Chapter 45: Cause and Effect

Amidst the miserable death of that middle-aged cultivator and the echoing shrill screams, the Jin Gang Sect Ancestor, who was searching for Xu Qing in the city, raised his head suddenly.

As a Foundation Establishment cultivator, his five senses were extremely keen. At this moment, hearing the miserable sound from afar, his expression turned gloomy instantly, and he leaped into the air, stepping into the air toward the place where the sound came from.

Although strange beasts existed in the surroundings, he was a Foundation Establishment expert after all. As long as he did not encounter weird existences or a large group of strange beasts, he did not care.

Even if the strange substances were rich, although they had an impact on him, with his cultivation, as long as he did not exceed a month in the forbidden zone, it would not cause too much trouble.

So after determining the direction, this Jin Gang Sect Ancestor roared, using his cultivation power to make his voice travel further.

"Entangle that kid and wait for me!"

During his words, his figure in mid-air exploded in speed. Looking from afar, he was like a meteor whistling, cutting through the sky.

At the same time, at the battlefield just now, the other Jin Gang Sect elder retreated suddenly without hesitation the moment Xu Qing approached.

He heard the Ancestor's roar, but he did not want to die meaninglessly here.

Even if he were punished by the ancestor afterward, he would accept it; the truth was that Xu Qing's malevolent Qi was too heavy, and while his strikes were ruthless, the killing intent in those eyes made him unwilling to take the risk.

So at this moment, his retreating speed was extremely fast, and he even directly used a flight talisman, retreating hundreds of zhang instantly.

Xu Qing narrowed his eyes. He also heard the low roar of the Jin Gang Sect Ancestor coming from very far away, but he did not pause and rushed out suddenly. He was about to use a flight talisman as well, but the next moment his expression changed suddenly, his breathing stagnated, and he turned around without hesitation, speeding in the opposite direction.

And the moment Xu Qing turned around, the Jin Gang Sect elder who flew into mid-air had a horrified expression instantly. He felt a coldness rushing toward his face, and even noticed a huge figure appearing beside him.

That figure had no facial features, only a long hair fluttering, seemingly a woman, and the body under the face was huge, wearing a white long dress.

At this moment, countless faces appeared densely on the white-skirted faceless woman's long dress, and bursts of shrill crying instantly spread to the surroundings. Infinite weirdness permeated the eight directions, and even the moon in the sky turned blood-colored.

Looking from afar, the Jin Gang Sect elder's figure was like an ant in front of the giant, insignificant, and under the crying and gaze of countless faces on the white-skirted faceless woman, this Jin Gang Sect elder's body trembled violently, his expression changed, and he actually started crying along with it slowly.

Yet amidst this crying, his eyes revealed extreme fear, as if his crying was something he could not control.

Until his crying merged with the countless face-crying sounds on the white-skirted faceless woman, indistinguishable from each other, bursts of white aura dissipated from the Jin Gang Sect elder's seven orifices, drilling into the white-skirted faceless woman's body instantly. The next moment...

The Jin Gang Sect elder's body turned directly into a dried corpse, with no aura, falling to the ground.

At the same time, the number of faces on the white-skirted faceless woman increased by one, exactly that Jin Gang Sect elder.

He was expressionless, appearing on the white skirt, emitting a crying sound.

This scene was seen by Xu Qing and also seen by the Jin Gang Sect Ancestor who arrived at this moment. Both of them were shocked.

Xu Qing took a deep breath, suppressed the shock in his heart, accelerated suddenly, and sped toward the city.

It was just that although Xu Qing could leave, the Jin Gang Sect Ancestor who arrived from afar was now numb in his scalp, his body not daring to move.

Because the white-skirted faceless woman was walking toward him.

The Jin Gang Sect Ancestor was very clear that facing such an existence, one could not move rapidly. Otherwise, the outcome would be the same as his own elder. Thus, amidst his horror and anxiety, the white-skirted faceless woman passed by him and gradually moved away.

