Chapter 89 - 68 : The Hunt Turns

Chapter 89: Chapter 68 : The Hunt Turns

Ethan watched them for a moment before focusing on the sounds around him. A horse shifted its weight. A branch snapped beneath someone’s foot.

"Damn it."

"Spread out!" The leader’s voice barked out.

"Don’t let him slip through!"

The men began searching through the ravine, and Ethan spread his Blood Perception around them. One presence appeared within his senses, then another, until he could clearly tell where each of them was. For the first time since the chase began, the situation had changed. They had spent hours knowing where he was and forcing him to react to them. Now Ethan was the one who knew where they were, while they had no idea where he had gone.

He looked down at the men below. He could leave now if he wanted to. The path behind him was still open, and nothing was stopping him from disappearing into the night. It was the sensible thing to do. Avoid trouble and keep moving. Ethan had already been doing exactly that for the past few days.

But as he watched them search, a thought slowly settled in his mind. How long could he keep running from every problem that came his way?

His thoughts returned to the settlement and the rumors he had heard there. People had been laughing and repeating stories they knew nothing about, each version becoming worse than the last. Then he remembered the cultivator who had followed him earlier, the tracking talisman, and the Azure Cloud Sect. For days, he had been changing his routes and avoiding trouble whenever he could.

And now, these strangers had come after him too.

They didn’t know him and they didn’t know what had happened. They had heard a story, seen someone who seemed to fit the description, and decided that was enough to follow him. Enough to attack him. Enough to try to kill him, simply because they believed they could gain something from it.

Ethan lowered his gaze.

He wasn’t angry enough to lose control, and he wasn’t driven by revenge. He was simply tired of always giving ground whenever someone decided to make him their problem.

His eyes moved across the ravine and settled on the man who had stepped in front of him earlier. A Body Tempering cultivator, yet he had stood in Ethan’s path with that careless grin, as though facing an early Qi Refining cultivator was nothing worth thinking twice about.

That confidence had stayed with Ethan.

It wasn’t the confidence of someone who had earned the right to stand against him. It was the confidence of someone who believed the difference between their realms didn’t matter because there were others behind him.

If these had been Azure Cloud Sect cultivators, Ethan could understand why they were pursuing him. They had authority, information, and even if he didn’t agree with it, a reason.

These people had none of that.

They had heard a rumor, decided they could profit from it, and chased him because they thought they could take him.

Ethan watched them for another moment.

He had spent days avoiding trouble, but there was a difference between avoiding a fight and endlessly running from people who had already chosen to make him their target.

Perhaps he had given them enough chances.

Ethan slowly exhaled.

He had always preferred to leave trouble behind and keep moving. But these people had already chosen to come after him. If they were determined to keep hunting him, there was no reason for him to keep running.

He looked down at the men below. If they wanted a fight, he could give them one. His hand moved to the short dao at his waist. His fingers closed around the handle, and he slowly drew the blade.

Ethan slowly exhaled.

He had always preferred to leave trouble behind and keep moving. But these people had already chosen to come after him. If they were determined to keep hunting him, there was no reason for him to keep running.

He looked down at the men below. If they wanted a fight, he would give them one. His hand moved to the short dao at his waist, and his fingers closed around the handle. He drew the blade slowly, the edge catching the pale moonlight as it slipped free and flashed briefly in the darkness.

Ethan stood still for a moment, the blade resting loosely in his hand. Then something sharp brushed against his tongue. He paused, feeling the unfamiliar points behind his upper canines. His tongue moved over them gently, confirming what he already suspected.

Fangs.

They were longer and sharper than ordinary teeth, their tips pressing slightly against his lower lip when he closed his mouth. He remembered how, when he had first woken in the cave, he had checked his mouth and found nothing unusual. He had thought the fangs might have been nothing more than something his exhausted mind had imagined.

Now, they were there again.

Ethan slowly ran his tongue over their sharp tips, feeling the points against his tongue. He let the sensation settle for a moment before lifting his head.

He lifted his head.

