter 259: Escaping [1]

Fang Hao lowered his head and blended into the noisy trading area. This place had all sorts of people: those who had just come out of the Secret Realm with faces full of lingering fear or joy; those waiting outside to pick up bargains, their eyes scanning everywhere like searchlights; and spies from various families, listening for news with shifty eyes and pricked ears.

He huddled in an inconspicuous corner, pretending to organize his bits of junk—worthless scraps scavenged from several demonic beasts—while his ears were perked up, catching every word of the surrounding discussions without missing a single one.

"Have you heard? The Sun Family suffered a huge loss this time! That Sun Tianqi, the Genius of this generation most likely to reach the Nascent Soul Stage, is ruined! His Dao foundation is destroyed. It’s said that even if he’s saved, he’ll only be an ordinary person from now on!"

"That’s not all! His older brother, Sun Tianlin, the one at Perfected Golden Core, also perished inside! Even his life tablet shattered!"

"My god, who’s so fierce? To dare strike such a lethal blow against the Sun Family?"

"Who else could it be? Just that Loose Cultivator named Fang Hao! I heard he has a Nascent Soul Stage Puppet in his hands, and it’s incredibly powerful!"

"Tsk tsk, the Sun Family really kicked a steel plate this time. See that? The Sun Family Old Ancestor has personally come out and is presiding over the large tent over there. His expression looks like he wants to eat someone alive."

"Zhao Wuji from the Zhao Family also suffered a great loss. He came out looking dejected and didn’t say anything, but the atmosphere at the Zhao Family camp is also quite tense."

"Exactly. Now both sides are watching the exit. I think things look grim for Fang Hao. Even if he has a nascent soul puppet, the Sun Family Old Ancestor has come in person. He’s a genuine Early Nascent Soul Stage Peak Cultivator, and word is he’s not far from the Middle Stage! No matter how powerful that Puppet is, can it be a match for the Old Ancestor?"

"I wouldn’t be so sure. That kid was able to take down Sun Tianlin, so he must have some tricks up his sleeve. Maybe he already slipped out through another exit or used some secret technique to change his appearance and blend in."

"Other exits? The Savage Secret Realm only has this one stable exit! Secret techniques? Is a Nascent Soul Old Ancestor’s Divine Sense something to be trifled with? Unless he has a Rank Four or higher treasure for concealing his aura and transforming his appearance!"

...

Listening to the surrounding discussions, Fang Hao had a general idea of the situation. It was worse than he had imagined. The Sun Family Old Ancestor had indeed come in person and seemed truly enraged, determined not to rest until he dragged Fang Hao out and tore him into a thousand pieces. The Zhao Family was also watching; though they might not be as urgent as the Sun Family, they certainly harbored ill intentions.

"An Early Nascent Soul Stage Peak Nascent Soul Old Monster... taking him head-on is definitely out of the question," Fang Hao calculated in his mind. He weighed his trump cards: his cultivation was close to Perfected Golden Core (his actual combat power was estimated to be able to clash with a weak Nascent Soul), his Physical Body had been tempered by demonic cores and the third level of the Hundred Refinements Golden Body Art, and with the hidden bonus from the "battle heaven axe," his strength was definitely not inferior to an average Early Nascent Soul Stage Body Cultivator. The Chaos Derivation Art allowed his spiritual Qi to recover quickly, enabling him to fight a war of attrition. The Shadowless Evasion Technique and Ethereal Art were top-tier for running and hiding. The newly acquired "battle heaven axe" was a lethal weapon, but its consumption was also high and could not be used lightly.

The biggest problem was that the opponent had superior numbers and an old monster presiding over them. Once discovered and surrounded, they could wear him down to death. Moreover, they definitely knew he might have a nascent soul puppet (although it was currently broken) and would surely be on guard.

"I can’t win by force; I can only win by wit. The key is... how to slip out from under their noses without being immediately caught." Fang Hao’s gaze swept across the trading area. He saw people bringing out damaged Magical Artifacts to trade, heard others whispering about certain hidden teleportation arrays (but they were all far away and unstable), and saw someone sneakily promoting low-quality Talismans that supposedly could "shield against a Nascent Soul’s Divine Sense probe" (which clearly looked like a scam).

Suddenly, he noticed that at the edge of the trading area, near a dense forest, several Cultivators with cultivation levels around the Late Foundation Establishment Stage, wearing different clothes, were arguing in low voices about something. It seemed they had a conflict over the uneven distribution of their gains. Their argument grew louder and louder, attracting many people’s attention. Even from the Sun Family and Zhao Family’s side, several Divine Senses swept over, seemingly somewhat impatient.

Fang Hao’s eyes lit up slightly. An opportunity!

He quietly shifted his position, slowly approaching that area while clutching something in his hand—the silver light shuttle.

The argument among those Cultivators grew more intense, and they even started pushing and shoving. The surrounding Cultivators frowned and avoided them, fearing they would be caught in the crossfire. Over at the Sun Family camp, a Golden Core Cultivator who looked like a manager frowned, seemingly wanting to come over and reprimand them.

Now!

Taking advantage of the moment when everyone’s attention, including the Divine Senses of the monitors, was drawn to the sudden argument, Fang Hao poured his spiritual Qi without reservation into the silver light shuttle in his hand. At the same time, he pushed the Shadowless Evasion Technique and Ethereal Art to their limits, instantly suppressing his aura to the lowest level. Like an inconspicuous shadow, he suddenly lunged toward the edge of the dense forest in the direction opposite to the argument!

His movements were as swift as a ghost. The moment he rushed out of the trading area and was exposed in the relatively open ground, the silver light shuttle in his hand was activated, turning into an almost imperceptible silver stream of light that enveloped his body!

"Who is it?!"

"Stop!"

"Stop him!"

Almost at the same time Fang Hao rushed out, several sharp shouts rang out from the Sun Family and Zhao Family camps! Several powerful Divine Senses instantly locked onto the area where he was! Especially from the center of the Sun Family camp, a terrifying mountain-like Divine Sense, like a tangible searchlight, swept over violently!

But Fang Hao was too fast! His movement technique, the Divine Spirit Steps, was already extremely quick, and combined with the burst from the silver light shuttle, he reached the edge of the dense forest in the blink of an eye! Moreover, his timing was perfect, occurring at the exact moment the monitors’ attention was briefly diverted. Although he was discovered immediately, he had already gained that crucial advantage of less than a breath’s time!

"Chase him!" The cold voice of the Sun Family Old Ancestor rang out in the camp like a thunderclap. His figure blurred and he vanished from his spot. In the next moment, he appeared high in the sky outside the camp, his gaze like lightning as he locked onto the silver stream of light about to disappear into the dense forest! His speed was terrifyingly fast!

At the same time, several figures soared into the sky from both the Sun Family and Zhao Family camps. Most were Golden Core Cultivators, with a few possessing exceptionally powerful auras at the Perfected Golden Core stage, as they gave chase in Fang Hao’s direction! They were clearly well-trained; some pursued directly while others spread out, attempting to flank him.

Fang Hao didn’t look back as he plunged headlong into the dense forest! The silver light shuttle weaved nimbly through the trees, its speed not slowing in the slightest. He knew that although he had taken the initiative, he could never outrun the full-speed pursuit of a Nascent Soul Old Monster! Furthermore, the opponent certainly had means of communication; once caught, he would quickly be trapped in a heavy encirclement.