Chapter 6: City-Wide Manhunt? I

The night was deep, yet Lin Xuan’s small courtyard seemed isolated from the rest of the world.

After pouring all his Slacker Points into his cultivation base, a massive surge of spiritual power, like a hundred rivers returning to the sea, frantically scoured his meridians and dantian. The barrier of the third level of Foundation Establishment shattered instantly, as if made of paper!

Fourth level of Foundation Establishment!

Fifth level of Foundation Establishment!

Sixth level of Foundation Establishment!

In the end, his cultivation base stabilized firmly at the seventh level of Foundation Establishment!

A tyrannical aura, far exceeding what he had before, permeated from his body, causing the surrounding air to distort slightly. If his previous growth was merely an increase in strength, then at this moment, he truly possessed the foundation of a "master."

"Seventh level of Foundation Establishment! Hahaha!" Lin Xuan felt the spiritual power surging through his body like a river and couldn't help but laugh out loud. Even riding a rocket wouldn't be this fast!

However, before he could carefully savor the beauty of his increased power, a sharp, peerless sword intent and a gentle yet vast Buddhist power, like two invisible nets, instantly shrouded the entire Lin family estate and precisely locked onto his small courtyard!

Ye Chen and Liao Chen!

They had realized! And they were making no effort to hide their killing intent or their pursuit!

"Damn it, they’re on me tight!" Lin Xuan’s expression turned solemn. He knew that his "Black and White Inversion" skill might have fooled ordinary people, but it definitely wouldn't fool these two. By now, they had likely reached a consensus to eliminate him, this "scourge," at any cost.

Fight them head-on? That would be suicide. He could barely handle Ye Chen, a Son of Destiny, and adding the unfathomable Buddhist monk Liao Chen meant he had zero chance of winning.

Run! He had to run immediately!

But how to run? Where to run?

[Ding! Emergency mission issued: "The Fugitive’s Live Stream!"]

[Mission Requirements: Escape Qingyun City while being hunted by all the cultivators in the city, and turn the escape process into a piece of "performance art" to continuously attract attention and emotional fluctuations.]

[Mission Reward: Calculated based on the excitement of the escape and the emotional value harvested. Guaranteed reward: Divine Ability "Causal Evasion Technique" (Fragment)!]

Live-streaming an escape? Performance art? System, you really know how to play!

Lin Xuan’s eyes lit up, and a plan so bold it bordered on insanity instantly took shape.

He kicked open his bedroom door, and instead of choosing to climb the wall, he charged straight toward the main gate of the Lin family estate!

By now, quite a few people had gathered at the Lin family gate. Lin Batian and several Elders stood there with grave expressions, clearly alarmed by the commotion outside. Seeing Lin Xuan rush out, Lin Batian’s face turned livid: "Rebellious son! You again..."

"Father! Elders! No time to explain!"

Lin Xuan rushed to the gate, interrupting Lin Batian. He put on a tragic expression, as if he were a hero embarking on a journey from which he would never return, and poured his spiritual power into his voice to ensure half the street could hear him:

"Ye Chen has colluded with that demonic monk Liao Chen to seize our Lin family’s ancestral treasure, and they intend to kill me to silence me! To protect our family, I, Lin Xuan, must leave my home and wander the ends of the earth!"

As soon as he said this, not only were Lin Batian and the others stunned, but even Ye Chen and Liao Chen, who had just arrived nearby to block the gate, nearly stumbled!

Seizing a treasure?! When was this plot added?! When did we ever want to seize your Lin family’s ancestral treasure?!

[Ding! Detected Ye Chen’s secondary frustration and rage, emotional value +1333!]

[Ding! Detected Liao Chen’s speechlessness and the fluctuation of his Buddhist heart, emotional value +999!]

[Ding! Detected the collective bewilderment of Lin Batian and the Elders, emotional value +777!]

"Rebellious son! What nonsense are you spouting!" Lin Batian was both shocked and angry.

"Father! No need to cover for me anymore!" Lin Xuan wore an "I understand" expression and said sorrowfully, "Your son is unfilial. After today, I don't know when I will return! You all... take care!"

After speaking, he actually knelt down before Lin Batian and the Elders and knocked his head against the ground three times!

The movements were crisp, clean, and filled with genuine emotion!

After knocking his head, he jumped up, turned around resolutely, and faced Ye Chen and Liao Chen, who had appeared at the street corner with faces as dark as the bottom of a pot, as well as the growing crowd of onlookers.

He took a deep breath and, with all the strength he could muster, let out a heaven-shaking shout:

"Ye Chen! Liao Chen! You two hypocrites! If you want my life, come and take it!"

"But I tell you! Even if I, Lin Xuan, die, I will die with style! I will let the whole world see your true faces!"

"Folks of Qingyun City! Witness this for me! Today, my 'Super Fugitive Show' begins—now!!"

