The wind and waves here rarely ceased throughout the year.
Not a single tall ancient tree grew on the island, and even shrubs were scarce. Moss or algae—it was hard to say which—crawled thick over the rocks in shades of dark green and jet black, casting the entire island in a dim, desolate gloom.
There was nothing overtly remarkable about the barren isle.
Qin Sang flew toward the island right behind Bi Fang. Sweeping his gaze across it from a distance, he found no traces of spiritual formations or restrictions.
It was hard to imagine what kind of treasure could possibly be hidden here.
*It would make a fine place to slip away after seizing the prize, though...*
Surveying the waters around the island, Qin Sang mused to himself.
Based on his past experience, this was very close to the Storm Belt. As long as he plunged deep into the Storm Belt, his rivals would fear losing their way and surely wouldn't dare pursue him with reckless abandon.
***
Down on the deserted island.
Master Feng had no choice but to spread his divine sense, searching aimlessly.
Guided by the Rainbow Rat, however, the Demon Kings effortlessly pinpointed where the Xuantian Palace traitor was hiding.
*Whoosh! Whoosh!*
The Demon Kings laid a smokescreen, feigning a total lack of interest in the island. But just as Master Feng and the others were gripped by doubt and confusion, the demons' escape lights suddenly snapped at an angle. With lightning speed, they lunged toward a stretch of rocky hills in the northern part of the island!
The hills bristled with jagged, grotesque stones completely exposed to the elements. Several ridges could be made out, yet their contours were chaotic and difficult to discern.
Their target appeared to be a deep valley nestled among the rocky hills.
Jagged rocks jutted out from the cliffs flanking both sides like overlapping fangs, virtually covering the valley's entrance. The interior was pitch-black, dark enough that one could not see one's own hand before one's face.
Seeing this, Master Feng realized that the Xuantian Palace traitor was hiding inside that very valley.
He let out a vexed snort. He had swept his divine sense through that area just moments ago and hadn't sensed the slightest anomaly. No wonder the traitor had managed to flee for so long; the fellow certainly had some tricks up his sleeve.
Without hesitation, Master Feng blurred and transformed into a wisp of green smoke, lunging toward the deep valley at even greater speed.
Unexpectedly, the Demon Kings in midair suddenly split their forces.
The frog-fish and the little fox kept to their original heading, one leading the other.
The eagle demon and the green snake demon wheeled their escape lights around to intercept Master Feng.
Just then, the Rainbow Rat leaped off the eagle demon's back, pulling out of the battlefield ahead of time.
Still in a weakened state, it dared not join the fray.
Battlefields were chaotic and blind. With the prize practically within their grasp, getting injured or killed now was simply not worth it.
Yet the Rainbow Rat's plump little body proved astonishingly agile. Landing lightly upon the ground, its beady, pea-sized eyes darted around, sweeping across the battlefield before it twisted its body and darted into a rock crevice, vanishing from sight.
"Get lost!"
Confronted by the two Demon Kings barring his path, Master Feng showed no fear. His furious roar rolled like thunder, brimming with domineering power!
Displeased by Master Feng's arrogance, the green snake demon let out a crisp hiss. With a gentle sway of her slender waist, her form suddenly ballooned.
In an instant, she transformed into a colossal serpent hundreds of feet long. Her dragon-like bulk cast a massive shadow over the ground. Her upper body reared high into the air, cold eyes looking down at Master Feng. Her vertical pupils flared with two sword-like beams of green light, while her tail lashed out with a sudden snap, whipping toward Master Feng wrapped in a howling hurricane.
The eagle demon was just as swift.
Its wings spread wide like dark clouds draping the sky, and its talons curved like hooks, gleaming with a chilling light sharper than any blade.
Without question, anyone caught by that pair of talons would be disemboweled on the spot.
The two great demons were exceptionally fierce, fighting in seamless coordination.
Together, they aimed to tear Master Feng apart!
Compared to them, Master Feng's figure seemed remarkably frail.
Yet to everyone's surprise, Master Feng acted as if he had not seen their assault at all. His body remained like smoke, his speed never faltering in the slightest.
