“With my current Cultivation base, along with the Bloodburst Flash and the Lotus Sword Formation, there is some distance between myself and the early Nascent Soul stage. However, if an early Nascent Soul stage Cultivator wanted to kill me, it wouldn’t be an easy task. If you add in the blood-colored mask… then I can definitely battle the early Nascent Soul stage!” He produced Yan Song’s wood slip and transmitted some Spiritual Sense into it. After that, he patted the Wild Giant on the head. It roared and then changed directions according to Meng Hao’s instructions.
Several days later….
In the border region between the Black Lands and the Western Desert is a region with endless mountain chains. In the middle of a dense forest was a stream with flowing waters that let off a silver glow. During the nighttime, this glow was particularly conspicuous to anyone who was able to use a particular method of rotating the Cultivation base.
Currently, Yan Song sat next to the little stream, smiling at the two middle-aged men in front of him.
Both men had Cultivation bases at the early Nascent Soul stage. One wore a long blue robe, the other, a black gown. Along with Yan Song, they formed a triangle as they all sat there cross-legged.
“Fellow Daoist Yan, when will we begin?”
“No need to be anxious, Fellow Daoist Wang. There are still two other Fellow Daoists en route. Based on my calculations, they should be here within two days. When they arrive, we can begin.” 2
“Fellow Daoist Yan,” said the black-robed Cultivator in a cool voice, “you should consider this matter carefully. Every additional person will indeed increase the chances of success, but will also mean dividing the rewards even more.”
“Fellow Daoist Mo Li, don’t worry,” said Yan Song with a smile. “I’ve thoroughly researched our destination. I’m absolutely certain that the Spirit Severing Pill can be split between five people.
“I truly hope you are telling the truth, Fellow Daoist Yan,” said the Cultivator in the blue robe, the one named Wang. He laughed, but the threat in his words was clear.
Yan Song also laughed. His voice cool, he replied, “Fellow Daoist Wang, you saw the wood slip with your own eyes, and can make your own decisions. If you don’t trust me, then even if I tried to convince you, you wouldn’t stay.”
The Wang Cultivator gave a cold harrumph, but didn’t say anything in response.
The moon soon appeared, causing the three people to look up. Suddenly, off in the distance, a prismatic beam of light could be seen streaking through the darkness. Moments later, an old man appeared next to the three Cultivators.
This man’s Cultivation base was at the early Nascent Soul stage, and clearly at the peak, placing him above Yan Song and the others.
“Patriarch Transmutation, Li Tian!” said the Wang Cultivator, his eyes narrowing. A serious expression filled his eyes.
The black-robed Cultivator next to him, the one surnamed Mo, also had a grave look on his face as he narrowed his eyes.
The old man Li Tian calmly glanced over the two of them and then smiled. It was a sinister smile, filled with coldness.
“So Fellow Daoist Wang and Fellow Daoist Li are here. When we last parted, years ago, the both of you were already so intimate. Now it seems you’ve gotten even closer? When will I be able to toast you at your wedding feast?” His voice was grating, and his eyes radiated condescension.
When they heard his words, the two men’s faces didn’t change in the slightest. It seemed they were used to the man speaking in such a fashion.
“You have always paled in comparison to us, Fellow Daoist Li,” responded the Cultivator named Wang. “Throughout your years of Cultivation, it’s hard to say how many female disciples from various Sects you’ve ruined. You don’t even dare to step half a foot into the Southern Domain nowadays. You’re like a stray dog, constantly on the run. I guess you must enjoy that type of life, Fellow Daoist Li.” He feared Li Tian in his heart, but his words were incisive nonetheless.
Li Tian’s eyes glittered with coldness. He gave a gruff laugh but said nothing more.
Seeing that the three of them would speak no more, Yan Song cleared his throat.
“Fellow Daoist Li is a trustworthy person,” he said with a laugh, clasping hands. “On this journey into the Western Desert, all Fellow Daoists must work together.”
“Very well,” said Li Tian in a jarring voice that sounded like iron rubbing on stone.
Yan Song smiled and was about to say something else when suddenly, old man Li Tian’s face flickered and he turned his head.
“Who’s that?”
Even as his voice was sounding out, a beam of blood-colored light streaked through the forest toward them. Within an instant, it was a dozen or so meters away from the group.
The appearance of this newcomer was too sudden. Yan Song, Wang, and Mo didn’t even sense anything until Li Tian said something. It was at that point that suddenly they realized something was amiss.
Almost the same instant that the newcome