Chapter 178 - 38: Earth Escape Divine Skill and Cooperation (Extra for 2000 monthly votes on 4/3)

Chapter 178: Chapter 38: Earth Escape Divine Skill and Cooperation (Extra for 2000 monthly votes on 4/3)Earth Escape Divine Skill, Emperor’s Blood privileges. When combined, this is absolute control over the Earth Veins. This is also why You Ruhui could hide and escape all the way to Da Chen’s borderland, eluding capture by both the Da Chen officials and the Heavenly Demons. Because she possesses the extremely special ’Emperor’s Blood’ within the royal family, with this privilege, she roams unhindered within Da Chen’s borders. But precisely because of this, You Ruhui found herself trapped at the border, progressively cornered by the tightening encirclement. Next, You Ruhui had only two options. The first, to leave Da Chen and take a chance by heading to Dust Li, relying on her own innate ability to hide after losing the divine skill of invisibility to evade her pursuers. The second, to stay put, tough it out and evade the search efforts, then break out from the most secure encirclement and make her way back to the core lands of Da Chen, and hide in some anonymous rural area where no one could find her. Clearly, the first option was sheer nonsense, An Jing felt that without her divine skill, she could probably be tricked and sold off with just a few words. And the second... although unlikely, was not impossible. You Ruhui, though lacking in societal experience, might be adept in the use of divine skills, which was why she always stayed in Kanming City, intending to bet her luck against the odds, gambling that she could withstand this massive manhunt. But the True Demon Sect here doesn’t play by your rules; they plan to seize the opportunity during the Frost Calamity to perform a blood sacrifice and overturn the city! No wonder You Ruhui was desperate enough to seek help from a quack; recognizing her own exceptional Fate Pattern, she took the initiative to seek an alliance. "How about it? Woah!" At this moment, You Ruhui also appeared beside An Jing, but as soon as she did, An Jing’s sheathed Mysterious Iron longsword was resting on the girl’s neck, frightening her so much that she immediately used her invisibility to leave again, then cautiously peeked out from behind a corner, half her face visible as she stared intently at An Jing, "You! What do you intend to do!" "Show off power. And to remind you that invisibility is not a flawless divine skill, be careful, and don’t get complacent just because you have this ability, lest you endanger yourself and me when we cooperate." Squinting his eyes, hiding the silver glint brought about by the Sword Spirit. An Jing sheathed his sword, turned to the side, signaling for You Ruhui to follow, "Let’s go. Since you want to eradicate the True Demon Sect as well, then we can cooperate." "Also, you haven’t told me the reward." "As for the reward... I can help you find the Earth Vein that best suits your Fate Pattern." Though startled and somewhat displeased, You Ruhui quickly caught up, honestly stating the reward she had intended to tell An Jing, "Even though I’m not sure why you’re hiding your identity or why you’ve chosen to go against the Heavenly Demons, a martial artist like you certainly wants to make your cultivation smoother, right?" "Just tell me what you need, and I can find you a secluded Blessed Land, allowing you to cultivate smoothly without any worries!" You Ruhui was full of confidence, and indeed, An Jing needed it. The so-called law, wealth, partners, and land are essential for both martial artists and Daoist priests to maintain persistent cultivation; one must have the proper methods, resources, partners to contemplate the path ahead, and suitable land for cultivation. An Jing had the proper methods, resources from the Great Void Passage, and the Sword Spirit as a reminding partner; upon reflection, he indeed lacked a good place for tranquil cultivation. Even if he couldn’t find one suitable for Heavenly Mandate, surely there were places suitable for Taibai and Mars? Regrettably, An Jing’s current primary goal was to return to the Heavenly Sea region to find his mother, and he would not stay long in the Western Mountain. So he asked, "I do not desire one from the Western Mountain, can you tell me about the Earth Veins in the Heavenly Sea?" You Ruhui was somewhat puzzled, "Eh? Why? But... I can." An Jing nodded, his question resolved, "In that case, let’s start moving." "Okay." You Ruhui nodded, stepping forward with a pale yellow mist glowing in her hand, which she placed on An Jing’s forehead, "I will enhance your Escape Technique." The feeling of being enhanced by the ’Earth Escape’ Divine Skill was truly marvelous. An Jing felt as if he were being embraced by the earth itself, all traces of breath and light vanishing, blending into the rich and majestic earth, bestowing an infinite sense of security. However, all this was temporary, according to You Ruhui, she could maintain it for a long time on her own, but when enhancing others, it would last only about an hour. "It’s already unbelievably long." An Jing marveled inwardly; an hour of total invisibility? My goodness, if he had that ability, whether in the Tianyuan Realm or Embracing the Void, wouldn’t it be easy to venture around? This was a powerful divine skill capable of completely altering one’s action plans and combat strategies. But thinking about this now was useless; the more potent You Ruhui’s displayed divine skills, the greater the trouble that beset her. Shaking his head, with a leap, An Jing’s figure vanished into the heavy snow. You Ruhui followed close behind. You Ruhui was proficient in martial skills, and even her realm was Inner Breath like Tide. She could keep up with An Jing’s pace and even possessed several special Divine Abnormalities ahead of time, making her combat strength definitely not weak. Considering she was a royal child born with Divine Abnormalities, her cultivation level wasn’t considered inflated; it was deliberately restrained to lay a solid foundation. Or could it be that ’born with Divine Abnormalities’, Emperor’s Blood has special requirements when it comes to manifesting Divine Abnormalities and advancing to Inner Strength? Most importantly, when You Ruhui activated