He leaped into the woods, searching in the direction the small snake had flown.
To him, the greatest threat was the Foundation Establishnt cultivator, Qiu Feng, so the snake must have wanted to stay far away from Qiu Feng.
With this thought in mind, Chen Qing continued his pursuit, straining his eyes to search carefully.
Not this one.
Not this one.
This one, hmm, yes, this is it!
He could see the information on the Snake Gu, making it as conspicuous as a firefly in the night before him.
A small white snake was slithering ahead, completely unaware that the hunter had locked onto it.
Chen Qing sprinted forward in a few leaps, reached out his hand, and grabbed the white snake. The snake bit Chen Qing’s hand, but instead of breaking the skin, it broke one of its own teeth.
Though the Iron Skin Gu had not undergone the Butterfly Transformation, it was not sothing a small snake could penetrate.
A sliver of Geng tal Sword Qi gathered between his left fingers, and Chen Qing struck with the sword, cutting open the snake’s chest and belly, extracting a Gu that was as white as jade.
The Snake Gu was entirely snow-white, slender in shape, no longer in the typical form of a Gu, but resembling a small snake, although only as thick as a lon seed.
It was indeed much larger than an ordinary Gu.
He imdiately took out a jade jar, sealed the small snake inside, and inscribed runes with Spiritual Energy, putting the Snake Gu into a deep sleep.
It wasn’t yet suitable to forge a contract, as the Spiritual Energy required for the contract with a spirit Gu could instantly drain all of his own Spiritual Energy.
Since the Foundation Establishnt cultivators were involved in the fight, it would be best to leave this place of contention first before considering a contract!
With the wind beneath his feet, Chen Qing sprinted away from the battlefield at breakneck speed. In just a quarter of an hour, he had covered over thirty miles.
Ahead, the shadows in the snow flickered; as Chen Qing, swift as the wind, stepped forth with Stepping on Snow Without Trace, he sensed four figures approaching. Just as he was about to transform into fog to evade, those four waved their hands, creating a Thunder Net to trap him within.
"Fellow Daoist Taiyi, I really didn’t expect you to be the first one to try and run," Xiang Baiyu said, rising from a snowdrift. "Taiyi, since you’ve already co, what’s the rush? Why not co to my Taiping Sect’s base for a good rest?"
Chen Qing slowly ford a four-foot-long Geng tal Sword in his hand. "Xiang Baiyu, are you tired of living?"
Xiang Baiyu laughed heartily, "Your Sword Butterfly is indeed extraordinary, but unfortunately, I won’t give you the chance to get close again."
"Hand over your treasures now, and I might just let you go."
Chen Qing replied blankly, "Treasures? What treasures? I only wanted to leave because I saw the Foundation Establishnt cultivators and got scared."
Xiang Baiyu’s face turned cold, "Taiyi, let’s not beat around the bush."
"With your abilities, how could you not take a few Sword Gu before you left?"
"The reason isn’t hard to deduce; you obtained a treasure far superior to the Sword Gu!"
Chen Qing retorted, "Offering up my treasure for survival, are you kidding ?"
"We all act openly and honestly, yet we’re part of demonic sects where nine out of ten sentences are lies. Let’s show our real skills with our hands!"
"I’ve road the martial world for eighteen years, and you’re the first to dare block my path!"
Seeing the waves of Taiping Sect mbers gathering from afar, Xiang Baiyu felt more confident.
Just as Chen Qing was about to survey the surrounding situation, Xiang Baiyu suddenly shouted, "Attack!"
The four Taiping Sect mbers, who had surrounded Chen Qing with the Thunder Net, imdiately closed the net tighter to entrap Chen Qing within.
Thunderlight surged in Xiang Baiyu’s palm as he unleashed a Palm Thunder towards Chen Qing!
Chen Qing tightly gripped his four-foot Geng tal Sword, glaring coldly at the gradually constricting Thunder Net, and transford into fog to perform the Wall-penetrating Skill right away!
Xiang Baiyu’s face changed drastically, "Quick, retreat, he has a Mist Butterfly!"
Chen Qing’s figure vanished for a mont, reappearing outside the Thunder Net. Turning his head, he saw a Taiping Sect mber swiftly retreating, not daring to get even a bit closer.
Surveying the surroundings, eleven other Taiping Sect mbers were rushing to encircle him.
It seed the ti spent capturing the Snake Gu had given them the chance to ambush him first.
