Chapter 70: Pursuit

In the distant Tianshi Mansion, atop a sea of ​​clouds, within the "Enforcement Hall," symbolizing the highest authority of righteousness in the human world, in a deep, sunless chamber, the deathly silence was suddenly shattered by a resounding crack. "Pah!" In the center of the chamber, a spirit tablet carved from a single block of "Millennial Soul-Nourishing Wood" shattered completely without warning, crumbling to dust on the floor. A middle-aged Taoist priest, sitting cross-legged on a cushion, slowly opened his eyes. He wore a regal dark purple robe embroidered with golden lightning patterns. His face was thin, but his eyes were as sharp as a hawk's, seemingly able to penetrate the human heart. He was one of the true rulers of the Tianshi Mansion, the Elder of the Enforcement Hall—Xuan Chenzi. Xuan Chenzi gazed at the shattered spirit tablet, his face expressionless, as if the one who had perished was not his most trusted subordinate, but an insignificant ant. But deep within his eyes, a murderous intent icy enough to freeze a soul flickered. "Waste," he uttered simply, then stood up and walked to the other side of the chamber. There, enshrined was a statue formed from the pure power of willpower and faith. He bowed respectfully before reaching out and gently pressing on the statue's base. Invisible to the naked eye, yet imbued with a mysterious and majestic aura, it instantly spread from the Tianshi Mansion to the entire human world! At that moment, whether they were hermits cultivating in the mountains or sects operating in the bustling city; whether they were renowned righteous masters or solitary cultivators, every practitioner heard a cold and commanding voice echoing in their minds: "Tianshi Mansion, Tianya Wanted. Targets: Chu Yun, Li Ge, and Mo Li, remnants of the Evil Suppression Division. Crimes: Colluding with demons, harming fellow disciples, and stealing treasures from the Tianshi Mansion. Anyone who provides clues will be rewarded with 1,000 high-grade spirit stones and access to the Tianshi Mansion's Sutra Pavilion to choose a cultivation technique. Anyone who can capture and kill these three..." Xuan Chenzi paused, his eyes flashing with greed and fanaticism that he himself had not yet noticed: "...with these three heads, you can enter the Tianshi Mansion's forbidden area, the 'Ascension Platform', and observe the 'True Explanation of the Heavenly Dao' once." Three days later, in a dark, damp, and deserted forest, Chu Yun, Li Ge, and Mo Li leaned against a massive ancient tree that required several people to hug, breathing heavily. They had already changed into ordinary coarse linen clothes, and their faces had been altered with Mo Li's specially made "disguise masks." But their pale complexions and...

In the distant Tianshi Mansion, on top of the sea of ​​clouds.

Inside the "Law Enforcement Hall" that symbolizes the highest authority of righteousness in the world, in a deep secret room that never sees sunlight all year round, the deathly silence was suddenly broken by a crisp sound of shattering.

“Bang!”

In the center of the secret room, on the memorial tablet carved from a whole piece of "Thousand-Year Soul-Nourishing Wood", a natal soul tablet engraved with the three words "Zhang Huaide" completely shattered without any warning and turned into powder on the ground.

A middle-aged Taoist priest, sitting cross-legged on a cushion, slowly opened his eyes. He wore a regal, deep purple robe embroidered with golden lightning patterns. His face was thin, but his eyes were as sharp as a hawk's, seemingly able to penetrate a person's heart. He was one of the true rulers of the Tianshi Mansion, the elder of the Law Enforcement Hall—Xuan Chenzi.

Xuan Chenzi stared at the shattered soul tablet, his face expressionless, as if the one who died wasn't his most capable subordinate, but an insignificant ant. But deep in his eyes, a hint of murderous intent, cold enough to freeze a soul, flashed.

"Waste." He simply spat out these two words, then stood up and walked to the other side of the secret room. There, a statue was enshrined, formed by the pure power of "willpower" and "faith".

He bowed respectfully to the statue, then reached out and gently pressed on the base. Invisible to the naked eye, yet filled with mysterious majesty, a wave instantly spread out from the Tianshi Mansion to the entire human world!

