Chapter 121: Danger Lurks

Chapter 121: Danger Lurks

Three days later, Chu Ning, with a different appearance, arrived at a swamp.

Ever since witnessing the brutal battle between his fellow sect members, Chu Ning had become even more vigilant.

Not only had he altered his appearance, but he had also released his aura, projecting himself as a seventh layer Qi Refining cultivator.

At the very least, he wanted to avoid giving the impression that he was an easy target, hoping to deter potential trouble.

However, in these three days, Chu Ning had not encountered anyone else.

It seemed reasonable, given the vastness of the Spirit Domain; it was already quite a coincidence for three people to be transmitted to relatively close locations.

Along the way, Chu Ning had encountered a few Red Fire Spiders and other demonic beasts.

But dealing with these first-level intermediate demonic beasts was a breeze for him.

Although he had the puppet bird scouting ahead and the blue light pearl for illumination at night, Chu Ning still chose to meditate and rest during the evenings.

Then, when daylight returned, he continued on his way. Now, he had reached this swampy terrain.

Chu Ning had long committed the map to memory. While this place was still far from the core formation site, it was somewhat closer compared to the Blue Moon Cave.

Beyond this swamp, the paths from other directions began to converge.

There was a good chance he would encounter other disciples.

"Tweet!"

As Chu Ning paused in his steps, Ling Xiaobai, whom he had released from the spirit beast bag and kept in his sleeve, let out a chirp.

Ling Xiaobai had the ability to change size ever since he evolved into a high-grade first-stage demonic beast.

Initially, Chu Ning hadn't noticed this ability until they entered the Spirit Domain, and he felt that Ling Xiaobai was too conspicuous. It was then that the little guy shrunk and hid in his sleeve.

When questioned about why he hadn't mentioned this ability earlier, Ling Xiaobai had piteously replied that it wasn't really a talent.

Chu Ning could only drop the subject.

At this moment, hearing Ling Xiaobai's chirp, Chu Ning turned to look to his left front.

"Is there a spirit herb?"

Chu Ning naturally trusted Ling Xiaobai's senses.

However, in the middle of the swamp, without the ability to fly, it would be quite inconvenient to pluck the herb.

Just as Chu Ning was thinking this...

"Tweet!"

Ling Xiaobai shot out like a bolt of lightning.

The little guy couldn't fly, but his speed wasn't affected much.

Running atop the swamp, his speed was so fast that he didn't sink into the mud.

In the blink of an eye, Ling Xiaobai reached the center of the swamp and bit off a lotus-like spirit plant among the dense vegetation.

Then, he turned and sprinted back toward Chu Ning.

When Ling Xiaobai reached Chu Ning, he took the object that the little guy was holding in his mouth.

It was a lotus pod, but unlike ordinary lotus seeds, these were a vivid red.

Even without opening the pod, the red color shone through.

"Mistfire Lotus," Chu Ning recognized the name of the herb.

It was said to be an excellent spirit herb for refining fire-attribute pills, and given the age of this Mistfire Lotus, it should be worth quite a few spirit stones.

"It's inconvenient to collect spirit herbs in this swamp without the ability to fly.

Otherwise, in such an outlying area, a spirit herb of this age and grade wouldn't have lasted until now.

It would have been picked by other senior sect members long ago."

Chu Ning muttered to himself as he held the Mistfire Lotus and asked Ling Xiaobai, "Little White, do you want to eat it?"

"Tweet!" Ling Xiaobai shook his head vigorously.

Chu Ning couldn't help but laugh, "Right, I forgot.

You're an ice-attribute beast. Other attributes of spirit herbs and fruits are fine, but this is fire-attributed."

As he spoke, Chu Ning placed the Mistfire Lotus into a jade box and stored it away in his bag.

Then, he turned his gaze toward the swamp.

"With Little White's speed, he can run across the swamp without sinking. If I use the Thunderstep Technique, I should be able to do it too, but..."

With that thought, Chu Ning shook his head.

There was no need to take such a risk. After all, he didn't know if there were other hidden dangers beneath the swamp.

Even though, according to the map, this swamp spanned only a few hundred li, Chu Ning still decided to circumvent it.

He took out the guiding needle to check his direction and then walked along the edge of the swamp, turning east.

