Using blood as a trace to hunt a soul across hundreds of miles, clinging like a shadow to its host—this was the Blood Soul Tracking Technique. The black-clothed old servant's Cultivation wasn't high enough to track a soul for hundreds of miles, but a dozen or so was well within his abilities.
The old servant followed the direction indicated by the Blood Trace Soul Chasing Skill. He could sense the boy's speed decreasing, and the distance between them was steadily closing. At this rate, it wouldn't be long before he caught up to that despicable little bastard.
'It seems that while my last strike failed to capture him, it definitely left him severely wounded. I just don't know what Secret Technique he used to injure me first, then dodge my killing blow. His speed even increased explosively in an instant, allowing him to flee several thousand meters away.'
'But in the end, the boy can't escape my Blood Trace Soul Chasing Skill. Once I get my hands on him, I'll make him wish for death but be unable to die. He'll regret ever coming into this world. Then, his heart will surely fill with despair and helplessness as he lets out the screams of the weak. Haha…'
As he chased at top speed, he imagined the scene of Jiang Jichen falling into his hands. When his thoughts reached the most satisfying part, he couldn't help but laugh out loud.
The sound of his laughter shook the air, startling the birds from their treetop perches. By now, he was less than three hundred meters from his target.
"Right ahead! You can't escape, boy! Haha…"
Seeing he was about to catch the wretched boy, the black-clothed old servant cried out in excitement, his speed increasing even more. Within a dozen breaths, he was extremely close to the target his Blood Trace Secret Technique was sensing, and it was now within his perfect attack range.
But just as the old servant was about to strike, he suddenly froze!
He finally saw the target his Blood Trace Soul Chasing Skill had been sensing. It… was a large, galloping bear.
He'd been tricked!
The realization hit the black-clothed old servant instantly, followed by a heaven-storming rage.
"You little bastard! There isn't room in this world for both of us!"
The old servant roared. His heart, lungs, and liver ached with fury. With nowhere to vent his anger, he saw the large bear galloping in the distance, the bloody cloth tied to its leg fluttering in the wind as if mocking his foolishness.
"Die, you damned bear!"
The old servant leaped into the air and struck out in a furious rage, his palm strike turning the running bear into a paste of blood and gore.
'That boy is so devious. He must have used the bear to lead me away while he headed for the central part of the Moonlight Forest.'
After venting his anger, the slightly calmer old servant figured out the ruse. Without a moment's delay, he charged toward the central Moonlight Forest.
...
Jiang Jichen actually had other ways to break the old servant's Tracking Secret Technique, such as discarding the blood-stained items or burning the clothes to ash. But doing so wouldn't have accomplished his goal of luring the old servant away.
Now, with the old servant chasing after the large bear, by the time he realized his mistake, Jiang Jichen had already brought Little Yue'Er to the edge of the outer Moonlight Forest. Just ahead lay the central region.
BOOM!
Just as Jiang Jichen was about to lead Little Yue'Er into the central Moonlight Forest, the ground suddenly trembled. Swaths of ancient trees collapsed as a powerful and terrifying aura washed over them. Jiang Jichen's expression changed, and he retreated without a shred of hesitation.
He pushed his Shadow Step to its limit, retreating several hundred meters in an instant before the immense, terrifying aura weakened slightly.
'Powerful experts are battling a Fierce Beast up ahead!'
The thought immediately struck Jiang Jichen.
Holding Little Yue'Er, he leaped onto an ancient tree and looked into the distance. Sure enough, he saw a figure wielding an ancient sword. His movements were ethereal, his blade flourishing like a dream and stirring up a cyan light like clouds. Nothing could get within a ten-meter radius in front of him; everything was pulverized by his Sword Intent.
He was battling a Fire Ape. Wherever they passed, ancient trees, mountain rocks, and hills were all turned to Void!
The Fire Ape stood thirty feet tall, its fur as red as fire. It had skin of bronze and bones of iron, possessed limitless strength, and moved as fast as light and shadow. It was an incredibly savage creature, and as it fought now, it roared repeatedly. When its arms slammed down, the earth cracked, its might shaking the heavens.
This was definitely a Fierce Beast with the strength of a Grandmaster, a king among the Spirit Beasts of the central Moonlight Forest. But for some reason, it had appeared here at the edge of the outer forest.
Its eyes were crimson, and it had completely lost its senses. It was clearly in a state of Frenzy.
The figure fighting it was a middle-aged man in simple green robes. His demeanor was graceful, and even in the midst of battle, he carried an air of carefree elegance, like a Sword Immortal.
"The Fire Ape bloodline is rare, and it's even more remarkable that you've cultivated to the Innate Ninth Realm. I would have spared your life, but alas, you have already gone into a Frenzy. If I let you continue like this, I fear few who enter the Moonlight Forest will make it out alive."
The middle-aged Swordsman let out a soft sigh. Then, the ancient sword in his hand was like a rising sun, bursting with a boundless radiance that illuminated the heavens and the earth!
PFFT!
The Fire Ape Fierce Beast, as powerful as a Grandmaster, was unable to withstand the might of this single sword strike. Its heart was easily pierced, and endless Sword Qi extinguished its life force. Its colossal body crashed to the ground.
With a crisp ring, the ancient sword returned to its sheath, which he slung onto his back. Then, the middle-aged Swordsman beckoned with his hand, and the mountain-sized Fire Ape corpse vanished.
'To be able to drive a Fire Ape King into a Frenzy... the person behind this is no simple character. It seems this forest is about to become even more turbulent!'
After finishing, the middle-aged Swordsman murmured to himself. Then, his gaze suddenly fell upon Jiang Jichen's location.
BOOM!
Jiang Jichen's Sea of Consciousness trembled. He felt as if the man's gaze was a pair of Sword Auras capable of annihilating all creation. The peerless, razor-sharp Sword Intent gave him a taste of his own life's Annihilation.