Chapter 193

Chapter 193: Being the Hidden Predator Once Again

As the true Hehuan path cultivation technique appeared before him, Zhou Luo felt his breath quicken and was eager to look inside its contents.

This The Fusion of Dragon and Phoenix Technique originated from the ancient Hehuan path’s core dual cultivation technique.

The Hehuan path prided itself in ancient times with three great techniques, and this The Fusion of Dragon and Phoenix Technique was one of them.

Such a precious core path method made sense why a Fourth Level formation was used to hide it.

It was precisely due to this formation-transforming method that even the Qinyuan Sect people couldn’t discover its secret, only casting it aside here as a reward.

If Qinyuan Sect had known its true worth, they likely would have set it as their foundational sect technique long ago.

And Qinyuan Sect might even have been renamed to Hehuan Sect.

A core path method from ancient times—how rare and precious!

Zhou Luo felt his heartbeat accelerate suddenly.

This might be the best thing he had obtained to date.

At that moment, immense satisfaction welled up inside him.

This venture had been utterly worthwhile.

He even couldn’t wait to try out the power of this technique.

The only disappointment was that The Fusion of Dragon and Phoenix Technique could only fix one dual cultivation partner.

Once chosen, that partner couldn’t be changed.

The dual cultivation technique inherently blended spirit and flesh; it’s known as the harmony of dragon and phoenix—the idea of dragon harmonizing with many phoenixes didn’t exist.

This aspect slightly differed from the system’s concept.

The system was about "More Children, More Blessings," but this The Fusion of Dragon and Phoenix Technique focused on a single partner.

Still, it didn’t matter since he only planned to use it to boost his training speed, so both aims were compatible.

He directly placed the technique into his system backpack, intending to study it properly back home.

Then he sat cross-legged at the island’s center and began to rest.

A day later, he felt revitalized, gazing at the calm lake surface with a joyful mood.

Even though this journey through Longfeng Mountain range was extremely perilous, it had been richly rewarding overall.

Next, it was time for him to depart.

After leaving Illusionary Forest, he decided against going to Longfeng Marketplace to fence goods—who knew if Zhen Yuan Tower had other schemes? For safety, it was best to head straight back to Jiang City.

Almost two months had passed since leaving Jiang City, and the Lin Family probably assumed he was dead.

If that were the case, this might be the perfect chance to leave the Lin Family.

But Zhou Luo wouldn’t do that.

Because compared to Longfeng Mountain range, the Lin Family felt far safer.

From now on, he should simply stay honest in the family, use The Fusion of Dragon and Phoenix Technique to make children, and only come out when he grew stronger.

One hour later, Zhou Luo smoothly exited the lake area and walked outward following Wu Gang’s map.

Inevitably, he encountered attacks from magical beasts once again along the way.

He no longer held back, calling forth Little White while also using these magical beasts to practice sword techniques himself.

It had to be said that the Five Elements Sword Technique was indeed powerful.

Although his cultivation was only at the fifth layer of Qi Refinement, with the enhancement from the sword technique, the power he displayed was not inferior at all to the early sixth layer.

Added to the physical strength from entering the Third Level of the Body Refinement Technique, it made him as comfortable as a fish in water within this special area.

“Huh, there’s a fight going on.”

One day, as Zhou Luo reached a dense forest, he suddenly smelled blood in the air.

He frowned, immediately applying several talismans to conceal his form.

Could others have entered this area?

He jumped onto a tree trunk and moved forward cautiously.

Before long, he saw over ten people shuffling through the dense forest.

The leader turned out to be Ma Zhi, who had ambushed them before.

At that moment, Ma Zhi seemed to be searching for something with his subordinates.

Zhou Luo held his breath and concentrated, trying not to reveal the slightest hint of his aura.

“Damn it, where has that woman run off to?” muttered a cultivator, fiddling with a bush in front of him in a low voice.

Woman?

Could it be Shangguan Qianxue?

Zhou Luo thought to himself.

“She truly lives up to being a disciple of the Qinyuan Sect; she has cultivation at the pinnacle of Qi Refinement seventh level. Thankfully, the boss poisoned her in advance, or we wouldn’t have subdued her.”

“Stop talking. Let’s find her quickly before this woman returns to the sect, for we will be in trouble otherwise.”

“That’s right, so few of them came back, only that woman returned. She must have many magical artifacts on her.”

“Compared to the artifacts, I desire that woman’s body more; it must be fine and appealing, hehe.”

These cultivators continued searching in the dense forest while chatting without any restraint.

Zhou Luo became certain the woman they spoke of was Shangguan Qianxue.

He hadn’t expected her to be ambushed by this group after she left.

He hadn’t expected her to hide her strength so deeply; she possessed cultivation at the pinnacle of Qi Refinement seventh level.

Along the way, he had thought she was only at the early stage of Qi Refinement seventh level.

There was a world of difference between the early stage and the pinnacle.

