Watching the escape light of the Yang Family’s Ancestor in Foundation Establishment rapidly closing in, Lin Xueru felt as though a bucket of ice water had been poured over her head, chilling her to the bone.
That slap earlier had nearly cost her half her life, forcibly knocking her cultivation from late Body Tempering all the way down to the borderline between mid and early Body Tempering.
If she took another blow, she feared she might not die outright, but would surely be forced back into the form of a small snake.
This Ancestor in Foundation Establishment from the Yang Family clearly knew her exact location, so he was able to pursue her directly.
She instantly realized that either she or Zhang Zongnian must have something from the Yang Family on them that had been tampered with, giving the ancestor a way to track them.
But she had taken too many things from the Yang Family; she had no idea which one had given her away.
There was no time to investigate now—she had to find a way to escape.
The Chuanyin Fashu on her ring could only be used once a month; the next time it would be available was still a month away.
The Flying Boat was left behind in Zhang Zongnian’s house—during their hasty escape by teleportation earlier, she hadn’t had time to put it away.
At the moment, the only means of escape in her Storage Pouch were a carriage, two Wooden Horses, and a single Paper Crane.
But in the forest, carriages and Wooden Horses were useless—the only suitable tool was the Paper Crane meant for Changfeng.
Lin Xueru immediately took out the Paper Crane and infused it with Demon Power.
At once, the Paper Crane transformed into a lifelike giant celestial crane.
Its eyes were made from two Spirit Stones.
Seeing that this Paper Crane, like the Flying Boat, was powered by Spirit Stones, Lin Xueru was relieved.
She had plenty of Spirit Stones in her pouch and could replace them at any time.
If this crane were like the Wooden Horse or Wooden Donkey, requiring the user’s own spiritual power to operate, her current mid-stage Body Tempering level really might not suffice.
In that case, she could only stand there with her neck out, waiting to die.
Zhang Zongnian also saw that escape light; his face instantly turned pale.
He had just caught a glimpse of hope for revenge, only for his enemy to catch up so quickly.
Was the road of vengeance going to end before it had even begun?
While he was despairing, Lin Xueru yanked him up from the ground and tossed him onto the back of the celestial crane, then quickly climbed on herself.
The crane spread its wings, took a few running steps on its long legs, then flapped its wide wings and soared up through the gaps in the branches into the sky.
Then, at astonishing speed, the celestial crane shot forward.
To Lin Xueru’s surprise, the Paper Crane, though plain in appearance, could fly just as fast as Yang Yuting’s Flying Boat.
Riding on the crane’s back, she felt the pressure of the escape light behind her lessen significantly.
She let out a small sigh of relief.
But the Ancestor in Foundation Establishment from the Yang Family was still pursuing them relentlessly.
The distance between the celestial crane and the ancestor’s escape light stayed locked at an uncomfortably close range.
He couldn’t catch up for the moment, but Lin Xueru couldn’t shake him off either.
Her heart was still lodged in her throat; she could only flee forward with all her strength.
…
Yang Zhen was growing impatient.
Cultivators above the Foundation Establishment stage didn’t need transportation tools—they could transform themselves into escape lights and fly swiftly, though it consumed a lot of their spiritual power.
He had thought that once he set out personally, the little Zhujing Yaojing would be easily captured, so he’d disdained using a flying artifact, and simply flew over himself.
Who would have thought that the little Zhujing Yaojing would also have a flying artifact, and that its speed would actually match his escape light?
The situation had reached a stalemate.
He watched as, with a little more flying, the Zhujing Yaojing would exit Xichuan’s territory and enter the Territory of the Demon Race—his anxiety grew.
Humans and the Demonic Beast race each had their own territory; over the years, it was an unspoken rule not to invade each other’s lands.
If a Demonic Beast appeared in human territory, or a human entered the Demonic Beasts’ territory, the Sect Leader of that domain could handle the trespasser however they pleased.
