A Name Shakes the Region, Tracking and Concealment

Chapter 618: A Name Shakes the Region, Tracking and Concealment

"Damn it, this thing really has no breath left. Looks like this trip was for nothing." The short, stout youth had already removed his finger from under the white fox's nose even before that Senior Brother Wang and the other two had descended. At the same time, an extremely infuriated curse escaped his lips.

Having said this, he looked up at the three people descending from the sky, a look of chagrin on his face, and was about to say something more.

But Senior Brother Wang, who was at the front, had his expression change drastically, and all three shouted in unison:

"Watch out!"

"The fox is alive!"

"It's playing dead!"

Three different phrases, yet they all conveyed the same meaning.

That short, stout youth was surprisingly quick-witted. Upon hearing this, his expression instantly stiffened. Without a second thought, he flicked his hand, and a white talisman appeared between his fingers, which he fiercely slapped towards the little beast he was holding by the tail.

But his action was still a beat too slow. His arm holding the talisman had only extended halfway when a tearing, sharp pain suddenly shot through the hand that was gripping the demon fox.

He let out a loud cry, and his five fingers involuntarily loosened. The white fox in his hand slipped, landing steadily on the ground with a smooth "swoosh."

In that instant, the fine hairs on the Snow Cloud Fox’s tail had bristled, becoming as hard as needles, piercing the short, stout youth’s palm until it was riddled with holes and streaming with blood.

Upon seeing this, the three men above came hurtling down in fury, charging straight at the little beast now on all fours.

But this white fox, having barely gained its freedom, had no intention of waiting in place to be caught again. With a single bound, it turned into a streak of white light, shooting over ten zhang away. After a few more leaps and bounds, it plunged headfirst into a nearby thicket.

In their desperation, Senior Brother Wang and the others were exceptionally agile. Like a gust of wind, they surrounded the thicket, then each released a magic tool and began a slow search.

However, after a moment, the three of them were utterly stunned.

Within the thicket, aside from a pile of jumbled rocks, there was nothing. The Snow Cloud Fox, which they had clearly seen jump into this spot, had vanished without a trace.

The three stood there dumbfounded, momentarily at a loss.

"Eh? Where is Junior Han going?" Kui Huan, having come to his senses, subconsciously glanced at the sky. The result made him cry out in surprise.

Only then did the others notice that Han Li was already riding his magic tool, flying swiftly into the distance.

Senior Brother Wang and the others were utterly bewildered.

It was at that moment that Han Li's voice transmission sounded in their ears.

"Don't worry, fellow senior brothers. That little thing used a concealment trick and secretly burrowed underground. I am tracking it with a magic tool. Once it surfaces, I will capture it alive." After saying this, Han Li's voice faded away, and his figure, standing on his flying sword artifact, gradually disappeared into the distance, heading towards the edge of the swamp.

Upon hearing Han Li's words, Senior Brother Wang felt a mixture of joy and surprise. He called out to the others, and they immediately rose into the air, eagerly following Han Li's figure.

Kui Huan and the others followed closely behind.

"Junior Martial Brother Ma, how’s your hand?" In the midst of their rush, this Senior Brother Wang still had the presence of mind to turn back and ask the short, stout youth.

"Fortunately, it’s fine. Luckily, the stuff on its fur wasn't poisonous, just a flesh wound." The short, stout youth, who was lagging behind the others, muttered to himself with a face full of shame.

After all, it was due to his carelessness that the demon beast they had already caught had gotten away. And this happened even after others had warned him.

This made the youth surnamed Ma feel a deep sense of humiliation.

"It's good that you're fine. Let's hurry and catch up. I don't know what magic tool Junior Han is using to be able to track the demon fox that burrowed underground, but we should all keep up quickly." Senior Brother Wang forced a faint smile.

Hearing this, Kui Huan also turned his head and nodded repeatedly, saying in astonishment:

"But speaking of which, this Snow Cloud Fox, having evolved into a demon beast, is far too intelligent! It feigned death so convincingly that even Brother Ma couldn't tell the difference. It really is quite surprising."

The short, stout youth, nursing his injured hand, felt his face burning even redder upon hearing this.

Fortunately, Senior Brother Wang spoke up to defend him at this point.

"You can't blame Junior Brother Ma. Even if I had acted, I might have fallen for it in that situation. It's just that this Snow Cloud Fox is too cunning."

Upon hearing this, the youth surnamed Ma cast a grateful glance at Senior Brother Wang, feeling somewhat better.

While the three were talking, the gold-faced youth surnamed Xi, who had been silently and intently pursuing, seemed to see something unbelievable and blurted out:

"Everyone, look! Junior Han has gone into the stone wall! W-what do we do now?"

