Ice Soul Divine Thunder

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—

Piercing whistles tore through the clouds.

Every feather contained razor-sharp Sword Qi, blanketing Red Cloud from all directions.

Red Cloud's expression remained unchanged. He traced a circle before himself with the Ice Soul Sword, and a blue sword wheel appeared out of thin air.

The sword wheel shredded all the golden feathers.

At the same time, Red Cloud quietly extended his other hand. A mass of dim blue light gathered in his palm—it was one of Red Cloud's trump cards, the Ice Soul Divine Thunder.

The Ice Soul Divine Thunder was a single-use magical treasure design Red Cloud had ultimately developed by comprehending the mysteries of the Ice Soul Essence, taking inspiration from grenades from his previous life, and using the Illustrated Record of Literary Fortune to deduce it.

Red Cloud had refined it from Nine Heavens Profound Ice. Though it was only the size of a thumb, its power was immense. Once it exploded, everything within ten thousand li would be frozen into ice sculptures.

Moreover, the Ice Soul Divine Thunder countered Phoenix Truefire and inflicted additional damage upon Phoenix Clan experts.

The Golden-Winged Great Peng was also one of the phoenix breeds.

The Golden-Winged Great Peng did not notice the Ice Soul Divine Thunder in Red Cloud's hand. Seeing his attack neutralized, fury rose in his heart, and he prepared to unleash an even stronger divine ability.

But Red Cloud would not give him that chance.

The instant the Golden-Winged Great Peng activated his divine ability, Red Cloud abruptly hurled the Ice Soul Divine Thunder in his hand.

The dim blue point of light was unbelievably fast, reaching the Golden-Winged Great Peng in virtually the blink of an eye.

"Not good!"

The Golden-Winged Great Peng's pupils contracted sharply. He sensed the terrifying power contained within that dim blue point of light, but it was already too late to evade.

Boom, rumble—

In the next instant, the Ice Soul Divine Thunder exploded with a deafening crash.

A terrifying cold tide then swept in every direction, freezing everything within ten thousand li into ice.

Though the Golden-Winged Great Peng had shielded his body with his golden wings in time, the cold tide still invaded his body, making his movements much slower.

"The chance is now!"

At the sight, a sharp light flashed through Red Cloud's eyes, and the Ice Soul Sword transformed into a heaven-shaking sword rainbow.

Seizing the opportunity, Red Cloud drove the Ice Soul Sword straight toward the Golden-Winged Great Peng's chest. This strike contained all his mana, its edge laid bare. Wherever the sword edge passed, it tore a pitch-black rift through space itself.

Terror filled the Golden-Winged Great Peng's heart. He wanted to dodge, but the cold tide had affected his body, slowing him by half a beat. He could only watch helplessly as the sword rainbow stabbed toward him.

At the critical moment, a crimson-gold flame descended from the sky and struck the sword rainbow with perfect accuracy.

Phoenix Truefire melted the sword rainbow completely.

Fire Phoenix had acted at the crucial moment.

"Brat, you're courting death!"

At that moment, Fire Phoenix's rage soared to the heavens. He had not expected Red Cloud to be so difficult to deal with—or to dare resist. Red Cloud had nearly killed the Golden-Winged Great Peng right under his nose.

The Golden-Winged Great Peng had discovered the Parasol Tree and was a meritorious servant of the Phoenix Clan. If he allowed the Golden-Winged Great Peng to die, Fire Phoenix would have no way to answer to Primordial Phoenix upon his return.

Seeing the sword rainbow blocked, Red Cloud sighed inwardly, knowing he had missed the best chance for a sure kill.

Though the Ice Soul Divine Thunder was useful, Fire Phoenix was now on guard. Its effect would be greatly diminished if he used it again.

"Of the Thirty-Six Stratagems, fleeing is the best!"

The assassination had failed. Red Cloud made his decision at once and did not continue the fight. His body became a streak of light as he withstood Fire Phoenix's pressure and continued fleeing southeast.

Seeing this, Fire Phoenix snorted coldly, beat his wings, and turned into a streak of fire in pursuit.

The Golden-Winged Great Peng also dispersed the cold tide within his body. With fury written all over his face, he followed close behind. A soul-stirring chase had thus begun.

Red Cloud fled madly ahead, while Fire Phoenix and the Golden-Winged Great Peng pursued relentlessly behind him.

