Chapter 374: Chapter 185: Witchcraft Technique Replication, Part 2

"Mom, Mom, look! I found a Snow Lotus! This is worth at least twenty sea shells!"

"Son, this is valuable. We have to sell it quickly, or someone will snatch it away."

Inside the house, an elderly woman wrapped the Snow Lotus in a piece of tattered cloth, tucked it into her robes, and warned her son not to wander off.

Then, she shakily went out the door.

"When Mom gets the money, I’m going to buy a Halberd. I’m going to be someone important!"

The young boy inside the house mumbled happily to himself.

"A slave dares to have such ambitions? Truly courting death!"

However, the words had barely left the boy’s lips when an icy voice cut in from the doorway.

A tall man in Armor stood there, staring indifferently at the low, dilapidated hut. He was holding someone in his hand.

Upon closer inspection, it was none other than the old woman from before.

"Mom! Mom!"

"My child, don’t come out! Run! Run away!"

The old woman was short and frail, yet even as the man held her by the neck, she struggled to shout to her son.

"Speak. Where did you find the Snow Lotus? Tell me, and I’ll give you a quick death. If you don’t..."

The man sneered. Just as he was about to tighten his grip and punish the old woman, he suddenly felt a vast pressure descend from the sky.

"Which... which Lord Shangzun is this?"

The man struggled to raise his head and look toward the sky.

A middle-aged woman dressed in magnificent silks and adorned with many exquisite accessories slowly materialized in the sky.

"Gre... greetings, My Lord! This humble one is a junior officer of the Taotie Battalion."

"Stand down!"

The woman waved her hand. As if granted a great pardon, the soldier quickly set the old woman down, bowed, and retreated from the courtyard.

Saved, the old woman immediately prostrated herself on the ground. Trembling uncontrollably, she kowtowed again and again in gratitude.

"How noisy!"

The woman flicked her finger, and a clear ray of light abruptly shot toward the old woman.

"Sigh."

’With a soft sigh, Zhao Rui knew she had already discovered him. Although he didn’t know how, the fact that she’d tracked him down spoke for itself.’

With a casual palm strike, he neutralized her ray of light.

’He was no Holy Mother, but since she’d already discovered him, saving the old woman was simply a reflex born from his nine years of compulsory education.’

’What makes a person human is that sliver of empathy, of compassion for the suffering of others.’

’Of course, if he hadn’t been discovered, he certainly wouldn’t have revealed himself by interfering.’

"Come back with me to the manor. The Old Ancestor personally requested your return. No matter who you are, you can’t escape from this city."

The woman said, her expression indifferent.

"Is that so?"

Zhao Rui’s eyes suddenly flashed. He instantly activated the Six Trigrams Enchanting Immortal Technique, and a Spirit Shock surged toward the woman like a tidal wave.

"A Central Plains person?"

The woman’s eyes flashed, and a beast-shaped sigil suddenly blazed on her forehead.

It directly blocked Zhao Rui’s Divine Soul Power.

’Zhao Rui froze. This was the first time he’d ever met someone who could block Divine Soul Power.’

"Demon Path Celestial Net, boundless are the Sound Waves... My form is absolute, my throat a jade chime ten years in the making. Its heavenly song shall sever all arts!"

Zhao Rui opened his mouth, unleashing a silent Sound Wave Technique. His Divine Soul Power carried the sonic vibrations, instantly rushing toward the woman.

’He had carefully refined this sonic vibrational power, borrowing the principle of resonance from modern science.’

’Compared to the original Heavenly Demon Illusionary Sound Technique, its power had its own unique applications.’

The woman’s eyes flew open. The beast-shaped sigil on her forehead flared to life again, blocking Zhao Rui’s assault just as before.

But this time, Zhao Rui’s attack resonated with an indescribably bizarre frequency.

The frequency shifted from low to high, constantly recalibrating.

In a flash, the beast-shaped sigil let out a CRACK and shattered into motes of light, vanishing from sight.

The woman was visibly stunned, her eyes widening in surprise.

Her figure blurred, and she vanished from her spot, reappearing far away to dodge Zhao Rui’s attack.

"Interesting. No wonder Ling’Er would ask the Old Ancestor to intervene."

"Go back and tell Mo Ling’Er that if she pushes me too far, not to blame me for taking her down with me."

As Zhao Rui finished speaking, he instantly activated his Sound Wave Skill and the Charming Maiden Formless Celestial Demon Great Method simultaneously. His figure blurred as he was about to vanish from the courtyard.

