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"Damn it! Damn it!"

The night was desolate, on a barren patch of land outside the Forest of Fallen Souls.

Leng She nearly stumbled, his body swaying and his steps unsteady.

He clutched his chest tightly with one hand, where his blood and qi surged like boiling water, and his meridians felt as if they were being burned by fire.

The excessive burning of his essence and blood made his face as white as a sheet of paper, and cold sweat poured down his forehead.

"That good-for-nothing Han Won-hwa!"

He gritted his teeth, his voice somewhat hoarse:

"Even a mere ant at the seventh level of Qi Refining..."

He suddenly stopped mid-sentence.

A look of extreme embarrassment flashed across his pale face.

He himself, a dignified Foundation Establishment cultivator, was also defeated by that ant at the seventh level of Qi Refining.

Not only was he forced to use the Blood Shadow Escape, which requires a certain amount of blood essence to perform, but he was also forced to use a third-tier talisman, the Calamity Transformation Talisman.

That was his only third-tier talisman, which he thought was a life-saving trump card that could be used in big situations, but it was wasted on an ant.

Thinking of this, Leng She was so angry that he almost couldn't catch his breath. A metallic taste rose in his throat, and he bent over, coughing violently, his body trembling.

After a while, he managed to suppress the discomfort caused by using Blood Shadow Escape and took out a vermilion blood-replenishing pill from his storage bag.

As the pill entered his stomach, a warm medicinal power slowly spread.

He stopped, closed his eyes, took a few deep breaths to calm himself, then gritted his teeth and continued walking forward.

Although he didn't think the other party had the supernatural power to catch up with Blood Shadow Escape.

However, Leng She still released his divine sense to be vigilant about his surroundings during his escape.

The Qi Refining cultivator's methods were so bizarre that he felt lingering fear.

He must meet with the elders of the sect as soon as possible and report the matter.

After walking several dozen feet, he suddenly stopped.

Three powerful auras, like raging waves, swept in from the front.

Leng She suddenly looked up.

In the night sky, the Blood Soul Sect's warship broke through the clouds, with shocking cracks on one side and the bow of the ship, and the tattered and charred flags fluttering in the wind.

The pupils constrict slightly when exposed to cold.

Unexpectedly, even with three Golden Core elders dispatched from the sect, they still ended up in such a sorry state.

This shows just how terrifying the strength of Master Duobao of Linlang City is among Golden Core cultivators.

He took a deep breath, suppressed the fear rising in his heart, and struggled to mobilize the spiritual power within his body, flying on his sword towards the location of the giant ship.

A sinister glint flashed in Leng She's eyes.

He secretly made a vow in his heart:

"That mere Qi Refining Level 7 ant! As long as he remains on this land, I will not let him go! I will make that ant know what it means to wish for death but not be able to live. And those two women from the Jade Sword Sect, just you wait!"

Before long, Leng She stopped at the bow of the boat. His tense nerves finally relaxed, and his legs went weak, almost causing him to kneel down.

"She'er? What's going on?"

A dignified voice rang out.

It was Leng Rulie, the third elder of the Blood Soul Sect and a mid-stage Golden Core cultivator.

The other person stood with their hands behind their back, looking serious.

Leng She couldn't help but cough twice more, then bowed respectfully:

"Leng She greets Master."

Although he was the young master of the Blood Soul Sect, he still showed great respect to his master.

Leng Rulie looked him up and down, his gaze sweeping over Leng She's pale face and the remaining injuries on his body, his brows furrowing slightly:

"Who hurt you like this? Where's Han Yuanhua from the Yunhe Sect? Why isn't he with you?"

"He's dead."

The three simple words caused Leng Rulie and the two Golden Core elders on either side to slightly change their expressions.

"Explain in detail."

Suppressing his surprise and doubt, Leng Rulie calmly said.

Leng She nodded slightly and recounted the whole story in detail.

Of course, to save face, he embellished the details of his ignominious defeat and escape.

The text focuses on the power of the two fairies from the Jade Sword Sect, as well as the interference of the Fallen Soul Forest with one's divine sense, and the disruption of one's spiritual energy circulation caused by inhaling too much mist, which led to one being seriously injured by the opponent's combined attack.

He was forced to use a Calamity-Reversing Talisman and consume his life essence to use Blood Shadow Escape to escape.

However, he did not hide the fact that Han Yuanhua had died alone at the hands of that ant who was at the seventh level of Qi Refining.

This way, the failure could be blamed on the deceased Han Won-hwa.

