I'm determined to become an immortal!

As the sun sets and the moon rises, the cool moonlight spills onto the turbulent Hunlong River, creating a layer of silvery-white shimmering light.

He Sheng traveled downstream along the Hunlong River, covering a distance of seven or eight hundred li.

However, with the aid of the subtle ripples in the realm of spiritual perception, that faint sense of danger never dissipated.

He Sheng couldn't help but feel a little strange, and pondered to himself:

"The fact that the suspected Core Formation expert was able to stay close behind suggests that they possess some kind of tracking method..."

If he really is a Core Formation stage cultivator, why doesn't he just chase after them?

After all, according to Piao Ge's memory of cultivation common sense, it was normal for a Core Formation cultivator to travel seven or eight hundred miles in an hour.

Although my speed in water-based movement is fast, it's nothing special in the eyes of a Core Formation cultivator. They should have caught up long ago, forcing me to use the Gentle Ripple Water Escape technique, right?

The speed of the ripples in the water escape is quite fast; if it can be sustained for an hour, it can escape for 1,300 to 1,400 miles.

Unfortunately, with He Sheng's mid-Foundation Establishment cultivation, even with perfect magic power, he could only sustain himself for half an incense stick's time at most.

"Could it be that Brother Piao's senses are wrong... the other party isn't a Core Formation cultivator?!"

Just a pseudo-core cultivator, or...

Before He Sheng could figure out the key to this, the river suddenly widened, and the water flowed in two. The main stream continued to rush eastward, while a tributary on the right turned southward.

According to Piao Ge's memory, this is the fork in the Hunlong River. This tributary flows south, passes through Tiandu Mountain, and then merges downstream to form the Yinsha River, which runs across the south of Zhenzhou.

The area around Yinsha River was the territory where Piao Ge ruled.

With a thought, He Sheng instantly turned into that tributary.

Following this slightly murky tributary southward, you soon enter a vast expanse of mountains.

The once wide expanse of water quickly narrowed, turning into a deep canyon.

The sheer cliffs on both sides of the river pierce the clouds, blocking out most of the moonlight and making the light in the water even dimmer.

Further on, one sees ancient trees reaching for the sky, their branches and leaves intertwined like a canopy, and vines hanging down to the water like giant pythons, exuding a primitive and wild atmosphere.

The air was thick with the earthy smell and the stench of decaying vegetation, clearly indicating that this place was rarely visited by humans.

"This is the territory of the Tiandu Mountain range, which stretches across Zhenzhou from north to south."

He Sheng slowed down his water manipulation and mentally sorted through Piao Ge's memories of Tiandu Mountain.

"This Tiandu Mountain is a place where demonic beasts roam freely. Although there are no third-tier demon kings comparable to Core Formation cultivators guarding the mountain, there are several second-tier great demons comparable to Foundation Establishment cultivators."

Each of them was infamous, and ordinary cultivators dared not set foot in their territory.

but..."

Suddenly, He Sheng's heart skipped a beat, and a place popped into his mind: Longevity Pool!

The place is located in a secluded canyon in the Tiandu Mountains. In a deep pool more than ten miles wide, there is a water palace opened up by a second-level great demon.

"The second-tier great demon that opened up that water palace was a star-backed black tortoise, with a very deep connection to the He family."

Simply put, this Star-Backed Black Tortoise was the spirit pet of the He family patriarch of Hundred Herbs Valley.

Two hundred years ago,

The patriarch of the He family, with his Qi Refining Perfection cultivation, occupied Hundred Herbs Valley, and then multiplied and thrived, thus establishing the He family lineage.

After it passed away at the age of ninety-nine, this sentient star-backed black tortoise became an ownerless spiritual beast.

However, it did not leave immediately. Instead, remembering the kindness of its former master, it stayed in the Ho family for nearly a hundred years, accepting their support and protecting them.

"It wasn't until two or three decades before Piao Ge was born that this old tortoise, perhaps having discovered some fortuitous opportunity, quietly left Hundred Herbs Valley."

Later, this Star-Backed Black Tortoise, through some unknown fortuitous opportunity, became a second-tier great demon comparable to a Foundation Establishment cultivator, and opened up a water palace in the Longevity Pool.

After becoming a second-tier great demon, this Star-Backed Black Tortoise returned to the He family once, and its connection with the He family has never been broken.

"Back then, Brother Piao was able to withstand the combined suppression of several major Foundation Establishment families and successfully establish his Foundation, largely thanks to the old tortoise's protection."

However, after Piao Ge achieved Foundation Establishment, the relationship between the two sides gradually became distant.

Especially after Piao Ge entered the mid-Foundation Establishment stage, he once expressed the idea of ​​letting the Star-Backed Xuan Turtle return to the He family and serve as the "Clan Guardian Spirit Beast", and the two sides gradually drifted apart.

Even so, the old tortoise maintained contact with the He family, and the He family would still send offerings to the Star-Backed Black Tortoise from time to time.

