On the island, Zhener anxiously struggled, "Master Nine, they've gone after him. Chun Tian said they are hunting him. The Big Master said he would help. Why aren't you taking action?"

Master Nine replied unhurriedly, "Who said I won't take action?" Seeing Zhener stunned, he added reassuringly, "Don't worry, nothing will happen."

In any case, he wouldn't let Zhener leave, nor let her get tangled in the fights and slaughters of those people.

He refused to let her go, and Zhener had no means to leave.

Elsewhere, his voice rang out again from the bottom of the tower, "So what now? Who knows if that guy can escape the hunt, and if he does, will he even come back?"

The Big Master replied calmly, "If he truly likes Zhener, he will naturally return after escaping the hunt. The one who can both endure the pursuit and return for Zhener is her true destined one."

Master Nine's voice echoed again, "When you put it that way, I guess you're right. But, Big Brother, I'm really very unhappy. That bunch of people are too dismissive of us. When did our doorstep become a playground for that rabble? Especially their leader—insufferably arrogant. I've already locked onto him. Should I teach him a lesson?"

"Hmph, indeed arrogant."

"This sort of situation is unprecedented."

"How dare such people act like this? Have they completely lost their minds?"

In the void, a chorus of disgruntled voices chimed in a cacophony of complaints.

Eventually, the Big Master said one sentence that quieted them all, "No matter how destined, it won't hold up if you interfere. Prioritize the greater matter!"

...

"What Forbidden Land? What's so terrifying about it?" Wu Jinliang, looking back repeatedly, couldn't hold back his curses, "Jinliang, what's with that cowardly turtle, Master Nine?"

Shi Chun cursed as well, "You ask me, who do I ask? Anyway, something's off. That Earth Heart Tower is absolutely fishy. Something's probably gone wrong, otherwise why would they act so accommodating?"

Wu Jinliang muttered suspiciously, "Could it be because it's a joyous day for a wedding proposal, and they don't want to spoil the harmony?"

Shi Chun scoffed, "Do you even believe that yourself? How does my proposal have anything to do with Li Hongjiu and his bunch? And besides, someone's come to kill the proposer, and they're still concerned about keeping harmony?"

Wu Jinliang, glancing back again and again, smiled bitterly, "Chun Tian, let's not worry about that for now. Just think of a way to escape. We've already captured Wu Shanshan, but now they're chasing us relentlessly, sticking close behind. What do we do? If we can't shake them, with our cultivation compared to theirs, we can't afford to keep draining our energy like this!"

Shi Chun sighed slightly, "This is truly strange. How could such a freak emerge from an Artifact Refining Sect? Being strong is one thing, but a smiling tiger like that—our stash of Magical Treasures can't even put a dent in him…"

Speaking of Magical Treasures, looking ahead into the night, he suddenly froze as if struck by an idea.

Wu Jinliang noticed the change and asked, "What is it?"

"There's a way that might work. Have Tong Mingshan's group move to the sides and leave the rear open. Never mind, I'll handle it myself. You take control of the Wind Scale..." Shi Chun said while drawing out the 'Three Corpses Mirror' and handing over the Wind Scale to Wu Jinliang to maneuver.

Following his hand signals, their companions trailing behind quickly split to the left and right flanks.

Shi Chun, fully prepared, waited patiently for the right moment.

When the edge of the Ice Sealed Lake came into view, after a brief observation, Shi Chun immediately shouted, "Lower altitude, fly closer to the lake's surface."

At the same time, he cast a spell to activate the 'Three Corpses Mirror,' and a black light unfurled like an umbrella, spreading outward.

Due to its range, the black light enveloped the entire group of pursuers behind them.

In an instant, all the sect members' senses were severed simultaneously. A dreadful, complete darkness engulfed them. They could see nothing, hear nothing—utter despair.

Some hesitated and slowed down, causing the Wind Scale trailing behind to collide with them abruptly, plunging the group into chaos.

Flying ahead, Li Hongjiu cursed under his breath and rose sharply, aiming to break free of the black light.

Moments later, the brilliant night sky reappeared before him. Thinking he'd escaped the black light, he looked for the fleeing Shi Chun and his group, only to find them nowhere in sight. Scanning the area, his gaze fell on several conspicuous ice holes on the lake's surface ahead.

