23: Chapter 23 Even the King of Runaways Has a Hard Time Running Away

[Bottom-Up Reversal completed, rewards have been distributed]

Li Fan had no time to check the System rewards; he was currently carrying Luo Qingqian as he maneuvered through the thicket, dodging the wind blades flying down from above.

Glancing back, he saw five or six Foundation Establishment Winged Race members following him, keeping a distance that was neither too close nor too far, constantly casting Spells to drain Li Fan.

Fortunately, Li Fan had a massive amount of Spiritual Qi within his body, enough to sustain him for a long time.

Luo Qingqian, who had no cultivation base at the moment, was clutching half of Li Fan's arm, her whole body wrapped in Li Fan's Spiritual Qi as they flew together.

The path ahead was endless, and another team of Winged Race members flew in from directly in front of where his arrow was pointing; Li Fan had no choice but to make a turn.

"Don't let that Human Race member run!"

The Winged Race Cultivator in the sky pointed from afar at Li Fan, who was weaving through the forest.

"Call more brothers over!"

Li Fan was getting anxious. This wasn't some role-playing game from the Xuanxing Department; people could actually die here.

But he hadn't cultivated any evasion techniques, and he couldn't shake off this group of bird-people.

"Damn it, if I survive, I'm definitely going to learn a few escape Cultivation Techniques first!"

Narrowly dodging a few incoming Spells, an earth-shaking vibration of Spiritual Qi suddenly came from ahead.

It seemed other Cultivators were fighting. Looking at the pursuers closing in tighter behind him, Li Fan could only bite the bullet and keep flying forward.

The trees ahead had been leveled by the aftermath of the Cultivators' battle, leaving only short stumps and creating an open, exposed plain.

Spells were still clashing above; it was two Winged Race Golden Core members besieging a Xuanxing Department Golden Core Cultivator.

Li Fan rushing out of the woods with a crowd of Foundation Establishment Winged Race members naturally drew their attention.

To be precise, it drew the attention of the Xuanxing Department Golden Core Cultivator. While trading blows, he flicked a wisp of clear Qi onto Li Fan.

Li Fan's speed suddenly increased several times over. Unable to control himself, he turned into a streak of light, crossed the open plain, and entered the dense forest on the other side.

"Kid, I'm tied up here; help me take someone."

As he transmitted his voice, the Golden Core Cultivator flicked his sleeve, and a figure flew out, landing perfectly in Li Fan's other arm, balancing out with Luo Qingqian on the other side.

Li Fan simply retracted his luofeng sword into his System storage space.

Distracted, he looked over; wasn't this Qian Zhenzhen? She hadn't noticed whose arm she was holding yet, only crying out:

"Uncle Qian~!"

The Golden Core Cultivator surnamed Qian was speechless internally. Stop shouting. If it weren't for worrying about Qian Zhenzhen, he wouldn't be in such a sorry state.

At this moment, he circulated his internal Spiritual Qi, bursting with power, looking as if he were truly prepared to fight to the death.

On his end, Li Fan didn't stop for a single moment. Within just two or three breaths, he could no longer feel the aura of the Golden Core Cultivator's duel.

A long while later, the shadows of the Foundation Establishment pursuers behind him also vanished; they must have been intercepted by the Golden Core Cultivator.

Seeing this, Li Fan caught his breath, and his speed gradually slowed down.

"Qian Zhenzhen, how much longer are you going to hold onto me?"

He looked down at Qian Zhenzhen, who was holding his right arm. Qian Zhenzhen was different from Luo Qingqian.

She was a Qi Refining Cultivator; as long as she connected her Spiritual Qi with Li Fan's slightly, she could travel at the same speed.

But after Qian Zhenzhen had been forcibly shoved over by the Golden Core Cultivator, she had just kept her head down, feeling unhappy, and hadn't cared at all about who she was holding.

She had simply judged by the strength of the aura and assumed it was that Foundation Establishment Cultivator.

Hearing him call her, she raised her head and realized the person whose arm she had been holding was actually Li Fan. She was startled, and her grip on Li Fan loosened slightly.

However, when her gaze caught Luo Qingqian on the side, she held on tighter.

"What's wrong? You are my future Dao Companion, after all."

After saying this, she simply pressed her entire face against Li Fan's skin.

On the other side, Luo Qingqian's alarm bells rang loudly in her heart as she faced her number one enemy.