His voice, like rolling thunder, spread in all directions.

Everyone was dumbfounded.

Super... Fugitive Show?! Live-streaming an escape?! What the hell kind of move is this?!

Under the gaze of countless stunned eyes, Lin Xuan moved!

He didn't scurry away in a panic like a typical fugitive; instead... he pulled out a brass gong he had swiped from somewhere!

"Clang! Clang! Clang!"

While beating the gong, he headed in the opposite direction of Ye Chen and Liao Chen, moving with an extremely bizarre gait—part folk dance, part mysterious ritualistic step—and began to "flee"!

"Everyone, watch closely! Act One: Beating the gong and drums to leave home! The wind blows cold, the river is icy, the hero goes forth and... damn it, he won't return!"

He twisted his body while shouting, his voice carrying a strange sense of rhythm.

Ye Chen and Liao Chen watched this eyesore of a scene, veins popping on their foreheads. Especially Liao Chen; he had cultivated for many years, and his state of mind had long been as still as an ancient well, but at this moment, he felt his solid Buddhist heart actually crack!

"Evil creature! Stop your babbling and bewitching the masses!" Ye Chen could bear it no longer and slashed out with his sword. A thunderous sword aura tore through the sky, heading straight for Lin Xuan.

"Oh my! Dear viewers! The villain is making a move! The first wave of the hunt is here! Watch this—the 'Lazy Donkey Rolling' escape method!"

Lin Xuan shrieked, his body moving as if he had no bones, executing a comical yet perfectly timed "lazy donkey roll" to narrowly dodge the sword aura, all while beating the gong in his hand even louder.

"Clang! Clang! Clang! Brilliant! Exciting! Thanks to old buddy Ye Chen for the sword aura! Everyone, give a round of... oh wait, I mean, keep the emotional value coming!"

[Ding! Detected the collective petrification and sense of absurdity from the audience, emotional value +!]

[Ding! Detected Ye Chen’s boiling killing intent, emotional value +1666!]

[Ding! Detected Liao Chen’s crumbling Buddhist heart, emotional value +1111!]

Lin Xuan was overjoyed. His feet never stopped, and that strange dance combined with his seventh-level Foundation Establishment movement technique made him incredibly fast, weaving flexibly through streets, rooftops, and even laundry poles.

Ye Chen and Liao Chen pursued him relentlessly, their attacks raining down, yet they were always dodged by Lin Xuan in ways that seemed comical but were actually precise to the millimeter.

"Act Two: Street sprinting to show off movement techniques! Watch my 'Swallow Flips'! Hey!"

"Act Three: Rooftop parkour to show off my divine abilities! Pay attention, this young man is called Little Xuan, he performs a 'Cloud-Stepping Leap'... oops, mistake, broke a tile! Sorry, landlord, put it on the Lin family’s tab!"

Lin Xuan didn't just run; he provided his own commentary. He turned the entire escape into a one-man show, treating the streets of Qingyun City as his stage, Ye Chen and Liao Chen as the "villainous supporting actors" performing with him, and the citizens of the city as his live audience!

Everywhere he passed, there was chaos, and he left behind countless onlookers who were stunned and had their worldviews shattered.

"Is... is Young Master Lin crazy?"

"Why do I feel... he’s actually running with style?"

"Although... watching him run away is more interesting than watching a play!"

More and more people were attracted by this unprecedented "fugitive live stream," following along and forming a massive "viewing group," pointing and discussing, while emotional values poured into Lin Xuan’s system like a tide.

Ye Chen and Liao Chen’s expressions grew increasingly ugly. They felt they weren't hunting him, but being played like monkeys! Especially Lin Xuan’s endless stream of trash talk and antics, which severely disrupted their state of mind.

"Master Liao Chen! We cannot let him continue this nonsense! We must end this quickly!" Ye Chen said through gritted teeth.

Liao Chen took a deep breath, suppressed the irritation in his heart, and nodded. A light flashed from the prayer beads in his hand, and an invisible barrier of Buddhist power instantly expanded, attempting to block Lin Xuan’s path forward.

"Oh ho! Dear viewers! The big boss, Master Liao Chen, is using his ultimate move! Area control skill! What do I do? Waiting online, it’s quite urgent!" Lin Xuan shouted about being urgent, but his eyes were exceptionally calm.

His gaze swept across and he saw a tall building ahead... the Drunken Immortal Pavilion!

Got it!

He abruptly changed direction, and instead of dodging, he charged straight toward the Drunken Immortal Pavilion!

As he neared the pavilion, he leaped—not upward, but straight toward an open window on the third floor!

"Act Four: A sharp turn inside the Drunken Immortal Pavilion! Excuse me, everyone, just passing through!"

"Crash!" He smashed through the window and rolled into the pavilion, causing the diners to scream.

