The item was none other than the Ghost Silk Cloud, lent to Yu Ci by the young daoist Bao Guang on the eve of his departure from the Heart Prohibition Monastery. Though merely a low-level artifact, it was, in some ways, even more practical than some magical treasures.
With a chant of the incantation, Yu Ci tossed the Ghost Silk Cloud into the surrounding mist. In the moisture-laden space, the Ghost Silk Cloud expanded rapidly, reaching a radius of five feet in an instant. Yu Ci placed Monk Zheng Yan onto it, and the bl00d seeping from the monk’s wounds immediately stained a section of the “cloud” red.
“Let’s hope Bao Guang doesn’t get too upset,” Yu Ci muttered with a wry smile as he leaped onto the Ghost Silk Cloud himself. He then began to guide it, maintaining a distance of about ten zhang from the cliff face as it rose steadily.
Although the Ghost Silk Cloud accelerated slowly, once it reached its maximum speed, it could sustain a velocity of 300 li per hour for a full hour—matching the all-out speed of a cultivator at the Divine Connectivity stage. With this tool, traversing the twenty li ahead seemed like an easy task, but Yu Ci remained more cautious than ever.
As the speed gradually increased, Yu Ci kept his eyes fixed on the Divine Map, constantly adjusting their trajectory to ensure there were no violent, large predators along their path.
At this moment, the piercing, lance-like gusts of cold surges and the tide-like crashing impacts had grown less frequent. However, the forces surging below had become more intense, causing the cold currents to accelerate.
The faster the cold currents advanced, the more agitated the creatures within them became. What was usually a relatively subdued sense of territoriality now flared up violently. This wasn’t limited to the cliffs but extended into the mist-filled void as well.
In particularly chaotic regions, the scene was a dense, chaotic mess of mist, where countless predatory birds and flight-capable beasts or demons clashed violently. bl00d and flesh were strewn about, and piercing screeches and howls echoed across the skies.
Yu Ci did his best to steer clear of such battle zones, finding relatively safe routes. Yet the density of creatures here was extraordinarily high, and many of the predators were highly sensitive to the scent of bl00d. To them, Monk Zheng Yan’s presence was an irresistible lure. Even with the Divine Map’s assistance, a few predators still pursued them, following the trail of bl00d.
In such situations, Yu Ci spared no effort. He unleashed his sword Qi, instantly slaying a bl00d Hawk and two Snake-Necked Harriers that chased after them. He then deliberately compressed their bl00d and Qi, scattering it into a misty explosion behind him to divert the attention of other creatures.
Repeating this tactic multiple times, Yu Ci expended half of his innate Qi but achieved remarkable results. He eliminated ten predators and one flying demon across three waves, none of which managed to fully execute an attack before being slain.
Of course, if they had succeeded in attacking, the ones in trouble would have been Yu Ci and Monk Zheng Yan on the Ghost Silk Cloud.
In the void, one must never compete with airborne predators in agility or maneuverability. The cumbersome Ghost Silk Cloud was never designed for such purposes.
Yu Ci had avoided using the Ghost Silk Cloud earlier, not only out of concern for damaging the borrowed treasure but also because he recognized the inherent risks. Even at the cost of exhausting half his energy reserves, he resolved to prevent such dangers from manifesting.
Once the Ghost Silk Cloud’s speed increased to about sixty percent of its potential, Yu Ci finally managed to trace a general path to the top of Sky Rift Valley using the Divine Map.
However, the path required skirting the edge of a vast “Core Refinement Mist” several li away.
Carefully controlling the Ghost Silk Cloud’s speed, Yu Ci maneuvered it along a diagonal line through the mist. The “Core Refinement Mist” wasn’t stationary, and the Ghost Silk Cloud was too sluggish to respond quickly. Thus, he left himself ample time to react. At this distance, he could already faintly see the situation ahead with the naked eye, using it as a reference alongside the Divine Map. At the same time, he remained cautious to avoid alerting the other side to his presence.
But Yu Ci had already noticed something unusual—there appeared to be firelight in the distance.
He had spotted it earlier from afar but hadn’t paid much attention. Now, as he drew closer, he realized the fire wasn’t simply moving; it seemed to be engaged in intense combat.
Narrowing his eyes to peer closer, Yu Ci couldn’t shake the feeling that the firelight seemed strangely familiar.
His doubts were soon resolved. When the surging heat crossed the two-li gap and reached him, Yu Ci could distinctly sense traces of incantation power and a fiery aura that matched his memories. He couldn’t help but exclaim in surprise:
“That old guy—is he still alive?”
At that moment, a gust of wind swept through, causing the flames to surge and the mist to thin. Yu Ci could clearly see the situation in the distance.
The first thing that caught his eye was the Sun Soul Banner.
The battlefield was primarily near the cliffs, but the Sun Soul Banner, which represented the old demon Tu Du, hovered deeper within the mist.
Tu Du’s condition was clearly dire, evident from the state of the Sun Soul Banner. The staff, originally a full zhang in length, had been cut down by two chi. The pitch-black banner itself was riddled with countless tears, two of which extended to the edges, splitting the fabric into long strips that flapped in the wind, appearing almost comical.
The tattered long banner, though seemingly worn-out, bore striking golden sun patterns that stood out vividly. With a gentle shake, golden light spread outward as if it were solid.