Until this moment, the Jin Gang Sect Ancestor breathed a sigh of relief, but for some reason, a trace of doubt arose in his heart.

"Encountering this weird existence twice... why do I have a feeling that it seems to be helping that little brat..."

"Evil!" The Jin Gang Sect Ancestor gritted his teeth, looked at the direction Xu Qing went far away, and felt more and more that he must remove the other party. At this moment, he rushed out rapidly, chasing urgently.

In the dark night, various roars came one after another, echoing in every corner of the city. Chewing sounds, crying sounds, and cold laughter permeated the eight directions.

Under the moonlight, one broken wall after another seemed to have become demons, making the weird feeling in the city even stronger.

Xu Qing, who was speeding within it, even though he was already familiar with the roars and weirdness here, still had a pale face, having a feeling of being stared at by countless malicious gazes, and these gazes turned into ice cold, seemingly invading his body.

Until his whole body became colder and colder, Xu Qing passed by the place where he hunted vultures that day. Looking at it, his eyes shrank instantly...

Not far away, beside the abandoned carriage stuck in the silt, the blood-colored doll that should have been hanging on the carriage shaft had changed its position. It was not hanging there but was placed on the carriage, with its back to Xu Qing, unable to see its front.

Xu Qing's scalp tightened, and he left here rapidly.

Not long after, the Jin Gang Sect Ancestor chased to this place. When his gaze scanned the surroundings vigilantly, he saw the carriage and also saw the blood-colored doll sitting on the carriage, facing him.

The eyes embedded in this doll revealed dimness, and the whole body's damp red carried weirdness, looking at the Jin Gang Sect Ancestor gloomily.

The Jin Gang Sect Ancestor's pupils shrank slightly, his heart felt hairy, his footsteps slowed down instantly, and he cautiously left this area step by step. Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief and accelerate again.

But he did not chase or approach too much. He had already realized the evilness of this teenager and at the same time knew that the other party had a means to make the strange substances rich instantly, so he did not intend to approach too closely to strike forcefully, but prepared to stare at the other party with his cultivation and strike to kill after dawn.

Although as a Foundation Establishment cultivator, being so cautious to deal with a Qi Condensation had damaged the Foundation Establishment face, the Jin Gang Sect Ancestor still decided to be steady first in such an environment.

So he slowed down his speed and followed behind unhurriedly.

The Xu Qing in front also noticed this. He had originally simulated counterattack methods in his heart and had also completed the preliminary preparations for shadow control, and the black pills were held in his hands, waiting for the other party to approach.

He was confident that after the other party endured these means of his, although it would not be fatal, it would also be sorry, unable to get away for a short time, and although he would also be seriously injured by the other party, such an escape after serious injury would be more real, not easy to arouse suspicion, and convenient for his next luring plan.

But this Jin Gang Sect Ancestor was clearly Foundation Establishment, yet still so cautious, which made Xu Qing even more vigilant.

However, although the other party did not approach, Xu Qing felt that his luring plan still had to be carried out, so he accelerated his speed and headed straight for the direction of the City Master's Mansion.

Getting closer and closer.

The location of the City Master's Mansion was in the central area of the city. The strange substances here were richer than other places, but the number of strange beasts was unknown why, getting fewer and fewer.

This change made the Jin Gang Sect Ancestor who was chasing behind change his expression slightly, and the sense of crisis in his heart was very strong at this moment.

He looked up at Xu Qing's back in front, then looked at the collapsed building on the side, and his footsteps suddenly paused.

He did not continue to chase but began to retreat.

This scene was unexpected by Xu Qing. At this moment, he was still a hundred zhang away from the City Master's Mansion, and the Jin Gang Sect Ancestor who was chasing behind was actually going to retreat.

"Retreating now, it's still a bit late!" Xu Qing gritted his teeth fiercely, raised his right hand suddenly, and waved it. Instantly, a large number of black pills scattered to the surroundings.

