Chapter 69: Chase To Kill (Two)
"Two to follow, one to hold post? They're going to continue monitoring my abode?" Xu Yangyi laughed grimly. Since the other party was relying on scent to track and initializing target verification, they had long ceased to think of such things like the position of hunter and prey.
The strength of such people was pretty good, but even more important was that their escape was extraordinarily swift! Like an aborigine in a tropical forest blowing a poisonous dart at you, the farther your eye traversed, you simply wouldn't know where they were. This was on account that the other party had already hid in some other camouflage at the present.
Mumbling to himself for a bit, he walked towards the other party's concealment on the commercial building. On the building, two men who were half-lying down and whose hands seemed to have suctions came to sudden stop.
The two glanced towards each other, looking at the shock in the other's eyes in succession. Their target was surprisingly walking over? Like so… step by step, unhurriedly strolling over?
Had they been discovered? Or was their target taking a walk? Or perhaps this was purely a coincidence?
"There's a possibility our cover's been blown." The slim man snarled lowly: "Heaven Listener!"
In a twinkling, his ear began to swiftly expand. Finally, it surprisingly became a pointed ear like that of a bat's.
"No change in heart rate, no change in blood, no change in body temperature, body surface devoid of sweat, no change in pulse, as well… damn it…" The slim man cursed inwardly, and his brow began to furrow for the first time.
On top of the building, the woman was like a statue. Her eyes suddenly expanded, and the bird on her person screeched and flew away. Likewise, she looked down below incredulously.
"He's walking over?"
"Have we been discovered?"
"T-that can't be. The ancient times are no more. Any cultivator that wants to cultivate can't possibly conceal it from the government. Even nationless persons in the mortal world have detailed background records. This person has never been seen. It's not possible he's a fiend, and it's an even greater impossibility that he's discovered us!"
Xu Yangyi lit a cigarette and a lonesome trail of smoke rose up to follow the wake of the night wind. He was neither hurried nor slow, leisurely walking forward.
He knew that at this moment, the other party was terribly surprised. He needed them to make judgement time. Once they entered his range... not a single one of these people would leave!
Spiritual sense more formidable than a Qi Condensation cultivator's spread forth like a tentacle, judging the distance bit by bit.
The night was absent of wind, sound, or light. There only existed a surging battle intent, secretly rising. An unseen battle of wits, a struggle between courage and intelligence, had already become pulled open wide in the curtain of night.
This was a contest of the hunter and the hunted.
"800 meters…" The slim man's gaze was like electricity and he grinded his teeth: "He went to the side shop to buy a drink. Afterwards, he went to the garbage can at the side to toss his cigarette butt… damn it…"
Xu Yangyi unhurriedly walked for 200 meters, yet he was still incapable of judging the other party's intent. Were they coming straight at him? Or was this a coincidence?
"Tiger King-03, have you contacted the branch master?"
"I'm dialing right now." The woman's voice could be heard from the transceiver: "But it's weird… it keeps falling through on me!"
"I suspect there's someone here interfering with the signal."
700 meters!
"Withdraw!" Without hardly any hesitation, the slim man growled with sharp decision.
Something was off! This was too fishy! This person… had a problem!
His long-term nerves from living on the line of life or death were sending him a warning. He felt a sensation of dark crisis: all that was here if he continued to stay was a path to calamity!
No one responded. In this instant, the three of them openly darted away towards three directions in haste. They were true elites. Even as they left, they also left behind a probe.
If the other party was without intent, no one would give chase upon suddenly seeing cultivators disperse. However, if their opponent had truly discovered them, what followed next was the discard of the map and the reveal of the dagger! It was also to force Xu Yangyi into laying down his cards! At least so they were capable of reversing a situation that was already beginning to tilt by a sliver. At the present though, it was unlikely to go so far like the cutting of flesh with a blunt blade.*
At that time, one of them would be capable of escape at the minimum.
Xu Yangyi's gaze looked clearly several hundred meters away at the people high in the air that had split apart into three paths of retreat.
There weren't any unnecessary words. In the next second, he suddenly leapt no less than ten-odd meters and immediately fell on top of a short building on the side. Soon after… his entire body's spiritual force exploded, and with a standard running posture, he used his fastest speed to chase after the direction he believed to be the slowest!
