Gateway of Immortality-Chapter 333: The Truth

The masked man pursued Tan Hao into a grove, but suddenly, his figure came to an abrupt halt—he had lost track of Tan Hao.

The ancient trees in this grove were not densely packed, and the surrounding area was clearly visible. Just moments ago, Tan Hao’s aura had remained constant, leading straight to this place, only to vanish suddenly without any warning.

The masked man released his spiritual consciousness to search, but he found nothing.

A night breeze stirred, and everything seemed normal.

It was as if Tan Hao had disappeared into thin air, leaving no trace behind.

Not far away, Qin Sang lay in ambush atop a tree canopy, also observing the area in secret.

Due to the distance between them, even Qin Sang had failed to notice how Tan Hao had disappeared. Like the masked man, he could not determine whether Tan Hao was hiding nearby or had employed some method to evade their pursuit and escape far away.

"I really underestimated Tan Hao..."

Qin Sang furrowed his brows in contemplation. He did not act rashly, remaining patient like a fisherman waiting for his prey to bite.

The masked man surely had a few tricks up his sleeve.

As expected, he did not show any signs of panic despite being unable to find Tan Hao. Instead, he smirked coldly and took out a round mirror-like artifact.

With his right hand, he brought two fingers together, channeling spiritual power and quickly inscribing intricate runes onto the mirror.

One after another, strange runes fused into the mirror, which began to emit a faint radiance. Gradually, the light grew brighter, shining like a full moon.

However, the masked man carefully concealed the glow, ensuring none of it leaked out.

As the final stroke was completed, he let out a low shout, "Rise!"

The round mirror flew from his palm into the sky, transforming into a luminous moon embedded in the night. The surrounding mist was instantly dispersed by the moonlight.

The cold radiance spread far and wide, illuminating the area as brightly as daytime.

In the next moment, the masked man abruptly turned his head to the left, where a faint, almost imperceptible shadow was moving slowly between two ancient trees. Who else could it be if not Tan Hao?

Tan Hao had used an impressive concealment technique, perfectly masking his aura while attempting to slip away.

He was right at the edge of the moonlight. Had the masked man acted even a fraction slower, Tan Hao would have escaped.

Unfortunately, there was no "what if."

Tan Hao had left behind contingency measures in case of emergencies, but he never anticipated that someone truly harbored ill intentions and had been tailing him all along, dismantling his precautions with ease.

When the mirror’s light revealed his figure, Tan Hao’s heart trembled with terror, and cold sweat drenched his back. He understood that anyone capable of following him silently to this point and exposing him so effortlessly must possess cultivation far beyond his own.

Without daring to look back, Tan Hao didn't even know who he had provoked. His figure transformed into an evasion light as he desperately fled with all his strength.

Although he knew that his chances of escaping were almost close to zero, he could not afford to give up—not even the slimmest hope.

Watching Tan Hao’s evasion light streak across the sky, the masked man surprisingly did not immediately chase after Tan Hao. A flash of surprise and frustration crossed his eyes, and he almost laughed in exasperation at the absurdity of the situation.

"Damn it, he’s just at the Qi Refining Realm!" the masked man cursed loudly.

No wonder he was so enraged. Even Qin Sang had not expected that Tan Hao’s true cultivation level, exposed when he exerted his full evading method, was only at the thirteenth stage of the Qi Refining Realm.

Had he known earlier, the masked man could have effortlessly captured Tan Hao back at the stone island without the need for such cautious tracking.

It was the peculiar mask Tan Hao wore that had helped him disguise his aura so effectively.

Even Qin Sang had been deceived.

Qin Sang had encountered artifacts and spells capable of concealing aura before, such as the Spirit Evasion Art, but it was his first time seeing an artifact that could so flawlessly disguise one’s cultivation level as something far higher.

The mask was truly remarkable. Even Qin Sang, who had already reached the middle stage of the Foundation Building Realm, had failed to detect anything unusual.

It was uncertain whether late-stage Foundation Building experts could see through it, but since Tan Hao dared to participate in auctions and secret markets, he must have had great confidence in the mask’s capabilities.

Naturally, it could not fool a Core Formation cultivator, but cultivators of that level wouldn’t bother lowering themselves to trouble him.

However, such a disguise was fragile—one probing strike would expose him completely, offering no enhancement to his actual strength.

Just like now—once Tan Hao engaged in combat, his true abilities would be instantly revealed.

On the stone island, due to the strict rules enforced by Yinshan Stronghold, immortal cultivators exercised great restraint and avoided unnecessary conflicts. Tan Hao had been careful not to provoke others, which had allowed him to maintain his deception until now.

With his concealment failing, his true appearance was now exposed to Qin Sang’s eyes.

It was indeed Tan Hao.

Read 𝓁at𝙚st chapters at ƒrēenovelkiss.com Only.

Compared to their time at Kuiyin Sect, he appeared much more mature and aged.

Qin Sang was already seventy years old, and Tan Hao was only a few years younger, yet his appearance resembled that of a man in his forties—making him look even older than Qin Sang.

For an immortal cultivator, this was nothing unusual. If Tan Hao failed to reach the Foundation Building Realm, his aging process would accelerate rapidly over the next two decades, eventually turning him into a white-haired old man.

Tan Hao was already over sixty years old, and with no breakthrough to the Foundation Building Realm in sight, his chances of advancing were growing increasingly slim.

Despite the passage of time, Tan Hao’s appearance had not changed much since their days in Kuiyin Sect, allowing Qin Sang to recognize him at a glance.

Gone was the youthful vigor Tan Hao once radiated; his face now bore an air of weariness and hardship, with exhaustion evident in his eyes—something he had never shown before. This sight filled Qin Sang with a deep sense of melancholy.

The immortal path they pursued was nothing but an elusive dream, and in the end, they were still struggling to survive like countless others in the vast world.

The masked man continued cursing under his breath before leisurely setting off in pursuit once Tan Hao had fled a certain distance. In his eyes, the treasures Tan Hao carried were already as good as his.

Silently, Qin Sang followed closely behind, quietly summoning his ebony sword in secret.

Initially, he had intended to let the masked man probe Tan Hao’s capabilities, but that was no longer necessary. Given their difference in strength, Tan Hao wouldn’t last more than a few exchanges before being slain.