Chapter 16 - 11 Battle

"Nascent Soul Stage? Ancient Method!" After sobering up and hearing Wang Qi's statement, the young girl's face changed dramatically, "We've actually encountered remnants of the Ancient Method Practitioner!" Ever since the generation of Yuanli Master emerged, the system of Modern Cultivation and the framework of Immortal Dao were fully established, and Modern Cultivators began to overpower the Ancient Method Practitioners. Gradually, Immortal Dao eradicated the Ancient Method, which stole from Heaven and Earth for self-cultivation. By the era of Taiyi Heavenly Venerable and Daoist of Uncertainty, the Ancient Method had almost been wiped out in Shenzhou. Of course, "almost" means there were still a few. The existing Ancient Method Practitioners were either old monsters who already possessed Nascent Souls before the rise of Modern methods and couldn't change, or they were ones with poor comprehension, unable to cultivate the Modern Method naturally but were unfortunately suitable for the Ancient Method. Unlike Modern Cultivators who almost never rely on outer objects, Ancient Method Practitioners have high demands for Spiritual Energy and resources. To become immortal, Ancient Method Practitioners have always been plundering Heaven and Earth relentlessly. Such behavior is naturally despised by Modern Cultivators who cultivate by borrowing from Heaven and Earth, hence Ancient Method Practitioners are treated like rats crossing the street today. Correspondingly, Ancient Method Cultivators also deeply resent Modern Cultivators. "Damn it..." Xiang Qi bit her lower lip, extremely anxious, "It's too late..." "What—Aaaah!" Several orange streaks of light attacked from afar. Although Wang Qi didn't know what spell it was, he clearly sensed the deadly intent within it! —Those guys... intend to kill... The terrifying pressure from the spell almost made it impossible for Wang Qi to think. Xiang Qi cleansed herself with a snap, spreading her arms and drawing an arc around her. Several silver Sword Discs fluttered out like butterflies and circled mid-air. Burning Gold Valley's true swordsmanship—Heavenly Order Sword Disc! Xiang Qi's sword momentum encircled Wang Qi, protecting him from the enemy's imposing force. Then, more than ten Sword Discs danced wildly, turning into several white arcs. The moment the Sword Light intersected with the spell, Xiang Qi's body staggered, then the array of Sword Discs deflected the wave of attacks! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! In an instant, several plumes of fire erupted in Dabai Village! The deflected spell swept across the entire village. The spell of a Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator was no easy matter; with just that wave of attacks, it flattened more than half of the houses in Dabai Village, the air filled with the wails of survivors. Wang Qi stared dully at the fire engulfing his surroundings. The first home he recognized after his transmigration, just gone like that? "What the hell is this..." "This is the reality!" Zhen Chan interrupted Wang Qi's exclaimed softly, "This is the cruelest aspect of the path of cultivation." Xiang Qi stared at the enemies attacking from a distance, her voice squeezed through clenched teeth: "Sorry." "Damn it..." Wang Qi's anger surged, "It was all fine when you guys came to capture Old Hai yesterday! Why has it turned out like this!" Xiang Qi constantly shifted her Finger Techniques, manipulating the Sword Discs: "Ancient Method Cultivators never care about anything other than themselves—except for resources." "This..." "If I had known earlier, maybe I could have taken you away. My oversight. I didn't expect to find an Ancient Method Cultivator in this place." Zhen Chan offered an explanation: "I'm just a Residual Soul now, my Spiritual Sense doesn't cover as much area as it used to." Wang Qi grew frantic: "What do we do now?" Xiang Qi bit her lip: "Nascent Soul Stage... my Flying Escape Technique is mediocre, I'll likely not escape. Counterattacking might give a sliver of hope." Wang Qi panicked: "Sister, don't talk nonsense, even if Modern is far stronger than Ancient, a mere Early-Stage Foundation Establishment can hardly fight a Golden Core Stage, let alone a Nascent Soul Stage—it's too brutal to leap across levels!" Xiang Qi pulled out a handful of Talismans, stuffing them into Wang Qi's hand: "Red for blasting, silver for