Lin Sheng's figure moved silently through the endless white mist, his footsteps barely producing a ripple across the damp ground. Ever since entering the Mist Sea, he had deliberately avoided flying. The visibility was poor enough that crashing into an unknown danger while airborne would only make matters worse.
His expression remained calm, but his mind worked rapidly.
The fact that the grey-robed cultivator had resumed the pursuit despite losing his divine sense meant only one thing.
The other party possessed another tracking method.
It wasn't divine sense.
Nor was it eyesight.
There was something else...
Something that could lock onto him.
His Mental Perception continuously swept the surroundings while Crystal analyzed every detail.
•[Target maintains pursuit despite environmental suppression.
Probability of possessing a tracking artifact: 18%.
Probability of possessing a tracking technique: 31%.
Probability of external lifeform-assisted tracking: 51%]•
Lin Sheng's brows knitted together.
A lifeform...
The first thing that came to mind was spirit beasts.
But ordinary spirit beasts couldn't possibly function inside a place like the Mist Sea with such precision.
Unless...
Gu.
His eyes narrowed slightly.
Among the four great demonic cultivation arts, Gu rearing was infamous for producing bizarre creatures with abilities that defied common sense. He had only seen fragments of such records while browsing ancient books in the Southern Archipelagos, but they were enough to make him wary.
If the opponent truly possessed a tracking Gu...
Simply changing directions would never be enough.
As that thought surfaced, Lin Sheng abruptly halted.
The white mist drifted quietly around him.
His perception expanded once more, carefully inspecting everything within its current range.
Twenty li...
Nothing.
Twenty-one li...
Still nothing.
Then—
A faint fluctuation entered his perception.
It was extremely weak.
So weak that ordinary cultivators would have ignored it entirely.
Yet to Lin Sheng, it stood out.
A tiny insect no larger than a grain of rice flew steadily through the mist. It wasn't fast, nor did it possess much cultivation, but its direction never changed.
It flew in a perfectly straight line.
Toward him.
Lin Sheng's eyes flashed.
"So that's it."
The insect hovered for only an instant before changing direction again, as though correcting its course.
It was searching.
Searching...
For him.
Rather than destroy it immediately, Lin Sheng quietly concealed his aura behind a nearby rock formation while observing it.
The tiny insect circled several times before continuing deeper into the mist.
Not toward him.
Toward...
The path he had taken only moments earlier.
"It isn't sensing me directly."
"It followed my trail."
Crystal immediately completed its analysis.
•[Tracking pattern identified.
Unknown insect lifeform marks residual aura left by the host.
Estimated tracking efficiency: High.
Recommendation: Mislead tracking source]•
A faint smile appeared on Lin Sheng's face.
Destroying the insect would only alert its owner.
Instead...
He would let it continue.
An idea gradually formed in his mind.
The Mist Sea itself was full of unknown dangers.
If he could make the insect carry misleading information back...
Its master would unknowingly walk into them instead.
Without another glance, Lin Sheng deliberately altered his route once more.
This time, however...
He wasn't trying to escape.
He was beginning to hunt.
Lin Sheng no longer rushed forward.
After successfully diverting Gu Qing's master's pursuit, he slowed his pace considerably. There was no point blindly wandering through the Mist Sea. Since this place was infamous throughout the Southern Archipelagos, it was only natural that it concealed dangers capable of threatening even Purple Palace cultivators.
If he could borrow one of those dangers...
His chances of surviving would increase dramatically.
His Mental Perception expanded once more.
Although greatly suppressed by the surrounding mist, it still reached much farther than the divine sense of ordinary cultivators inside this forbidden zone.
For nearly half an hour, he searched carefully.
Apart from strange rocks, abandoned ruins and several powerful Rank 3 yao beasts hiding beneath the sea, nothing seemed capable of stopping Gu Qing's master.
Just as Lin Sheng was about to change direction, Crystal suddenly reacted.
•[Abnormal energy fluctuation detected.
Source identified: Heavenly Tribulation Aura.
Distance: 18.7 li.
Recommendation: Investigate]•
Lin Sheng's expression immediately became serious.
Heavenly Tribulation?
Without wasting another moment, he quietly headed toward the source while concealing his aura as much as possible.
The closer he drew, the heavier the pressure became.
The surrounding spiritual qi grew increasingly chaotic, carrying traces of violent lightning that hadn't completely dispersed. Even the mist itself seemed thinner, unable to remain stable beneath the lingering heavenly might.
