Return After Leaving

(The new book had been out for nearly a month. Hammer knew this book had nothing new to offer; he had simply read Record of a Mortal's Journey to Immortality and Purple Mansion, and had always wanted to write something similar. He had harbored this idea for several years, only putting pen to paper now. Although the statistics were disastrously bad, he would persist until the very end no matter what. Seeing that some readers were actually voting recommendations and giving rewards, he could not help feeling a little excited. Here, he shamelessly asked readers once more for favorites and recommendations. Even if it was going to flop, he at least wanted it to flop a little less miserably.)

Big Forehead Freak snorted angrily. "What, run out of Diamond Talismans? Your Earth-Spirit Barrier won't hold much longer either. Just wait for death!"

Though he said so, Big Forehead Freak was secretly furious. This damn alchemist had actually prepared so many escape and defensive talismans, along with a large number of Spirit Stones to replenish his mana. He had killed nearly thirty Shadow Ants in succession. Looking at the Shadow Ant corpses scattered all over the ground, Big Forehead Freak's heart twitched painfully. It would likely take him quite some time to breed their numbers back up.

Several Head Shadows had also suffered injuries of varying severity. If he wanted to restore these Shadow Ants' combat strength quickly, he would have to expend a great deal of blood essence. Even when he had killed several opponents before, he had never found it this difficult.

So many of the spirit insects he had raised with his blood essence had died or been wounded. Naturally, he hated Lu Xiaotian, the culprit behind it all, to the marrow of his bones. He wished only to kill him as quickly as possible.

"Fortunately, this brat is running out of talismans too. Otherwise, he wouldn't have used the weaker Earth-Spirit Barrier! Let's see how he dies later." Big Forehead Freak thought viciously.

Meanwhile, Zou Xin, trapped within the Guarding Origin Formation, had attacked for a long time without success. Instead, the barrier formed by the formation had left him dizzy and his ears ringing. The giant ape, aching from the impact, sat beside Zou Xin while rubbing its bruised head.

"Good job, Big Forehead Freak! Kill this detestable bastard!" Fortunately, the formation could only trap people and possessed no offensive power. Through the barrier, Zou Xin saw that Lu Xiaotian had clearly fallen into a disadvantage and was surrounded on all sides by Big Forehead Freak's ant swarm. Zou Xin was delighted. As long as Lu Xiaotian died, he should be able to escape the trap before long.

At the same time, Zou Xin was secretly shocked by Lu Xiaotian's ferocity. Not only had he trapped him, but he had also held out against Big Forehead Freak for so long. Such ability was not something an ordinary cultivator could possess.

Fortunately, Fan Qing had run fast enough earlier. Otherwise, if they had truly been united, with him trapped and Big Forehead Freak entangled by Lu Xiaotian, their own team would have been the one wiped out. Thinking of this, Zou Xin broke out in a cold sweat, then secretly laughed. This brat had hidden himself deeply indeed. Even Fan Qing, his own teammate, had not known his true capabilities. He had truly tried to be clever only to make a fool of himself, instead driving himself into a dead end!

Though separated by the formation and unable to hear the battle outside, the barrier formed by the formation did not prevent him from seeing what was happening beyond it.

After the time it took to burn an incense stick, the talismans in Lu Xiaotian's hand were exhausted. Several Head Ants and the remaining Shadow Ants swiftly chewed the Earth-Spirit Barrier into fragments. Though he had fought desperately toward Big Forehead Freak during that time, the Shadow Ants held him back, allowing Big Forehead Freak to evade him with ease.

Seeing no hope of victory, Lu Xiaotian turned and fled with a panicked expression, while using spells to desperately sweep away the Shadow Ants besieging him.

"Trying to run now? Too late!" Big Forehead Freak shrieked with a savage expression. He quickly gave chase, while the Shadow Ant swarm clung to Lu Xiaotian like maggots to bone, constantly surrounding him. After Lu Xiaotian had killed so many of his spirit insects, how could Big Forehead Freak possibly let him go?

