### Chapter 14: The ChaseBy now, even the six cultivators with Lin Yi were growing suspicious. The enemy was clearly outmatched, yet they clung on with their lives. What was their goal? They could've fled—survival was within reach. But not one of them ran. "Something's wrong," Peng Qingyun frowned, his voice low. "Whatever their tricks, they're just raiders. They can't amount to much," scoffed Xiao Liang, the sixth-level Qi Refinement cultivator from Dianxuan Sect. Lin Yi stood far off, arms crossed, watching the battle with relish. His leisurely air made him seem less like a warrior and more like a tourist. Occasionally, he even tossed out comments: "Stupid! That's not how you cast a spell!" "D*mn it, are you brain-dead? Their spell's hitting you, and you're just standing there? I've never seen such an idiot!" Naturally, all his jabs were aimed at the raiders. If not for the life-or-death stakes, the raiders might've spat blood and fainted on the spot. Even so, they seethed, their formation crumbling. In moments, three more fell. Only nine remained, all wounded. Facing six far stronger sect disciples, they struggled to hold on. Despair crept into the nine raiders' eyes. Still, none fled—they looked ready to die here. Victory was inevitable. The raiders were doomed to annihilation. Lin Yi preened, his words growing even more arrogant, far beyond mere flamboyance. He'd never dared act so bold in front of other cultivators. This was his first time—and it thrilled him. His smug grin was practically begging for a punch. Just as he was about to mock another raider, Peng Qingyun's urgent shout cut through the air: "Retreat!" Xiao Liang, the other sixth-level cultivator, echoed, "Hurry!" The six scrambled back. Lin Yi reacted instantly, sprinting like a hare—faster than anyone. The six core disciples activated talismans to boost their speed. Lin Yi, relying solely on his legs, kept pace. As a martial arts master who'd mastered the second stage of the Five Elements Body Tempering Technique, he was no slower than Yan Shizong, the fourth-level cultivator in yellow. In fact, he'd pulled ahead by a hair. Yan Shizong seethed, convinced Lin Yi hid some secret—how else could he ignore spells? In the blink of an eye, the seven were distant blurs, vanishing from the raiders' sight. The remaining seven raiders, battered but unbowed, suddenly perked up, their eyes blazing with excitement. Four figures streaked toward them, moving so fast they left afterimages. "Greetings, Hall Master Wei!" the seven raiders bowed, voices恭敬 (gōngjìng, 恭敬 - reverent). "Chase them. Kill them all," snapped the leader, a fifty-year-old man with eighth-level Qi Refinement. Such power was rare among raiders—no wonder Peng Qingyun and Xiao Liang had panicked. Behind him were three middle-aged men, all sixth-level Qi Refinement. The seven joined the four, making eleven, and raced after Lin Yi's group. What puzzled Wei's trio was the seven raiders' hatred—their eyes were fixed on Lin Yi, the lowly second-level cultivator, as if he'd murdered their families. "There's an eighth-level cultivator behind us. Sticking together is suicide. We'll all die. We have to split up—each for themselves," Peng Qingyun said grimly. "Eighth level? Am I gonna die?" Lin Yi wailed. "So that's why they wouldn't flee—they were stalling us! Dammit, this infuriates me!" "Hmph! Where's your arrogance now? Can't talk big anymore?" Yan Shizong, still bitter, sneered. "Arrogant? Me? I don't think so. But you, Yan Shizong, are the slowest. If anyone dies first, it'll be you!" Lin Yi shot back. Two years in the market had sharpened his tongue. "You... Hmph! We'll see who dies first!" Yan Shizong ground his teeth, glaring. "Enough! This bickering won't save us!" Peng Qingyun glared at both. "No one can protect anyone now. Split up. Survival's up to luck. I never thought raiders had an eighth-level cultivator. If I'd known, I'd never have come." With that, Peng Qingyun and Xiao Liang split off, racing in opposite directions. The fifth-level female cultivator chose her path, followed by the two other fifth-level men. Splitting up was their only chance. Whoever the eighth-level Wei targeted was doomed. "Heh, I'm heading this way. You gonna tag along, hoping I'll protect you?" Lin Yi sneered at Yan Shizong, though panic gnawed at him. Yan Shizong erupted: "I chose this direction first! Are you deliberately contradicting me? I've had enough of you!" "Dammit, you're the one trailing me! How dare you complain?" Lin Yi feigned shock. Internally, he didn't care—he'd chosen a straight path, and Yan's choice didn't bother him. He just wanted to live. "Hall Master Wei, they've split up. Let us handle that second-level brat," the sinister middle-aged cultivator said, his gaze locked on Lin Yi's retreating form. "Seven of you to kill a second-level cultivator?" Wei frowned. "Elder Dong, what's so special about him that he needs your full force?" "Hall Master, his technique is诡异—he absorbs spells unharmed. Even seven of us might struggle to take him," Dong admitted, chagrined. "Absorbs spells? What kind of technique is that?" Wei mused, then ordered sharply, "Capture him alive. Use any means. If we get that technique, our strength will soar." "Understood," Dong nodded, weighing the odds. He led his six men after Lin Yi—four fifth-level and three fourth-level cultivators. As he'd noted, killing Lin Yi wouldn't be easy; five fifth-level men had failed before. But hatred blinded him to that detail, and he hated asking Wei for more men. With Dong gone, Wei turned to his three companions: "Choose your targets." The three split off—one chasing a fifth-level man, a leering old man pursuing the female cultivator, and a stern-faced man targeting Peng Qingyun. That left Xiao Liang and another fifth-level man for Wei. "That sixth-level runt is fast," Wei chuckled coldly. "I'll kill the fifth-level first, then hunt him down."
