Didn't Want to Run

"Wow! Kid, you can withstand a genuine Blood God Child's possession! Incredible! Unheard of! Looks like you've grown a lot in the past few years! Hahaha!"

As soon as Li Fan woke up, he heard Xuan Tian chattering in his ears and saw silver leaves flashing around in front of him, making a lot of noise. He tried to turn his head to look around, but felt a sharp pain all over his body and could not move. He tried to use the Gu Guan Method to search with his primordial spirit, but his head was splitting with pain, as if someone was using a steel chisel to pry open his skull. It was extremely painful and he could only grit his teeth and endure it.

"Don't move around. I've seen it. Although Blood God Child was killed, your meridians, internal organs, and even your skin and bones were all messed up. Your skin and bones were also charred and torn by the heavenly lightning. It's only because you still have the evil energy and the Three Flowers to keep you alive. An ordinary person would have already suffered a blood collapse."

Honestly, this was truly dangerous. If Xiao Yao's comprehension had been even slightly Taiyin Sword Art, he wouldn't have been able to force the Blood God Child out. If that silly woman hadn't been able to set up her sword formation, it would have escaped too. Of course, you kid are really tough, managing to hold your own against a master of the Primordial Spirit Technique for so long, hahaha! It seems this batch of newcomers from my Sword Sect are all blessed by heaven! This is a sign that things are about to turn around, a stroke of good fortune! Hehehe!

However, with your physical body so badly damaged, you might consider dissolving yourself. I'm not trying to scare you, but going head-to-head with the Blood God Child is too risky. If your primordial spirit is corrupted, you really risk perishing. Now that your Divine Court is sealed by the Blood Execution Seal, if that Dharma King himself comes looking for you, you might as well just run away. Don't be stingy with your stinking body. As long as you're alive, you can always rebuild, you know? Anyway, I've passed on the method of flying to you, so at least the Tai Sha Sword Embryo can still be preserved."

Hey, give me some faith! Just plant it in the soil, and it'll sprout again in the spring!

However, Li Fan couldn't even open his mouth, and a large amount of the Blood Talisman Sword's power remained in his body, so he couldn't use his Dao Breath to repair his veins, let alone circulate his internal energy to heal his injuries. Moreover, his Divine Sense was also sealed, so he couldn't use his clone to move around and could only lie unconscious in the carriage.

Fortunately, the Blood Infant seems to be able to digest the power of the Blood Talisman Sword that severely damaged Li Fan's Divine Court, much like a rabbit nibbling on a carrot. However, it can only consume a small amount, and it would probably be instantly killed if it encountered the Blood God Child...

A little bit is enough. Just in time, Li Fan had poured half of the Black and White Evil Qi into the gourd and expelled all the Tai Su Dao Body from his body, so that they wouldn't take the opportunity to rebel and seize his body.

Fortunately, these Tai Su Dao Body had also experienced a thrilling day, almost being killed by the screen full of blood-red Sword Light, which made them all quite safe.

Thus, Li Fan could focus on healing his injuries, using his Gui Xu Nascent Soul to wield the Tai Sha Sword Embryo, shattering the remaining sword power of the Blood Talisman Sword, and feeding it bit by bit to the Blood Infant for digestion.

By gradually devouring the remaining sword power of the Blood God Child within the Divine Court, one sword at a time, and clearing away the hidden injuries to the Divine Court and meridians, Li Fan was able to use the Jade Purity Method to repair his Dao body and revive on the spot, like a potato planted in the ground.

However, this process can only be done slowly. The Gui Xu Nascent Soul repeatedly enters the formation to break the Four Swords Formation of Earth, Water, Fire, and Wind formed by the Blood Talisman Sword in the Divine Court. Time must also be given for the Blood Infant to digest it.

Therefore, Li Fan would occasionally regain consciousness during this period. Sometimes it was the Profound Heaven Sword Intent, sometimes it was Li Wugou, and sometimes it was the young falcon soldier from the Shuofang Army that he had casually saved before who came to take care of his injuries and help change his dressings.