Red Cloud was the fastest, the Golden-Winged Great Peng came second, and Fire Phoenix third. Like meteors, the three carved three dazzling trails across the sky. Wherever they passed, the weaker beings of the myriad races below fled in panic.

The Firecloud Escape was indeed incredibly fast. With Red Cloud exerting it at full strength, even while bearing Fire Phoenix's pressure, the distance between them continued to slowly widen.

Though Fire Phoenix's cultivation was higher, speed was not his strength. The Golden-Winged Great Peng was fast, but the Ice Soul Divine Thunder had damaged his vitality, and he could not catch up for the moment.

"This won't do. I have to find a way to shake them off." Red Cloud frowned deeply and muttered.

As Red Cloud flew onward, he considered countermeasures. Suddenly, he sensed more auras rushing toward this direction from afar, including quite a few Late-Stage Primordial Unity Golden Immortals and even peak-level experts.

Zenith Heaven Golden Immortals were elders even within the camps of the Three Clans. At such a tense time, they would not act lightly, as the Three Clans were all keeping one another in check.

Red Cloud's expression shifted slightly. He knew that once those people caught up with him, he would truly be in danger.

With that thought, Red Cloud suddenly changed direction and flew toward a sprawling mountain range.

That mountain range was called the Azure Parasol Mountain Range, a renowned perilous land in the Primordial World. Its terrain was complex, filled everywhere with deep valleys and ravines. Thick fog shrouded it year-round, making it the ideal place to hide and flee.

Fire Phoenix saw through Red Cloud's intentions. A trace of anxiety flashed through his eyes as he shouted, "We can't let him enter the Azure Parasol Mountain Range, or he'll be difficult to find!"

The Golden-Winged Great Peng also knew the severity of the situation. Gritting his teeth, he activated a bloodline secret art. A streak of blood light rose, and his speed abruptly increased by a great margin.

In the next instant, the Golden-Winged Great Peng became a bolt of golden lightning and gave chase, the distance between them shrinking ever further.

At the same time, Fire Phoenix raised his head and cried toward the heavens.

Fire Phoenix let out a high, clear phoenix cry that pierced the clouds and spread in all directions. He was summoning nearby avian experts to come support him.

This meant that Red Cloud might soon have to face more than just Fire Phoenix and the Golden-Winged Great Peng.

"Damn it!"

Red Cloud cursed inwardly. His speed increased by another thirty percent, and before the Golden-Winged Great Peng could catch him, he plunged headfirst into the Azure Parasol Mountain Range. The thick fog instantly swallowed his figure.

The Golden-Winged Great Peng stopped at the edge of the Azure Parasol Mountain Range, staring at the fog before him with an ugly expression.

The Azure Parasol Mountain Range had once been the cultivation grounds of a great expert known as the Azure Parasol Ancestor.

At the end of the previous calamity, when he joined the campaign against the ferocious beast Shen Ni, the Azure Parasol Ancestor had unfortunately fallen in the end.

Perhaps the Azure Parasol Ancestor had left behind contingencies. After his death, dense fog enshrouded the Azure Parasol Mountain Range.

The dense fog could block divine sense. Once one entered it, one could only look about in confusion. Countless killing formations and maze formations lay within, and even Zenith Heaven Golden Immortals might fall there.

Fire Phoenix soon caught up as well. He hovered above the dense fog, dangerous light flickering in his eyes.

"He can't have gone far. Split up and search. We must find him!" Fire Phoenix said coldly.

No sooner had he spoken than several cries rang out in the distance. Three figures flew over from different directions.

They were three avian experts of differing appearances, all at the Early Primordial Unity Golden Immortal stage. They were the reinforcements Fire Phoenix had summoned, racing over at top speed upon receiving the signal.

"You three, seal off the eastern, southern, and northern sides of the Azure Parasol Mountain Range. The Golden-Winged Great Peng and I will enter from the west. We must trap him inside!"

Fire Phoenix swiftly issued his orders. The five figures scattered in different directions, and a large-scale manhunt officially began.

Meanwhile, Red Cloud had already ventured several million li deep into the Azure Parasol Mountain Range. Fortunately, he did not trigger any killing formations, and eventually stopped within a hidden cave.

After confirming that it was safe, Red Cloud set up restrictions to conceal his aura, arranged formations to completely seal the cave entrance, then took out several pills to restore his mana and swallowed them.