Relentless Pursuit

After confirming that Yan Yiwen was not pursuing him, Song Wen's hanging heart finally relaxed a fraction.

Leaping rapidly through the trees had placed a heavy burden on his body, leaving him somewhat drained.

However, he knew this was no time to rest. He had to get as far from the swamp as possible; returning to the Sect immediately would be ideal.

Taking out a Swift Movement Talisman, he slapped it onto his body and accelerated toward the Sect.

He chose not to use another Flight Talisman.

First, beyond the swamp, the mountain foliage was no longer composed entirely of towering ancient trees. Many areas were covered only in low shrubs, and flying too high would easily expose his tracks.

Second, he was running low on Flight Talismans and needed to conserve them.

As the most common travel tool for Qi Condensation cultivators, the Swift Movement Talisman provided a respectable boost, increasing Song Wen's speed by seventy to eighty percent.

Moreover, its duration was quite long; a single talisman could last for an entire hour.

The only drawback was that, unlike a Flight Talisman, it could not carry a cultivator directly over valleys and rivers.

After speeding through the forest for roughly an hour, Song Wen covered another two hundred li of mountainous terrain.

The Swift Movement Talisman had just exhausted its power. He was preparing to stop and find a hidden cave to rest and recuperate.

Suddenly, his outward-sweeping Spiritual Sense detected several auras rapidly approaching from behind. One of those auras felt quite familiar-it likely belonged to the Yan family cultivator who had ridden the large ship with him that morning.

"It seems the Yan family defeated Gui San and the others, and now they are coming to hunt me down," Song Wen thought with unease.

Immediately, he withdrew another Swift Movement Talisman and slapped it onto himself. At the same time, he began burning his essence blood to cast the Blood Escape Technique. His speed violently surged severalfold, quickly widening the distance between him and his pursuers.

The six people chasing him were indeed Yan Feng and the Yan family cultivators.

They had encountered Yan Yiwen at the edge of the swamp. Learning Song Wen's escape route from her, they immediately pursued.

Aside from Yan Feng, who was at the Sixth Layer of Qi Condensation, the other five were only at the Fifth Layer.

They were also using Swift Movement Talismans, making their base speed considerably faster than Song Wen's. This was how they managed to catch up to him despite his ceaseless flight.

Catching sight of Song Wen's figure in the distance, Yan Feng rejoiced. "Fellow clansmen, Ji Yin is just ahead! As long as we catch him and strike him down, the Patriarch will definitely reward us heavily upon our return!"

Hearing this, the others' spirits rallied, and their speed increased by another margin.

However, they suddenly saw blood mist erupting from Song Wen's body. His speed skyrocketed, rapidly pulling him further away.

Seeing this, the group was momentarily stunned, unable to comprehend his sudden burst of speed.

Was this truly a speed a Third Layer Qi Condensation cultivator could possess?

Yan Feng was more experienced. He recognized at a glance that Song Wen was executing the Blood Escape Technique at the cost of burning his essence blood. It was impossible for him to maintain such speed for long.

He shouted, "Do not worry! This brat is using the Corpse Demon Sect's Blood Escape Technique. It burns essence blood at a rapid pace. He is of no concern."

Despite his words, as he watched Song Wen's figure draw further away and nearly vanish from sight, Yan Feng began to panic.

He absolutely could not let Song Wen escape. If the boy slipped away, the Yan family would suffer the brutal vengeance of the Corpse Demon Sect.

He ordered, "I will chase him down first. Follow my path."

With that, Yan Feng's speed spiked dramatically as he pursued Song Wen alone.

Although his cultivation was only one layer higher than the other five, for some reason, his speed was vastly superior, nearly matching that of a Seventh Layer Qi Condensation cultivator.

"Understood! We will be right behind you," a Yan family cultivator called out.

Pushing himself to the absolute limit, Yan Feng managed to match Song Wen's pace, barely keeping him in sight.

"Ji Yin, give up! You cannot escape our Yan family! Surrender now, and I will grant you a swift death!" Yan Feng roared.

Song Wen turned a deaf ear, burying his head and pushing forward.

Over a quarter-hour passed in a flash. The five Fifth Layer Qi Condensation cultivators had been left far behind, completely out of sight.

Glaring at Song Wen's flickering silhouette ahead, Yan Feng gritted his teeth and cursed, "Damn it, let's see how much essence blood you have left to burn."

The Swift Movement Talisman on his body had already lost its effect. Reluctantly, he took out another and slapped it against his chest.

Another quarter-hour flew by. Song Wen's speed had not diminished in the slightest. Blood qi continued to swirl around him, as if his supply of essence blood was inexhaustible.

Yan Feng stared in disbelief. How could a Third Layer Qi Condensation cultivator have so much essence blood to burn? It defied all common sense.

Even a body-refining cultivator with abundant vitality would have exhausted their essence blood long ago and died from depletion.

As the chase dragged on, Yan Feng's astonishment deepened. It truly seemed as though Song Wen had an endless supply of essence blood; his speed never wavered.

They ran like this for over an hour. The five Yan family cultivators were long gone.

Seeing that he could not shake off Yan Feng, Song Wen grew anxious. This prolonged escape was consuming a significant amount of spiritual energy, and he had less than twenty percent of his reserves remaining.

If this continued, his spiritual energy would run dry, and Yan Feng would inevitably catch him.

"I must find a way to deal with this person!"

Song Wen's Spiritual Sense was at the Seventh Layer of Qi Condensation, stronger than Yan Feng's. He could clearly perceive the man's condition.

Having fought a major battle earlier and maintained this grueling pursuit, Yan Feng's situation was not much better. He had, at most, thirty percent of his spiritual energy left.

"Perhaps I have a chance to kill him," Song Wen thought coldly.

A talisman silently slipped into his right palm, while his left hand closed around a black sphere.

Then, he slowly withdrew the blood qi swirling around him, feigning the exhaustion of his essence blood.

Seeing this, Yan Feng was overjoyed.

When he first began this pursuit, he had acted solely for the clan, intending to eliminate this grave threat to the Yan family.

But after witnessing Song Wen's absurdly abundant essence blood, selfish greed had taken root. He wanted to intercept Song Wen and, if possible, capture him alive. He wanted the secrets hidden on the boy's body.

"Ji Yin, surrender and return with me to the Yan family! Perhaps the Patriarch will spare your life," Yan Feng called out, attempting to tempt him.

He feared Song Wen would fight to the bitter end. While defeating him would require little effort, if Song Wen was determined to die, Yan Feng could not stop him.

If that happened, whatever secrets Song Wen possessed would likely perish with him.

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