Chapter 10 - The Hunt

“Stop him! We can’t let him get away, or there will be endless trouble later!” Leng Yan shouted as he swung out a sword qi to block the path.

Chu Jianfeng, with a smile at the corner of his mouth, said, “Think you can run? It’s not that easy!”

A stream of air rose beneath his feet, swirling around Chu Jianfeng’s legs. With a swift movement, he dashed forward like an arrow released from its bow, quickly closing in on the black-robed man. His long sword, thrown with tremendous speed, appeared like a flying sword, piercing the space in front of the black-robed man and forcing him to halt and sidestep.

However, that momentary pause was all Chu Jianfeng needed to catch up, his palms waving continuously as he unleashed several palm winds.

“Why must you press so hard? Do you really think I’m afraid of you?” the black-robed man retorted, catching the palm winds and beginning to counter-attack Chu Jianfeng.

Chu Jianfeng’s true strength was only at the Innate Realm, while the black-robed man was at the Divine Transformation Realm, forcing Chu Jianfeng to retreat repeatedly.

But with the black-robed man held back, Leng Yan had caught up, and his Mystic Ice Slash was already swinging down.

“Bang!”

An explosion sounded as the Mystic Ice Slash was blocked and dissipated into the air, while the black-robed man now wielded a long spear, its shaft bearing the spectral image of a ferocious tiger, silently roaring.

“Another supreme-grade spiritual weapon! Damn it! No wonder everyone likes to raid and rob-such good stuff comes so easily! Jianfeng, quick, take this spear, and we can split the loot. The spear for you, the jade pendant for me! How about that?” Leng Yan laughed excitedly.

“Good! Very good! This way, there’s no need for any squabbling!” Chu Jianfeng also laughed heartily.

“Motherfucker! Do you think I’m dead?” the black-robed man cursed upon hearing them already preparing to divide the spoils, completely disregarding him.

“Yes! I already consider you as good as dead! You really know yourself well!” Leng Yan nodded.

“And I didn’t consider you alive either, sorry! But I’ve already regarded the spear in your hands as mine!” Chu Jianfeng chuckled, the scars on his face twisting like worms, adding a fierce look. Suddenly, Chu Jianfeng’s expression changed, and he said seriously, “Someone is coming this way from three miles out. They’ll be here in about five minutes.”

The black-robed man was already infuriated by the two of them, but had been holding back without speaking. Suddenly, upon hearing Chu Jianfeng’s words, his expression changed. He hadn’t expected Leng Yan and his partner to be able to sense sceneries miles away. With a loud roar, he turned around to break out.

“Was it your men? It looks like you have a magical treasure for communication on you. You were just stalling for time, how cunning. Jianfeng, entangle him while I claim the treasure; we’ll settle him within a minute.” Leng Yan’s expression was icy cold as he took out a fiery red jade pendant, dripped blood on it, and instantly received feedback on how to use it in his mind.

Meanwhile, Chu Jianfeng had transformed into a phantom, entangling the black-robed man. With a thought, a flame shield surged up, protecting Leng Yan, who now seemed like a fiery god descended, exceptionally majestic!

With the mystic ice sword in hand and the northern abyss serpent moving, Leng Yan ran forward, his eyes emitting a cold light.

The black-robed man, unsettled by Chu Jianfeng, saw Leng Yan charging towards him and thrust his long spear like a tiger leaping out of its cage.

Leng Yan didn’t dodge. Both their weapons were supreme-grade spiritual weapons, and a single strike from the opponent couldn’t break the flame shield. However, cautious of any assassin’s trick up the opponent’s sleeve, Leng Yan remained extremely careful.

“Clang!”

The spear struck the shield, the tiger phantom dispersing, while a fiery phoenix phantom emerged from Leng Yan’s shield, silently chirping.

Absorbing the fierce attack, Leng Yan was not one to let things slide. He swung his sword down thunderously. The black-robed man parried with his spear, but he forgot that he was facing two opponents. A sword had already pierced through his back, and as he was distracted by pain and panic, Leng Yan decapitated him.

Picking up the long spear, he handed it to Chu Jianfeng, saying, “This is yours now. With our strength greatly increased, the upcoming battles will be even more thrilling.”

“Heh, I was thinking the same! Let’s wait here for this head-giver!” Chu Jianfeng held the spear, clearly very fond of it.

The spear, black all over and exuding a wild aura, along with the tiger phantom, added a rugged touch, and paired with the scars on Chu Jianfeng’s face, made him look exceptionally brave.