But she couldn't exactly act like the main wife and scold her, as she hadn't formally confirmed her relationship with Li Fan yet.

Li Fan was helpless. They were currently fleeing for their lives, and he had no time to bicker with Qian Zhenzhen. Even if there was no one around now, who knows when a few more Foundation Establishment Winged Race members might pop out.

Sure enough, two more teams of Winged Race Cultivators descended from the sky.

Without a word, they immediately condensed Spells and attacked. Li Fan had no choice but to increase his speed once again.

A few flying feathers grazed him, and blood splattered from Li Fan's shoulder. He quickly dove down to dodge the continuous barrage of feathers that followed.

Immediately after, a concentrated blast of Spiritual Qi exploded beside him, and the three of them were knocked down by the shockwave, tumbling onto the ground.

In the middle of the tumble, Li Fan endured the intense pain, gathered his Spiritual Qi, and struck the ground. Using the recoil force, he dodged an attack that had predicted his trajectory.

At the same time, he used his Spiritual Qi to pull Luo Qingqian and Qian Zhenzhen, who had been scattered, and resumed their flight.

"I've probably broken a few bones."

After a quick check of his condition, he immediately turned his head to assess the situation; the next wave of attacks was already following close behind.

"This won't do; if this keeps up, I'll be dragged to death sooner or later."

Making a prompt decision, Li Fan sent out two bursts of Spiritual Qi, sending the two women flying forward for some distance.

His luofeng sword appeared in his hand, accompanied by a sword hum.

The four Foundation Establishment Winged Race members following close behind seemed to lose their support in mid-air and fell straight down.

At the same time, Li Fan unleashed his Spirit Reflection, repeating the same trick, and killed the falling Winged Race members with one sword strike.

Without pausing for a moment, his Spiritual Qi surged; he sheathed his sword and retreated at high speed, catching up to the two women.

"This should buy some more time..."

But a System notification rang in his mind:

[Strongest Underdog Counterattack System offline, Strongest King of Running Away System online]

[Escape item has been distributed]

Hearing the System notification, Li Fan, who was sprinting with the two women, felt an immediate sense of foreboding.

The change in the System could be seen as a half-judgment of the current situation.

Li Fan could still manage a bottom-up reversal against Foundation Establishment Winged Race members while at the eleventh level of Qi Refining, but what if...

Echoing the System change, a powerful fluctuation of Spiritual Qi came from behind.

Li Fan looked closely and saw it was one of the two Golden Core Winged Race members from earlier.

It seemed the previous Golden Core Cultivator hadn't held out for long. Li Fan hurriedly checked the escape item the System had provided.

[Distant Swiftness Talisman]

Its function was obvious from its name.

So, while in flight, Li Fan held the talisman with two fingers and poured a massive amount of Spiritual Qi into it...

"Damn it."

Li Fan inwardly sighed that things were bad. The number of people this spiritual talisman could carry depended on the amount of Spiritual Qi inputted.

Normally, a Qi Refining stage Cultivator could only carry themselves when using this talisman, but with the support of Li Fan's Top-tier Qi Spirit Root and Qi Sea Technique, he could barely manage to carry two people.

The Golden Core Winged Race member was getting closer, and the might they radiated made it hard for Li Fan to breathe.

He looked at the two women on his left and right; Luo Qingqian was trembling all over, and Qian Zhenzhen was also gasping for air.

"If I had known, I would have stayed home and been a shut-in."

Li Fan cursed angrily, and then the spiritual talisman between his fingers began to burn. He pretended to be confident as he said to the two women:

"This talisman will send you to the entrance in a moment, and I'll be there right after..."

"No!"

Before Li Fan could finish, Luo Qingqian interrupted him.

She knew in her heart that a Qi Refining Cultivator could not escape the pursuit of a Golden Core Winged Race member.

Immediately after, she reached out to snatch the spiritual talisman from Li Fan's fingers.

Li Fan patted her head and comforted her.

"I am the only one with enough Spiritual Qi to activate this talisman... Just go to the entrance and wait for me."

As he finished speaking, the spiritual talisman burned out completely, and Li Fan pushed the two women away.

He pointed the finger that had been holding the talisman at them, and Luo Qingqian and Qian Zhenzhen turned into a streak of light, disappearing into the distance in an instant.