Martial Cultivator
Chapter 428.1: The Mantis Stalks the Cicada, Unaware of the Oriole Behind - Part 1

Knowing very well which direction the middle-aged scholar had fled, Chen Chao still chose to go in the opposite direction, moving slowly through the mountains alone. Chen Chao, who had lost interest, casually crushed the buddhist beads given to him by South Mountain Maitreya, and had no intention of settling scores with him either. Along the way, encountering good people was fine, but when encountering bad ones, he had to consider how bad they really were and whether there was a need to kill them. It was actually quite tiring.

Although South Mountain Maitreya might not necessarily be a good person, fortunately, he had not shown any killing intent towards Chen Chao. Despite being schemed against, Chen Chao did not think it was a big deal. At least from the beginning, Chen Chao knew the other party had ill intentions.

However, even if Chen Chao ignored South Mountain Maitreya, he still had to kill the demon king. After all, if the demon king remained alive, it would be bad news for the nearby civilians.

Although Xu Bai's cultivation realm was high, it did not necessarily mean he could really kill the demon king. What Chen Chao had to do was find the demon king's lair and then wait for him there.

He had done this kind of thing many times before. So now, he was very familiar with it.

Among the cultivators on this mountain, there was no one who understood the habits of demons better than Chen Chao.

……

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Xu Bai was burning with anxiety. Although he was forced to go and kill the middle-aged scholar, in reality, what he was most concerned about was still his beloved wife. To Xu Bai, the flying sword of Sword Qi Mountain was just adding flowers to embroidery, how could it be as important as Jiang Ying? But after being together for so many years, he also knew what kind of person his wife was. Even if he turned back now, she would still hold her sword against her neck.

At this point, he could only quickly kill the middle-aged scholar and then make things right.

After making up his mind, Xu Bai's sword heart gradually calmed down. After several miles, he intercepted the middle-aged scholar and sent out a sword strike.

The dazzling sword light instantly cut through several large trees in front of them. The middle-aged scholar had no choice but to stop his figure, turning to look at that Great Beyond Realm sword cultivator.

Xu Bai did not have the heart to say anything. At this moment, he was just unleashing his sword.

His talent was not low, and if he had a famous teacher or a sect behind him, he might have stepped into the Nepenthe Realm long ago and become a true sword immortal. Therefore, when he took action now, the middle-aged scholar quickly found himself at a disadvantage.

"Sword cultivator? Damn it!"

The middle-aged scholar took a sword strike from Xu Bai and a wound appeared on his chest, blood flowing continuously. However, at the same time, countless demonic qi surged, rushing towards Xu Bai.

Xu Bai slashed through the demonic qi in front of him, revealing the true face of the middle-aged scholar. Xu Bai released the sword in his hand expressionlessly. The flying sword shot through the air, once again slashing towards the middle-aged scholar in front of him.

The middle-aged scholar waved his hand to intercept the flying sword. At the same time, his figure suddenly dissipated. When he reappeared, he was already in front of Xu Bai. Without the flying sword to restrain him, Xu Bai faced the demon king without any fear. He simply held two fingers together to mimic a sword, and sword qi emerged from his fingertips. Then, he slashed out, leaving another shocking wound on the middle-aged scholar's body.

The middle-aged scholar did not retreat but instead advanced, striking his palm at Xu Bai's chest. Rolling demonic qi poured out, directly flooding into the body of the sword cultivator.

In an instant, Xu Bai lost control of his mental defenses, and the flying sword fell weakly to the ground.

A chill flashed across the middle-aged scholar's eyes, along with a hint of ruthlessness. He wanted to severely injure the sword cultivator at this moment, but he also understood that if he really made a move, he might not be able to leave afterward.

With just this attack, he had already expended most of the blood essence he had accumulated over the past few days. With only a small amount left, he could only use it to escape.

Hence, he took one last look at the sword cultivator in front of him, with a hint of unwillingness in his eyes, before turning into a stream of demonic qi and drifting away into the distance.

After a moment, Xu Bai regained his senses, his eyes becoming clear. He summoned back his flying sword, looking around, but he could no longer see any trace of the demon.

He stood on the spot for a moment. In the end, he still let out a sigh, sheathed his flying sword, and continued to search for the middle-aged scholar's trail.

Now that the middle-aged scholar had suffered another heavy blow, if he could not finish him off, someone else might take advantage of the situation.

If that were the case, Xu Bai could anticipate how disappointed Jiang Ying would be.

He did not want his wife to die, nor did he want to see her sad. However, there were hardly any solutions that could satisfy both wishes. Xu Bai knew this too, but at the moment, he could only do his best. He hoped for the outcome to be as desired.

That would be the best.

……

……

On Dirt Dog Mountain, there was an abandoned mountain god temple from the previous dynasty. Because the Great Liang Dynasty did not show reverence to gods or ghosts, it had long fallen into ruins. Over time, countless vines and weeds had grown, almost completely covering it. Even the nearby civilians did not know that there was a mountain god temple in the mountain.

The middle-aged scholar condensed his figure in front of the vines. After looking around and confirming that there were no outsiders, he lowered his head to look at his wounds. The two sword strikes he had received were not light injuries. It had to be said that the killing power of sword cultivators was indeed unparalleled in the world. However, the middle-aged scholar's expression was grim. Being injured by two sword cultivators, his hatred towards sword cultivators had long reached deep into his bones.

After resting for a while, the middle-aged scholar slowly transformed into demonic qi and entered the dilapidated main hall of the abandoned mountain god temple.

Sitting down in front of the dilapidated mountain god statue, the middle-aged scholar, who was intending to recuperate from his injuries, suddenly opened his eyes.

Footsteps sounded from behind the mountain god statue.

A young man in black carrying a saber walked out, it was precisely Chen Chao.

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