"Ah!" Lu Xiaotian cried out in panic. His final protective barrier collapsed, and dozens of Shadow Ants passed through the shattered shield and savagely bit him. Lu Xiaotian desperately hacked apart more than a dozen with his short sword, but there were simply too many Shadow Ants for him to force them all back.

After being bitten by the Shadow Ants, Lu Xiaotian's movements suddenly froze. His face was filled with terror and despair.

"Now that I've fallen into your hands, I have nothing to say. Kill me if you want!" Lu Xiaotian said coldly after a long while.

"You actually killed so many of my spirit insects. I'll make you beg for life but be unable to live, beg for death but be unable to die. After I've tortured you enough, I'll carve you into a thousand pieces!"

Seeing Lu Xiaotian bitten repeatedly by more than a dozen Shadow Ants, Big Forehead Freak finally relaxed. A cultivator unable to circulate his vital energy was no different from an ordinary person to him, not the slightest threat.

Lu Xiaotian simply closed his eyes and said nothing more.

Zou Xin shouted at Big Forehead Freak from within the Guarding Origin Formation, but unfortunately, the other man could not hear him. Zou Xin scratched at his ears and cheeks in anxiety. If Big Forehead Freak took Lu Xiaotian's storage pouch, there would be no share for him. Even if there was, it would only be scraps from the leftovers, worthless things.

Big Forehead Freak glanced at Zou Xin, who was still trapped by the formation, then chuckled. Zou Xin was trapped, while Lu Xiaotian had only been taken down after he had paid a heavy price. Naturally, he would get to pick through the spoils first.

He had no idea how long this strange formation could keep Zou Xin trapped. Seeing Lu Xiaotian with his eyes closed, waiting for death, Big Forehead Freak wanted to avoid dragging things out and inviting unforeseen complications. He swaggered toward Lu Xiaotian and reached for the spirit sword in his hand as well as the storage pouch at his waist.

But at that very moment, Lu Xiaotian's eyes flew open, blazing with chilling light. The spirit sword in his hand shot like lightning toward Big Forehead Freak's chest.

Big Forehead Freak was instantly frightened out of his wits. In his haste, he recited an incantation.

The spirit sword stabbed into the other man's chest, but Lu Xiaotian frowned. It felt as though his sword had pierced a piece of wood. How could that be?

Before Lu Xiaotian could remain surprised for long, a black shadow shot backward in pain. Focusing his gaze, Lu Xiaotian saw that the thing pierced through the chest by his spirit sword was a humanoid object, neither gold nor wood.

The two stared at each other in shock. What Big Forehead Freak could not understand was that his Shadow Ants, which had never failed him, had clearly bitten Lu Xiaotian more than a dozen times. Even a Qi Refining Late Stage cultivator, or even a Qi Refining Great Perfection cultivator, would be unable to circulate vital energy and have no mana left to use.

Yet Lu Xiaotian had been completely unaffected. He had deliberately lured him close before suddenly launching a killing strike. But Lu Xiaotian's expression when the Shadow Ants bit him had not seemed false in the slightest. He had raised Shadow Ants for many years and knew perfectly well what reactions enemies would have after being bitten. Even if Lu Xiaotian had been faking it, he should not have escaped his notice.

What Big Forehead Freak did not know was that Lu Xiaotian had been bitten by Shadow Ants before, which was why he could put on such an expression.

What shocked Lu Xiaotian beyond measure was that his sword had clearly been about to pierce Big Forehead Freak's body, yet the man had actually used a refined substitute to take his place and escape with his life. Though Lu Xiaotian did not know what treasure it was, it was certainly no ordinary item.

Zou Xin's terror within the Guarding Origin Formation was no less than theirs. He had known nothing of Big Forehead Freak possessing such an ability to escape death at a critical moment. Neither of these two was easy to deal with. Now that he had learned Big Forehead Freak's secret, Zou Xin became deeply wary. He had no idea whether the two would be enemies or allies after leaving the formation. It seemed he would have to be more cautious in the future, lest he be plotted to death without even knowing how.

