A Loose Cultivator's Path to Longevity-Chapter 90 - 89: Avoiding Battle

The entire sequence happened in a flash, the changes so swift that no one had time to react.

"Tsk tsk, the Golden Rainbow Sect is truly impressive. To think they came up with such a method to deal with Corpse Qi!" Bai Xiaohan marveled from the bow of the ship, taking out a Memory Stone to record the scene unfolding before her.

Seeing Lü Zhong’s curiosity, she began to explain, "Explosive Pill is a term from Alchemy Skill, similar to your Explosive Talismans, Fellow Daoist Lü..."

The Golden Rainbow Sect’s Explosive Pill technique detonates the immense Pure Yang Medicine Power within the Pill Liquid in an instant. It’s essentially a manually triggered "Explosive Pill" used to purify the battlefield.

Down below, the Evil Cultivators, having lost their trump card, were in retreat.

They were already weaker than the Golden Rainbow Sect and had been relying entirely on underhanded, ghostly tricks. Now that the Golden Rainbow Sect had nullified their Corpse Qi in a single move, their will to fight was naturally gone. They began to pull back into the depths of Ghost Cloud Valley.

"It’s our turn to go," Lü Zhong said, drawing his Golden Devourer Sword.

"Yes. As we agreed, I’ll be relying on you from here on out, Fellow Daoist." Bai Xiaohan summoned a Moon Ring Magical Artifact, a rare grin on her face. "I may not be good at combat, but I’ve learned a few auxiliary techniques."

Lü Zhong nodded. "Just stick close to me. As long as we don’t run into any powerful enemies, I’ll keep you safe, Fellow Daoist."

’This was a fair trade. Bai Xiaohan was helping him get through the most dangerous opening phase of the battle. It was obvious the first ten days would be exceptionally bloody. Who knew how many lives would be lost in the endless rounds of probing and counterattacks.’

’Compared to that, getting to be a Fire Burning Boy was an absolute steal.’

’The general assault was clearly next. At this point, even the Golden Rainbow Sect’s own disciples had to join the fray, so how could they possibly look after an Alchemist among the Loose Cultivators? With their absolute control over resources like Spirit Veins, the Golden Rainbow Sect couldn’t care less if the Loose Cultivators lived or died. After all, if one crop was reaped, a new one would just grow in its place next year.’

They had only just finished speaking.

The Flying Ship floating in the clouds began to descend. Not only the three pairs of cultivators, including Lü Zhong’s, but also Steward Fang and the two Golden Rainbow Sect disciples piloting the ship all summoned their respective Magical Artifacts.

The next moment, the Flying Ship accelerated abruptly!

The ship suddenly dove, its speed so great it seemed to be crashing straight down. The immense wind pressure sent sand and stones flying across the ground. It landed squarely on an Evil Cultivator, crushing him. A nearby Loose Cultivator couldn’t get out of the way in time and was showered in blood and gore.

Without needing to be told, Lü Zhong leaped from the Flying Ship.

’The Concealing Breath and Concealing Trace Techniques were, without a doubt, invaluable life-saving tools on the battlefield. He had activated them long ago.’

He saw two people fighting a duel up ahead to his left, completely oblivious to his presence. Without hesitation, he sent his Flying Sword shooting toward one of them. The Golden Devourer Sword transformed into a streak of golden light and pierced straight through the man’s Dantian.

"Despicable!" the Evil Cultivator spat resentfully before collapsing to the ground.

’Am I despicable?’

Lü Zhong scoffed. ’This isn’t some honorable duel. The victor is king. What’s wrong with that?’

The man was still shaken, but he offered a deep bow. "Thank you for your help, Fellow Daoist!" 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

"It was nothing," Lü Zhong said, which was the truth.

After confirming the immediate area was clear of danger, he strode over to the Evil Cultivator’s corpse.

First, he took the club-like Magical Artifact the Evil Cultivator had left behind. Then he quickly searched the body and took everything of value.

He estimated the haul to be worth around fifty or sixty Spirit Stones.

The value was so low because the Magical Artifacts used by Evil Cultivators were typically poorly maintained. Most were more than fifty percent worn and wouldn’t fetch a high price.

"Even scraps are worth something. Can’t let it go to waste," Lü Zhong mused as he carefully put the items away.

