Chapter 7

Xu Yang frowned. He had thought that Song Ren wanted to entrust him with the task of reporting the crimes of the Huoyun Dojo to the Qimen Sect Master, so that the Sect Master could hold the Huoyun Dojo accountable. However, as he was about to die, what he couldn't forget was his young daughter.

Raising a daughter is too troublesome, Xu Yang's face showed hesitation, but he saw Song Ren's face turn red and start coughing violently: "Xu, Xu Yang... I beg you, on the beam of my house... there, there is your reward... I beg you..."

Before he could finish his sentence, he was interrupted by a fit of coughing. Song Ren coughed up a mouthful of dark red blood mixed with a small piece of internal organ.

"Stop, I promise you," Xu Yang frowned, stood up, and walked out of the valley without looking back.

Behind him, Song Ren's eyes were unfocused. It was already extremely difficult for him to hold on this long. If not for his strong will, he would have died long ago. However, at the moment of his death, his face still bore a peaceful smile.

Xu Yang, with the map in his pocket, walked out of the valley. He identified the direction and ran quickly.

After about an hour, three figures shot back into the valley from different directions.

"I didn't find him," said Lu Zhuo, his voice rough.

"Neither did I," said Wei Haoshan, his voice like the clashing of metal, "Is that kid lying to us? Is there no one who escaped? Think about it, how could a member of the Lin Yuan Xu family join the hard training team?"

"Hmm, it doesn't seem like he's lying to us..." Hong Xi, the strategist among the three, observed the situation on the ground and said softly, "Look, Song Ren's leather bag has moved... and the map inside is gone."

The other two were startled and quickly moved to Hong Xi's side. Their faces darkened when they saw clearly.

"It seems the kid was telling the truth," Wei Haoshan grunted, "What should we do now?"

Hong Xi's face was grim. "To avoid punishment from the Sect Master, what else can we do? We must chase after the direction where 'Xu Yang' might have gone and kill him!"

"How can we chase him when we don't know where he's running? The Giant Python Mountains are so vast; searching for him is like looking for a needle in a haystack," Wei Haoshan countered.

Hong Xi shook his head. "We can mobilize the outer disciples to search in all directions... that dead kid said Xu Yang only has the cultivation of a初级玄徒 (Xuantu Initial Stage), right? Any disciple can capture or kill him."

Wei Haoshan and Lu Zhuo's eyes lit up.

It was already noon. Hong Xi, Wei Haoshan, and Lu Zhuo gathered fifteen hard training disciples. Hong Xi said slowly, "A thief from the Qimen Dojo stole a Flame Flower and disrespected our Huoyun Dojo! Now, I have a task for you. Spread out and search for that kid. He only has the cultivation of a Xuantu Initial Stage, and any of you can kill him! Whoever finds him will get the Flame Flower!"

The hard training youths looked at each other. After a while, one of them stood up and asked, "Mentor Hong, the Giant Python Mountains are dangerous with strange beasts. We're worried that we might be killed by beasts before finding the thief."

Hong Xi smiled. "That's easy. I'll give each of you a warning rocket from the Huoyun Dojo. If you encounter danger, immediately throw the rocket, and I and the other two mentors will come to your aid."

Enticed by the Flame Flower, the hard training disciples accepted the task. After all, a first-grade spirit medicine like the Flame Flower could sell for at least ten Canglang coins in the market of Lin Yuan City, equivalent to a mentor's monthly income.

Fifteen hard training disciples and three Xuan Shi mentors spread out like a sparse net over the nearby mountains and forests.

The sun was about to set. Xu Yang, walking in the dense forest, suddenly felt a sense of danger.

It was just a moment ago, a slight tremor in that shrubbery? Was it a wild beast or a person?

Xu Yang noted it in his mind and continued walking without showing any signs.

"Here he is!" a young voice called out, sounding excited. Xu Yang suddenly turned around and saw two youths running towards him.

"Hand over the Flame Flower!" the one in front had a greedy look in his eyes.

Xu Yang's eyebrows furrowed. He instantly understood the situation. Those three Xuan Shi had mobilized all the hard training disciples to search for him!

"Should we use the warning rocket?" the one behind asked.

"Use it for what? He's just a Xuantu Initial Stage, and we are one Mid-Stage and one Late-Stage! Let's get the Flame Flower first!" The one in front leaped at Xu Yang, "Little thief, don't run!"

A cruel look flashed in Xu Yang's eyes. He coldly snorted, "Very well, since your Huoyun Dojo is relentlessly pursuing me... don't blame me for being ruthless!"

Snake Concealment Stance!

Xu Yang didn't dodge. As the opponent's punch was about to hit his chest, his chest suddenly caved in, avoiding the punch. Then, the bones in his right arm crackled, and he delivered a powerful punch to the opponent's waist. The Xuantu immediately curled up, clutching his stomach. Xu Yang's eyes flashed with a fierce light, and he slashed his palm at the opponent's neck.

Crack, crack, the neck bone broke!

Xu Yang kicked the Xuantu away and ran towards the other one.

The other Xuantu, who was at the Mid-Stage, was terrified when he saw his companion severely injured and possibly dead. He jumped up and fled.

