Chapter 36

"Look at the color of this blood; it has been dry for a long time." Gu Xuyao was no stranger to bloodstains.

Yi Xia nodded slightly and turned her head to look. "It seems our luck is good; the tribe where Zibi is located must be nearby."

Yang Xi's face turned serious upon hearing this. After all, although the Black-Eyed Apes had left as a tribe, they would still leave a few adult apes to guard the elderly and the young.

"Master's words are indeed correct. If the Black-Eyed Apes are wandering around here, their lair must not be far from the wilderness."

Gu Cheng, standing beside him, also nodded in agreement.

"Yi Xia, in my opinion, this must be the work of one of the tribes we know, but do you have any idea which one it might be?"

The Taiheng Sect had been established for over a thousand years and had conducted in-depth research on the Black-Eyed Ape tribes that posed a threat to their disciples. The tribes that frequently wandered near the Taiheng Sect were all recorded.

"Wow, so we have information on their lair!" Li Shuisheng finally understood and couldn't help but exclaim.

Yi Xia glanced at him and ignored him.

"Let's proceed with caution. Perhaps we will find more clues about Zibi as we go." With that, Yi Xia once again used her flying technique, hovering a foot off the ground and carefully navigating through the forest.

The Great Wild Forest was uninhabited by cultivators, but it had a network of winding forest paths, uneven and clearly left by the frequent passage of fierce beasts. However, this also saved Gu Xuyao and his companions from the trouble of the blade grass.

After flying for about half an hour, Yi Xia found more dried blood. After this, Yi Xia seemed to have determined Zibi's location and increased her speed.

As they approached the Black-Eyed Apes' lair, the air grew increasingly foul and the light dimmed, clearly indicating that even the moonlight shunned these apes with black eyes.

"Brother Gu, this is the lair of the Black-Eyed Apes. We don't have much time, and a group of five is too noticeable. Please take Gu Xuyao and Li Shuisheng to search to the west, while I and Brother Yang Xi search to the east." Yi Xia stopped in front of a patch of blade grass. The apes naturally wouldn't live on the ground, so this time they would be conducting a rescue operation on trees over eighty feet tall!

Gu Cheng, who looked like a middle-aged man with a broad and gentle face, nodded calmly upon hearing Yi Xia's arrangement.

Seeing this, Yi Xia didn't waste any more words. She and Yang Xi each took out a jade pendant and flew high into the air, reaching the trees in the blink of an eye!

This scene left Li Shuisheng speechless. Like Gu Xuyao, the basic education at the Taiheng Sect had clearly told him that cultivators in the Lingxiao Realm couldn't fly higher than thirty feet.

Gu Cheng glanced at Li Shuisheng, took out two jade pendants identical to Yi Xia's, and handed them to Gu Xuyao and Li Shuisheng. "What's so surprising? It's true that cultivators in the Lingxiao Realm can't fly freely, but creativity is the most important aspect of cultivation. We can use certain magical treasures to temporarily overcome the limitations of the Lingxiao Realm, and this is one of them."

He then took out another jade pendant. "This is the Wind-Riding Jade. Do you remember the passage between the upper and lower levels of the Taiheng Sect? The array there actually uses wind power to move cultivators from the lower level to the upper level. This Wind-Riding Jade is a miniaturized version of that array, though it is much weaker."

As he spoke, Gu Cheng channeled his yuan energy into the jade pendant, and his body began to rise slowly, quickly reaching a height of thirty feet.

"You should understand how to use it. The feeling of flying is the same as when you use your flying technique, but remember, the principle of the Wind-Riding Jade is to use a mineral called Longfeng Stone as a power source to lift us with the wind. Once the Longfeng Stone in the Wind-Riding Jade runs out of energy, we can no longer use it, and we will have to be prepared to fall from the tree." With that, Gu Cheng flew up to the tree.

Gu Xuyao, upon hearing this, opened his palm and looked at the Wind-Riding Jade in his hand. This was his first encounter with a magical treasure, but the urgency of rescuing Zibi overshadowed his excitement.

Ignoring the excited Li Shuisheng beside him, Gu Xuyao channeled his yuan energy and flew towards where Gu Cheng had gone.

When Gu Xuyao and Li Shuisheng reached the top of the forest, they discovered the true appearance of this place. The tree holes of various sizes were deep and extensive, and it was easy to imagine that if the Black-Eyed Apes' tribe had not left their lair, the five of them would have been torn apart by now.

"Remember, don't make any noise. We can't use our flying technique here, so try to move as I do." Gu Cheng, seeing the two of them arrive, gave another warning before starting the search.

