Family Cultivation: Rise of the Wilderness

Chapter 456 Escape
In just a few breaths, Li Jihu's magical power had reached its peak, his hair and beard standing on end, making him look like a furious lion. The crimson flames on his body also condensed into a whirlwind of fire at this moment, adding to his speed.

"Commander, save me!"

Just then, a terrified cry for help rang out.

Li Jihu looked up and saw Tie Tou being surrounded by two Thunder Red Ghost Eagles, crying out in agony.

"Why is this kid so unlucky?"

Li Jihu cursed under his breath.

Although Tie Tou has thick eyebrows, big eyes, and a burly build, he is actually only at the fifth level of Qi Refining and is a newcomer recruited by the Crimson Flame Demon Hunting Team just last month.

There weren't many Thunder Crimson Ghost Eagles to begin with, yet they still split up two to deal with him?

This kid must have had some incredible luck.

Seeing that Tie Tou was in grave danger, he didn't dare to delay. The fiery whirlwind roared out of his body and sped towards Tie Tou's location.

The two Thunder Crimson Ghost Eagles sensed something was wrong and immediately turned away. Only Ironhead remained, looking at the flames filling the sky, and howled, "The captain has killed me!"

Before he finished speaking, a fiery whirlwind suddenly rose up and chased after the Thunder Crimson Demon Eagle.

"Commander, you have this skill?"

Iron Head was overjoyed to have survived.

Spells aren't that difficult!

Essentially, all spells are variations of magical power.

The experience summarized by predecessors will tell you how much magic power to use, which spiritual apertures to stimulate, and what kind of changes to generate. And you are certainly familiar with your own magic power.

Therefore, most people can get a basic understanding of the art after studying it for two or three months.

But this is only the first stage of learning magic.

The power of magic does not depend solely on the magic power itself.

No cultivator can draw all the mana from their dantian in an instant; most people can't even do one percent.

It's like squeezing toothpaste!
In magical combat, cultivators must continuously squeeze out their magical power. If they squeeze out too slowly or too little, they won't have time to exert their full strength and will be slapped to death; if they squeeze out too quickly or too much, they will waste magical power and suffer from insufficient stamina.

In short, this balance is very important and tests a cultivator's experience and combat talent.

Strictly speaking, spells cast with a small amount of magic power are not superior to talismans that embody the hard work of talisman masters. However, spells have remained the preferred choice for combat throughout the ancient, prehistoric, medieval, and modern eras, which naturally speaks to their extraordinary nature.

Indeed, compared to the limited magical power of an individual cultivator, the vast spiritual energy of heaven and earth is an unparalleled force.

Spiritual energy will not harm people on its own initiative, but it can be controlled by magical power.

Those powerful spells are never strong from the beginning, but rather they resonate with the laws of heaven and earth after being cast, receiving countless spiritual energies in response, and growing into earth-shattering existences in an instant.

To achieve this requires exceptional insight and years of persistent effort.

In addition, there is a third stage to the spell.

At this stage, the magic is not about becoming more powerful, but about being easier to control.

Once a spell is cast, the pure magical power absorbs the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, becoming impure, or rather, volatile. At this moment, without the assistance of the body's meridians and spiritual apertures, the cultivator's control over such a large amount of magical power will decrease sharply.

Therefore, many people's spells can hit exactly where they point.

It's not that they don't want the spell to change, but that they don't have the ability.

However, a few cultivators with sufficient control over their magical power can make their spells still move as if they were their own arms, displaying second, third, or even more forms.

Li Jihu is undoubtedly this type of person!

"Can you shut up, kid?"

While manipulating the fiery whirlwind to chase the two Thunder Crimson Ghost Eagles around, Li Jihu also used his fists and feet to fight a "bald ghost" in close combat, sweating profusely with anxiety.

"Commander, I'm here to help you."

Seeing this, Tie Tou shouted and joined the battle.

Unable to withstand the attack, the "bald ghost" let out a howl and fled first.

At this point, three of the eight Thunder Crimson Demon Eagles had fled, greatly reducing their momentum.

The Crimson Flame Demon Hunting Team quickly shook off the bird-like creatures and continued their escape.

