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Chapter 9: Pursuit
When An Lei, the head of the An Family, passed by Taiyi Sect, he admired Meng Zhang and once expressed the intention to recruit him. Although Meng Zhang politely declined An Lei's offer, the magnanimous An Lei did not get angry. Instead, before parting, he gave Meng Zhang a few gifts. One of these gifts was the talisman for the Divine Movement Art, a spell commonly used by Refining Qi stage cultivators for travel, which Meng Zhang, at the mid Refining Qi stage, could also cast. However, being a First Rank superior talisman crafted by a Foundation Building stage expert like An Lei, it possessed far greater power than Meng Zhang's own spell. Turning around and fleeing was not because Meng Zhang was cowardly but because it was currently the most correct choice. When the situation was uncertain, one could not recklessly charge forward to seek death. There were times to act cautiously, and those rash fellows died the quickest. Taiyi Sect was his home ground, with the Sect Protecting Formation to deal with unknown enemies.
After using the talisman for the Divine Movement Art, Meng Zhang's speed was as fast as a galloping horse. With a few leaps, he quickly distanced himself from Li Jie.
At this moment, Li Jie, who was leading the way, finally realized what had happened. He turned around and watched Meng Zhang's rapidly disappearing figure, feeling a bit at a loss.
After a few loud noises, several large pits appeared less than a hundred zhang (1 zhang = 3.3 meters) ahead. Four figures jumped out of the pits and flew towards this direction. Among them was Li Jie's master, Daoist True Spirit.
Arriving next to Li Jie, Zhen Ling (True Spirit) scolded him, "You're truly useless, unable to handle such a small matter."
Then, he turned to a middle-aged man beside him and said, "Boss Zhang, that kid escaped. What should we do?"
The middle-aged man had blown an unusually clear whistle when he jumped out of the pit earlier. Now, he disdainfully said, "Your Taiyi Sect is nothing more than a tiny sect, and your Sect Protecting Formation is nothing more than an empty shell. Even if we forcibly attack, it would only cost a little effort to break it."
The middle-aged man's appearance displeased a heavily scarred man beside him, who kept complaining, "I said it long ago, there's no need for so much trouble. The three of us brothers could have just charged at the garbage sect's gate and crushed that kid. It would have been a done deal."
"It's all because Zhen Ling (True Spirit) had to be clever and lure that kid out to kill him outside."
"Truly, it's like taking off one's pants to fart, utterly unnecessary."
"After being buried in the ground for so long, I'm really bored."
A younger, refined man beside them said, "Second Brother, don't worry, that kid won't get away. He may be slippery and fast, but in front of the three of us, he won't have a chance to escape back to his nest."
The three men accompanying Daoist True Spirit were the notorious bandits, Zhang Brothers, well-known in the nearby region. They never used their real names and addressed each other as Eldest Brother, Second Brother, and Third Brother. Outsiders referred to them by adding their surname before the rank.
These three loose cultivators were notorious for robbery, not only robbing other loose cultivators they encountered but even attacking some cultivation families and sects. Moreover, they also accepted hire and did various dirty work.
Zhen Ling (True Spirit) had crossed paths with Zhang Brothers a long time ago.
Ever since the envoy from Twin Success Valley brought Elder Profound Spirit's last words and supported Meng Zhang as the new Sect Master of Taiyi Sect, Zhen Ling (True Spirit) had made two plans. On one hand, it would be best if he could make Meng Zhang willingly give up the position of Sect Master. On the other hand, if Meng Zhang insisted on holding onto the position, Zhen Ling (True Spirit) would not be polite. He sent his disciple, Li Jie, to contact the notorious bandit Zhang Brothers through an intermediary and prepare to take Meng Zhang's life.
Although Zhen Ling (True Spirit) had a Refining Qi stage fifth level Cultivation Base, which was slightly higher than Meng Zhang's, he had witnessed Meng Zhang's strength in action and was not confident in defeating him. Thus, he resorted to spending many years' worth of spirit stones to hire assassins.
However, when Zhen Ling (True Spirit) met Zhang Brothers, he somewhat regretted it. Not because he suddenly had a moral conscience, but because he noticed that Zhang Brothers had significantly improved their Cultivation Bases during the many years they hadn't seen each other. Boss Zhang had reached Refining Qi stage seventh level, entering the Refining Qi late stage, while Zhang Second and Zhang Third both had Refining Qi stage sixth level Cultivation Bases. With Zhen Ling (True Spirit)'s Refining Qi stage fifth level Cultivation Base, he couldn't possibly suppress these three brothers.
Though Zhang Brothers had a decent reputation and no rumors of betraying their employers had spread, Zhen Ling (True Spirit) couldn't trust them completely. If these three brothers were allowed to enter Taiyi Sect and their greed was sparked, they might use the opportunity to plunder the sect.
Zhen Ling (True Spirit) had planned to use his disciple, Li Jie, to lure Meng Zhang out and kill him. Unfortunately, a flaw somewhere exposed his scheme, and Meng Zhang realized something was amiss. This kid acted decisively without any hesitation. When he sensed something was wrong, he immediately fled. Zhen Ling (True Spirit) thought with a hint of viciousness.
At this moment, three exceptionally spirited high-headed horses ran over from afar in response to Boss Zhang's whistle. In the blink of an eye, these three horses had covered the distant distance and arrived not far from Zhang Brothers.
These three horses were no ordinary mortal horses but First Rank superior magical beasts, Wind Chasing Horses. In terms of combat power, Wind Chasing Horses were even more formidable than many First Rank middle-grade magical beasts. Regarding running speed, Wind Chasing Horses were not inferior to ordinary Foundation Building stage experts.
Refining Qi stage cultivators did not have the ability to fly and, at most, could only display the Floating Art.
With these three Wind Chasing Horses, Zhang Brothers gained powerful maneuverability and could move with the wind.
Having committed crimes for many years, Zhang Brothers had remained at large, and these three Wind Chasing Horses had played a crucial role.
Seeing the Wind Chasing Horses approach, Zhang Brothers didn't waste time talking to Zhen Ling (True Spirit) and immediately mounted their horses, pursuing Meng Zhang in the direction he had fled.
Although they started later than Meng Zhang, the Wind Chasing Horses lived up to their name, quickly closing the distance between them and Meng Zhang, despite him using the talisman for the Divine Movement Art.
The Cultivation World's so-called "Mountain Gate" was just a habitual term for the sect's resident site and didn't mean that all sects had to be built on mountains. Similarly, the term "Cave Residence" didn't require actual caves; cultivators were not cave-dwelling people on mountaintops. Moreover, how could they dig caves on a plain? Were they going to be like mice digging holes?
Taiyi Sect's resident site was located on the desert plain, surrounded by an empty and boundless landscape.
The vast plain was an ideal place for the Wind Chasing Horses to display their abilities.
In the blink of an eye, the three Wind Chasing Horses caught up to Meng Zhang, making it impossible for him to shake them off.
If this trend continued, it would be impossible for Meng Zhang to escape into Taiyi Sect's resident site before being caught up to.
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