The First Immortal of Destiny

Chapter 615: Chapter 615: Traversing a Million Miles_1

「A dozen days later.」

Lady Scarlet, Fu Jianghuo, Peng Lexiao, and Peng Leyao appeared outside a cluster of ancient tombs, discussing their treasure-hunting strategies for once they were inside.

Ever since Song Han, driven by his distrust of Shen Mo, had left the team, the four of them had visited a second fortuitous location. After encountering numerous dangers, each of them had gained a significant haul.

This greatly bolstered the confidence of Lady Scarlet and the others. They then hurriedly proceeded to this place, planning to explore the possible fortunes hidden within the ancient tombs.

The environment here was incredibly unusual, with thousands of tombs and palatial structures scattered haphazardly and suspended in mid-air.

Many of the tombs and palaces were in a state of ruin, but the Prohibitions within them had not been completely destroyed. After countless years of entanglement and evolution, they had become even more intricate and complex.

Furthermore, all those buried within the tomb cluster were ancient beings, their powerful remains and lingering wills still present. Immersed in time, this place was far more eerie and terrifying than any common burial ground of mortals or the tomb clusters of ordinary cultivators.

Nobody knew what exactly lay hidden beneath the crumbling mausoleums!

Undoubtedly, this was a forbidden zone of life, an area that even powerful experts of the Golden Core Realm wouldn’t dare to venture into lightly.

...

”I wonder where Shen Qingyun has gone? He said he would catch up in a few days, but it’s been over half a month, and there’s still no sign of him!”

During their discussion, Peng Leyao thought of Shen Mo and grumbled with some dissatisfaction, ”If he were here with us, entering the ancient tomb cluster and sharing some of the risks, our journey ahead would be much smoother.”

Her brother, Peng Lexiao, then picked up the thread, saying somberly, ”Anything can happen in the ancient battlefield.”

”Fellow Daoist Shen might have encountered some danger or a fortuitous opportunity, which delayed his rendezvous with us.”

”However...” Peng Lexiao continued, ”At the previous fortuitous site, and here as well, there are no signs of any cultivator having ventured in alone. Clearly, Fellow Daoist Shen hasn’t abandoned us to seek fortunes by himself, as Song Han suggested.”

Previously, Song Han, a rogue cultivator from Wangxian Mountain, relying on his intuition, had speculated that Shen Mo was hiding his true strength. He also suspected that the injuries and partial memory loss suffered by the group during their expedition to the Demon-Suppressing Tower were connected to him.

Regarding this matter, Lady Scarlet and her companions had been rather skeptical.

However, as time passed, neither the fortuitous locations they had previously explored nor the current ancient tomb cluster showed any signs of Shen Mo having arrived before them. Thus, their suspicions gradually faded.

If it wasn’t for the information in Lady Scarlet’s memory, then what ulterior motive could ”Shen Qingyun” have had for hiding his strength and using a Soul Curse on us? they wondered.

Of course, Lady Scarlet and the other three were unaware that Shen Mo’s true motive for acting as he did was hidden within their missing memories.

His aim was to prevent them from revealing sensitive information: that the Demon-Suppressing Tower was suppressing Demons from the Outer Zone, and that the ancient battlefield of immortals and demons was, in fact, the Vacuous Realm that had withered away in Ancient Times, potentially serving as a passage connecting the old and new worlds.

”In my opinion,” Fu Jianghuo, the strongest of the four, began to say, ”after the incident at the Demon-Suppressing Tower, Fellow Daoist Song became fearful and timid.

”That’s why he used Fellow Daoist Shen as an excuse to part ways with us, to avoid our ridicule should his cowardice be exposed.

”Therefore, what Fellow Daoist Song said cannot be trusted!

”Our previous ordeal must be related to the Demon-Suppressing Tower or the beings suppressed within it, not...”

However, before he could finish his sentence, he was interrupted by a swift streak of escaping light passing nearby.

Lady Scarlet and the Peng Siblings, whose five senses and spiritual sense extended over a thousand li, naturally noticed the anomaly as well and looked up towards the horizon.

