Break them one by one

Confirming that the other two individuals were not nearby, Yang Kai leaped down from the treetop and followed the trail of the weakest of the three, Wu Shidi.

Wu Shidi, with his cultivation at the ninth level of Qi Condensation, was a capable practitioner. However, his strength had been sealed, reducing his abilities to less than forty percent. At this moment, he was cautiously searching for Yang Kai's traces in the dense forest. Unfortunately, although he had followed the blood trail, it had disappeared long before.

The dense trees in the valley made locating a person quite challenging.

Wu Shidi scrutinized every suspicious location and occasionally glanced at the treetops. The dim lighting only increased the difficulty of his search.

He thought, Don't let the two senior brothers get ahead! If Yang Kai is found by them first, the Earth-grade treasure will slip from my grasp.

The thought of the Earth-grade treasure ignited Wu Shidi's excitement. If he could possess it, his status in the sect would rise, and with this treasure, defeating a Harmonizing Realm warrior would become effortless.

While searching, a sudden rustling noise came from behind.

Startled, Wu Shidi spun around and shouted, "Who's there?"

He looked around warily, gripping his sword tightly, but saw nothing. The rustling continued intermittently; it was merely the wind stirring the surrounding trees.

I'm being overly paranoid! Wu Shidi thought with self-deprecation. In this valley, apart from the people from the Blood War Gang and Yang Kai and that woman, who would come here seeking their own death?

With a light chuckle, Wu Shidi turned to continue his search.

However, just as he relaxed his guard, he suddenly felt a searing heat from above. His skin tightened, and a sense of impending death enveloped him.

He looked up in astonishment, his eyes widening in shock, and shouted, "Yang Kai…"

Before he could finish his words, Yang Kai had already descended upon him from above, like a hawk in its dive. With a fiery red glow igniting on his palm, he struck downwards.

The change happened too swiftly for Wu Shidi to react properly. He managed only a fleeting defensive maneuver with his sword before Yang Kai's attack landed.

In his panic, Wu Shidi tilted his head to avoid a fatal blow to his head.

With a loud "bang," Yang Kai's palm struck his shoulder with a cracking sound, causing Wu Shidi's entire arm to drop and break.

"Ah!" The intense energy entered his body, and Wu Shidi screamed in agony. His sword trembled, slicing towards Yang Kai's neck.

Yang Kai flipped backward in mid-air, narrowly dodging the attack, and landed deftly. Like a striking snake, he swiftly closed the distance, trapping Wu Shidi's sword-wielding right hand with both of his own. With a push and a pull, he disrupted Wu Shidi's balance and executed a clean and efficient throw, sending him crashing to the ground.

The series of movements was extraordinarily swift, a dazzling display of seamless, flowing combat.

On the ground, Wu Shidi spat out blood. Yang Kai pressed his knee against Wu Shidi's shoulder and exerted force with both hands.

Crack… Wu Shidi's right arm snapped instantly.

With a howl of despair, Wu Shidi's hands were rendered useless in a moment, leaving him entirely at Yang Kai's mercy.

Yang Kai gazed coldly at him, his face devoid of emotion. He picked up Wu Shidi's sword from the ground with his foot and thrust it into his chest.

"You… how is this possible…" Wu Shidi mumbled through blood, looking at Yang Kai in disbelief.

How can you still have the strength to fight? You are merely a Yuan Opening Realm warrior, you should be exhausted!

Senior Brother Yuan, damn it, this junior has been ruined because of you! Wu Shidi's final thought was a curse as his eyes lost their light.

After killing Wu Shidi, Yang Kai panted slightly, his wounds showing signs of reopening, with blood flowing once more.

Without delay, Yang Kai searched Wu Shidi's body carefully and soon retrieved his own Bi Xue Xuan Yang Pill.

In addition, Wu Shidi had other valuable items on him, including a small vial of healing pills and some silver notes, which Yang Kai collected.

Carrying Wu Shidi's corpse, Yang Kai leaped up into the trees, hid the body among the branches, and then descended to head in another direction.

Time was pressing; the sky would brighten in less than two hours, and he still needed to eliminate at least four enemies, one of whom was a True Element Realm expert—a formidable task.

With his increasing strength, the range of the Yang Source Seal's sensing ability had also expanded considerably. Within a radius of two hundred yards, Yang Kai could detect the presence of Yang energy.

Two hundred yards was a considerable distance. Normally, experts of the Harmonizing Realm would be able to sense disturbances within this range. But now, Yang Kai was the master of this two hundred yards!

After running for less than the duration of an incense stick, Yang Kai suddenly halted. He sensed another presence nearby.

Yet this person remained stationary, seemingly doing nothing. Yang Kai waited for a moment and saw that the figure still didn't move.

Moreover, Yang Kai noticed something peculiar about the location where the person was standing. It seemed as though the valley's Yin energy was converging toward that spot.

Frowning, Yang Kai stealthily approached.

After a short while, Yang Kai finally drew within thirty yards of the figure, hiding behind a large tree and cautiously observing.

Thirty yards away, a vague figure stood still. Not far in front of him, a bright white object emitted a radiant glow.

This object resembled a small sun, illuminating everything nearby with perfect clarity. It was not large, roughly the size of a pigeon's egg, but from its core emanated a bone-chilling cold, an aura capable of freezing even souls.

At this moment, the object spun incessantly. As it rotated, the valley's Yin energy seemed to be drawn to it, rapidly converging toward it.

Nine Yin Condensation Dew!

Yang Kai recognized the object almost instantly.

Although he had never seen it before, he identified it at a glance. Xia Ning Chang had brought him to this gathering place of Nine Yin to refine it.

So this is what the Nine Yin Condensation Dew looks like! Yang Kai had imagined it as a drop of dew, but now he saw it had a distinctive spiritual quality and was indeed absorbing the Yin energy of the world.

While Yang Kai observed quietly, the figure thirty yards away finally began to move.

It was Ye Shidi. He had failed to track Yang Kai but had unexpectedly discovered the Nine Yin Condensation Dew. Though he did not understand its full significance, he recognized it as a treasure.

After observing for a while, he could no longer resist the urge to act.