Chapter 45

Immediately, a figure of a man dressed in disciple robes, embroidered with the emblem of the Chao Yang Peak, appeared in his line of sight.

The man was in his thirties, with a hooked nose and triangular eyes, giving him a fierce appearance. A slight upward curl at the corners of his mouth made his face even more sinister.

His cultivation was not low, being at the Fifth Level of the Qi Condensation stage.

At this moment, he held a dark green longbow in his hand, chasing a few people who were fleeing ahead.

Focusing his gaze on the remaining five people, he felt the true essence within his body surge, pouring it into the longbow in his hand.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh..."

The longbow flashed with light, and five arrows of true essence energy shot out from the string.

Sensing the danger approaching from behind, Zhu Hanwei reacted the fastest, suddenly kicking a nearby large tree and lunging forward.

"Whoosh" An arrow grazed past his calf, embedding itself in the tree beside him.

Zhu Hanwei winced in pain and landed not far from Su Shier.

The others were not so fortunate. Before they could react, they were each pierced by an arrow and fell to the ground, dead.

Seeing that only one person remained, the man with the hooked nose did not shoot another arrow. Instead, he grinned wickedly and slowly walked up to Zhu Hanwei.

"You're quite quick on your feet, but remember, prey must have the mindset of prey!"

"How should I kill you?"

The man with the hooked nose raised his hand to his chin, a playful expression on his face.

Zhu Hanwei, with his injured calf, was already too weak to run. Turning his head, he saw the man with the hooked nose approaching and was trembling with fear.

"Senior Brother... Senior Brother, I've already given you my storage bag! We are both disciples of Yun Ge Sect, please... please let me go."

Gathering his strength, Zhu Hanwei hurriedly pleaded.

"Oh? Let you go... You're quite clever, and you're cooperating. But, with no talent, you still came to cultivate. Isn't that just asking for death?"

</di>

"Right, right, Senior Brother is right. I'll go down the mountain when I return and never cultivate again!" Zhu Hanwei knelt on the ground, begging for mercy.

The cruelty of the trial far exceeded his imagination, casting a deep shadow over him.

Now, he had only one thought: to survive.

"Return? Haha, unfortunately... I can't find a reason to let you go!"

Seeing the hope rise in Zhu Hanwei's eyes, the man with the hooked nose immediately sneered, the longbow glowing with light, the arrow tip pointing directly at Zhu Hanwei, shattering his hope.

Before joining Yun Ge Sect, he was a notorious bandit who killed without mercy. During a robbery, he encountered an injured cultivator and became a wandering cultivator. Later, by a twist of fate, he joined Yun Ge Sect and was accepted into Chao Yang Peak.

For years within the peak, he appeared kind and friendly on the surface, but secretly killed many fellow disciples, accumulating a considerable amount of treasures.

To him, the pleasure of killing lay in the torture, and watching his victims die in despair brought him joy.

"You... You devil."

"Doing this, you will eventually face retribution!"

"What nonsense is this cultivation, what nonsense is this trial, killing each other, are we gods or devils?"

Zhu Hanwei's heart plummeted into the depths, and he fell to the ground, shouting at the top of his lungs.

"Shout, shout! This is what prey looks like! Unfortunately, no one will come to save you today, no matter how loud you shout."

The man with the hooked nose grinned wider, his smile more radiant.

As he spoke, he pulled the bowstring taut.

True essence transformed into a light arrow, heading straight for Zhu Hanwei's forehead.

Zhu Hanwei, sitting on the ground, fell silent, his mouth wide open, his face filled with fear and despair.

"Bang!"

At the critical moment, a sword light suddenly flashed, blocking the light arrow.

"Stop!"

Immediately, a loud shout, and Su Shier rushed out from the bushes.

The others died too quickly, and Su Shier didn't have time to save them, nor did he intend to.

But Zhu Hanwei was different. They came from the same place, were fellow townspeople and fellow disciples. Moreover, if it weren't for the two martial arts manuals he had traded from Zhu Hanwei, he might not have been able to defeat the miscellaneous disciple and the sword-carrying youth.

Out of both sentiment and reason, he had a reason to act.

The sudden change startled both Zhu Hanwei and the man with the hooked nose.

Hearing someone come to his aid, Zhu Hanwei was overjoyed and quickly turned to look at the person.

"Senior Brother Shier?!"

But when he saw it was Su Shier, his face instantly fell, his expression one of deep disappointment.

In his eyes, Su Shier was only at the Third Level of the Qi Condensation stage. He couldn't imagine any chance of victory against the man with the hooked nose.

The hope that had just risen was instantly shattered. Zhu Hanwei was completely despairing.

No, I... I definitely can't escape. But Senior Brother Shier was kind enough to save me, I can't drag him down with me!

Biting his lip, he quickly shouted, "Senior Brother Shier, run! You're no match for him, run! When you return home, help me look after my father, he's the mayor of the town!"

"Haha, a Third Level Qi Condensation stage kid, daring to stand up for someone? Don't you think it's too late to run now?"

"Since you're here, you'll be my new prey!"

Seeing Su Shier's cultivation, the man with the hooked nose sneered, his eyes burning with even more intense light, as if he had found a new toy.

"Prey, huh?" Su Shier coldly sneered.

</di>

As he spoke, his figure vanished from the spot.

Using the Phantom Step, he reappeared behind the man with the hooked nose.

Holding the White Mist Sword, he swung it mercilessly at the man.

The Small Circulation Technique he used to conceal his aura was so effective that even the peak master of Tian Yin Peak, Shen Miaoyin, couldn't see through it, let alone this man.

The reason he showed himself at the Third Level of the Qi Condensation stage was to make the man let his guard down, all for this one strike.

"Wrong, you're not just at the Third Level, you sly kid!"

The danger from behind made him shudder, and he couldn't help but shiver.

In the critical moment, he threw a black bead.

The bead spun, and a cold, dark wind howled, enveloping him.

Zhu Hanwei, sitting on the ground, was shocked by Su Shier's speed and the decisiveness of his attack. Seeing the man with the hooked nose throw the black bead, he quickly shouted a warning.

"Shier, be careful, this treasure can corrupt magical artifacts."

"An hour ago, he used this treasure to kill a Sixth Level Qi Condensation stage senior brother."

Corrupt magical artifacts?

Kill a Sixth Level Qi Condensation stage?

Su Shier was startled. Before he could think it through, he felt the White Mist Sword in his hand become heavy, as if cutting through a swamp.

With his attack blocked, he knew that it was impossible to kill the man by surprise.

Without hesitation, he threw a fireball and quickly drew the White Mist Sword, leaping back to create distance from the man with the hooked nose.

Looking at the White Mist Sword, he finally understood what Zhu Hanwei meant by corrupting magical artifacts.

The White Mist Sword, after being hit by the cold wind, was now rusted and pitted, its light dim and dull. Two more strikes, and it would be completely ruined.