He didn't use the Thunderstep Technique but instead employed a basic Wind Riding Technique, skimming just above the ground.

His speed was slightly slower, but the journey was more relaxed and enjoyable.

After traveling about two hundred li, Chu Ning caught sight of the end of the swamp.

If he had used his usual escape technique or Wind Riding, it wouldn't have taken more than an hour to cover this distance.

But because Chu Ning wasn't in a hurry, it took him about an hour and a half.

At this moment, the puppet bird was still flying ahead.

Just as they were about to reach the end of the swamp, Chu Ning suddenly stopped in his tracks.

Because the puppet bird had failed to detect the thick-browed disciple hiding behind the boulder last time, Chu Ning was now controlling it to fly over a wider area.

As it flew forward, it also veered to the side to scout the surrounding area.

Through the scrying mirror, Chu Ning saw a group of flying ants on a large tree to his right front.

They were devouring an unknown demonic beast.

At this moment, only a tiny bit of flesh remained on the beast's body, leaving nothing but a stark white skeleton.

Chu Ning couldn't identify what kind of demonic beast it was.

However, he immediately recognized the flying ants.

They were Bikuang Ants, one of the most troublesome demonic beasts in the Spirit Domain.

These ants were the size of a fingertip, their bodies a vibrant emerald green. When they formed a swarm, they could blanket the entire sky in a sea of green, hence their name.

A single Bikuang Ant was even weaker than an ordinary first-stage primary demonic beast, but a swarm of thousands upon thousands of them was enough to give even a Foundation Establishment cultivator a splitting headache.

Not to mention an ordinary Qi Refining cultivator.

Chu Ning immediately controlled the puppet bird to fly away, avoiding detection by the ant swarm.

At the same time, he quickly moved forward.

What made his expression change drastically was that, at the same time, several Bikuang Ants that had just flown away from the clean-eaten demonic beast's corpse seemed to sense the presence of the puppet bird.

But the next moment, he realized he had lost control of the puppet bird.

It flew straight toward the magic mirror in his hand.

"Out of spiritual power?"

Witnessing this, Chu Ning instantly understood that the spiritual power he had previously infused into the puppet bird had been exhausted.

This was a function of the artifact; when spiritual power was insufficient, it would automatically return to the mirror.

Earlier, he had admired the ingenuity of the artificer who created it.

But now, Chu Ning felt like cursing this unexpected feature.

"Run!"

As he watched the Bikuang Ants descending upon him, Chu Ning immediately activated the Thunderstep Technique the moment the puppet bird returned to his side.

Using the technique in conjunction with his spiritual power, he flashed several meters away in an instant.

At this moment, Chu Ning paid no heed to the depletion of his spiritual power as he sprinted at full speed.

Simultaneously, he released his spiritual sense to probe behind him.

What made Chu Ning's scalp tingle was that while his Thunderstep Technique was indeed fast, the swarm of Bikuang Ants was equally swift.

Though they couldn't directly catch up to him, they constantly remained just out of reach.

Moreover, the ants had descended closer, hovering just above his head, an extremely unnerving sight.

"Why isn't flying prohibited for these beasts in the Spirit Domain?"

Chu Ning couldn't help but curse inwardly.

At this moment, he couldn't even attempt to cast a spell, fearing that any delay would result in him being overtaken by the swarm.

Recalling the devoured demonic beast, Chu Ning shuddered.

"Cheep!"

Just then, Ling Xiaobai, perched on Chu Ning's shoulder, let out a chirp.

The next moment, a beam of white light shot from the little guy's mouth.

Unlike before, where it had condensed into an icy column, this time the light transformed into a cloud of white mist, spanning about a meter in diameter.

The Bikuang Ants were hot on their trail.

Without hesitation, they flew straight into the mist.

"Sizzle! Sizzle!"

The sound of sizzling filled the air.

Much to Chu Ning's delight, the ants that collided with the mist instantly froze, turning into tiny ice crystals that fell to the ground.

Over a hundred ants fell in this manner.

The rest of the swarm was also affected, splitting into several groups.

Those on either side of the mist continued their relentless pursuit, while those in the middle were momentarily held back, falling behind.

"Well done, Little White!"

Chu Ning couldn't help but praise the little beast.

"Cheep!"