Big Forehead Freak clutched his bleeding chest. Things had happened too quickly just now, and the Wooden Puppet had failed to block all the damage. The spirit sword had still stabbed nearly an inch into his chest. A little deeper, and it might have injured his internal organs.

"Your scheme has failed. Let's see what other tricks you can pull!" It seemed a hard battle was inevitable. Big Forehead Freak took out the Meteor Hairpin and met Lu Xiaotian, who was rushing toward him, with an incomparably sinister expression.

"I can kill you without tricks all the same!"

Lu Xiaotian sneered. From the moment Big Forehead Freak sensed something was wrong and shot backward, he had discarded that humanoid puppet and sprinted toward him. He held his sword in his right hand, while his left had secretly prepared a stack of low-grade spirit talismans. To lure the other man into the trap, he had nearly used up his Diamond Talismans, but he had not used a single offensive talisman.

Everything happened in the blink of an eye. Taking advantage of his injury, Lu Xiaotian would kill or severely wound him in one stroke, giving him no chance to catch his breath!

Big Forehead Freak swung the Meteor Hairpin toward the spirit sword in Lu Xiaotian's hand. His cultivation was ultimately higher. Though he had suffered some injury, it was not fatal. He could still deal with this infuriating and exceedingly troublesome enemy.

Now! A sly smile curled at Lu Xiaotian's lips as he suddenly activated the talismans in his hand.

Fireball Talisman! Golden Spear Talisman! Ice Arrow Talisman! Earth Spike Talisman! Wind Blade Talisman! Entangling Talisman! Fire Arrow Talisman!

Dozens of low-grade spells released from talismans swept madly toward Big Forehead Freak.

A series of crackling explosions rang out. Amid the firelight and shattering ice, Big Forehead Freak's face appeared, filled with disbelief, fury, and alarm. The Earth-Spirit Barrier he had hastily formed did not last even an instant before being torn to pieces by the violent barrage of spells.

With no time to respond further, Big Forehead Freak roared as he swung the Meteor Hairpin, desperately knocking aside the ice arrows, fire arrows, and golden spears. His slightly dark face flushed red from excessively circulating his mana. The Meteor Hairpin was swung to its utmost limit, forming more than a dozen afterimages as he desperately blocked the attacks outside. Yet a golden spear and an earth spike still pierced through his left arm and lower abdomen. Boom! Exploding fireballs charred his clothes black, burned away most of his beard and hair, and left Big Forehead Freak howling in pain as blood gushed like a pillar.

Urgh. A figure flashed past him. Big Forehead Freak felt a chill at his throat, and his movements abruptly stopped.

As Lu Xiaotian withdrew his sword, blood spurted from Big Forehead Freak's throat like a fountain. He collapsed to the ground with an unwilling expression.

With dozens of low-grade spells erupting at such close range, it was already remarkable that he had endured most of them and suffered only injuries. What had truly been fatal was Lu Xiaotian's sword, striking when Big Forehead Freak had exhausted his old strength blocking the spells and his new strength had yet to arise.

In terms of individual cultivation, Lu Xiaotian did not believe he had any certainty of defeating the other man. He had taken the antidote beforehand, rendering the Shadow Ants Big Forehead Freak relied on most useless against him. Already injured, then ambushed at close range by dozens of low-grade spirit talismans, Big Forehead Freak had truly died an unjust death in Lu Xiaotian's view.

Having finally killed his opponent, Lu Xiaotian breathed a sigh of relief. He took the gourd containing the Shadow Ants and the storage pouch from Big Forehead Freak's waist, but did not inspect their contents. Instead, he turned his attention back to Zou Xin, who remained trapped by the formation.