Without hesitation, he pursued downward, landing beside the ice holes and scanning the area with a cold gleam in his eyes. Those pursuing from behind also descended one after another.

From the mountain ridges near the lakeshore, where Shi Chun and Wu Jinliang had concealed themselves, the two exchanged a smirk before signaling to their companions to quickly use the terrain to slip away unnoticed.

The pursuing sect members weren't idle either, rapidly diving into the dark, icy waters under Li Hongjiu's command to search.

When half the search party had entered the water, Li Hongjiu's scanning gaze swept the lakeshore's ridges and suddenly froze in alarm. Examining the placement of the broken ice holes, he realized—the timing and position of the ice breaking, so close to the shore—did this really seem like someone diving into the water to flee?

But he couldn't be sure if Shi Chun had intentionally set them up, so he didn't recall the people already in the water. Instead, he swiftly halted the remaining team from entering and dispatched them to search the mountain ridges around the lake.

At this moment, the sect members surprisingly followed his orders rather obediently.

However, it was too late by now. With the pitch-black night obscuring visibility and no trace of a target to follow, Shi Chun and his group had long disappeared without a trace.

Still, the sects weren't ready to give up so easily. They could only expand their search efforts to cover a wider area.

Standing atop a nearby hill, Li Hongjiu wore a bitter, helpless expression. He hadn't expected that even now, they'd allow themselves to lose their prey.

Zuo Zisheng and several other leaders accompanied nearby. Without Wu Shanshan's skill to assist them, they knew that finding Shi Chun again would be like searching for a needle in a haystack. They now deeply understood why Shi Chun had gone to such lengths to eliminate Wu Shanshan first.

Gu Lianni and Yuan Yao occasionally exchanged glances, filled with awe and disbelief. Dozens, maybe hundreds of sect members, even with someone as formidable as Li Hongjiu among them, were unable to capture that guy, allowing him to slip away right under their noses.

Among the mountains, Gong Shixi and his team labored with conspicuous diligence, though inwardly they were delighting in secret. They all agreed it was great that Shi Chun had escaped—absolutely fantastic.

Their earlier hopes for the sects to quickly catch Shi Chun were now worlds apart from their current thoughts.

As the sects busied themselves with their futile efforts, and as Li Hongjiu gazed at the starlit sky with his back to the lake, suddenly, a dazzling light flashed behind him.

A streak of lightning-like blue fissure appeared, spilling a piercingly bright, aquatic glow through the crack, as if prying open the void, illuminating the mountains before him.

Startled, Li Hongjiu whipped around, only to see a shadowy hand flicker within the glow. The intruder came with ill intent. Instantly, he unleashed his full-powered spell in defense, creating a violent, tumultuous surge of energy around him.

The sight sent Zuo Zisheng and others nearby scrambling to retreat in fright.

From Lake Heart Island, Master Nine let out a curious "Oh?" as the culprit revealed himself—it was none other than him. Irritated by this group lingering foolishly nearby instead of leaving, he couldn't resist teaching them a lesson.

He had thought a casual strike would suffice to wipe out these mere mortal-tier cultivators, but to his surprise, Li Hongjiu managed to fend it off.

He immediately understood why Shi Chun had been relentlessly pursued with no option but to flee.

He raised his hand again and pointed into the void with a bit more force, unleashing a lightning-arc-like crack across it.

This time, the glowing shadow struck once more. Li Hongjiu's eyes widened as he spat a mouthful of blood with a "pfft" and was sent hurtling away like a shooting star.

The sheer destructive power overwhelmed even his intricate spellwork, like a fragile twig stirring water with ease but snapping in stirring mud.

BOOM! The heavens and earth seemed to quake as his uncontrollably crashing body caused dust and smoke to rise, flattening everything in its path.

From the island's icy surface, a chilling voice snapped, "What are you doing?"

Zhener recognized it as the Big Master's voice. Her face was puzzled—even standing right beside Master Nine, she had no idea what he'd done.

Master Nine shrank back slightly, retracting his hand. Without pressing further, he responded defensively, "That fellow is indeed no simple character. No wonder Shi Chun couldn't stand up to him."

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