"Uncle Zhang!"

Li Jihu turned around and called out to Zhang Guangqing.

However, Zhang Guangqing was surrounded by a group of flying beasts, and his situation was extremely precarious. In particular, the gray roc seemed to harbor resentment for being driven away earlier, and would swoop down from the sky from time to time, its sharp claws like hooks, aiming straight for Zhang Guangqing's vitals.

"Oh shit."

Li Jihu spat and turned back.

Ironhead, who was already charging ahead, caught sight of this scene and hurriedly shouted, "Commander, wait for me!"

The two worked in perfect harmony, one fast and one slow, and soon carved a bloody path through the enemy lines.

Zhang Guangqing was already panting heavily, but he breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the two men arrive to rescue him.

He hurled the sword in his hand violently, not caring about the loss, and roared, "Go!"

In an instant, the sword emitted a sharp screech, and ice cracks spread around its blade.

Li Jihu was taken aback. Just as he was about to speak, Zhang Guangqing grabbed his hand and hissed, "Stop talking nonsense and let's go!"

"Wait! Wait for me!"

Tie Tou shouted anxiously from behind.

Before the words were finished, a deafening roar suddenly rang out.

The monsters closest to the explosion's epicenter, like the gray roc, were directly shaken, their internal organs churning, and they plummeted from mid-air, dizzy. Monsters a little further away also cried out in agony and fled in panic.

"puff!"

At the same time, Zhang Guangqing swayed and suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood, his face turning as pale as paper.

"Uncle Zhang, why did you destroy your natal magic weapon without permission?"

Li Jihu looked anxious: "This will have a huge impact on your cultivation path..."

A natal magic weapon is a precious treasure that a cultivator refines day and night. Although it cannot be said to be "inseparable from flesh and blood," it is almost the same. Once destroyed, the backlash suffered by the cultivator is no less than enduring a high-level spell, and may even damage the soul.

"Cough cough... We can't worry about that now, Ji Hu, let's go!"

Zhang Guangqing covered his mouth and nose, trying his best to stop the blood from flowing out, but his magic power was extremely weak and he could no longer maintain high-speed flight.

Li Jihu gritted his teeth, carried the other person on his back, and struggled to chase after the main force.

"Commander! Don't leave me behind!"

Ironhead's voice came from behind again.

Li Jihu turned around and cursed, "You brat, hurry up and catch up! If you dawdle any longer, I'll beat you up when we get back!"
-
Two light blue streaks of light pierced the sky, closely intertwined.

Shi Fengxue kept looking back and whispered, "Mother, those people are following us!"

The woman in the blue dress also noticed this scene and nodded, saying, "That young man is quite capable. Without him driving away the Thunder Crimson Ghost Eagle, we wouldn't have been able to escape so easily."

Upon hearing this, Shi Fengxue's eyes flashed with worry: "But his magic power seems to be almost gone, and his speed is also a bit slower than before."

The woman in the blue dress shook her head: "Don't pay attention to them. We're barely able to protect ourselves right now, so we mustn't cause any more trouble."

Shi Fengxue said "Oh," and after a moment of silence, she couldn't help but ask, "Don't we still have extra Cloud-Treading Dragon Shadow Belts?"

"Feng Xue!"

The woman in the blue dress interrupted her, her tone stern: "It's not scarcity that's the problem, but inequality! We do have extra Cloud-Treading Dragon Shadow Belts, but it's not enough for more than a dozen people. What will those who don't get any think? They'll not hesitate to target us, and might even endanger our lives."

She paused, her expression becoming even more serious, and warned, "You're still young and don't understand the wickedness of people. When you're out and about in the future, you must be more careful and never easily trust others."

Shi Fengxue nodded, seemingly understanding but not quite.

Just then, a shrill scream suddenly came from behind.

The woman in the blue dress quickly turned around and found that the group that had followed them had started to fall behind.

Clearly, long-duration flight is still too strenuous for a mid-stage Qi Refining cultivator.

"Luckily, I brought several of the Cloud-Slipping Dragon Shadow items with me."

The woman in the blue dress secretly felt relieved, but at the same time, she also felt a lingering fear.

