43: After swallowing the spirit of medicine, he tried to enter the cold pond but was blocked.

Even though Chen Cuo’s methods were formidable, there was no need for him to clash head-on with three Martial Artists in the Acquired Realm.

Moreover, there were several Acquired Realm masters who had entered the Yin Wind Cave. The Chang Family had a compass that could locate the Mountain Spirit, and other forces surely had similar items. Once those who entered the cave realized the Mountain Spirit was no longer inside, they would definitely turn back.

Therefore, Chen Cuo fled quickly. The masters behind him seemed unaccustomed to tracking, and although they pursued Chen Cuo relentlessly, the distance between them grew wider and wider.

“The treasure is on me, and I can’t hide its aura. The Martial Alliance is a vast organization, and that Young Master has been planning for days, so he definitely won’t give up. And they all have ways to find the Mountain Spirit’s aura!”

Chen Cuo’s mind raced. Carrying the Mountain Spirit was like carrying a locator; sooner or later, the major forces would come knocking.

Following that, he somewhat anxiously asked Little Bai if it had any ideas. Little Bai shook its head, its entire body a bit dazed.

It pushed the Mountain Spirit, conveying an anxious thought.

At this moment, the Mountain Spirit was shriveled and thin all over, no longer plump as it had been just now.

The Mountain Spirit’s expression was tightly furrowed, and it coughed a few times, spitting out a greenish-blue glow from its mouth.

The glow transformed into a glistening, jelly-like substance, emitting a refreshing medicinal fragrance. Just a whiff made Chen Cuo feel the Qi in his body surge endlessly.

As soon as the greenish-blue glow appeared, the Mountain Spirit’s entire body trembled slightly, finally shrinking to the size of a palm, becoming a ginseng root covered in fibrous tendrils.

“What… what’s going on?”

Chen Cuo was bewildered. The Mountain Spirit had encountered Little Bai, received a breath of Innate Qi, and absorbed moonlight to gain sentience, undergoing a complete transformation. It was already a Essence Spirit and possessed intelligence.

Although the situation was critical, it was far from hopeless. Why would the Mountain Spirit “commit suicide” and condense its essence into a ball of Medicine Spirit Energy, then give it to him?

At this moment, Little Bai transmitted a thought, telling him to quickly swallow the Medicine Spirit Energy, saying that after swallowing it, everything would become clear.

Hesitation was not the mindset a Martial Artist should possess. Dealing with a crisis required sufficient strength. Chen Cuo knew that Essence Spirits, once born, also valued their lives and would not seek death lightly.

Moreover, it seemed impossible that the Mountain Spirit would sacrifice itself for him, so there must be a reason for its actions. Chen Cuo no longer hesitated and opened his mouth to swallow the Medicine Spirit Energy.

The entire ball of Medicine Spirit Energy, like jelly, slid into Chen Cuo’s body. Pure medicinal power and dense, immense medicinal Qi permeated Chen Cuo’s entire internal organs.

Chen Cuo circulated the Qi throughout his body, carrying the medicinal power to nourish his internal organs, circulating it repeatedly.

“Excellent! At this speed, my five internal organs will soon be perfectly refined, reaching Lian Zang Realm Perfection.” Chen Cuo felt his five internal organs continuously squirming, emitting joyful cries, and immediately actively mobilized every bit of medicinal power to refine the dead corners of his organs.

With such immense medicinal power, Chen Cuo could feel his body radiating vigorous vitality.

“Hmm? So that’s it! I wondered why the Mountain Spirit would choose to abandon itself to serve me.”

After consuming the Medicine Spirit Energy, as Chen Cuo digested the medicinal power, some of the Mountain Spirit’s conscious thoughts were hidden within it and read by him.

It turned out that the Mountain Spirit, at its birth, possessed a symbiotic talent: it could condense a portion of its essence, which was the rare Medicine Spirit Energy, and then expel it from its body to divert the attention of its natural enemies.

Furthermore, doing so would not harm its Origin. As long as it collected enough moonlight within a year, it could recover quickly.

It had used this talent to escape two fatal crises, preserving its life by means of the condensed Medicine Spirit Energy.

