Chapter 24: Provocation and Pursuit

"Good heavens, are they playing their trump card right out of the gate?"

Su Yu turned around, looking bewildered. A man beside him asked with a smile, "You don't recognize him, do you?"

"I don't."

"This guy is no ordinary person. He's Li Yingshen, the commander of the newly established Fourth Main Regiment of the Frostfire Guild. He has been initiated into the sect of a Loose Immortal from the Green Azure School and practices a refined-grade Qi-refining mental method. He's at least at the ninetieth level, and everyone guesses he'll attempt his first Great Heavenly Tribulation in no more than five years."

"He's that strong?"

"Stronger than you can imagine. See that yellow bell in his hand? That's a Tier 7 Dharma Treasure, at least of exquisite quality, combining both offense and defense. With that treasure in hand, his chances of successfully crossing the tribulation are very high."

"Hmm!"

"The Frostfire Guild has developed exceptionally well in recent years. Several formidable talents have emerged among the younger generation, and Li Yingshen is just one of them."

"The Qianyu Guild, on the other hand, has fallen quite a bit behind in recent years. The only young experts with a chance to ascend to Loose Immortality are Fairy Chu and that person from the First Regiment. Although the guild's foundation is stronger than Frostfire's, it's hard to say what will happen if this continues."

"Fairy Chu?"

The man turned back with a look of astonishment. "You're a member of the Qianyu Guild, don't tell me you don't know Fairy Chu?"

"Uh, do you mean Deputy Commander Chu Xinyue of the Second Regiment?"

"Why ask if you already know?"

"Don't take offense, brother, I just didn't react for a moment."

The man waved his hand and asked with a puzzled expression, "I have a question. As far as I know, Fairy Chu's father was one of the founding elders of the Qianyu Guild and personally created the Second Regiment. Logically, she should have inherited the position of commander. Why hasn't she taken over since returning from the Xuanzhen Immortal Gate?"

"I heard there are people who don't want her back and want to seize the position of commander. Is that true or false?"

"Brother, you're overestimating me. How would a regular member like me know about such things?"

"That's true."

Su Yu breathed a sigh of relief. He hadn't expected so many people to already be aware of the matter.

"Power struggles and infighting!"

"Sigh!"

There was no helping it; wherever there are people, there is conflict. It was unavoidable.

In the short time they had been speaking, Li Yingshen had already defeated another person. Floating in the air with his treasure bell held aloft, his robes fluttering, he looked like an immortal. He looked up toward the town and said with a smile, "Is there really not a single expert in the great Qianyu Sect?"

"Arrogant!"

A burly man, leading the numerous defeated members of the Second Regiment, shouted loudly, "What kind of skill is it to show off while our deputy commander is away? If you have the guts, come back and challenge us when Commander Chu returns."

Li Yingshen raised his eyelids and looked at him, saying, "I would like to challenge her, but every time I come, she isn't here. I wonder if she's deliberately avoiding me."

The burly leader said coldly, "Deputy Commander Chu will be back tomorrow. If you have the ability, come back tomorrow."

"I look forward to it!"

Having said this, and apparently having achieved his goal, he turned and returned to the Fire Spirit Boat. He waved his hand, and the two flying boats turned and left.

With no show left to watch, the crowd gradually dispersed.

Su Yu frowned as he looked at the group that had emerged from the encampment earlier. There were about a hundred of them, but they were divided into three teams. Only one team had accepted the challenge, while the other two had watched from the sidelines the whole time.

"Internal strife to this extent?"

He shook his head, having no interest in exploring the night market, and went to book a room in the town to sleep.

The night passed without incident. The next morning, the five of them gathered. Gu Zhiqiu asked, "Are we continuing to grind levels today, or are we waiting here for a day?"

He Shoucheng glanced at him. "Want to see the show?"

"Who wouldn't want to see a battle between top experts below the level of Loose Immortals?"

He Shoucheng simply waved his hand. "Then you don't need to wait; there won't be a fight."

"Why?"

"Because Li Yingshen won't come at all."

"Huh? Didn't he agree to it last night? He accepted the challenge in front of everyone, isn't he afraid of being mocked for not showing up?"

"Won't he be mocked if he gets beaten up instead?"

"???"

He Shoucheng laughed. "They have fought before. That was when Deputy Commander Chu had just returned from the Xuanzhen Immortal Gate. Back then, Li Yingshen had just founded the Fourth Main Regiment in Frostfire and was riding high, wanting to seize Chensha Town and this region as his regiment's base, so he would come to provoke them from time to time."

"As a result, he ran into Deputy Commander Chu, who had just returned. They clashed twice, and he was soundly defeated both times."

Su Yu and Gu Zhiqiu looked at each other, then asked, "If he's no match for her, why does he keep coming to provoke them? Is he a glutton for punishment?"

"Heh, that's why he only dares to come when Deputy Commander Chu is away."

"Then what is the point of this?"

"The point?" He Shoucheng chuckled. "The point is significant. This constantly undermines our guild's reputation and lowers our standing with the River God. When the Frostfire Guild's favor with the River God exceeds ours, that is when Chensha Town will change hands."

