Audaciously Bold

"That must be Xu Zhiji and Xu Shisen. Let's not meet up with them. We'll just pretend we got separated and lost while fleeing, so we don't get roped into their errands again," Liang Jingtang said, his face grim as he followed Xia Daoming's gaze and vaguely saw the two figures.

"After being humiliated like this all the way here, don't you want to get back at them, Master?" Xia Daoming narrowed his eyes, looking at the Xu Zhiji grandfather-grandson duo climbing higher and higher.

"You..." Liang Jingtang was so startled by his words that he swayed, almost falling off the cliff.

"We'll be prepared while they're caught off guard. Besides, Xu Zhiji is old. As long as we catch him by surprise and gravely injure him, he'll have nowhere to go but death.

As for Xu Shisen, I'll probably need you to keep him occupied first. When we return to Li City, even the Xu Family will likely think they died by the Rabbit King's claws. No one will suspect us," Xia Daoming said calmly.

Liang Jingtang felt a chill run down his spine and looked at Xia Daoming as if he were a complete stranger.

His disciple's cunning and courage made him, his master, feel like his own life had been wasted.

"Are you confident? Xu Zhiji is an Eighth-Rank Great Martial Master!" After a long pause, Liang Jingtang swallowed hard and asked.

"If Xu Zhiji is wary of me, I'd have some confidence in defeating him, but killing him would be much harder.

However, after spending so much time with him, I've been showing weakness, and my displayed cultivation is indeed that of a Fifth-Rank Great Martial Master. He definitely won't be guarding against me.

As long as he's not on guard, I'm confident I can gravely injure him and ultimately leave him in the Vast Mountain Range," Xia Daoming said.

"Could it be that your cultivation is higher than Fifth-Rank?" Liang Jingtang's heart leaped at his words.

"Heh heh, my true cultivation is Sixth-Rank. And if I can get that Ice Rabbit and brew it with Golden Crow Grass into a medicinal soup, I'm sure I can break through to Seventh-Rank. I have the Golden Crow Grass, but I'm still missing the Ice Rabbit," Xia Daoming said.

"Sixth-Rank..." Liang Jingtang's mouth fell open. He stared at Xia Daoming for a long time and said, "Actually, you already revealed it just now. It's just that the situation was perilous, and I didn't pay enough attention to think it through.

However, I've heard that the medicinal soup brewed from Ice Rabbit and Golden Crow Grass is very potent and requires a young Seventh-Rank Great Martial Master with surging vital energy to withstand its effects!"

"Heh heh, don't worry, Master. I have a naturally strong physique, so there won't be any problems. Besides, you should have felt it when we were escaping just now – my vital energy is far more surging than yours!" Xia Daoming said.

"That's right! Your vital energy is much more surging and powerful than mine, no less than a peak Seventh-Rank Great Martial Master," Liang Jingtang nodded, then forcefully swallowed to moisten his dry throat. A ruthless glint appeared in his eyes as he said, "Since it can help you become a Seventh-Rank Great Martial Master, damn it, let's do it!"

As the master and disciple spoke, they didn't stop climbing.

By the time Liang Jingtang decided to take the risky gamble, they had already reached the steepest part of the cliff.

From here on, they would need to rely on vines or ropes to continue climbing the peak.

Just as they were looking around for vines, Xia Daoming's eyes suddenly lit up.

He saw a patch of cloud and mist condensed in the distance, which was unusual. Normally, at such a high altitude with sunlight, there shouldn't be any clouds or mist.

"Could it be the Ice-Cold Purple Ganoderma?" Xia Daoming's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly moved sideways.

As he got closer, through the lingering mist, Xia Daoming vaguely saw purple vines and leaves.

"It's the Ice-Cold Purple Ganoderma!" Liang Jingtang, who had followed behind, exclaimed excitedly.

"That's right. I didn't expect our luck to be this good!" Xia Daoming said with a smile. He walked forward and waved away the mist, revealing a stalk of Ice-Cold Purple Ganoderma.

The Ice-Cold Purple Ganoderma was growing in a crevice filled with soil, where its roots were deeply embedded.

Xia Daoming took out a small knife and carefully dug out the Ice-Cold Purple Ganoderma, including its vines, leaves, and roots.

The purple ganoderma seemed to have vaguely taken on a human form.

As it was dug out, the surrounding temperature seemed to drop significantly.

"Gulp!" Liang Jingtang swallowed and said excitedly, "This, this must be at least four to five hundred years old."

"Four to five hundred years!" Xia Daoming's face showed excitement.

A hundred-year-old Ice-Cold Purple Ganoderma had already been a great supplement for him, helping him strengthen his meridians by one level.

A four to five hundred-year-old purple ganoderma would undoubtedly be much more potent.

"Master, let's go. Xu Zhiji will definitely be very happy to see this four to five hundred-year-old Ice-Cold Purple Ganoderma," Xia Daoming quickly calmed down and said with a smile.

Liang Jingtang was stunned for a moment before he understood what Xia Daoming meant.

"You... Master has truly misjudged you!" Liang Jingtang caught up to Xia Daoming, saying with great emotion.

"Isn't it good to have misjudged you?" Xia Daoming retorted.

"Good, of course, it's good! Haha, the most correct thing I, Liang Jingtang, have ever done in my life is probably taking you as my disciple," Liang Jingtang was slightly taken aback, then laughed heartily.

