Chapter 430 - 301: Moment (3)

The potent waves of his Blood Qi attracted the attention of numerous Evil Spirits, who all swarmed toward him. However, as long as they didn’t manage to completely surround him, they had trouble impeding his advance.

The drain on his stamina was immense, but the Hundred Beasts Fist had given him an incredibly solid physical foundation. Furthermore, he could draw upon the Rebirth Jade to use Life Primordial Qi for temporary recovery, making it no problem to sustain a period of high-intensity combat.

Relying on his extraordinary intuition and perception, Zhao Xuanqi weaved between the buildings. He even saw signs of a Blood Qi eruption in a nearby district, but he had no strength to spare for a rescue.

In less than five minutes, he had eliminated at least fifteen Evil Spirits, but the number swarming toward him showed no signs of decreasing.

However, one discovery brought him great joy: as time passed, the Blood Moon high in the sky was shifting, and the crimson color of its light was fading.

However, just then.

"In shades of willow, in flowers’ light, cease your tears and laughter~~ A virtuous heart’s good fruit may stand in pride hereafter~~"

A theatrical voice rang out. A group of lithe figures was rushing toward him at incredible speed, moving almost like an army. The sight made his pupils contract sharply.

He saw the figures in the lead. Some wore magnificent brocade robes, while others were dressed in the garb of generals from a traditional opera. The crowd of figures following them wore a chaotic jumble of different clothes.

’The Evil Spirits spawned from the Shadow Puppet Stage?!’

Zhao Xuanqi’s expression sharpened, and he immediately changed course, bolting in another direction.

However, by now, countless Evil Spirits had converged on his position. The moment he changed direction, he was intercepted, his speed dropping as if he were mired in quicksand.

SHING!!

While fighting and retreating, an eerie, cold glint of light flashed past without a sound, coming from an incredibly awkward angle. Zhao Xuanqi jerked his body to the side, but the light still tore through his skin in an instant, and a deeply chilling energy invaded his body.

A figure appeared before him, dressed in a theatrical general’s costume and holding a long spear, its face bizarrely rigid.

The moment the spear’s tip thrust past him, Zhao Xuanqi wrenched his body around. Completely ignoring his injury, he closed the distance in an instant and unleashed a palm strike.

BOOM!!!

A flash of blood-red light erupted. Yet when the attack struck the body, it felt like hitting empty air. The figure was knocked back by Zhao Xuanqi, its chest caving in, only for it to snap back to normal the next moment. The blast of Blood Qi seemed incapable of causing it any real harm.

’It’s not a solid entity. It seems to be made from a sheet of human skin. My Blood Qi can’t seem to harm it. Or maybe... I can only kill these offshoots by destroying the malevolent object that spawned them.’

’I can’t let these damned things tie me down.’

Zhao Xuanqi took a deep breath.

THUMP! THUMP!

His heart began to pound violently. His Qi and Blood surged, bursting his capillaries and causing a fine mist of blood to spray from his pores.

In an instant, he mobilized nearly eighty percent of the Life Primordial Qi in his body and channeled it furiously into his palms.

Tiger Form!!

ROAR!!

The Blood Qi manifested, and two spectral tigers instantly leapt forth with a thunderous roar. One charged toward the Shadow Puppet General, while the other lunged at the Evil Spirits swarming him.

CLANG!!

The Shadow Puppet General seemed to sense the danger emanating from the spectral tiger. It jerked to a halt, bringing its long spear up horizontally to block the attack.

The Evil Spirits on the other side weren’t so lucky. Two Demon Ghosts were struck head-on by the spectral tiger, and their bodies instantly exploded. Four other nearby Evil Spirits were caught in the bloody blast and scattered.

A path opened up before Zhao Xuanqi.

He shot forward, breaking free from the encirclement through the path cleared by the spectral tiger, and vaulted into the garden of a wealthy estate.

At the same time, the Blood Moon in the sky shifted further, its crimson hue fading a little more. Zhao Xuanqi could clearly feel it was becoming easier to conceal the aura of a living person.

’I only have twenty percent of my stamina left. Even if I use Life Primordial Qi to recover, it will take at least a quarter of an hour. The fusion of the Fierce Soaring Two Stances isn’t complete, so I can’t unleash the Exotic Beast Form. If I could, I wouldn’t be in such a wretched state. I’ll use the complex terrain of this garden to hide, conceal my life Qi again, and ride out this disaster...’

Zhao Xuanqi took a deep breath. His aura was no longer as conspicuous as before, and the pursuing Evil Spirits could no longer accurately pinpoint his location.

Nearly another minute passed. By now, the uprising in the Ghost City had been raging for almost seven-and-a-half minutes.

Finally, the Blood Moon moved completely away from its zenith, and the crimson moonlight that amplified the auras of the living at last returned to normal.

But before Zhao Xuanqi could even sigh in relief and plan his next move, a wave of dizziness suddenly washed over him.

’This is...’

Alarm jolted through him. He tried to fight the sensation, but just like before, it was utterly irresistible.

Soon, his consciousness faded completely.

A strange feeling of falling came over him.

Then, with a feeling like a heavy object hitting the ground, his consciousness jolted violently.

「Reality. The Red Heart Sect’s station for New Disciples in Guming County.」

In the room, the body of Zhao Xuanqi, who was sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed, shuddered violently. His eyes flew open, his breathing instantly turning rapid and shallow.

As he took in the sight of the room around him, he frowned slightly, a flicker of confusion and doubt in his eyes.

"Did I just... fall asleep?"

"What happened... Why... would I fall asleep?"

Zhao Xuanqi’s expression was baffled. He felt as if something had just happened, but when he searched his mind, he couldn’t find a single memory. It seemed to have been nothing but a delusion.

’No! Something definitely happened!’

Then, his expression shifted. He could feel a deep exhaustion coming from within his body; his Primordial Qi and stamina had somehow been greatly depleted.