All of Lu Qingshan's insects caught in the blazing heat of the fire immortal cultivator's path were dead by the time he caught up to their battle with the ape. The whole forest was ablaze. His disciples were coughing their lungs out, so he had them stay back.

  As the ape hurtled through the forest, the fire immortal cultivator summoned storms of fire that swept through the area. Its power fluctuations seemed stronger than that of the immortal cultivator. Sometimes, it stepped through some of the flames without a problem, only to meet a bright burning spear that emitted fluctuations matching that of the ape. Now that Lu Qingshan was closer, he could see the immortal cultivator pulling out slips of paper that transformed into those instantaneous spells.

  These were talismans, which had a cursory introduction described in the beginner's book to immortal cultivation. They were powerful, enabling what he assumed was an early-stage Qi Refinement practitioner to fight back a mid-stage Qi Refinement monster ape. But these talismans were limited by a practitioner's wealth. Lu Qingshan did not expect the man to last for this long. He must've been someone of importance.

  Lu Qingshan lurked in the flames, waiting. Fire spell after fire spell rained down on the monster ape but it looked undeterred. In fact, was that a grin on its face? It almost appeared happy to be fighting with the immortal cultivator in this way.

  The giant ape's body had accumulated injuries, but they were healing rapidly. Lu Qingshan was not willing to fight this monster. He ran as fast as he could yet the two always remained a few paces ahead of him. He needed to figure out the best place to ambush the immortal cultivator was, or he might have to face the ape after stealing its kill.

  After following them a great distance, Lu Qingshan remembered where they were and where they were heading. The cliff near the sea, with the second spiritual land appearance, aligned perfectly with the direction traveled. Lu Qingshan disappeared into the forest after figuring out his next move.

  He arrived early in the forest near the cliff with Qin Ye and Li Fanghua, waiting patiently for the two to arrive. Insects rose to his call, flying towards the rising smoke in the distance. Their deaths would serve as an early warning.

  Lu Qingshan remembered that below the cliff was a lot of water. He thought of the water immortal cultivator from before. The two had fought together. They were comrades. Perhaps this was all a plan to lead the ape into a trap.

  He didn't see the woman yet, but it was possible for her to arrive here earlier than him, even though she had fled in another direction. The means of an immortal cultivator were widely varied. To not attract trouble, he stayed where he was, hidden behind an outcrop of rocks. His flying insects began dying not long afterwards he started counting down the minutes.

  The fire immortal cultivator burst into view with a monster's fist barely missing his back. He fled towards the water, confirming Lu Qingshan's suspicions.

  As the two drew close to the cliff, icy crystals emerged in the sky. Wisps of frost coalesced into chains and entangled the monster ape's arms. A pool of water condensed below its feet only to freeze over in a breath's worth of time.

  The monster beast roared. Lu Qingshan covered his disciples' ears. The two immortal cultivators pressed their attack, the icy crystals slowly transforming into spears with a powerful energy rising just above the monster ape's previous movements. He registered this attack as the peak of the middle stage of Qi Refinement.

  The ice cracked. The monster ape pulled one arm out of the chains and began beating at the frozen lake. But it was too late.

  Each icicle spear, upon hitting the peak of their energy levels, rapidly proliferated into dozens, until hundreds of spears pointed towards the desperate monster ape. They shot forwards with a blinding speed. The monster beast fell silent, jagged shards of ice jutting out from every inch of its body. Both the immortal cultivators were left panting as they immediately tried to recover from their wounds.

  Lu Qingshan recognized the spirit stones they held in their hands, but it was not yet time to make his move. He wouldn't feel completely safe until he saw each and every one of their trump cards used. That woman wasn't even harmed.

  Meanwhile, the ape looked close to death. Its breath had all but disappeared and its blood was tainting the icicle spears red. The light in its eyes dimmed with each passing moment Lu Qingshan watched. He hoped for a miracle, but it looked like his ambush would fail.

  Then a shadow flashed. Teeth bit down onto the unsuspecting woman's arm and she screamed. Blood fell onto the ice along with the limb.

  The male immortal cultivator shouted in fury, his scabbard burning brightly again. The sword inside it, a flying sword, shot through the sky and almost impaled the shadow lynx through its heart. But it dodged at the last moment, slipping through the shadows cast by the sun to appear a step away.

  Apes came roaring through the trees. They rained boulders onto the cultivator duo's heads, who tried to deflect them with their spells. But they had clearly been weakened as the rocks broke through their defenses and marred their skin. In their weakened states, even those under the realm of Qi Refinement were able to do some damage.

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  The apes charged in and began beating at the ice trapping their leader. A few brave ones attacked the cultivators alongside the shadow lynx, their giant bodies giving the monstrous lynx a great advantage in the battle.

  As the cultivators' scratches turned into lacerations, they were pushed back step by step, approaching the cliff. The woman sang a sharp cry, and from beneath the waters came the roar of seven great dragons charging into the air. They soared towards the apes and drove off the lynx. A similar scabbard hidden the woman's cloth robes shone with a blue light.

