Chapter 10 Departure
Boom!
Another explosion rang out. Zhang Song stumbled out from a cloud of black smoke. He looked at the few people, feeling a pang of heartache as he fished out a talisman, channeled his True Qi, and flung it forward. Instantly, the ground beneath the feet of a Qingyang Sect disciple caved in, the entire person sinking downward until he was submerged past his neck in the blink of an eye.
The expressions of the other two changed drastically, and they flew forward to rescue him.
Seizing this opportunity, Zhang Song darted back into the main hall. When he saw the already lifeless Fan Zhengping, he let out a savage, grating roar, "Why! Why do this to me!"
He snapped his gaze toward the three figures cowering by the corner. His mind raced, and a vicious grin abruptly spread across his face. "Hehe, you lot were pretty close with my dear disciple, weren't you? He... he didn't happen to hand you the pill formula, did he? Hmm?"
He lunged forward to grab Lu Li and the other two.
"Hmph! Still trying to commit violence!"
A female voice rang out sharply at the hall entrance, accompanied by a palm strike driving straight at Zhang Song's back.
Zhang Song's expression shifted violently. He countered with a burst of True Qi, used the momentum to vault into the side room, shattered a window with a single blow, and bolted outside.
The young woman hesitated for a fraction of a second before turning to give chase.
A moment later, the two male disciples rushed into the hall. The leader looked at the youth beside him and said, "Junior Brother He, go assist Xinyi."
"Understood, Senior Brother Chu."
The youth dashed off after them.
Leaving Junior Brother He to his pursuit, Senior Brother Chu ignored Lu Li's group entirely and began tossing the main hall's contents about in a search. After a thorough sweep, he finally turned his attention to the three boys, asking, "Did that evil Daoist feed you any pills?"
Qin Shouren opened his mouth to speak, but Lu Li cut in first. "No, no. He was just about to when you all broke in."
"None?" Senior Brother Chu narrowed his eyes. "Then... did you see any pill formulas or related items lying around?"
Lu Li shook his head steadily. "We were locked in a small room for over a month. We were only just let out today."
As he spoke, Lu Li's eyes widened with sudden recollection. "Wait, I remember now! When we were first dragged in here, the senior brother lying dead over there did feed each of us a pill."
"What pill?" Senior Brother Chu pressed urgently.
"He... he said it was called an Awakening Spirit Pill."
"An Awakening Spirit Pill?" Disappointment flickered across Senior Brother Chu's face before his gaze narrowed into suspicion. "And you ate it? Did anything happen?"
"Anything happen?" Lu Li blinked in feigned innocence. "Nothing out of the ordinary, except wisp-like smoke started curling off all three of us. It looked faint and rather pretty, sort of like..."
He omitted the truth, borrowing the exact description of the girl named Xiaoyun whom he had witnessed awakening in Longxing Town.
Beside him, Qin Shouren and Chen Zhong stared in silent confusion. Knowing they weren't the sharpest tools in the shed, they wisely kept their mouths shut and let Lu Li carry out his performance.
"Really?"
Chu Qing's heart leaped. Even if the pill formula was missing, hauling three potential geniuses back to the sect would still yield a handsome reward.
"It truly was like that," Lu Li replied with absolute earnestness, tilting his head in bewilderment. "Immortal Master, why do you ask?"
"Hahaha, nothing at all!" Chu Qing beamed, looking at the three boys as if they were prized artifacts. "Listen well, I am Chu Qing, a core disciple of the Qingyang Sect. How would you like me to take you back to the sect to cultivate?"
"Cultivate?" Lu Li shrank back, shaking his head. "You're not a swindler, are you? That old bastard tricked us here the exact same way before locking us in that dark hole."
"A swindler?" Chu Qing blinked in astonishment. "How could I possibly be a swindler?"
He unhooked a token from his belt and flashed it before their eyes. "Look here. This is the official token of the Qingyang Sect."
Seeing that Lu Li remained unconvinced, Chu Qing casually tossed a slip of yellow paper into the open space and channeled his Qi. With a deafening crack, a blast tore a three-foot-wide crater into the stone floor. "See that? This is a burst talisman. Come with me to the Qingyang Sect, and I'll hand three of these to each of you. What do you say?"
So powerful!
Lu Li swallowed hard. "Alright, I'll go!"
Truly a mud monkey!
Cunning as a fox.
Qin Shouren and Chen Zhong exchanged bizarre glances. For a thirteen-year-old to pull off such an innocent, childish act was shameless to the extreme.
"Good, good, good!" Beaming with satisfaction, Chu Qing pulled out a stack of yellow talismans edged with dark spiritual light. He carefully counted out nine sheets, double-checking to ensure he hadn't given an extra one away, before handing them over. "Here, take them and split them up."
These burst talismans were mid-grade items capable of blowing a cultivator below the sixth layer of Qi Refining half to death if caught unawares. They were exceedingly rare; he only possessed a dozen or so in total. For the sake of securing these three, he was practically bleeding himself dry.
Lu Li accepted the stack, feeling the menacing, volatile energy humming within the paper. While his heart raced with wild excitement, he kept his expression in check, passing three talismans each to Fatty Chen and Qin Shouren before tucking his own share deep into his robes. "Thank you, Immortal Master."
Naturally, he didn't dare stash them inside his spatial pagoda. If that mystical item were ever exposed, he would lose far more than just a few talismans-his life would be forfeit.
"Think nothing of it. Drop the 'Immortal Master' nonsense and just call me Senior Brother Chu. Once my junior brother and junior sister return, we'll set off for the Qingyang Sect together."
They didn't have to wait long.
The young woman and Junior Brother He soon trudged back into the hall, both wearing gloomy expressions that made it obvious Zhang Song had eluded them.
Chu Qing didn't seem particularly surprised. After briefly learning what had transpired, he waved the group outward.
When they reached the foot of the mountain, the three boys let out collective sighs of relief. They had finally escaped that hellish den alive.
A luxurious carriage sat waiting at the mountain base, clearly brought by Chu Qing and his companions. Lu Li had always imagined immortals traversed the skies on clouds or swords, but it seemed not everyone was capable of flight.
As Chu Qing motioned for the three boys to board, He Jun and Zhou Xinyi frowned in displeasure. He Jun stepped forward, asking, "Senior Brother Chu, why are you letting them ride in the carriage? Aren't we heading straight back to the sect?"
Chu Qing laughed heartily. "Junior Brother He, you don't understand. These three are gems in the rough. They've all awakened their spiritual roots simply by swallowing an Awakening Spirit Pill. Once I hand them over to the External Affairs Hall for verification, even the worst of them should possess a five-element root. That will more than make up for our failure on this mission."
"They all have spiritual roots?" Zhou Xinyi's eyes widened in disbelief. "Senior Brother Chu's luck is absurd! Uncle Fang went out of his way last time and only managed to bring back two."
"Hahaha, fated chances are mysterious things indeed. Come, let's depart."
With that, the group climbed aboard.
The beast harnessed to the carriage was no ordinary horse; its thick, muscular frame was crowned by a single jagged horn, marking it as a rare spirit beast. Once everyone was settled, no driver took the reins; the beast simply snorted, seemingly recognizing the path, and broke into a steady gallop.
Throughout the entire journey, Lu Li sat in silence, keeping his head down and projecting an air of cautious reservation.
In truth, his silence had nothing to do with shyness. He was simply turning over a single anxiety in his mind: whether the Qingyang Sect would actually take them in. Right now, acquiring a proper cultivation technique was his most desperate need, and infiltrating the Qingyang Sect was unquestionably his best path forward.
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