Volume 1 Volume 6 Chapter 64

Volume 6 Chapter 64: Escape, Jiuhua

Xu Qingfan’s fist is clenched very tightly, and the light from the "Holy Spirit Buddhist Relic" barely leaks out, while the demon is focused on tearing Xu Qingfan to pieces and does not notice what Xu Qingfan is holding in his fist.

In the blink of an eye, Xu Qingfan and the demon finally collide.

"Aoo…"

The demon howls with excitement, one claw reaching for Xu Qingfan’s chest and the other for his head, showing no mercy, already imagining Xu Qingfan’s chest bursting and his brain splattering in a gruesome scene.

Fortunately, Xu Qingfan was well prepared for this.

"Ding…"

Suddenly, a clear and ancient bell sound rang out. It was Xu Qingfan’s "Five Spirit Bell" appearing suddenly, standing in front of Xu Qingfan’s chest, blocking the demon’s claw that was reaching for him.

This time, the "Five Spirit Bell" was not transformed into a shield; it appeared in its original form, perfectly blocking the path of the demon’s attack. Its small size, while having a limited defense area, allowed it to have greater strength, making Xu Qingfan more agile, as his movements were not restricted by a shield.

After the melodious and ancient bell sound echoed, it resonated deeply within. The demon felt its inner energy disperse for a moment, and its body instinctively paused.

However, at the same time, the demon’s other sharp claw still rushed toward Xu Qingfan’s head, unstoppable.

But Xu Qingfan made a shocking move; he raised his left hand toward the demon’s claw, holding a spiritual talisman that radiated mysterious Spirit Qi energy, which was the "Spirit Sealing Talisman" he had obtained from the black giant mountain!

"Crack…"

A clear crackling sound broke out. The demon’s power was so strong that when Xu Qingfan’s hand met it, his wrist instantly cracked, causing him to grunt in pain, but the "Spirit Sealing Talisman" successfully stuck to the demon’s claw.

Naturally, a single "Spirit Sealing Talisman" could not harm the demon. Under the overwhelming force of the demon, the "Spirit Sealing Talisman" flickered with spiritual light and then instantly exploded into countless pieces floating in the air.

But with the barrier of this "Spirit Sealing Talisman," the claws of the monster reaching for Xu Qingfan’s head paused unexpectedly.

The two pauses were enough for Xu Qingfan.

Xu Qingfan suddenly curled his body into a ball and finally dodged all the monster’s attacks, then fiercely charged at the monster!

The monster’s body was covered in strange eyes. As Xu Qingfan crashed into it, he inevitably came into contact with the monster’s eyes. At that moment, Xu Qingfan felt an incredible sharpness, even sensing the cold, sticky eyes pressing against his cheek.

Holding back his disgust, Xu Qingfan did not hesitate and punched the monster’s chest wound that had not fully healed. Immediately, the monster let out a terrible scream, while Xu Qingfan felt his hand plunge into a cold, thick liquid, crushing some internal organs, blood splattered everywhere, hitting Xu Qingfan’s face and soaking him completely.

Then, Xu Qingfan quickly released his hands.

"Bang…"

Next, the two speeding bodies finally collided at that moment!

The movements sounded incredibly complex; however, from Xu Qingfan charging toward the monster, to him finding a way to dodge the monster’s attacks, to him thrusting the "Holy Spirit Buddhist Relic" into the monster’s chest, and finally to the bodies colliding, all of it happened in an instant, with each action completed in a flash.

"Ah!"

"Awo…"

A loud and a soft groan sounded.

After their bodies collided, Xu Qingfan felt as if he had crashed into iron. He didn’t know how many bones had broken or how many eyes on the monster had been crushed. Under the tremendous impact, with a lot of monster blood and goo from the shattered eyes on him, he flew backward at great speed and then crashed hard onto the ground, breaking many bones once again.

Xu Qingfan was beginning to doubt if all his bones had turned to dust after these two terrifying collisions.

But the monster was definitely worse off than Xu Qingfan.

When Xu Qingfan pushed the "Holy Spirit Buddhist Relic" into the monster’s chest, the monster felt an incredibly terrifying energy spreading through its body. Wherever the energy went, its own energy began to fade, its body started to collapse, and its soul was in great torment. Everything about it seemed like it would vanish in the next moment.

From the outside, the monster trembled and rolled on the ground, letting out earth-shattering roars of pain. At the same time, its body was bursting all over, and its remaining eyes jumped out, exploding in midair. Its flesh and blood were crushed, spreading from its chest to the rest of its body, turning into clouds of blood mist drifting through the air.

Watching this scene of splattered blood, Xu Qingfan was struck by the realization that the monster’s blood was actually red…

Fortunately, Xu Qingfan had already passed the Inedia Stage and no longer needed to eat human food; otherwise, after witnessing such a bloody scene, he might have lost his appetite for many years.

Just as Xu Qingfan watched the terrifying transformation of the demon in shock, the demon finally did something unexpected.