So, as he was jostled around in the carriage, dozing off and waking up intermittently, Li Fan gradually figured out his current situation.

The Beichen trio suddenly appeared and killed Tuoqi King. Shuofang Jiedushi Zhang Ji also exhausted his energy to save the Right Wise King's life. Now, the Hu Barbarians troops were in a panic and lost their composure, and were temporarily defeated.

The Shuofang Army seized this opportunity to break out and retreated under the protection of Li Wugou.

Li Fan is now practically a cripple. Li Wugou used crude techniques to wrap him up like a mummy, and then transported him in a trailer along with other wounded soldiers.

Yao Xuanzhou forcibly saved Li Fan's life with the Taiyin Sword Art Technique, but he was also injured by the backlash of the Taiyin Sword Force. Coupled with the losses from the continuous battles and the internal injuries from his previous failure to cultivate the Tai Sha Sword Embryo, all of these flared up at once. So he found a carriage, covered it with a magic flag and curtain, and surrounded it like a lantern, and entered into a meditative seclusion. He was temporarily unable to make a move.

Although Li Wugou was covered in blood, she relied on her four precious swords, the guidance of the Profound Heaven Sword Intent, and the support of the pile of Dao bodies that Li Fan had spat out. She was not afraid of one or two ordinary demons of the same realm.

Hu Barbarians, the Hu barbarians were indeed frightened by the sudden death of a large number of their kings, and no one dared to pursue them again. Thus, the remnants of the Shuofang Army, after a perilous journey, eventually managed to return to Shuofang Town from Beiyuan with five or six thousand men.

This town is a fortress isolated at the pass of Yinshan Mountain. It can be seen that it was once a large town that could gather heavy troops from the Immortal Palace. However, it has not been repaired and supplemented for many years and is no longer what it used to be. It is no longer comparable to the Ba Fu of the Heavenly Soldiers Army. Of the 20,000 troops, only five, six or seven returned. Almost every family had someone dead, and suppressed cries could be heard everywhere.

Li Fan, having recovered from his injuries with the help of the evil aura and the Changchun Pill, was able to sit up by the time he arrived in Shuofang Town, but he still couldn't walk. Yao Xuanzhou also needed to recuperate and heal his injuries.

So the young Hayato took them, a group of sick people, into his yard to stay.

The young man's name was Zhang Xiang. He was a distant relative of Jiedushi military governor, but now he was the only one left in the house, so it was quite empty. Li Fan sat in the courtyard to recover from his injuries and also looked after Yao Xuanzhou's carriage, which was in seclusion.

Because Zhang Xiang made meritorious contributions as a scout, and because the Shuofang Army needed to improve the skills of all its soldiers in order to break through the encirclement, he also benefited from the misfortune by obtaining a Divine Essence Pill. After accumulating experience through training, he successfully achieved the Golden Core realm.

"Haha! Ninefold Gang Fist!"

At this moment, Zhang Xiang was practicing his martial arts in the courtyard. He had just escaped back to Shuofang Town and hadn't even rested for two days before starting to practice. He would first warm up by running back and forth quickly, then swing a large iron sword and wield it in a whirlwind, lifting and throwing a hundred-pound millstone. After that, he would tie sandbags all over his body and practice punching and horse stance. He would practice for two or three hours at a time, maintaining the state of bulging muscles from the Ninefold Gang Fist throughout. After finishing, he would rub medicinal wine all over his body before releasing his energy and concluding his practice.

While observing, Li Fan flipped through the Gangquan boxing manual that Zhang Xiang had given him and understood what the Immortal Palace lineage was all about.

The external alchemy and Cultivation Method in the Immortal Palace are separate.