At that moment, whether they were hermits cultivating in the mountains or sects operating in the bustling city; whether they were renowned masters of the righteous path or solitary cultivators, as long as they were cultivators, a cold and majestic voice echoed in their minds at the same time:

"Tianshi Mansion, Tianya Wanted. Target: The remnants of the Evil Suppression Division, Chu Yun, Li Ge, and Mo Li. Crimes: Colluding with demons, harming fellow disciples, and stealing the Tianshi Mansion's treasures. Anyone who provides clues will be rewarded with 1,000 high-grade spirit stones and can enter the Tianshi Mansion's Sutra Pavilion to choose a cultivation technique. Anyone who can capture and kill these three..."

Xuan Chenzi paused, and a trace of greed and fanaticism flashed in his eyes, which he himself had not even noticed:

"...With these three heads, you can enter the forbidden area of ​​our Tianshi Mansion, the 'Ascension Platform', and observe the 'True Explanation of the Heavenly Dao' once."

Three days later, in a dark and damp forest with few people, Chu Yun, Li Ge and Mo Li were leaning against a huge ancient tree that required several people to hug, breathing heavily.

They had already changed into the most common coarse linen clothes, and their faces had been altered with Mo Li's specially made "disguise masks." But their pale complexions and the frail aura that could not be concealed still revealed their dire condition.

"No... I can't run anymore..." Mo Li leaned against the rough tree trunk, his petite face pale and his voice filled with deep fatigue.

For them, those three days were a never-ending nightmare. They had almost no time to rest, constantly fleeing, fleeing, and fleeing again. Because the very day after they left Jichuan City, the Tianshi Mansion issued the highest-level "Tianya Wanted Order," which spread throughout the entire cultivation world.

Overnight, they went from being "heroes" who exposed the conspiracy to "traitors" hated by everyone. Countless bounty hunters, self-proclaimed righteous monks, and even strangers, "righteous men," swarmed in from all directions like sharks smelling blood.

"Hold on a little longer." Chu Yun handed the last healing pill on his body to Li Ge, who was the most seriously injured. His voice was hoarse but extremely firm. "After passing this 'Black Wind Forest', we will reach the 'Soul-Breaking Gorge' ahead. The terrain there is complex and filled with miasma, which is the best place for us to hide and... breathe. And..."

Before he could finish his words, a terrifying pressure so immense it was suffocating, like the might of heaven, descended from above without warning! That pressure was completely different from Elder Zhang's aura of evil and filth, yet the oppressive feeling it brought was ten, a hundred times more terrifying than Elder Zhang's most insane evil power!

"Oh no! They're pursuers!" Chu Yun's heart sank suddenly, and without thinking, he protected Li Ge and Mo Li behind him!

The next second, a dazzling, huge magic circle composed of countless golden lightning and mysterious runes slowly emerged high above their heads, covering an area of ​​several miles and completely blocking all their retreat routes!

"There is no escape from the net of heaven and earth." A voice that was cold and emotionless, as if a high and mighty god was pronouncing judgment, slowly came from the center of the magic circle.

Immediately afterwards, dozens of elite disciples wearing the unique black, gold-edged Taoist robes of the Tianshi Mansion's Law Enforcement Hall slowly descended from the formation and surrounded Chu Yun and the other two. The leader was none other than Xuan Chenzi, a thin-faced man with eagle-like eyes.

"Chu Yun." Xuan Chenzi looked down at the young man who, though in a state of disgrace, still had an expression of unyielding determination and vigilance in his eyes. His voice was calm and unwavering. "Do you admit your guilt?"

"What crime have I committed?!" Chu Yun met his gaze, which seemed to be tangible, and asked coldly, "I only know that someone is using the name of the Tianshi Mansion to commit acts that are abhorrent to both humans and gods!"

"How dare you!" Before Xuan Chenzi could say anything, the Law Enforcement Hall disciple behind him shouted, "How dare you slander Elder Xuan Chen! Do you want to die without a complete corpse?!"

"Slander?" Chu Yun laughed, a smile filled with sadness and mockery. "The crimes Elder Zhang committed in Jichuan City are clear as day! Instead of investigating the truth, you, the Tianshi Mansion, are ruthlessly killing those of us who revealed the truth! Is this what you call 'the right path'?!"