"Master, that person is only at the seventh level of Qi Refining, yet he can control a strange spiritual insect. This disciple suspects that this person is most likely from one of the three sects and must possess a great treasure. Otherwise, it would be impossible for him to defeat Han Yuanhua with only the power of the seventh level of Qi Refining."

After hearing this, Blood Fiend Master's eyes flashed with a strange light. He remained silent for a moment, then suddenly let out a cold laugh:

"A spirit insect capable of biting through spiritual energy barriers, that's interesting..."

Upon hearing this, Leng She was overjoyed and quickly interjected:

"Master, those three are most likely still trapped in the Fallen Soul Forest. The traces left by the Greedy Shedding Gu haven't been erased yet. Why don't we go and capture them directly?"

Leng Rulie stared at him for a moment, then suddenly waved his hand:

"That's enough. The commotion from the surprise attack on Linlang City has already attracted the attention of those righteous sects. It's not safe to stay here any longer. Go back and rest well, and reflect on the gains and losses of this trip. It will be helpful for your future cultivation. As for Han Yunhua, he's dead, so be it. Someone who would betray his sect for personal gain is no different from his master Chen Liangdao. He's nothing special."

Leng She was taken aback, clearly somewhat disappointed, but not blinded by anger, and cupped his hands in greeting:

"Disciple understands."

-

Deep within the Fallen Soul Forest.

Li Shen looked at the Blood Soul Sect cultivator kneeling on the ground with indifferent eyes.

The man trembled all over, kowtowing repeatedly, his eyes filled with a desperate desire to survive.

"Fellow Daoist, spare me! Fairy, spare me! I swear a solemn oath to the Blood Soul Sect, and I will never dare to reveal a single word about what happened today!"

Zhao Qian stood to the side, her ice sword trembling slightly, her gaze towards Li Shen carrying a complex expression.

He was the one who broke the deadlock in the last hunt for the Crimson-Striped Python, he was the one who broke the deadlock in the alley battle of Linlang City, and he is the one who broke the deadlock in this battle of Fallen Soul Forest.

She couldn't help but recall what her sister Zhao Ying had said at the inn, and a strange emotion rose in her heart. Her chest heaved slightly, and her pretty face flushed slightly as she looked at Li Shen amidst her complicated feelings.

He simply turned his gaze elsewhere, unwilling to look at Li Shen any longer.

Zhao Ying remained indifferent and did not speak, seemingly waiting for Li Shen to make a decision.

The atmosphere became silent and heavy for a moment.

"Is this up to me to decide?"

Li Shen muttered to himself, glancing at the two sisters out of the corner of his eye to confirm their attitude before speaking:

"Hand over the storage bag, and then you can... get lost."

The man froze, grasping at the hope of survival, hurriedly unfastened his storage bag from his waist, threw it on the ground, and pushed it towards Li Shen's feet:

"Fellow Daoist, put it here."

After saying that, he quickly got up and was about to leave.

"stop."

Li Shen stopped him again and asked about the Greedy Turtles.

After the man finished explaining everything, Li Shen nodded slightly.

The Blood Soul Sect cultivators felt as if they had been granted a pardon, but after running only a few steps, a soft sound suddenly came from behind them.

He instinctively turned around and saw five dark-colored throwing knives arrive swiftly, piercing his back in an instant.

His eyes widened, his lips moved, and he coughed up a mouthful of blood before collapsing to the ground.

Zhao Qian, who had been somewhat distracted, was startled and subconsciously turned her head to look at Li Shen.

Li Shen retrieved the throwing knife and explained calmly:

"If we hadn't given him hope, he might not have been willing to tell the truth, and might have even fought to the death, which would have made things quite troublesome."

As he spoke, he bent down, picked up the man's storage bag, and put it into his pocket. Then he turned to look at the Zhao sisters and took out the Greedy Molting Gu.

He already knew the effects of the Greedy Turtles, so his extra question was merely to prevent the Zhao sisters from asking "How did you know about this worm?"

He couldn't possibly reveal the "Secret Essentials of Spirit Insect Control," nor did he intend to use it as an excuse to learn about it from Han Yuanhua.

Han Yuanhua was, after all, at the peak of Qi Refining. He had already prepared a story that he could have used to explain that "at the critical moment of life and death, the opponent was careless and he managed to turn the tables and kill them."

But if it is said that these questions were asked by Han Yuanhua, then the previous reason would seem rather unbelievable.

Who would provide commentary while fighting for their life?