Chapter 269: Obtaining the Spirit Seed, Severing His Arms

Chapter 269: Obtaining the Spirit Seed, Severing His Arms

The spiritual sense sweeping over the cave from outside, along with the rapidly approaching cultivator, told Chu Ning that he wasn't alone in this small valley.

"Although I've used the God-Hiding Technique, it seems that the Golden Spirit Seed has still attracted the attention of an outside cultivator."

Sensing the somewhat familiar spiritual sense from earlier and recalling his speculation about the teleportation location, Chu Ning immediately knew that the person approaching was none other than Ao Langtian.

However, Chu Ning didn't sense the presence of the old man with the surname Zou from the Black Cloud Sect, which slightly eased his worries.

He figured that the other party must have teleported to another location, as everyone had multiple places to hide.

At this moment, Chu Ning hesitated no longer. He reached out and grabbed the Golden Spirit Seed.

Simultaneously, he employed the Earth Escape Technique and fled directly toward the cave ceiling.

Of course, Chu Ning was aware that even with the hasty escape and the use of the God-Hiding Technique, it would be difficult to conceal the fluctuations of his spiritual power from Ao Langtian outside.

But he couldn't worry about that now.

It was still more advantageous for him to flee out of the cave than to be blocked inside.

However, just as Chu Ning had tunneled about a dozen feet into the cave wall, his spiritual sense suddenly detected a new figure atop the cave.

"Tie Shi?"

Upon identifying the newcomer, Chu Ning's heart leaped with joy.

He gritted his teeth and stopped his upward flight, choosing to remain within the earth wall.

As he activated the God-Hiding Technique, he opened his mouth and sucked the Golden Spirit Seed into his belly.

Chu Ning wasn't sure if this was the correct way to handle the spirit seed, but he had no time to consider it further.

Only by doing this could he possibly conceal the presence of the Golden Spirit Seed along with his own.

If it were just Ao Langtian, the other party could investigate thoroughly and inevitably detect the traces of the Earth Escape Technique.

It would be unrealistic for Chu Ning to try to deceive him in this way. But Tie Shi's arrival gave him some hope.

As long as the two of them discovered each other's presence, they wouldn't have the extra attention to spare on him.

Especially since Ao Langtian had likely sensed the Golden Spirit Seed but not Chu Ning himself.

"Who's there? Who took the Golden Spirit Seed? Or did the spirit seed escape again?"

At this moment, Ao Langtian had already rushed into the cave.

He had clearly sensed the presence of the Golden Spirit Seed earlier, but now he couldn't see it.

This development made Ao Langtian anxious.

Discovering the spirit seed right after teleporting was an excellent opportunity for him.

After all, if any of the other late-stage Golden Core cultivators from the three factions arrived, especially those three great cultivators, his chances of obtaining the Golden Spirit Seed would be slim.

Just as Ao Langtian was about to investigate further to see if he could find any clues, he suddenly sensed a powerful spiritual sense sweeping over him.

Ao Langtian's face twitched slightly, and he didn't dare to investigate further. Instead, he flew out of the cave.

"Tie Shi!"

"Ao Langtian!"

The two men called out simultaneously, but their tones were different.

There was a hint of fear in Ao Langtian's voice, while Tie Shi's tone held surprise.

The next moment, the late-stage Golden Core cultivator from the Heaven Extreme Alliance, Tie Shi, burst into maniacal laughter.

"Good! Good! The Golden Spirit Seed has escaped, but I've encountered you, Ao Langtian!

Since that's the case, I'll take my anger out on you!!"

As he laughed wildly, Tie Shi charged at Ao Langtian like a fierce tiger.

The spiritual power surging from his body instantly erupted, and a series of fist shadows that seemed capable of piercing the void shot out from his hands, intertwining and hurtling toward Ao Langtian.

In front of him, a zone filled with murderous intent took form.

Not only was Tie Shi's personality wild and unruly, but his cultivation techniques and spells were also extremely overbearing.

The pair of bracelets on his arms were clearly not just for decoration; they were offensive spiritual artifacts.

Sensing Tie Shi's fierce assault, Ao Langtian's face twitched slightly.

