Beware Of Chicken

He was certain Jingsheng was not lying about the raid on Jin’s home, and that bit of information made anxiety bloom in his chest, even as he sought to rationalize things. His grandson could achieve the power of at least an Earth Realm Cultivator, and Lu Ri was there as well. He was confident in their victory… yet not confident enough to spend more time chasing this bastard.

He needed to see his grandson with his own eyes.

“Our foe has avoided us this day,” Shen Yu informed his disciple. His voice came out raspier than he intended, his throat still damaged by the spike of black chitin in it. The brat had managed to avoid execution, at least for the moment.

His heart rebelled at the thought of any enemy escaping, of not completing his task completely—but it was assuaged. This was still a victory, if not a perfect one. Shen Yu’s cultivation was an uncompromising thing, and he would have to meditate deeply upon the events here to stabilize it, but no further cracks had appeared from the boy’s escape.

“While unfortunate, I believe it is the best course of action. Too many require medical attention to make pursuit viable. Still, we have prevailed in our main objectives,” Shen Yu’s disciple said, his thoughts in tune with Shen Yu’s own. He was smiling at a shady rat that was scampering all around him excitedly. “We have rescued the captured Shrouded Mountain Sect members and inflicted a devastating blow against these demonic cultivators. I do not imagine your slaying of their Imperial Realm cultivator is a small thing, Master, nor the destruction of this base.”

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

Shen Yu smiled at the boy’s optimism while they walked back into the mountain, towards the prison Bi De had mentioned.

“You are indeed correct, my disciple. I shall save my praise for when we have a full accounting, but all of you performed as well as one could hope… especially with the complications.” Shen Yu was honestly pleased with the Younger Generation’s handling of themselves. They had far exceeded his expectations of them. “However, you are not entirely correct.”

The boy, in his human guise, paused, a look of horrible realization coming over his face. “He is still alive, isn’t he?”

Shen Yu smiled at his instant deduction, even if it was a bit grim.

“In a manner of speaking. His body is destroyed, yet I could not deliver a fatal blow to his spirit.” Shen Yu’s teeth gritted at the memory. The paranoid bastard had already split off part of his soul and kept it barely tethered to himself as an escape route. Shen Yu’s strike had severed the transfer, but his foe had escaped total destruction. “He is maimed, crippled, and barely clinging to life—I estimate whatever scraps of him that remain will be at most at the level of the Profound Realm, and he will likely be lesser than he once was. He will have to sleep, to hibernate for a long time. It would be the work of centuries, if not millennia, for him to regain even a fraction of his former strength, if he can at all.”

Most wraiths couldn’t. Instead, they simply sat in rings or other baubles, hoping to tempt someone into becoming their legacy… and then the cruel ones would attempt to steal their erstwhile apprenticeʼs bodies. Even if Jingsheng performed the maneuver on the green-haired brat, going from the Earth Realm to the Imperial would still take hundreds of years.

Such an existence was a disgusting, shameful thing.

“Then what are our next moves to end this threat?” Bi De asked. “Shall we reconvene with Master Forest Sweeper and plan our next search?”

Shen Yu smiled at Bi De’s gumption. His conviction to see this through was set, an admirable thing.

“No. We will head south with haste. These creatures sent a contingent to raid your home.”

Bi De froze, his eyes wide. His fists clenched and righteous fury filled his eyes. His Qi flared, and once more, Bi De was ready to fight.

Shen Yu approved.

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Soon enough, they were at the prison. The pit of misery stank, but it was now under a layer of burning air—the scent of lightning.

A desperate battle had occurred here. His eyes immediately locked onto Nezan’s unmoving body, and onto Yun Ren clutching the Spirit Beast’s core with desperate hope in his eyes. The core did not look to be in the best shape, and Shen Yu was unsure if the young man’s hope would be rewarded.