Chapter 85: Reuniting with Yu'er
As Xiao Nanfeng climbed to the top of the abyssal chasm, he exhaled in relief. He had finally emerged from the spiritbeast lair! Although he had lost the carcasses of twenty spiritbeasts, he had obtained twenty chests in exchange, a potentially worthwhile trade. However, he couldn't remain here for long, lest those centipedes notice something amiss.
Xiao Nanfeng sighed as he looked up at the top of the chasm, where significant trouble awaited him. Rather than rush up, Xiao Nanfeng hid by a grassy ledge by the cliffside and waited patiently.
Only when night descended and a layer of dark clouds covered up the bright moon did Xiao Nanfeng quickly scale the cliff. As he reached its lip, he peeked out to see that any foliage had been stripped bare. Fires lit up the exterior of the chasm, and red-armored cultivators were patrolling the vicinity, as though worried about a sudden attack from the centipede spirits.
With spiritual power, Xiao Nanfeng scouted for the least densely part of the patrol, then immediately rushed up and over the cliff and into the depths of the forest.
"Someone climbed out of the centipedes' lair! Quick, catch him!"
"What? He fell inside and managed to make it out?"
"Hold it! Don't run!"
A series of shouts rang out as countless red-armored warriors drew their weapons and pulled their bows taut as they looked around. Xiao Nanfeng's back was simultaneously exposed to a whole swarm of cultivators.
"Loose!" someone shouted. A rain of arrows shot toward Xiao Nanfeng, who didn't dare remain. He could sense the aura of an Ascension-realm cultivator from afar.
The arrows struck Xiao Nanfeng's qi barrier, causing him pinpricks of pain, but not dealing any lasting damage. Xiao Nanfeng ran into the depths of the dark forest, far from sight.
The red-armored cultivators chased him deep into the forest, but could see little in the darkness. They didn't have the reserves or mastery of spiritual power that Xiao Nanfeng did, and quickly lost track of him. The Ascension-realm cultivator hurried over, but by the time they did, Xiao Nanfeng had already run off.
"Who was it?" the Ascension-realm cultivator asked.
"A blue-armored cultivator who fell into the centipedes' lair in the evening. From the speed at which he ran, he seems to be a peak Immanence-realm cultivator," a red-armored warrior reported.
"An Immanence-realm cultivator able to escape from the centipedes' lair? That's not reasonable. Could he be in collusion with the centipedes within and the cultivators of Great Yan? Do they have our chests? Give chase, now!" the Ascension-realm cultivator commanded.
"Yessir!" A group of red-armored warriors charged into the forest, but Xiao Nanfeng had already escaped. He quickly noticed that the red-armored cultivators were still trying to search for him, systematically checking each and every patch of land.
"I was going to leave you alone, but it seems like you won't extend the same courtesy to me! Well, don't blame me for this, then," Xiao Nanfeng murmured. He didn't intend to strike immediately. Rather, once they were far from their camp, he would capture and interrogate one for information.
Only in the wee hours of dawn did the red-armored warriors finally split up. By now, they were far from their camp, and Xiao Nanfeng was just about to strike when the sound of fighting could be heard not too far away. He skulked over, only to see a few red-armored warriors fighting some black-armored ones.
"Damn it, it's this group of black-armored warriors again! Quick, launch the signal!" a howl came from a distance.
Fireworks shot into the air with a huge bang. Xiao Nanfeng's face fell. Was the red-armored faction about to make its way over?
"We have to run!" the black-armored warriors cried out. They scattered throughout the forest as the red-armored warriors gave chase.
Xiao Nanfeng saw one black-armored warrior manage to flee into the forest, with no one chasing after him. Xiao Nanfeng quickly tailed him silently. As they approached a valley, the man finally seemed to sense him.
"Who is it? Come out!" the black-armored warrior cried out. He turned to see a huge blade about to strike his face.
"No!" The black-armored warrior defended with his own weapon, only to be sent flying. The blade in his hand split in two as he sprayed out a mouthful of blood and fell to the ground, heavily wounded.
"You, you're Nanfeng?" the black-armored warrior cried out in shock.
"It's good that you're aware of me. If you don't want to die, reveal all that you know about the situation here," Xiao Nanfeng commanded.
"I, I—" The man's eyes flashed.
Xiao Nanfeng punched his face with a thump. "Are you going to talk, or not?"
Xiao Nanfeng's eyes lit up with blue light, sending a pulse of hypnotic fear straight at the unfortunate warrior. Only then did he start to rattle off all that he knew.
Apparently, this group of black-armored warriors was subordinate to Xiang Zhirou, and the natural treasure they were searching for was at the bottom of the centipedes' lair. Xiang Zhirou had charged into it with her forces, only to suffer heavy losses.
