Chapter 149 Pursuit

Mobai had imagined many times that someone would appear behind him, and he had experienced such incidents on numerous occasions. However, this time it was no longer the familiar touch of a woman caressing his back and shoulders, but rather a lethal hand.

With a swishing sound, a silver, ice-cold star came flying straight toward Mobai. Yet, this cold star had materialized from behind Mobai himself. The person standing behind him seemed to sense an immense threat, instantly spinning around to evade the projectile. The moment that figure dodged, the cold star swept past Mobai’s back. A hurried breath was heard from the tree, followed immediately by a light, giggling laugh: "I knew it! Although this move is extremely perilous, you would certainly be able to dodge it. Hehe." A string of silver-bell-like laughter echoed from a tall tree. The cold light grazed Mobai’s body and plunged deep into the ground, piercing a slender hole into the earth before vanishing entirely, leaving no trace of what kind of hidden weapon it had been.

Mobai touched the scar on his left eyebrow and said, "It was indeed rather dangerous, but still much more comfortable than having this person’s hand pressed against my back just now." Without even looking, Mobai knew who was in the tree—Yu Yinxin. He had not expected her to have come to the Yihua Sect.

The person beside Mobai who had just evaded the sneak attack let out a cold snort. "I never imagined that members of the Demonic Sect could infiltrate the Yihua Sect. It seems the Yihua Sect is truly in need of some reforms."

Yu Yinxin’s expression flickered with slight surprise, yet her crescent-moon eyes remained as hazy and beautiful as ever. With a faint smile, she said, "I merely came here to look at the scenery. Please, carry on with whatever you were doing."

The man in black shot a fixed, icy glare at both Yu Yinxin and Mobai, then shook his body and leaped away. Mobai offered a helpless smile and asked, "Would Lady Yu care to join me in pursuing this mysterious individual?"

Swinging her legs back and forth from her perch on the branch, Yu Yinxin said with playful amusement, "My aunt once told me that a young lady must know how to refuse, so this time I won't accompany you to play. However, you mustn't forget the favor you owe me just now, giggling..." At that, she twisted her waist like a civet cat, leaped onto another large tree, and vanished after a few flashes.

Mobai turned around and immediately gave chase to the rapidly disappearing dark shadow. He was determined to catch her this time; these repeated assassination attempts were beginning to thoroughly anger him. Mobai pushed his Spirit Leaping Technique to its absolute limit. Sensing that the danger had not been lifted, the dark shadow also picked up her pace, twisting and turning a few times before exiting the Qionghua Great Hall and plunging into the vast, distant maple mountains.

Clearly, the person ahead was intimately familiar with the terrain of these deep mountains, which began to complicate matters for the pursuing Mobai. Though he had yet to pull out that final hair ornament, he somehow felt that this person was more likely to be Yu Qiu than Yu Zhi. Without allowing himself time for further thought, Mobai instantly sensed that something was amiss. Amidst these seemingly ordinary deep mountains, peculiar trees were growing in inappropriate places. As he chased on and on, he was startled to find that while his own speed remained unchanged, the dark dot ahead was growing increasingly hazy until it finally vanished altogether, and Mobai found himself lost.

Looking up at the sky, Mobai sighed helplessly. "Ah, specialization is everything. I really need to delve deeper into the study of spirit arrays. Careless as I was to wander into such a formation, it seems I will have to waste a fair amount of effort just to get out. I only hope I haven't missed Xiaohua emerging from seclusion." With those words, Mobai picked a direction, channeled a spike-like surge of spiritual energy from his palm to form a straight weapon before his chest, and charged straight ahead without a single dodge. Trees or rocks—whatever stood in his path met the exact same fate: shattering into pieces. Mobai was using the most primitive method possible to blast his way out of the spirit array.

"Young Master Wu, the time of three incense sticks has passed. How do you feel the spiritual energy in your body is circulating?" True Person Gumeng finally broke the silence and asked.

Xiaohua shook his head helplessly. "Ah, blame it on my own incompetence, Senior. This is already your third method, yet it has come to naught. Please, Senior, do not exhaust yourself any further. I am deeply grateful."

True Person Gumeng could only join him in a helpless sigh. "It is merely a pity that my senior sister is not here. Otherwise, perhaps with her cultivation and insight, she might have found one or two ways to help Young Master Wu break through the spiritual barrier. However, I have not laid eyes on my senior sister for seven years now, and I have no idea where she might be at this moment."

Wu Luohua smiled indifferently. "It is a matter of time and fate. Even if True Person Guchu herself were here, I fear I would still only cause her ladyship disappointment."

True Person Gumeng slowly stood up, saying with a touch of emotion, "Since Master Kuzhi of the Yuntian Sect sent a token asking you to seek me out, yet I have been unable to offer any real help, I truly feel ashamed before Master Kuzhi."