A maximum-effort pursuit! Of the hunter and the hunted, beneath this moonlit night, who was the hunter? Who was the hunted?
"Thud! Thud! Thud!" The sound of heavy footsteps rang out out from the floor, each stomp causing minute spider web cracks. The entire sole of his foot never touched the ground, always just the front part, and his two hands evenly swung back and forth ahead and behind him as if they had become the raised sail of a boat. The wisp of battle, separated from him for three years, released a joyous shout within his heart. His entire person was like a tremendous elephant stampeding inside a building complex, charging towards the three people while carrying a bold killing aura!
"We were discovered!" At this moment, the three people had come to completely realize this in their hearts.
The other party had found them early on. Likewise, as elite scouts, they thought back and immediately understood why the other hadn't budged a move before!
Probing, and reverse probing, in addition to consuming their physical strength!
"This is a real fucking soldier!" Tiger King-03 grit her teeth. She could clearly see the other party charging towards her!
"It's not just this, the other's true battle power… far exceeds the surface!" The slim man was scared out of his spirit. How was it possible that they couldn't see their opponent's full-force sprinting speed!
The camouflaged man clenched his teeth, not saying anything. He faced towards a different direction and ran off with maximum power!
"Life Sacrification… Flying Star… Starfire…" Xu Yangyi's gaze flashed explosively and he chained three moves together, yet he was still incapable of displaying Starfire. Nonetheless, even if it was like this, his speed had already arrived at an outrageous swiftness! In the air, as he jumped building from to building, all that could be seen was a black afterimage!
"Fuck!" Tiger King-03 could no longer restrain herself. In these several seconds, the distance between them and their opponent… was nore more than 400 meters! A truly dangerous distance!
In particular, the other's charging might and full-body spiritual pressure surprisingly caused her to feel herself trembling from head to toe! Taking out a talisman without the least hesitation, she grit her teeth, stuck it took her leg, and her speed soared once more in a flash!
However, she promptly discovered in the next second… her speed was no faster than her opponent's! The speed of both sides had approached the pinnacle, yet there was still a gap! Being overtaken was only a question of time! Perhaps it wouldn't even take five seconds!
"Flee!" Her heart sunk, and she yelled at full strength to allow her other two compatriots to hear her.
There was no response. The other two people moreover understood when it was necessary to abort. Exhausting their maximum strength, they dashed off in different directions.
On the building, two afterimages leapt on the rooftop, and the distance between them became progressively closer!
Within his body, the sound of the unbearably heavy load on his skeleton could be heard. Without the added support of the mysterious chest, Xu Yangyi was still incapable of using Starfire. However, regarding these sounds, it was as if he didn't hear them.
Tiger King-03 simply dared not to look behind. Her hand grabbed inside her pocket, and in the next second, a small bamboo bird slowly fluttered out.
"Swish!" Just as the small bird flew out, it immediately carried with it a scarlet radiance and the bamboo joints of its whole body surprisingly recombined. Less than a second later, it transformed into a faint green bamboo sword, sparkling with several runes. It sped up in a flash, violently piercing towards Xu Yangyi!
"Tortoise Burdens." Xu Yangyi didn't dodge it at all. Even if he recognized this was a low-grade magik artifact, if he was obstructed by the other now, he wouldn't be any the wiser as to why the other party was monitoring him!
To be at set up on the chopping block, to be at another's mercy. After he came out from the Unrivaled Beneath the Heavens Arena, he wished never to have such a feeling again.
Especially… under a situation that he was capable of controlling.
"This is…" At this moment, Tiger King-03 turned her head back for the first time. This magik artifact was her life-preserving trump card. She was terribly unwilling to part with it. However, she just happened to see this scene!
"Heavens Law! He's from Heavens Law!" Her harsh shout ripped across the sky, and the ears of her other two compatriots only shook as they continued to escape incessantly.
A wisp of killing intent flashed within Xu Yangyi's eyes and he licked his lips: "This is why… I loathe so-called elites."
"Even at a disadvantage, they would pass on information."
"Then if that's the case, don't you think about running!"
"Squelch!" The sound of a bamboo sword sinking into flesh could be heard in an instant. The flesh of his face faintly twitched, and in the next second, he immediately clamped down on his muscle, not allowing the bamboo sword to fly out again!
