Chapter 21

In an instant, almost all eyes in the square fell upon the chubby boy. Those gazes made the back of the chubby boy feel as if cold winds were blowing, and his body trembled, causing all his flesh to shake. He looked pitifully at Meng Hao, who had a smile on the corner of his mouth.

"Meng Hao, save me..." The chubby boy wanted to throw away the medicinal pill in his hand, but he couldn't make it leave his palm. Seeing that many people were quickly surrounding him, he became so frightened that his teeth chattered.

At this moment, the light pillars around them gradually dissipated. The chubby boy's whole body trembled. As the light completely faded and the restrictions around them vanished, before the chubby boy could say anything, Meng Hao grabbed his clothes. His cultivation at the Fourth Layer of Qi Condensation burst forth, and he instantly carried the chubby boy and rushed out.

"Give me the medicinal pill, and you go hide in the cave!" Without any hesitation, Meng Hao threw the jade slip of the cave to the chubby boy. As he spoke in a low voice, the chubby boy quickly handed the Drought Spirit Pill to Meng Hao as if it were a scalding hot potato.

Meng Hao's body flickered as he grabbed the chubby boy and dashed towards the distance. Behind him, sharp whistling sounds arose, and fierce roars echoed. More than ten people quickly ran, chasing after Meng Hao.

"Damn it, it's Meng Hao, you can't escape!"

"Hand over the Drought Spirit Pill, and in consideration of our fellow disciples, I won't kill you today. Otherwise, you will surely die!"

Meng Hao did not pause for a moment. After leaving the outer sect, he threw the chubby boy far away. Although the chubby boy was honest, he wasn't stupid. Before he even landed, he let out a miserable cry.

"He stole my medicinal pill." As he cried out in a shrill voice, he quickly held the jade slip and fled, using the fastest speed of his life to rush towards Meng Hao's cave.

With his cry, those who were chasing immediately ignored the chubby boy and rushed after Meng Hao.

"Even if you run to the ends of the earth, you won't last twelve hours today!"

"With your Fourth Layer of Qi Condensation, you can't keep this pill. Give it to me!" Among the more than ten people behind Meng Hao, most were at the Fourth Layer of Qi Condensation, two were at the Fifth Layer, and the rest were at the Third Layer. Most of them were unwilling to give up and were looking for an opportunity to pick up the pill.

For a moment, sword lights whistled behind Meng Hao. More than ten flying swords turned into a rain of swords, rushing towards Meng Hao, making his back feel cold. However, he was determined to obtain the Drought Spirit Pill and would not give it up.

"As long as I can last twelve hours, this pill will be mine. With this pill, I can break through to the Fifth Layer of Qi Condensation." Meng Hao's eyes showed determination, and his speed increased. Since joining the Mountain Rely Sect, he had spent much time in the wild mountains hunting demon beasts, which had honed his speed and familiarity with the wild mountains, surpassing many of his fellow disciples. Now, after leaving the outer sect, he headed straight for the wild mountains.

Seeing the sword lights approaching, Meng Hao, without turning back, slapped his storage bag with his right hand. He immediately took out a medicinal pill and swallowed it, then several flying swords flew out, heading towards the rear.

Bang, bang, bang. Several large trees near Meng Hao were shattered by the impact of the flying swords, branches flying everywhere and hitting Meng Hao, causing him pain. He used the impact to leap, and his body soared, instantly covering several dozen feet.

Before his body could land, four fire snakes and three water balls approached. Two of the fire snakes were over twenty feet long and as thick as a person, containing intense heat that made the surrounding leaves seem to burn. These were cast by the two Fifth Layer of Qi Condensation cultivators, who were the fastest, moving like the wind without touching the ground. They were about to catch up to Meng Hao, and their faces showed ferocity, looking at each other with hostility. In their view, the true opponent for the Drought Spirit Pill was the other, and Meng Hao was not a significant threat.

Meng Hao's face changed. In a critical moment, he did not hesitate. He slapped his storage bag with his right hand, and two flying swords immediately circled his body, landing under his feet. In an instant, he flew over a dozen feet away, completely avoiding the fire snakes and increasing the distance between them. Thunderous roars echoed behind him.

This method was invented by Meng Hao, but it could not last long, only a few breaths. However, even so, it was enough to give him an advantage over the two Fifth Layer of Qi Condensation cultivators in the wild mountains.

"If I were at the Fifth Layer of Qi Condensation and had the Wind Walking Technique, I could stay on the flying sword for a longer time and easily shake off these people. Unfortunately, this is not true flight," Meng Hao thought, his desire for the Fifth Layer of Qi Condensation growing stronger. He never looked back, running forward at full speed. This journey was not aimless. As soon as the Drought Spirit Pill landed on the chubby boy, Meng Hao's mind had been working at high speed.

Choosing the wild mountains was because Meng Hao was heading to the Black Mountain in the wild mountains, where demon beasts existed. After much consideration, Meng Hao believed his only advantage was the bronze mirror. With this mirror, despite the dangers of the wild mountains and the terrifying roars of the demon beasts, his chances of survival would be higher than others if he entered the Black Mountain with them.

