I tamed beasts and achieved immortality in the world of cultivation.

Behind.

Chen Qing frowned as he watched the blood-red figure ahead increase its speed by another three points.

This person definitely cannot be allowed to return alive.

Once he runs back to the Qian Kingdom and reports his and Xiao Chunan's appearances and abilities in detail, he'll never have a peaceful life again. Who knows, one day a Foundation Establishment stage demonic cultivator might suddenly appear and come to Half Moon Lake specifically to "visit" him.

Moreover, compared to that square-faced cultivator, this middle-aged man at the seventh level of Qi Refining definitely had much more information in his mind.

He must be kept.

With a thought, Chen Qing took out an item from his storage bag.

It was the Green Wind Boat.

Driven by spiritual power, the palm-sized boat swelled in the wind, transforming into a length of over ten feet in the blink of an eye, its entire body shimmering with azure light, and its hull as light as a feather.

Chen Qing leaped onto the boat, casually putting Qingtian into his spirit beast pouch. He then channeled his spiritual energy into the magic array at the bow of the boat, and with a "hum," the Qingfeng Boat transformed into a streak of azure light and soared away, its speed even faster than Dan Yu's!

The Qingfeng Boat swept past Dan Yu, and Chen Qing beckoned, "Get on!"

With a fold of its wings, Dan Yu landed steadily at the stern of the boat. It preened its rain-soaked feathers with its long beak and uttered an unpleasant thought: "This rain is dirty."

Chen Qing had no time to argue with her. He focused all his energy on activating the Azure Wind Boat, and the azure light pierced through the rain, chasing after the blood-red figure ahead.

The middle-aged man turned around and his pupils suddenly contracted.

An airship?!

Moreover, judging by that speed, it's a top-quality item even among first-tier high-grade products, much faster than his two legs.

The middle-aged man gritted his teeth and spat out another mouthful of blood essence, but the two Swiftness Talismans at his feet had already dimmed and were about to lose their power. He hurriedly took out a talisman that shone with silver light from his storage bag. The patterns on it were much more complex than those of ordinary Swiftness Talismans, and it faintly contained the power of wind and thunder.

"This talisman that Senior Brother Qi Xuan gave me, he said, allows me to travel two thousand miles a day..."

The middle-aged man muttered to himself, slapped the silver talisman on his leg, and replaced the two nearly ruined Swiftness Talismans.

In an instant, a flash of silver light appeared, and his speed increased even further. He almost transformed into a streak of silver light, leaving a trail of afterimages in the rain.

Even so, the Azure Wind Boat behind them remained relentlessly close behind!

……

The chase lasted for nearly an hour.

The rain is getting heavier.

The middle-aged man's face was ashen, with dried blood at the corner of his mouth. He had spat out his semen several times and was now at his last gasp.

The silver talismans on his legs gradually dimmed, and his speed began to decline.

But he finally saw hope—

Ahead lay a barren slope strewn with jagged rocks. At the end of the slope, a narrow crevice was hidden among vines and weeds, almost invisible unless one looked closely.

"We've finally arrived!"

A glint of survival flashed in the middle-aged man's eyes. With his last ounce of strength, he plunged headfirst into the crack.

Ten breaths later.

The Azure Wind Boat descended from the sky and landed steadily in front of the crack.

Chen Qing jumped off the flying boat, put the Azure Wind Boat into his storage bag, and looked at the narrow entrance in front of him.

The entrance was no more than three feet wide, barely enough for one person to pass through. It was pitch black inside, with a faint breeze blowing out, carrying a faint smell of blood and malevolence.

"The aura of Blood Spirit Abyss..."

Chen Qing frowned.

The Blood Spirit Abyss stretches for hundreds of miles from north to south, serving as a natural barrier between the Qian Kingdom and the Wu Kingdom. It is permeated with malevolent energy, and ordinary cultivators who remain there for too long will lose their minds. However, the malevolent energy within this fissure is very faint, clearly indicating that it is a natural secret passage leading through the Blood Spirit Abyss.

The middle-aged man was running this way as fast as he could; he probably came from here.

To pursue or not to pursue?

Chen Qing hesitated for only one breath.

Chase.

If we don't keep this person here, there will be endless trouble in the future.

