In the void, Lin Xiao continuously withdrew pills and infused them into the Void Heaven Phoenix Wings, streaking forward rapidly for several days.
Lin Xiao was unclear on how far he had travelled, only that along the way, beast roars echoed sporadically, and attacks were launched towards his path. Yet those strikes were too slow, far from reaching him.
Additionally, he occasionally spotted people battling spirit beasts or clashing with one another amid the forests.
It was plain to see that he was passing through the Qiulu Mountains.
“These Qiulu Mountains are indeed a treacherous realm. Though merely skirting the core, it remains somewhat perilous,” Lin Xiao mused inwardly with a sigh.
Boom!
Yet at that very moment, a rumbling thunderclap resounded. Lin Xiao saw a torrent of energy erupting on the horizon ahead, vast fluctuations like an ocean surging wildly through the air.
“Trouble!” Lin Xiao inwardly groaned in dismay. The commotion was too immense, the waves rippling across the entire void, spanning perhaps hundreds of li. He hurriedly urged the Void Heaven Phoenix Wings to veer sideways.
But it was too late. The wings’ speed was too great, and in a blink, he hurtled to the right side of that colossal disturbance.
Lin Xiao was caught in the massive wave, his body along with the Void Heaven Phoenix Wings hurled sideways in a tumble. He crashed repeatedly into towering ancient trees, which toppled one after another.
From his mouth, a gush of blood uncontrollably spurted forth.
The roiling energy waves engulfed hundreds of li around. Lin Xiao, swept up on the outermost edge, had only been grazed.
Moreover, this surge was already on the verge of dissipating.
Otherwise, the consequences would have been unthinkable.
And just then, Lin Xiao spotted, dozens to hundreds of li ahead in the similarly affected zone, a familiar figure streaking towards the horizon, bloodstained, her form radiating a faint lustre like a streak of flowing light across the sky.
“What!” In that instant, a profound horror surged in Lin Xiao’s heart. His gaze immediately shifted sideways.
By now, the fading energy waves allowed a hazy glimpse through.
In a spot to his left front within the void, a youth in azure robes stood steadfast in mid-air. Azure light circulated over his body, forming a potent barrier that withstood the churning waves.
Though humanoid, the azure-robed youth was no human. His features were indistinct, but atop his head protruded a pair of long antlers, branching intricately in countless forks.
At this moment, the antlered azure-robed youth was also covered in bloodstains. Yet his expression remained utterly composed. Watching the flowing light figure recede into the distance, his aura abruptly wilted. He spat a mouthful of blood and could not help but sigh, “The Human Sacred Body is truly fearsome!”
“Luckily, she fled first. Otherwise, it would have been me running for my life!”
With a long, drawn-out sigh, the antlered azure-robed youth withdrew his gaze. At that point, a youth channelling a pair of wings streaked past from his front right.
“Hm? Void Heaven Phoenix Wings?” The antlered youth started in surprise, his eyes locking onto the youth bearing those wings.
And in that moment, the youth glanced back, pointed casually, and a tiny speck of light shot from his fingertip.
Instantly, boundless berserk energy flooded out, as if cataclysmic power teetered on the brink of eruption, sending tremors through heaven and earth in all directions.
A vein throbbed on the antlered youth’s forehead, but that speck was blindingly swift, hurtling to him in a flash.
Meanwhile, Lin Xiao, who had bolted towards the horizon, was drenched in cold sweat on his back.
He knew not what had transpired here, nor what spirit beast that youth had shapeshifted from. But he knew who the one who had fled first was.
That was Nan Muling, the one who could ambush and slay even a ninth-rank Martial Emperor in a single strike.
If even the dreadfully powerful Nan Muling had to flee, one could imagine the terror of that antlered youth.
Even gravely wounded, the foe was far beyond what he could contend with.
Thus, upon being flung aside, the instant he stabilised his body, he summoned spiritual power to recall the scattered Void Heaven Phoenix Wings to his feet. He poured in a heap of pills and fled outright.
At the same time, he brewed the Heaven-Devouring Spirit Gathering Finger as a precaution, should the antlered youth give chase.
After all, that antlered youth was too horrifying. He had to strike first, using the Heaven-Devouring Spirit Gathering Finger to impede the other.
He was uncertain of the finger’s might against the wounded antlered one.
But at least it could stall him awhile, enough time for escape.
“Rumble!”
In that split second, an earth-shattering explosion detonated dozens to hundreds of li behind Lin Xiao.
A sound like thunder from the ninth heavens boomed. Energy like an upturned sea blasted forth. A storm of towering energy flows roared across the ten directions, illuminating the entire region in brilliance.
At the same instant, Lin Xiao heard a heaven-rending roar, “Argh!!! Damnable human!!!”
Cold sweat poured from Lin Xiao, but soon, the commotion behind faded into the distance.
Lin Xiao urged the Void Heaven Phoenix Wings onward, arcing a detour from due north back towards the northwest.
He dared not fly too high now, instead skimming just above the mountain peaks and treetops.
After a while longer, with no pursuit from behind, Lin Xiao finally relaxed.
“Phew!” At that, he could not help but wipe the cold sweat from his face.
That antlered youth was far too terrifying. He was certain the antlered youth had not been slain by the blast.
Otherwise, after the Heaven-Devouring Spirit Gathering Finger’s speck detonated, there would have been no such earth-shaking roar.
Easing the Void Heaven Phoenix Wings’ speed, Lin Xiao dove into the forest, flying at mid-level amid the trees. It was a relatively secure spot.
From here, he would not be spotted.
The Void Heaven Phoenix Wings were swift, but in the open void, they traced a visible streak of light.
If the Qiulu Mountains ahead harboured such mighty spirit beasts, even sacred beasts, they might strike at the sight of that streak, intercepting or outright slaying him.
Thus, proceeding low-key was the safest course.
Of course, as for sacred beasts, equivalents to Martial Sages, Lin Xiao knew not if this era even had them.
The odds of encountering a sacred beast were slim, but as with the antlered youth or powerhouses like Nan Muling, such perils were still possible.
Streaking through the forest, Lin Xiao encountered no few spirit beasts en route, though none too formidable, at most mid-sixth-tier. He evaded them effortlessly, with no intent to hunt.
After several more hours, a commotion ahead brought Lin Xiao to an involuntary halt. He reined in his aura and stowed the Void Heaven Phoenix Wings.
