"This cultivator is truly vicious!" Du Xing furrowed his brow.

"Insane, absolutely insane!" Zhang Zhiqiang's voice was trembling.

The once chubby, pale face had turned blood red, evidently enraged to the extreme.

"We must bring him to justice!" Even You Qingyi, who had always been silent, now had a chilling expression, her face revealing unabashed killing intent.

Yang Haiying and Lou Yi both looked extremely grim.

They had seen numerous dead bodies.

But such a gruesome death, with the body's essence completely drained, leaving a dried corpse, was a first for them.

It must be known, that though the Corpse-Driving Sect's name was unwieldy, it was a bona fide righteous sect.

With strict rules, emphasizing respect for teachers, disciples traveled far and wide to rid the land of demons, significantly contributing to the peace of Zhao Kingdom's populace.

Zhao Kingdom was also the largest 'source of life' for the Corpse-Driving Sect.

Any threat to the nation's core also shook the foundation of the sect and could not be underestimated.

"Have you found any trace of the evil cultivator?" Du Xing asked Chief Li beside him.

Chief Li bowed and said, "Immortal Master, this evil cultivator has always been elusive; we've never confronted him directly.

Each time it's only after someone reports to us, do we realize a tragedy has occurred."

"A bunch of useless fools," Du Xing scoffed.

Hearing this, Chief Li trembled all over, bowing his head even lower, not daring to retort.

"Let me try," You Qingyi's senior sister, Yang Haiying, said calmly.

In her fair palm, a piece of yellow talisman paper suddenly appeared.

As spiritual power was channeled into it, the paper emitted a faint white light, and a mysterious symbol appeared at its center.

Then, it floated above the corpses.

It moved closer to the dried corpses, occasionally folding and stretching, as if 'sniffing' the remaining scent.

"A Tracking Talisman?" Du Xing said joyfully, "I never expected Fellow Daoist Yang to have such a treasure talisman; this time the evil cultivator surely cannot escape death!"

Just as Du Xing finished speaking,

the Tracking Talisman abruptly stopped its 'sniffing' motion, as if it had gathered enough information.

Then it drifted eastward, much faster than a person could run at full sprint.

"Chase it!" Yang Haiying urged loudly.

The five of them immediately ran out of Landlord Jiang's estate, following the yellow talisman paper.

Yang Haiying, the caster, led the way, with Du Xing, the highest cultivator among them, close behind.

Lou Yi and You Qingyi were in the middle, though You Qingyi was half a body ahead of Lou Yi.

"If there's a fight later, hide behind me, don't act rashly."

Hearing the whispered words of the girl ahead, Lou Yi felt a sudden warmth in his heart.

Even though You Qingyi never looked at him, with a face devoid of expression, there was still camaraderie in her heart.

Zhang Zhiqiang was at the back.

It seemed he was voluntarily guarding the rear, but it was actually because he was overweight and out of breath after a short run, sweat beading his forehead.

Clenching his teeth, he pulled out a green talisman paper from his bosom and slapped it onto his leg.

Suddenly, there seemed to be a breeze around his legs, significantly boosting his speed, making him feel much lighter.

The yellow Tracking Talisman swiftly flew across several streets, eventually stopping in front of a secluded single-story house in the city.

The house was made of stone bricks, looking quite aged, with the white paint on the outer walls peeling off almost completely.

"The evil cultivator is likely inside," Yang Haiying said from five or six yards away from the house, not moving any closer, her eyes filled with caution.

"Doesn't seem like there's any movement?" Zhang Zhiqiang said in confusion.

By now, the sky had darkened, and the surroundings were silent.

The unfamiliar house made no sounds, leaving one unsure if it was vacant or not.

"There's no one inside," Lou Yi suddenly spoke up, drawing everyone's attention to him.

"How do you know?" Du Xing asked dismissively.

Prejudiced against Lou Yi as a freeloader of contributions due to connections, anything Lou Yi said seemed unlikely to him.

Seeing others with puzzled expressions, Lou Yi explained simply, "I've practiced martial arts for many years, my hearing and sight are sharper than most."

