Chapter 387: Pursuing to the Mountainside, A Sudden Attack

Long Qi had already been chasing for three or four li, but that person seemed to be toying with him; if the distance between the two grew slightly, he would even stand there and wait for him a while.

Looking at it this way, it really did have a bit of Lingxiang's style of doing things, but Long Qi was very certain that the person in front was absolutely not Lingxiang.

Although that person's figure was similar to Lingxiang's, Lingxiang's shoulders would be much thinner; this person, while not sturdy, was broader and thicker than Lingxiang.

Even though they had not met for three years, in these three years, Long Qi had thought of her day and night, and even a single strand of Lingxiang's hair was deeply carved into his heart, so how could he misidentify someone else?

The trees on the mountain were lush; even though Long Qi dodged carefully, the branches still scratched several thin marks onto his face. Although they stung faintly, Long Qi did not care at all, only staring fixedly at the black shadow in front, fearing that a single lapse in attention would lead to losing the trail.

Although it was not Lingxiang, this person must certainly have an inseparable connection to Lingxiang; catching this person would allow him to ask for Lingxiang's whereabouts.

Or rather, it would be finding the path to go seek Lingxiang...

Three years ago, Lingxiang was taken to the Demon Realm, but the Demon Realm was located in the Netherworld, and the living simply could not step foot there at will; even if the Ghost Gate opened wide on the day of the Central Plains, wanting to enter the Guiyu was a matter of luck, not to mention that at that time, lonely ghosts and wild spirits were everywhere, and one would have their soul hooked away if they were the least bit careless.

Furthermore, even if one overcame all difficulties and entered the Netherworld, the Netherworld was so vast that he, a mortal, where would he go to find the capital of the Demon Race?

Since the person in front was related to Lingxiang, he figured they must be able to lead the way, so the most urgent matter right now was to catch them!

Long Qi settled his thoughts, held his breath, and intensified the footwork beneath him.

Ever since he had taken the Hanyu Pill, the Qi in his body had been stagnant; let alone the Cloud Treading Step, even ordinary light-body techniques were extremely strenuous to use. Fortunately, there was a move in the Dragon Chasing Sword Technique called Soaring Dragon Generates Wind; although it was a sword-wielding footwork and could not be considered a true light-body technique, its footwork transitions and the power generated underfoot during kicks and steps could still be used for pursuit.

Modifying the use of Soaring Dragon Generates Wind slightly could be considered a way to cope with the current situation, but always chasing like this was not a solution; he had to think of a way to make the person in front stop.

Long Qi was now able to perform some Witchcraft, but the distance was quite far, and he feared he could not reach that person; he also had no hidden weapons or the like on him, which troubled him for a moment.

He blamed himself! If he had been able to settle his heart and study the Talisman Method with Lingxiang back then, he would not have ended up in such a passive position today!

Long Qi regretted his past actions, but it was to no avail; he could only try his best to keep up with the person in black.

Fortunately, not long after, the person in black stopped, but Long Qi did not rush to catch up, instead hiding behind a tree to observe.

This place was located halfway up the mountain, and the surrounding trees were sparse, making it much more open compared to the path they had traveled. Further away, one could see a Taoist temple; seven or eight of the walls outside the temple had collapsed, and one could vaguely see weeds growing in the temple, looking very dilapidated.

Looking at the person in black again, there was only a back view; they stood with hands behind their back, motionless, as if waiting for something. Long Qi deliberated for a moment and decided not to hide anymore, walking toward the open space as well.

Although he did not know what purpose this person had, judging by how they had deliberately waited for him on the road just now, it was clear they were targeting him. Moreover, he had followed very closely the whole way; it was impossible for this person not to know he was nearby, so hiding like this was truly meaningless.

Even though Long Qi's footsteps were rustling, that person did not turn around. Long Qi could not help but feel a bit nervous, but his feet did not stop.

"I fear you led me here on purpose; having gone to such trouble, what is it all for?"

Although Long Qi's heart was tied to Lingxiang, clarifying the visitor's purpose first was the best strategy for now.

