Chapter 160: This Brat is a Sword Cultivator?

While Chen Luo rested and recuperated in the mountain town, news of his defection from the Divine Lake Immortal Sect finally surfaced. Realizing they had been deceived, Elder Qu of Divine Fire Peak erupted with fury. He never anticipated such cunning treachery; Chen Luo fled without uttering a word, rendering their promises to the sect leader utterly futile.

Incensed, Elder Qu confronted Wu Dao Peak, seeking an explanation from his fellow master, Daoist Wuwei.

“Wuwei, you must provide an account for this incident. Is this the disciple you taught? Completely lacking any sense of the greater picture! Does he even consider the sect or respect me—”

“Get lost!”

As Elder Qu descended towards Wu Dao Peak, ready to lay blame, he was abruptly swept away by a surge of power emanating from the Cultivation Hall at its summit. His internal spiritual energy went haywire, causing him to lose control over flight and plummeting straight down from the sky.

Elder Qu landed clumsily near the mountain gate, covered in dust and disheveled. With a grim expression, he stood up, casting a wary glance towards Wu Dao Peak, fear flickering in his eyes.

‘At least late Foundation Establishment, possibly stronger. That fellow has become even more powerful.’

“Haha, only a fool like you would dare flaunt yourself at Wu Dao Peak. Has your brain been kicked by a donkey? If there’s a donkey capable of kicking a Foundation Establishment cultivator, I’d love to be introduced!”

At the base of Wu Dao Peak, Xianhe Chengfeng laughed uproariously, riding the wind with unrestrained glee. Nearby, a group of Qi Refinement disciples hid at a distance, suppressing their laughter while trying not to burst out, their heads bowed and shoulders shaking.

“Stupid Crane!” Elder Qu’s face darkened as he cursed, then with a wave of his sleeve, returned to Divine Fire Peak.

He dared not venture up Wu Dao Peak again, nor did he wish to involve himself further in this matter.

“I won’t let you get away with stealing my pill cauldron!”

An enraged roar echoed from Medicine King Peak, followed by a figure transforming into a streak of light and swiftly departing towards the direction of the Luxury Nation.

Five days later.

In an old forest outside the mountain town, two figures descended from the sky. The night wind rustled through the leaves, creating eerie whispers akin to ghostly murmurs.

Already gathered within the woods were three individuals.

One had a gaunt face, covered in white hair, gnawing on a baby’s arm. The other two, a man and a woman, appeared to be in their twenties. The woman, with long jet-black hair loosely draped around her, was surrounded by tiny poisonous insects constantly circling her. In her hand, a spherical gourd emitted purple vapors that attracted the insects. The last person was a stout individual seated atop a grave, inhaling and exhaling black mist; his fleshy face made it clear at first glance that he was no benevolent character.

As the newcomers descended, all three figures halted their activities and turned to observe them.

“If you hadn’t arrived soon, I wouldn’t have gone through with this deal,” rasped the grotesque figure gnawing on the infant’s arm.

“Even traveling by flying boat from the immortal sect takes at least three days; my speed was hardly slow,” one of the descending individuals replied.

Under the flickering firelight, his features became visible—it was none other than Elder An, the peak lord of Divine Lake Immortal Sect’s Medicine King Peak! Known for his cautious nature, he had surprisingly taken the risk this time solely to reclaim his pill cauldron.

The very same pill cauldron Chen Luo mistook for a second-rank spirit treasure held a value far greater than anticipated.

So significant that it compelled this fear-driven elder to venture into danger.

“I don’t care about your excuses! You’ve wasted two of our days—there will be extra charges!” The fat man sitting atop the grave narrowed his eyes, demanding bluntly.

“As long as my pill cauldron is recovered, money is not an issue!” Elder An declared, gazing towards the mountain town.

Chen Luo had possessed Elder An’s pill cauldron for over sixty years, infusing it with his essence, making its aura impossible to erase within just a few days. Apart from tracking Chen Luo, Elder An had also spent heavily to hire three notorious mercenaries from the black market during these past weeks.

Seated within the forest were three individuals, the most powerful solo cultivators across the seven nations. Each demanded a high fee, but Elder An did not hesitate. As the peak lord of Medicine King Peak, money was the least of his concerns!

He summoned these experts for their reliability.

Elder An couldn’t believe that four Foundation Establishment cultivators working together would fail against a newly ascended newcomer.

“Let’s be clear upfront,” the Qi Refinement cultivator accompanying Elder An suddenly spoke, “I am only responsible for setting up the formation to prevent escape.”

His unflinching demeanor before four Foundation Establishment cultivators stemmed from being a first-rank array master—an occupation requiring immense innate talent among the Four Arts of Immortality.

Among cultivators, array masters held an exceptionally revered status due to their terrifying achievements. There was once a second-rank array master at the Foundation Establishment stage who, using the power of formations, managed to trap a Core Formation ancestor for over a hundred years. Although the array master ultimately met a grisly end at the hands of the Core Formation patriarch, this incident did little to diminish the awe-inspiring reputation of array masters.

Such a cross-stage confrontation, with Foundation Establishment facing Core Formation, left an indelible impact.

“As agreed, set up your formation, and the rest is none of your concern.”

Elder An waved his hand, dismissing the tier-one array master. Despite being only at the Qi Refinement stage, he exuded great arrogance, which Elder An found particularly distasteful.

“A mere junior who just reached Foundation Establishment. Lacking divine abilities and combat experience, I alone can handle him easily,” said the fat cultivator as he stood up.

This was not blind confidence but rather a widely accepted notion within the cultivation world.

After advancing from Qi Refinement to Foundation Establishment, one needed time to adapt and familiarize themselves with new magical powers and combat techniques specific to this stage—a process that required patience.

