Following those enthusiastic hikers down the mountain, the path became increasingly off-center.
The leader of the group scratched his head, explaining somewhat awkwardly:
"Oh dear, it seems there's a side path. It's not a big problem. You can still get to the highway by going through this side, but you'll have to climb a small hill and go around some rocks."
These so-called "small slopes" and "rocks" were manageable for Zhang Shaozhong and his fellow hikers, but for the two ancient masters who were used to soaring high into the sky, either by flying on swords or by using magical rainbows to escape into the air, they were a bit of a nightmare.
In particular, they were wearing extremely awkward modern clothes, which restricted their movements.
When they reached a steep rocky slope that required both hands and feet to climb, Ling Qingxue looked at the rough rock face and frowned slightly.
Normally, she could simply release her inner energy and lightly touch the ground with her toes to float up like a fairy on water, so why would she need to climb up in such a disheveled way?
She subconsciously wanted to circulate the meager spiritual power within her body and perform the most rudimentary lifting technique.
However, as soon as the thought arose, before the spiritual power could be gathered much, the damned contract imprint deep in the soul felt a slight burning sensation, and a subtle yet clear feeling of weakness came through, as if most of that power had been sucked away by an invisible vortex as soon as it was generated!
At the same time, a sharp, empty pain shot through her meridians, causing her to catch her breath and almost lose her balance!
"snort!"
She couldn't help but let out a suppressed groan, her face paled, and she quickly grabbed the stone next to her for support.
Nightshade, standing nearby, was in an even worse situation.
Looking at the steep slope, her temper flared up, and she subconsciously wanted to use her demonic energy to condense something to stand on or simply levitate briefly.
As a result, the demonic energy, instead of condensing, was activated as if a water pump had been ignited within her body, instantly draining away the last bit of power she had managed to recover.
It also triggered the backlash from her previous attack, and she felt a sweet taste in her throat, almost vomiting blood again. She quickly and forcibly dispersed the demonic energy, which angered her so much that she kicked a stone hard, only to wince in pain.
"Are you two ladies alright? Did you get hurt in your fall and haven't they healed yet?"
A fellow traveler noticed their unusual behavior and asked them with concern.
"No...it's nothing!"
Zhang Shaozhong quickly provided cover.
"They're just a little tired, they'll be fine after a while, they'll be fine after a while!"
He leaned closer to the two bigwigs, lowered his voice, and almost pleaded:
"My two ancestors! Hold back! Don't use reckless force! You can't take any more strain in your current state! Have you forgotten how painful the backlash will be?"
Ling Qingxue and Ye Meier both looked extremely pale. They exchanged a glance and saw resentment and a hint of... barely perceptible panic in each other's eyes.
Yes, they almost forgot that this is no longer the time for those with extraordinary cultivation.
The power within my body is less than one-tenth of what it used to be; every bit used diminishes it. Moreover, if it is used in combat or "violations of the rules," it will immediately bring back the backlash of that damned contract!
In the end, the two powerful figures who once caused mountains to crumble and the earth to split with a wave of their hands had to climb up like ordinary people, clumsily and shamefully, by grabbing the cracks in the rocks with their hands and stepping on the protrusions with their feet.
Zhang Shaozhong was worried for them as they moved, fearing that they might accidentally fall.
After finally climbing up the rocky slope, we hadn't gone far when the hiker leading the way suddenly exclaimed "Huh!" and stopped.
"What's wrong?"
Zhang Shaozhong's heart skipped a beat.
"The road ahead... seems to be blocked by collapsed rocks and broken trees."
The leader of the group of hikers said with a hint of helplessness,
"The rain was too heavy yesterday. The soil here is loose and the rocks have probably just collapsed. It seems this road is impassable. We'll have to go back, but that will be after dark."
Looking ahead, everyone saw that the original path was completely blocked by a pile of rocks mixed with mud and broken trees, making it impossible to pass.
"Oh? We have to take a detour? How long will that take?"
"It's getting dark, and it's not safe in the mountains."
The hikers started discussing the matter, some of them feeling quite disappointed.
Zhang Shaozhong also frowned. Taking a detour would waste too much time, and he was really afraid that these two "time bombs" beside him might cause some trouble at any time due to impatience.
Just then, a faint hissing sound came from the bushes nearby.
Immediately afterwards, a venomous snake as thick as a wrist and with bright colors suddenly darted out, seemingly startled, and lunged at the female hiker who was looking down at a map the closest to it!
"careful!"
Several hikers exclaimed in surprise, but the incident happened so suddenly that they had no time to react!
The female hiker was so frightened that she turned pale and stood there frozen in shock!
At this critical moment!
"You beast!"
Ling Qingxue almost instinctively let out a cold shout, her fingers forming a sword as she pointed at the venomous snake!
She was thinking of severing it with a single, delicate sword aura!
However, the spiritual energy within his body was completely unresponsive. It surged with difficulty and finally condensed into a tiny ice crystal the size of a grain of rice at his fingertip. With a "smack," it struck the stone next to the poisonous snake without leaving a mark.
However, the commotion startled the venomous snake, causing it to hesitate for a moment.
Almost simultaneously, Ye Meier's eyes flashed with a fierce light, and she instinctively wanted to flick out a wisp of demonic fire to burn the poisonous snake to ashes!
As a result, when the magic was activated, only a small cluster of tiny, flickering black flames appeared at her fingertips—smaller than a lighter flame—and then hissed and went out on their own, burning her own finger in the process.
"hiss!"
Ye Meier gasped in pain and quickly shook her hand away.
The venomous snake was a bit confused by the two inexplicable "attacks," but it also lost its desire to attack and darted back into the grass and disappeared.
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