The demon, enduring endless pain in body and soul, raised its claw and swiped at its bloodied chest. With each slash, blood and flesh splattered everywhere, and the demon managed to dig out half of its chest, but it also finally pulled out the "Holy Spirit Buddhist Relic" from within.

Then, the Demon General violently threw the bloodied flesh away, creating a rain of blood. It then collapsed to the ground, panting heavily, its once-mad eyes now filled with panic and fear.

To be honest, although the energy within the "Holy Spirit Buddhist Relic" was endless, it was very contained, and each time it erupted, it only consumed the outer layer. Xu Qingfan hadn’t expected the "Holy Spirit Buddhist Relic" to kill this demon, but seeing it escape from danger, he couldn’t help but feel disappointed.

Although the demon was greatly weakened and vulnerable now, Xu Qingfan had become much more cautious; uncertain of what other tricks the demon might have, he was unwilling to attack again. He waved his hand, and the "Holy Spirit Buddhist Relic" that had fallen nearby flew into his sleeve.

Without hesitation, Xu Qingfan maximized his speed and quickly fled in the direction where Dongfang Qingling had escaped.

The demon was still gasping for breath, appearing weak; although it couldn’t attack, it was a perfect time to run away.

"Very interesting. I hope that next time we meet, you will be even more interesting and won’t let me down."

While escaping, Xu Qingfan seemed to hear a gentle voice in the distance.

Upon hearing this voice, Xu Qingfan’s body jolted, but he did not dare to stop. Without looking back, he flew quickly into the distance and soon disappeared beyond the horizon.

At the same time, or maybe it was just an illusion, because Xu Qingfan was in great pain, he suddenly felt a slight sting in his neck, as if a mosquito had bitten him.

Meanwhile, the monster watched Xu Qingfan run away, its eyes flashing with intense resentment. Despite its heavy injuries, its presence became even stronger and more terrifying with all the anger it felt.

Struggling to lift itself, it spread its wings wide and prepared to chase after Xu Qingfan.

But in the next moment, the space in front of the monster flickered, and Zhang Xusheng’s figure suddenly appeared right before it.

Faced with Zhang Xusheng, the very one who had previously dissected it, the monster’s earlier arrogance and madness instantly vanished. It stepped back in fear, not daring to come any closer, as if Zhang Xusheng was the real monster.

"You are quite interesting too," Zhang Xusheng said cheerfully, regardless of whether the monster could understand him. "Although you are not as interesting as Xu Qingfan, you are still interesting enough. With injuries like yours, if you pursued further, it would be a shame for either you or Xu Qingfan to die right now."

As he spoke, Zhang Xusheng’s smile grew wider, and he calmly said, "You will die, but it cannot be now."

"You should rest for a while, and let me study this carefully." With a wave of his hand, the demon suddenly fainted, while Zhang Xusheng seemed to be deep in thought. After a moment, he waved his hand again, and a drop of blood appeared, then dripped into the demon’s wound, silently merging into its body.

"As compensation, I will give you this drop of Xu Qingfan’s blood. This way, even if we are thousands of miles apart, you will clearly sense Xu Qingfan’s presence. Pressure brings motivation, and with your pursuit, it will be enough for Xu Qingfan to grow for a long time."

Zhang Xusheng looked into the distance with an unreadable expression and softly murmured.

…

Although almost an hour had passed, Dongfang Qingling had not run far away. She left to not worry Xu Qingfan, but while fighting the demon, she could only fly a few dozen miles away. Out of sight of Xu Qingfan, she kept circling in that area, filled with worry and anxiety.

After waiting for more than half an hour without seeing Xu Qingfan, her worry grew stronger. Finally, a resolute look appeared in her eyes. Gritting her teeth, she decided to return the way she came.

However, just after Dongfang Qingling flew for a short distance, she saw Xu Qingfan coming toward her, stumbling.

At that moment, Xu Qingfan’s appearance took Dongfang Qingling by surprise.

Xu Qingfan was covered in blood, mixed with sticky green goo, his face pale, hair wet, and drenched in cold sweat. As they got closer, Dongfang Qingling was horrified to see an eyeball hanging from the corner of Xu Qingfan’s clothing!

Although Xu Qingfan looked scary at that moment, his initial instinct was quickly overcome by concern for Xu Qingfan, and he rushed towards him.

This time, while fighting the demon, Xu Qingfan was not seriously injured, but his Spirit Qi was severely depleted, and many of his bones were broken. Although he took some healing medicine on the way, it could not realign his broken bones. Therefore, even the smallest movement now caused him immense pain.

When Xu Qingfan saw Dongfang Qingling coming towards him, he was momentarily surprised but did not hesitate to grab her hand and continue flying quickly into the distance.

Even though he did not sense any pursuit from the demon, it was better to stay as far away as possible. This time, they managed to win by luck. The demon had been injured and was unaware of Xu Qingfan’s "Holy Spirit Buddhist Relic," but luck does not always last.

