Chapter 143: The Hunt Begins

A burst of smug laughter rang out, and Zhan Xiao only then came to his senses. The scene just now where the strange fire devoured wind and waves, enlarging its body, reappeared before his eyes; this seemingly fragile light‑shadow palm seal is probably just as powerful.

His mind tightened, and without thinking he sidestepped and leapt forward. At the same time his wrist twitched sharply, hurling a fist‑sized azure sphere that roared toward the gaping mouth in the palm shadow.

"Since you enjoy it so much, I'll give you this Azure Sha Yin Thunder Pearl!"

A streak of azure afterglow suddenly rose, instantly turning into a thunder‑net light sphere that enveloped the palm shadow. A crackling barrage of thunderclap erupted, turning the void into a realm of lightning and fire.

Wang Wu and the others were stunned, having thought Zhan Xiao's reckless move had only amplified the monster's power. Unexpectedly, at the crucial moment the opponent tossed the Azure Sha Yin Thunder Pearl—a one‑time fourth‑tier mysterious artifact; even a Kaiyuan Realm Martial King struck head‑on would risk his life.

"Is this monster dead?"

Nie Xing stared dumbfounded; although this demon hand can absorb vital Qi and fierce energy, it must have limits, otherwise the four of them wouldn't have survived this long. The Azure Sha Yin Thunder Pearl is renowned; perhaps it can slay the creature.

"Jie jie! You infuriate me, you human brat; when I recover, I'll make you die a terrible death!"

The electric fire and lightning faded, and the ground there erupted into a massive pit about ten zhang in radius; a wisp of blood‑tinged aura drifted slowly, its twisted flux vaguely revealing a hazy palm shadow.

Zhan Xiao's complexion changed, unable to conceal his shock: "How is this possible? I obtained that thunder pearl at great cost; even a Kaiyuan Realm Martial King would struggle to block it. What is this monster's origin?"

Wang Yicai and his three companions also turned pale, especially the frontline fighter Li Qingshan, whose brows knit tightly as he urged: "Forget that, come quickly, I need your true Qi. With the power of my Sacred Temple's Radiant Sunlight, I can subdue this monster!"

Before he could finish speaking, Zhan Xiao couldn't help but step forward. At that moment, Wang Wu let out a loud shout, leapt up, and lunged at the Demon Shadow Mist Hand.

"Beast, meet your death!"

She brandished an ice ring, twirling it as shards of ice suddenly solidified; amid flickering light and shadow, a burst of cold glare erupted, chilling the air. Though she knew the beast could devour vigor and turn it to her own, she recklessly ignored this, leaving Wang Yicai and the others aghast.

"Seeking death, huh? Fine! It'll settle everything— the Wang family doesn't need two heavenly beauties!"

Wang Ruolan snorted coldly, a hint of excitement flickering within.

But before she finished speaking, the Demon Shadow Mist Hand let out a panicked scream and fled in disarray.

"Damned! How did you figure it out—did that Lu boy tell you? Wait, when I regain my strength I'll slice you to pieces, ensuring you never reincarnate!"

At such a moment, the Demon Shadow Mist Hand possessed by a Wild Beast still had time to hurl cruel words. Yet its frantic retreat already revealed its poor condition—it was extremely weak.

"Hmph! Pretending to be a deity, you're no different from that Lu Fan boy!"

Wang Wu halted, barked coldly, then flicked her wrist in a flip, sending the whirling ice shards spiraling down. With a "shhh" of shattering, they sliced the air, plunging straight into the ground, turning the area of dozens of zhang into frozen tundra.

"How is this possible? How did the monster escape so easily!"

Li Qingshan saw the scene and couldn't help shouting in shock. The others wore equally astonished faces, all turning to Wang Wu, awaiting her reply.

But Wang Wu merely snorted, cast a sideways glance at Zhan Xiao, then walked slowly away, disappearing into a dense forest.

Zhan Xiao was slightly startled, then realized, and bowed his fist to Wang Yicai and the three others, quickly stepping to catch up.

The skirmish here was merely a fragment of the Wild Beast's rampage. On the opposite side of the sea of fire, a small team of about ten people stared excitedly at the demonic flame, their leader—a burly man in a deep‑red cloak—cackling:

"Beast Fire! This must be Beast Fire! It seems the beast tide of the past two days has spawned a powerful fire‑type demon beast; with this momentum, it's likely at the fourth‑tier pinnacle, just one step away from reaching the fifth‑tier Beast King realm!"

"Chi Laoda, could this demon beast already have entered the Kaiyuan Realm? Otherwise why so brazen? Openly burning the forest—aren't they afraid of attracting other beasts for retaliation?"

A slender young man asked cautiously, and several people narrowed their focus, appearing somewhat worried.

"Impossible? If the demon beast has advanced to the fifth‑tier Kaiyuan Realm, its spiritual intelligence would be comparable to human warriors, and it wouldn't act so recklessly. This beast surely gained much during the beast tide, its power soaring, but it's hard to control, which is why it burned this primeval forest!"

Chi Laoda flatly denied it, swearing his certainty. The others seemed to readily accept him, all nodding in agreement.

At that moment, a gloomy, strange laugh rang out.

"Gahaha! No need to tread countless miles; it came effortlessly. You youngsters have decent strength; I'll take you!"

A misty, vague flame suddenly surged from the sea of fire, its momentum swelling into a massive flame palm shadow that slammed forward.

Chi Laoda was briefly startled, then a look of delight crossed his face as he shouted, "The demon beast is coming, form a formation!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, the group behind stepped forward, their true Qi rippling, instantly coalescing into a burst of light and shadow that poured directly into Chi Laoda's back.