This Gangquan (罡拳) is the most basic body-forging method of the Ancient Immortal Palace. The relentless, day-and-night practice of honing one's muscles and bones can forge the entire body into something as hard as iron and steel. The longer one trains, the stronger the potential the Gangquan can unleash. Furthermore, if combined with the nourishment of superior Divine Beast's spiritual food and immortal ingredients, one can evolve their body to possess extraordinary divine power, just like those Divine Beasts. Moreover, with the assistance of secret manuals from the Dou Department) and Thunder Department, it can a hundredfold unleash the power of various ancient bloodlines, gaining boundless might. Even without sacrificing one's life, these superior Cultivation Method are no less powerful than a dozen or twenty levels of Gangquan. Of course, the ability to cultivate Gangquan to forty levels is also a characteristic of this Cultivation Method. Its widespread popularity stems from the fact that its enhancement has virtually no upper limit, making it capable of destroying the heavens and the earth.

In short, these Ancient Immortal Palace Cultivation Method are purely designed for combat and do not actually prolong life. Therefore, the immortal Immortal Palace developed external elixirs such as Foundation Establishment, Divine Essence Pill, and Divine Infant Pill to prolong the lives of kings and generals. Thus, the cultivation level of the Immortal Palace cannot be simply equated with their actual combat strength.

Some people, like Zhang Ji and Zhang Xiang, practice Qigong every day and train on the battlefield for hundreds of years. Even if they only rely on the external elixir to survive, they can still fire forty heavy fists, demons, monsters, brother Bila, etc., and can be beaten to death with one punch.

But some people spend their days indulging in pleasure and neglecting their martial arts skills, becoming obsessed with dual cultivation. When it comes to actual combat, they are naturally weaklings who can be killed with a single sword strike.

Therefore, it's not that the Cultivation Method of the Immortal Palace are ineffective; it's just that the Immortal Palace's soldiers are now mostly from families of military and immortal clans, and naturally they lack the diligence and drive to strive for fame and fortune that they had when they were poor and destitute.

In contrast, the Xuanmen (mystical sect) focuses purely on Qi Refinement Stage. Therefore, many of the Xuanmen's palm and sword techniques are merely derivatives and supplements to its own Qi Refinement Stage Cultivation Method. Without the Xuanmen's secret Qi cultivation and movement techniques, these palm techniques would not be able to exert much power.

From this perspective, the system of Overlord Body, Divine Essence Body, and Martial God Body developed by the Divine Lord is indeed a perfect Cultivation Method that integrates both aspects and cultivates both body and life. While practicing martial arts, one can still increase their cultivation level and destiny, and maintain extremely strong combat power. The advantage of this Cultivation Method can be seen from the overwhelming combat power of the elite soldiers of the Kun Country Divine Sect against the guards of the Immortal Palace.

However, the Body Domination Technique requires both internal and external cultivation. It not only involves physical training but also Qi Refinement Stage combined with internal energy cultivation methods. The difficulty of mastering it is still very high, and it also requires diligent practice. In addition, the Divine Sect's system of rewarding merit makes the Body Domination Technique more attractive to those martial artists and knights-errant who come from humble backgrounds and can only travel the martial world, or those unorthodox cultivators with higher aptitude than ordinary people but not enough to join the Xuanmen sect.

The ordinary soldiers in the border counties were less qualified and had fewer resources. They also emphasized battlefield practicality and teamwork, so the common soldiers still mainly practiced simple and unadorned moves like Gangquan.

Li Fan noticed that Zhang Xiang had been helping him change his bandages all the way, and that he was quite hardworking. Moreover, he cooked a lot of monster meat every day and brought it to him to curry favor.

With nothing else to do, Li Fan took out the Ancient Immortal Palace Dou Department Cultivation Method he had obtained from Penglai and taught it to him.

Zhang Xiang wasn't stupid; he just started from a very low point. He came from a humble background, his father and brothers died on the battlefield, and he relied on the help of his fellow villagers. He joined the army at a young age and risked his life. He was barely literate and didn't have the extraordinary talent of those Daoist priests. But when it came to diligence and hard work, and the courage gained from battlefield experience, he was absolutely not lacking.