“I relish devouring geniuses.”

The emaciated old man grinned menacingly, the bloodstains on his lips appearing even more gruesome under the flickering firelight.

“For someone with three spiritual roots to reach Foundation Establishment so swiftly, there must be a secret behind it. Regardless of other matters, those secrets belong to me,” stated the insect-controlling woman, her expression indifferent.

As part of their transaction, Elder An had already sold all available information about Chen Luo’s tenure in the Divine Lake Immortal Sect to these three individuals.

“Let each rely on their own skills; whoever claims it first shall have it.”

Neither the emaciated old man nor the fat cultivator were fools; they knew well they couldn’t afford to yield.

The four individuals stood atop the mountain for some time until a wave of energy emanated from the outskirts of the mountain town below. Only then did Elder An breathe a sigh of relief.

With the array master’s preparations in place, any chance of escape for their target was completely eliminated.

“Let’s move.”

As he spoke, Elder An led the descent, retrieving a small square seal from his hand. Magical power flowed through it, radiating immense force. The three Foundation Establishment solo cultivators followed closely behind as they entered the formation and descended into the mountain town.

Midnight approached.

A dark cloud obscured the bright moon above, plunging the once faintly illuminated mountain town into complete darkness. After striking the night watch bell, the townspeople returned home to sleep, leaving the mountain town eerily quiet, save for the occasional sounds of insects and distant barking.

In a dilapidated corner inn, its wooden sign swayed gently in the night breeze.

Most guests had already retired to bed, except for one room in the far northwest corner. Inside, a flickering oil lamp cast dim yellow light through the paper window, revealing a hazy silhouette.

Inside the room, Chen Luo abruptly opened his eyes while meditating.

Frowning, he glanced outside the window, and instantly, one of his external brains became active.

‘There’s a formation fluctuation.’

The brain from the hanged array master, found in Guo Mountain County, provided feedback.

A formation?

Chen Luo rose to his feet and approached the window, peering beyond the second-floor view towards the distant city wall. He detected faint ripples emanating from that direction. Normally, formations intended for internal use would not be visible within the city, but with the mind of a Foundation Establishment array master, Chen Luo’s perception was highly acute, allowing him to immediately discern something amiss.

“Is this aimed at me?” Chen Luo squinted, realizing that as the only cultivator in the town, he was an unmistakable target. Regardless of the adversary’s intentions, passively enduring attacks was not his style.

“Judging by the setup, there should be an array master stationed outside the city. Eliminating them could help fill my gaps in array knowledge.”

With a single fluid step, Chen Luo exited through the window, a mysterious aura enveloping him. After studying divine abilities and techniques for many days, it was finally time to put them to the test.

On the streets of the mountain town.

The four pursuers simultaneously lost Chen Luo’s presence.

“His aura disappeared.”

“Quite alert!”

“My curiosity about his secrets grows stronger.”

The three solo cultivators dispersed, each trusting only themselves. To them, this was merely a one-sided slaughter, exploiting their strength over weakness. Their objective was to locate the target, eliminate him, and seize whatever secrets he held. In doing so, they would also fulfill Elder An’s mission for additional rewards.

“Trying to escape? I even hired an array master just to deal with you,” sneered Elder An, recalling how Chen Luo had disregarded his authority at Medicine King Peak. Seizing this opportunity today, he not only aimed to kill Chen Luo but also sought to regain the respect he had lost.

He leisurely walked towards the inn where the aura vanished, his square seal continuously flickering, ready to unleash its power at any sign of trouble.

A tier-2 magical item was far beyond what a mere fledgling at Foundation Establishment should possess.

“What are you following me for?”

After walking some distance, the emaciated old man suddenly halted. Behind him, the fat cultivator also chose the same path.

“A joke! Clearly, you’re blocking my way,” retorted the fat cultivator.

“The newly ascended Foundation Establishment cultivator will undoubtedly head towards the West Gate. Rather than wandering aimlessly, it’s better to wait like rabbits at the exit.” The withered old man turned, eyeing the fat cultivator with a hint of apprehension.

A body cultivator!

As a law cultivator, this was precisely the type he least preferred to confront.

“Both of us—”

Whizz!!

Suddenly, a gust of wind sliced through the darkness, hurtling rapidly towards the withered old man’s neck. A flash of light illuminated from his body as numerous dense black talismans appeared, instantly dispersing the incoming gust.

On the other side, the obese cultivator endured several blasts of wind as well. Fortunately, his robust physique allowed him to merely stumble back a few steps without sustaining significant harm.

The sudden ambush startled both assailants momentarily, quickly followed by fury.

They never anticipated that their prey, supposedly cornered, would dare to counter-attack them.

“Get out here, now!” The emaciated old man roared as he thrust his hand towards the direction of the wind assault. From his palm flew a black infant’s hand bone. It spun once before exploding into a menacing black skull. Cold spiritual energy coalesced into swirling white flames, sweeping forth in a wide-area attack.

“Watch out!”

Behind the old man, the fat cultivator, readying to join the fray, suddenly felt an imminent threat of death. Instinctively, he rolled aside just as a fierce burst of sword qi erupted from behind him. Caught off guard after executing his divine ability, the withered old man had no time to react and was instantly struck across the shoulder by this sword qi.

With a sickening ‘shhhk’, the sword qi swept through mercilessly, severing head from body!

The incredulous head tumbled away, landing directly into the hands of the attacker.

Sword qi?

“This brat is a sword cultivator?!” The fat cultivator’s heart chilled, realizing that Old Ghost An had omitted such crucial information.

Having narrowly escaped death, he looked at Chen Luo, who suddenly appeared before him, feeling utterly deflated and devoid of his earlier confidence.