protection, green for healing, and orange for stimulating potential—take care of yourself—there's no way I can look after you in this fight." With that, Xiang Qi transformed into a streak of light and shot into the sky: "What demon dares to wreak havoc here?" At that moment, another streak of Escape Light flew near, hovering not far away. A sinister voice shrieked: "Immortal Alliance Security Envoy, heh, such arrogance!" The new Ancient Method Cultivator used Mana to amplify his voice, leaving Wang Qi's ears ringing and vision spinning. Zhen Chan shouted, "Quick, channel your Mana into the silver Talisman that girl gave you!" Wang Qi hurriedly did as Zhen Chan instructed, activating a silver Talisman. The Talisman exploded into a cluster of silver light mist, protecting his surroundings. A Talisman is a magical object that seals Mana into paper, utilizing the Magic Seals on the paper to activate the spell. Because Mana is pre-stored, it only requires a small amount of Mana to activate a powerful spell. "Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator is so terrifying..." Wang Qi gritted his teeth: "Old man, how are things now? Does that woman stand a chance?" Zhen Chan sighed, "That voice just now could probably kill all the mortals here. That Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator has only just entered the Nascent Soul, with a mixed and impure aura, just a street vendor's quality. Modern's Mana recovery and total Mana are superior to Ancient at the same level, that girl has an extraordinary Magic Foundation and a skillful sword technique, she should be able to hold on for a while. However, you should worry about yourself now!" "Now what do we do?" "Run! Don't worry about anything else! That guy also brought three Foundation Establishment subordinates, that girl can at most hold off the Nascent Soul person himself, hurry and escape!" Zhen Chan told Wang Qi the number of the opponents, and the sky was also busy. The red Escape Light wrapped around the incoming person, preventing Xiang Qi from seeing the opponent's face clearly. However, the oppressive aura of a Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator told her that this would be a tough battle! Xiang Qi didn't have the anxiety she had when sending out talismans; instead, she wore a mocking smile and said, "Are there still Ancient Method Practitioners daring to show their faces? Are they insane?" "Hehe, little girl, you've got quite the mouth. I've already found out that there are only two cultivators here! I've come to kill you, true inheritor of the Burning Gold Valley, Xiang Qi!" Seeing the opponent revealing her identity, Xiang Qi was slightly surprised, "How did you know?" "That Wanfa Sect true inheritor will be dealt with by someone else. Ha, there's also one at the Qi Cultivation Stage. Hehe, since they've practiced your demonic Sorcery, they must die too! Ada, Aer, and Asan! Kill him!" "Yes!" Three figures emerged from the Escape Light and plummeted towards the ground, shockingly three Foundation Establishment Early Stage Cultivators. Xiang Qi yelled, "Don't even think about it!" Summoning a sword technique, she sent out two Sword Discs to attack those three. Modern Cultivation was much more powerful than Ancient Methods, and Xiang Qi was an exceptional figure among Modern Cultivators. On a normal day, these kinds of Early-Stage Foundation Establishment Ancient Method Cultivators could be easily slain. But now, there was another Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator with a fierce glint in his eyes! That Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator let out a strange howl, sending several red beams of light toward her. Reluctantly, Xiang Qi withdrew her Sword Discs and arranged them into the "Heavenly Order Sword Formation" to block the incoming attacks. "Using Foundation Establishment to resist Nascent Soul Stage...", Zhen Chan watched the fierce battle in the sky and marveled, "The laws of today truly are miraculous." Wang Qi activated an orange talisman, accelerating his escape, "Let's ponder this more once we survive this, old man!" "There's a small ditch behind the village with complex terrain, go there," Zhen Chan directed Wang Qi, drawing on his rich combat experience. Wang Qi, after all, was a Qi Cultivation Cultivator and had refined his body through Ancient Spirit Body Cultivation, making his physical quality far superior