146: Get rid of suspicion

Many Cultivators in Mist Valley had come for the Zhao family's bounty, and some even included Outer Sect Disciples who had accepted Blood Palace missions.

Seeing someone blocking and fighting Qiao Zimo, how could they miss such a good opportunity for a sneak attack?

They all joined the battle.

However, Qiao Zimo turned and fled. As a Body Cultivator comparable to a Middle Stage Void Refining Cultivator, Qiao Zimo's speed in these mountains was incredibly fast, disappearing without a trace in the blink of an eye.

Only a few managed to catch up, while most were shaken off within a thousand feet and lost sight of him.

They could only return begrudgingly.

Xiao Zhuo, at this moment, still maintained the appearance of Xue Hai. Xue Hai was also wanted by the Zhao family, but it was not a kill order like Qiao Zimo's, but a bounty for clues to his whereabouts.

Even with all their audacity, the Zhao family would not openly offer a bounty to hunt down a Blood Palace Disciple.

Many Loose Cultivators, having lost Qiao Zimo, naturally turned back to look for Xiao Zhuo.

“Is that Fellow Daoist Xue Hai of the Blood Palace?” A burly middle-aged man carrying a large saber led two companions back to the explosion site.

Xiao Zhuo was sitting cross-legged, his face pale, healing his injuries. Catching sight of the newcomers, a look of wariness immediately appeared on his face.

The middle-aged man quickly waved his hand when he saw this: “Fellow Daoist, please don't misunderstand. We have no ill intentions, we just want to confirm your identity.”

As the middle-aged man spoke, he quietly sent a sound transmission to his companions to notify the Zhao family.

If they couldn't get Qiao Zimo's bounty, getting Xue Hai's would also be a pleasant surprise.

Xiao Zhuo naturally noticed their small actions, but his purpose in appearing was to clear himself of suspicion and preserve Xue Hai's identity, so he didn't care at all.

He merely gave the three a cold look, slowly ending his cultivation and standing up.

It seemed as if he would immediately strike with lightning speed if the three showed even a hint of malice.

After more than ten breaths, people arrived, following the positioning Talisman.

There were more than ten people, led by a white-haired man whose long hair was tied up with a Jade hairpin with coiled dragon design (panlong jade hairpin). His figure, however, was straight and sturdy, dressed in a purple-gold brocade robe, exuding a heavy pressure all over. One look and it was clear he was a Cultivator of exceptional skill.

As this person arrived, the three Loose Cultivators bowed in salute: “Greetings, Old Ancestor Tianji.”

Zhao Tianji glanced at the three, waved his hand casually, and a person behind him stepped forward, tossing out a Storage Pouch.

The middle-aged man took it, scanned it briefly, and immediately smiled, cupped his fists, and retreated.

Zhao Tianji's gaze then fixed on Xiao Zhuo: “Are you Xue Hai?”

Xiao Zhuo, currently appearing weak and heavily injured, quickly bowed upon seeing Zhao Tianji: “Junior Xue Hai of the Blood Palace greets Senior Zhao.”

Before he finished speaking, Xiao Zhuo felt a powerful Divine Sense envelop him.

He lowered his eyelids slightly, a hint of mockery flashing in his eyes. The Thousand Illusions Demonic Art within him had already perfectly disguised the illusion of a severely injured Physical Body and a withered Divine Soul; a mere Body Integration Divine Sense could not see through it in the slightest.

As expected, the Divine Sense explored his body for a circle and then withdrew. However, although Zhao Tianji's expression softened slightly, he still ordered: “Hand over your Storage Pouch; allow this Old Man to inspect it.”

Xiao Zhuo's face immediately turned ugly: “Senior, isn't this inappropriate?”

“Hmm?” Zhao Tianji's gaze suddenly sharpened, and a Body Integration pressure instantly rushed towards him.

Xiao Zhuo cooperatively turned pale, his body staggering back several steps, appearing to be on the verge of collapse.

Finally, he showed a humiliated expression, unsealed the Restriction on his waist Storage Pouch, and threw it over.

His face was filled with naturally expressed indignation.

Zhao Tianji took the Storage Pouch, and his Divine Sense probed it. He indeed found no abnormalities. Frowning slightly, he threw the pouch back to Xiao Zhuo.

Xiao Zhuo took back the Storage Pouch, then feigned a slightly improved expression.

He had anticipated this move. All of Zhao Xiange's and the three Zhao family enshrined members' belongings, along with the myriad ages token, had already been moved to a different Storage Pouch by him, deeply hidden at the bottom of a dark river, and completely concealed using the Universe Extreme Divine Body's spatial Divine Ability.

Unless a Body Integration expert who also cultivated the Dao of space came in person, it would be absolutely impossible to find them.

“Let me ask you!” Zhao Tianji's gaze was chilling, and a heavy oppressive feeling enveloped Xiao Zhuo. “What exactly happened when you and my grandson Zhao Xiange pursued Qiao Zimo? Why did you, a mere Mid-stage Spirit Transformation Cultivator, survive, while my grandson, with three great Puppets protecting him, perished instead!”

