12: Annihilate pursuers with a flick of the finger, the first glimpse of the Purple Heaven Calamity

Lu Qingxuan's eyes narrowed slightly. Those several gazes, hidden in the shadows, were cold and viscous, like venomous snakes lurking in the dark. The Shadow Tower's reaction was even faster than he anticipated. It seemed that last night's counter-kill had not thoroughly intimidated these secretive individuals.

He remained calm, saying to Su Linger and the other two, "Let's go."

The four left the "Cloud Deep, Not Knowing Where" inn and merged into the gradually bustling morning crowd of Flowing Cloud City. Lu Qingxuan, in a green robe, had a restrained aura, appearing like an ordinary Young Master out for a stroll. Su Linger walked by his side, while Chen Feng and Zhao Lei lagged half a step behind, vigilantly observing their surroundings.

However, just as they passed through a relatively secluded alley, preparing to head towards the city gate in the southeast, an unexpected change occurred!

"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"

Several sharp sounds of air being torn apart erupted from the shadows of the eaves on both sides, launching more than ten black lights! These black lights were astonishingly fast, enveloped in corrosive black Qi. They were, surprisingly, highly poisonous armor-piercing crossbow bolts! Each one's power was enough to easily penetrate the Protective Aura of an ordinary Golden Core cultivator.

The attack came abruptly and lethally, with tricky angles, sealing off all escape routes front, back, left, and right.

"Be careful!" Chen Feng and Zhao Lei's expressions changed drastically. They shouted, their Golden Core Middle Stage cultivation erupting. Spiritual power shields instantly rose, and they were about to step forward to block.

Su Linger also paled, subconsciously moving closer to Lu Qingxuan.

However, Lu Qingxuan's movements were faster than their reactions, even faster than the incoming crossbow bolts!

He didn't even pause his steps. He merely raised his right hand seemingly casually, his index and middle fingers together, and lightly drew a line in the air before him.

There were no vast spiritual power fluctuations, no earth-shattering momentum.

But at the moment his fingertip moved, a faint golden, twisted pattern composed of countless subtle and profound runes flashed into existence! This pattern was incredibly simple, yet it exuded a will of "Seal" originating from the primordial Chaos!

The instant the golden pattern appeared, it was as if an invisible net enveloped a ten-zhang radius of space.

Time, at this moment, seemed to freeze.

The more than ten incoming, poisoned crossbow bolts, capable of killing Golden Core cultivators, instantly plunged into an invisible quagmire the moment they touched the faint golden pattern's light. Their speed drastically reduced, and the black Qi surrounding them rapidly melted away like ice and snow scorched by the blazing sun. The arrowheads, still three feet from Lu Qingxuan's glabella, completely lost all their kinetic energy and spiritual essence, clattering to the ground, turning into ordinary iron.

Not only that, but several muffled groans and suppressed exclamations simultaneously came from the shadows beneath the eaves on both sides. Five black-clad figures, originally almost merged with the shadows, were forcibly squeezed out as if from water, staggering into view. Their faces showed extreme horror and bewilderment, for they found that their diligently cultivated Shadow Escape technique had completely failed at this moment! The spiritual power circulation throughout their bodies was sluggish, as if an invisible shackles had been placed upon them!

[Dao Pattern Imprint (Incomplete)] — Seal effect, triggered!

"How is this possible?!"

"Our Shadow Escape has been broken!"

The five assassins, all Golden Core Early Stage cultivators, were now exposed in broad daylight like lambs to the slaughter.

Lu Qingxuan's gaze was indifferent as he looked at the five assassins, as if they were five ants. He didn't even use any powerful Spells or Divine Abilities.

He merely pointed his fingers like a sword, and with a light flick, he pointed at the five assassins who were stiff in place.

"Om—"

Inside his Dantian, the slowly rotating Nine Revolutions Chaos Golden Core trembled slightly. A pure and ultimate Origin Core power, imbued with the meaning of Chaos creation, surged out through his Meridians. Without any incantation transformation, it directly penetrated his body, transforming into five extremely condensed, almost invisible Chaos Sword Qi!

The Sword Qi was hazy gray. Wherever it passed, the space rippled subtly, and even light seemed to be swallowed by it.

Fast! Unimaginably fast!

Accurate! Locking onto their Qi, there was no escaping!

Ruthless! Containing the Concept of Chaos Annihilation, it was utterly overbearing!

The five Shadow Tower assassins, who had just broken free from part of the sealing power and had not yet had time to put up effective defenses, only managed to reflect that faint gray light in their pupils.

"Puff!" "Puff!" "Puff!" "Puff!" "Puff!"

Five soft sounds, almost simultaneously.

