Chapter 97: The Vanishing Storage Bag
Chapter 97: Chapter 97: The Vanishing Storage Bag
Zhang Chi, cloaked in invisible Celestial Net Gang Force, charged forward with Blood Escape and once again wielded the Demon Snake Spine.
A step ahead of him, Furnace Carbon transformed into a lightning-fast streak of black Sword Light, hurtling toward Patriarch Xie.
What’s more, Corpse Puppet No.1 suddenly rushed out and opened its mouth, unleashing a great cloud of Corpse Evil at Patriarch Xie.
Then, without waiting to see the result, Corpse Puppet No.1 charged forward to launch a frenzied assault.
Clearly, Zhang Chi intended to go all out in an attempt to ambush and kill Patriarch Xie.
After dealing with Xie Yu and the others, he had come to Red Leaf City, only to find the inner city enveloped by an Array. The Array was fully activated, was close to Tier Three in Level, and his Breaking Charms would definitely not be able to breach it.
Thus, he had settled for the next best thing: lying in ambush on the only path to the site of the incident.
His Phantom Beetle had been following them, providing him with real-time information. He could therefore adjust his position at any time and had no fear of ambushing the wrong place.
"You wretched thief! You must be the one who killed my Xie Family members. Die!"
Patriarch Xie’s vision went black from the toll of the bell.
But he was a Foundation Establishment Middle Stage cultivator, and the Patriarch of the Xie Family, after all. He was wearing a powerfully defensive Top Grade Magic Robe, so he wasn’t stunned and recovered quickly.
He even managed to summon a Golden Small Seal in the nick of time—another Top Grade Magical Artifact.
Even so, Zhang Chi’s furious assault still battered him. The light from his Magic Robe dimmed, and he was sent flying backward, coughing up blood.
At the same time, he got a clear look at his assailant. Judging the man’s Cultivation from the fluctuations of Spiritual Power when he attacked with full force, the patriarch became utterly enraged.
He quickly slapped a Tier Two Vajra Talisman onto his body and put some distance between them. While swallowing an Elixir, he activated the Small Seal and began bombarding Zhang Chi.
He believed he had only been at a disadvantage because of the surprise attack. Now that he was prepared, he was certain he could kill his opponent.
Seeing that his opponent only had a Foundation Establishment Early Stage Cultivation finally put his anxious heart at ease.
DONG!
DONG!
Unfortunately, he soon realized his mistake. His opponent activated the Small Bell from time to time. While it couldn’t stun him, each toll made his vision go black, which was incredibly vexing.
As a result, despite being a powerful Foundation Establishment Middle Stage expert, he was actually being suppressed by a mere Foundation Establishment Early Stage cultivator.
To his great frustration, his opponent’s defenses were even stronger than his own. Despite being hit by the Small Seal three times, the man seemed largely unharmed.
The spine-like weapon in his opponent’s hand was also terrifyingly powerful.
Every time the spine struck the Golden Small Seal, the artifact would let out a pained cry, forcing him to pour in more Spiritual Power to keep it stable.
His opponent’s Sword Light was as fast as lightning, making it impossible to defend against. He could only rely on his Magic Robe and Vajra Talisman to endure the blows.
As for his Small Seal, it was completely unable to touch the Sword Light, which darted about like a fish in water.
The Corpse Puppet was also incredibly difficult to deal with; both its Corpse Evil and its close-combat attacks were top-class for its Tier.
Fortunately, he had a good number of Spirit Talismans and had cultivated several spells to a profound level, allowing him to barely hold on.
’Foundation Establishment Middle Stage Cultivators really are impressive. It seems my Cultivation is still too weak! And my Magical Artifacts are too poor!’
At this moment, Zhang Chi was also inwardly astonished. He hadn’t expected that even after using every trick up his sleeve, he still couldn’t kill the man.
If he kept wearing him down, he was confident he could steadily worsen the man’s injuries and eventually take him down.
But he obviously didn’t have that much time.
Besides, his opponent likely had other trump cards he hadn’t had a chance to use yet.
