Martial Cultivator

After Chen Chao borrowed the momentum to retreat, he did not sheathe his saber. Instead, he kept advancing while carrying his saber, because the battle with the girl had inflicted significant trauma on him. He was afraid that if he sheathed his saber, he would not be able to draw it again later.

Chen Chao deliberately took a path through the forest instead of a regular route, leaving many false trails along the way. Having fought demons for many years, he was adept at such tactics. Even though he had not maneuvered through the forest to evade demons in a long time, he had not lost his touch. After running for several hours and covering hundreds of miles, Chen Chao finally slowed down. He walked a few steps forward and was about to sheathe his saber when he saw a familiar figure by a mountain stream.

The girl was standing by the stream, as if she had been waiting for a long time. When she saw Chen Chao approaching, she smiled and said, ”Did you really think you could escape?”

Chen Chao was stunned and sat down on a nearby rock, sighing. ”Do you really want to kill me?”

The girl remained silent, but with a single slap on a man-sized boulder next to her, the stone shattered instantly. Countless fragments shot towards Chen Chao. He swung his saber, deflecting a piece of debris heading for his forehead, and returned a piece of debris towards her. However, the fragment turned to dust before it could reach the girl.

Chen Chao was not surprised by this outcome. After enduring the girl’s first wave of attack, he had no desire to continue fighting. Instead, he quickly retreated into the forest, disappearing from sight once more.

It was not that he could not defeat her. The truth was that they were evenly matched, and either one of them would have to pay a terrible price if they wanted to kill the other, possibly even ending in mutual destruction. Since that was the case, Chen Chao saw no point in continuing the fight. He had initially thought the girl would also back off, but she seemed rather relentless.

Thinking up to here, Chen Chao began to regret his last action.

As she watched Chen Chao vanish into the forest, the girl was in no hurry to pursue him. Instead, she stood still and released her demonic qi. In a moment, countless pairs of eyes appeared in the surrounding forest, and various auras approached, all exuding submission. To these ordinary demons, the girl’s innate bloodline was enough to make them tremble in fear.

”Tell me when you find him.”

Just six simple words.

None of the nearby demons dared to object. They quickly dispersed, starting their search for Chen Chao in the forest.

How could Chen Chao have imagined that he was not just up against the girl alone, but also countless demons of various sizes inhabiting the surrounding forest? No matter how much he tried to cover his tracks, he would inevitably be discovered by one of these demons. This way, all of his efforts seemed somewhat laughable.

However, he did not know about this at the moment.

After sprinting through the forest, Chen Chao finally stopped to catch his breath beside a towering tree. The young martial artist had run several hundred miles in a single breath. By nightfall, he had exhausted much of his qi, so he had to stop and rest. As soon as he did, he noticed a flicker of firelight in the distance. Walking over with his saber in hand, Chen Chao unsurprisingly saw the girl again, sitting by a campfire, leisurely roasting a wild rabbit she had caught.

Hungry and tired, Chen Chao nearly collapsed at the sight and smell of the roasting meat. He sat down across from her without hesitation and asked somewhat uncertainly, ”How do you keep finding me?”

The girl ignored him and just focused on the rabbit in front of her.

Suddenly realizing the truth, Chen Chao cursed under his breath, ”So you have that many fucking helpers. No wonder.”

The girl finally looked up at him from across the fire and said, ”You’re not too stupid.”

Chen Chao sighed. ”Fine, if we really have to fight, I’ll see if there’s any chance I can kill you.”

The girl did not seem to be in a hurry. After the rabbit was done roasting, she tore off a piece, slowly chewed it, and smiled. ”At this point, I’m actually more interested in knowing your name and your identity.”

Chen Chao’s expression flickered. Although they were not far apart, he was not confident about suddenly attacking and killing her. At least, not with this girl.

Chen Chao blinked and raised an eyebrow. ”If I tell you, how about we call it even? There’s no real grudge between us anyway. I just took a few extra glances, and as for what happened after that...”

Chen Chao’s voice cut off as he scratched his head, feeling a killing intent that was not concealed in the slightest. In the end, he shut his mouth.

The girl said coldly. ”Depends on my mood.”

Chen Chao frowned. ”Then why should I say anything?”

The girl narrowed her eyes. ”Suit yourself. I won’t make a move tonight. Let’s try again in the morning?”

Chen Chao laughed. ”Don’t act like you’re doing me a favor. You might be able to catch up to me, but your qi must be almost depleted too, right?”

The girl did not refute it. She simply asked, ”You’re human, and I’m a demon. If I were to kill you now, how confident do you think I am?”

Chen Chao could not be bothered to answer his question. He just stared at the rabbit in her hand and asked, ”Are you going to eat that? If not, give it to me.”