The middle-aged woman’s expression remained unchanged. With a flicker, she latched onto him like a maggot on a bone, following close behind.

After the two departed, the old woman, having survived the ordeal, rushed into the house and swept the curious boy, who had been peeking from the doorway, into her arms.

"When I grow up, I want to be as strong as that big brother!"

"Silly child..."

The old woman stroked the boy’s hair, shaking her head with a heavy heart. A slave was destined to be a slave from birth, never to become one of the elite.

Just being alive was a blessing from the heavens.

...

Like a slippery eel, Zhao Rui weaved through the city, dodging and hiding.

But the woman could always find him again in an incredibly short time.

After a while, Zhao Rui gave up on hiding and launched a direct assault on the middle-aged woman.

The middle-aged woman hadn’t expected him to counterattack. With a sneer, she met him head-on.

The two exchanged a flurry of blows in mid-air, locked in a heated battle.

"Copyable Cultivation Technique detected: Soaring Dragon Body Technique. Copy?"

"Copyable Cultivation Technique detected: Celestial Heart Beast Taming Technique! Copy?"

"Copyable Cultivation Technique detected: Daluo Celestial Venerable! Copy?"

In a flash, five or six Martial Arts techniques appeared in Zhao Rui’s mind.

’As I thought, it’s easier to fleece the sheep in an unfamiliar place!’

’Zhao Rui felt this trip to Gui Xu wasn’t a total loss; at least he could learn plenty of new Cultivation Techniques.’

"Celestial Beast Manifestation!"

With a great shout from the middle-aged woman, the Divine Beast on her forehead suddenly manifested a physical form and charged straight for Zhao Rui.

She didn’t remain idle either. With a blur of motion, she followed right behind it, closing in on him.

The woman and the beast attacked Zhao Rui in perfect coordination. 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

The beast had the hooves of an ox and the body of a horse, its maw filled with terrifying fangs. Upon manifesting, it was able to summon Earth Element Power, causing Zhao Rui significant trouble.

The pressure on Zhao Rui doubled, and his offensive was instantly broken, forcing him onto the defensive.

"Surrender obediently! Let me earn some favor with the Old Ancestor!"

The middle-aged woman said smugly, "Since you know Ling’Er, why go through all this trouble?"

"Enough talk! Let’s settle this with our fists!"

’Zhao Rui’s time was precious; his only goal now was to copy a few more Martial Arts.’

’He wanted to see how the Martial Arts of the Gui Xu people differed from traditional ones.’

"You really don’t know your own limits!"

The middle-aged woman was clearly displeased with Zhao Rui’s response.

Her attacks inevitably quickened.

’When Zhao Rui saw her attack speed increase, he was secretly delighted and matched her pace.’

The two fought on. It seemed the woman had blocked all external perception, as they battled for a full hour with no one interfering.

"Copyable Cultivation Technique detected: Witchcraft Secret Skill, Yin Tiangong! Copy?"

Just as the fight was heating up, a system prompt sounded in Zhao Rui’s mind.

’Zhao Rui froze. ’A hidden technique?’’

He quickly chose to copy it. Then, using every skill at his disposal, he created a clone as a diversion and instantly fled into the distance.

The middle-aged woman was stunned. A moment ago, they were evenly matched. How had he vanished in the blink of an eye?

She immediately gave chase.

「Two days and two nights passed in a flash.」

Although people could occasionally pinpoint his location using some special means, the woman chasing him was simply unable to catch him under normal conditions.

Their clash had at least bought him some time to evade her.

However, as time passed, his opponent’s Techniques grew increasingly bizarre, and Zhao Rui began to feel the pressure mounting.

This was her territory, after all. No matter how skilled he was, he was growing exhausted from the constant chase.

The middle-aged woman’s Martial Arts were profound and her methods bizarre; she was clearly his superior in strength.

After another day of fighting, Zhao Rui finally finished copying two of the Secret Techniques from among the many Cultivation Techniques he had detected.

The moment he acquired them, Zhao Rui immediately utilized his new Witchcraft Divine Techniques to find a flaw in the woman’s Technique. He then struck directly at her back with his palm.

The middle-aged woman was shocked and scrambled to dodge. Unfortunately, the power, timing, and strategy of his strike were all perfectly precise.

Seeing that evasion was hopeless, she had no choice but to turn and receive the palm strike directly.