"If these people follow me into the Black Mountain, they will force me to kill them." A fierce look flashed in Meng Hao's eyes. After more than a year in the Mountain Rely Sect, Meng Hao was no longer the weak scholar he once was. Although his appearance hadn't changed much, he was slightly taller and his skin was still a bit dark, his heart was now filled with determination.

Especially after the incident with Wang Tengfei, Meng Hao realized that he was his own greatest support. Only by becoming stronger could he survive in the cultivation world, where the weak were preyed upon by the strong. Actions needed to be cautious and decisive.

The pursuit continued, and the sword lights shone. Soon, the two Fifth Layer of Qi Condensation cultivators behind Meng Hao caught up. Their eyes were filled with killing intent. Their confident attack had been dodged by Meng Hao using a special method, which was a humiliation for them, the dominant figures in the outer sect, aside from Wang Tengfei and Han Zong.

The two attacked simultaneously, but Meng Hao still managed to escape, which they found intolerable, making their desire to kill him even stronger. As for Meng Hao's method of stepping on flying swords, they dismissed it as only useful at the Fourth Layer of Qi Condensation. At their level, it wouldn't increase their speed much and would waste spiritual energy. Seeing Meng Hao do this, they inwardly sneered, thinking he would soon run out of spiritual energy.

"Let's see how you escape this time!" As they spoke, they exchanged a glance. One of them leaped into the air like a large bird, and with a wave of his right hand, two huge fire snakes roared and pounced on Meng Hao below.

The other followed closely behind Meng Hao, one above and one below, forming a cage to completely seal him off.

"Still not dead?" Their sneers echoed, filled with killing intent.

Meng Hao's expression didn't change much. He coldly snorted. Since he dared to snatch the Drought Spirit Pill, he naturally had a plan. He slapped his storage bag with his right hand and, with a flick, six flying swords instantly flew out, their sword lights intersecting and rushing outward.

"Explode!" At the same time, Meng Hao gritted his teeth and shouted. Immediately, a thunderous explosion echoed through the wild mountains. Even the cultivators chasing from a distance heard it and were startled, unsure of what had happened to cause such a loud noise.

Amidst the explosion, blood trickled from the corner of Meng Hao's mouth, but his body moved like lightning, instantly fleeing far away. The shockwave spread, and the fire snakes let out miserable cries as they disintegrated. The two Fifth Layer of Qi Condensation cultivators were forced to retreat, landing on the ground, their faces covered in dirt, and their expressions filled with disbelief.

"Damn it, this person is so ruthless, he actually exploded six flying swords at once!"

"No wonder he runs a general store, how many flying swords does he have?"

The two drew in a breath, but they did not hesitate. They immediately used the Wind Walking Technique to chase after Meng Hao at full speed. They were not intimidated by Meng Hao's actions and secretly believed he must have few flying swords left, as even running a general store in the low-level public area couldn't provide so many magical treasures.

"This time, he will surely die!" They moved extremely fast, rushing into another part of the wild mountains. After several dozen breaths, the other Fourth Layer of Qi Condensation disciples caught up, including Shangguan Song, who was by Wang Tengfei's side. His cultivation was at the peak of the Fourth Layer, and he was now grim-faced, amazed by Meng Hao's speed but still chasing after him.

Time passed, and soon half an hour had gone by. Meng Hao continued to move forward, maintaining a certain distance. He encountered several dangers but managed to escape each time by exploding the flying swords in his storage bag.

This scene left the two Fifth Layer of Qi Condensation cultivators speechless and frustrated. They never imagined Meng Hao would have so many flying swords. By now, nearly twenty had been shattered.

He even occasionally stepped on flying swords, moving at a speed that was not slow at all.

"Damn it, even if he has many flying swords, there is a limit. I don't believe he can produce many more. Besides, even if he has more flying swords, his spiritual energy consumption is immense from running so fast and using flying swords."

"That's right. His cultivation at the Fourth Layer of Qi Condensation is not as deep as ours. He also occasionally steps on flying swords, which will surely exhaust him!"

The two Fifth Layer of Qi Condensation cultivators encouraged each other as they chased, but before their words had even finished, they felt a sense of unease as they looked at Meng Hao ahead.

They saw Meng Hao take out another storage bag while running, swallow several medicinal pills, and do it so skillfully that it seemed he had countless pills in his pocket.

Indeed, over the next two hours, the two were shocked to find that Meng Hao had an abundance of flying swords and medicinal pills, leaving them deeply impressed.

"Running a general store is so profitable?" This was the only thought in their minds. However, as Fifth Layer of Qi Condensation cultivators, they were not without medicinal pills. Despite the pain, they were unwilling to give up and continued to chase, their desire to kill Meng Hao growing stronger.

When the third hour arrived, a black mountain appeared in front of Meng Hao. This mountain, hidden in the wild mountains, gave off a chilling and cold aura.

Seeing the black mountain, a glint of determination appeared in Meng Hao's eyes. He had consumed a lot, and each flying sword and demon beast core felt like spirit stones to him. But he couldn't afford to hesitate and, without any delay, dashed into the black mountain.

The two Fifth Layer of Qi Condensation cultivators instantly caught up, following Meng Hao into the black mountain.

Soon, more cultivators arrived, paused at the sight of the black mountain, but without much thought, they all entered.

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