The girl generously tossed the rabbit over but immediately asked, ”Aren’t you afraid it’s poisoned?”

Chen Chao caught the rabbit, bit off a large chunk, and started devouring it heartily.

The girl started at this young man who had seemingly let down all of his guard. Her gaze quickly shifted to the hand that always held the saber. The corners of the girl’s mouth curled slightly but said nothing.

The two of them sat facing each other through the night, never letting their guard down. Despite this, they both managed to recover some of their qi in this state.

As dawn approached, Chen Chao rubbed his somewhat stiff neck and suddenly asked, ”You came from the North, didn’t you?”

By ”North,” he was naturally referring to beyond the Great Wall.

The girl did not answer his question. Instead, she said, ”I’m in a good mood right now. If you tell me your name, I won’t make a move today.”

Chen Chao frowned, ”You promise?”

The girl did not speak.

Chen Chao was silent for a moment before saying softly, ”My name is Li Fuyao.”

The girl raised an eyebrow, then narrowed her eyes. ”You’re lying to me, aren’t you?”

Chen Chao frowned but said nothing. In an instant, the girl sprang into action, and a surge of overwhelming demonic qi burst from her. Chen Chao kicked a piece of firewood in front of him and retreated several dozen feet, only to find the girl still standing there, bending over in laughter.

Chen Chao said angrily, ”Is it fun to mess with me?”

The girl nodded seriously. ”Yes, it’s quite fun.”

Chen Chao was speechless.

The girl did not mind his reaction and slowly said, ”I won’t kill you today. Tomorrow, we’ll see.”

After saying that, she turned around, and her figure quickly vanished. Clearly, this girl was not worried about Chen Chao escaping.

As Chen Chao watched her disappear, he felt like she was playing with something very new.

He felt like a mouse being toyed with by an old cat.

No, a female cat!

She was not really a cat demon, right?

Chen Chao furrowed his brows. In the end, he turned and left. But on this day, he was constantly on edge, worried that the girl might go back on her word. By nightfall, he was even more exhausted than the previous day. Sighing, he realized belatedly that this girl was not only strong but also incredibly cunning.

Initially, Chen Chao just wanted to get away safely, but now he could not help but entertain the thought of killing her.

Later, Chen Chao lit a bonfire. Just as he was thinking about relaxing, he suddenly heard footsteps in the distance. The girl had come.

They sat across from each other again, but this time, neither was cooking anything.

Chen Chao’s complexion looked pale and very haggard.

The girl said, ”Looks like you didn’t have a pleasant day.”

Chen Chao said, ”This was a vicious move.”

The girl smiled slightly but did not comment further. She just said coolly, ”At least you could tell, so you’re not entirely stupid. But I know you definitely lied about your name. I’ll give you another chance: tell me your real name and identity, and I’ll let you go. We can end this here.”

”Do you think I would believe you?” Chen Chao gripped the handle of his saber, saying thoughtfully, ”I think it would be more appropriate to kill you.”

The woman said calmly, ”Even if you were lucky enough to kill me, you would surely be eaten by the demons in these mountains. So it seems that I am already in an undefeatable position.”

Chen Chao shook his head. ”Not necessarily. The demons in these mountains prey on both humans and other demons. I reckon your flesh and blood might interest them more than mine.”

The woman did not speak. She naturally knew that what Chen Chao said was true. Her flesh and demon core were indeed more enticing to the demons of the mountain than this young human.

”In other words, if I were to severely injure you, perhaps they would join forces with me to kill you,” Chen Chao suggested.

Chen Chao raised his brows.

The girl said nonchalantly, ”They won’t.”

Chen Chao had a puzzled look.

The girl did not explain the reason to Chen Chao, she simply looked at him and stretched out her hands to warm them by the fire.

If she were to die in this place, especially at the hands of the demons here, then there would be no more demons in the entire Great Liang Dynasty.

If Chen Chao knew this would be the outcome, who knew if he would fight to the death to bring about this situation?

After all, not all demons could resist temptation.

And once successful, the benefits would be obvious at a glance.

”I’ll give you one last chance, tell me your identity and name. Otherwise, we can only fight to the death when day breaks.”

The girl stared at Chen Chao, saying. earnestly. This time, it did not seem like she was joking.

Chen Chao also gripped the handle of his saber, saying calmly, ”Then let’s try again. Exchanging life for life, I’ve done this sort of thing many times.”

The girl suddenly sighed, ”It seems like I really didn’t come here in vain this time.”

After each said their final words, they silently got up and then attacked once again.

Chen Chao did not hesitate, initiating a life-and-death battle that both sides agreed would only end when one of them perished, starting with the move ”Dragon Rearing Head.”

The girl heard the faint sound of a dragon’s roar and shook her head. It was not a real dragon, so what was the point?