The others were startled by these words and looked forward, only to realize they had arrived at the edge of the swamp. A few hundred zhang ahead stood a massive mountain whose peak was lost in the clouds. Facing them was a black, steep cliff face as smooth as if it had been cut by a knife.

And Han Li, who had been in front of them just moments ago, had vanished without a trace.

The four of them stood before this cliff, staring at each other in bewilderment. Even Senior Brother Wang was dumbfounded.

…

Han Li was indeed inside the mountain wall.

He was currently holding the wolf-headed jade ruyi, his entire body enveloped in a faint yellow light. Not far in front of him was a small, several-chi-long yellow wolf, which was clearing a path for him using the Earth Escape Technique.

Wherever this artifact spirit passed, all earth and stone automatically turned to nothing. Han Li followed unhurriedly behind the small wolf, a thoughtful expression on his face.

Within the scope of his divine sense, a white speck of light was desperately scurrying forward dozens of zhang below him—it was precisely that little white fox.

With his level of skill, the Snow Cloud Fox’s act of playing dead earlier naturally could not have escaped his notice. Furthermore, this spirit fox’s attempt to cleverly slip away by using a small vein of rock within the thicket to perform a Stone Escape had also not escaped his divine sense’s surveillance.

Had it been an ordinary low-grade demon beast, Han Li would have long since alerted the Hidden Sword Peak disciples and done them a favor.

But what surprised Han Li was that, as soon as this demon fox showed itself, he noticed something unusual.

This beast carried a spiritual energy fluctuation that felt somewhat familiar to him.

Startled, he thought about it carefully for a moment before a realization struck him with surprise. This fox had a faint wisp of the same clear, pure energy that belonged to the incarnation of the Nine-Bend Spirit Ginseng, that little white rabbit.

Han Li was naturally overjoyed, thinking he had discovered the incarnation of some other heavenly treasure.

However, after thoroughly examining the white fox’s body with his divine sense, he became puzzled.

The amount of clear, pure energy on this beast was far too little. Compared to the Nine-Bend Spirit Ginseng, it was like heaven and earth, not even amounting to a tenth of a percent. Moreover, after a careful scan with his divine sense, this Snow Cloud Fox was indeed a creature of flesh and blood, not some illusory incarnation. Otherwise, how could a mere Five Elements Confusion Formation have trapped it?

Although he had confirmed that this little fox was not the incarnation of a heavenly treasure, Han Li had become even more curious.

He surmised that this beast’s evolution from an ordinary animal into a demon beast must be inextricably linked to this wisp of clear, pure energy.

He immediately resolved to get to the bottom of the matter. So, he had allowed the beast to feign death and escape from the sight of Kui Huan and the others, while he himself followed slowly behind. He wanted to see what secret this beast was hiding.

Now, as he approached the cliff face, the Snow Cloud Fox, without hesitation, transformed into a ball of white light and merged into it.

This caused Han Li, who was secretly following, to act without delay. He released the earth-attribute artifact spirit of his jade ruyi.

Only by using the small wolf’s Earth Escape Technique could he follow without alarming the beast. If he had used a flying sword to hack through the mountain, it would naturally have startled the white fox and caused it to flee again.

This mountain was obviously quite vast. Han Li followed the white fox for several hundred zhang before the white light suddenly paused. It then emerged from the stone as if appearing inside a sealed stone chamber.

Han Li’s heart suddenly leaped with joy. He quickly used the ruyi in his hand to urge the earth-attribute small wolf, commanding it to hasten its Earth Escape Technique.

At the same time, he increased the power of his spiritual sense, wanting to take a peek at the stone chamber first.

However, as soon as his spiritual sense approached the stone chamber, it was repelled by a strange force and could not penetrate even a fraction.

"Heh!" Han Li let out a surprised, soft exclamation. His forward momentum unconsciously slowed, and a great sense of vigilance rose within him.

But it was at this moment that he suddenly felt his entire body tighten, his weight becoming as heavy as Mount Tai. At the same time, a faint voice spoke in his ear.

"Since a guest has come, there’s no need to be so reluctant. Do you want this old woman to invite you in yourself?"

The moment this voice faded, countless beams of yellow light surged around Han Li, and a tremendous force pushed him from behind.

Han Li only felt his vision flash, and he materialized inside a stone chamber.

Greatly alarmed, he frantically waved the jade ruyi in his hand, and a dual-colored shield of yellow and red appeared over his body. At the same time, he opened his mouth, and over a dozen cyan streaks shot out, rapidly circling outside the protective shield.

Only then did Han Li have a chance to steady himself and look around the room.