Blood Food

"Han Dong, ranked eighty-second on the Bounty Order?"

The terror in Feng An's eyes nearly burst from their sockets, and even his voice had warped.

It was no wonder Feng An was so terrified. Kong Jiao had only met Han Dong for the first time today, yet Han Dong's bizarre manner and bloody methods had already shocked him deeply.

Feng An had spent so long in the outer sect; presumably, he understood Han Dong's terror even better than Kong Jiao did.

"Junior Brother Kong is right. We need to leave at once!" Feng An almost without hesitation affirmed Kong Jiao's earlier suggestion.

"Who is Han Dong?" Zhou Tingyu wanted to ask further.

Feng An answered with a face full of panic and a trembling voice. "You don't need to know who he is. You only need to know that once he comes, all these people in Frostmoon Altar still won't be enough for him to kill alone."

From Kong Jiao's return to the cave to their finalizing their plan to leave, only the time it took to drink a cup of tea had passed.

In that brief span of time.

From the direction Kong Jiao had just returned from, rumbling sounds rose once again.

Along with violent fluctuations of spiritual power, several crimson Sword Qi streaks filled with killing intent soared into the air.

They were likely cultivators who, like Kong Jiao, had been drawn by the commotion and gone to investigate.

But they were not as fortunate as Kong Jiao.

Without signal fireworks to provide cover, they would all die beneath Han Dong's sword.

"This way!" Having seen Han Dong's Sword Qi with his own eyes, Feng An hesitated no longer.

He chose what he believed to be the safest direction and took the lead, bringing Kong Jiao and Zhou Tingyu swiftly into the darkness.

Feng An moved quickly. He even disregarded the fact that his injuries had yet to heal, sprinting at the fastest speed he could manage.

Zhou Tingyu's cultivation was limited, and she could not quite keep up with Feng An. Kong Jiao had no choice but to half-carry her so she would not fall behind.

Strangely enough, Zhou Tingyu, who was usually so open and generous, became somewhat reserved when Kong Jiao held her like this.

But at a time like this, how could Kong Jiao spare any attention for Zhou Tingyu's reaction?

His mind was still replaying those terrifying Sword Qi streaks from earlier, as well as Zheng Gang's miserable death and that of the other sixth-level Wheel-Nourishing Realm cultivator.

"Are all seventh-level Wheel-Nourishing Realm cultivators this strong, or is Han Dong an exception?"

As he pondered, Kong Jiao caught sight of Feng An leading ahead. The clothes on his back were already soaked through.

He was sweating, and clearly not from heat.

That detail made Kong Jiao even more uneasy.

Although they were fleeing in the opposite direction, for some reason, his heart still could not settle, and an inexplicable irritation gnawed at him.

I hope nothing else goes wrong!

That was what Kong Jiao thought.

Rustle, rustle!

The three figures climbed over a steep cliff face.

They swiftly passed through a dense thicket on the cliff.

In their wake, the gusts they stirred sent the snow piled on the branches fluttering down.

Seeing that they had already left Frostmoon Altar Grand Canyon, Kong Jiao and Feng An could not help but breathe a sigh of relief.

"We finally got out!" Yet before their relief could spread.

Feng An, walking at the very front, stopped without warning. His murky eyes fixed rigidly on a gigantic tree that would take four or five people to encircle.

Kong Jiao immediately frowned. From what he knew of Feng An, he seemed to understand as well.

With a solemn expression, he gently set down Zhou Tingyu, who was in his arms. His gaze locked onto the giant tree as his hand silently rested on the longbow on his back.

Feng An said nothing, and neither did Kong Jiao. The two understood each other perfectly.

As though affected by the strange atmosphere, Zhou Tingyu also realized something. Her pretty face pale with fear, she slowly took a step back and hid behind the two of them.

The forest on that snowy night was deathly still.

The surroundings seemed frozen in that instant.

Kong Jiao could even hear his own heartbeat.

At last, a laugh like the ringing of a silver bell came from behind the giant tree.

"Hehe! I never expected you two to be so alert!"

Under Kong Jiao's watchful gaze, a woman dressed in red, with a delicate and curvaceous figure, slowly emerged from behind the giant tree.

