Chapter 852: Escape

"'Sang Ta? Whether you are Sang Ta or a Black Kirin Beast, what can you possibly hold against us with your current strength?' Gu Sheng sneered mockingly.

The young woman in the green dress hesitated briefly before speaking, "Someone got ahead of us, broke through the restrictions, and made off with all the valuables."

Upon hearing this, the expressions of Gu Sheng and the other three changed dramatically. Gu Sheng, in particular, was furious; finding Sang Ta's ancient cultivator's abode alone had cost them several high-level cultivators, only for someone else to preempt them and abscond with Sang Ta's possessions.

Sang Ta's expression turned exceedingly grim. The restrictions he had set were primarily effective against Black Kirin Beasts; Nascent Soul cultivators, given enough time, could still bypass them.

He transformed into a streak of black light and darted toward the cave.

Moments later, a deafening roar echoed from within the cave. Sang Ta emerged, his gaze dark and his face contorted with murderous intent.

His storage ring, containing centuries of accumulated wealth, including his life-bound magical treasure, had simply been plundered.

"'Pursue them! They've escaped underground, but haven't gotten far.' With that, Sang Ta transformed into a dark streak and gave chase.

Gu Sheng and the other three exchanged glances, hesitated for a moment, then followed suit. With Sang Ta's possessions stolen, the immediate priority was their recovery.

Thousands of feet beneath the surface, a golden glow moved swiftly. Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan, enveloped within it, wore expressions of mild excitement.

They had already conducted a quick inspection of the storage ring's contents, which could be described as 'wealth enough to rival an entire clan.' There were no fewer than seven second-tier magical treasures, alongside a vast quantity of demonic beast materials. The former owner of the cave must have been an extraordinary Nascent Soul cultivator.

They were well aware that the Nascent Soul cultivators would soon be in pursuit.

Soon after, they resurfaced to find a vast marshland stretching before them.

A powerful divine sense swiftly swept over them, locking onto their positions.

Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan's bodies simultaneously glowed with a brilliant blue light. They transformed into a single streak of blue rainbow light and pierced through the air at high speed.

"'Stay right there!' A man's voice, resonant as a bell, boomed. A thunderous roar followed as a black lightning bolt, as thick as an adult's arm, shot towards them, instantly striking the blue rainbow light and erupting into a vast expanse of black lightning.

A loud whistling ensued as countless golden sand particles flew out from the black lightning. Hundreds of golden longswords then aggressively slashed towards Sang Ta.

Sang Ta slammed his fists into the void, unleashing multiple black fist-shadows, each several yards in size, which violently smashed into the hundreds of golden flying swords.

*Boom!* The golden flying swords shattered under the force of the black fist-shadows, disintegrating into a vast cloud of golden sand. A significant amount of purple liquid then emerged from the debris, splashing onto the ground and immediately releasing plumes of acrid green smoke.

A dark light pulsed around Sang Ta's body, and a dense black energy barrier instantly materialized before him. As the purple liquid splattered onto this barrier, it instantly released acrid green smoke, causing the black barrier to flicker precariously, appearing on the verge of collapse.

A flicker of wariness crossed his eyes. He quickly formed a hand seal, transforming into a streak of dark light, and resumed his pursuit.

Tens of thousands of golden-winged crystal ants swarmed forward. The blue rainbow light surged with a vast expanse of white frigid air, causing any golden-winged crystal ants that came within ten yards to instantly freeze and plummet from the sky.

Countless black lightning bolts erupted from Sang Ta's body. Any golden-winged crystal ants that came into contact with the black lightning instantly disintegrated, unable to approach within ten yards of him.

Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan each consumed a drop of millennium spirit milk to restore their magical power, pushing their secret technique, the Heavenly Moon Escape Light, to its absolute limit.

Less than a quarter of an hour later, they flew away from Barren Spirit Island and plunged into the ocean.

Sang Ta followed closely behind. Just as he was about to enter the water, dozens of watermelon-sized blue lightning orbs shot out from the sea, hurtling directly at him.

Sang Ta dared not take the attack head-on. Two dark lights shot from the ox head on his own head, forming a black water barrier hundreds of feet tall, which materialized before him.

*Boom!* A deafening explosion erupted as the black water barrier was utterly pulverized by the dozens of blue lightning orbs. Sang Ta, however, was unharmed. His body radiated a brilliant dark light, and he transformed into a Black Kirin Beast.

The Black Kirin Beast, a water-attribute spirit beast, had reached the fourth-tier mid-grade. Yet, even with its escape speed, it couldn't keep pace with the two Core Formation cultivators.

At that moment, the Black Kirin Beast's face twisted in pain. Its head fluctuated rapidly between that of a Black Kirin Beast and a human.

With a flash of black light, the Black Kirin Beast reverted to its human form.

Sang Ta's expression was grim. He had only recently taken possession of this body and could not yet control it freely. If he were to push himself further in pursuit, the Black Kirin Beast's original spirit might easily reclaim control of the body, a scenario he absolutely refused to countenance.

At this point, Gu Sheng and his three companions also caught up.

"'They've escaped through the seabed. If you wish to pursue them, then do so! As for me, you'll need to be well-prepared if you intend to face me.' With that, Sang Ta transformed into a black streak of light and flew back the way he came.

Gu Sheng deliberated for a moment before quickly making a decision. Sang Ta, despite his current diminished state, was still the Great Shaman of the Barbarian tribe. Slaying him would come at a severe cost, yielding at most the carcass of a fourth-tier demonic beast.

In contrast, the two Core Formation cultivators would be far easier to handle.

The young woman in the green dress released a black turtle, over ten yards in length. This was a third-tier, top-grade Black Kirin Turtle, highly proficient in water escape techniques. Its aquatic escape speed was comparable to that of an ordinary Nascent Soul cultivator.

The four of them mounted the turtle's back and, enveloped by a black energy barrier, submerged into the ocean.

Thousands of feet below the seabed, Wang Changsheng, Wang Ruyan, and the Seafaring Ape were encased within a blue energy barrier. The Seafaring Ape's body pulsed with a blinding blue light, maintaining an extremely rapid escape speed.

As time ticked by, Wang Changsheng could sense the four high-level cultivators close behind; it was only a matter of time before they were overtaken.

With a thought, he instructed the Seafaring Ape to increase its escape velocity.

The Seafaring Ape let out a guttural roar, and its escape speed more than doubled.

Six months later, the waters of a particular sea region churned violently as a gigantic black turtle surfaced. Gu Sheng and his three companions stood atop its shell, their expressions exceedingly grim.

They had pursued for several months without success in apprehending the culprits. The opposing spirit beast was highly proficient in aquatic escape techniques; even with their water-attribute magical treasures, they couldn't close the gap. What truly baffled them was how the third-tier spirit beast's demonic energy seemed limitless; every time they neared, the beast would simply accelerate its escape speed.

"'Great-grandfather, what should we do? Should we turn back and search for Sang Ta?' Gu Luo asked cautiously.

Gu Sheng shot Gu Luo a harsh glare and retorted bluntly, "Where do you imagine Sang Ta would still be? Do you think he's that foolish?"

"'We've toiled for so long, only to end up doing all the work for others. It's truly disheartening,' the young woman in the green dress remarked, her voice tinged with resignation.

"'That may not be the case,' Gu Sheng countered. 'Sang Ta was once a renowned prodigy of our Barbarian tribe. We believed him dead, but he lives. Once he recovers his cultivation, he might lead our tribe to glory once more. Let's return first; Sang Ta will come to find us.'

Gu Sheng then led the three companions upward, and soon, they vanished into the distant sky.