Hope?

Chapter 77

"Fire? There's no fire-based technique in our cultivation method."

"Roar!"

Chang Fei, who had already reached a height of over two meters after breaking through to Foundation Establishment, now appeared even more intimidating as she burned.

Especially for the Hair Person, its body was almost instantly ignited upon contact with fire.

In a twist of events, the Hair Person now dared not approach Chang Fei.

Seizing the opportunity, Zhao Ming cast a spell to restrict the Hair Person's movements.

With a loud bang, Chang Fei tore off her left arm with her right hand and hurled it like a cannonball.

The Hair Person desperately dodged, and the severed arm narrowly missed it.

"Phew~ That was close."

In the next moment, flames erupted, completely igniting the Hair Person. Like a ball of cotton, the fire burned fiercely but quickly dissipated.

With the Hair Person dealt with, the immediate crisis was resolved.

The flames on Chang Fei's body receded, revealing her charred form.

Zhao Ming was at a loss for where to look. On one side was his senior sister's body, now devoid of clothing after the flames subsided. On the other side, having just ended the battle, her condition was clearly not good.

"What are you standing there for? Come and help me up!"

"Oh, right, coming, Senior Sister."

Zhao Ming hurried over and helped the exhausted Chang Fei to her feet.

As he supported her, Zhao Ming noticed a faint aroma of cooked meat, and the texture of her skin felt like well-done meat.

"Senior Sister, are you okay? I'll go get some healing pills."

"No need. Take me away quickly. Sun Minghao is dead, and the sooner we leave, the better. My injuries are fine."

Chang Fei stopped Zhao Ming, and with his support, they left Prayer Immortal Mountain and the Clear Mist Sect, heading outward.

After they left, a black figure emerged from Sun Minghao's room.

"Deity... Deity! I let them escape. Punish me."

Li Changmeng looked in the direction Chang Fei had gone, deep in thought. Her ability to turn into fire was a divine ability, and it came with significant side effects.

Unexpectedly, she had hidden such a method, completely countering the Hair Person.

"No need to blame yourself. They can't escape. As long as they're within the Ten Cities Alliance, it doesn't matter where they go. Perhaps they'll think they've escaped and cultivate even better."

Li Changmeng leaped and followed the departing Chang Fei and Zhao Ming. During this time, he needed to closely monitor their cultivation progress.

"Senior Sister, what do you think of this place? Although the spiritual energy is a bit thin, it's quiet."

"Let's hide here for a while."

The two had been fleeing for days without rest and were now utterly exhausted.

After hastily carving out a simple cave dwelling in the mountain, they finally had a chance to rest.

Zhao Ming lay on the ground, looking at Chang Fei with admiration. "I can't believe we actually escaped. It feels unreal."

Chang Fei had already recovered, showing no signs of injury, and her arm had regrown.

"Luckily, that sudden ability of mine countered Sun Minghao. Otherwise, who knows what would have happened."

"Then, should we continue cultivating?" Zhao Ming sat cross-legged, about to start cultivating, but then remembered that their cultivation techniques came from that dangerous master.

"Of course, we can't stop cultivating. What I suspect now is that the technique he cast on us back then was problematic.

As for the cultivation method, I've investigated. The Three Qi Harmony Art is indeed a legitimate sect inheritance technique. There's no issue with it."

After saying this, Chang Fei began cultivating. Even if they didn't cultivate, what else could they do? They were already at Foundation Establishment; could they change their cultivation method now?

As the two cultivated, Li Changmeng, observing from the shadows, began infusing them with the power of faith. Their cultivation speed was astonishing.

After cultivating for a while, they were interrupted by a voice.

Outside the cave, a cultivator stumbled in.

"Hmm... What a nice place. I didn't expect to find someone in this wilderness."

A disheveled cultivator reeking of alcohol casually lay down in the center of the cave.

