Chapter Thirty-Seven: Fleeing Once More

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Less than ten miles from the Dayan Sect, a pale-faced youth staggered along, exerting every ounce of his strength as he rushed forward. This was none other than Su Bai, who had just left Dayan. Having recently had his blood drawn and his internal power dissipated, he was in a state of extreme weakness. After only a few steps, he would have to stop and catch his breath; the frequent dizziness in his head made the pain almost unbearable.

Eventually, his strength gave out and he collapsed beneath a tall willow tree, gasping heavily as the world before his eyes grew distorted.

“I can’t go any further. That old man surely knows I haven’t gotten far—he’ll definitely send someone after me. I wrote him a letter to irritate him, just to distract him for a while. But that sly fox probably won’t fall for it. I need to find a way to hurry on.”

Yet, just as he tried to stand, he sank back down with a thud.

“Unfortunately, my body is simply too weak now—I can’t even stand.” Su Bai looked at his trembling legs, likening them to a breeding boar forced beyond its limits.

He let out a bitter laugh. “I was just putting on airs in front of them, and now look at me. If I get caught again, it’ll be a public execution for sure. I’ll be the undisputed champion of social disgrace.”

As his left hand dropped to the ground, he felt the gritty sensation of sand. Curiously, he glanced at where his hand rested. There, hidden beneath lush green grass, were specks of something resembling white sand—he wouldn’t have noticed them at all if he hadn’t touched them.

“Why is this here? Could it have been left by a disciple of the Dayan Sect?”

Su Bai’s eyes lit up with excitement. “I can pretend to be a new disciple of Dayan. Then I can use that identity as a shield against my pursuers.”

Hope sparked in Su Bai’s heart. With great effort, he crawled up and hobbled along in the direction of the white sand. But after less than five miles, he sensed something was wrong.

He studied the footprints on the ground, falling into thought. “These prints aren’t old—less than two hours, I’d say. And there’s a return trail as well, but only for one person. Judging by the lightness of their steps, both are likely possessed of deep internal power.”

Su Bai frowned, unsure of what to do. He realized someone might have just killed another, leaving such traces. If it were merely seeing off a guest, why would the other scatter white sand everywhere?

Suddenly, Su Bai seemed to understand, and a brilliant smile appeared on his lips. He pressed onward, following the footprints. From here on, though, the white sand trails vanished. If not for the muddy prints left by the recent rain, he would have had trouble finding the way.

Meanwhile, Xi Menghe had also discerned the intention behind Su Bai’s letter and immediately sent people to search.

“That kid can’t have gotten far. Go catch him now.” Xi Menghe described Su Bai’s appearance to his trusted disciples and ordered them to begin a thorough search of the area surrounding the Dayan Sect.

“Yes!” Once they understood Su Bai’s appearance, they set out at once to comb dozens of miles around Dayan.

“Wait.” Just as they were about to leave, Xi Menghe suddenly ordered, “Remember not to search east of Qingxi Village.”

Though the disciples didn’t understand their master’s reasoning, he had always been kind and approachable, so they didn’t question further. They responded in unison and followed Xi Menghe’s instructions to find Su Bai.

“Ming Li, you won’t escape my grasp,” Xi Menghe said coldly. “Once I’ve dealt with Wei Mingyuan, I’ll attend to your corpse myself, Senior Brother.”

Xi Menghe’s plan was that, if Dong Mumeng accidentally broke the formation, Wei Mingyuan could be cultivated as his disciple, framing Dong Mumeng for the kidnapping and raising a killing machine who would hate Dong Mumeng to the bone. But since Dong Mumeng was already dead, there was no need to take another disciple. Besides, Wei Mingyuan was famously clever—if he infiltrated Xi Menghe’s side and betrayed him at a crucial moment, it would be disastrous.

With these thoughts, Xi Menghe quickened his pace toward Wei Mingyuan’s location.

Meanwhile, in a pitch-black room, a grimy, dark-skinned boy slowly stood and worked to unlock the chains binding him. With the clatter of chains, he finally regained his freedom of movement.

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His face was deathly pale; it had taken all his strength to escape the chains’ bondage. The wire had indeed helped him unlock the brass lock, but the process was torturous.

After hooking the wire nearby, he found he couldn’t reach it by hand. The chain’s lock could only be reached by standing and bringing his hands behind his back. First, he used his right foot to remove his left shoe, then gripped the wire between both feet and kicked it to his hand.

Standing up was no easy feat. He had just had his little finger cut off, and now had to endure this further ordeal. The friction between both injuries nearly broke him—his whole body was dominated by pain, and he could barely summon any strength.

Sitting against the pillar forced him to stand using only the contortions of his body. Each time he nearly succeeded, the agony in his fingers would make him collapse back down.

He knew that the longer he delayed, the more likely he’d be killed by the returning, terrifying old man. At the last moment, he finally endured the pain, standing with a cry of agony. His right hand clenched the wire tightly, afraid it would slip and all would be lost.

Everything proceeded smoothly after that; just a few minutes ago, Wei Mingyuan had finally escaped captivity.

He headed outside, but could not tell where he was. He wandered aimlessly, thinking as he hurried along.

“The Dayan Sect is no longer safe. I need to find another way. But if I leave Dayan, where can I go…”

Wei Mingyuan found himself at an impasse.

Just then, a furious, low growl interrupted his thoughts. He immediately hid behind a huge boulder.

The voice was all too familiar—it was the old man who kidnapped him. The disgusting tone made Wei Mingyuan’s teeth itch with hatred, but also filled him with dread.

He could only shiver behind the stone, observing from the shadows. But from this distance, he couldn’t see who the old man was.