But judging by this group’s manner, Shangguan Qianxue was likely facing great peril.

Zhou Luo didn’t plan to save her, but she had a top-grade magical artifact on her.

If she were truly gravely injured, he wouldn’t mind taking that magical artifact.

Perhaps she carried other treasures too.

Zhou Luo was hesitating whether to search for Shangguan Qianxue as well when suddenly, a cultivator below shouted loudly.

"Boss, it’s that woman’s blood."

Immediately, Ma Zhi led the others as they converged. Seeing the pool of blood on the ground, he laughed heartily: "Haha, I wonder where she thinks she can hide now."

Finished speaking, the others hurried along the trail of blood.

Seeing this, Zhou Luo hesitated no longer and silently followed behind.

Since Shangguan Qianxue was an Immortal Sect disciple, she surely had other means up her sleeve; perhaps he could play the hunter lying in wait once more.

Half an hour later.

Ma Zhi and the others arrived before a cave within a valley. He sent one of his men inside to scout.

Boom—

Moments later, a thunderous roar erupted from the cave, and the subordinate came stumbling out.

His face was pale with fright, and he said with lingering dread: "Boss, she’s inside!"

Ma Zhi was overjoyed. He turned respectfully to the group’s formation master: "Elder Jin, your expertise is needed once more."

It was only because of this man’s formation that they had succeeded in poisoning the woman, seizing this opportunity.

Otherwise, facing her peak Qi Refinement seventh level strength, capturing her would have been far from certain.

"Rest assured. I shall arrange an attacking formation here. It shall surely flush her out," Elder Jin stated confidently.

He then took out a formation disk, released his mental strength, and began setting up the formation at the cave entrance.

Inside the cave, Shangguan Qianxue, clad in white robes, had a feverish flush on her face, blood at the corner of her lips. She only felt her life energy churning violently, and a restless heat surged within her body.

She had tried her best to suppress this energy, but she couldn’t fully resist its encroachment. Her mind felt constantly unsettled, her chest heaving irregularly.

Ever since parting ways with Zhou Luo at the lake, although she had remained vigilant, she had ultimately let her guard down.

She never expected to fall into an enemy formation.

Countering that particular formation wouldn’t have been difficult for her, but she hadn’t anticipated the enemies had a backup plan. They exploited the formation’s power to subject her to the alluring fragrance.

If it were ordinary poison, the treasures on her person would have reacted.

But this alluring fragrance carried an aphrodisiac effect; while not lethal, it caused her significant distress.

Especially as she was also trying to resist the erosion of the Illusionary Power and withstand the attacks from Ma Zhi and his men.

So she was beginning to buckle under the pressure.

On the verge of being captured by this group, she had no choice but to summon her hidden trump card. Only then did she manage to find an opening to break through the formation and escape.

Yet they had still managed to find her traces.

Listening to the commotion outside the cave, Shangguan Qianxue bit her lip relentlessly, a faint spiritual light flickering around her body.

The alluring fragrance was likely a top-level first-level poison. Even after taking the antidote, its effects couldn’t be entirely purged.

Coupled with her severe injuries, this time, she feared she truly would die here.

There was no fear in death.

Shangguan Qianxue thought it unbearable to die at their hands simply.

No.

She couldn’t await their completion of the formation.

A look of resolve crossed Shangguan Qianxue’s face as an item materialized in her hand.

It was a top-quality talisman, her final trump card.

Gritting her teeth, she rose and headed for the cave entrance.

Sensing her aura, those outside guarding instantly channeled spiritual energy.

"Don’t let this bitch disrupt the formation!" Ma Zhi shouted, charging toward the cave mouth first.

The others swiftly followed.

Whoosh—

A streak of light shot forth as Shangguan Qianxue hurled the talisman.

The top-quality talisman erupted into blinding radiance mid-air, unleashing a dreadful power.

Panic seized the group.

"Fall back!"

Ma Zhi halted abruptly, scrambling backward.

The others reacted similarly.

Boom—

The talisman’s force exploded. Countless fireballs manifested overhead, plummeting like heavenly fire, carrying powerful devastation.

Seizing this moment, Shangguan Qianxue escaped toward the opposite flank.

Her pursuers couldn’t intercept her fast enough; weaker ones perished instantly beneath the blazing hail.

Ma Zhi’s group could only focus their full strength on defending against the talisman’s frontal onslaught.

A top-quality talisman wielded truly formidable power.

Watching silently, Zhou Luo’s heart trembled at the sight.

This Immortal Sect disciple indeed held unexpected reserves.

Luckily, he hadn’t acted rashly—who knew what else this woman concealed?

Observing her fleeing figure, Zhou Luo felt a gentle breeze stir about him; he tread swift as the wind, swiftly giving chase.

Though uncertain if Shangguan Qianxue held further hidden cards, he resolved to claim that top-grade magical artifact for himself.

He wouldn’t abandon this pursuit lightly.