His hand was already firmly gripping onto the hilt of the bamboo sword embedded in his shoulder. His feet simply didn't stop.
"Damn!" Tiger King-03's heart was filled with great anxiety. This bamboo sword wasn't only a one-time attack. As long as her spiritual force was interrupted, this bamboo sword was capable of being like a butterfly flitting through the flowers, attacking without end! Until her opponent was poked through into a sieve!
However… at this moment, she seemed to be caught in the grasp of Juling Shen. No matter how she moved, she couldn't budge an inch!**
The opponent's spiritual force and spiritual sense were completely levels above her own!
"Where did this fucking monster come from!" Her face had already blanched. The other's distance from her was no more than thirty meters!
"Swish!" A minute later, Tiger King-03 looked at the man stopped in front of her with a pale face, not uttering a word. All she did was calmly adopt a welcoming battle stance.
The bamboo sword clasped in Xu Yangyi's hand surprisingly only trembled a faint bit. With her cultivation and spiritual sense, it was incapable of struggling free from such a close distance!
"We are…"
No matter the method, she had to clearly explain herself. Otherwise, the results would be too terrible to imagine! She didn't finish her words because in the proceeding moment, Xu Yangyi's slipper-clad foot had already swept forward into a whip, kicking towards her! The air surprisingly rang out with the faint sound of breaking wind!
In Tiger King-03's pupils, the kick became increasingly larger. With a heavy thud, her entire person flew away in the next second like a morning star without the least bit concern! She suddenly fell on the ground and the surface trembled twice!
"Urk!" Incapable of simply being supressed, a mouthful of blood sprayed out from her mouth! At the same time, her expression had already become terribly frightened! A kick! Surprisingly it was only a single kick!
This was in no way the strength of an ordinary cultivator! Even the normal elites of Heavens Law's graduates couldn't possibly send her flying with a kick! In her heart, an inconceivable thought came to head. It was immediately affirmed by her!
This was the strength of a paragon! Only a paragon could bring her to collapse with a single kick! Thinking of this bit, regret had already filled her heart without boundary. She had still wanted to probe Xu Yangyi out before, but who knew there wouldn't be an opportunity to do so!
"Crash!" Following the tremendous strength of the kick, she flew directly ten-odd meters away!
"You don't have the right to explain." Xu Yangyi cracked his knuckles and the sound of them popping rang out. He smiled as he walked over: "These preparations were made as you were monitoring me."
"Bang!" A punch struck towards Tiger King-03 whose eyes were filled with fright. She screeched miserably, only capable of using both her hands to protect her profusely sweating forehead.
"Puh!" A piercing pain spread through her stomach, and her spittle came spraying out half a meter high. She thoroughly lost her fighting strength.
Couldn't handle the blow, huh… Xu Yangyi pulled his fist back somewhat regretfully. This was only his third layer of strength. When he had originally kicked Luo Sanfeng, he had used eighty percent.
Tiger King-03 was convulsing intensely on the ground. It wasn't from fear, but rather from pain. A single kick and a lone fist were practically like the strike of a tremendous elephant. It was unknown how much time had passed until she coughed as she smiled bitterly: "Fuck… T-this is a paragon… It has to be, it's a… para… gon's strength… fuck… fuck…"
* Two things to explain in this paragraph. The first being: The discarding of the map and the reveal of the dagger. This is an idiom that refers to the failed assassination of the first emperor of China. The assassin, Jing Ke, and his partner, Qin Wuyang, attempted to kill the emperor with a hidden dagger in a map. Qin Wuyang was said to be useless in the attempt and Jing Ke was ultimately killed, unable to catch the emperor, hench "the map discarded and dagger revealed" means "to show clear and open intent."
The second phrase "cutting flesh with a blunt blade" is something along the ideas of "pulling teeth". Somewhat of a pain to accomplish.
** Juling Shen is a character featured in one of the earlier tales of "Journey to the West" He is one of Heaven's generals. He wields a broad axe and is said to be incomparably fast with it, like a phoenix dancing. Battles against Sun Wukong in the story "Monkey Wreaks Havoc in Heaven". Name literally translate to "Giant Spirit God"