Xu Yang used the Galloping Horse Stance, with a mist of Xuan energy surrounding his feet, moving as swiftly as the wind. In a few breaths, he caught up with the Xuantu.

"Damn, I'll fight you to the death!" The Xuantu kicked out.

"Six units of strength, your body is too weak!" Xu Yang coldly evaluated, and punched the Xuantu's foot. The Xuantu was hit like by a hammer and stumbled to the ground.

"You... how can you be so strong!" The Xuantu took out something from his pocket, infused it with Xuan energy, and threw it.

Xu Yang, caught off guard, looked up and saw a large fire cloud explode in the sky.

"It's actually a warning rocket..." Xu Yang knew he was in trouble. He angrily grunted and kicked the Xuantu's forehead, causing his skull to crack and blood to flow, and he fell to the ground.

"Quick, let's go!" Xu Yang, having killed two people, knew he couldn't stay. He quickly activated the Galloping Horse Stance and disappeared into the forest.

Just a moment later, two figures rushed over, Hong Xi and Wei Haoshan.

Seeing the two bodies on the ground, Hong Xi and Wei Haoshan's faces turned grim. They never expected that a Xuantu Initial Stage rookie could quickly kill two Xuantu Mid-Stage and Late-Stage disciples!

"What should we do?" Wei Haoshan looked at Hong Xi.

Hong Xi angrily grunted and lifted a strand of blood from one of the bodies. "The blood hasn't coagulated. I'll use the 'Blood Transformation Soul Lock' technique to find that little thief!"

Blood Transformation Soul Lock is an auxiliary Xuan technique that can use the victim's blood to trace the murderer within a certain range.

Hong Xi's hands moved swiftly, forming seals. The fresh blood on the ground slowly evaporated, forming a blood mist.

Vaguely, Wei Haoshan seemed to see the spirits of the dead crying out, guiding the blood mist straight through the forest, forming a faint blood line.

"Done, let's chase!" Wei Haoshan, being impulsive, activated his Xuan energy and shot off. Hong Xi followed closely behind.

"Hurry, the range of the blood mist is limited. We must catch him before it dissipates!" Hong Xi, no longer calm, said urgently.

The blood mist, after traveling a hundred meters, slowly faded and disappeared.

"Damn, that kid is really fast," Wei Haoshan said angrily.

"It's fine. The blood mist has given us a direction. This is the southern part of the Giant Python Mountains. If we go southeast for ten days, we'll reach Lin Yuan City!" Hong Xi analyzed, frowning. "That kid is probably rushing back to Lin Yuan City. We'll send disciples to form search teams of four or five on the necessary routes. Once they find him, they'll immediately send a warning!"

Xu Yang, unaware that he had narrowly escaped, was cautious and stayed close to the main road marked on the map.

If he strayed too far from the hard training route, he might enter unknown dangerous areas. Encountering strange beasts would be disastrous.

As night fell, Xu Yang found a hidden valley and practiced the "Dynamic and Static Qi Induction Technique."

Cultivating the "Mystic Heaven Eight Scenery Scripture," Xu Yang welcomed all kinds of Xuan energy, which flowed into his body like rivers into the sea. After extracting the Xuan energy, he expelled the impurities as turbid qi.

Xu Yang's strength was rapidly improving. His growth was not just in cultivation but also in physical strength.

With sufficient Xuan energy, Xu Yang aimed to refine his body to the extreme, making every muscle and bone as strong as possible within his current realm.

If cultivation is water, then the body is the container. The stronger the body, the more cultivation it can hold.

This refinement process was accompanied by intense pain. As Xu Yang practiced, cold sweat dripped from his forehead. His face was pale, but his eyes shone with determination.

"Since I have come to this world of abundant Xuan energy, I will reach the peak!" This was Xu Yang's dream for ten thousand years, and now it was finally possible. No matter how difficult, he would strive with all his might.

Time passed as Xu Yang hid and cultivated. In the blink of an eye, seven days had passed.

On this morning, after a night of qi induction and body refinement, Xu Yang exhaled and struck a tree with a punch.

Crack! The tree trunk made a faint breaking sound, and the branches swayed violently, as if a giant bear was shaking it.

"My cultivation is still at the Xuantu Initial Stage, but it's almost at the Mid-Stage. The Xuan energy mist in my star sea is full, and I could break through at any moment," Xu Yang examined his state internally. "My physical strength has reached seventeen units, stronger than the same realm cultivators in the future!"

More importantly, Xu Yang diligently practiced the eight postures of the "Dynamic and Static Qi Induction Technique," especially the Galloping Horse Stance, which represents speed. Now, his speed was twice as fast as before, almost matching the speed of an ordinary Xuan Shi.

"Lin Yuan City is in sight ahead," Xu Yang thought, "But the fools from the Huoyun Dojo are still like leeches, annoying... especially that mentor named Hong Xi, who knows the Blood Transformation Soul Lock technique, which is not simple."

In these seven days, Xu Yang had seen two search teams from the Huoyun Dojo. Fearing the three Xuan Shi behind them, he didn't act.

This kind of hiding life couldn't last long. Xu Yang decided to make a bold move, knowing that there were Xuan Shi strongmen blocking the way, he would fight his way back to Lin Yuan City.