A small blood hole appeared simultaneously on the glabella of the five Golden Core assassins, passing straight through. Not a trace of fresh blood flowed from the wounds, because all their vitality was completely annihilated and turned into nothingness the moment the Chaos Sword Qi entered their bodies.

Their bodies maintained their previous postures, stiff for a moment, then softly collapsed to the ground as if all their bones had been extracted, completely devoid of life.

Instant kill!

In a true flick of a finger, powerful enemies turned to dust!

From the crossbow bolt attack to the death of the five Golden Core assassins, the entire process took only a breath. Inside and outside the alley, there was dead silence. Only the fallen crossbow bolts and the five rapidly cooling corpses proved how brief and brutal the battle had just been.

Chen Feng and Zhao Lei's spiritual power shields had not even had time to take effect, and the battle was already over. The two stood frozen, staring dumbfounded at the five corpses, then at the green-robed figure ahead, feeling a chill rush from the soles of their feet to the top of their heads.

They knew the Saint was very strong; they had witnessed his profound Formation skills last night, counter-killing five powerful enemies. But at this moment, they more intuitively realized how unfathomable the Saint's strength was! Those were five Golden Core Early Stage assassins, skilled in stealth and assassination! Yet... yet they were instantly killed with such an understated flick of a finger?

Is this truly the strength a Golden Core Early Stage cultivator can possess? The Holy Son of the Grand Void is terrifying!

Su Linger also covered her lips with her jade hand, her beautiful eyes wide. She knew Senior Brother Lu was strong, but she never expected him to be this strong. Looking at Lu Qingxuan's calm and unperturbed profile, her sense of reliance and security grew even stronger.

Lu Qingxuan seemed to have just done a trivial thing. His gaze swept over the five corpses, and his mind stirred slightly.

"Copy."

[Shadow Stealth] (Blue) *3, [Poison Mastery] (Green) *2, [Armor-Piercing Crossbow Specialization] (White) *5... several scattered term entries flowed into his Sea of Consciousness. Their quality was far inferior to Shadow Killer's from last night, but better than nothing, so they were directly moved to the material library.

"It seems the Shadow Tower is dead set on us." Lu Qingxuan's tone was flat, showing no emotion. "This place is not suitable for long stays. Let's speed up and leave the city."

"Yes!" Chen Feng and Zhao Lei jolted, quickly responding, suppressing the shock in their hearts, and guarding him even more vigilantly.

Su Linger also nodded quickly, closely following Lu Qingxuan's steps.

The four no longer lingered. Their figures darted, and soon they left Flowing Cloud City's South Gate, set their sights on Purple Heavens Mountain, and traveled by wind... Less than half a cup of tea after Lu Qingxuan and the others left, a bloody figure appeared silently in that secluded alley like a ghost.

The newcomer was tall, dressed in a black robe embroidered with dark red patterns, and wore a blood-colored Asura mask, revealing only a pair of cruel and cold eyes. The aura emanating from him had reached the Peak of the Golden Core Late Stage, significantly stronger than the previous Shadow Killer!

He was Blood Butcher, one of the members of the "Dark Blade" squad dispatched by "Ghost Shadow," the Shadow Tower's branch master.

Blood Butcher squatted down, examining the bodies of the five assassins. When he saw the subtle yet annihilating wound on their glabella, his brows beneath the blood-colored mask furrowed tightly.

"What a strange attack... Not Sword Intent, nor Law, but rather... some kind of extremely high-essence power directly annihilating vitality?" Blood Butcher muttered in a hoarse, unpleasant voice. "Killed in one blow, five people died simultaneously, without even a decent resistance. This Lu Qingxuan is indeed troublesome."

He stood up, his gaze directed towards the direction Lu Qingxuan and the others had left, a bloody light flashing in his eyes.

"However, the more troublesome the prey, the more enjoyable it is to kill." Blood Butcher licked his lips, revealing a cruel smile. "Towards Purple Heavens Mountain? Perfect, the net is about to close there too... Maybe I can even catch another good show."

Before his words finished, his figure had already transformed into a bloody shadow, merging into the shadows on the ground, pursuing south with an uncanny speed, his aura even more perfectly concealed than the previous assassins... The direction from Flowing Cloud City to Purple Heavens Mountain was mostly continuous mountains and dense primeval forests. Three thousand li of distance, for a Golden Core cultivator capable of flying, could be covered in a day if they traveled at full speed.

Lu Qingxuan did not fully push his speed. On one hand, he considered Su Linger and the other two; on the other hand, he was constantly familiarizing himself with and integrating his newly acquired powers.

[Shadow Affinity] allowed him to move more elusively and agilely when traversing the mountains and forests, almost perfectly blending with the environment by utilizing changes in light and shadow. [Hundred Battles True Comprehension] continuously enhanced his combat instincts, with every move containing optimal force exertion techniques. [Thousand Poisons Body Tempering] made him oblivious to the slight miasma and poisonous fog permeating the mountains, and he could even actively absorb a trace to slightly strengthen his Physique.