As cultivators, the three of them didn't need to check each tree hole to find another cultivator. In fact, the process was not difficult because of the existence of mental perception. They only needed to release their mental perception from a position that could cover a wide area, and everything in that area would appear in their minds.

The only thing to be careful about was not to stomp heavily on the branches when changing positions. Through the feedback from their mental perception, Gu Xuyao had already seen two adult Black-Eyed Apes sleeping. If they were awakened, the consequences would be dire. After all, on these tall trees, it was not the domain of cultivators in the Lingxiao Realm.

However, precisely because of this, once the Black-Eyed Apes fell asleep, they lost their vigilance. They had lived in the Great Wild Forest for a long time, and their status as the kings of the trees had never been challenged. Over time, they had become the most relaxed when in their lairs.

After changing positions several times, the three of them still found nothing, but Gu Xuyao noticed that they were in the area where the adult apes of the tribe lived. Many tree holes were empty, with only a few Black-Eyed Apes sleeping and guarding the area.

"If this is the case, then it will be difficult for Senior Sister Yi Xia to act..." For some reason, Gu Xuyao felt a sense of foreboding.

Sure enough, just as this feeling arose, a commotion came from the distance, clearly the angry screams of the Black-Eyed Apes!

Gu Cheng frowned upon hearing this and, without waiting for Gu Xuyao and Li Shuisheng, flew towards the east.

"Brother Gu, what should we do?" Li Shuisheng, sensing the danger, felt helpless. On these eighty-foot-tall trees, their only means of escape was the Wind-Riding Jade with limited energy.

Due to the screams of the Black-Eyed Apes, the other sleeping apes gradually woke up. Gu Xuyao knew that staying here was not an option. Without hesitation, he grabbed Li Shuisheng's shoulder and flew towards the east!

Since their presence had been exposed, it was safest for everyone to stay together!

Continuously moving through the branches, Gu Xuyao knew he couldn't waste the energy of the Wind-Riding Jade, so he didn't fly continuously. However, his speed was very fast, and soon he could faintly see Gu Cheng's figure, and the screams of the Black-Eyed Apes were getting louder.

"Boom!" A loud explosion and a burst of fire came from ahead!

"Fire Essence Technique!" Gu Xuyao immediately recognized this technique from the Taiheng Sect. Yi Xia and Yang Xi were experienced cultivators and would not use their yuan energy to attack unless absolutely necessary!

"Hurry, Shuisheng, can you manage on your own?" At this moment, the five of them were a team, and if any one of them was in trouble, it would weaken the group's strength.

Li Shuisheng, asked by Gu Xuyao, snapped out of his daze. Since the ape sounds started, he had been in a state of shock, and Gu Xuyao had been carrying him the whole way.

Putting Li Shuisheng down, Gu Xuyao flew even faster. Though he still couldn't catch up with Gu Cheng, he had pulled ahead of Li Shuisheng.

"True Fire of the Supreme, Burning for Ten Thousand Miles!" A solemn declaration, followed by a fierce explosion!

The night of the Great Wild Forest was no longer monotonous, as everything was bathed in red.

"Quick, let's go!" After the explosion, Yi Xia and Yang Xi quickly reached Gu Cheng and shouted, then flew out of the forest without hesitation!

Gu Xuyao was momentarily stunned but, upon seeing the injured Zibi on Yi Xia's shoulder, he made a quick decision and followed the three, descending.

Everything went smoothly. Someone had used a powerful technique to turn the forest into a sea of fire, slowing down the Black-Eyed Apes, who were afraid of fire.

"Wait!" Just as the four of them landed, Gu Xuyao seemed to realize something and turned around, only to find one person missing!

"Shuisheng! Shuisheng is gone!" Gu Xuyao shouted.

The other three frowned upon hearing this. At that moment, Li Shuisheng let out a scream, revealing his predicament.

Looking up, the four of them saw Li Shuisheng in a panic, surrounded by several Black-Eyed Apes. Unable to fight back, he could only use the Wind-Riding Jade to fly around randomly. This would eventually deplete the energy of the Wind-Riding Jade, and once that happened, Li Shuisheng would be doomed!

"Gu Xuyao, take Zibi and leave first. We will bring Shuisheng back later. Remember, follow the path we came in, and do not enter the blade grass!" Yi Xia said, handing the unconscious Zibi to Gu Xuyao.

After doing this, the three of them didn't say anything more and flew back up the trees using the Wind-Riding Jade.

Gu Xuyao knew this wasn't the time to hesitate. He glanced at the injured Zibi, feeling a pang of pain.

"Zibi, don't worry, I won't let these monkeys take you again." With that, Gu Xuyao used his flying technique and flew out of the Great Wild Forest along the path they had come in!