Amidst the golden light, a darker ripple lingered, concealed behind the radiance. The alternating brilliance and shadow created infinite changes. Each time the light oscillated, the cliffs within a mile radius would lose a layer, and stone dust would cascade down.
The banner’s speed was astonishing, leaping over a hundred feet in a single move. The undulating golden light formed a wave-like tide that surged outward in all directions. Within this golden glow lay extreme Yang firepower, scorching and withering all vegetation and stones in its path with overwhelming momentum.
Within the fiery golden ring of the Sun Soul Banner, a thin silhouette moved with agility. At first glance, it appeared to be a one-eyed demon possessed by the “Spirit,” yet its head was crowned with dense green hair that flowed like countless venomous snakes, making it exceedingly eye-catching.
This demon lacked the ability to fly but relied on leveraging the cliff walls and short bursts of Void Stepping to move freely within the golden firelight. The spells cast by Tu Du had no effect on it. Each time it pounced, its long, sharp claws tore through the air, leaving lingering, sharp streaks of Qi that wove a massive web in the mist, attempting to restrict the banner’s movements.
Whenever the Qi met the banner, a thunderous sound echoed, a result of the banner’s spell force resisting and dissipating.
The Ghost Silk Cloud remained in rapid motion. Yu Ci had been observing the scene but soon had to shift his gaze.
Tu Du’s resilience surprised him. It became clear why this individual had survived for over 350 years—he indeed had abilities beyond the norm.
The sudden cold wave within the valley had also worked to Tu Du’s advantage. It distracted the demons, preventing them from launching a coordinated attack. Meanwhile, the Sun Soul Banner’s pure Yang Qi shielded Tu Du’s spirit, minimizing the impact of the cold wave and enabling his escape.
Now, only two demons were left pursuing him. Judging from the mist that still bore the lingering haze of Core Refinement, one demon had been engaged in battle, while another lurked within the mist. If Tu Du could shake off these two, his survival was all but assured.
Yu Ci entertained the thought of tripping Tu Du up but quickly dismissed the idea. Against a Core Refinement expert going all out, there was no room for a Divine Connectivity cultivator to intervene.
The Ghost Silk Cloud had already moved beyond the battlefield, shifting to another side and rapidly widening the distance.
Yu Ci watched intently. He didn’t know how Tu Du felt, but he was someone who always saw things through to the end. Since the matter in Sky Rift Valley remained unresolved, he would not let go of Tu Du afterward.
Just then, Yu Ci noticed a sudden change in the golden light emanating from the Sun Soul Banner.
Tu Du wielded the ever-changing nature of his spells masterfully. As the previous wave of golden light tide spread outward, the banner’s spells transformed. The pursuing golden light condensed from the spreading tide into a highly concentrated sword!
However, the target of this sword Qi wasn’t the green-haired demon that had been restraining him. Instead, it surged into the depths of the mist ahead.
The mist split apart. Initially, the sword Qi retained its golden glow, but in the blink of an eye, its form faded, leaving only an eerie, dark spell force condensed into nine consecutive piercing strikes.
A sharp, enraged screech erupted from the mist.
Though distant, Yu Ci vaguely glimpsed a massive shadow with two wings thrashing in the dissipating mist before plummeting downward.
Clearly, this was a meticulously planned strike.
With one decisive move, Tu Du retracted the banner and soared into the depths of the mist away from the cliffs. He was confident that only this demon possessed the ability to fly. Having achieved his goal, he displayed the full advantage of his Yin spirit controlling his artifact, escaping without a trace in moments.
Even though Yu Ci was on the opposing side, he couldn’t help but marvel: the old fox was indeed cunning.
Before Yu Ci could finish this thought, the surging mist split open with a deafening roar. The winged demon, which had been struck down by the sword Qi earlier, burst forth, screeching furiously. It flapped its wings and chased after the Sun Soul Banner at a speed three times faster than the banner itself. Judging by its state, it didn’t seem to have suffered any serious injuries.
But for now, this had nothing to do with Yu Ci.
A quarter of an hour later, Yu Ci reached the top of the valley on the Ghost Silk Cloud.
“It’s over!”
The Ghost Silk Cloud floated quietly as Yu Ci dismounted, letting out a long sigh.
From the moment he had lured Tu Du into the valley, he had spent a full day and night in Sky Rift Valley. From his initial flight westward to gather herbs in the valley, it had taken nearly a month. Yet, these days felt endless and exhausting, draining him completely.
Even with his usual resilience, Yu Ci now wanted nothing more than to find a secluded spot and sleep for days.
He understood that this sentiment arose because he had finally made up his mind to leave Sky Rift Valley. There was no better time than now.
Of course, before leaving, he needed to deal with the burden he had with him.
Get More Chapters on Patreon: From now on, FSM Level 2 will become the CN WN Bundle. The price will remain the same which is $10. Also, the price for the KR WN Bundle will also be decreased to $10 to match this bundle.
With this I have gotten rid of the level system. The reason I am doing this, is because I plan to add more chapters to the $5 Patron tiers. Currently the readers get 2 advance chapters when they become a $5 Patron, but I want to increase the chapters they get to at least 5 chapters and more. So the current updated tier system will work like this:
The Individual Tiers ($5) will give you access to 5 chapters or more.
The Bundle Tiers ($10) will give you access to all the chapters of CN or KR webnovels.
The Supreme Patron ($30) will give you access to all the webnovel chapters on Goblinslate.