His mind was divided, traveling while also introspecting.

In his Sea of Consciousness, the golden tome of term entries glowed. Besides the equipped terms, a considerable number of low-level terms had accumulated in the material library.

"System, fuse and deduce [Shadow Stealth] (Blue) *3, with all white and green terms in the material library related to stealth and speed."

"Ding, Fusion deduction in progress... Deduction successful! Obtained purple term: [Following Like a Shadow]."

[Following Like a Shadow] (Purple): Greatly enhances stealth effect and movement speed. Can use any subtle shadow for short-distance teleportation. Aura is restrained to the extreme, as if truly integrated into the shadows.

"Equip."

With the term equipped, Lu Qingxuan felt his compatibility with the surrounding light and dark environment increase again. With a slight thought, his figure could easily flicker between the shadows of trees, his speed increasing by more than thirty percent, leaving no trace.

He then used the newly acquired terms like [Poison Mastery] as nourishment, feeding them into [Thousand Poisons Body Tempering], which also enhanced the effect of this purple term by a few points.

This feeling of constantly growing stronger, anywhere and anytime, was truly captivating.

Along the way, they also encountered several waves of Yao Beast attacks, including even a "Red Flame Yao Tiger" equivalent to a Golden Core Middle Stage cultivator. However, these Yao Beasts posed no threat to Lu Qingxuan. He didn't even need to use Chaos Sword Qi; with just a casual punch or kick, the immense power containing Primary Desolate Ancient Sacred Body and Indestructible Battle Aura would blast the Yao Beasts into smithereens, and he would conveniently copy a few terms like [Fire Resistance] (Blue) and [Sharp Claw Tear] (Green).

Su Linger, Chen Feng, and Zhao Lei went from initial shock to gradual numbness. They only felt that Senior Brother Lu's (Saint's) strength seemed to have no upper limit. Every time he made a move, he appeared at ease and unfathomably deep.

After traveling continuously for nearly six hours, dusk was falling, and the four stopped to rest in a relatively open mountain valley, lighting a bonfire.

By the bonfire, Su Linger hugged her knees, gazing at the flickering flames, her face etched with unconcealable worry.

"Senior Brother Lu," she softly broke the silence, "I... I'm a little worried. The last message from the Sect only said it was besieged by an unknown force, and communication was cut off. We know nothing about the specific situation. My father... I don't know how he is doing now."

Lu Qingxuan looked at her. In the bonfire's glow, her pretty face carried a hint of fragility and pallor, making her pitiable. He calmly said, "Since you're worried, let's travel at full speed tomorrow and arrive as early as possible. Then, everything will be clear."

His voice was calm, yet it carried a reassuring power.

Su Linger nodded, then hesitated before adding, "Senior Brother Lu, regarding the force besieging the Purple Heaven Sect, I... I actually have a guess, but I'm not sure."

"Oh?" Lu Qingxuan raised an eyebrow.

Su Linger took a deep breath and said, "Before I left the Purple Heaven Sect to come to Flowing Cloud City, I accidentally overheard my father talking with a few Elders, mentioning the name 'Black Fiend Cult.' At the time, their expressions were very solemn; it seemed they had some feud with this Sect. And this Black Fiend Cult's methods are ruthless and bizarre, specializing in controlling Evil Qi and poisonous creatures, which bears some resemblance to the description of the unknown force currently besieging the Sect..."

"Black Fiend Cult?" Lu Qingxuan's eyes moved slightly. He had vaguely heard of this name; it was a second-rate Demonic Path Sect active in this region, and its leader was said to have Nascent Soul Stage cultivation. "Why would they besiege the Purple Heaven Sect?"

Su Linger shook her head: "I don't know the specific reason either. I only vaguely heard that it seems to be related to an ancient ruin deep within Purple Heavens Mountain..."

"Ancient ruin?" A hint of interest flashed in Lu Qingxuan's eyes. An ancient ruin that a Demonic Cult would mobilize such a large force for, even besieging a Sect for, was probably not simple.

He vaguely felt that this trip to Purple Heavens Mountain might not just be a rescue mission, but could also involve some ancient Opportunity.

Just then, Lu Qingxuan's brow suddenly twitched. His gaze meaningfully swept towards the dense darkness in a certain direction outside the mountain valley, and a cold arc curved at the corner of his mouth.

"It seems some annoying flies still won't give up."

Su Linger, Chen Feng, and Zhao Lei immediately became alert upon hearing this. They followed his gaze but only saw the pitch-black night, detecting no abnormalities.

But they now deeply believed Lu Qingxuan's words.