Chapter 58

Meng Hao's heart was extremely uneasy. Standing on the precious fan he had just exchanged, he used all his spiritual energy to flee at top speed, fearing that if he fled too slowly, a great calamity would befall him.

"I have already offended that Old Monster Song, and now I have even offended the Purple Destiny Sect... But this can't be blamed on me; it was they who forced the exchange." Meng Hao sighed, feeling somewhat innocent. After all, given the situation at the time, he had no choice but to exchange... He sighed repeatedly, running even faster, trying to put as much distance as possible between himself and the National Protection Mountain Range.

"I need to find a place to hide; otherwise, if I get caught, it will be dangerous..." Meng Hao frowned. At this moment, the sliding force of the precious fan dissipated, and he fell to the ground. Meng Hao immediately put the fan away and ran forward.

"I wonder when I can reach the Foundation Establishment stage, so I can truly fly in the sky!"

Two days passed in a flash. During these two days, Meng Hao did not rest at all, rushing at top speed. Recalling how he had been chased by Shangguan Xiu from Great Green Mountain, he had hardly rested at all. Meng Hao felt somewhat helpless, but now he had to flee, or the consequences would be unimaginable.

At this moment, deep within the National Protection Mountain Range, on the flat-topped mountain beside the treasure mountain, Wu Dingqiu picked up a chess piece with a smile on his face. After pondering for about half an hour, he slowly placed it down.

The face of Old Monster Song, who was sitting opposite him, was ashen. He glared at Wu Dingqiu, let out a cold snort, and quickly made his move.

"Old Monster Song, your cultivation is not bad, but your state of mind is a problem. We cultivators should maintain composure and calmness, even if a mountain collapses before us. Look at you; just because a junior took some miscellaneous items, you are so agitated?" Wu Dingqiu stroked his beard and spoke with a light and easy manner.

"You would be the same if it were you," Old Monster Song said irritably.

"Absolutely not! Even if it were me, I would only admire, not get angry. The Purple Destiny Sect emphasizes the cultivation of one's state of mind. How can we get angry over such trivial matters? Old Monster Song, I must say, in this aspect of cultivation, you still need to learn from our Purple Destiny Sect." Wu Dingqiu laughed heartily, looking very pleased with himself. Seeing the look on Old Monster Song's face, he continued.

"Let's do this: after we finish this game, you come with me to the Purple Destiny Sect. I will personally show you our cultivation scrolls and let you study how to maintain composure and calmness." Wu Dingqiu's smile became even more smug, and his wrinkles seemed to open up.

Old Monster Song let out a cold snort and did not speak, but instead frowned and turned his head to look into the distance. Wu Dingqiu's smile grew even wider, and he followed his gaze. Soon, two figures ran out of the forest, which were Qianshuihen and Lusong. They both held iron spears and rushed toward the flat-topped mountain. In the distance, some disciples of the Purple Destiny Sect could be seen following them.

"Greetings, Elder Wu. I have completed the task you gave me and exchanged for this treasure."

"Disciple greets Elder Wu. I have not failed my mission and have successfully exchanged for this spear." Qianshuihen and Lusong stepped onto the flat-topped mountain and spoke in unison.

Old Monster Song's face was dark, while Wu Dingqiu's laughter echoed.

"Very good, you two have done well. This time, I will promote you to inner disciples. But you didn't make things difficult for that young friend, did you?" Wu Dingqiu asked with a smile.

"Reporting to Elder Wu, we only exchanged and did not make things difficult for him," Qianshuihen said hurriedly, while Lusong, who was beside him, looked excited and nodded quickly.

"Old Monster Song, come, let's appreciate this treasure spear together." Wu Dingqiu laughed heartily, waved his sleeve, and raised his right hand. The iron spear immediately flew toward him and landed in his hand.

However, as soon as he held the spear, Wu Dingqiu's face changed. His eyes immediately flashed with a sharp light as he examined it closely. Old Monster Song, who had been looking grim, now examined the iron spear and his eyes immediately lit up. He was stunned for a moment, then a smile appeared on his lips.

Wu Dingqiu's face became increasingly dark. No matter how he looked at the iron spear, it appeared to be just ordinary iron. Unwilling to accept this, he picked it up and pointed it at a beast below the mountain, but the beast did not react at all.

His face turned extremely dark, and he slowly raised his head, looking coldly at Qianshuihen and Lusong.

Qianshuihen and Lusong were still excited, but when they saw Wu Dingqiu's gaze, their bodies trembled, and their eyes showed confusion.

"What did you exchange for this spear?" Wu Dingqiu asked, his voice cold and deliberate.

"Disciple exchanged 2,100 spirit stones, seven Earth Spirit Pills, one Sect's Seizing the Netherworld Nail, and... one Platform Ascension Pill..." Qianshuihen, feeling nervous, answered quickly.

Wu Dingqiu's face had already turned dark.

"Disciple exchanged 1,500 spirit stones, three Heaven Spirit Pills, one precious fan, and one Dharma Pill..." Lusong's words followed.

Old Monster Song's laughter echoed, filled with a sense of release, as if he was venting all the frustration of the past few days.

"A bunch of useless people, this iron spear is fake!" Wu Dingqiu, already angry, became even more furious when he heard the high cost these disciples had paid, and the mocking laughter of Old Monster Song. His anger reached its peak, and he suddenly roared.