SWISH!
Sure enough, in the next moment, his opponent crushed a Communication Talisman. A golden streak of light immediately shot off toward the Cangwu Sect.
Then, while continuing to fend off the assault, he quickly retreated toward Red Leaf City.
"You thief! If you have any guts, don’t run! Wait for the masters from my Cangwu Sect to come and fight you!" Patriarch Xie yelled.
"Dream on, you old fool. Just you wait. I’ll be back for your life. The reason I killed your Xie Family members today is because you brought it on yourselves! You killed my sworn sister a year ago, and I’ve come for her revenge!"
But Zhang Chi only sneered, recalled his Corpse Puppet, and then fully activated his Blood Escape Technique. He transformed into a bloody streak of Escape Light and vanished in the blink of an eye.
He had shouted all that deliberately as he fled.
PTHOOM!
Patriarch Xie couldn’t help but let out a sigh of relief. He hurriedly flew back into the inner city of Red Leaf City, where he finally spat out a large mouthful of fresh blood.
He had clearly been suppressing his injuries. In truth, he was hurt far more severely than he had let on.
He could have held on until reinforcements from the Cangwu Sect arrived, but his injuries would have become much more severe.
Therefore, he was more than happy to see his opponent flee.
And yet, when he thought about what the man had done, he gritted his teeth, wishing his foe had stayed to be killed by the Cangwu Sect experts.
’That person has a grudge against my Xie Family? But who is his sworn sister? Could it be that Demonic Foundation Establishment Female Cultivator we besieged and killed outside White Cloud Marketplace a year ago?’
’Sigh. If I had known, we never would have killed that Female Cultivator just to curry favor with the Song Family!’
He instantly began to speculate on Zhang Chi’s origins, with his main clue being Zhang Chi’s final words.
And because of this, he was filled with immense regret.
What he didn’t know, however, was that Zhang Chi had been deliberately misleading him.
’A pity. His assault was too ferocious, and he fled too cleanly. I never got a chance to use my trump card, or I would have surely killed him!’ Patriarch Xie thought with regret.
As the Patriarch of the Xie Family, he of course had more than just two Top Grade Magical Artifacts and a few Spirit Talismans.
As he finished this thought, he subconsciously felt for his waist.
"Not good! Where’s my Storage Bag?!"
But in the next moment, the color drained from his face.
The spot at his waist where his Storage Bag should have been was now empty.
"AH! You wretched thief! You’re not just a murderous maniac, you’re a common thief! The Cangwu Sect will not let you get away with this! Puh—"
He immediately understood what had happened and began to roar, losing all composure.
He was so enraged that he coughed up another mouthful of blood on the spot, his injuries instantly worsening by a great deal.
Even with Healing Elixirs, it would now take him several years to fully recover.
As it turned out, his trump card and the bulk of his life’s savings had been in that Storage Bag. Now, all of it, including the bag itself, had vanished without a trace.
He had only been in combat with that fiend; he hadn’t gone anywhere else or encountered any other suspicious individuals.
The Storage Bag had even been there when he’d taken out the Small Seal and some Spirit Talismans.
Therefore, the Storage Bag had obviously been stolen by that monster using some unknown method.
Normally, he maintained a connection to his Storage Bag and would have instantly detected any disturbance. No one should have been able to steal it.
But just then, he had been completely focused on the battle, which had undoubtedly provided the perfect opportunity for that fiend to act.
---
’Looks like the gap between the Foundation Establishment Middle and Early Stages is even wider than I expected. No matter. It won’t be too late to kill that old bastard once I reach the Middle Stage myself.’
’Besides, not only did I gauge his strength and wound him, I even got his Storage Bag. This was hardly a wasted effort. I bet he’ll be half-dead with rage when he finds out the truth, haha!’
A hundred miles away, Zhang Chi had already switched from the Blood Escape Technique to a Flying Boat. As he put more distance between himself and Red Leaf Valley, he began the Refinement of the Storage Bag in his hand, a broad smile spreading across his face.