Chapter 50: Rescuing Bai Xiaoru

Bai Xiaoxiao nodded slightly, looking at her sister's pale complexion with a pang of heartache.

Since they were already close to the Two Realms Mountain, they quickly crossed it and entered the Central State territory shortly after sacrificing their tails.

As soon as they passed the Two Realms Mountain, Bai Xiaoru frantically sent telepathic messages, praying that her master would prove reliable.

At last, upon reaching the borders of the Azure Cloud Mountain Range, her transmission finally went through.

Within the realm of the artistic conception painting studio.

Qin Tian, who had been resting, suddenly opened his eyes.

A hint of anxiety and anger lingered in his gaze.

Bai Xiaoru was calling for help, and she had already sacrificed her tail.

This was proof enough that her current situation was extremely perilous.

Qin Tian walked downstairs and commanded, "Zong Wu, take me to the Azure Cloud Mountain Range at once."

Because his spiritual power remained sealed, letting Zong Wu carry him was the optimal choice.

Besides, even if unsealed, his speed would not surpass Zong Wu's.

Zong Wu hurried over, casting a puzzled look at Qin Tian, failing to understand why Qin Tian needed to be carried.

"I have sealed my own spiritual power and am currently experiencing the mortal realm through cultivation," Qin Tian explained briefly.

Zong Wu's expression cleared in sudden understanding; no wonder he had been unable to sense even a shred of spiritual power from Qin Tian.

Immediately afterward, he enveloped Qin Tian in his spiritual energy and soared swiftly toward the Azure Cloud Mountain Range.

Unconsciously, Qin Tian's image in Zong Wu's heart grew even loftier.

For as far as he knew, practitioners who sought a breakthrough by walking the mortal path were invariably peerless giants striving to pierce through the Emperor Realm.

They were the absolute pinnacle of existence in the Central State.

Back in the painting studio, An Miaoling watched as Qin Tian anxiously tore through the void, her delicate eyebrows knitting together faintly.

Most of the time, Qin Tian remained completely composed; the sudden appearance of anxiety meant the situation was far from simple.

During the flight, Qin Tian began confirming coordinates with Bai Xiaoru, relaying them to Zong Wu in real-time.

He continuously urged the man to move faster.

Sensing Qin Tian's urgency, Zong Wu gave the journey his absolute all.

Deep within the Azure Cloud Mountain Range, Bai Xiaoru's speed dwindled, for the power gained from sacrificing her tail was nearly exhausted.

Yet resolve hardened in her heart; when the time came, she would sacrifice another. Only by surviving could there be hope.

The white light gradually dimmed, once again revealing the figures of the two sisters wrapped within it.

The pursuing man behind them flashed a wicked smile, his speed surging as he closed the distance.

Sensing the danger, Bai Xiaoru immediately attempted to sacrifice her second tail, but it was already too late.

The man delivered a vicious palm strike, abruptly cutting off her sacrificial ritual.

The impact sent her flying violently through the air.

Puff!

Unable to suppress it, Bai Xiaoru spewed a mouthful of blood, her complexion turning even more ghastly.

"Sister... sob, sob!" Bai Xiaoru could no longer hold back her tears, acting at this moment like a helpless child.

Having succeeded in his initial strike, the man denied Bai Xiaoru any chance to initiate another sacrifice.

With a flash, he appeared beside the two women, grabbing each by the throat, instantly forcing them both back into their true forms.

Elation washed over the man upon successfully capturing the sisters.

This was a merit of monumental proportions. As long as he delivered the two women safely back, Young Master Ditian might well reward him with an Emperor Weapon.

At this thought, the man hurriedly performed incantations to seal the sisters' spiritual energy before vanishing into the distance with them in tow.

Bai Xiaoru maintained her telepathic connection with Qin Tian—it was her final thread of hope.

If Qin Tian failed to find her, she would rather die than allow the Di Clan's Ditian to achieve his goal.

Ever since childhood, possessing the Celestial Fox bloodline meant her realm advanced rapidly even without strenuous cultivation.

It was precisely for this reason that she had been designated from a young age as the future matriarch of Qingqiu.

