Chapter 4264 — Contested
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 3
After all, a pairing like hers and Wei Zhao's—two early-stage Golden Core cultivators whose combined might could rival that of a Nascent Soul expert—was likely one of a kind in all the world, with no other such house to be found. No ordinary Golden Core cultivator could possibly command such heaven-defying means.
"Rival a Nascent Soul expert? That seems a stretch. I'd put it at the peak of the late Golden Core stage, at the very pinnacle of perfection," Wei Zhao said after a moment's thought.
If the infant ginseng truly rivaled a Nascent Soul expert, then the Fury Fire Eight-Trigram Combined Palm the two of them had unleashed together could at most have dealt it a heavy blow—it could never have killed it outright so easily with a single strike.
Even so, this was already quite outrageous. After all, most of those who went to such pains to seek out infant ginseng were Golden Core cultivators, still short one Nascent Soul Condensing Pill as they prepared to condense their Nascent Souls. With strength at the peak of the late Golden Core stage, at the very pinnacle of perfection, coupled with the mist that cut off spiritual sense, it was more than enough to give them considerable grief.
As the two of them were talking, Wei Zhao suddenly noticed that the mist around them was dispersing faster and faster now that he had claimed the infant ginseng for himself. At this rate, it would all clear away in less than half an incense stick's time.
"This is bad—this place is no place to linger. Stay too long and we may draw trouble. We need to leave at once." Suddenly on guard, Wei Zhao made a decisive call, hastily tucking the infant ginseng into his jade pendant while seizing Huang Xiaotao's hand, ready to withdraw.
By now one thing was utterly certain: the mist was the infant ginseng's protective umbrella, and with the infant ginseng dead, the mist was dissipating of its own accord. For Wei Zhao and Huang Xiaotao, now in possession of a priceless treasure, this was hardly good news—because in a sense, the mist had shielded the infant ginseng and, at the same time, shielded the two of them as well.
Now the mist was gone, and the medicinal fragrance of the infant ginseng was so thick. Should any cultivator happen to pass nearby, they would likely be drawn over, and a single glance in this direction would reveal everything. An innocent man is guilty by virtue of the jade he carries—and then trouble would be upon them.
"Mm." Huang Xiaotao nodded again and again, not daring to dawdle. After so many years of trial missions, she was thoroughly clear on such matters, and she followed Wei Zhao at once.
Yet before the two of them had taken more than a few steps, from somewhere far off at an angle above and behind them, there suddenly came a burst of chilling, unearthly laughter. Within a radius of several dozen li, the carrion crows that had gathered were instantly startled into flight, scattering in all directions—a truly hair-raising sight.
Wei Zhao was startled at once, hastily shielding Huang Xiaotao behind him, while secretly regretting in his heart. In the end, the unexpected acquisition of the infant ginseng had made him somewhat carried away. Otherwise, given his usual cautious ways, he would have taken the prize and been gone long ago—why would he still be lingering in this den of trouble with Huang Xiaotao?
Still, aside from being a little overexcited, the mist had not yet fully dispersed at the time. Anyone else would not have been in a hurry to leave either. Wei Zhao's reaction could only be considered normal—at most, he had been a bit careless.
Along with that blood-curdling laughter, a figure abruptly dropped from the sky. Wei Zhao looked up toward the sound, and his heart could not help but clench!