But he, too, let out a loud roar.

"Tie Shi, do you really think I'm afraid of you?!'

He casually took out a long knife that exuded a cold light, and a gleam flashed in his eyes as he slashed downward with the knife.

Accompanied by a deafening knife cry, a blade of light like a huge wave rushed toward the fist shadows.

For a time, the fist shadows loomed like mountains, and the blade light surged like the sea, as the two late-stage Golden Core cultivators clashed without restraint, shaking the mountains and the earth.

Both men were known for their domineering cultivation techniques.

But Tie Shi, as the leader of the Heaven Extreme Alliance this time, was no less formidable than He Hong and Hua Shusheng in terms of cultivation.

His strength was naturally much higher than Ao Langtian's.

Initially, the two seemed evenly matched, but after a while, facing Tie Shi's relentless and fierce onslaught, Ao Langtian began to feel strained.

He was well aware of this, and as he saw that continuing the fight would bring him no benefit, Ao Langtian gritted his teeth and said,

"Mr. Tie, I've told you countless times that your junior brother's death had nothing to do with our Great Luo Sect.

You're forcing me here, and the Golden Spirit Seed is nearby, but you're not pursuing it. Do you really think it's worth it?"

"Golden Spirit Seed? You mean the Golden Spirit Seed is nearby?"

Hearing Ao Langtian's words, Tie Shi paused his attack, taken aback.

Ao Langtian, upon seeing his interest, continued without hiding anything: "Indeed! I had already discovered that the Golden Spirit Seed was within this mountain peak.

But by the time I arrived, the spirit seed had already escaped. If not for your interference, I might have found the Golden Spirit Seed by now."

Tie Shi's expression turned half-believing and half-doubting as he heard these words.

Ao Langtian humphed again and said,

"If you don't believe me, you can go into the cave and investigate.

Even if the Golden Spirit Seed has escaped, with your cultivation, you should still be able to sense some clues."

Tie Shi's eyes narrowed slightly as he heard these words, and he shot a cold glance at Ao Langtian.

Anger flashed in Ao Langtian's eyes at Tie Shi's thinly veiled threat, but upon considering the other's strength, he could only endure it.

Without further ado, the two of them entered the cave.

Hiding within the cave wall, Chu Ning couldn't help but sigh inwardly with frustration.

During their earlier fight, he had considered escaping again.

But that thought had quickly passed, and he had dismissed it.

With the cultivation bases of these two late-stage Golden Core cultivators, they would surely detect the fluctuations of his spiritual power if he used the Earth Escape Technique at such close range.

He had originally hoped that they would fight to the death, giving him an opportunity to slip away.

However, before their battle could reach that point, they had stopped.

Now that they were inside the cave and examining it closely, they would undoubtedly discover the subtle traces of his earlier use of the Earth Escape Technique.

With that in mind, Chu Ning wasted no more time and, as the two entered the cave, he quickly flew towards the peak of the mountain, using the God-Hiding Technique.

Although he had learned the Earth Escape Technique after awakening his Xu Tu Spirit Body, it was not as fast as the God-Wind Escape Technique.

As soon as Tie Shi entered the cave, he swept his spiritual sense through the area, and his eyes lit up.

"Indeed, there's a trace of the Golden Spirit Seed's aura here.

Hmm?"

In the next moment, Tie Shi's gaze shifted to the stone wall in front of him, and his figure flashed as he rushed back out of the cave.

Ao Langtian also sensed the abnormal fluctuations in spiritual power caused by Chu Ning's use of the Earth Escape Technique.

He, too, followed Tie Shi out of the cave.

As they emerged, they caught sight of Chu Ning flying away from the peak.

Both of them paused for a moment, surprised.

"Who are you?"

"Chu Ning? Leave your life behind!"

Chu Ning, who had just fled, didn't bother to respond. Instead, he flashed and used the God-Wind Escape Technique to fly away into the distance.

However, after moving only about ten feet, Chu Ning's expression turned grim, and he sighed inwardly.

Earlier, he had marveled at his good fortune in obtaining the Golden Spirit Seed so easily.

But now, it seemed that his luck wasn't so favorable after all.