And Ditian had discovered her Celestial Fox bloodline.

That was why he had stirred up this storm, step by step driving her into a desperate corner.

He coveted her bloodline.

Should he absorb the Celestial Fox bloodline, his own bloodline would likewise undergo a profound enhancement.

Sparing no consumption of his energy, Zong Wu pursued them relentlessly, finally intercepting the man after half a quarter of an hour.

When Qin Tian laid eyes on Bai Xiaoru, whose neck was being gripped by the man, a surge of fury rushed to his head.

After all, Bai Xiaoru was one of the people he cared about most.

Upon seeing Qin Tian and Zong Wu, the man frowned, his guard instantly spiking!

For he sensed that Zong Wu's strength was in no way inferior to his own.

"Are you people from Qingqiu?" the man demanded.

Forcing himself to remain calm, Qin Tian offered no reply, fearing the adversary might realize how much he cared for Bai Xiaoru and use her as a counter-threat.

That would place them in an utterly passive position.

Bai Xiaoru was equally shrewd and refrained from acknowledging Qin Tian.

"We are bandits! Hand over everything you have, and we might spare your life," Qin Tian declared sternly.

"B-bandits?"

The man was momentarily stunned; in all his millennia of living, this was his first encounter with bandits.

Yet, learning they were mere bandits brought a measure of relief—at least they weren't members of Qingqiu.

Wary of Zong Wu's strength and anxious to avoid complications, the man gritted his teeth, retrieved a lower-grade Emperor-tier spiritual herb, and tossed it toward Qin Tian.

"Take this as a toll fee. I have urgent business and must be going."

Catching the spiritual herb, Qin Tian hadn't expected the fellow to be so accommodating.

Had he truly been a bandit, he might have let him pass, but he was not.

A greedy expression plastered across his face, Qin Tian shouted, "This isn't enough! I want everything you own."

The man's expression darkened instantly. He hadn't anticipated such boundless greed; the scoundrel was demanding his accumulated wealth of several millennia.

That was something he could never surrender! Choosing to ignore Qin Tian, who lacked spiritual power entirely, the man turned his gaze to Zong Wu.

"Brother, our strengths are comparable. A real fight would be too close to call. Since I've shown my sincerity, can't you just let me pass?"

"Not a chance. I take my orders from my Young Master," Zong Wu replied coldly.

Young Master? Him? The man wore a look of profound skepticism.

In the end, he could only categorize Qin Tian as some useless young master from a major power.

He knew that dealing with such a type—who bullied the soft and feared the hard—was useless through reason, leaving fighting as the sole option.

While the man hesitated, Qin Tian transmitted his voice to Zong Wu: "Attack, but make sure not to harm the fox in his hand."

Understanding the intent, Zong Wu drew his Longevity Saber—the name he had bestowed upon his Emperor Weapon.

The sight of Zong Wu drawing his blade told the man that this battle was unavoidable.

He placed the sealed Bai Xiaoru and Bai Xiaoxiao onto the ground, casually casting a defensive array around them.

He dared not hold the foxes while fighting; the slightest mishap would result in a catastrophic loss.

Should Ditian find out, he would not be spared.

Knowing Qin Tian's objective was the foxes, Zong Wu exercised strict control over his offensive strikes.

He endeavored to keep the fallout away from the foxes, unleashing his true power only after the two combatants had moved far away.

As an accomplished master of the blade, having studied the *Sutra of Unfettered Longevity*, his internal spiritual reserves and recovery speed far exceeded those of his peers at the same realm.

Combined with his Emperor Weapon, he seized the upper hand almost immediately.

He unleashed a relentless barrage of saber techniques upon the man without regard for consumption. Gritting his teeth, the man desperately held on, believing Zong Wu's frantic assault could not possibly be sustained for long.

He only needed to weather this storm to claim victory.

Yet, when more than half of his own spiritual energy had been depleted, he realized his grave, catastrophic miscalculation.

For Zong Wu remained as ferocious as ever, showing no signs of overexertion whatsoever.

To compound his horror, he discovered that Zong Wu's saber was an Emperor Weapon, having already reduced his own semi-Emperor-tier weapon to a half-ruined state.