*Rip!*
The talons were swift as lightning, easily shredding the green smoke.
Surprised by how easily the blow landed, the eagle demon barely had time to let a flicker of triumph cross its eyes before freezing.
An astonishing scene unfolded.
Having drifted through the gaps between the talons, the green smoke snapped back together in an instant—and Master Feng was entirely unscathed!
Yet the danger had not yet passed.
*Boom!*
The snake's tail came crashing down right behind, plowing a deep trench into the earth and sending shattered rocks flying in all directions.
The green smoke suddenly drifted upward.
In that split second, Master Feng not only brushed past the tail, but a flare of green light erupted from him, faintly revealing the phantom of an ancient mirror that reflected the green snake's two pupil beams right back at her.
The green snake jerked her head away in a frenzy, slamming her body against a hillside and crushing countless boulders.
The peak shuddered.
A shrill shriek mingled with the deafening roar.
Even so, she failed to dodge completely. Her screech turned bloodcurdling as blood trickled from both of her eyes—a clear sign of severe backlash.
Still, such an attack could not inflict fundamental damage on a Demon King.
The green snake rallied at once, but by the time she tried to block Master Feng again, it was already too late.
It all occurred in the blink of an eye.
In a single breath, Master Feng had swept through like an eagle striking from the sky, slipping past the blockade of two great Demon Kings with ease. Such supreme skill and bizarre escape art left everyone dumbfounded.
The two Demon Kings exchanged glances, the same question rising in their minds: *What kind of escape technique is that?*
It seemed somewhat like Wind Escape, yet not entirely identical.
Wind Escape was famed alongside Thunder Escape. Though not quite as blindingly fast as Thunder Escape, it was unmatched in nimbleness and unpredictability. Master Feng's technique already bore some of the refined essence of Wind Escape; even if it was not true Wind Escape, it was undeniably a top-tier divine ability.
***
Meanwhile.
In their chase, Qin Sang and Bi Fang arrived over the deserted island.
Without a word passing between them, the Demon Kings somehow coordinated their moves.
The eagle and snake demons made a swift decision, abandoning Master Feng to converge on Island Master Shen and the other two cultivators following behind him.
Though there were only two demons facing three human Nascent Soul cultivators of the same realm, holding them back for a short time was well within their power. Not everyone possessed an escape art as bizarre as Master Feng's.
As for Bi Fang, it ignored that battlefield entirely. Its fierce eyes locked onto Master Feng, and it dove downward, transforming into a streak of bloody light!
"Fellow Daoist Mingyue, stop it quickly!"
As Qin Sang arrived right on its heels, Madam Yue's urgent cry rang in his ear.
Master Feng could toy with the eagle and snake demons whose cultivations were lower than his, but facing his old rival Bi Fang, slipping away so easily would be out of the question.
The Xuantian Palace traitor was grievously wounded.
As long as Bi Fang pinned Master Feng down for just a few moments, the frog-fish and the little fox would be able to kill the traitor and claim the treasure.
By then, all would be lost!
Qin Sang glanced toward the deep valley and said coldly, "Madam Yue, are you still unwilling to tell me the truth?"
"It's..."
Madam Yue was just about to offer her prepared excuses.
Right then, a sudden change erupted within the deep valley!
A freezing gale billowed out from the abyss.
Snow began to drift from the sky.
In an instant, bone-chilling cold spread across the surrounding peaks, cloaking the dark stone in a thin sheet of white frost.
Wind and snow howled.
A white-robed man flew out from the depths of the valley, appearing before everyone's eyes.
He was exceptionally handsome, bearing an otherworldly air. His cultivation was laid bare without disguise—he, too, was a Nascent Soul cultivator.
His face was drained of all color, his skin nearly translucent, as though his very flesh and blood were carved from mystic ice.
He plainly exuded weakness, a facade of strength hiding inner exhaustion.
Yet strangely enough, in everyone's perception, his aura remained formidable, hardly looking like someone who was supposedly on the brink of collapse from grievous wounds.
Chapter 1386