Recalling the expressionless Master Kuzhi who had been blatantly 'threatened' by Mobai into granting him a chance at the Yihua Sect, Wu Luohua could not help but smile. His heart relaxed considerably. Even if he failed to break through his spiritual barrier here in the Yihua Sect, without Mobai creating this opportunity, he likely would never have met Ganyu—a woman worthy of his lifelong love. Thinking of this, Wu Luohua said, "True Person Gumeng, this junior has one more presumptuous request, and I hope Senior might grant it."

True Person Gumeng replied, "Speak freely."

Clearing his throat, Xiaohua said, "This junior hopes to stay a few more days here in the Yihua Sect. I know this request is rather excessive; the Yihua Sect is, after all, a sect of female spiritual cultivators, and since my own matters have already been settled, I should not linger here shamelessly. But..." At this point, Xiaohua paused noticeably, took a deep breath, and continued, "However, I believe Senior is aware of the situation concerning Ganyu. Although she has made no promises to me, I wish to spend a few more days in her company. Please rest assured, Senior, that this will not be for long; I will allow Yu'er to focus properly on her spiritual cultivation. Once her cultivation bears fruit, I will ask Senior to grant me the opportunity to have the elders of the Wu family come to the Yihua Sect to propose marriage."

True Person Gumeng performed a Daoist salute and said, "This is a joyous occasion. For the Wu family to become related by marriage to my Yihua Sect is something I naturally desire above all else. When the time comes, I shall invite heroes from all over the world, and I hope Master Kuzhi will also be able to attend."

With a chuckle, Xiaohua replied, "I am afraid that old senior will not easily make the trip. After all, our relationship is hardly what one would call close. However, that senior seems to have a certain affinity with my Brother Mobai."

True Person Gumeng said no more. She summoned a young page and instructed Wu Luohua, "Young Master Wu may stay for as many days as he pleases. I will have the Red-Forest Maidens act as guides for you all within the Yihua Sect. I still have some trivial matters to attend to, so I will not accompany the young master any further."

Straightening his posture immediately, Wu Luohua bowed deeply to True Person Gumeng and said sincerely, "Thank you for your trouble today, Senior. Wu Luohua will certainly never forget your kindness."

True Person Gumeng smiled faintly, and Wu Luohua followed the young page out of the Qionghua Hall.

After expending a tremendous amount of effort, Mobai finally broke free from the spirit array. He had no idea where he was, but at least he was no longer trapped by the formation; as long as he found the correct bearings, he could follow the mountain path back to the Qionghua Hall and check on Xiaohua's outcome. Just as he was about to set off, however, he abruptly heard a crisp, loud cry. The shout was quite hearty, though at the moment it carried a slight tremor, sounding rather peculiar.

Following the sound, Mobai walked forward. Before he had gone far, he witnessed a fierce and bloody battle.

It was a massive brown bear, its entire body drenched in blood, yet showing not the slightest hint of fatigue. Instead, the scent of blood had rendered it even more bloodthirsty and frenzied. Its broad paws, powerful and sharp, slashed fiercely up and down against a short-haired woman locked in combat with it, as if every single strike was meant to bludgeon the enemy who had wounded it to death.

Opposite the giant bear stood the short-haired woman. Her black martial attire made her appear exceptionally spirited, yet under the bear's frantic onslaught, her spiritual energy seemed somewhat insufficient. And understandably so: after an arduous journey through the deep mountains, she had finally managed to lure this bear king away from its pack and isolate it. Along the way, she had already expended a vast amount of spiritual energy and physical stamina, and following a fierce clash with the beast, she was already on the verge of her limits. Yet, possessing a stubborn nature, she refused to give up this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. If she could slay this giant bear, the treasures that could be harvested from its carcass would be more than enough to offer as a dutiful gift to her aunt in celebration of taking her first disciple.

This short-haired woman was none of other than Murong Ziyan—the fifth disciple of Yihua Sect's Abbess, True Person Gumeng, and the biological niece of True Person Guyu!

With a swift flick of one hand, a small waist-knife materialized in her palm. Retreating a step, she swept the blade across, instantly transforming it into three spiritual energy knife-blades that spun toward the giant bear. The bear swung its massive paws in a fierce, sweeping motion, directly shattering two of the spiritual energy blades. However, the third blade evaded the defense and slashed viciously across the bear's chest. The beast's coarse fur flew in all directions, though the attack left only a shallow wound upon its chest.

With a helpless, self-deprecating laugh, Murong Ziyan scolded, "This brute's hide is truly thick! It seems you're forcing me to use my ultimate move. Once I've slain you, I'm going to have to get a really good rest." Murong Ziyan muttered to herself, then leaped gracefully into the air. Facing the giant bear, she raised one hand, and an orange Yihua flower slowly rose from her palm. Her brow furrowed as the flower began to shift rapidly, turning blood-red in the span of a breath. The next moment, biting her lower lip and tossing her short hair with flair, she watched as the curved blade in her hand grew instantly massive under the illumination of the red Yihua flower. Brandishing it fiercely mid-air, Murong Ziyan unleashed a colossal, blood-colored blade-light that slashed straight toward the brown bear's chest!