Chang Fei and Zhao Ming exchanged glances. They had thought it was Li Youhe catching up, but fortunately, it was just a passing rogue cultivator.

"Hey, this place is taken. You'll have to find somewhere else."

Chang Fei stood up, ready to shoo the disheveled cultivator away, but after a few steps, she noticed something was wrong.

The closer she got to him, the slower her movements became, and the greater the pressure on her body.

This anomaly made Chang Fei cautious.

Then, the disheveled cultivator rolled over, exposing his back to Chang Fei.

At the very least, this was a Core Formation cultivator.

Facing the pressure, Chang Fei realized that this disheveled cultivator's cultivation level was above theirs.

"Senior Sister, what should we do?"

"Senior, since this cave suits your taste, we offer it to you. My junior brother and I will leave now."

With that, Chang Fei slowly retreated, preparing to leave.

"Don't be in such a hurry. Stay with me for a while. Come here; I won't eat you."

The disheveled cultivator suddenly spoke.

"Should we go?"

Zhao Ming stood behind Chang Fei, whispering.

"Junior Brother, stay where you are. I'll go over first."

Chang Fei pushed Zhao Ming back. This junior brother had little initiative and wasn't strong. He wasn't of much use.

As the senior sister, it was her duty to take the lead.

Although she didn't know the disheveled cultivator's intentions, at least he hadn't shown any hostility toward them yet.

Perhaps it was just the eccentricity of an old cultivator... She could only hope so.

With a mind full of thoughts, Chang Fei began walking toward the disheveled cultivator.

The increasing pressure remained.

Enduring the pressure, Chang Fei continued to approach the disheveled cultivator, though her speed slowed, and her expression grew more pained.

However, pain was something Chang Fei had long since stopped caring about.

After developing the ability to burn her flesh upon breaking through to Foundation Establishment, she had trained herself to endure pain to the point where she could burn herself to a crisp without flinching or affecting her combat ability.

As long as the disheveled cultivator didn't tell her to stop, Chang Fei kept moving forward.

Her flesh began to crack, and blood flowed out, turning her into a blood-covered figure over two meters tall.

Zhao Ming covered his mouth, forcing himself not to make a sound.

His senior sister had always protected him.

Only ten steps away from the disheveled cultivator, Chang Fei could no longer stand. She lay on the ground, using one arm to drag herself forward.

She only hoped that her actions would please this strange cultivator and that he would let them go.

*Clap clap clap*

The disheveled cultivator suddenly sat up, clapping and laughing. "You're quite interesting. Your dantian and heart are about to burst from the pressure, yet you keep moving forward. Aren't you afraid of death?"

Chang Fei shook her head. "Senior, we just want to live."

The disheveled cultivator nodded, pulling out a jug of wine and tossing it to Chang Fei. "We cultivators, all we want is to live. I like you. You have decent talent. Let me help you break through to Core Formation."

"Senior, don't joke with us. Breaking through to Core Formation isn't something that can be done so easily."

Now that the pressure was gone, Chang Fei thought the disheveled cultivator was just being eccentric and joking. She took a swig of the wine.

"I may not have many strengths, but teaching people to cultivate is one of them. People call me—Spring Drinking True Lord!"

"Spring Drinking True Lord?"

The name wasn't exactly legendary, but as one of the three rogue True Lords of the Ten Cities Alliance, known for taking a liking to and nurturing promising juniors, his reputation was solid.

Chang Fei suddenly felt that her suffering had finally paid off. Leaving Prayer Immortal Mountain had been the right choice; otherwise, she would never have met the Spring Drinking True Lord.

Chang Fei and Zhao Ming didn't doubt him. Even if he was lying, they had no choice, given his higher cultivation level.

The Spring Drinking True Lord, however, was slightly puzzled. This female cultivator did have some determination, but her talent was lacking, and the male cultivator was even less impressive.

Why had the Deity specifically asked him to come and put on this act for these two junior cultivators?

Were they really worth the Deity's attention?