her Inner Breath, it seemed extremely sluggish and graceless, as if maneuvering through a very thick batter. ——Indeed, a Daoist Priest? Upon witnessing this scene, An Jing’s mind instantly raised the term. This was probably the last remnant of the Dao of Qi Refining within Embracing the Void. Daoist Priests were adept at using geomancy and ritual formations to harness the power of heaven and earth. They could also wield talismans and draw charms, inscribing formations. However, the price to pay was that their Inner Breath would resonate with the world around them, and in the case of shallow cultivation, it would circulate extremely slowly, leaving them virtually devoid of any close-combat capabilities. But with assistance, they could unleash tremendous abilities—one plus one is greater than two. ——No wonder he wanted to join forces with me; he must be coveting my martial artist combat strength. Understanding dawned on An Jing, yet he didn’t utter a word. Soon, the two arrived at the street near Chongyi Building. From the rooftop of a building opposite the Chongyi Building, An Jing, who was invisible thanks to his Escape Skill, and You Ruhui observed the stronghold of the True Demon Sect almost openly. With An Jing’s current eyesight, ordinary binoculars couldn’t compare to him; he could effortlessly see eagles and wild geese flying a thousand meters high, small beasts hidden in the bushes, and spotting a tall building across the street was a piece of cake for him. As for You Ruhui, he carried an exquisitely delicate gold-inlaid telescope and keenly used it to survey the Chongyi Building. "Is this the enemy’s den?" Emboldened by the presence of An Jing and unafraid of being ambushed, You Ruhui currently appeared especially active. "I thought the enemy was lurking within the official institutions." "You’re not wrong there. They are in the official institutions too, but..." ——But another group from the Demon Sect is within the official institutions. The Heavenly Demons can’t infiltrate there. It truly is a case of one thing overcoming another—the Demon Man subduing the Demon. Swallowing back the words he did not speak, An Jing narrowed his eyes. Unlike You Ruhui, who was likely just enjoying the scenery, An Jing was seriously observing the distribution of the personnel around the Chongyi Building, even considering the possibility of using explosive Thunder Beads to demolish the entire building. An Jing never dallied. Once he decided to eliminate the enemy, he went all out and spared no means. The strongest combatant in Chongyi Building was undoubtedly the Heavenly Demon Follower Lu Jin, whose strength, if things went as expected, would be in the high phase of Inner Strength. Due to aging, he couldn’t possibly be at the peak of Inner Strength. But having received a blessing from the Heavenly Demon, An Jing wasn’t sure if the opponent’s capability might have improved... Nevertheless, however much it had grown, it wasn’t enough to overcome the challenges after the peak of Inner Strength—the Heavenly Pillar, also known as ’Hundred Breakthroughs Martial Meridians.’ Hundred Breakthroughs Martial Meridians required one to align with the Heavenly Sea, resonate with the Earth Vein, comprehend one’s heart, and then ’ascend the Ascension Ladder,’ transforming one’s spine and even the human body into a Heavenly Pillar reaching up to the Heavenly Sea and down to the Earth Vein. Such self-elevation can’t be influenced by external forces. Moreover, in ancient times, Hundred Breakthroughs Martial Meridians was also called ’Hundred Days Foundation Establishment,’ and one can imagine the length of time it required. If the Heavenly Demon had the ability to make someone achieve Hundred Breakthroughs Martial Meridians in an instant, it would have dominated the world long ago. As long as the opponent wasn’t a Martial Meridian Grandmaster, An Jing was confident in defeating them. But that was only in a one-on-one situation. Once the number of opponents increased, An Jing, who had limited Taibai Fiend Qi, would find himself in a tough fight. Even though he had broken through the Three Prohibitions and attained Inner Breath like Tide, An Jing’s Taibai Fiend Qi was still at thirty-nine strands. This amount was not insignificant—it was enough to kill one with Inner Strength; however, he could not afford to waste it on the common soldiers. There were quite a few martial artists in the Chongyi Building, with at least a dozen at the Inner Breath realm, though most were at the Inner Breath as Vast as River level, and there were none at the Inner Breath like Tide level. What An Jing was concerned about was not these martial artists, but rather the Guard Captain of the Chongyi Building. This was another martial master with Inner Strength. At the moment, from An Jing’s current position, he could see the main entrance of the Chongyi Building. Next, An Jing also moved with You Ruhui to another side street, even approaching close to the Chongyi Building to observe the surrounding road conditions and the orientation of the buildings. Thanks to their Divine Skill of Earth Escape, no one noticed these two figures brazenly flitting and leaping between buildings. And all this was necessary. Before infiltrating, it was vital to plan the escape route and to clearly see any guards that might be lurking in the vicinity. Shortly after making a complete round around the Chongyi Building, An Jing discovered many hidden guards. Moreover, he realized that several buildings around the Chongyi Building were also outposts of the True Demon Sect, vaguely forming a Battle Formation. This was quite important. Because according to the intelligence from Zheng Mo, the True Demon Sect had also called for Reinforcements to infiltrate the city. These guards were apparently elite members of the True Demon Sect—mostly sturdy, with swift and methodical movements. Even if they were not martial artists, they belonged to the Martial Army and could display power comparable to a martial artist when assembled in Military Formation. Even An Jing was not confident he could eliminate an entire team before they could react. Among these elites, An Jing spotted a thin and somber man. His skin was like jade, reflecting light from the surroundings. It was the Divine Abnormality—Jeweled Clothes.