If he did, Chu Lingguang might get away.

So he ignored the Spiritual Monkey and continued leaping down toward Chu Lingguang.

"PFFT!"

Chu Lingguang was somewhat surprised. With a flick of his sleeve, dozens of poison needles shot out at once, blanketing the man with the black mole.

It was the Rainstorm Pear Blossom Needle.

This hidden weapon was a reward Chu Lingguang had received for his outstanding performance at the academy, a feat that had burnished the political records of Li Dayao and Liu Wan.

Chu Lingguang always carried it on his person.

He had almost used it on the Little Prince, and now the man with the black mole would get to taste its sting.

"Agh!"

The man with the black mole cried out, shocked that Chu Lingguang had such a trick. Fortunately, his Saber Technique was superb. He brandished his dual sabers, creating a curtain of light that blocked every single poison needle.

Chu Lingguang was utterly stunned.

Although the man with the black mole hadn’t awakened Primitive Power or activated a sixth-level Dharma Aspect, he was a genuine powerhouse at the Qi Sea Perfection realm—not someone an ordinary person could handle.

’It makes sense that my sneak attack failed,’ he thought. ’Of course his Saber Technique was good enough to block all the poison needles.’

Thankfully, while the man with the black mole was busy blocking the needles, Chu Lingguang had already ridden Little Red Horse away from him and was quickly drawing his bow and nocking an arrow.

This time, he was using the Barbaric Bow.

The man with the black mole cursed inwardly. He had specifically ignored the Spiritual Monkey to prevent Chu Lingguang from creating distance. Without the protection of a sixth-level Dharma Aspect, the Four-Star Linked Pearls Archery could still pose a significant threat to him.

Especially with no cover in sight.

Watching Chu Lingguang draw his bow, he was tempted to hide inside the cave, but turning to flee would be a fatal mistake. He could only face the attack head-on.

At that moment, he naively believed that Chu Lingguang would only manage to graze him and draw a few drops of blood.

WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH!

However, when his dual sabers collided with the first arrow shaft, the surging power that followed was so immense it made the flesh on his face ripple like a wave.

In that instant, he cried out inwardly, thinking only that Chu Lingguang was performing far beyond his usual level.

When the second arrow arrived, he found he could barely hold onto his dual sabers. It was then he realized the danger was closing in.

As the third arrow struck, his dual sabers were knocked from his hands, and the arrowhead pierced his Qi Phase Scale Armor.

When the fourth arrow arrived, he was bare-fisted. His hands grasped at empty air as the arrowhead slammed into the third arrow, driving it through his Qi Phase Scale Armor and flesh. The point embedded itself in his bone, and his body was sent flying backward as he vomited a mouthful of fresh blood.

"That bow in your hands..."

Only now did the man with the black mole realize that the bow in Chu Lingguang’s hands looked different.

But it was too late.

WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH!

Chu Lingguang pressed his advantage, moving in for the kill.

He loosed another four arrows in quick succession.

The man with the black mole was already wounded and disarmed. He had just scrambled to his feet to escape when Chu Lingguang’s next volley of arrow shafts pierced through his body, pinning him to the mouth of the cave.

Suddenly, a blast of air pressure swept down.

Chu Lingguang saw an Iron Wolf Eagle diving toward the Spiritual Monkey.

WHOOSH WHOOSH!

He fired two consecutive arrows to block that Iron Wolf Eagle, then two more to repel another one that was diving at him.

He quickly moved to the Spiritual Monkey’s side, aiming his bow at the several Iron Wolf Eagles in the sky. Right at that moment, one of them swooped down.

Chu Lingguang focused completely and loosed four arrows in succession.

SQUELCH!

This Iron Wolf Eagle was not as lucky as the previous two. Chu Lingguang’s third arrow struck a vital spot, and the fourth pierced its chest. Its massive body came crashing down, nearly injuring Little Red Horse.

"SCREEE!"

Seeing this, the other three Iron Wolf Eagles fled at top speed toward the Turkic lands. They didn’t dare approach Chu Lingguang again, wishing they could disappear from his sight that very instant.

’If I’d activated my sixth-level Dharma Aspect, I could have wielded my Primitive Power without restraint,’ Chu Lingguang mused. ’I might have been able to kill an Iron Wolf Eagle with just two arrows.’

A Divine Image was the guardian of Primitive Power; not only did it have a strengthening effect, but it also prevented physical injury.

In Martial Arts Cultivation, it was often said that unless it was a last resort, one absolutely had to activate their sixth-level Dharma Aspect before awakening Primitive Power. Otherwise, if the Primitive Power spiraled out of control, it would inflict immense damage on the body, even causing it to rupture and kill the user.

Teachers at the Trial Ground had said as much.

But Chu Lingguang had always been fuzzy on the details of activating his sixth-level Dharma Aspect. Plus, at a critical moment, he had found the resonance point between the Dragon Elephant and an external force, and he simply couldn’t resist the temptation of awakening his Primitive Power.

Fortunately, his physical body had undergone a Washing Marrow. His bloodline, as well as the strength of his flesh and bones, far surpassed that of an ordinary person. As long as he didn’t recklessly use his Primitive Power, his body wouldn’t be harmed in the short term.

He retied the Spiritual Monkey to his waist.

After the ordeal of smoke and fire, the Spiritual Monkey was listless, but its life was not in danger.

Chu Lingguang rode Little Red Horse swiftly over the southern mountain. At the summit, he saw a vast, sun-blotting forest below, where startled flocks of birds burst from the treetops in great swarms.

’Mo Shan and the other three have probably broken through the encirclement and are rushing this way,’ Chu Lingguang thought. Not daring to delay, he rode Little Red Horse and successfully crossed the mountain, entering the patrol area of the Great Yuan sentinels. Less than an hour later, Chu Lingguang finally met a squad of them.

"I am Chu Lingguang, the champion of South City and a disciple of Mr. Du."

Chu Lingguang announced his identity.

Mr. Du had already notified the outposts that he had entered the mountains with Mo Shan and the others to search for the Spiritual Monkey. These sentinels had all received the news, so upon seeing him, they hurried over. 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

"Young Master Chu, you’ve finally returned."

"Where are the other four masters?"

a sentinel asked.

"They’re surrounded by Turkic Troops! Find a way to notify Mr. Du at once! Tell him to send reinforcements! This is the Spiritual Monkey. Take it back and deliver it to Mr. Du."