Su Yu asked again, "How is the guild responding? There seem to be problems within the Second Regiment; they aren't united. If the guild doesn't manage it, aren't they afraid of Chensha Town changing hands?"

"Not afraid. Our guild's overall strength is stronger than the Frostfire Guild's. The Second Main Regiment has been operating here for decades. Even if they do nothing, it's impossible for the Frostfire Guild to surpass them anytime soon."

Su Yu: ...

He Shoucheng patted him on the shoulder and said, "You don't need to worry either. We are just newcomers; the guild's upper-level affairs have nothing to do with us. Just focus on improving your strength for now."

"Fine."

Su Yu shook his head and waved his hand. "Since there's no fight, let's go grind levels."

"Let's go."

The Fire Spirit Boat soared into the sky and flew toward the Chain Demon Fortress.

They started early, and although many teams had occupied spots at the demon fortress, there were still plenty of vacancies in the depths. They picked a spot, landed, and began luring the demon soldiers.

Having ground for a whole day yesterday, they were already well-coordinated.

He Shoucheng took the lead in defense, while the others focused on offense. They fought while retreating, quickly annihilating the enemies. They could clear a wave in about fifteen minutes and still have a few minutes to rest.

Repeating this, their cultivation points gradually accumulated, and their combat experience continued to improve.

They grinded in one go until dark, and when the team returned, the town was very quiet. Li Yingshen had indeed not shown up.

He didn't come that night either, and the group waited until past nine before sleeping.

The next morning, they continued to head toward the Chain Demon Fortress.

They left early and returned late, showing great perseverance.

On the fourth day, the team obtained the "No. 4 Nameless Dao Scripture" at the demon fortress. That night, Su Yu visited the flea market and collected the "No. 5" and "No. 8" scriptures. Now, he only lacked the No. 9 and No. 10 scriptures to complete the set.

On the seventh day, Su Yu's Sword Qi Sound sword technique had accumulated enough progress, advancing from "Small Achievement" to "Entering the Hall." Sword-controlling damage increased by 30%, and attack speed increased by 30%.

This brought not only stat bonuses but also a significant improvement in swordsmanship technique.

Now, with a single strike, he could consistently deal 8 segments of damage. Combined with the sword technique bonus, each hit dealt as much as 660 damage. Eight segments per strike meant a total output of up to 5,300. After deducting defense, he could easily one-shot low-level monsters below level 45.

In the Thirty-Six Chain Demon Fortress, ordinary wolf demons and rat spirits were one-shot, and only the thick-skinned bull demons required an extra sword or two.

Efficiency improved dramatically, making the grinding much more satisfying.

Without realizing it, they had been grinding for about half a month. Su Yu was still full of energy, eager and spirited every morning.

Early that day, the five of them returned to the spot.

Su Yu struck a blow into a group of patrolling demon soldiers, luring them over. He Shoucheng was chatting happily with his girlfriend, which didn't stop him from casually waving his banana fan to set up layers of wind walls. The others used their own methods to intercept, their coordination very skillful.

It took only ten minutes to wipe out the group of demon soldiers. After simply cleaning up the loot, they sat down to rest and wait for the second wave.

He Shoucheng and his girlfriend were whispering to each other. Su Yu sat on a rock, holding his sword with both hands and wiping it back and forth. Gu Zhiqiu was on the other side, surrounded by several Golden-Winged Flying Centipedes, spraying a five-colored spiritual aura from his mouth onto them. Zhang Yunchen was watching with curiosity.

The Myriad Insect Gathering Spirit Scripture contained many secret methods for refining insects. He was currently using these methods to refine the Golden-Winged Flying Centipedes, enhancing their spirituality and increasing their level cap.

After a short rest, another patrol of demon soldiers emerged from the demon fortress nearby. Su Yu stood up, but before he could speak, a dull bell chime suddenly rang out from afar.

Everyone was stunned. They looked up in the direction of the bell and saw figures flying toward them from that direction. Someone shouted, "The Frostfire Guild is here to kill! Run, everyone from the Qianyu Guild!"

Everyone jumped up in a panic.

"Run!"

Su Yu shouted loudly, "Everyone look out for yourselves! Take a detour back to Chensha Town!"

With that, bursts of sword light exploded, wrapping around him as he shot into the sky. In an instant, he pulled out a sword rainbow over ten meters long and fled toward the distance.

He Shoucheng and the others also used their various methods, rising into the air on their Qi and flying in another direction.

"Clang!"

The crisp bell sound came closer. Three Taiyi Green Spirit Boats, marked with the Frostfire Guild emblem, flew in from the north, splitting into three routes to pursue them.

The Taiyi Green Spirit Boat was a Tier 4 flying boat, 25 meters long and 5 meters wide, capable of carrying 200 people. Each of the three boats had over a hundred people on board. A man in green robes stood at the bow of the central boat and pressed down with one hand from afar.

Spiritual energy converged, forming a giant hand nearly an acre in size that pressed down.

"Bang!"

Several people were caught under the giant hand and crushed to pieces.

The other flying boats quickly approached individual figures, and volleys of sword light and spells were unleashed, engulfing them.