Her face was brimming with allure; every frown and smile seemed to radiate seduction.

She was a woman of extraordinary charm.

But Kong Jiao's attention was clearly not on her face or figure. It was fixed on her red robes.

Her clothing was identical to Han Dong's.

"Sixth-level Wheel-Nourishing Realm!" Kong Jiao's other hand had already pressed against the Frostfall Fragmentary Scripture.

Perhaps because Han Dong had left such a deep impression on him, Kong Jiao instinctively grasped his trump card.

Feng An seemed to have returned to the slick manner he had displayed when he first met Kong Jiao. He smiled amicably at the woman. "Fairy, we bear no grudge against each other. Could you let us pass?"

Called Fairy by Feng An, the woman covered her mouth and laughed. Her already voluptuous figure trembled all the more.

Yet the softly spoken words from her mouth made all three of their faces darken.

"No, tonight is Senior Brother Han Dong's big night. If you blood food run away, he'll be very angry."

Feng An's smile froze on his face. He did not answer the woman at once, but turned to Kong Jiao and asked in a low voice only the two of them could hear, "Fight or run?"

Feng An truly was ruthless. His injuries had not healed, yet he still wanted to fight to the death.

Looking at the seriousness on Feng An's face, Kong Jiao knew that if he said fight, this old fellow would charge at the woman like a madman, just as he had when facing Jiang Xingtian.

But Kong Jiao knew that in Feng An's current state, he likely could not even bring out seventy percent of his former strength.

As for Kong Jiao himself, although he had made some progress after battling Jiang Xingtian.

That little improvement was negligible before a sixth-level Wheel-Nourishing Realm cultivator.

But if they ran, Zhou Tingyu's cultivation was too low, so that was no good plan either.

After hesitating for a long while, Kong Jiao could only grit his teeth and say in a low voice, "I'll cover your escape first. It'll be easier for me to get away alone."

Seeing that Kong Jiao had ultimately chosen neither of the two options.

Feng An's face stiffened. He gave Kong Jiao a deep look and probed, "Junior Brother Kong, can you manage alone?"

"Keeping her occupied won't be a problem. Beating her probably will." As Kong Jiao spoke, his hand slipped back into his pouch and took out a Qi-Bursting Pill.

Two remained.

Without drawing attention, he handed one to Feng An.

The latter gave a slight nod in understanding.

The backlash from his secret technique was too terrifying. The Qi-Bursting Pill was more reliable.

With the Qi-Bursting Pill, he could also take Zhou Tingyu and escape more quickly.

Just as Kong Jiao handed Feng An the pill, he caught a faint fragrance. Something seemed to have been slipped into his free hand from behind.

Kong Jiao looked down. What had been placed in his hand was a slightly dim golden talisman.

It was that Little Vajra Talisman.

Zhou Tingyu's tearful voice came from behind him. "Senior Brother Kong, you can't die!"

"Actually, you don't need to fight me to the death." The woman spoke again, watching the three with an amused expression. "As long as you obediently go back, this fairy absolutely won't pursue you."

"Fuck your mother!" Feng An cursed outright, shoving the Qi-Bursting Pill and a Moonfrost Ice Lingzhi into his mouth.

On the other side, Kong Jiao also swallowed the Qi-Bursting Pill and spiritual medicine.

Boom! Both their auras surged to the fifth level of the Wheel-Nourishing Realm.

"Attack!" Kong Jiao roared. He drew his longbow to the full, and amid a burst of spiritual energy, three icy arrows shot forth.

Feng An also let out a furious roar. His body swelled again and again, transforming into a humanoid beast as he pounced toward the woman.

The woman had originally believed them to be two little shrimps at the fourth level of the Wheel-Nourishing Realm. Who could have imagined that after swallowing pills, their cultivation would reach the fifth level?

Two fifth-level Wheel-Nourishing Realm cultivators were already enough to threaten her.

"Qi-Bursting Pills!" The woman seemed to have guessed the name of the pills they had swallowed, and her expression turned cold.

Watching Feng An rush to kill her first, she lightly struck out with her palm.

Whoosh!

That seemingly delicate palm carried fierce gusts, sending the snow on the ground flying into the sky.