Pleased with the compliment, Ling Xiaobai chirped proudly.

Then, he spat out another spell.

Like before, he aimed it at the ants on the left this time.

Instantly, another hundred ants fell.

As Ling Xiaobai continued to cast his spells, the ants fell in droves.

Seeing Ling Xiaobai's prowess, Chu Ning breathed a sigh of relief, though he didn't dare stop running.

The remaining Bikuang Ants seemed fearless, relentlessly pursuing them.

"Cheep!"

After casting about twenty spells, Ling Xiaobai let out a tired chirp.

Hearing this, Chu Ning's heart sank.

Ling Xiaobai was telling him that his spiritual power was nearly depleted, and he couldn't cast many more spells.

Though half of the pursuing ants had been taken care of, the rest were still hot on their trail.

Finally, Chu Ning reached the end of the swamp and saw a lake not far ahead.

He was overjoyed at the sight.

While the Bikuang Ants were troublesome, they were still fire-attributed beasts, inherently afraid of water and ice.

"Little White, hold on a little longer!"

Chu Ning shouted as he veered toward the lake, flashing several times and arriving at its shore.

Not knowing if Ling Xiaobai could swim, he simply put him back into the spirit beast bag.

Then, with a leap, Chu Ning jumped into the lake.

"Buzz! Buzz!"

As Chu Ning entered the water, the swarm flew past the spot where he had been standing just moments ago.

Underwater, Chu Ning immediately took out the Blue Light Pearl from his storage bag.

Upon contact with water, the pearl emitted an invisible force field that enveloped him, isolating him from the water.

At the same time, he looked up.

The swarm was hovering above the lake, but they didn't seem inclined to descend.

Seeing this, Chu Ning finally breathed a sigh of relief.

After a moment's thought, he took out Ling Xiaobai again.

The little guy seemed weary, probably due to the excessive spiritual power expenditure.

Chu Ning took out various spirit fruits, including the Golden Core Fruit, Golden Orchid Fruit, and Iron Orchid Fruit, from his storage bag. As expected, Ling Xiaobai chose the Golden Orchid Fruit.

After the little guy finished eating, Chu Ning put him back into the spirit beast bag to rest and recover.

He also took a Return Yuan Pill to replenish his spiritual power, which had been significantly drained from using the Thunderstep Technique in conjunction with his spiritual power.

Then, holding the Blue Light Pearl, Chu Ning waded forward in the lake, cautious not to venture too close to the shore.

However, he also dared not go too far into the lake, so he hugged the shoreline as he made his way forward. After traveling a few hundred meters, he finally stopped.

Carefully, he took out the puppet bird and infused it with spiritual power before slightly exposing himself above the water's surface and releasing the bird.

Even though the ants were out of sight from the puppet bird's perspective, Chu Ning still controlled it to fly in the direction from which they had come, pushing it to its limits.

Just as Chu Ning was about to retract the puppet bird and go ashore, his expression changed abruptly.

While still holding the Blue Light Pearl, he swiftly executed the Thunderstep Technique underwater and shot forward.

In the very moment he moved, a black shadow rushed towards the spot where Chu Ning had just been standing.

It was a crocodile-like demonic beast with eight legs.

At this moment, Chu Ning, who was already near the edge of the lake, used the Thunderstep Technique to leap onto the shore in a few strides.

Although this Avoid Water Pearl had the effect of repelling water, it also had a significant drawback.

After using this artifact, he couldn't use any other defensive shields besides his own spell-casting shield.

Whether it was talismans or the Earth Spirit Bracelet in Chu Ning's hand, none of them could be used.

Naturally, Chu Ning wouldn't leave himself so vulnerable to the demonic beast's attacks.

Even though he was confident that his refined body's defense could withstand the assault of this first-stage intermediate demonic beast, he still wouldn't take such a risk.

As Chu Ning reached the shore, the eight-legged crocodile stubbornly pursued him and pounced forward.

At the same time, the crocodile opened its mouth, shooting out an arc of lightning that sped towards Chu Ning.

"Zzzz!"

The lightning struck a barrier just one yard in front of Chu Ning.

It was the Streamlight Ice Shield Talisman in his palm that had instantly transformed into a true talisman spell as soon as he landed on the shore.

