Living steadily in the world of gods and mystery

"Easier than expected... and saved money too!"

On the way back, Chen Li felt the scrolls in his storage bag, and the heavy stone that had been pressing on his heart finally fell to the ground, as he let out a long sigh of relief.

As for the loss of face, he didn’t care in the slightest.

He should even be thankful that he encountered Ding Jian, who was inexperienced in the ways of the world and had been well protected, instead of some cunning old fox. Otherwise, even if he could have gotten the subsequent cultivation technique, it might have cost him a layer of skin. By comparison, just being ridiculed a few times was hardly worth mentioning.

"I wonder just how much inheritance the old ancestor left him..."

Thinking of Ding Jian’s ’I’m not interested in Spirit Stones’ demeanor, Chen Li felt an itch in his teeth, "Damn rich!"

Just as he was thinking this, a streak of escape light came flying from afar. An old man in a gray robe loudly shouted, "Fellow Daoist ahead, please hold on. I come from afar and wish to inquire whether this is the territory of the Nascent Soul’s great sect, the Huoyun Sect?"

A warning bell went off in Chen Li’s mind.

Without a second thought, he quickly changed direction, and the Rainbow Transformation Skill was pushed to its utmost limit, instantly increasing his speed by a third.

Although the Rainbow Transformation Skill was only a Second Order first-level spell, once cultivated to max level, it was comparable to a Second Order fifth-level spell. Its speed was something that even a mid-Foundation Establishment cultivator wielding a top-grade Second Order magic artifact couldn’t match.

Soon, the distance between Chen Li and the old man was rapidly increasing.

"Hey, hey, hey, don’t go, Fellow Daoist. You’re overthinking it..." the grey-robed old man still shouted from behind.

As expected.

It wasn’t long before.

Chen Li noticed that two more streaks of escape light were flying towards him, one from the left and one from the right. One of them was extremely fast, clearly a late Foundation Establishment cultivator. After chasing for a while, as if fearing unexpected complications should the night draw long, he had to give up reluctantly.

If not for Chen Li’s vigilance, he nearly would have been surrounded.

...

"To think they would dare to rob me..."

After escaping danger,

Chen Li grew angrier the more he thought about it.

He had been flying straight and minding his own business, neither bothering nor provoking anyone, yet he still couldn’t avoid trouble coming his way.

Chen Li glanced at the mountains below.

He swiftly flew down.

He took out a bottle of Return Yuan Elixir from his storage bag, saw that there were three pills left, and without hesitating, he downed one. Then he altered his appearance and began casting spells rapidly.

The heavens and earth resonated, mana surged, and one illusory figure after another appeared from thin air.

Soon, four illusory figures, each with a different face but wearing the same robes, appeared before him:

"You think you can ambush me? As if I can’t do that myself."

The next moment,

the four illusions soared into the air, transforming into four streaks of light, and quickly vanished from sight.

His true self, however, continued to cast spells.

Following an Earth Escape Skill,

he disappeared from the spot and dove underground.

...

At this time, three cultivators had already gathered together.

"We’ve waited half a day and finally had one in our grasp, only to let him escape. Old Fei, it must have been your impatience that gave us away," one tall middle-aged cultivator said coldly.

"How is this my fault? The other side was too vigilant. I’d barely started speaking when the guy took off," the old cultivator known as Fei Lao protested.

"Enough, both of you stop arguing. This place is no longer safe, let’s move somewhere else," said the late Foundation Establishment cultivator, looking around uneasily as if sensing an imminent danger.

"Hehe, still thinking of leaving? No, none of you can leave." Just then, a strange, cold voice suddenly rang out, sounding unlike any human:

All three felt a chill in their hearts and turned sharply towards the voice, only to see a figure appear eerily close by, as if by magic.

How? When?

That they could conceal themselves from divine sense!

"Attack," the late Foundation Establishment cultivator shouted.

No more words were wasted.

