Escaping Death, Difficult Master, Difficult Disciple

Cloud Mist Mountain Range.

The mountains here stretched endlessly, appearing quite perilous.

And in a patch of jungle, several figures were fleeing rapidly.

"Changyu, run!"

The Grand Hua Daoist's voice rang out, filled with urgency.

"I'm already running, Master, you need to keep up."

Su Changyu moved with incredible speed, weaving through the jungle.

ROAR!

At this moment, an Ironclad Rhinoceros, a full five meters tall, charged headlong. Ancient, towering trees toppled one after another, startling birds and beasts into fleeing.

The rhinoceros was incredibly fast, its body covered in iron-like armor, a truly fearsome sight.

The Grand Hua Daoist was several hundred meters ahead of him, but he knew that continuous fleeing would only lead to death. So, he decided to confront the Ironclad Rhinoceros directly.

He lunged forward with his long sword.

The Grand Hua Daoist targeted the Ironclad Rhinoceros's eyes, its most vulnerable spot.

But the Ironclad Rhinoceros wasn't foolish. Seeing the Grand Hua Daoist attack, it twisted its body, blocking his assault.

"Trouble!"

In an instant, the Grand Hua Daoist's expression changed. He knew he was in deep trouble.

CLANG!

His iron sword snapped. The Ironclad Rhinoceros roared and directly slammed into the Grand Hua Daoist, sending him flying.

The terrifying impact sent the Grand Hua Daoist dozens of meters away, his chest bones likely broken in multiple places.

The force was immense. The Grand Hua Daoist coughed up blood repeatedly. Fortunately, he had managed to channel his remaining spiritual energy into his internal organs beforehand, otherwise, this single blow would have been enough to obliterate him.

"It's over."

At this moment, the Grand Hua Daoist felt despair.

He regretted coming to the Cloud Mist Mountain Range, but regret was useless now.

ROAR!

The next moment, the Ironclad Rhinoceros turned its attention to the Grand Hua Daoist. Its gaze was filled with malice; it had clearly locked onto him.

"Master, run quickly."

But just then, Su Changyu appeared.

He hadn't fled; instead, he had returned to save the Grand Hua Daoist.

"Changyu!"

The Grand Hua Daoist was stunned. He hadn't expected Su Changyu to turn back and rescue him.

WHOOSH!

In an instant, Su Changyu grabbed the Grand Hua Daoist by his collar and then sprinted away.

Su Changyu's speed was astonishing, and wisps of blood energy swirled around him.

The Grand Hua Daoist didn't think twice; the priority now was to escape.

The Ironclad Rhinoceros pursued them, but Su Changyu's speed was simply too great.

An hour later.

On a desolate cliff.

Su Changyu and the Grand Hua Daoist sat beneath a tree, both looking unwell.

The Grand Hua Daoist, in particular, was severely injured, with countless broken ribs. Being dragged by Su Changyu all the way had only worsened his condition.

But given the circumstances, there was no other choice. At the very least, one life had been saved.

As for Su Changyu, he sat cross-legged in meditation, but soon let out a gasp and spat out a mouthful of bright red blood.

"Changyu."

The Grand Hua Daoist, enduring his pain, looked at Su Changyu.

"It's nothing, Master," Su Changyu said with a light laugh, but his brow was tightly furrowed, clearly troubled.

"You..."

The Grand Hua Daoist immediately saw what Su Changyu had done. He had consumed a Blood Burst Pill, burning his own blood to enhance his cultivation. However, taking such a pill would shave at least ten years off his lifespan.

"Master, you should focus on healing."

Su Changyu's lips were pale, but he still urged the Grand Hua Daoist to treat his injuries first.

The Grand Hua Daoist's injuries were too severe to delay any further.

"It is I who have failed you."

Grand Hua Daoist took a deep breath. He regretted coming here, but he regretted even more that he had accomplished nothing and couldn't even deal with a mere demonic beast, causing his disciple to lose years of his life.

"Master, stop being sentimental. Hurry up and recover from your injuries."

Su Changyu, however, seemed casual, urging Grand Hua Daoist to heal quickly.

Grand Hua Daoist didn't hesitate much. He swallowed a healing pill and began to absorb spiritual energy to recover. As for Su Changyu, he endured his discomfort and scanned their surroundings, worried about encountering more demonic beasts.

Several hours later.