“What are you doing? The man is dead, what are you still searching for?” Chu Jianfeng, holding the spear, saw Leng Yan searching the black-robed man’s body and asked in confusion.

“Didn’t I say that they seem to have a magical treasure for communication? I’m looking for it. Ah! Here it is!” Leng Yan flipped through his belongings, and suddenly spotted a conch-like magical treasure, exclaiming with joy.

“Is this it? But it’s useless by itself!” Chu Jianfeng, whose mind was on the spear, didn’t think further and asked a foolish question.

“I always thought you were smart! Seems I was wrong! Isn’t the other one heading this way?” Leng Yan said, exasperated.

“Heh! Sorry, I got excited and forgot. That guy is coming, just in time for me to test this spear,” Chu Jianfeng said, shaking the spear excitedly. He was a complete warmonger.

Leng Yan and another stood up and looked into the distance; indeed, there was a black-robed man running towards them. However, when he saw Leng Yan and his companion stand up, he suddenly stopped and turned to flee.

“Damn it! What’s going on? He’s running away before we even start fighting!” Chu Jianfeng cursed, puzzled.

“Chase him! Don’t let him get away, and watch out for any traps,” Leng Yan shouted, chasing after him. Chu Jianfeng followed, shouting as they ran, “Slow down, I can’t catch up!”

Leng Yan nearly tripped and fell at that shout. What kind of person was this? Asking someone you’re chasing to slow down-only a fool would listen.

The man in black was even more frustrated. This man, Du Zicong, and another already deceased black-robed man were outer disciples of the Demon Desire Palace. They had aligned themselves with a true disciple within the sect. When they arrived, the true disciple gave them a supreme-grade spiritual weapon, the Fierce Tiger Spear, along with a set of sound transmission conches, hoping they would coordinate well on the Battlefield of Righteousness and Evil and look out for each other. However, upon entering, they were teleported too far from each other and had to converge at one spot.

Just as they were about to meet up, Du Zicong received a transmission from the other black-robed man about the supreme-grade spiritual weapon.

Du Zicong, thrilled, hastened towards them. But from afar, when he saw Leng Yan and his companion standing up and his companion’s head on the ground next to them, he knew trouble was brewing and turned to run.

Yet Leng Yan and his companion relentlessly pursued him, and the one wielding the Fierce Tiger Spear was closing in fast, shouting about not being able to catch up, which made Du Zicong feel like dying. At this moment, he truly wished he could teleport away, but he soon realized that he had to achieve a certain number of kills required by the mission before he could leave.

“Jianfeng, put more effort into it, catch up!” Leng Yan’s speed was about the same as Du Zicong’s, and starting at a hundred meters, there was no way he could catch up unless Du Zicong tripped.

However, Chu Jianfeng was different. He had phantom boots that could enhance his speed, and in no time, he had already closed half the distance.

“Watch how I kill you!” Chu Jianfeng ran swiftly, lifting the fierce tiger spear above his head and then throwing it with all his might.

Last time he threw a magical sword, this time a spear-this guy had a special fondness for throwing things.

The spear flew through the air, with the phantom of a fierce tiger appearing as if in full sprint.

“Thud!” The spear went through Du Zicong’s back and stuck in the ground. Blood flowed down the spear onto the earth.

“This works too, Jianfeng, you have a talent for the slave sword technique!” Watching the spear pin Du Zicong to the ground, Leng Yan couldn’t help but express his admiration.

“Heh, impressed, aren’t you? I used to be a hunter, this is child’s play!” Chu Jianfeng boasted proudly.

After pulling out the spear and cleaning it, a conch was found for each from the two men, and the jade slip went to Chu Jianfeng. At this moment, Leng Yan’s mission jade slip already had eight heads, just two more to complete the mission.

“Alright! I know you’re impressive, let’s find the next target,” Leng Yan said with a smile.

“Right! Let me see!” Chu Jianfeng, fully focused, began searching for the best prey, then suddenly smiled, “Four miles east, there’s a disciple from a Righteous Sect, shall we kill him?”

“Which sect? As long as it’s not the Five Elements Sect, it’s fine!” Leng Yan quickly responded.

“Then let’s go! He’s not from the Five Elements Sect.” The two laughed and moved on from the spot, unaware that the soul of a demonic beast was gathering on Du Zicong’s body, which disappeared in a blink of an eye, with no hint of his whereabouts.