Occasionally, those who couldn't escape would turn to resist, but they were instantly killed when faced with the coordinated attacks of the Frostfire Guild members on the flying boats.

Su Yu, looking back, couldn't help but ask He Shoucheng, "Can guilds just kill people in each other's territory so casually?"

He Shoucheng quickly replied, "Usually, guilds wouldn't do this, but some guilds have deep-seated grudges and are mortal enemies, so naturally, they can."

"However, although we've had friction with the Frostfire Guild before, it was always controllable. It's rare for them to come and kill people like this. I'm wondering if the Frostfire Guild wants to take advantage of the internal strife in our Second Regiment to seize Chensha Town in one go."

"But regardless, this place is no longer suitable for us to grind. I plan to head straight back to headquarters after returning to Chensha Town. Do you want to come with me?"

"Let's talk about it later; let's shake them off first."

"Fine."

Su Yu's sword-controlling speed was very fast, reaching 920 kilometers per hour, and he was very agile, quickly outpacing many of those fleeing and temporarily escaping danger.

But others were not so lucky. From time to time, someone would be caught up to, and a dozen people would jump off the flying boats to surround and kill them.

Gu Zhiqiu was one of the unlucky ones. Although he had refined-grade Daoist techniques, he was not good at speed, and he had spent all his money on the Golden-Winged Flying Centipedes, leaving him without a good flight artifact. Relying only on his own Qi flight, he was at the bottom of the speed rankings among the many fleeing people and was quickly caught.

"Clang!"

With a crisp bell chime, an invisible sound wave exploded, and the Golden-Winged Flying Centipedes protecting him were all blown into meat paste.

Fortunately, he had been recalling his centipedes while fleeing, having already retrieved most of them; otherwise, he would have lost his entire fortune in this one blow.

"Hahaha, look at these Qianyu Guild members, don't they look like dogs being chased around everywhere?"

"Our boss is mighty! That Chu Xinyue is being played in circles by the commander."

"Boss, do you want to go around Chensha Town later?"

Li Yingshen retracted his treasure bell and smiled slightly. "Sure, keep chasing for a while, then head to Chensha Town."

The Frostfire Guild cultivators on the flying boat were ecstatic. "Everyone heard that! Put in some effort and kill a few more before we move out."

"You got it."

The three Taiyi Green Spirit Boats dispersed, and over a hundred Frostfire Guild members flew out, splitting into small teams to pursue the nearest Qianyu Guild members.

"Damn it, we're being pursued."

He Shoucheng's voice came through the channel.

Su Yu looked back and saw that the Fire Spirit Boat carrying He Shoucheng and his group had been targeted by a Taiyi Green Spirit Boat.

A Tier 3 Fire Spirit Boat had a speed of 500 kilometers per hour, while a Tier 4 Taiyi Green Spirit Boat reached 1,200 kilometers per hour. He Shoucheng, his girlfriend, and his brother-in-law were all on the boat, and they were caught up in no time.

The two flying boats were side-by-side, and one of them had dozens of people on board, constantly unleashing Dharma Treasures to bombard the Fire Spirit Boat's defensive shield.

The Fire Spirit Boat's defense was decent, at 30,000, comparable to a Tier 6 defensive treasure, but it couldn't withstand the siege of so many people, even with the three of them constantly pouring their mana into it.

Fortunately, He Shoucheng was decisive. Knowing there was no hope of escaping, he used a Small Teleportation Talisman.

After a full fifteen seconds of activation, the talisman tore through space and sent the three of them away.

But while the people could leave, the Fire Spirit Boat could not, remaining in place as a trophy for the Frostfire Guild.

The Teleportation Talisman required a long activation time of 15 seconds, and any attack would interrupt it. Under normal circumstances, there was never enough time to escape when in danger.

As long as anyone stopped to activate a talisman, they became their primary target.

Seeing them safely leave, Su Yu breathed a sigh of relief and urged his flying sword to accelerate away.

However, he hadn't flown far before he was targeted by a Taiyi Green Spirit Boat. Its speed of 1,200 kilometers per hour was faster than his.

But flying boats were far less agile than flying swords. Su Yu immediately lowered his altitude and dove into the mountains.

"Oh, a swordsmanship expert!"

"Interesting, chase him."

A captain of the Frostfire Guild on the Taiyi Green Spirit Boat became interested and ordered the boat to stay on Su Yu's tail.

One chasing, one fleeing, they soon left the mountain range.

The sword rainbow agilely circled around a small mountain top and flew toward the south, while the Taiyi Green Spirit Boat had to take a wide turn to keep up. However, relying on its faster speed, it was able to stay locked on.

But as Su Yu kept weaving through the mountains, turning left and right, he kept widening the distance and soon shook them off.

"Damn, he can really run."

The flying boat turned around reluctantly and returned in defeat.

"Small fry!"

Confirming he had shaken off the enemy, Su Yu turned back and gave a middle finger, then adjusted his direction to head toward Chensha Town.

However, just as he flew out from the mountains and entered the Liushui Alluvial Plain area, he suddenly received a message from Chu Xiaoyu:

"Come over here."