This time, in order to achieve his goal, Xu Qing directly used half of his remaining black pills, which fell to the surroundings and exploded in unison!

Instantly, this place seemed to have turned into a huge vortex, causing the strange substances in the eight directions to surge over, affecting the void, twisting the surroundings, making everything within the range of vision blurry.

The richness of the strange substances reached an astonishing degree.

This scene made the Jin Gang Sect Ancestor's expression change, but it was more of confusion, because Xu Qing's body was also in that area of rich strange substances.

If this continued, not to mention the problem of alienation, just the strange beasts and weirdness attracted by the strange substances would be enough to make Xu Qing, who was within it, die without a burial place. This was equivalent to suicide.

Just as the Jin Gang Sect Ancestor was confused, the City Master's Mansion a hundred zhang away suddenly shook violently, and a series of earth-shattering, terrifying roars that spread to the four directions erupted.

The earth shook, and the blood moon in the sky became blurry.

The Jin Gang Sect Ancestor's expression changed, and the feeling of life-and-death crisis erupted instantly. His pupils shrank, his body retreated rapidly, and he stared fixedly ahead at the figures flying out from a building like the City Master's Mansion!

Those figures were all incomparably thin and dry, but they had black flame wings, and the strange substances on their bodies were astonishingly rich. Wherever they passed, the void seemed to be twisting.

This scene made the Jin Gang Sect Ancestor feel shocked, and what made his face pale and gasp even more was that at this moment, amidst the roar, the City Master's Mansion collapsed suddenly, revealing a huge hole in the ground.

A dry figure with a height of a hundred zhang was crawling out from the hole amidst the roar that shook the sky!

Looking from afar, this figure was thin and long, like a withered tree. The exposed part was a hundred zhang, but at this moment it clearly had not crawled out completely, seemingly only the upper body.

So it waved its arms, and a large number of rotten vines spread from its ten fingers instantly, shooting out toward the surroundings and stabbing into the ground.

The furthest few even stabbed in front of the Jin Gang Sect Ancestor.

Seemingly using this as a support point, that huge withered tree-like figure was accelerating its crawl out.

"What the hell is this thing!!" The Jin Gang Sect Ancestor's heart trembled crazily, and he cursed in horror. His whole person's expression changed unprecedentedly, exploding with full speed, retreating crazily.

But what made him even more crazy in his heart was that he saw those flying wing figures attracted by the strange substances rushing out. After they rushed out from the City Master's Mansion, their target was the area rich in strange substances formed by the kid's unknown means.

But for some reason, these flying wing figures actually crawled out again after rushing into that area, looking around one by one, then locked onto him here and whistled over.

"What is the situation!! Where is the kid!!"

All of this made the Jin Gang Sect Ancestor's eyes widen. Even if his speed was astonishing, he was still caught up quickly. Amidst the roar, the Jin Gang Sect Ancestor was forced to strike, and his Foundation Establishment cultivation had to be fully exploded.

Only then did those flying wing figures rushing over collapse, but weirdly, they recovered instantly and continued to pounce. And in the distance, in the huge hole where the City Master's Mansion was located, that terrifying existence was about to crawl out completely.

The life-and-death crisis made the Jin Gang Sect Ancestor even more crazy in his heart. At this very moment, while he was entangled here, at the edge of the area rich in strange substances ahead, beside a wall, there was a crack in the ground.

At this moment, in this crack, Xu Qing was hiding carefully, looking at the outside world through the gap vigilantly.

He had discovered two safe shelter points in this ruined city by following the traces of birds, one was his stone cave, and the other... was this crack!

This crack was also the place where he had hidden from the strange beasts' pursuit after obtaining the cultivation technique in the City Master's Mansion and being seriously injured in the chest.

It was just that this place was too close to the City Master's Mansion, so Xu Qing did not choose this place as a temporary residence back then.