As a Foundation Establishment cultivator guarding Xichuan, there was no blame in killing a Zhujing Yaojing within Xichuan’s domain.
But barging into the Territory of the Demon Race to chase down a single Zhujing Yaojing would be breaking the rules.
But that precious Foundation-building Pill was still in the hands of the Zhujing Yaojing—this concerned the future of the Yang Family. He had to get it back!
He absolutely could not let that Zhujing Yaojing escape!
Gritting his teeth, Yang Zhen took a red pill out of his Storage Pouch and swallowed it in one gulp.
This pill, called a Burning Marrow Pill, granted tremendous temporary power at the cost of one’s life force.
Yang Zhen had only a few years left to live—he couldn’t withstand the strain of such a pill.
But at this moment, for the sake of recovering the Foundation-building Pill, for the Yang Family to retain control of Xichuan, he had no other choice.
The moment the Marrow-Burning Pill went down, his eyes gleamed with renewed vigor, and his escape light’s speed shot up.
He began rapidly closing the gap with the celestial crane ahead.
Lin Xueru suddenly noticed that the Yang Family’s Ancestor in Foundation Establishment was moving much faster, their distance shrinking visibly, and she was shocked.
How had this old man suddenly gotten such a massive burst of speed?
At this rate, she and Zhang Zongnian would be caught in no time.
She knew very well that if they were caught, there was no chance of survival.
She’d finally crossed over and obtained such a heaven-defying Nascent Soul, only to die before she’d even started? Cut down before she could ever rise?
Despair swept over her.
Zhang Zongnian, seeing the escape light drawing ever closer, had the same expression of utter hopelessness.
Yang Zhen was now very close.
He could see the pale, terrified, and despairing faces of Lin Xueru and Zhang Zongnian on the crane’s back.
A cruel grin appeared on his aged face as he reached out a hand toward them.
Lin Xueru was utterly defeated in spirit.
The difference between Foundation Establishment and Refining Qi or Body Tempering was like heaven and earth.
Unless a miracle occurred, they were doomed.
She lowered her head with a sigh, resigning herself to fate.
At that moment, she suddenly spotted a group of figures on a hill below.
There were about a dozen people in all, led by a striking Young Lady in Red.
This woman was tall, dressed in a long red gown, carrying a flower basket with a few fresh flowers inside.
Atop her head were two furry triangular ears, and behind her trailed a long, thin, furry tail—she was a Zhujing Yaojing!
From the ears and tail, she seemed to be a feline-type beast in human form.
Beside the Cat Demon was a burly, tall man, nearly half a head taller than her, bare-chested, revealing muscular arms and a thick, bristly chest, wearing silk pants on his lower half, and with the head of a black bear—a Bear Demon, it seemed.
On the Cat Demon’s other side was a man of gentle appearance, dressed in blue, holding a folding fan—he looked like a scholar, but it was impossible to tell if he was human or demon.
The other dozen or so were all odd-looking little demons, with most of their bodies still beast-like, each wielding large blades, spears, and other weapons—they were likely the attendants of the three leading figures.
Lin Xueru hadn’t expected to encounter a group of Demonic Beasts!
It was her first time seeing other monsters besides herself.
Like someone grasping at a life-saving reed, she immediately steered the crane toward the demon party.
She gambled that these Demonic Beasts would not stand by and let her die.
After all, she was also a demon, being hunted by a human cultivator—surely these Demonic Beasts would show some sense of allegiance?
She had no idea what their cultivation levels were, or if they could withstand a Foundation Establishment cultivator, but there was no time to care.
If she didn’t act, she and Zhang Zongnian would soon be caught by the Ancestor in Foundation Establishment from the Yang Family.
If they fell into his hands, they would surely die.
Better to take a gamble and beg the demon party for help—maybe there was still a sliver of hope.
At that moment, the demon party also noticed the pursuit in the sky, looking up at Lin Xueru.
As she rapidly descended toward them on the celestial crane, Lin Xueru shouted loudly, “Help!”