In short, Old Turtle still has feelings for the He family, but he doesn't get along with Brother Piao.

After all, why would a dignified second-tier demon want to find another master for himself?

Isn't it great to be a mountain king, dominating the area?

He Sheng thought for a moment and murmured:

"Although Brother Piao and Old Turtle don't get along, I'm not Brother Piao!"

Now, with a powerful enemy trailing behind, the escape has exhausted both magical power and spiritual energy, and they urgently need to rest.

Why not swallow your pride and pretend to ease tensions by visiting the old turtle?

Firstly, it can use the old turtle's watery abode to rest for a while;

Secondly, perhaps with the old tortoise's protection, we could even get a glimpse of the full identity of the pursuers behind us!

Plans are in place!

The more He Sheng thought about it, the more feasible this method seemed.

It should be noted that demonic beasts are different from human cultivators. The Star-Backed Black Tortoise is as hard as refined iron and has extremely strong defense, far exceeding that of human cultivators of the same level.

Moreover, since it was able to open up the water palace, there must be defensive measures inside, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack.

"Moreover, this Tiandu Mountain is not a place where one can run wild at will."

The several second-tier demons in the mountains were closely connected, forming a mutually supportive relationship.

Otherwise, it would be impossible for them to remain here peacefully.

He was probably already wiped out by that fake Core Formation cultivator from the Golden Cloud Sect!

Simply put, if the cultivators pursuing them dare to attack the Water Mansion, the old tortoise only needs to send a signal to summon his companions.

"If several second-tier powerful demons join forces at that time, they might have a chance to escape completely, or even..."

A glint flashed in He Sheng's eyes, and without further hesitation, he sped off toward Wanshou Pool.

......

Under the night sky,

A streak of cyan sword light, like a shooting star chasing the moon, pursued all the way to the fork in the Hunlong River.

But after crossing the fork in the river and following the main current for several miles, Ye Shaozhen suddenly withdrew his sword light, hovering in mid-air with a furrowed brow and his eyes fixed on the river rushing eastward.

"strangeness..."

He muttered to himself, a hint of surprise and uncertainty flashing in his eyes.

"How could the traces of magical energy fluctuations have vanished into thin air here?"

The reason Ye Shaozhen was able to relentlessly pursue He Sheng was not because his divine sense was truly so extraordinary that it could lock onto a target from tens of miles away.

The real reason is that he possesses a prototype of a special ruler-type magic weapon, the Spirit-Seeking Ruler!

This treasure was bestowed upon him by his master. Not only is it exceptionally powerful, but it can also be used to detect fluctuations in spiritual energy between heaven and earth.

Therefore, Ye Shao Chen only needs to use this treasure, along with his unique pupil technique "Piercing Golden Eyes" which he has cultivated for many years, to be able to keenly detect the subtle fluctuations left in the world when a cultivator controls a weapon or casts a spell.

Even though He Sheng's water manipulation technique was extremely sophisticated, it was inevitable that he would leave behind wisps of spiritual energy ripples in the water.

With the blessing of the Spirit-Seeking Ruler and the Eyes of Truth-Dispelling, these ripples were as clear as torches in the night.

But at this fork in the river, the traces of magical energy fluctuations abruptly ceased in the eastward-flowing main stream, as if He Sheng had simply evaporated.

"Could it be that he has gone ashore?"

Or did they use some secret technique to completely isolate their aura?

Ye Shao Chen felt slightly irritated and scanned his surroundings with his divine sense once again.

Suddenly, a thought struck him, and his gaze turned to the tributary that had turned south at the fork in the road.

"wrong!

If one goes ashore, there will surely be one or two traces on the shore;

If it were a secret method to isolate them, the previous traces wouldn't have been severed so easily.

The only explanation...

Ye Shao Chen's eyes lit up, and he said:

"That guy must have changed course at the previous fork in the road!"

Ye Shaochen immediately turned back at the fork in the road.

"rise!"

With a soft shout, Ye Shao Chen saw a jade ruler, about three inches long and crystal clear, fly out from his palm.

follow closely,

He formed hand seals, and a faint golden light flickered in his eyes as he activated his pupil technique, "Golden Eyes of Truth."

Swish!

The jade ruler leaped into the tributary of the river, immediately shooting out a ripple that was barely visible to the naked eye, sweeping towards the surface of the tributary to the south.

A moment later, a faint red light suddenly appeared at the top of the jade ruler, and a faint trace, almost disappearing, appeared in Ye Shao Chen's eyes.

"That fellow really did change course here!"

Ye Shao Chen's lips curled into a cold smile:

"No matter what kind of thing you are, or how cunning you are, as long as you use your magic, you won't escape my grasp!"

Before he finished speaking, the azure light around him intensified, and his sword-wielding momentum became even faster, like a streak of azure lightning, as he sped forward.

Soon, a sword light pierced the night sky and plunged straight into the heart of Tiandu Mountain.