At that moment, Xi Menghe was in the throes of a wild, impotent rage.

“A bunch of brats! How dare you escape right before my eyes, just like this… just like this!”

Xi Menghe stomped the ground in fury; the tiles within ten meters around him cracked like a sprawling spiderweb.

Usually gentle and kindly toward his disciples, Xi Menghe was now unrecognizable—even his closest disciples wouldn’t know him.

He prided himself on leaving nothing to chance, yet was outsmarted by two children. It was as if fate was slapping him in the face, utterly humiliating him. Even without a public execution, his pride was in tatters.

“I’ll kill those two brats!” Xi Menghe roared, venting his rage.

His voice echoed through the mountains, reaching Wei Mingyuan’s ears and forcing him to cover them.

Fortunately, Xi Menghe was seasoned and exceptionally skilled at managing his emotions. After a brief outburst, he headed for Dong Mumeng’s location to clean up the mess.

Seeing Xi Menghe leave the stone house, Wei Mingyuan hesitated, unsure if he should follow. Being unfamiliar with the area made finding a way out difficult. If he wasn’t careful, he might run straight into danger.

“I remember my teacher said that cultivators at the Focused Spirit stage can sense up to two or three yards. Once they reach mastery, it’s about fifteen yards. Those at the Transcendent stage can sense up to twenty yards. Some with exceptional spiritual power can reach even farther.

I’ll stay cautious and keep a twenty-yard distance—he shouldn’t be able to detect my presence.”

With Xi Menghe’s figure receding, further hesitation would mean losing track. Wei Mingyuan gritted his teeth and followed.

Elsewhere, Su Bai had followed the footprints to the scene of the incident. Before him lay Dong Mumeng, covered in blood and riddled with wounds.

“So it was the Third Elder’s accident site. Shame I don’t have a camera—otherwise I could use this as leverage. If only I’d brought a phone when I crossed over.”

He examined Dong Mumeng’s corpse, finding no signs it had been searched.

“Perhaps Xi Menghe killed Dong Mumeng but didn’t immediately take anything from his body. That gives me a chance—there might be something valuable I can pick up.”

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Su Bai rubbed his hands together, preparing to thoroughly search the battlefield.

But just then, an unexpected change occurred.

Dong Mumeng’s corpse began to move under Su Bai’s gaze—first the little finger twitched, then his eagle-like eyes snapped open, glinting coldly.

Fortunately, Su Bai had been fortified by more than thirty years of socialist core values; otherwise, he might have knelt and begged Dong Mumeng not to haunt him.

He swallowed hard, his gaze sharpening as his expression grew complicated. He pulled two pills from his chest, hurriedly knelt beside Dong Mumeng, and cradled him.

Seeing Dong Mumeng’s miserable state, Su Bai couldn’t help but ask, “Third Elder, what happened to you? How did you end up like this?”

Dong Mumeng turned away, his face full of bitterness, giving no reply.

He didn’t notice that Su Bai, who had just shown concern, had cycled through several expressions in the meantime.

When Dong Mumeng faced him again, Su Bai’s caring look dispelled his doubts, but such humiliation was hard to speak of.

But Su Bai was direct: “Even if you don’t say, I know Ninth Elder set a trap from the very beginning, waiting for you to fall in. He probably doesn’t know you survived, does he?”

Finally, Dong Mumeng revealed the truth to Su Bai, including everything Mo Jiyang had done. Su Bai was deeply shocked by it all.

“I never thought the Sect Master could be so petty, unable to tolerate another powerful figure in the sect. How can a sect like this ever prosper!”

Su Bai’s words resonated with Dong Mumeng, but he was more amazed that Su Bai had foreseen Xi Menghe’s actions.

He began to suspect whether Su Bai was a spy sent by Xi Menghe, but quickly dismissed the notion—given Dong Mumeng’s current state, there was no need for such intrigue.

Su Bai took a deep blue pill from his chest and offered it to Dong Mumeng. “Elder, take this—it’ll help suppress your wounds.”

Dong Mumeng hesitated, saying, “There’s medicine in the pouch at my waist. You should keep your pill for yourself.”

Su Bai was taken aback, then smiled. “Alright, since you don’t trust me, I’ll use yours.”

He took out Dong Mumeng’s waist pouch, and before his eyes, produced a bruise-dispersing pill.

Dong Mumeng took the pill, and Su Bai spread his clothes on the ground, then helped Dong Mumeng sit on them.

Seeing Dong Mumeng take the medicine, Su Bai seemed relieved. He stood and said, “I suspect Xi Menghe will be here soon. I’ll go keep watch—please recover quickly. We must move at once.”

Dong Mumeng nodded, and Su Bai left.

But he didn’t go far, hiding behind a large tree to observe.

Meanwhile, Dong Mumeng was circulating his internal energy, trying to repair his injuries. But before even half a cup of tea’s time had passed, he sensed something was wrong.

“To evade Xi Menghe’s detection, I used the Turtle Breath Technique, shutting down my own vitality. But it’s been less than half a day—how could it affect my body so much?”

He stubbornly intensified his practice, driven mainly by the imminent arrival of Xi Menghe.

But as he pushed his internal power, his vitality seemed to be drained like water by a pump. Instantly, he realized something was wrong, clutching his spasming heart.

At that moment, Su Bai finally stepped out from behind the tree, his face expressionless, betraying no emotion. He spoke softly, “Third Elder, rest in peace. I will avenge you. The one who killed you was Xi Menghe—when you reach the underworld, don’t mistake your enemy.”

Dong Mumeng spat a mouthful of old blood, his trembling left hand pointed at Su Bai, but he couldn’t utter a single word, dying on the spot.