In the direction of Chu Ning's flight, two more figures were flying towards him.

Surprisingly, Chu Ning recognized both of them.

One was the elderly man with the surname Zou from the Black Cloud Sect.

The other was the enigmatic You Jing, who had struck Chu Ning as peculiar.

They had also spotted Chu Ning and his companions.

Their gazes fell on Chu Ning, and their eyes held a hint of schadenfreude.

A cold glint flashed in You Jing's eyes, accompanied by a mocking smile.

"Chu, I was just lamenting that I hadn't encountered you in this spirit domain, but now it seems that luck has brought us together.

It looks like you're really out of luck this time!"

"Brother You, you know him too?" Elder Zou was also surprised to hear that You Jing seemed to have a score to settle with Chu Ning.

"You know him?" You Jing's eyes narrowed at the question, and a cold light shone in them.

"He's one of the cultivators I most want to kill."

Upon hearing this, Elder Zou let out a dry laugh, his gaze fixed on Chu Ning with curiosity.

"I'm quite curious now, young man.

Who are you, exactly, that both Ao Langtian and Brother You want you dead?"

Even Tie Shi's eyes flickered with curiosity at Elder Zou's words.

However, Chu Ning didn't respond to Elder Zou. Instead, he turned slightly.

Tie Shi and Ao Langtian, seeing that Chu Ning had stopped fleeing, hovered in the air not far from him.

Chu Ning directed his gaze at Tie Shi.

"Brother Tie, how about we work together?

I'll hold off this protector of the Black Cloud Sect, and you can take care of the other two. That shouldn't be a problem for you."

Hearing this proposal, Tie Shi looked at Chu Ning, then at Ao Langtian and the other two, and burst into laughter.

"Interesting! Very interesting! You must be from the Cloud Alliance, right?

Instead of the Cloud Alliance's Great Luo Sect supporting you, they want you dead.

Kid, I find you intriguing."

As he spoke, a playful smile appeared on Tie Shi's face.

"But why should I cooperate with you?

If I wanted to leave, do you think these three could stop me? And if I agree to your proposal, I'd have to face all three of them after you're dead. Why would I make things difficult for myself?"

Facing Tie Shi's blatant contempt, Chu Ning remained remarkably calm.

He continued, "You should have realized by now that the Great Luo Sect and the Demon Path Alliance are working together, and these two are in cahoots with them.

Your junior disciple's death at the hands of the Great Luo Sect might have been because he discovered their secret.

Putting aside the matter of avenging your junior disciple, you just forced Ao Langtian to beg for mercy.

Now that you've discovered their conspiracy, do you think they'll let you leave unscathed?"

As soon as Chu Ning's words left his mouth, the expressions of three of the four people present changed slightly, all except You Jing, who seemed indifferent to the whole affair.

"You've got a silver tongue, kid!" Ao Langtian suddenly shouted.

"Brother Tie, we mean you no harm. Do as you wish.

But I have a deep grudge with this junior from the Nine Lotus Sect, so I'll deal with him first!"

As he spoke, Ao Langtian waved his hand, and a long knife appeared, shimmering with a cold light.

He slashed with the knife, and a blade of light rushed towards Chu Ning like a tidal wave.

At the same time, the elderly man with the surname Zou from the Black Cloud Sect and You Jing also took action.

You Jing produced a magic flag in his hand, the same one that Chu Ning had seen before, and as he waved it, strands of black mist condensed into black rays that enveloped Chu Ning.

As for the elderly man from the Black Cloud Sect, a pitch-black staff appeared in his hand. With a point of his finger, several powerful golden rays erupted, accompanied by the faint sound of golden war chimes, like golden lightning bolts piercing the sky, rushing towards Chu Ning.

The three of them attacked simultaneously, sealing off all three directions, forcing Chu Ning into a desperate situation with nowhere to hide.

At this moment, Chu Ning stopped trying to dodge.

With a wave of his hand, a fiery red flying sword appeared.

At the same time, above Chu Ning, clusters of fireballs suddenly descended from the sky.

After landing, these fireballs rapidly revolved around Chu Ning's body.