The Ancient Immortal Palace's weapon-forging method was clearly designed for someone like him. Li Fan only gave Zhang Xiang a few pointers, taught him the basic incantations needed for cultivation, and taught him the meridians, acupoints, and techniques for circulating energy. After that, he let him practice Gangquan while also referring to the Dou Department Cultivation Method.

While giving Zhang Xiang pointers, Li Fan realized something else.

Ghost Horror Hands and Gang Fist actually have some similarities in luck. Gang Fist squeezes out the potential of the warriors themselves, and Ghost Horror Hands does the same, squeezing out the potential of all Taisu Dao bodies. It's just that Gang Fist is a relatively complete set of body training methods, while Ghost Horror Hands only has one move and one style. Probably the Mountain Master secretly learned it from the heavenly soldiers of the Ancient Immortal Palace when he was a bandit...

"Fellow Daoist Qingyue, how is your recovery going?"

Li Wugou rode a monstrous Tai Su beast with a head full of heads, flying down from the clouds. This chimera-like monster was actually a collection of the many Tai Su Dao Body that Li Fan had spat out. These creatures seemed quite content beneath Li Wugou...

"It's alright. I think in another three to five days I'll be able to clear away the influence of the Blood God Child and start healing. Yao the Supervisor hasn't come out of seclusion yet, but there shouldn't be any major problems."

Li Wugou handed the snow lotus and a pile of demon beast flesh and blood she had gathered to Zhang Xiang to cook, and said to Li Fan, "I've recently been assisting the Shuofang Army in patrolling the Fourth Department, and I've discovered that Demon Race scouts have appeared near the vassal states again, and even killed a Nascent Soul Realm. They've caught up with them so quickly, I'm afraid the Chanyu has returned. I'm afraid the Hu Barbarians army will arrive soon. We should make plans early and head south to avoid being besieged."

Li Fan frowned, touching his forehead. "They're after me? All I did was destroy one of his avatars and four Divine Transformation subordinates! How can this Chanyu be so petty!"

Li Wugou hesitated, then stopped herself, "..."

The Profound Heaven Sword Intent flew over from Qiongqi's head to join the discussion, "In your condition, it's impossible for you to recover in the short term. With the Blood Execution Seal still on your head, where can you escape to? Moreover, the Shuofang Army is isolated beyond the Great Wall and has been mortal enemies with the Hu Barbarians for hundreds of years. The Chanyu will never give up this great opportunity just because a few of his men have died. Once he realizes what's happening, he will definitely gather a large army to attack, break through the passes, and massacre the towns."

In my opinion, the safest way is to find a suitable body to disintegrate, and then the three of you can go your separate ways. That way, one lineage of my Beichen Sword Sect will be able to continue."

Li Wugou frowned. "You old man, why do you always say such discouraging things? When has the Sword Sect ever escaped? Are you really a 'materialized' senior of the Sword Sect? What is Blood God Child? We already killed one!"

Xuan Tian wasn't angry. "In the past, the Sword Sect was full of experts, and our opponents were all trash. Why would we run away if we could win? Now, can we not run? Surviving from a Blood God Child is something you can brag about, right? You haven't seen it with your own eyes. Back then, when I fought the Sect Leader, it was a truly devastating sea of blood! Hundreds of millions of Blood God Child surged over! It was overwhelming! Have you ever seen me brag about it to anyone?"

Listen to me, you've only just begun, your skills are too shallow. You haven't reached the Transformation Stage and mastered sword intent, so you can't fight Blood God Child head-on! Remember the Disintegration Techniques I taught you, and use them as soon as the situation turns against you! Don't hesitate! Cultivation is nothing to be ashamed of; reincarnating two or three times is a common occurrence!"

Li Wugou was speechless, so she could only look at Li Fan and ask, "What do you think?"

Li Fan also fell into deep thought.