Lu Xiaotian's expression shifted uncertainly. To kill Big Forehead Freak, he had already revealed every trump card he possessed. The brocade-clad man was not weak, his cultivation comparable to Lu Xiaotian's, and he also had a Black Ape with strength equivalent to the Third Layer of Qi Refining. If they fought, Lu Xiaotian might not be guaranteed victory. However, more than half an hour had already passed, and the brocade-clad man would soon escape the trap. If Lu Xiaotian left now, the brocade-clad man would think he had expended much and pursue even more fiercely. Moreover, the fierce battle had consumed considerable vital energy. Once he left the small grove, he might encounter other unexpected dangers.

More importantly, it was only thanks to the Guarding Origin Formation that he had managed to break this predicament after being pursued by the two men.

The Moonwatch Mountains were fraught with danger, and he could encounter other cultivator teams at any time. He was alone now. If another team discovered him, those with lower cultivation could not catch him, while those with higher cultivation would not let a lone prey escape. He might very well suffer another pursuit like this one.

Even if he left the mountains and returned to Moonwatch City, he would not be able to find another reliable team to join again in a short time. That would mean giving up his chance to join a sect this year. His aptitude was mediocre; every year of delay lowered his chances of successfully reaching Foundation Establishment by another fraction. He would never give up so easily. Therefore, he could not simply abandon this formation set.

"I can't give up!" Lu Xiaotian smiled faintly, took out two low-grade Spirit Stones from within the barrier, held one in each hand, and sat down cross-legged to meditate.

Sure enough, Lu Xiaotian's utterly fearless actions sent a chill rising from the bottom of Zou Xin's heart within the formation.

After the time it took to burn an incense stick, the vital energy expended within his body had recovered seven or eight tenths. By then, the spiritual power of the Guarding Origin Formation had also been exhausted, and the barrier gradually began to thin.

Zou Xin was overjoyed at the sight. He swung his wolf-toothed club and shattered the fragile barrier with a single blow, then leaped out with the Black Ape and swiftly fled without looking back.

"That saved me a fierce battle."

Lu Xiaotian also sighed in relief. It was always good to avoid unnecessary trouble. After meditating a while longer, the vital energy in his body was fully restored. Lu Xiaotian rose and collected the formation flags. But at that moment, every hair on his body stood on end. Focusing his gaze, he saw that the brocade-clad man who had left not long ago had actually returned. It seemed his earlier flight had merely been a test.

Zou Xin studied Lu Xiaotian with a gloomy expression. From Lu Xiaotian cutting off one of Hunchback He's arms and poisoning him in an ambush, to Big Forehead Freak now dying at his hands, this young opponent had shown himself formidable. Yet aside from this formation set and the additional talismans in his hand, he did not seem to possess many powerful methods. He was simply extremely calculating.

Under ordinary circumstances, Zou Xin would never have wanted a life-and-death battle with such an enemy. But not only was Lu Xiaotian an alchemist with a considerable fortune, the spiritual items in Big Forehead Freak's storage pouch alone made Zou Xin drool with greed.

Big Forehead Freak had already gathered several Monster Cores and spirit herbs required to join the Taiqing Sect. Added to what Zou Xin had gathered himself, they might not be far from fulfilling the Taiqing Sect's mission requirements. That was enough to make him risk his life. His earlier flight had also been a test. Lu Xiaotian had not pursued him, indicating that Lu Xiaotian did not want to fight him again either. His talismans must have been nearly exhausted, or there would have been no reason for him to let Zou Xin go so easily.

Having thought it through, Zou Xin gathered his courage, made a return charge, and laughed darkly at Lu Xiaotian. "Actually, I don't want to fight you either. Our strength is about the same. If we battle fiercely, we'll likely both end up badly wounded. But Big Forehead Freak had several things I want. If you can give me a share, we can naturally live in peace."

"Once something falls into my hands, there's no chance of it being divided out again." Lu Xiaotian snorted. Did this man take him for a fool? Though he did not want to fight the brocade-clad man, their cultivation levels were similar. He had even killed Big Forehead Freak, so why would he care about having one more enemy?