As Chu Ning waved the fiery red flying sword in his hand, the fireballs formed a sword aura on top of the Fire Spirit Sword.

This sword aura directly confronted the wave-like blade of light unleashed by Ao Langtian.

At the same time, Chu Ning threw the Double Fire Rings, which transformed into a red spirit bird as they rushed towards the golden rays emitted by Elder Zou.

You Jing's black rays also reached Chu Ning, and he waved his hand, causing several talismans to appear and disintegrate, along with a burst of colorful light that crushed the black rays.

In an instant, various spells burst and collided in the air.

When the colorful lights faded away, Chu Ning's figure was revealed once more.

At this moment, Chu Ning's face was calm as he held the flying sword in one hand and caught the Double Fire Rings that flew back to him with the other.

"Oh?"

Tie Shi exclaimed in surprise.

Ao Langtian, You Jing, and Elder Zou also wore astonished expressions, as they had not expected Chu Ning to deflect their attacks so effortlessly, especially since two of them were late-stage Golden Core cultivators.

Ignoring their reactions, Chu Ning turned to Tie Shi and said, "Brother Tie, I wonder if I have the qualifications to join forces with you?"

Hearing this, Tie Shi burst into laughter. "Good! You're quite interesting, young man! As a Golden Core initial stage cultivator, you managed to withstand the attacks of three people, including two late-stage Golden Core cultivators."

As he spoke, Tie Shi glanced at Ao Langtian. "Mr. Ao, we didn't get to finish our fight earlier, but since you've called for backup, let's continue!"

Before Ao Langtian could respond, Tie Shi unleashed his fists, sending a series of fist shadows towards Ao Langtian and Elder Zou.

Chu Ning's figure flickered, and he quickly put some distance between himself and Elder Zou using the God-Wind Escape Technique.

Then, with a point of his Fire Spirit Sword, he sent it flying towards You Jing.

As the sword cut through the air, traces of crimson flames flickered and condensed at its tip, exuding an extraordinarily powerful fire spirit energy.

At this moment, You Jing waved his magic flag, causing it to transform into a black ray that rushed towards Chu Ning's Fire Spirit Sword.

The icy energy emanating from the flag was even stronger than it had been over a decade ago.

When the crimson flying sword and the black magic flag clashed, the fire spirit energy and icy energy dissipated rapidly.

Chu Ning quickly performed a series of hand seals, causing heavenly fire to descend and condense onto the flying sword.

This caused the sword, which was already imbued with fiery power, to radiate an even hotter aura.

You Jing felt as if he was facing not a flying sword but a scorching sun.

A solemn expression flashed across his cold face, and his eyes narrowed, revealing a cold glint.

He condensed a cluster of pitch-black energy in his fingertip, which he then injected into the magic flag with a point of his finger.

The flag, which had been pushed back, suddenly erupted with black light.

"Hmm?"

Chu Ning was surprised by the black demonic energy, which seemed more powerful than the Yin Cold Energy cultivated by You Jing.

It gave Chu Ning an extremely uncomfortable feeling.

Chu Ning's heart trembled, and he continued performing hand seals, causing the crimson flames on the flying sword to rapidly condense.

In the blink of an eye, a fiery phoenix materialized from the sword and charged towards You Jing.

You Jing's face remained cold as he let out a cold hum, and demonic energy surged from his body, transforming him into a demon-like figure.

When the fiery phoenix came into contact with the black demonic energy, it instantly dissipated.

Chu Ning's face showed surprise, but he didn't hesitate. He opened his mouth and spat out two flying swords, which transformed into a green and yellow light that pierced the sky, appearing three feet away from You Jing in the blink of an eye.

A mocking smile appeared on You Jing's demon-energy-covered face.

He lifted his hands and tried to grab the flying swords that were rushing towards him.

"Don't grab it! Get away!"

A piercing sound suddenly rang out from You Jing's body, causing his expression to freeze. He quickly tried to pull his hands back, but it was too late.

The green and yellow lights flashed and then circled around You Jing's retracting hands, piercing through both of his shoulders.

"Ahh!"

With a blood-curdling cry, You Jing's arms were severed, and he plummeted from the sky.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end