At that moment, his voice was like a thunderclap, spreading out and shattering the chessboard, causing the mountain peak beneath his feet to collapse. Qianshuihen and Lusong spat out blood and were thrown back, their minds buzzing with the echo of Wu Dingqiu's words.

"Fake..." they murmured, dazed.

Wu Dingqiu's voice echoed in all directions, spreading across half of the National Protection Mountain Range, and even reaching the city of Dongxiu.

For a moment, his voice was like rolling thunder, and the hearts of Sun Hua and others who had not left the city of Dongxiu were shaken. They were stunned for a moment, but soon Sun Hua thought of something, and his expression changed.

"Is the spear fake?" Sun Hua looked at his companions, and at that moment, they all seemed to remember something, and their expressions changed.

"It can't be that iron spear..."

In the White Treasure Pavilion, Qiaoling was introducing a magical treasure to a cultivator. Hearing the voice from outside, she was startled and immediately thought of Meng Hao and the iron spear, her expression becoming strange.

The middle-aged man by the alchemy furnace opened his eyes, a mocking look in his eyes, but he did not speak, closing his eyes again.

On the plains far from the National Protection Mountain Range, Meng Hao was running at top speed, his head lowered, moving even faster.

Inside the National Protection Mountain Range, Old Monster Song's laughter echoed, the grating sound making Wu Dingqiu's face extremely dark. As an elder of the Purple Destiny Sect, he had been tricked by a Qi Condensation cultivator. Although this matter was not directly related to him, it would still be extremely embarrassing if it became known.

At that moment, he wanted nothing more than to find Meng Hao immediately. Turning around, he saw the terrified expressions of Qianshuihen and Lusong, which only increased his disgust. He sighed inwardly, knowing that these disciples, who usually stayed within the sect, lacked experience in dealing with outsiders, like flowers raised in a greenhouse, lacking both cunning and experience.

With a cold snort, he threw the iron spear to the ground and was about to use his divine sense to search for Meng Hao. However, at that moment, Old Monster Song stepped forward to block his path, his laughter extremely smug.

"Friend Wu, don't get angry. The Purple Destiny Sect emphasizes maintaining composure and cultivating one's state of mind. How can you get angry over such a trivial matter? Brother Wu, I must say, in this aspect of cultivation, you still need to study the cultivation scrolls of the Purple Destiny Sect more." Old Monster Song laughed heartily, but his stance was clear: he would not let Wu Dingqiu leave today. Previously, Wu Dingqiu had not let him leave, so now he would not let Wu Dingqiu leave either.

"You..." Wu Dingqiu's face was ashen, and he glared at Old Monster Song, but could not say anything, feeling extremely frustrated.

"You destroyed the chessboard, and the game is not finished. Let's go to your Purple Destiny Sect as you invited me. Once we get there, we will play chess for several months." Old Monster Song's smile was extremely smug, and the frustration in his heart was completely gone. Seeing Wu Dingqiu's expression made him even happier. The fact that Meng Hao had taken his treasure was no longer important to him; what mattered was making Wu Dingqiu angry, which made him very happy and allowed him to vent his frustration.

At that moment, he forcibly pulled Wu Dingqiu, determined not to let him leave. Wu Dingqiu felt extremely frustrated, staring at Old Monster Song for a long time, and finally sighed. Knowing that Old Monster Song would not let him go today, he stomped his foot, suppressing his anger, and was pulled into the sky by Old Monster Song.

"You still haven't followed, a bunch of useless people. This time, the promotion to inner disciples has failed. When you return to the sect, each of you will be confined to closed cultivation!" Wu Dingqiu turned and roared at the ground. Immediately, Qianshuihen and Lusong trembled, and the other disciples also turned pale.

"Damn Meng Hao, I will remember you. You despicable scoundrel!" Lusong's face was twisted, his teeth clenched, and the image of Meng Hao's shy expression in his mind made him even angrier. He had never seen such a despicable person in his life. Clearly selling a fake spear, yet he had put on a pained expression. Thinking of the high cost he had paid and the failure to be promoted to inner disciple, Lusong was so angry that he almost spat blood.

"Despicable and base, Meng Hao, you are too despicable. Don't let me meet you again, or I will tear you to pieces!" Qianshuihen, feeling the pain of losing his items, picked up the iron spear, almost going mad. Thinking of the loss of his promotion to inner disciple and the loss of his pills and magical treasures, his hatred for Meng Hao was overwhelming.

Looking at Lusong, their eyes met, and they felt a sense of shared suffering.

"This spear must be kept in the sect to remind us. We must kill Meng Hao a thousand times in this life!" Their eyes were filled with intense killing intent, but they had to return to the sect after their trial. This hatred and killing intent would remain in their hearts forever, never fading.

At that moment, Meng Hao was trembling with fear. He felt wronged and sighed repeatedly, but his speed increased. He ran for seven more days, finally finding a deep mountain cave, where he sat in meditation to recover.

"Why go through all this trouble..." Meng Hao sighed. These days, he had been very tired, and he was worried about being caught. His heart was filled with fatigue.

The next morning, he opened his eyes and fled again. This time, half a month passed, and he did not dare to show himself in public, seeking out remote mountains and wilderness. When he felt it was safe, he used a flying sword to dig a cave and entered closed cultivation.

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Note: The last part of the original text contains a note from the author about a WeChat public account. This has been omitted in the translation as it is not part of the story.