"Ling Yu, why did you bring back a kid?" Elder Hong Tian's gaze fell on a young boy held in Ji Yuan's hand as he stepped out of the void.
The boy, no more than sixteen or seventeen, had reached the early stage of the Second Realm. He looked scrawny, with an ordinary appearance, but possessed a pair of lively eyes. However, his gaze constantly darted around nervously, and his demeanor gave him the air of a street rogue.
"This fellow is quite interesting. He can use techniques to hide in the void, and even I almost didn't detect him," Ji Yuan glanced at the boy in his hand and said with interest.
His spiritual sense was inherently powerful, and he cultivated a profound mystic art, the "Mysterious Origin Derivation Divine True Method." Now that he had ascended to the Third Realm, his perception in all aspects had significantly improved. Under the shroud of his divine sense, it was extremely difficult even for cultivators of the same realm to conceal their whereabouts. Yet, if he hadn't used his life-bound flying sword and become more sensitive to the void, he might have been tricked by this boy.
More importantly, he had found a bronze identity token of the Rebirth Tower on the boy. As the Rebirth Tower led the rebels in their uprising and ravaged one region after another, various forces had come to understand it more deeply. This organization, formed by the five demonic sects and a host of demons and monsters, was divided into four ranks: gold, silver, bronze, and iron. Generally, cultivators below the Third Realm could only obtain an iron token unless there were special circumstances. Obtaining a bronze token or higher required reaching the Third Realm, having an internal direct recommendation, or possessing special abilities.
Ji Yuan surmised that the boy he captured likely belonged to the third category, and it was even possible he fell into the second.
"Could it be that our movements were exposed because of this kid?" Elder Hong Tian's brow furrowed, and a sharp glint flashed in his eyes.
They had infiltrated the forest, secretly crossing the border between two prefectures, believing they had left no trace and alerted no cultivators. However, as they passed through the rebel lines, they were inexplicably pursued by a team of cultivators, including three in the Third Realm. Reflecting now, it seemed connected to this boy, perhaps he had been the one secretly tipping them off.
At this remark, the gazes of the others turned towards the boy, filled with killing intent, as if they wanted to tear him apart. The boy flinched in fear, his lively eyes darting around, giving him a shifty look.
"I'm not a cultivator of the Rebirth Tower, they captured me!" he cried out, feeling the killing intent in their eyes.
However, they paid no heed, or perhaps had no interest in his story. Ji Yuan casually cast a restriction, sealing the boy's control over his body with his spiritual power. This naturally included preventing him from speaking further.
While they talked, their steps never faltered, yet the pursuers behind them drew ever closer. From more than two li away, they could already feel the powerful auras of five cultivators in the Ming Dao Realm.
"I will hold them off, you all quickly leave this place." Elder Hong Tian's brow twitched, and he then turned to face the pursuing cultivators.
Seeing this, Ji Yuan offered no dissuade. As an inner elder of the Nine Profound Sect, hailing from Thunder Marsh Peak, his thunder techniques were immensely powerful, and he was a renowned cultivator of many years. Although the five cultivators behind them were clearly masters of the same realm, Elder Hong Tian would undoubtedly be able to escape their pursuit. Moreover, they indeed needed someone to intercept the pursuers so that they might have a chance to thoroughly conceal their tracks.
Not long after, loud explosions echoed from behind them, thunderous roars erupting, causing the spiritual energy for miles around to become chaotic! Elder Hong Tian stood alone between heaven and earth, boundless lightning radiating outwards, preventing two to thirty cultivators from advancing even a step! Even the five Third Realm cultivators were forced to halt, looking at the old man blocking their path with solemn expressions.
To conceal his identity, Elder Hong Tian did not use the cultivation techniques or mystic arts of the Nine Profound Sect. The offensive methods he employed were merely fragments he had incidentally obtained. Yet, even so, his every move, the combination of his profound spiritual power and violent lightning, suppressed the five cultivators of the same realm.
This scene was not only witnessed by the pursuers but also by Ji Yuan, who was moved. He had originally thought his cultivation level was unmatched among his peers. However, looking at Elder Hong Tian now, he realized he still had some distance to go to reach true power.
"Go!" Ji Yuan said in a deep voice. He spared no expense of spiritual power, employing techniques recorded in the Profound Heaven Sword Art. He unleashed beams of soft light, enveloping Chen Rong and nine inner disciples, leading them into the sky and speeding away into the distance.
In just a short period, the group had traveled thirty to forty li and finally landed in a forest.
"Are you alright?" Xue Yang stepped forward, supporting the swaying Ji Yuan. The secret techniques of the Profound Heaven Sword Art, though extremely effective, consumed an immense amount of spiritual power. Even for Ji Yuan, whose spiritual power was far purer and vaster than that of cultivators in the same realm, it was still quite taxing. Of course, this was also due to his previous battle with three cultivators of the same realm, where he had used decisive means to kill his opponents. That battle had depleted nearly half of his spiritual power, and applying such secret techniques now naturally placed a considerable burden on his physique.
"It's nothing, just a temporary lack of spiritual power." Ji Yuan shook his head, then took a deep breath. The spiritual power within his body immediately flowed again. His complexion returned to normal, and he looked around before thoughtfully taking out a few pills. He crushed them into powder and, using his spiritual power, sent them to each person. These pills could not be taken internally, but when crushed and attached to clothing, they could greatly reduce the body's scent.
Ji Yuan then employed various other methods to completely conceal the group's tracks before confidently proceeding. Although these were not particularly profound techniques, with his current cultivation level, even cultivators of the same realm would find it extremely difficult to track them unless they were exceptionally skilled in tracking and knew what to look for.
As Ji Yuan continued forward, he consumed a few pills and pondered in his mind. The killing power of the Profound Heaven Sword Art was indeed formidable; otherwise, it wouldn't be ranked among the top three sword arts in Lingyang Prefecture. However, its drawbacks were also very obvious. The spiritual power cultivated was pure, but its quantity was not abundant, and the various techniques of this art consumed a tremendous amount of spiritual power.