At the shout, he immediately conjured a cyan flying sword, which turned into a wisp of faint light, thrusting straight at him.

The other two were a beat slower in their actions, but they cooperated tacitly, crisp and decisive; both conjured magic artifacts, clearly well-versed in such deeds.

One at the late Foundation Establishment stage, and two at the mid-stage, to Chen Li at present, they were just so-so. Watching the incoming magic artifacts, he couldn’t be bothered to use his Water Shield. Accompanied by a mumbled and terse syllable from his mouth, an intense flash of light suddenly burst forth from his eyes.

The ground was as if another sun had risen.

The next moment, this illusory body was penetrated and shattered into specks of light by the magic artifacts, disappearing on the spot.

However, this was merely a decoy.

The real strike had just begun.

At this time, the blinding flash had not yet dissipated.

The previously invisible illusory bodies at the side had already revealed themselves, and each of their spells was nearing completion.

In terms of ambushes, he was the professional.

Learning from the last time he used the True Fire Skill to kill the remnants of Tianxing Sect, which resulted in burning both his storage bag and robe, Chen Li this time released the "Giant Voice Skill."

Although the Giant Voice Skill was just a Second Order first-level spell, maxing out at Second Order fifth-level, its power was limited.

But if one wasn’t enough, three could be stacked simultaneously.

Further amplified by a max-level "War Cry" shouted out.

Chen Li had tested it multiple times.

This composite spell’s power had far surpassed the original Second Order fifth-level range.

It could even be comparable to the terrifying power of Second Order seventh-level spells.

Moreover, its activation time was short.

Among all Second Order Foundation Establishment spells, it was one of the fastest to deploy.

"Roar!"

Suddenly, a roar that seemed to come from an ancient colossal beast echoed between heaven and earth.

The sound wave turned tangible, making the air shimmer with layers upon layers of ripples.

In just an instant, it struck all three men.

This battle was somewhat too sudden for the trio; until now, they hadn’t had the chance to use defensive charms, relying only on the innate defenses of their robes, but what use were those?

The mid Foundation Establishment duo, whose robes provided an intermediate protective element barrier, didn’t even ripple before the horrifying sound waves instantly shattered them. Their bodies were blasted away like rag dolls, obviously lifeless.

The late Foundation Establishment stage cultivator fared slightly better.

But only slightly.

The Shield Skill inherent to his Second Order top-grade robe lasted only an instant before it abruptly collapsed. He managed only a single despairing roar before his body was also sent flying, severely injured even as the power of the sound waves had nearly dissipated.

"You...you..." he coughed up blood, looking at the three illusory bodies not far away, his face deathly pale, "I admit defeat. Take everything I have, my storage bag, robe, and magic artifacts, just please spare my life."

"Too late!" Chen Li sneered coldly, "Do you think I’m a novice? Killing you, I can still take them all?"

Thereafter, another Giant Voice Skill was released, finishing him off completely.

Chen Li then approached and delivered a few more blows, ensuring he was thoroughly deceased, before searching the body. He didn’t leave even the robe untouched, then used the True Fire Skill to incinerate the corpse. Immediately after, the three incarnations took off, swiftly departing.

...

On his way, Chen Li refined and inspected the storage bags one by one.

"These highway robbers are indeed never poor."

Not counting the various pills, spiritual materials, and miscellaneous items.

Just in terms of Spirit Stones, the total amounted to over one hundred fifty top-grade Spirit Stones.

The most valuable were the magic artifacts and robes.

Chen Li roughly estimated in his heart, they could probably fetch about two hundred.

"How many did they rob to accumulate this much!" Chen Li’s face lit up with joy, "Today really is a good day, adding my savings, top-grade Spirit Stones have broken a thousand, having such wealth at mid Foundation Establishment stage, I fear it’s quite rare."

Just as he was thinking, the image of Ding Jian surfaced in his mind.

"Of course, I can’t compare to someone like him."