Clan Rise: Starting as a Grandfather Chapter 1260 - 823: Golden Thunder Bamboo, Robber Cultivators (2)
Previously on Clan Rise: Starting as a Grandfather...
...
After two days following the auction, Yang Zhenshan and Yu Qingyi prepared to head back to the Sea of Spirit.
Once they gave up their cave dwelling, Yang Zhenshan and Yu Qingyi departed from Lotus Heart Valley.
Of course, they wouldn't take the usual route back to the Sea of Spirit; instead, they intended to go straight to the Spirit Source Land after getting some distance from Lotus Heart Valley.
Upon exiting Lotus Heart Valley, the pair employed Qinggong to dash rapidly across the mountains and woods.
Roughly a hundred miles from Lotus Heart Valley, as Yang Zhenshan considered locating a spot to return to the Spirit Source Land, he abruptly halted.
"What’s wrong?" Yu Qingyi inquired, puzzled by his sudden stop.
"Are we being followed?" Yang Zhenshan furrowed his brow lightly.
Moments earlier, while sweeping the area with his Spiritual Sense, he had surprisingly detected three individuals pursuing them, each radiating the aura of the Foundation Establishment Stage.
"Let’s move!"
Seizing Yu Qingyi’s arm, Yang Zhenshan sped toward the base of a mountain and then disappeared from view.
On the Spiritual Spring Mountain Plateau, Yu Qingyi questioned, "Who might they be?"
"I’m not sure!" Yang Zhenshan replied with a slight shake of his head.
"Perhaps they’re just traveling the same path by chance?" Yu Qingyi proposed.
Yang Zhenshan’s expression darkened somewhat, "No way! They’re clearly tailing us!"
He could vaguely surmise the reason for their pursuit.
Plunderers!
Tales of plunderers abounded in Lotus Heart Valley, where they frequently lurked in the nearby areas.
These plunderers resorted to every dirty trick for cultivation resources: killing, stealing, lying, setting traps—whatever it took.
Even more insidious, they blended in with Immortal Cultivators in the markets, and you’d never suspect they were plunderers, maybe even calling them acquaintances.
If you ventured out exploring or beast-hunting with one, you could easily fall into their ambush.
At times, numerous Loose Cultivators turned into plunderers themselves.
Yet, Yang Zhenshan never imagined he’d become a target, especially not from three Foundation Establishment Cultivators.
Within the Qingli Dynasty, Foundation Establishment Cultivators sat at the pinnacle of power, with scarce numbers beyond the six great Families.
Mobilizing three such experts at once was no simple feat.
This suggested either a deliberate plot from within the Qingli Dynasty against him, or that these three hailed from outside the dynasty as intruders.
Yang Zhenshan favored the second option, since he hadn’t crossed anyone in the Qingli Dynasty or merited such focused attention.
The likeliest scenario was that external plunderers had eyed the White Cloud Commerce auction from the start, and he’d unluckily caught their interest.
"As the proverb warns, flaunting wealth invites trouble; we slipped up this time!" Yang Zhenshan murmured.
Despite years concealed in the Sea of Spirit, bound by limitations at every turn, he’d avoided real dangers, fostering a degree of complacency and reduced vigilance compared to his earlier days.
"Yes!" Yu Qingyi agreed with a nod.
They had truly been negligent, or more accurately, unprepared for any mishaps, thus failing to mask their identities on purpose.
In the meantime, under the mountain where Yang Zhenshan and Yu Qingyi had vanished, three black-robed figures hovered in the sky. Black masks concealed their faces, but their forms revealed them as the sinister man, the seductive woman, and the muscular man who had first set their sights on Yang Zhenshan.
"Boss, where did they go?" The woman surveyed the woods below and asked gravely.
"Beats me!" The sinister man shook his head faintly, his gaze turning serious.
Two people had vanished without a trace right before them, stirring an ominous chill in their hearts.
"This is odd—how do they just vanish? Could they possess a Secret Technique or Magical Treasure that hides them?" The burly man pondered aloud.