“Senior! The situation is like this…” Xiao Zhuo's face grew even uglier upon hearing this, and he slowly recounted.

Of course, in his narration, he and the four Zhao family members encountered Qiao Zimo. Unexpectedly, Qiao Zimo's injuries had fully recovered, and he immediately displayed the strength of a Middle Stage Void Refining Cultivator upon engaging in battle.

Even with the five of them combined, they were no match. The three Zhao family enshrined members died one after another. If Zhao Xiange hadn't erupted at the critical moment, commanding the three Peak Soul Transformation Puppets to self-destruct and heavily injure Qiao Zimo, Xiao Zhuo himself would not have been able to escape.

However, Qiao Zimo, despite enduring the self-destruction of the three Puppets, did not die, only suffering severe injuries, yet he was still able to kill Zhao Xiange despite his wounds.

Xiao Zhuo himself had also further injured Qiao Zimo when he forcibly killed Zhao Xiange, thus finding an opportunity to escape from underground.

His explanation was flawless, and he had also made Qiao Zimo appear heavily injured; even now, an investigation would show him to be severely wounded.

Although Zhao Tianji was furious after hearing this, wishing it was Xue Hai who had died, there were too many prying eyes around at the moment, and he dared not openly kill Xue Hai to vent his anger.

After all, the other party was both a Blood Palace Disciple and had been invited by Zhao Xiange to assist. His inspection indeed found no clues, and when he appeared earlier, many people witnessed him still fighting Qiao Zimo and being severely injured.

Neither by reason nor emotion could he be touched, otherwise, how could the Zhao family maintain its standing in Wuyun Prefecture in the future.

Zhao Tianji stared deeply at Xiao Zhuo, then casually tossed out a bottle of Medicinal Pills. With a slight push of his foot, he shot off in the direction where Qiao Zimo had disappeared earlier.

Xiao Zhuo caught the Medicinal Pills and scanned them with his Divine Sense: “A bottle of high-grade profound rank Jade Pills, not stingy at all.”

However, he looked in the direction Zhao Tianji had disappeared, his eyes showing a hint of strangeness.

Then, under the gaze of the remaining dozen people around, he transformed into a bloody rainbow and shot through the air, leaving Mist Valley.

After flying a hundred miles and confirming no one was following, Xiao Zhuo landed in a hidden mountain cave.

His black hair instantly turned pink, and his figure shrunk slightly. When he emerged again, he had transformed into Qiao Zimo's appearance.

Then, with a light tap of his toes, he quietly returned to the depths of Mist Valley.

In the valley, a ten-person team was cautiously advancing, their eyes vigilantly scanning their surroundings.

In this eerie place where Divine Sense could not probe beyond ten meters, everything had to rely on the most primitive five senses.

Suddenly, a phantom figure, carrying a Blood Wind (pungent wind), flashed past.

The leading Soul Transformation Loose Cultivator was startled and quickly turned his head, only to see the head of one of his companions rolling into the grass behind him.

“Careful!! Enemy attack!” The man shrieked, instinctively releasing his Divine Sense to cover ten meters around him.

The others hastily gathered into a circular formation, their expressions grave as they looked around.

Unfortunately, the next moment, the black shadow reappeared. A blade light entwined with black flames flashed, and the nine heads of those in the circle simultaneously flew into the sky.

The demon cores and demon infants within the heads were siphoned dry by a blood-red light from afar, not even sparing the Physical Body's vital blood.

Xiao Zhuo's figure appeared, and he raised his hand, flinging a sheet of black demonic flames to cover the dried corpses. A burnt smell permeated the air, and in just over ten breaths, the destruction of the bodies was complete.

A withered leaf drifted down, and the scene was already devoid of any traces of people.

Thus, Xiao Zhuo began to secretly hunt the Loose Cultivators and Zhao family experts in the valley.

Meanwhile, the real Qiao Zimo, after killing several people, once again fled deep underground.

This left Zhao Tianji, who arrived shortly after, to rage furiously at the sky, facing only a few bloody corpses.

He immediately ordered his subordinates to find Cultivators skilled in earth-elemental arts to assist.

Xiao Zhuo, however, could communicate with Qiao Zimo in real-time through the Soul Locking Seal.

Within this area, Xiao Zhuo's fourth-rank soul infant Divine Sense could cover a radius of a thousand feet. Even for a Body Integration expert like Zhao Tianji, who did not primarily cultivate the Divine Soul, his Divine Sense strength at most rivaled a third-rank soul infant, and probing a hundred feet was already his limit.

After locking onto Zhao Tianji's position, Xiao Zhuo had been secretly observing every move of the Zhao family team.

At the same time, through the Divine Soul connection, he directed Qiao Zimo, who was hidden within the range of his Divine Sense, to either evade or assassinate.

Gradually, Zhao Tianji also noticed the anomaly. As they searched, the number of living people they encountered became increasingly scarce, and they discovered many traces of battles where Cultivators had perished along the way, but no corpses were found.