Although it was only a low-grade superior talisman, the attack of the eight-legged electric crocodile wasn't strong, and he was able to block it with ease.

"Even a first-stage intermediate demonic beast is chasing after me!"

Chu Ning was extremely annoyed as he was being pursued by two different types of demonic beasts.

He casually waved his hand, sending out several Metal-Gold Sword Talismans.

When dealing with this kind of demonic beast, the incredibly sharp Metal-Gold Sword Talismans and their corresponding sword techniques were even more effective than the Crimson Flame Fire Talismans.

Sure enough, these few golden sword auras pierced straight through the eight-legged electric crocodile.

Watching this first-stage intermediate demonic beast heavily slam into the water, Chu Ning's expression changed slightly, and he immediately flashed away.

Almost as soon as he left, a group of shadows appeared next to the eight-legged electric crocodile's corpse and began to devour their companion's remains.

"Can't deal with them, can't deal with them!"

Chu Ning, who had run far away, sighed in his heart.

Indeed, the demonic beasts in the Spirit Domain were not high-ranking, but there were just too many of them.

Apart from the solitary demonic beasts he had encountered in the past few days, today he had consecutively come across two groups of them.

After a few flashes, Chu Ning left the lake area.

He used his spiritual sense to scan the area slightly and found that the eight-legged electric crocodile didn't seem to have chased him onto the shore. Only then did Chu Ning slow down.

At the same time, he prepared to send the puppet bird ahead.

However, at this moment, Chu Ning's footsteps suddenly stopped.

In his spiritual sense range, there were four people in an open space in front of him, and one of them was familiar.

Lu Yunfang.

After Chu Ning killed Qi Chongmao and came to investigate, he had already identified him as a member of the Yin Demon Sect.

"Sure enough, someone from the Yin Demon Sect managed to sneak in. I wonder what means they used to avoid being detected by a Golden Core cultivator's spiritual sense technique."

Chu Ning sighed inwardly. At this moment, there were three other people beside Lu Yunfang, but he didn't see Luo Hongping among them.

Chu Ning couldn't be sure if the other three were also from the Yin Demon Sect like Lu Yunfang, or if they were ordinary disciples of Green Creek Sect.

As these thoughts flashed through his mind, Chu Ning was about to move sideways to avoid the group once again.

The next moment, his eyebrows furrowed slightly, and he stopped moving.

In the direction he had just planned to detour, a figure appeared, riding the wind and approaching. It was another disciple of Green Creek Sect.

He was of medium build, looked to be in his thirties, and had a small beard.

His cultivation had reached the ninth layer of Qi Refining.

"Oh? Why isn't this junior brother moving? I see there seem to be other fellow disciples ahead."

The bearded man stopped next to Chu Ning and asked with a smile.

"I..."

Chu Ning was about to make an excuse or directly use the Thunderstep Technique to leave.

At this moment, Chu Ning saw another person walking from the side, tall and skinny, with the cultivation of an eighth layer Qi Refining cultivator.

"I was just about to go over there."

Chu Ning forced a smile and took a step towards the group in front of him.

At the same time, his heart sank.

"These two must have come together.

And from their positioning just now, it seems they were guarding against me. Most likely, they're planning to meet up with Lu Yunfang and the others ahead."

As these thoughts flashed through his mind, Chu Ning sighed inwardly.

He felt that his luck didn't seem to be very good. The last time he entered the Spirit Domain, he had encountered several disciples of the Yin Demon Sect gathered together, led by Duan Yanwu.

And now, it seemed to be the case again.

Moreover, the conversation between the two groups had already attracted the attention of the four people ahead, who stood up and walked towards them.

At this moment, Chu Ning was almost surrounded by them and could only take things one step at a time.

Most importantly, Chu Ning wasn't sure if these people also had the Blood Escape Technique like Duan Yanwu.

If they did, he might not be able to easily shake them off.

He decided to wait and see if there would be other disciples from his sect arriving, thus avoiding having to fight alone.

However, Chu Ning was also extremely vigilant. As he walked forward, he released his spiritual sense completely.

He had made up his mind that if the group showed any signs of hostility, he wouldn't just sit and wait for his doom.

The three of them walked forward, and soon joined the group of four, including Lu Yunfang, in front of them.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end