  The lynx howled in pain as an icy blue flying sword emerged from its side and pierced faraway trees. A few of the apes lost their lives in the struggle, but more came to reinforce. Determined to rescue their leader, two dozen apes lost their lives before the rest broke the icy lake and the hanging chains. They then carried their leader back towards the forest.

  Suddenly, a gentle hand came down on the strongest, most hard-working ape’s shoulder. It was the giant ape leader, whose face had broken out into a gaping grin. The beast flexed its muscles and the icicles buried inside its body shattered.

  Its wounds hadn’t healed up completely. That would’ve been too horrific. The cultivators’ mouths were wide open in shock while the enemy they thought defeated stood back up to fight once again. And this time, its aura appeared to be even stronger.

  Faced against the pack of apes, the lynx in the shadows, and the revival of their enemy, the cultivators fell into a brutal melee. Roars deafened Lu Qingshan’s ears. Flesh flew, flowers of fire and ice sliced through monster beasts, and a bright sword moved in and out of the encirclement, taking a life every few breaths.

  The blood staining the ground could not be washed away even with all the water flowing around. But the two cultivators had won. Though it ended in a painful retreat for both sides, the ape had collapsed once again, to be carried away by the remaining survivors of the ape pack. The lynx had limped away with wounds too debilitating to continue fighting.

  Lu Qingshan watched patiently as the two cultivators lowered their weapons a few minutes after the monster beasts had left. Their clothes were tattered. Their hands were still shaking. They didn't even have the energy to sit down and begin meditating with a spirit stone like before - they were well and truly exhausted. Lu Qingshan's internal energy began to slowly shift, having stilled for so long.

  The woman gave her partner a large smile. As the male cultivator moved closer to wrap his arms around her, she slumped over, falling unconscious with her sword clattering onto the earth. It wasn't the powerful icy flying sword she had used before - that weapon was still lost in the forest.

  Lu Qingshan's internal energy adjusted itself to the Heavenly Demon Disintegration Technique. A spot of blood emerged on his lips as his breathing paused for a moment, but he paid it no mind.

  Neither did the male cultivator, having carefully lowered his partner onto the soil. His shoulders visibly became less tense as he tried to sit down, stumbling from the pain. He dug into the bag on his side and retrieved a spirit stone, though he continued to keep an eye on his surroundings.

  Lu Qingshan's blood sang. His eyes remained wide open, refusing to blink. His skin teared as the Heavenly Demon Disintegration Technique maintained its flow.

  Finally, the male cultivator closed his eyes, clasping the spirit stone close to his chest and trying to assume a lotus position. Lu Qingshan fully reversed his internal energy and the Heavenly Demon Disintegration Technique howled.

  The earth shattered in seven spots. A tiger's roar carried Lu Qingshan to the male cultivator in an instant, his fist soaring towards the man clutching their bleeding ears. It tore through a loose, invisible membrane like water, his elbow emerging out the immortal cultivator's skull without any resistance.

  His second blow pulverized the female cultivator's head. Lu Qingshan picked up the lithe body and ripped it in half. He tossed both pieces at the male cultivator, then leaped into the air, falling onto the corpses and smashing them into paste.

  Lu Qingshan roared with pride at the slaughter. Immortal cultivators, with the power to destroy the entire forest, usurp the mountain ranges, slaughter his entire sect — now lay dead by his feet. Pain from the technique's backlash still coursed wildly through his body, but a ferocious, bloody grin shone on his face.

  At the final moment, fully unleashing the Heavenly Demon Disintegration Technique had caused the technique to break through. Only at the second level could he greatly reduce the damage done to himself and perform the technique without permanently damaging his foundation.

  Blood poured from his every orifice yet the energy absorbed by the Blood Seas Inner Force was more abundant than ever. Lu Qingshan was confident he'd slowly heal in time.

  His disciples were still in hiding. None of his scouting insects had been disturbed by monster beasts. He had time to rest before examining the bodies.

  He scanned the stone slab to calm himself down. Then his face paled in shock as he repeatedly read the words below his name. He was pretty sure his lifespan had read “forty-two years” before the battle.

  Lu Qingshan (24 years old)

  Lifespan Remaining: 40 years

  Even though the Heavenly Demon Disintegration Technique was at the second level, he hadn’t prevented his lifespan from being cut. Two years didn’t sound like a lot, but time was his greatest resource. Two fewer years to accumulate Mystic Jade Essence.

  He needed to find a way to make up for the lost difference. With the door to immortal cultivation closed due to his lack of a spirit root, Lu Qingshan turned to martial arts. Performing the Heavenly Demon Disintegration Technique to its fullest had given him a glimpse of a sixth stage after Aperture Tempering - similar to Embryonic Breathing’s Mystic Membrane stage. Perhaps the martial path had its own realm to compete with Qi Refinement.