This Cloud-Riding Dragon Shadow Belt is a treasure left behind by the Shengyi Sect. It is said to be made from the sinews and bones of a dragon and has the miraculous effect of riding the wind and treading on clouds.

Of course, most of the rumors were exaggerated. In her actual experience, she didn't find the thing particularly powerful, at least not in terms of speed; it didn't create any distance between her and the group of Qi Refining cultivators behind her. However, the advantage of having the Cloud-Treading Dragon Shadow was that it conserved mana. As mid-stage Qi Refining cultivators, she and Shi Fengxue were in relatively good condition, while the group behind them was almost at their limit.

"Mother, look at that flock of Thunderclap Red Ghost Eagles!" Shi Fengxue's urgent shout suddenly rang out.

The woman in the blue dress turned her head involuntarily, her expression changing drastically in an instant.

The flock of Thunder Crimson Ghost Eagles suddenly split up again and chased straight after them!
"Why is this happening?"

The woman in the blue dress looked resentful, a sense of powerlessness welling up inside her.

Although the Cloud-Treading Dragon Shadow Belt temporarily distanced the mother and daughter from the cultivators behind them, it was nothing compared to the speed of the Thunder Crimson Ghost Eagle.

They will be caught up soon!
"Mother, what should we do?"

Fear also appeared on Shi Fengxue's face.

They were in a very sorry state when they were entangled by the Thunder Crimson Ghost Eagle. If the group of cultivators behind them hadn't intervened in time to interrupt the "bald ghost's" attack, they wouldn't have had a chance to get ahead.

"Don't worry, Fengxue, your mother is here!"

The woman in the blue dress suppressed her panic, took out a stack of talismans from her storage bag, and held them tightly in her hand.

No matter what, she had to protect her daughter!

"Gah!"

"quack!"

The mocking and unpleasant cries surrounded my ears; the Thunderclap Red Demon Eagle had caught up!
The woman in the blue dress bit her lip, crushed one of the talismans without hesitation, and threw it behind her.

Large clumps of miasma erupted instantly, turning the sky into a hazy, gray mess in the blink of an eye.

The Thunderclap Crimson Demon Eagle lost its sight and panicked, raising its body in an attempt to break free of the miasma.

"It's the Thousand Miasma Talisman!"

Li Jihu, who was lagging behind, was both surprised and delighted to see this.

The Thousand Miasma Talisman is a famous talisman for trapping enemies. The miasma inside is condensed and does not dissipate, and can last for at least the time it takes for an incense stick to burn. Those who enter the miasma cannot see their own hand in front of their face, cannot even distinguish directions, let alone fight.

Li Jihu made a decisive decision and shouted, "Follow me into the miasma!"

In ordinary combat, entering the miasma domain of the Thousand Miasma Talisman is like walking into a trap.

But now, these miasmas have become their lifeline, allowing them to conceal their whereabouts.

"coming!"

Iron Head was the first to respond, plunging headfirst into the miasma.

Li Jihu, carrying Zhang Guangqing on his back, didn't even notice Tie Tou and continued shouting, "The miasma is poisonous! Take the antidote pills and hold them against the back of your tongues. Don't breathe!"

No sooner had he finished speaking than intermittent shouts and curses echoed through the miasma.

"Iron Head has already gone in."

Zhang Guangqing weakly reminded him.

"This boy"

Li Jihu rubbed his forehead, looking helpless.

The Thousand Miasma Talisman is an antidote; the floating miasma contains deadly poison. If a mortal is trapped in it, they will turn to bones within half a day. Even cultivators must take antidotes and circulate their magical power to barely resist it.

With such recklessness, Tie Tou will likely suffer greatly in the miasma.

But at this moment, Li Jihu couldn't care less about anything else.
While covering the rear and ensuring the others entered the miasma, he shouted instructions: "Don't look back after you're in! Use your divine sense to lock onto the auras of those two ahead, and keep up with them as fast as you can! Those birds are cautious by nature and won't easily ambush you..."

As expected, almost all the flying monsters were very wary when they saw the poisonous miasma spreading in front of them. They either quickly rose into the sky like the Thunder Crimson Ghost Eagle or went around to the sides, completely avoiding it if they could.