In truth, Profound Heaven Sword Intent has fought with the Divine Sect for so many years, and knows both sides inside and out. His judgment should be very accurate and reliable. But the awkward thing now is that the Chanyu hasn't even shown himself, yet he's already fled at the first sign of trouble. That seems too cowardly. But the dilemma is, if the opponent really does show himself, how can he possibly escape?

Li Fan hesitated before saying, "Actually, I have one more powerful move, but it would be a waste to waste it on a mere Xiongnu chieftain, and once I use it, I don't know if I can withstand it..."

Li Wugou was now numb. "A mere Xiongnu chieftain... never mind. In any case, I'll go and inform the Shuofang Army to organize their families and evacuate them to the interior."

Seeing Li Wugou fly away, Profound Heaven Sword Intent transmitted a message, "Qingyue, although you are blessed with good fortune and divine protection, it is impossible for your luck to remain so forever."

Everyone says that I, the Sword Ancestor Xuantian, am invincible and can do whatever I want, but there was a time when I abandoned my fellow disciples and fled in a sorry state. It's just that I survived until I mastered my divine skills before seeking revenge. I killed all my enemies from back then, so no one knows about these things.

Such a simple truth, I probably don't need to elaborate. Qingyue, I'm confident in your cultivation level, but you must remember, the first to die in this world are always those arrogant, self-righteous fools.

I'll take these clones of yours to scout north for a while. If the true form of that cult has indeed arrived, we'll annihilate them immediately. You should be able to sense it, right? At that time, you must act decisively and not be reluctant to give up any of your cultivation. Anyway, it's quick to rebuild the Tai Su Dao."

Li Fan nodded silently, watching as the silver leaves were attached to the chimera's head again, and he rode these Dao bodies northward.

So this time, I guess I'll have to run away, tail between my legs...

Lost in thought, Li Fan suddenly heard a thunderous roar, like cannon fire. He initially thought Yue Po was unhappy, but then realized something was wrong; Yue Po was also resting in the sword box. The sound was coming from the town.

"What's going on?"

"Oh, it's the Kui Niu Drum," Zhang Xiang said, bringing over a stew of snow lotus and meat to feed Li Fan. "It's a rule from the time of the Immortal Venerable. The Kui Niu Drum can be heard for miles around. If demons are found to be invading, the war drums must be beaten, the beacon fires lit, and the message sent to the nine borders to summon the Eight Banners Immortal Army to protect our land."

However, it's been a long time since anyone from out of town has come to our aid. In the past, the two families from Beiping Jingsai would help each other, but this time... sigh... we can only rely on ourselves. Oh, Master, please eat first, I have to go check in."

Li Fan nodded, took the bowl, and watched as Zhang Xiang pulled out a set of ancestral iron armor, put it on, and then took a spear and a waist knife to go into battle.

"Hey, Zhang Xiang, this is for you." Li Fan thought for a moment, then took out the remaining iron spearhead of the Huan family's harpoon and handed it to him. "It's from the Northern Expedition, returned to its rightful owner."

"Thank you, Immortal! I will definitely kill more Hu Barbarians and live up to your expectations!" Zhang Xiang bowed to Li Fan, took the spearhead, replaced his own spear with it, and rushed out of the courtyard towards the playground.

Li Fan sighed as he watched his retreating figure.

"Sigh... I... don't want to run away like this... System, do you have any other ideas?"

'How about firing two railgun shots to take out that spittoon?'

"Hmm? Is it possible?"

"I can't do it, I'm just kidding."

'There are no orbital cannons in the sky, and to deal with a Blood God Child Ocean of the scale described by the Profound Heaven Sword Intent, we'd at least need to use a GRB gamma-ray burst to irradiate the Earth's surface. This would cause regional species extinction, and the commotion would be too great; we'd almost certainly be discovered... Let me see if there's anything else...'

Damn, maybe it's better for everyone if we run away now...

So Li Fan drank the snow lotus stewed meat soup, listened to the booming sound of the Kui Niu Drum, and drifted southward.

All that could be seen were the beacon fires, like countless stars, burning on the rolling mountains on the horizon.