Ye Chen and Liao Chen followed closely behind, charging in through the window as well.

However, when they entered the pavilion, they saw Lin Xuan standing next to a table full of food and wine, holding a flagon and taking a massive gulp.

"Good wine!" He exhaled a breath of alcohol, then smashed the flagon onto the floor!

"Snap!"

The flagon shattered.

Lin Xuan pointed at Ye Chen and Liao Chen, who had chased him in, and shouted to the stunned diners and the "viewing group" that had followed him in:

"Everyone! Look! This is what a righteous sect and an enlightened monk look like! Ganging up two-on-one against a Foundation Establishment junior! Is there no justice left! Is there no law!"

"Even if I, Lin Xuan, die, I will splash them with blood... uh, I mean, wine!"

After speaking, he grabbed the plates and bowls from the table and threw them at Ye Chen and Liao Chen like a goddess scattering flowers! Although they had no lethality, the insult was extreme!

Ye Chen and Liao Chen instinctively used their spiritual power to block, getting covered in soup and vegetable scraps. Although they weren't injured, the disheveled appearance made them nearly go insane with rage!

Lin Xuan used the chaos he had created to smash through another window on the other side and jumped out!

Outside was a small alley near the city gate!

"Almost there! Almost at the city gate!" Lin Xuan felt invigorated.

However, at the city gate, the City Lord Zhao Wuji and Li Wanshan were already waiting in full battle array with a team of elite city guards! Clearly, they had received the news and come to intercept him.

Blocked in front, pursued from behind!

The situation seemed to have reached a dead end once again!

But as Lin Xuan looked at the surging Slacker Points on his system panel and the city gate drawing ever closer, he didn't show fear; instead, he revealed an even crazier smile.

"Final Act: Fireworks to bid farewell to Qingyun!"

He pulled out the last "prop" from his robes—a bundle of "Cloud-Piercing Arrows" he had swiped from a weapon shop to use for signaling!

He aimed the arrows at Ye Chen, who was chasing closest, covered in vegetable soup with a ferocious expression, and at Liao Chen, whose Buddhist light was somewhat chaotic behind him, and shouted with his last bit of strength:

"Ye Chen! Liao Chen! The green hills remain, the clear waters flow!"

"I, Lin Xuan, will remember the kindness of today’s hunt!"

"When I return another day, I will repay it a hundredfold!"

"Before I leave, I’ll treat you to a grand display of fireworks!"

After saying this, he yanked the fuse!

"Whoosh—pop!"

A dazzling flare of light shot into the sky, exploding in the night air into a magnificent firework!

At the same time, Lin Xuan poured all his Foundation Establishment seventh-layer spiritual power into his legs, his figure becoming like a phantom, leaping directly over the heads of the battle-ready city guards at a speed that exceeded everyone's expectations!

"Stop him!" Zhao Wuji shouted.

Several attacks struck out, but while Lin Xuan was in mid-air, his body twisted like a swimming fish, narrowly dodging every single one!

"Pfft!"

Although he was not hit directly, the shock of the spiritual power caused him to spit out a small mouthful of blood, which landed right on the city wall, leaving a few crimson spots.

But he had ultimately—charged out of the city gate!

His figure vanished into the darkness outside the city, with only his mocking voice drifting from afar, echoing in the night sky:

"Old buddy Ye Chen! Master Liaochen! Thanks for the support! See you next time on the livestream!!"

At the Chengmenkou, Ye Chen and Liaochen looked at the shattered wine pots and bowls on the ground, looked at the stains on their own clothes, looked at the fireworks that had not yet fully dissipated in the night sky, and listened to the "see you next time on the livestream" still lingering in their ears...

The two stood where they were, their faces turning shades of green and white, their chests heaving violently.

A breath of pent-up frustration clogged their throats, unable to be swallowed or spat out.

"Pfft!"

Liaochen, whose state of mind fluctuated the most, was actually the first to lose control, opening his mouth to spit out a small mouthful of golden blood! His Buddha heart was damaged!

Ye Chen also felt the world go black before his eyes; his Dao heart was tarnished, and he could barely stand steady.

The entire scene was deathly silent.

Only the aftermath of that "death-defying livestream" and the two pursuers who had been "outplayed" and suffered damage to their Dao hearts proved that everything that had just happened was not an illusion.

[Ding! Congratulations to the host for completing the "Livestream on the Run" mission! Escape process rating: S-rank!]

[Reward obtained: Slacker Points! Divine ability "Causal Evasion Technique" (Fragment) has been issued!]

[Ding! Detected that the Son of Destiny Ye Chen's Dao heart is damaged and Liaochen's Buddha heart is wounded; hidden achievement "Damaging Dao Hearts by Slacking Off" achieved. Extra reward: Luck Plunder Talisman (Primary) x1!]

(End of Chapter 6)