"You're just a flatterer, but you'll never repent." Xuan Chenzi shook his head slowly, a trace of pity flashing in his eyes, as if he was looking at an unreasonable child. "Since that's the case, I'll personally send you off."

After saying this, he didn't even make any extra movements. He just slowly raised his right hand and gently pressed it towards Chu Yun and the other two: "Suppress!"

The word "Zhen" was gently uttered from his mouth, which was full of supreme majesty and seemed to be enforced by law!

The next second, the huge "Heavenly Net" magic circle covering the top of the head suddenly burst out with a terrifying suppressive force that could destroy the world!

"Vajra Talisman!" Without thinking, Chu Yun condensed all the Taiyi Qi that he had finally recovered in the past three days into a golden light shield, blocking the three people!

But "crack!" The sturdy "Vajra Talisman" that had blocked countless fatal attacks could not even hold out for a breath in front of this majestic and powerful suppressing force. It made a crisp sound as it could not bear the weight and was crushed by an invisible big hand!

"puff--!"

Chu Yun, Li Ge and Mo Li spat out a mouthful of boiling blood at the same time. Their bodies were pressed to the ground by an unmatched force, and all the bones in their bodies let out a teeth-grinding, unbearable cry!

They collapsed at the first blow! In front of this elder from the Law Enforcement Hall of the Heavenly Master's Mansion, they didn't even have the strength to fight back!

"Go!" At this moment, Li Ge let out a determined shout, and without hesitation shot the last and most poisonous "Netherworld Ghost Needle" that could temporarily paralyze the enemy's consciousness at the arrogant Xuan Chenzi!

At the same time, Mo Li also smashed the last "flash smoke bomb" on his body, which could produce a large area of ​​strong light and thick fog, to the ground!

"Boom!" The blinding white light and the pitch-black fog instantly enveloped the entire battlefield!

Xuan Chenzi stared at the pitch-black poison needle shooting towards him, his brows furrowed slightly, a flicker of contempt and disdain in his eyes. He simply flicked his finger, and a streak of golden lightning arrived, striking the poison needle with pinpoint accuracy, completely purifying and vaporizing it in mid-air.

But in this short delay of less than half a breath, Chu Yun and the other two had already taken advantage of the thick fog to flee frantically towards the only gap that had not been completely blocked by the disciples of the Law Enforcement Hall!

"Want to run?" Xuan Chenzi's face showed no surprise or anger, as if everything was within his expectations. "Chase."

He just uttered a word lightly.

"Ahem... hurry... this way!" Chu Yun dragged his almost unconscious companion and shuttled frantically through the dense forest with complex terrain. Powerful auras behind him were rapidly closing the distance.

He could feel the life force rapidly draining from his body, his consciousness growing increasingly hazy. He knew he was about to collapse, but he couldn't fall, absolutely couldn't. Behind him were his companions, who had protected him with their lives; in his arms was the hope bought with blood and life.

At this moment, his eyes suddenly opened up. He ran out of the damned forest, but there was no joy on his face. Instead, there was a deeper despair than before.

Because in front of him, there appeared a huge ravine that was hundreds of feet wide, bottomless, and filled with black water of death - the Soul-Breaking Ravine.

They arrived, completely cornered. The icy, suffocating footsteps behind them were getting closer and closer.

Chu Yun slowly put Li Ge and Mo Li down from his back, and used the sword that had long lost all its luster to support his body that was almost on the verge of complete collapse, and straightened his spine that had never been bent towards anyone.

He watched Xuan Chenzi, a god-like figure, slowly emerge from the dense forest. His eyes held a still, calm expression. He slowly reached into his arms, ready to detonate the three fragments of the Evil Suppression Seal.

"You are so stubborn." Xuan Chenzi seemed to see through his intention. A trace of real impatience finally flashed in his eyes, and he slowly raised his hand again.

This time, nothing was held back. The massive "Heavenly Dragnet" formation, covering an area several miles in radius, instantly erupted with a devastating pressure several times more terrifying than before!

It's over... This time it's really over...

Just when Chu Yun was about to lose consciousness completely and be crushed into a pulp by the terrifying pressure, a female voice full of laziness, charm, but with a hint of sarcasm, sounded without warning on this cliff shrouded in death.