The moonlight fell through the branches behind him, catching the edges of his hood and robe while most of his face remained hidden beneath the shadow. Only the lower half of his face was touched by a faint silver glow, enough to reveal the slight curve of his smile and the tips of his sharp fangs.

His short dao hung loosely from one hand.

For a brief moment, something red glimmered beneath the darkness of his hood. His eyes caught the moonlight just enough for the blood-red sheen in his irises to show.

Then it was gone.

Ethan looked down.

Below him, the men continued searching, kicking through the brush and looking behind the rocks. Then one of them called out, his voice carrying through the ravine.

"Come out, you damn demonic cultivator! Stop hiding like a rat!"

Nothing answered.

The man laughed.

"Where are you hiding? Come out already!"

Another cultivator laughed with him.

Ethan remained silent above them, listening to their voices drift through the trees. They were still looking ahead, still convinced he was somewhere among the rocks and trees.

None of them thought to look up.

Ethan stood on a natural stone ledge beneath the trees, his dark robe blending into the darkness around him. Moonlight touched one side of his face while his short dao rested loosely in his hand. There was no tension in his posture, no sign of heavy breathing. He simply watched the men below as they moved deeper into the ravine, completely unaware that he was above them.

One of them laughed again.

Ethan’s eyes followed him, and the corners of his mouth lifted slightly, revealing the tips of his fangs. Yet beneath that faint smile was something colder, a quiet, controlled rage that had settled deep within him, waiting.

They had come looking for a demonic cultivator, and Ethan’s gaze slowly hardened as he watched them below. If that was what they wanted...

Then a demonic cultivator was what they would get.

As the ravine got quieter.

Ethan remained on the natural ledge, his short dao hanging loosely in his hand as he watched the six cultivators below.

Moonlight slipped between the branches, breaking across rocks and patches of grass. The men had spread out through the ravine, their earlier formation already ruined by the uneven ground.

One of them called out.

"Check the left side!"

"I already did!"

"Boss, where are you?"

"I’m here!"

A horse snorted below.

Another shifted nearby, its hooves scraping against the stones.

Ethan stayed still.

His Blood Perception spread through the ravine as the men began following their leader’s order.

One of the Body Tempering cultivators moved toward the left side of the ravine, while another headed toward the rocks on the opposite side. The remaining two followed different paths, keeping their eyes on the trees and bushes as they searched.

The two Qi Refining cultivators stayed closer to the middle, but even they began moving in different directions as they searched for any sign of Ethan.

Ethan watched them quietly.

They had entered the ravine together, but now they were slowly spreading out. The narrow path made it harder for them to stay close to one another, and every step took them farther apart.

Ethan’s Blood Perception made it easy to keep track of all six.

He knew where each of them was.

They, however, still had no idea where he was.

Ethan slowly lowered himself from the ledge and stepped onto the slope below. He paused for a moment, making sure the movement hadn’t caught anyone’s attention.

The men were still searching through the ravine, their attention focused on the trees and rocks ahead.

Seeing that they hadn’t noticed him, Ethan continued down the slope.

One of them moved between two trees while another climbed over a low section of rock. Their weapons remained drawn, but they searched casually, as though they had nothing to worry about.

Ethan slipped into the darkness and moved toward the nearest Body Tempering cultivator.

The man stood beside his horse, one hand holding the reins while the other rested near his weapon. He kept looking toward the higher slope, apparently expecting Ethan to appear from there.

"Damn it..."

His voice was barely audible.

Then he called out.

"Brother Han!"

A voice answered from farther away.

"I’m here!"

The cultivator beside the horse relaxed slightly.

Ethan watched from behind a tree, waiting for the right moment. When the man finally turned toward the answering voice, his attention shifted away from the area where Ethan was hiding. That was enough.

Ethan moved.

He slipped out from behind the tree and crossed the darkness in a few quick steps. One step, then another, his body carrying him closer before the cultivator even realized anything was wrong. A faint movement caught the man’s attention, and he began to turn, his head shifting as his eyes searched for the source of the sound.

Then he saw Ethan emerging from the darkness.

His eyes widened.