”This aura... it seems to be Fellow Daoist Shen’s...” A solemn expression appeared on Lady Scarlet’s alluring face. ”His escape speed is actually comparable to a late-stage Golden Core Realm cultivator! Could it be true, as Song Han suggested, that Fellow Daoist Shen has been hiding his strength?”

Soon, Lady Scarlet and her group had no time to dwell on the matter.

Shen Mo’s escaping light was not heading towards them. Instead, it skirted the edge of their sensory range and continued into the distance.

Then, two even more terrifying auras, clearly belonging to experts at the peak of the Golden Core Realm, barreled into their sensory detection range. These newcomers also noticed their presence but paid them no heed, continuing to pursue ”Shen Qingyun” at great speed.

”This...” Fu Jianghuo gulped, lowering the talismans and magic treasures he had readied. He said in disbelief, ”Fellow Daoist Shen... he seems to be fleeing for his life, doesn’t he?”

”If I’m not mistaken, those two figures chasing him...

”One is Elder Zhu Zhao of the Taiyi Sword Alliance, a cultivator at the peak of the Golden Core Realm. The other, that terrifying blaze, appears to be a Fire-type Spiritual Monster, likely also at peak Class IV!”

”What on earth did he do in the past half-month or so to provoke two top-tier experts into relentlessly pursuing him?”

Lady Scarlet and the Peng Siblings were also visibly shocked and bewildered.

At this point, there was no longer any doubt that ”Fellow Daoist Shen” was hiding his strength. To be able to provoke an expert like Zhu Zhao into chasing him and still be alive suggested his true capabilities were far from what they appeared on the surface!

What astonished them even more was that, besides Elder Zhu Zhao of the Sword Alliance, a Fire-type Spiritual Monster was also hunting ”Shen Qingyun.”

What kind of ’shared hatred for a common enemy’ could possibly lead Zhu Zhao and a Fire-type Spiritual Monster to peacefully cooperate and jointly pursue Fellow Daoist Shen, whose strength is clearly inferior to theirs? they wondered.

...

Just as Lady Scarlet’s group had sensed Shen Mo’s presence, he, with his powerful five senses and spiritual sense, had naturally detected them as well.

He hadn’t expected to coincidentally encounter Lady Scarlet and the others in such a vast expanse as the ancient battlefield of immortals and demons. However, to avoid bringing disaster upon them, Shen Mo deliberately steered clear of their position.

Since obtaining the Samadhi True Fire, Zhu Zhao and the flame-like Fire Spirit had been hunting him for over ten days. The three of them had covered a staggering distance of two to three million li.

Even Shen Mo was feeling utterly exhausted, both his physical body and his soul.

The True Yuan within him had dwindled to less than thirty percent of its peak. If this continued, he would have no choice but to halt his escaping light and fight Zhu Zhao and the flame-like Fire Spirit.

After some consideration, Shen Mo activated the Golden Flowery Realm and summoned Flower Fairy Mi.

”Moro Shen, why did you call me out? Is something wrong? Huh... you look awful! Are you injured?” As soon as Mi flew out of the Golden Flowery Realm, she flapped her wings, landed on Shen Mo’s shoulder, and asked with concern upon seeing his exhausted and dispirited state.

Shen Mo then recounted his experiences of the past few days and his intentions to Mi.

”Do you want me to use the Mother Tree’s green leaf?”

A hint of hesitation flickered across Mi’s face. It wasn’t that she was reluctant to expend the few powerful Spells contained within this treasure.

However, even for the Flower Fairy clan, engraving the techniques of a Class V expert onto a Mother Tree’s leaf was no easy feat; the resources required were astronomical.

Each time she used it, Mi would face questioning from the Big Moro of her clan. If she couldn’t provide a satisfactory reason, she would be punished, and using the Mother Tree’s leaves again would become difficult.

Therefore, unless absolutely necessary, she wouldn’t readily activate the Spells contained within the Mother Tree’s leaves.

”We don’t need to actually use the treasure,” Shen Mo explained. ”We just need to activate a sliver of its hidden power to scare them off. If they’re smart, they’ll recognize the danger and retreat.”