Just as Shi Yi fled at top speed, the venerables of Primordial Divine Mountain widened their search. Some powerful beings who had yet to show themselves also appeared, no longer caring how the experts of Demon Spirit Lake felt.
Of course, they had a respectable pretext, claiming it was all for Shi Yi's safety.
The two venerables of Demon Spirit Lake were anxious and furious at the sight, but there was nothing they could do. After all, theirs was not the only faction with a say on Primordial Divine Mountain.
"I hope Yi'er's fortune runs deep enough to let him escape this calamity," Old Golden Spider said with a sigh.
"When I first heard that Yi'er had entered the Blood River Passage, I was beside myself with excitement, thinking he had a chance to obtain the legendary complete Qilin Precious Technique. Only later did I realize that it was a scalding hot potato. Getting your hands on it isn't necessarily a good thing." Azure Demon Black-Eyed Spider looked up at the sky and sighed deeply, worried about Shi Yi's future.
Shi Ziteng said nothing, his gaze profound, as though he were pondering something.
"Two Founding Masters, we cannot sit here waiting for death, watching the people of Primordial Divine Mountain search for Yi'er," he suddenly said through voice transmission.
Immediately afterward, Shi Ziteng transmitted his voice again. "Yi'er is clever and gifted. He must know how much is at stake with a technique of the Ten Fiends. If he manages to get out, he certainly won't walk into their net. He'll flee this land of trouble as quickly as he can.
"What we can do is erase every trace connected to him."
At his words, Old Golden Spider and Azure Demon Black-Eyed Spider came to their senses. They hurriedly nodded and replied through voice transmission, agreeing with Shi Ziteng's suggestion.
With that, the two spiders and the man began to act.
"Zi Teng, you are Yi'er's birth father. That puts you in a delicate position. You should stay with one of us so others don't get the chance to exploit you," Old Golden Spider said thoughtfully, turning toward him.
"Thank you for your protection, Founding Master," Shi Ziteng said gratefully.
He knew Old Golden Spider was telling the truth. In the eyes of Primordial Divine Mountain's venerables, Shi Ziteng was not even an ant. It was entirely possible that they would use him to force Shi Yi to show himself.
In the end, Shi Ziteng stayed by Old Golden Spider's side.
Thus began a massive hunt for Shi Yi.
Fortunately, Shi Yi had anticipated all of this early on and left the area around the Qilin Secret Realm in time.
Night fell, but Shi Yi still did not stop. His eyes shone like two brilliant stars, glimmering in the darkness.
The tangled forests of the Great Wilderness were home to many ancient beasts and other creatures. Whenever night descended, savage wilderness beasts and predators emerged to hunt. Terrifying howls rang out from time to time, shattering the Great Wilderness's tranquility.
Such surroundings were a nightmare for ordinary creatures of the Blood Moving Realm. The predators of the night were even more dangerous than those of the day.
For Shi Yi, however, night was no different from day. He activated his Double Pupils and scanned the dense forest ahead, piercing through layer upon layer of deception with a glance to see straight to the underlying truth.
Ahead, an old snake lay silently in ambush, coiled around a thick tree trunk. Its skin blended into the bark so perfectly that it was impossible to spot while it remained still.
But it could not escape Shi Yi's eyes. He detected the danger and veered away in advance, skirting the old snake's ambush site.
This unusual behavior surprised the old snake. It had thought its prey was almost within reach, only for this human to suddenly circle around the area and thwart its plans.
A pair of enormous yellow eyes watched coldly as Shi Yi departed. The snake hesitated, but ultimately chose not to pursue him.
Shi Yi wove through the dense forest. Only after a long while did the chill at his back slowly fade.
That great snake had absorbed the essence of the sun and moon and cultivated for many years. Its cultivation was considerable; at the very least, it was a creature of the Cave Heaven Realm. If it had entangled him, it would immediately have drawn more, stronger predators, and Shi Yi would have found it difficult to escape.
Qilin Might was excellent for intimidating ancient beasts of limited intelligence. But to creatures with greater intelligence, it was not a deterrent-it was a temptation.
He weighed his options as he sped through the dense forest, repeatedly avoiding dangerous creatures.
He could no longer stay at Demon Spirit Lake, and the Martial King Manor was a dragon's pool and a tiger's den as well. The Martial King alone, or even the Stone Emperor, could not protect him.
Now, the only person who could protect him and would be willing to do so was probably the Double Pupils Woman in the Ancient Sacred Academy.
Compared to those so-called "titans" of the Upper Realm, she might still be inexperienced. But here in the Lower Realm, the Double Pupils Woman was invincible. Protecting him should pose little problem.
"The Ancient Sacred Academy..." Shi Yi murmured.
To reach that place, he first had to become a disciple of the Heaven Mending Pavilion, and he had to be dazzling enough. Under normal circumstances, the Ancient Sacred Academy did not open its doors unless an unparalleled prodigy appeared who could astonish the entire Desolate Region.
To enter the Ancient Sacred Academy, Shi Yi would have to prove his strength to the Heaven Mending Pavilion's senior members.
That would not be difficult. His achievements in the Blood Moving Realm alone were enough to shake the Heaven Mending Pavilion.
Once he reached the Cave Heaven Realm, Shi Yi would only grow stronger. Gold would shine wherever it was.
As for exposing his identity, Shi Yi was not particularly worried. Judging by Shi Hao's experiences at the Heaven Mending Pavilion in the original story, the faction had a fairly good reputation. As long as Shi Yi did nothing detrimental to the Heaven Mending Pavilion, there should be no problem.
With that thought, Shi Yi decided to head for the Heaven Mending Pavilion immediately.
What he did not know was that a streak of azure light descended along the route he had taken.
"This is..."
Sensing the lingering auras nearby, Azure Demon Black-Eyed Spider could not help looking astonished.
The spider had actually detected the aura of a Qilin here.
At present, the only person known to possess the Qilin Remnant Technique was Shi Yi of Demon Spirit Lake.
Clearly, Shi Ziteng's words had come true. Shi Yi really had escaped, and he had already left the heart of the maelstrom far behind, fleeing into the distance.
But as someone in the Blood Moving Realm, he was still far too inexperienced before a venerable. The traces he had left were obvious at a glance.
There was nothing to be done about that. After all, several major realms separated the Blood Moving Realm from the venerable level. One stood in the heavens, the other on the earth.
Realizing the gravity of the situation, Azure Demon Black-Eyed Spider acted without hesitation and immediately erased the traces Shi Yi had left.
The spider followed those traces onward, concealing Shi Yi's trail along the way.
Only when the Qilin aura vanished did Azure Demon Black-Eyed Spider stop.
The spider gazed toward the Great Wilderness in the darkness. The night was deep, and all was silent save for the occasional roar of an ancient beast. If the estimate was correct, Shi Yi should be somewhere in the stretch of wilderness ahead.
Azure Demon Black-Eyed Spider did not continue searching for Shi Yi. The spider knew that Shi Yi's immediate departure after leaving the Qilin Secret Realm most likely meant he had obtained the complete Qilin Precious Technique. Seeking him out would only bring mortal danger upon him.
Now, the only thing Azure Demon Black-Eyed Spider could do was pray that everything went smoothly for Shi Yi.
"The complete Qilin Precious Technique... Yi'er truly is favored by destiny. Such a tremendous opportunity is not something an ordinary person could obtain."
Before you continue