After a moment of quiet, the sinister man declared, "Search the area; they have to be nearby!"
Subsequently, the trio proceeded with caution through the forest, scrutinizing every nook and cranny, and periodically probing with their Spiritual Sense.
From within the Spirit Source Land, Yang Zhenshan observed the events outside in silence.
At present, his Spiritual Sense spanned a thousand feet, letting him perceive all within that radius externally, and he could emerge at any point in that zone instantly.
"You head back first; I’ll handle them!" Yang Zhenshan instructed Yu Qingyi while monitoring the exterior.
"Perhaps it’s better to let it slide; we don’t know their tricks!" Yu Qingyi responded, worry lacing her tone.
Yang Zhenshan gave a slight shake of his head, "No fears, I’ll stay alert, and if they overpower me, I’ll pull back right away!"
Clashes with Foundation Establishment Cultivators were unavoidable, and Yang Zhenshan grasped a key principle: true assurance in battle demands real combat experience.
While versed in fights among Martial Artists, he remained largely ignorant of the tactics in Immortal Cultivator duels.
Lacking a few skirmishes, how could he grasp the ways of Immortal Cultivators?
Besides, such fights would reveal his personal shortcomings.
Out there lurked three Foundation Establishment Cultivators, one at Mid-stage, and Yang Zhenshan knew he couldn’t best them all.
Still, backed by the Spirit Source Land, he could maneuver to avoid defeat.
"Fine, take care!" Yu Qingyi urged, her concern evident.
With a subtle nod, Yang Zhenshan’s eyes hardened with cold intent.
For daring to pursue him, they couldn’t fault his merciless response.
Now, the three had split up, hunting for signs of him, creating an ideal chance to attack.
His form blurred as Yang Zhenshan exited the Spirit Source Land, materializing just three feet behind the alluring woman.
Target the weakest first; of the trio, this woman held the lowest cultivation, appearing the simplest to eliminate.
No matter her response, Yang Zhenshan instantly called forth the Green Glow Sword, which morphed into a beam of light hurtling at her.
The instant Yang Zhenshan emerged, the woman snapped into action.
A pale golden barrier sprang up around her, fully encasing her body.
A sharp clang echoed.
The Green Glow Sword, ever invincible before, found itself halted dead by the golden barrier, unable to penetrate.
"Haha, got you!"
The woman chuckled seductively while spinning around, her masked eyes gleaming with derision toward Yang Zhenshan.
Witnessing this, Yang Zhenshan’s eyes sharpened. He flicked his hand, unleashing more than a dozen talismans.
Explosions soon boomed through the sky.
First-order explosive talismans.
These were the sole talismans Yang Zhenshan could produce at the moment; he hadn’t abandoned talisman crafting, but after achieving foundation establishment, he’d poured substantial effort and hours into refining his skills there.
Yet, for now, only these explosive ones lay within his grasp.
While they menaced Martial Artists at the Heavenly Gang Stage greatly, they barely scratched Foundation Establishment Cultivators.
The woman simply swept her hand to scatter the blast’s force, then a subtle light gleamed in her eyes.
Through the blast’s chaos, Yang Zhenshan locked onto the woman’s gaze, and immediately after, a wave of vertigo struck his mind.
Yet this disorientation passed swiftly, his senses sharpening once more.
In contrast, blood began seeping from the woman’s eyes.
"What’s happening?" The woman exclaimed in shock.
In the following instant, she lost command of her mana and plummeted from the sky.
Yang Zhenshan felt a twinge of astonishment, unclear on the cause.
But hesitation was impossible, with the sinister man and burly man already rushing his way.
In a flash of thought, Yang Zhenshan eyed the woman crashing into the foliage, and the Green Glow Sword darted toward her neck.
Whatever plagued her, she was clearly vulnerable.
Seize the moment!
Bereft of mana mastery, the woman’s golden barrier thinned dramatically; the Green Glow Sword shattered it and plunged into her throat in one swift motion.