Since the Mountain Spirit gained sentience, this talent had become even more formidable. Not only could it expel Medicine Spirit Energy, but it could also use it to clear the immortal medicinal Qi from its body, disguising itself as an ordinary wild ginseng, akin to feigning death!

This way, it could evade most treasures that tracked its aura. However, doing so also carried great risk. The Mountain Spirit would temporarily become an inanimate object due to the loss of its internal essence, losing its ability to burrow through earth and becoming an ordinary ginseng root, facing various dangers.

Moreover, activating this talent required sufficient moonlight; otherwise, it could have used the talent earlier in the Yin Wind Cave and hidden for a year before emerging.

So, this move was actually a desperate choice, like a gecko shedding its tail, to find life in death.

This time, if the situation hadn’t been truly dangerous, coupled with Little Bai’s persuasion, it would not have used this life-saving talent.

Feeling the medicinal power dissipate, Chen Cuo was already eager to Cultivate, wanting to Breakthrough to Lian Zang Perfection immediately and then seize the Opportunity to Breakthrough to Limitless.

However, with countless pursuers behind him, how could he settle down to Cultivate?

At this moment, Chen Cuo was like a gourmand with a table full of delicacies and rare dishes, but his hands were tied, and he was forbidden to touch his chopsticks, which made him extremely frustrated.

“Squeak, squeak, squeak!” Chen Cuo had not been distracted while fleeing, but he suddenly seemed to remember something.

He immediately heard the squeaking of a nest of rats. Chen Cuo followed the sound and saw two large rats in a tree hollow at the base of a large tree, with a pile of hairless young beneath them.

“Hehe! I have a plan!” Chen Cuo instantly moved over and captured the two rats in his hands with a Snake-Shaped Grappling Hand.

Perhaps the rats never imagined that as ordinary wild mountain rats, they would be captured by a human using such a high-level martial art.

“Little ones, you’re lucky. If you can survive, this is a great Opportunity.” Chen Cuo pointed with his right hand, and two wisps of greenish-blue medicinal Qi were transferred into the rats’ bodies.

He placed the two rats on the ground. Immediately, his entire being exuded an aura similar to a terrifying snake monster. The two rats squeaked wildly and instantly ran into the distance, not even bothering with their young in the nest.

This should buy some time, even if only half a day, it would be enough.

After all, what he lacked most now was time.

As long as he could Breakthrough to Limitless, those people would be nothing but weaklings before him.

Chen Cuo no longer hesitated. He immediately sealed the Qi points and pores throughout his body, locking the Medicine Spirit Energy deep within, no longer revealing any aura. The Mountain Spirit in his arms also remained motionless like a dead object, no longer feeling special in any way.

At this moment, the only place in the world that still clearly had the Mountain Spirit’s aura was the direction the two large rats had just fled.

He then collected his thoughts, changed direction, and headed towards the cold pond.

Under his intentional control, to avoid leaving traces, he used the Monkey Form movement technique of the Five Animal Play, as if he had transformed into an ape, swinging through the forest, not touching a single leaf, nor bending a single blade of grass.

His earlier noisy and unconcealed movements were deliberate. He intended to make plans after shaking off his pursuers far behind.

It just so happened that the Mountain Spirit could hide its aura by using its talent, so Chen Cuo took advantage of the situation and began to deliberately conceal his whereabouts to mislead his pursuers.

The cold pond was about thirty li from the Yin Wind Cave. At the speed of a Acquired Realm master, it would only take half an hour to reach. Therefore, Chen Cuo took a large detour, fleeing in the opposite direction from the cold pond, and after successfully concealing himself, he suddenly turned back.

Chen Cuo had already planned to use the cold pond for Cultivation.

But what he hadn’t expected, and what Chen Cuo least wanted to see, happened!

On the way to the cold pond, two people were in a standoff: one with withered skin and the other with long white hair and beard. The two stood opposite each other from a distance.

It was Wu Duo of the Wu Family and White Chen, who was with Chang Shi.

The night was deep and the forest dense. Chen Cuo was focused on his journey but unexpectedly stumbled into this deadly situation. He originally wanted to take a detour to get around them.

Just as he turned his head to leave, Wu Duo spoke, “Who? Who’s there?”