Several minutes later, Lin Sheng finally stopped atop a weathered cliff overlooking the sea.
The scene before him caused his pupils to contract.
Far below, within a secluded cove hidden by towering cliffs, lay an enormous serpent.
Its body alone stretched for hundreds of meters, dark blue scales reflecting faint traces of silver beneath the mist. Several of those scales had already shattered, exposing flesh that was still charred black from lightning strikes.
The surrounding seawater had been dyed a faint crimson.
Despite its miserable appearance, the aura radiating from the serpent remained suffocating.
Rank 4.
Lin Sheng instinctively restrained his breathing.
The beast wasn't dead.
It was recovering.
Every few breaths, vast amounts of water-attribute spiritual qi flowed toward its body, slowly repairing the terrifying injuries left behind by the Heavenly Tribulation.
Crystal rapidly analyzed the scene.
•[Target identified: Rank 4 aquatic yao beast.
Current condition: Seriously injured.
Estimated completion of recovery: 41%.
Threat assessment: Extremely High]•
Lin Sheng remained hidden behind the cliff without making the slightest movement.
Then...
His eyes gradually brightened.
A thought surfaced almost immediately.
The serpent had only recently survived its tribulation.
It was undoubtedly at its weakest, yet also at its most vigilant. Any unfamiliar aura approaching now would almost certainly be treated as an enemy attempting to seize its life while it was injured.
That included...
Gu Qing's master.
Lin Sheng slowly turned his gaze toward the white mist behind him.
His pursuer possessed a tracking Gu.
Escaping him completely would only become harder with time.
But if he could lure that man here...
A faint smile appeared on Lin Sheng's face.
He no longer needed to defeat his opponent himself.
Sometimes...
The most effective weapon was another enemy.
-----------
Lin Sheng remained motionless atop the cliff for nearly an incense stick's worth of time, patiently observing the Rank 4 serpent below.
The beast hadn't noticed him.
Or perhaps it had.
Yet compared to the overwhelming injuries covering its body, a mere Rank 2 martial artist hidden several li away simply wasn't worth its attention.
Its focus remained entirely on healing.
Every few breaths, the surrounding water-attribute spiritual qi surged toward its massive body, gradually repairing flesh that had been torn apart by the Heavenly Tribulation. Occasionally, faint arcs of lightning still danced across the wounds, causing the serpent to twitch in pain before resuming its recovery.
"It really only advanced recently..."
Lin Sheng murmured softly.
A Rank 4 yao beast was already comparable to a Golden Body cultivator or a Golden Core cultivator.
Normally, even ten Purple Palace cultivators working together wouldn't dare provoke one.
Unfortunately for this serpent...
It had chosen the wrong time to break through.
The Heavenly Tribulation had left it in an extremely weakened state.
Crystal quickly continued its analysis.
•[Residual Tribulation Aura remains active.
Estimated combat capability: 43% of peak condition.
Host survival probability if directly engaged: 0.02%]•
Lin Sheng couldn't help smiling bitterly.
"So even at less than half its strength, I still have almost no chance."
That result wasn't surprising.
A major realm was never something numbers alone could overcome.
Even if the serpent was heavily injured, one careless mistake would still cost him his life.
His gaze shifted toward the endless mist surrounding the cove.
A plan gradually formed in his mind.
The serpent was wary.
Gu Qing's master was greedy.
One was guarding its life.
The other wanted his.
As long as both arrived here...
There would be no need for him to make the first move.
After memorizing every feature of the surrounding terrain, Lin Sheng quietly withdrew.
He deliberately left behind several traces of his aura at different locations before carefully erasing his actual trail.
The tracking Gu would undoubtedly continue following him.
What he needed to do now was ensure that the final destination led directly to this cove.
Hours quietly passed.
By the time everything had been prepared, Lin Sheng finally concealed himself inside the ruins of a collapsed stone pavilion nearly three li from the serpent's resting place.
The location was perfect.
Close enough to observe the coming battle.
Far enough to avoid being caught in its aftermath.
His breathing gradually slowed until it almost disappeared.
Then he waited.
Not long afterward, his Mental Perception caught a familiar presence entering its range.
The grey-robed cultivator.
He had arrived exactly as expected.
Lin Sheng slowly closed his eyes.
The hunter who had pursued him relentlessly...
Was finally about to step into another hunter's territory.