Soon, the group successfully passed through the miasma and distanced themselves from the horde of monsters behind them.

Only Tie Tou, his face bruised and purple, flew beside Li Jihu, complaining, "Commander, why did you only say half of what you wanted to say? You really got me into trouble..."

"Who told you to be so impatient? Call me again and I'll make you stay behind to cover our retreat."

Li Jihu cursed.

Tie Tou didn't dare to refute. With his limited cultivation, staying would be tantamount to suicide.

However, a few breaths later, another exclamation came from the group: "It's the bald ghosts! They've caught up again!"

"Damn it, these damned bird bastards!"

The crowd began to curse and swear, and the atmosphere instantly became tense.

Tie Tou hurriedly looked up and saw the Thunder Crimson Ghost Eagle soaring high in the sky. He couldn't help but feel a little scared: "Captain, should we still follow those two women ahead? Bald Ghost seems to be heading for them."

A flicker of hesitation crossed Li Jihu's eyes.

If it weren't for the Thousand Miasma Talisman thrown by the woman in the blue dress, several more of them would probably have been killed.

Whether the other party did it intentionally or unintentionally, he accepted the favor.

The problem is that they are currently being relentlessly pursued by the beast horde and could be overtaken at any moment.

Time is lifeline!
Is it worth putting yourself in danger just to save two passersby?
Just as he hesitated, the Thunder Crimson Ghost Eagle swept overhead like lightning, heading straight for the two light blue streaks of light.

The leader, a "bald ghost," had golden eyes and a naked body; it was imposing and had an intimidating aura.

"Oh!"

There was an explosion.

With a pair of wings over ten feet long, it took flight. The golden-eyed "bald ghost" soared into the sky in an instant, surrounded by countless strong winds that extinguished all the flames.

"Not working?"

The woman in the blue dress trembled slightly, and the talisman in her hand almost fell.

"Mother!"

Shi Fengxue screamed in surprise, as the "bald ghost" on the other side also took the opportunity to attack.

The woman in the blue dress looked flustered and hurriedly threw out several talismans in an attempt to block them.

However, the Thunder Crimson Ghost Eagles were too fast, and despite the power of the talismans, they couldn't hit them at all.

"quack!"

The golden-eyed "bald ghost" in the sky emitted a piercing shriek, as if mocking humanity's clumsiness and powerlessness.

Its sharp gaze, after careful consideration, locked onto the helpless Shi Fengxue. Suddenly, it swooped down, its enormous wings whipping up gusts of wind.

"Feng Xue, get out of the way!"

The woman in the blue dress shouted at the top of her lungs.

At this moment, she was surrounded by several Thunder Crimson Ghost Eagles. Although she had talismans and magical artifacts in her hands and could barely protect herself, she was unable to get away to save her daughter.

Avoid?

In this vast expanse of sky, where can I possibly hide?

Shi Fengxue's face turned deathly pale, her legs felt like they were filled with lead, her heart was pounding so hard it felt like it was going to burst out of her chest, and all she could hear was the howling wind and the increasingly sharp cries.

Trembling, she held "Cui Luan" horizontally in front of her, murmuring to herself, "Father is so amazing, I can do it. I can do it!"

In the blink of an eye, the massive body of the golden-eyed "bald ghost" pressed down like a small mountain, the gale-force winds stinging her cheeks and making it difficult to even breathe.

Shi Fengxue's mind went blank as fear surged like a tidal wave, instantly overwhelming all her courage.

She involuntarily closed her eyes!

"Feng Xue!"

"Gah!!"

Two sharp voices rang out almost simultaneously.

One was a mother's cry, and the other seemed to be the scream of the Thunder Crimson Ghost Eagle.

Shi Fengxue was stunned. She slowly opened her eyes and saw a tall, straight back.

The man was dressed in a green robe, the hem of which fluttered in the wind, like an unshakeable mountain.

Her gaze shifted upwards, and her pupils suddenly contracted.

The once menacing golden-eyed "bald ghost" was now being held by the neck like a dead duck, his legs dangling limply, completely devoid of any of his former imposing presence.

"you"

(End of this chapter)