Activating the Wind Butterfly within him, Chen Qing beca as light as a feather. He swiftly exited the encirclent with Stepping on Snow Without Trace.
Reaching a small hilltop, thirty or so feet away from these people, Chen Qing halted.
Surrounded once more by the Taiping Sect mbers, Chen Qing chuckled, "Xiang Baiyu, take one more step, and believe , you’ll leave not even a whole corpse behind!"
Xiang Baiyu motioned for the surrounding Taiping Sect disciples to stop, "Taiyi, do you really believe three Butterfly Gu make you invincible?"
What a pretense.
"Having escaped from your ambush, you don’t think you can catch now, right?"
"Now, I offer you two choices."
"Leave sothing to buy your own life."
"Or, wait and see if my sword is sharp or not!"
Chen Qing was always a person who would never let a good opportunity go to waste, and there was no way he would let these fat sheep get away.
Moreover, the Snake Gu still needed a few large pieces of greediness to advance to the Second Transformation!
After returning to the mountain, there wouldn’t be such a good opportunity.
Chen Qing admitted he wasn’t a good person, but he didn’t have the habit of wantonly killing the innocent.
If he didn’t take advantage of this chance to gather a few pieces of greed, when would the Snake Gu advance to the Second Transformation?
Xiang Baiyu pondered over and over, but fear of the Jiguang Sect made her ask, "What do you want for the ransom?"
Chen Qing laughed, "I’m a very reasonable person."
He pointed at Xiang Baiyu, "Either you kill yourself, and I take your treasures and Gu."
Then he pointed at the Taiping Sect mbers behind Xiang Baiyu, "Or these people, give seven hearts."
"Make your choice."
Xiang Baiyu burst into anger, "Taiyi, you never intended to negotiate."
Chen Qing stood up, "Dare to attack , and you should be ready to pay the price!"
He knew very well his current strength; in a one-on-one, he was unbeatable, but in a group battle, he was very wary of the nurous Thunder Gu.
The thunderous lightning was sowhat restrictive to his Fog Gu, and the Wall-penetrating Skill couldn’t be used endlessly.
Moreover, his cultivation level wasn’t high; if the battle beca difficult, exhausting his Spiritual Energy, he would certainly be the first to fall.
The Taiping Sect mbers were also dissatisfied, "Sister, there’s no need to talk much with him, he’s just one person!"
"I don’t believe he can really defeat so many of us!"
"Sister, we have the upper hand, why is he setting the terms?"
Xiang Baiyu raised her sword, finally giving the order, "Kill!"
Seeing so many people charging at him, he wasn’t all that worried. The Wind Butterfly enveloped him, and with Divine Hundred Steps and Stepping on Snow Without Trace, he easily crossed over a hill.
Holding a mid-grade Spirit Stone in hand, absorbing the Spiritual Energy within to recover, Chen Qing quickly ran into a dense forest.
Although he made minimal noise, for the acute hearing of cultivators, there were still so traces.
They chased after Chen Qing, until eventually everyone entered the dense forest.
At that mont, Chen Qing transford into fog, flying thirty feet away in silence, then made a U-turn and ca back.
After waiting for less than thirty breaths, he saw the Taiping Sect people, led by Xiang Baiyu, rushing towards his forr position.
And the last person in the group lagged about thirty feet behind.
With the Geng tal Sword appearing in his hand, the Spiritual Energy within Chen Qing was almost exhausted, while his left hand wildly absorbed the Spiritual Energy from the mid-grade Spirit Stone. Chen Qing transford into fog, noiselessly closing in on the last person.
With the Mist Butterfly having undergone the Ninth Transformation, he could now transform into fog for ten breaths. In those ten breaths, coupled with his Wind Butterfly, he could flee for dozens of feet.
Arriving behind the final person, Chen Qing raised his sword and brought it down, a gust of sharp wind rising!
The person had just turned around when Chen Qing decapitated him with a single strike.
Where the Geng tal Sword passed, the Protective Spirit Energy shattered instantly, slicing the person into two.
Blood splattered, lting small holes into the snowy ground.
Puff, the person’s lifeless body collapsed with a soft thud.
The fleeing Taiping Sect mbers turned around to witness Chen Qing, wearing a bronze ghost mask, slicing open the chest of the corpse with a sword, extracting a still faintly beating heart.
Chen Qing tore open the person’s robe, wrapped the heart, without concern over it spoiling in the cold.
"I promised seven hearts, so seven it is, not one less!"
Leaving such words behind, Chen Qing turned and departed.
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