to that of ordinary people. Empowered by the power of the talisman, he ran towards the village entrance like a rabbit set loose, his speed comparable to a Qi Cultivation Late Stage cultivator using a Magic Artifact in a sprint! "Jump!" Zhen Chan suddenly yelled, and Wang Qi immediately leaped forward. Then, he felt as if a blunt object had heavily struck his back, the light around his body violently shook, and the landscape before his eyes rapidly receded. He was attacked! Wang Qi quickly realized this, adjusted his posture in mid-air, and used the force of the impact to run forward, while drawing another silver talisman. "This talisman will last for two more hits, don't waste it! That girl gave you only three in total. Also, there's one for healing, three for explosion, one for stimulating potential—Jump!" Wang Qi again used the force from the impact on his back to rush forward a distance, barely reaching the village entrance. Just then, a fierce shout came from behind him, "Where do you think you're escaping to!" A small hammer wrapped in blue light went around to his front, delivering a painful blow to his head! "Damn it!" Wang Qi quickly stopped his steps, using his momentum to dive to the ground. The small hammer grazed his scalp and missed, simultaneously breaking the residual light around him. Without hesitation, Wang Qi rolled on the spot toward the roadside. A Sword Qi brushed against his arm and stuck into the soil. After dodging the deadly strike, Wang Qi didn't stop and continued rolling towards the roadside. There was a steep slope at the roadside leading to a forest below.Escape into the forest was his only chance for survival! Finally, Wang Qi felt the ground disappear beneath him, and his whole body fell downward! "Old man! Help me activate the ring for Concealing Breath!" Wang Qi roared in his mind. Zhen Chan was pleased with this judgment. If Wang Qi entered the forest and still used the silver-light-emitting talisman with an obvious Mana Wave, escaping here would be pointless. —Although this guy acts a bit oddly, he's definitely not stupid! Despite the vegetation slowing his fall, the moment Wang Qi hit the ground, his vision darkened, and he nearly vomited blood! He didn't even have time to catch his breath as he grabbed his white robe, threw it vehemently, and ran in the opposite direction. Moments later, several Sword Lights shattered the robe Wang Qi had thrown off. At this time, Wang Qi, dressed in a hemp-colored shirt, was crouching in a bush, fully concentrating on practicing the Concealing Breath Skill taught by Zhen Chan. Three Foundation Establishment Cultivators, unaware of what they had shattered, landed their Magic Artifacts to inspect. One Foundation Establishment Cultivator cursed in frustration, "Damn, this boy is cunning!" "Brother Aer, calm your mind, keep your temper!" another cultivator said, "Something's not right! My Spiritual Sense can't detect that boy!" "It must be the Concealing Breath Skill," the last one added. This kind of Concealing Breath Skill that completely isolated oneself from Heaven and Earth could not fool any Modern Cultivator merged with Heaven and Earth but was precisely the nemesis of Ancient Method Practitioners. The three searched the vicinity but couldn't find any clues, as Wang Qi was extremely well-hidden and they were unfamiliar with the terrain; frustration led the one called Aer to fly up into the air in search of him. The leading and the third cultivator, fearing that Wang Qi might escape, didn't stay any longer. Wang Qi breathed a sigh of relief and queried inwardly, "What should we do next?" "Before reaching the Golden Core Stage, a cultivator's ability to gather Spiritual Energy is limited," Zhen Chan explained. "Without special spells or Magic Artifacts, it's unlikely to devastate the forest on a large scale to force you out. Don't make rash moves. Wait for that Lee guy to return or for Miss Xiang's battle with that Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator to conclude." Wang Qi clenched his teeth, "So I just have to wait?" Zhen Chan sneered, "What else? Although your Mana might surpass that of an Ancient Method Practitioner in the late Qi Cultivation Stage, without spells or Magic Artifacts, you can't defeat anyone! Kid, you seek a carefree life, which is good, but without combat power to protect yourself, this lifestyle won't last long. That's just the way of the world!"