"We'll know if there's anyone inside once we check," Du Xing said, raising his sleeve, from which a red light suddenly shot out, landing on the house.

'Boom!'

Under Du Xing's powerful attack, the house collapsed with a crash.

Revealing the broken tables, fallen wooden bed, and scattered debris inside, but no sign of any person.

The red light then returned to Du Xing's side, transforming into a small handleless red sword, the size of a hand, swimming gracefully like a fish around him.

'A Flying Sword?' Lou Yi glanced at Du Xing's flying sword.

Inwardly comparing it to the one he acquired from the female Daoist before, it seemed slightly inferior in terms of feeling.

"Didn't expect Fellow Daoist Du to have refined a Flying Sword; this time the evil cultivator will be no threat," Zhang Zhiqiang praised.

Beside him, Yang Haiying also showed a look of agreement.

Among cultivators' varied attack methods, the Flying Sword, known for decisiveness, sharpness, and relentless pursuit, always ranks at the forefront.

"Let's find the evil cultivator first," Du Xing said, waving his hand again. His Lifebound Corpse appeared ahead.

Towering in stature, its entire body had a metallic dark gray sheen, making it an Iron Corpse.

The Iron Corpse walked into the ruins of the just-collapsed house.

Soon after, it returned, holding a bloodstained blue-black Daoist Robe.

The blood stains hadn't fully dried yet, reflecting faintly under the moonlight.

"Damn it, we've been tricked!" Du Xing shouted angrily.

Using a robe with one's own blood to disguise their aura and mislead an enemy—this tactic wasn't uncommon in the Cultivation Realm.

"The villain moves swiftly," Yang Haiying frowned as well.

"While the villain is cunning, his fear is still evident," You Qingyi said coldly, her voice clear and crisp like beads dropping on a jade plate, "which suggests he's of average strength, so when the opportunity arises, he can surely be slain with ease."

"My junior sister's analysis is quite correct," Yang Haiying smiled, "If this task were simple, it wouldn't have come to us.

But if the evil cultivator thinks our tricks end here, he's much too naive."

After saying this, the yellow Tracking Talisman appeared in her hand again, with an abundance of spiritual power flowing into it.

The talisman suddenly shone brightly, flying to 'sniff' at the bloodstains on the blue-black robe again.

Following that, it shot forward with a 'whoosh,' noticeably faster than before.

A faint blue smoke trailed from the end of the yellow talisman paper, as if it were burning.

And its size was diminishing visibly to the naked eye.

"I've unlocked the potential of the Tracking Talisman; it won't last long, keep up!" Yang Haiying urged loudly.

"Fellow Daoist Yang is truly going all out this time!" Zhang Zhiqiang remarked, "These Tracking Talismans are extremely rare, snatched up as soon as they're released; I haven't even touched one yet."

Following the talisman paper, they quickly arrived at a riverbank.

Under the moonlight, the river's surface glimmered, occasionally emitting 'slapping' sounds against the muddy banks.

And the Tracking Talisman, having persisted till now, burned up entirely, losing its power.

"We've lost the trail here," Yang Haiying was almost about to vomit blood in frustration, not expecting that after all the pursuit the adversary had crossed through water.

Water can wash away almost all traces of aura from one's body; finding signs of the evil cultivator now was quite challenging.

Everyone felt dejected, realizing this task might require preparation for a long-term engagement.

Lou Yi said nothing, as red light appeared in his eyes, transforming the view of the world before him.

The river, weeds, trees, and other inanimate objects all turned a dull gray.

While fish swimming in the water, insects crawling through grass, and birds hopping between branches all emitted vibrant glows in varying shades of yellow and red.

In a dense thicket by the river, a humanoid red silhouette lay motionless, like it was already dead.

"There he is!" Lou Yi suddenly pointed in a certain direction.

Simultaneously punching forward.

A visible white air column formed in front of his fist, rushing towards the hiding spot!

'Boom!'

The thicket exploded into a large patch, dirt flying, a dark shadow frantically sprang out.

...

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