On the other side, as Dongfang Qingling held on to Xu Qingfan’s hand, which was covered in blood and some unknown sticky substance, she, as a woman, should have felt disgusted. However, at that moment, seeing Xu Qingfan return safely and feeling the warmth of his palm brought her immense relief and joy.

…

"Hmph…"

After fleeing hundreds of miles, Xu Qingfan and Dongfang Qingling finally stopped, hiding in a secluded place, and could finally catch their breath for a moment.

At this moment, Xu Qingfan was trying to align his own bones. One-third of his bones were misaligned, one-third were broken, and the remaining third were also injured to some extent. Aligning all these bones was not an easy task, and the pain he experienced could only be endured by someone with great willpower.

Cold sweat soaked his clothes, dripping continuously onto the ground, and groans of pain echoed repeatedly. He almost bit his teeth to endure the pain.

Xu Qingfan felt that he did not have much willpower, but he truly managed to put all his bones back in place by himself.

It was only then that the magic of the potion he had swallowed began to slowly take effect, and the broken bones started to heal steadily.

When all the bones were back in place, Xu Qingfan could no longer hold on and collapsed to the ground, his eyes gently closed, and he unexpectedly fell into a deep sleep.

The human protection system is extremely well-developed; whenever the pain in the body or mind reaches its limit, one instinctively falls into a coma. The pain Xu Qingfan endured was more than double his limit. Xu Qingfan fainted only at this moment, and later, when he thought back on this, he could not help but admire himself.

At that time, Xu Qingfan only felt a heavy drowsiness wash over him. After not sleeping for a hundred years, he fell into a deep sleep like an ordinary person.

While Xu Qingfan was realigning his bones, Dongfang Qingling looked even more nervous than Xu Qingfan. It was only when she saw Xu Qingfan fall asleep that she could not help but let out a long sigh of relief.

She suddenly realized that she had been holding her breath and tense for such a long time.

Looking at the sticky sweat, blood, and an unknown liquid on Xu Qingfan, Dongfang Qingling sighed and skillfully cleaned him up, moving carefully for fear of waking him.

Xu Qingfan, it is indeed time to take a break.

Then Dongfang Qingling first picked up the eyeball that was stuck to the edge of Xu Qingfan’s clothes and set it on the ground. Then she started to wipe Xu Qingfan’s almost messy face. Looking at Xu Qingfan’s peaceful face as he slept, with none of the usual heaviness and tiredness, Dongfang Qingling felt a wave of warmth and forgot the fear brought on by the eyeball and the sticky liquid…

…

After sleeping for a full three days, when Xu Qingfan woke up, he only felt pain all over and a terrible headache.

Dongfang Qingling quickly used water magic, bringing a handful of clear water in front of Xu Qingfan.

Xu Qingfan smiled gratefully, and after drinking a couple of sips of water, he buried his whole face in the clear water held by Dongfang Qingling’s hands. When he lifted his head again, he finally felt a bit more awake.

He checked his body; after all, it was just external injuries. While Xu Qingfan was asleep, the cracks in his bones had mostly healed under the strong effect of the medicine.

"How many days have I slept?"

Xu Qingfan asked.

"Three days."

Dongfang Qingling wiped the water from Xu Qingfan’s face. Perhaps she was too used to taking care of him; facing such unusual closeness, Xu Qingfan felt no desire to resist.

After Dongfang Qingling had dried his face and hair, Xu Qingfan managed to stand up and said slowly, "Let’s leave."

Upon hearing Xu Qingfan say this, Dongfang Qingling was taken aback and quickly stopped him, saying, "You should rest for a few more days…"

Xu Qingfan shook his head and said softly, "We can’t rest any longer. The monster could arrive at any moment. The longer we wait, the more dangerous it becomes. Besides, we need to return to Jiuhua. I have to fulfill that overdue three-year promise. There’s also the ‘Underworld’ organization and Zhang Xusheng to consider. The Shura Clan is about to make a comeback. I’ve already lost too much time in the Southern Wasteland, and I must do my part in this. We have no time left."

Although Xu Qingfan spoke calmly, a deep weariness was evident in his voice; the peace he had while sleeping was gone.

Beside him, Dongfang Qingling couldn’t help but show a hint of sympathy in her eyes but chose not to stop him anymore.

While talking, Xu Qingfan took Dongfang Qingling and quickly flew toward the bustling Middle-earth.

His body still ached, but Xu Qingfan had no time to worry about that.

Six days later, the two finally arrived outside the Southern Wasteland.

He unconsciously looked back at the increasingly desolate Southern Wasteland. This was where he grew up as a child, but each memory it brought him was not very pleasant.

Shaking his head, Xu Qingfan turned and flew towards Jiuhua’s location, while Dongfang Qingling quietly followed behind.

After another ten days, the towering familiar Jiuhua Mountain finally appeared before them.