They had just escaped from the lair when the red-armored warriors, with whom they had previously had conflict, launched a sneak attack on them and took over the patch of land beyond the chasm.
Xiang Zhirou had no choice but to retreat with her forces, but she couldn't give up on the centipedes' lair. She sent her crow spirits out to seek assistance from her two brothers as she had her troops scout the chasm from afar.
This black-armored warrior was one such scout, unlucky enough to have been discovered by the red-armored warriors and subsequently caught by Xiao Nanfeng.
"The bottom of the centipede's lair is the location of a second natural treasure, recorded in You Shi's manual? Is there a grave there, too?"
"I, I don't know!" the black-armored warrior replied fearfully.
"In that case, do you know where the Taiqing disciples are located?" Xiao Nanfeng asked.
"I do, I do! Young Miss Xiang has caught a number of Taiqing disciples, just like those red-armored warriors. They're imprisoned in their camp," the prisoner quickly replied.
"Oh?" Xiao Nanfeng's eyes lit up. "How about Yu'er? The one who possesses the Immortal Cicada."
"General Yan and his troops were trying to capture the Taiqing disciples in that patch of forest, and sightings of the Immortal Cicada were reported there as well."
Xiao Nanfeng was naturally overjoyed to finally receive news of Yu'er. "Lead the way!" he commanded.
Deep within a patch of forest, Yu'er was fleeing for her life. Dozens of crow spirits were chasing after her, one of them even a gold crow spirit with a ferocious aura.
"Bastards! My seniors in the Taiqing sect are surely going to take revenge for me!" Yu'er cried out, her eyes slightly red. From behind her came a mournful cry.
"Junior Sister?!" Yu'er called out, fretting anxiously. She couldn't even take care of herself at the moment, let alone her juniors. She was injured all over, and she wasn't certain that she would be able to escape from this flock of crows.
The golden crow spirit swooped down toward her, shooting out fireballs from its mouth. Yu'er was knocked to the ground in an explosion. She spurred the Immortal Cicada into the sky and blocked the golden crow spirit's follow-up attack, but the dozens of regular crow spirits behind her took that opportunity to strike.
"You damned bastards!" Yu'er swung her sword all around her, killing a number of the crow spirits, but not before the majority left even more scars and wounds on her body. The golden crow spirit shot forward.
The Immortal Cicada smashed into its body, protecting Yu'er once again, but she was nearing her limit. She scrambled up and ran into the forest even as she stumbled.
The crow spirits continued to give chase, pursuing her incessantly.
Yu'er knew that she wouldn't be able to hold out much longer. All she could do was escape into the territory of an Ascension-realm lifeform, taking advantage of its aura to terrorize the crow spirits and preventing them from approaching. She knew that this might cause her even more trouble, but she didn't have any other choice.
"If Nanfeng were still alive, the two of us working together would surely be able to kill you!" Yu'er cried out. However, thinking about how Nanfeng might well have perished, a deep sense of despair overtook her.
Suddenly, she stumbled on a vine and fell to the ground.
The golden crow spirit, sensing an opportunity, swooped forward once more, only to be blocked by the Immortal Cicada yet again. The Immortal Cicada wobbled as Yu'er ran out of spiritual power, while the other crow spirits all charged at her.
Yu'er's face grew more and more pale. At this point, she was almost incapable of swinging her sword. She was unable to mount a defense against the incoming crow spirits. Death awaited her.
"No!" Yu'er cried out in despair.
Just then, a golden light flashed by. The crow spirits charging at her had their chests burst apart in mid-air, causing them to perish on the spot.
Golden light flashed by Yu'er's side with a gust of fresh air, blowing at the strands of hair around her face. The remaining crow spirits perished in an instant, leaving a gobsmacked golden crow spirit behind.
"Another Immortal Cicada?" Yu'er's eyes lit up as a heady sense of expectation filled her.
Just then, a figure leapt down from a nearby knoll and struck at the golden crow spirit.
"Nanfeng? You're still alive?" Yu'er's eyes lit up.
Xiao Nanfeng reached a hand out for the Immortal Cicada he controlled. He manipulated it with spiritual power and infused it with qi, causing it to shine with blinding light, its aura magnified to an extreme degree. It shot toward the golden crow spirit, which cawed in shock. Deterred by Yu'er's Immortal Cicada, it could only defend with the dregs of the qi it possessed. Its qi barrier was shattered instantly. Before it could cry out, Xiao Nanfeng had bisected its body. Blood sprayed all over.
As Xiao Nanfeng stood before her, protecting her from danger, Yu'er suddenly felt a sense of safety suffuse her. Her heart began to thump.
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