Shen Xian dashed toward the outer perimeter of the ruins, leaving a brilliant wake of spiritual light trailing behind him.

Behind him, the air screamed with the sounds of pursuit.

The first to close the distance was the bronze-masked cultivator. He manipulated the Octagonal Bronze Mirror in his hands, refracting a terrifying beam of destructive light that shot toward Shen Xian’s back with astonishing force.

“Pathetic tricks.”

Shen Xian snarled. The Grand One Mirror flew from his sleeve, its surface rippling like water. It instantly caught the incoming beam and reflected it back.

Two mirrors clashed, light colliding head-on.

BOOM!

A blinding spiritual explosion erupted in mid-air. Shockwaves rolled out, splashing the surrounding molten rock in all directions.

The bronze-masked cultivator grunted, forced back several steps by the recoil. The cracks on his mirror deepened further.

Shen Xian, however, used the shockwave to accelerate. He closed in on a gray-robed rogue cultivator like a ghost.

“Not good!”

The rogue cultivator panicked. He hurriedly summoned a defensive treasure while channeling sword energy to slash at Shen Xian.

A cold glint flashed in Shen Xian’s eyes. He unleashed the full power of his Golden Core Realm Perfection without restraint.

The Traceless Sword hummed, its blade gleaming like snow. It sliced through the air in an instant.

Thwip!

The gray-robed cultivator’s protective spiritual light shattered like wet paper. The sword energy pierced right through him, and his entire body stiffened.

In the next moment, his torso split down the middle.

Before the blood could spray, it was frozen into crystalline ice by the extreme cold, then shattered with a crash.

Hiss—

The remaining pursuers sucked in a cold breath. Their offensive momentum faltered.

A single strike to slay a Golden Core cultivator. Such combat prowess belonged to true geniuses, not random rogue cultivators.

“He is just one man! Don’t be afraid!”

The Blood Fiend Sect elder roared. He angrily unfurled the Soul-Devouring Banner, and ghostly shadows surged forth to block Shen Xian’s path.

“Mere ghostly arts dare to run rampant?”

Shen Xian, having just snatched the gray-robed cultivator’s storage pouch, let out a cold laugh.

The Li Fire True Seal between his brows blazed to life, golden light swirling within. This seal contained the purest essence of Li Fire, the natural nemesis of all Yin-ghostly entities.

The ghostly shadows dissolved instantly upon touching the golden light, like snow meeting a blazing sun.

The Blood Fiend elder grunted and retreated violently. His withered arm was scorched black, and blood frothed at the corner of his mouth.

The flames didn’t stop. Dragon-shaped fire coiled and rampaged, pouncing toward the three nearest Blood Fiend Sect disciples.

“Ah!”

Their protective blood light melted away like snow in boiling water. Wrapped in the raging flames, their skin cracked and flesh split. They screamed as they plummeted toward the ground.

The pursuing cultivators were inwardly shocked. They hadn’t expected this seemingly ordinary cultivator to be so troublesome.

Several rogue cultivators subtly slowed their pace, falling to the very back of the group.

But many were still in pursuit. A True Spirit Treasure was at stake, and they held the advantage in numbers. Their opponent had to exhaust himself eventually.

However…

They had grossly underestimated the spiritual power within Shen Xian.

Possessing a Flawless Golden Core, he appeared completely at ease. He even found time to turn and counterattack, severely wounding his pursuers with terrifying efficiency.

“What in the world is up with this guy?” Su Mei frowned, staring at that ordinary face.

Her only answer was another flash of snow-bright sword light.

Yet another Golden Core Perfected was cleaved in two, blood spraying in a horrifying spectacle.

But what chilled them to the bone was the scene that followed—Shen Xian suddenly pivoted, the Void Rope coiling toward the Blood Fiend elder like a silver snake.

“Seeking death!”

The elder sneered ferociously. He brandished the black banner, and from within the bloody mist, three Golden Core Realm refined corpses materialized, surrounding Shen Xian in a triangular formation.

A cold light flashed in Shen Xian’s eyes.