That person acted as if they hadn't heard Long Qi speak, standing in place without answering. Long Qi frowned: Could they be a deaf person?

Just at this moment, that person turned around abruptly and struck a palm toward Long Qi; the palm wind was fierce, and one look at the force showed it was not small. Fortunately, Long Qi was prepared; just as that person turned around, he took a step back and raised his hand to throw a punch.

Fist and palm collided, and the airflow around the two immediately scattered, carrying fallen leaves and gravel, with dust flying everywhere.

Long Qi had used seventy percent of his strength in this punch, but he did not expect it to only be on par with this person in black; his brow furrowed tighter, and he gathered his full attention.

Fist and palm stood in opposition, as if competing to see whose strength was greater; the two were evenly matched, and neither retreated. The scattered dust had already settled, but neither had any intention of withdrawing their force.

A moment later, the person in black actually began to form finger seals with their left hand, the complexity of which Long Qi could not even identify as any kind of Witchcraft.

Forming seals and chanting incantations were methods to invoke spells, but those with profound cultivation could discard these; although it would reduce the potential of the spell, it was also a convenient method. It was said that those even more profound could even achieve "words following the law," but now that the spirit veins were waning, it was not to say they didn't exist, but such great experts rarely appeared in the world, so it was very difficult to see one.

Among the Yuanqing Elders, the four Elders—Shangqing, Qianyuan, Chengxin, and Donghui—were indeed capable of this, and even Zhaoming Zhenren, even if he discarded the chanting, still could not do without forming finger seals.

And as for forming seals with one hand, in Long Qi's impression, he had only ever seen Lingxiang do it, and many times, Lingxiang's Witchcraft and Talisman Method were also different from what was recorded in the books of the Langhuan Pavilion. According to Lingxiang, she was simply too lazy to raise both hands, but Long Qi felt that it was Lingxiang's own unique path of cultivation.

The difficulty of forming seals with one hand was much greater than with two, as one had to form the hand seals of two hands with just one to successfully cast the spell. The reason Lingxiang could form seals with one hand was that she had removed some of the hand seals, simplifying the complex finger seals, just like her Sound Transmission Talisman, which looked slightly different from those in the "Talisman Theory," yet was more effective than what was in the book.

Since the person before him could also form seals with one hand, it was hard not to associate them with Lingxiang; after all, only Lingxiang would have nothing better to do than study which hand seals could be removed from those spells.

For the same spell's hand seals, if one were slightly careless and missed one link, not to mention whether it would be effective, it might even end up being vastly different from the original.

"What exactly is your relationship with Lingxiang?!"

Long Qi asked urgently, but just at this moment, a tremendous force suddenly pressed down upon him, as if he were carrying a mountain on his back, pressing his limbs and bones into excruciating pain; yet even so, Long Qi did not dare to withdraw his force.

In a contest of strength between two, without a good opportunity, the side that withdraws force first is most easily injured, and right now Long Qi was suppressed by the person in black's Witchcraft and could not easily withdraw his force.

Forget it! Treat a dead horse as a living horse doctor!

Long Qi raised his hand with difficulty and laboriously untied the cloth strips on his chest. The moment the cloth strips fell away, he turned around abruptly, dodging the person in black's palm force, and then instantly caught the falling Seven-Star Longyuan.

Having followed Wuji in cultivation for several years, every move and style of the four Sword Manuals was already deeply ingrained in his heart, but hindered by the shackles of the Hanyu Pill in his body, Longyuan was still slightly strenuous to use.

However, it was more than enough to deal with the current situation.

Long Qi used the sword to support himself on the ground and performed a somersault, then used the momentum of his body swinging to slash the sword toward the person in black.

Longyuan carried the sword wind, and just as it was about to slash to the face, the person in black showed no panic, gathering Spirit at their fingers and using their finger as a sword, easily catching the sword momentum of Longyuan.

It really is Lotus Heart Sword Intent!

Long Qi's star-like eyes widened:

"Who exactly are you?!"