At the summit of the mountain.

Xu Zhiji and Xu Shisen looked down with pale and grim expressions.

Xu Zhiji's left arm had a shocking wound, as if cut by a sharp blade, flesh torn open. However, the blood had already congealed.

"Uncle-Ancestor, are you alright?" Xu Shisen asked.

"I won't die! I really didn't expect there to be a Rabbit King in the valley below!" Xu Zhiji said, still feeling lingering fear.

"What do we do now?" Xu Shisen asked.

"We'll wait here for a while and see if anyone from our Xu Family escapes up," Xu Zhiji replied.

"What about the others?" Xu Shisen blurted out.

"The others? If it were you, would you still eagerly come to rendezvous?" Xu Zhiji asked with a cold laugh.

Xu Shisen thought for a moment and shook his head, "No. If they rendezvous with us, they'll definitely end up as cannon fodder on the way back."

It would be better to use the excuse of being chased by the Rabbit King and getting lost to find a way to run back to Li City ourselves. That way, it won't be easy for us to settle the score with them later."

"You're not entirely stupid!" Xu Zhiji nodded.

After speaking, Xu Zhiji fell silent. He leaned against the trunk of a towering tree, took out some wound medicine, and applied it to his injured left arm.

Just now, while he was holding the Ice Rabbit's heart and the Ice-Cold Purple Ganoderma, he became the primary target of the Rabbit King. Several ice arrows were shot at him. If his cultivation hadn't been profound, he would have died in the Cold Ice Valley.

Even so, one ice arrow still grazed his arm.

That sharp and icy ice arrow had almost crippled his left arm.

"Uncle-Ancestor, let me help you apply the medicine!" Xu Shisen said quickly.

"No need. You keep an eye on the area below to see if anyone comes up. Also, be wary of the Rabbit King leaving the valley to attack," Xu Zhiji said.

"Understood, Uncle-Ancestor!" Xu Shisen nodded in agreement.

Thus, the grandfather and grandson each took up their positions, one overlooking the area below, the other tending to his own wound.

Soon, Xu Zhiji finished treating his arm. Just as he was about to get up, he suddenly heard footsteps in the forest ahead. Then, he saw the master and disciple duo, Xia Daoming and Liang Jingtang.

Upon seeing Xu Zhiji, the expressions of Xia Daoming and Liang Jingtang changed noticeably. They quickly flashed their bodies and hid behind a large tree.

"Hmph, Liang Jingtang, you and your disciple have quite resilient lives," Xu Zhiji said with a cold laugh.

"Cough, cough, so Elder and Young Master Shisen are already back. My disciple and I were just about to find you to regroup!" Liang Jingtang emerged from behind the tree, his expression extremely unnatural.

"Is that so? I think you were trying to avoid us!" Xu Shisen said sarcastically.

"How could that be!" Liang Jingtang replied with a look of feigned sincerity.

While Liang Jingtang was speaking, Xia Daoming, who had been hiding behind him, subtly shifted the bulging pack on his shoulder further behind him.

"Young man, what do you have in your pack?" Xu Zhiji's eyes flashed with a hint of surprise as he asked calmly.

"It's nothing, nothing at all. It's just the Ice-Cold Purple Ganoderma that Elder distributed to this junior down in the valley," Xia Daoming said nervously, his gaze evasive.

"Heh heh, Xia Daoming, the Ice-Cold Purple Ganoderma that Uncle-Ancestor gave you wasn't that big! Why don't you open your pack!" Xu Shisen said with a sinister, cold laugh.

"It really is just..." Xia Daoming insisted stubbornly.

"Open it!" Xu Zhiji interrupted coldly, leaving no room for argument.

"Yes!" Xia Daoming replied helplessly, then took down the pack.

"Elder, you said earlier that we only need to hand over half of the harvested Ice-Cold Purple Ganoderma and can keep the other half. You are an Eighth-Rank Great Martial Master and a Xu Family Elder; your word is definitely binding, right?" Xia Daoming said after taking down the pack, hesitating for a moment before looking up at Xu Zhiji.

"Of course! Hurry and open it," Xu Zhiji said without hesitation, a genuine curiosity stirring in his gaze as he looked at the pack in Xia Daoming's hand.

"Alright!" Xia Daoming gritted his teeth and opened the pack with trembling hands.

Immediately, a chill emanated from it, and a faint mist formed around the pack.

"A semi-humanoid Ice-Cold Purple Ganoderma! This, this must be at least four to five hundred years old!" Xu Zhiji exclaimed, unable to suppress his excitement as he stood up abruptly.

"Elder, you must keep your word!" Xia Daoming clutched the pack tightly, adopting a stance that suggested he would fight to the death if Xu Zhiji reneged.

"Don't worry, I will certainly keep my word. Quickly hand over this Ice-Cold Purple Ganoderma so I can examine it carefully and determine its exact age," Xu Zhiji said anxiously.

"Alright!" Xia Daoming walked towards Xu Zhiji step by step.

Xu Zhiji's gaze was fixed ardently on the pack in Xia Daoming's hand.

Xu Shisen was no different.

PS: Yesterday, we quickly fought our way back to the top spot on the Xianxia subscription new book list. Thank you all very much for your strong support, dear readers. On this new day, we continue to ask for your collections and reads. If you have created book lists, please consider including and reviewing this book if it's convenient. Thank you.

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