The Grand One Mirror flew from his sleeve and hovered above his head. Its surface rippled like water, and it sucked the three pouncing corpses into the mirror’s inner world.

The second major ability of this top-grade spirit treasure: Devour.

It could swallow a target and refine them using the mirror world. Shen Xian was at Golden Core Perfection; dealing with these mindless puppets was effortless.

The Blood Fiend elder’s pupils contracted sharply.

He saw Shen Xian form a sword seal with his left hand. The Traceless Sword transformed into a line of snow, piercing through the air toward him.

Before the sword light even arrived, its extreme cold had already frozen the bloody mist surrounding the elder.

At this critical moment, the elder bit the tip of his tongue and spat a blood arrow. The Soul-Devouring Banner swelled violently, transforming into a bloody barrier.

Clang!

Amidst the sound of clashing metal, the bloody barrier shattered.

The elder staggered back, only to see the Grand One Mirror had somehow already appeared above his head. The mirror surface aimed directly at his skull, and a terrifying beam of light shot forth.

“Ah—!”

The elder let out a shrill, agonized scream.

His body was forcibly pierced through by the light beam, revealing a gaping hole in his chest. His withered form plummeted like a ragged sack, devoid of life.

The Blood Fiend Sect disciples were struck by lightning. They scattered instantly like birds and beasts.

The rogue cultivators who had been watching from the sidelines were utterly terrified. They fled without a trace in the blink of an eye.

A True Spirit Treasure was desirable, but worthless if you were dead.

Shen Xian’s pressure decreased dramatically. He accelerated, fleeing out of the Molten Fire Ruins.

But…

The Li Fire Sect members behind him had no intention of letting him go.

Shen Xian’s figure moved like lightning, darting rapidly between jagged mountain rocks. Yet, nine crimson streaks of light persistently clung to his tail. The distance was actually shrinking.

“Damn it!” Shen Xian cursed inwardly.

These Li Fire Sect disciples were employing a peculiar fire-escape secret technique. Each stood upon a Red Flame Lotus Platform. With every opening and closing of the lotus petals, they could instantly shift a hundred zhang.

Shen Xian abruptly changed direction, charging into a forest of stone pillars.

Weaving through the jagged, bizarre rocks with the agility of a swimming fish, he tried to use the terrain to shake them.

However—

“Heaven Fire Shadow Illumination!”

Su Mei’s clear shout rang out.

The nine Red Flame Lotus Platforms blazed with intense light, tracing mysterious trajectories in the air. Each platform split off a strand of firelight, which interwove above the stone forest to form a massive fiery net. It illuminated the entire area down to the finest detail.

Shen Xian’s figure was left with nowhere to hide.

His heart jolted. The coordination between these disciples and the exquisite nature of their technique far exceeded his expectations.

Even with his Golden Core Perfection pushing his escape light to the limit, he couldn’t shake them.

“If only I had a top-tier escape technique…”

After this was over, he absolutely had to find a powerful movement art. Being passive in a chase was unacceptable.

He glanced back at the nine figures, a sharp cold light solidifying in his eyes.

“Since I can’t shake them, I’ll cut down the leader.”

His divine sense swept over the platforms, instantly locking onto the most resplendent one in the center—Su Mei.

The Flawless Golden Core within his body spun wildly. Spiritual power surged like a tide toward his limbs.

In his right hand, the Traceless Sword trembled lightly, frost patterns lighting up along the blade. In his left, the Void Rope silently coiled around his wrist, poised to strike.

Heavenly Abyss Snow Illumination Sword Scripture.

He silently recited the sword formula. The temperature around him plummeted abruptly, and fine ice crystals formed on the rocks beneath his feet.

This one strike would consume the majority of his spiritual power.

Su Mei seemed to sense something. Her platform accelerated. Nine fiery lines interwove in the air, transforming into a spreading-winged fire phoenix that dove straight toward him.

Now!

Shen Xian abruptly reversed course, charging straight toward the fire phoenix.

The frosty radiance on the Traceless Sword blazed brilliantly. The area within a ten-zhang radius instantly froze over.