By now, the others had scattered to parts unknown. Only Bai Xiaohan deliberately approached him.

Gazing at the Evil Cultivator’s corpse, her expression remained unchanged. "Fellow Daoist Lü, what should we do now?" she asked calmly. "I think we should find a safe place and wait for the fighting to end."

She had no interest whatsoever in killing for profit.

’It’s a fast way to make money, but it’s risky. It’s nowhere near as stable as Alchemy.’

’Time to slack off?’

Lü Zhong was in complete agreement. After all, no one was managing the two of them, and there was no battle overseer to speak of.

He couldn’t help but wonder, ’Does this count as a kind of unspoken privilege?’

Quickly pulling his thoughts back to the present, Lü Zhong activated his Qi Observation Skill and scanned the area. He saw that the great battle was still raging. Even though the Evil Cultivators had begun to fall back, the fighting was far from over.

Ahead lay the depths of Ghost Cloud Valley, the next battlefield. Behind them was the main force, which they also couldn’t approach. The only option was to hide in the high mountains and ridges to either side.

After observing for a moment, he pointed to his right. "The Spiritual Light is thin over there, so there probably aren’t many people. Let’s head that way."

"As you say, Fellow Daoist Lü."

At that moment, Lü Zhong noticed Bai Xiaohan channel a stream of Spiritual Power into two Jade Pendants hanging at her waist, activating them.

Instantly, a layer of Spiritual Light enveloped her.

In an instant, both her aura and her very presence became incredibly faint.

’Lü Zhong watched with envy. Those two Jade Pendants had to be auxiliary Magical Artifacts, enchanted with at least the "Concealed Breath" and "Stealth" Divine Techniques. He had specifically looked into such artifacts before; they were premium items that only ever appeared at auctions.’

’It must be nice to have Spirit Stones!’

He lamented internally, raising his vigilance to its peak.

He kept his eyes and ears open, alert to everything around him.

With their breath and traces concealed, the two of them avoided everyone they came across and successfully distanced themselves from the battlefield.

As they traveled, signs of the great battle were everywhere.

In the mountain passes, beside the streams, in the pools of water...

Large swaths of destruction left by Magical Artifacts and Magic Skills scarred the landscape, along with various strange devices of unknown purpose. There were dense clusters of Puppet, Refining Corpse, and Spiritual Beast remains. Occasionally, they would spot a corpse or two, mangled beyond recognition, lying silently in the wilds.

Despite having mentally prepared himself, Lü Zhong still found it all a bit unsettling.

’After all, he had lived his previous life in an era of peace. He had never experienced such a bloody scene.’

Bai Xiaohan, in contrast, looked completely unfazed, as if this were commonplace.

Now it was her turn to look at Lü Zhong with a hint of envy. "I was born in the Western Realm," she said with a sigh. "The fires of war rage there constantly, with battles day in and day out. It’s either the righteous path attacking the Demon Dao, or the Demon Dao attacking the righteous path, or both sides warring with each other. There isn’t a single day of peace. So I’ve long since gotten used to this."

’Perhaps that’s why she craves stability so much.’

’And why she migrated all this way to the lands of the Southern Barbarian.’

’Compared to the utter chaos of the Western Realm, the Southern Barbarian lands, though developed more recently, were established by Daoist Sects. As a result, the order here was decent enough. At least there weren’t endless campaigns year after year, with the fires of war burning month after month.’

Lü Zhong heard her words but didn’t know how to respond, so he simply focused on their journey.

As the sounds of battle faded behind them, the two arrived in a dark, dense forest.

Suddenly, he stopped in his tracks, his gaze falling upon a hollow in a tree.

Using his Qi Observation Skill, he could tell someone was hiding inside. The fluctuations of Spiritual Qi in his vision were extremely faint, suggesting a low-level independent cultivator. However, considering the existence of the Breath Concealing Skill, that judgment could be wrong.

After informing Bai Xiaohan, Lü Zhong decided to go around the person.

’Better to avoid trouble when possible.’

’He had launched a sneak attack on that Evil Cultivator earlier because he was confident of a one-hit kill. That didn’t mean he would go looking for trouble now. Besides, the Golden Rainbow Sect offered no reward for killing Evil Cultivators, so self-preservation was the top priority.’