Grand Hua Daoist finished his healing. His injuries were still severe but had stabilized. With two to three years of proper rest, there wouldn't be any major issues.

After Grand Hua Daoist had healed, Su Changyu began to meditate to recover his vital energy.

He had just consumed a Blood Burst Pill. Not only did it cost him ten years of his lifespan, but a significant amount of his vital blood had also been burned. It was equivalent to suffering a serious illness and required careful stabilization. Otherwise, if it worsened, he might lose more than ten years of his life.

And so it went, until late into the night.

Su Changyu woke up.

"Changyu, eat something."

At this moment, Grand Hua Daoist took out some dry rations. They were meat patties made from demonic beast meat. The taste was average, but they contained blood essence, which could strengthen the body and restore blood and energy.

Su Changyu took the meat patty and fell silent.

Grand Hua Daoist felt a bit helpless. With a thousand words unsaid, Grand Hua Daoist slowly spoke.

"Changyu, it's my fault for dragging you down."

Grand Hua Daoist said earnestly, feeling that he had burdened Su Changyu.

"Master, you don't need to say such things anymore."

Su Changyu was dismissive.

He was an orphan, raised by Grand Hua Daoist. To Su Changyu, Grand Hua Daoist was not only his master but also his father. If they had died returning just now, Su Changyu would not have had any complaints.

Therefore, Su Changyu felt such words of gratitude were unnecessary.

Sigh!

Grand Hua Daoist sighed. He knew Su Changyu's feelings but felt even more self-reproach.

"Master, let's think about happy things. Regardless, we got the Spirit Essence, and we can forge a flying sword for our junior brother."

Su Changyu broke the silence, trying to say something that would lift their spirits.

"Yes, although we almost lost our lives, the harvest this time is indeed substantial. This Spirit Essence alone is worth several hundred spirit stones."

"As expected, if you want to get rich, you have to take risks."

Mentioning the Spirit Essence, Grand Hua Daoist's mood brightened considerably.

Although they had almost died on this trip, the gains were incredibly impressive. They had earned at least over two hundred low-grade spirit stones.

Most importantly, this kind of Spirit Essence was essential for forging a flying sword.

"Sigh, we worked so hard, even risking our lives, and the spirit stones we earned are not as valuable as one painting from our junior brother."

"Sometimes, when I think about it, comparing people makes me so angry."

Su Changyu spoke, his words sounding somewhat dejected.

Hearing this, Grand Hua Daoist's mood also soured slightly.

Indeed, after all their hard work and near-death experiences, what they obtained was not as good as something the other person casually drew. How could this not be upsetting?

"But we can't always have your junior brother draw for us. We can't rely on him to support everyone, can we?"

Grand Hua Daoist said with some helplessness.

"While that's true, it's not difficult to ask our junior brother to draw one occasionally. Anyway, after this experience, I've realized that life is more important than pride. When we get back, I'll ask him to draw a painting. Part of it will be used to forge his flying sword, and the other part will be used to buy some high-grade healing medicine for you."

Su Changyu made up his mind and no longer cared about pride.

If he hadn't prepared a Blood Burst Pill this time, the master and disciple would have likely died here.

So Su Changyu understood that life was indeed more precious than pride.

"Alright, but don't ask for too much. Just enough is fine."

Grand Hua Daoist nodded.

Although he still felt a bit embarrassed, it was at least better than losing his life.

"Master, you shouldn't worry too much. Junior brother usually likes to draw himself. Perhaps he's already drawn one for our second brother."

Su Changyu said.

Hearing this, Grand Hua Daoist was stunned.

That's right.

Perhaps without them even asking, Ye Ping might have drawn one himself.

"Oh no!"

Suddenly, Grand Hua Daoist remembered something else, and his expression changed.

"What's wrong?"

Su Changyu was a bit curious.

"Changyu, what you said just now makes sense to me, but what if your second junior brother also drew a portrait?"

Grand Hua Daoist asked.

Hearing this, Su Changyu couldn't help but freeze.

"He probably wouldn't, Junior Brother Luo Chen isn't that kind of person."

Grand Hua Daoist remained silent.

"Perhaps even if he did draw a portrait, it would just be a profile, like mine?"

Su Changyu guessed, bracing himself.

"Let's hope so. If not…"

Grand Hua Daoist didn't finish his sentence.

The meaning was already quite clear.