Under the catastrophe of the divine spirit opening its eyes, all living things could not escape destruction, only birds... for some reason, most of them survived.

At the same time, they seemed to be able to find some locations instinctively. Although not absolutely safe, they were relatively like blind spots, easily ignored by strange beasts and weirdness.

Of course, this was only relative. If there was no Jin Gang Sect Ancestor attracting them here, Xu Qing's approach just now would be seeking death.

Seeing the Jin Gang Sect Ancestor in a sorry state and noticing the huge figure struggling to crawl out of the City Master's Mansion giant pit, Xu Qing also took a breath, but he gritted his teeth fiercely, his body flickered and rushed out, throwing black pills again toward the Jin Gang Sect Ancestor who was being chased in the distance.

He threw more than ten pills in one breath.

The black pills landed and exploded one after another, and the strange substances here were already astonishingly rich. At this moment, as the black pills exploded, it seemed to break through a certain critical point instantly.

Instantly... the malicious gazes that had been gathering on him because Xu Qing left the crack moved away directly, looking at that area where the strange substances were richer. At the same time, in multiple locations in this city, whether it was strange beasts or weirdness, they all paused and looked there in unison.

The next moment, they sped away!

The roar of anger to the extreme came from the Jin Gang Sect Ancestor's mouth. At the same time, Xu Qing did not look back, bent his waist and sped, taking advantage of the opportunity that those strange beasts and weirdness were all attracted by the strange substance area, and escaped at full speed.

The Jin Gang Sect Ancestor also wanted to escape, but those flying wing figures entangled him. Even if he wanted to retreat, he was inevitably delayed. At this moment, amidst anxiety, there was even more worry, and the hatred in his heart for Xu Qing was incomparably strong.

And at this time, Xu Qing's speed on the street in the distance was getting faster and faster. Seeing that he had pulled away from the City Master's Mansion and was about to head toward the city wall, but at this moment... a cold aura rushed toward his face.

In front of him, crying sounds echoed, and the white-skirted faceless woman walked from afar.

At the first glance, the other party was still in the distance, but at the second glance, this weird figure had already appeared in front of Xu Qing.

The speed was so fast that Xu Qing could not dodge at all. At this moment, his breathing was rapid, his pupils shrank, his body was instantly covered by ice cold, and his mind went blank instantly, as if frozen.

And the faceless woman who walked over had countless faces appearing on her body instantly, all crying shrilly. Their crying sounds entered Xu Qing's heart and mind, turning into fluctuations, causing Xu Qing's expression to be affected, changing uncontrollably, and it looked like he was about to cry like those faces.

But at this moment... a part of the faces on the white-skirted faceless woman suddenly stopped crying. They looked at Xu Qing blankly, their expressions gradually changed, and slowly they actually revealed smiles, opening their mouths as if saying something, but no sound came out.

Soon, more and more faces stopped crying, all looking at Xu Qing, one by one revealing smiles, their expressions becoming gentle.

They were all moving their lips, seemingly speaking two words that others could not hear.

Amidst this smile and lip shape, Xu Qing stood there, blankly looking at the many faces on the huge faceless woman in front of him.

Before he could see clearly, the white-skirted faceless woman moved her body away, walked past him, and until she went far away, the crying sound echoed again...

Xu Qing's stiff body also recovered at this moment. He breathed rapidly and turned his head suddenly, staring blankly at the white-skirted faceless woman who was walking further and further away. Her white figure was like a burning fire in this dark night...

Just now, the faces on the other party that revealed smiles... Xu Qing felt very familiar.

Seemingly familiar...

Especially one of them, he remembered, that was the... medicine shop old man he had carried to be cremated to let him rest in peace.

Xu Qing was silent, looking at the figure going far away, faintly understanding something. After a long while, he lowered his head and bowed deeply, muttering softly.

"Thank you."

The smiling faces on the other party just now were also saying these two words.

"Thank you."

This chapter is nearly 5000 words. ===== CHAPTER 46 =====