Chen Qing patted the spirit beast pouch, and Qingtian and Danyu appeared at the same time. Qingtian squatted to his right, while Danyu landed on a rock above the crevice, its black bean-like eyes staring at the dark cave entrance.

"Walk."

Chen Qing took a deep breath and stepped into the crevice.

……

The secret passage was wider than I had imagined.

After walking only a few dozen feet, the passage suddenly opened up, turning into a natural cave, about two feet high and about one foot wide. The surrounding rock walls were covered with holes of all sizes, and light shone in from above, so it was not too dark.

Although the air was filled with a faint aura of bloodlust, which was a bit stronger than outside, it was still within a tolerable range.

The Qingfeng Boat navigated the spacious cave with ease. While urging the boat forward, Chen Qing also extended his spiritual sense to vigilantly scan the surroundings.

There were fresh footprints on the ground, stained with blood, clearly left by the middle-aged man.

"It won't go far."

Chen Qing increased the input of spiritual energy, and the speed of the Azure Wind Boat increased by another three points. It nimbly traversed the narrow passage, slightly lowering its altitude when it encountered low-lying areas, skimming close to the ground.

……

Ahead, a middle-aged man was running unsteadily.

He was almost at his limit; his essence and blood were depleted, his spiritual energy was almost gone, and his legs felt as heavy as if they were filled with lead.

He leaned against the rock wall, panting heavily. He glanced back and thankfully, the crane was no longer there, nor was the aura of the Lingyun Sect disciple.

"Did you shake them off?"

The middle-aged man felt a sense of relief and slowed his pace. But just then, he heard a slight whooshing sound behind him.

He turned around abruptly and saw a streak of green light rushing in from the darkness. On the ten-foot-long flying boat, the Lingyun Sect disciple stood with his hands behind his back, a gray-haired monkey squatting at the bow and a white-feathered crane standing at the stern, coldly watching him.

"You dare to chase after me! How much do you want to kill me?!"

The middle-aged man cursed loudly, his last shred of hope completely shattered.

He mustered his last bit of strength to run again, but his legs wouldn't obey him.

"Whoosh!"

A crystal-clear ice spike pierced through the air from the flying boat, heading straight for his back!

The middle-aged man instinctively swung his knife to block, and with a "clang," the ice spikes were knocked away, shattering into ice shards. But before he could even catch his breath, a ball of pure white flame roared in from another direction, blocking his escape route!

The middle-aged man gritted his teeth and turned to the side, but his body was no longer under his control. The flames grazed his left foot and instantly ignited his boots and trousers!

"ah--!"

The middle-aged man screamed and hurriedly activated the last bit of spiritual power in his body, condensing a water arrow to pour on his feet.

The water jet extinguished the fire, but his feet were burned raw, the stench of burning flesh filling the air.

Before he could even check his injuries, the airship was already upon him.

At the bow of the boat, the petite figure leaped down, her two increasingly large fists accompanied by a sharp whooshing sound, one above and one below, heading straight for his face and chest!

"Bang! Bang!"

Two solid punches landed on his head and chest. The middle-aged man's vision went black, and he slammed heavily against the rock wall before sliding softly to the ground, completely losing consciousness.

He landed firmly on the ground, retracted his fist, and his little face was full of pride: "My punch was even more decisive than Guan Yu's slaying of Yan Liang!"

Chen Qing leaped off the flying boat, expressionless. He raised his hand and conjured a thin, hair-like ice spike, which silently pierced the middle-aged man's dantian. He then released a burst of spiritual energy—

"puff."

The dantian shattered.

The middle-aged man groaned in his unconscious state, his body convulsed, and then he collapsed completely, all his cultivation gone.

Chen Qing breathed a sigh of relief. After looking around to make sure there were no problems, he stepped forward, took the storage bag off the middle-aged man's waist, and searched him inside and out to make sure there were no other hidden items before dragging him onto the Azure Wind Boat.

"Walk."

Chen Qing urged the Azure Wind Boat forward, put Dan Yu and Qing Tian into his spirit beast bag, and sped away along the way they had come.

Behind them, only a faint aura of bloodlust remained in the secret passage, along with a pool of blood on the ground that had not yet dried.

[New book recommendation period, please vote, fellow readers!]