Empowered by the true Qi behind him, Chi Laoda's figure suddenly swelled threefold; his deep‑red cloak flared like fire in the wind, transforming into streams of flame‑light that burst outward.

"Hmph! Daring to play with fire before me, you're courting death!"

The flame palm shadow flipped and crashed down, spewing tongues of fire that coiled around the flame‑light, swirling and condensing into numerous Wild Fire Seal Techniques. Though inferior to the earlier Wild Fire True Seal, they were countless.

"Gahaha! Of all the powers in the world, I still favor fire energy the most. You youngsters are to my taste; I'll grant you a destiny—merge with me!"

A harsh, sinister laugh rang out, and the Wild Fire Seal Techniques seemed to gain sentience, racing along the flame‑light and, in a flash, arriving before Chi Laoda.

"This can't be!"

Chi Laoda turned pale with shock; he felt the overwhelming devouring force emanating from those bizarre seals. His blood surged, true Qi boiled, beyond his control.

"Ah—"

A scream rang out; he couldn't react as a seal slammed into him. His scarlet cloak ignited instantly, a raging blaze that in an instant engulfed him.

The others were horrified; they hadn't expected their pillar, Chi Laoda, to be devoured so easily by Beast Fire, leaving them defenseless. In an instant they scattered like startled birds, fleeing in panic.

"Now you think of leaving, but it's too late!"

The Wild Beast let out a howl; the five fingers of the flame palm shadow trembled in unison, turning into five tentacles that writhed, turning the surroundings into a fiery demonic realm.

Cries of agony rang out; within moments, the dozens of people were all slain.

"Pleasant! Truly pleasant!"

The flame palm shadow slowly condensed, finally forming a severed hand about a yard long, its blood‑tinged aura steaming, violet malice coiling, and on its finger a distinct seal‑shaped ring.

"The hunt has begun; if I devour two or three more times with such relish, even without a crystal furnace, that Lu boy will never be my opponent again!"

A deep groove split the palm of the severed hand, from which a blood‑red tongue protruded, licking slightly, then vanished as its aura concealed, slipping away.

In the following days, rumors spread throughout the secret realm that a severed hand bearing a bizarre demonic aura was devouring human cultivators and even demon beasts, causing widespread panic. Those who had come for the trial were all young talents—skilled and daring, with formidable strength. Yet no one dared be careless; they moved in groups of three to five, or hid by day and moved by night, proceeding cautiously.

Above a waterfall, Nalan Qiusha stood on the emerald surface, freezing the void. A black veil covered her face, hiding her true features, but her clear eyes gazed across the four directions, showing a hint of worry.

"Miss Nalan, you've stayed so long; you seem uneasy!"

Beneath layers of water curtain, a bright laugh rang out. Sound waves shot into the void, its aura radiant.

"Hmph! Lu Fan, you've found a good spot. Hiding here for so long—do you know the entire secret realm is in chaos because of you!"

Nalan Qiusha barked, flicking a single hand; a water arrow shot out, striking the empty void beside her, exploding inexplicably, and Lu Fan's silhouette slowly materialized.

He wore a martial robe, smiling; though his complexion still bore a hint of pallor, the silver‑glowing sigil that had flashed days ago had already vanished.

"Oh? I've been plagued by a cursed seal these past few days, haven't had time to stir up wind and waves; Miss Nalan, your words seem a bit insincere, don't they?"

He gave a faint smile, his expression nonchalant, and as he spoke there was a slight hint of self‑mockery; truly, his humility and low profile were taken to the extreme.

Nalan Qiusha's face tightened, and she coldly stared at Lu Fan, saying bluntly, "Hmph! You're courting death by spying on my secret. Consider this a warning: if you dare act that way again, I'll make you pay!"

She had intended to make her words harsher, but when she thought of her own methods being evenly matched, she realized she held no advantage. Even after great effort to track him down, the opponent had already refined the cursed seal's power completely, leaving her helpless.

"Heh heh! Miss Nalan does know how to joke!" Lu Fan smiled faintly, his expression slightly odd, "When Wan Li appeared that day, I was also helpless; I never intended to slight you, so please forgive me, Miss."

As soon as his words ended, Nalan Qiusha erupted in fury. That day she was bathing in a sacred place, and Lu Fan spied on her—utterly shameless. He then brazenly clamped her and vanished into the underground rock and earth.

She was as embarrassed as could be and didn't want to bring it up, not even think of it. Yet Lu Fan deliberately mentioned the very thing she wished to avoid, doing so out of spite, utterly detestable.

"Lu Fan, you're courting death!"

She swirled her sleeves and robe, her jade‑colored mouth slightly opened, and the incantation technique sprang forth. Around her, water waves churned and inexplicably converged, forging arrows that seemed about to pierce Lu Fan to pieces.

"These river waterfalls can indeed amplify your incantation technique's power, but alone they are of little use to me!"

Lu Fan furrowed his brows, waved a single hand, and a grain of the Earth's Mysterious Treasure shot out. Yellow light billowed, primal Qi surged. The surrounding water‑arrow currents suddenly waned in force without warning.

"Earth's Mysterious Treasure, I admit… you're formidable!"

Nalan Qiusha's expression changed at the sight. Earth overcomes water; her incantation technique here could not match Lu Fan's, so she could only concede.

"From what you just said, the secret realm hasn't been at peace these past days! Did the surviving demonic beasts after the Beast Tide start ravaging? Or is something else strange happening?"

Lu Fan casually flipped his hand, gathered the Earth Mysterious Pearl, and asked calmly, unhurriedly.

"Lu Fan, when you killed Lei Di of the Yinsha Sect, do you still have that Yinsha Nether Hammer on you? I want to trade you a treasure for it!"