Translator: CinderTL

Song Wen unleashed a dazzling burst of Thunderlight, attempting to force back a fifth-tier void beast blocking his path. Suddenly, he noticed Feng Youyou turning to flee, a flicker of surprise crossing his eyes.

He could roughly guess why Feng Youyou had chosen not to stay with the others.

It was likely due to Bu Ren’s sneak attack on Yan Tong and Manager Yin’s unsettling lack of objection, which had made her uneasy, fearing she might suffer the same fate as Yan Tong.

Song Wen couldn’t help but admire the woman’s decisive action.

Sensing danger, she had abandoned all hesitation and immediately withdrawn. She showed no lingering attachment to the hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones promised for capturing the Beauty Serpent alive.

Moreover, despite having compromised herself to Song Wen and the others for this mission, she harbored no illusions that they would treat her any differently.

As Song Wen watched Feng Youyou’s retreating figure, he ultimately let her go without attempting to stop her.

With Feng Youyou gone, only Manager Yin and Bu Ren remained.

After finally forcing back the obstructing fifth-tier void beast with Herculean effort, Song Wen called out loudly, "Manager Yin, Fellow Daoist Bu, wait for me!"

Just as he was about to give chase, he suddenly caught sight of Yan Tong, still surrounded by the swarm of void fiends. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

Yan Tong, relying on his owl void demon, fought fiercely against several void fiends. Though he had yet to fall, he was critically wounded and had no hope of escape.

Song Wen glanced at the black pouch at Yan Tong’s waist, a flicker of interest rising within him.

The pouch was likely a Spirit Beast Pouch, but it differed from ordinary ones.

It could contain void fiends.

Song Wen had tried before; ordinary Spirit Beast Pouches couldn’t accomplish this.

With a flick of his finger, a wisp of spiritual power shot forth.

Yan Tong, clinging to life amidst the void fiend onslaught, didn’t even notice the approaching spiritual power. He only felt a sudden lightness at his waist as the black pouch was lifted by the spiritual power and floated gently toward Song Wen.

Without lingering, Song Wen activated his escape light and pursued the two figures ahead.

Passing through the cave, Song Wen entered a winding cave passage. After traveling several miles, he spotted Manager Yin and Bu Ren.

The pair stood at a three-way fork in the path.

For some reason, after the Beauty Serpent fled, she left no discernible residual aura, leaving Manager Yin and Bu Ren uncertain which path to take.

Manager Yin’s brow furrowed deeply, his eyes betraying barely concealed anxiety.

"Fellow Daoist Bu," he said, "we still rely on Yan Tong’s owl void demon to scout the way. Your ambush on Yan Tong was rather rash."

Manager Yin clearly harbored resentment towards Bu Ren, yet his tone remained polite, as if fearing to offend him.

Bu Ren’s lips curled into a disdainful smirk.

"Don’t worry. Even without Yan Tong, I have ways to track the Beauty Serpent."

His eyes gradually began to glow with an eerie green light, resembling two flickering ghost fires in the pitch-black Primordial Qi.

His gaze swept across the three diverging paths. When it landed on the rightmost passage, the ghost fires intensified.

"This way!" Bu Ren hissed.

"Fellow Daoists, I’ve finally caught up with you," Song Wen’s voice suddenly echoed.

Bu Ren, who was about to move, froze and turned to face Song Wen.

"Ji Lin, why are you alone? Where’s Feng Youyou?"

Having ambushed Yan Tong, Bu Ren seemed to have shed his pretense of courtesy, treating Song Wen with undisguised disdain.

"Fellow Daoist Feng didn’t follow. She went back the way we came," Song Wen replied.

"Didn’t follow?"

Bu Ren’s expression flickered with surprise, quickly replaced by a sinister smile.

"So she thinks she can abandon us? She’s mistaken! I’ve lived for nearly two millennia, and I’ve never encountered a woman who stirs my soul and gnaws at my bones like she does. As long as she lives, she will become my captive prize."

With those words, Bu Ren cast a meaningful glance at Song Wen.

"Ji Lin, your mastery of thunder magic will be crucial. As long as we capture the Beauty Serpent alive, Lord Yingwu will surely reward you handsomely."

Song Wen immediately understood: Bu Ren wasn’t a rogue cultivator at all, but rather a pawn of some powerful figure.

"Lord Yingwu?" Song Wen asked, his face full of confusion. "Fellow Daoist Bu Ren, forgive my ignorance, but I’ve never heard of this name. May I ask who this senior is?"

"No need to pry. Capture the Beauty Serpent, and you’ll have your chance to meet Lord Yingwu yourself."

Bu Ren said no more. Transforming into a fleeting shadow, he darted into the right-hand passage.

Song Wen and Manager Yin immediately followed.

The trio moved in a triangular formation, with Bu Ren at the center, flanked by Song Wen and Manager Yin like protective escorts.

However, Bu Ren’s cultivation level was the lowest, making him the slowest member of the group and slowing down their overall progress.

He quickly noticed this and suddenly unleashed a swirling azure gale around himself.

The gale roared to life, instantly boosting Bu Ren’s speed. He surged ahead, keeping pace with Manager Yin, a peak Divine Transformation cultivator, and even surpassing Song Wen, a late Divine Transformation cultivator.

As a result, Song Wen gradually fell behind.

Gradually, the cave passage began to wind upward.

After traveling another hundred miles, Bu Ren and Manager Yin reached the end of the passage ahead of Song Wen, bursting out of the underground cave and into the open air.

Bu Ren scanned their surroundings and immediately sped off westward.

"Ji Lin, Manager Yin and I will go ahead. Catch up quickly and don’t get lost," Bu Ren called back to Song Wen.

By the time Song Wen emerged from the cave, the pair had already vanished beyond the range of his divine sense.

But with the shadow void at his side, Song Wen could track not only Bu Ren and Manager Yin, but even the Beauty Serpent leading the way.

Song Wen narrowed his eyes, abandoning his pretense of weakness, and his speed surged dramatically.

He bypassed Bu Ren and Manager Yin, overtaking them to position himself ten miles to the Beauty Serpent’s left, matching her pace.

"Shadow void, attack the Beauty Serpent and knock her unconscious!" Song Wen commanded in his Sea of Consciousness.

Instantly, nine shadowy tentacles emerged from Song Wen’s head.

The tentacles trembled slightly, emitting a low, droning hum that resembled the wailing of lost souls.

Under the shadow void’s control, the hum didn’t dissipate in all directions but coalesced into an invisible wave, surging directly toward the Beauty Serpent.

As a void fiend, the Beauty Serpent’s divine sense wasn’t as severely suppressed as that of human cultivators like Song Wen. It had long sensed Song Wen’s presence, but the vast difference in their power left it helpless.

The invisible wave crashed into its skull like a thunderbolt. The Beauty Serpent froze, its nine tentacles snapping rigid.

Its eyes widened abruptly, then gradually lost their luster before slowly closing.

The Beauty Serpent fainted, its body plummeting stiffly toward the ground below.

A black shadow flashed.

The Nether Fox suddenly darted out, snatched the Beauty Serpent in its jaws, and raced toward the mountain valley where the Six Fiends Hall was located.

(End of the Chapter)

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