Family Cultivation: Rise of the Wilderness

Chapter 16 Chasing the Enemy
Li Xiangming is currently located on a small hill east of Tailai Peak.

A large pigsty has been built here, with more than forty sows and a retired emperor pig demon.

It's not easy for one person to take care of so many pigs. Fortunately, he is a cultivator with plenty of energy and the aid of the Spirit Control Technique, so he manages to keep things in order.

After tidying up the pigsty, Li Xiangming dismissed Li Xiangcheng and headed to Mao District himself. He had been in the police force for over four months and had already been assigned to a different district, but luckily, he drew the same district in the lottery.

The dense forest in Mao District was even denser than in Yin District. Li Xiangming followed his own planned route and strolled around leisurely.

It doesn't matter if it's slow; the key is not to be discovered by the monsters, otherwise they will try every means to avoid me, the imperial envoy.

After walking for a while, Li Xiangming frowned. Why was it so quiet today?

Not a single demonic beast was found.

"Somewhat something is wrong."

Li Xiangming muttered something to himself, then held his breath and observed his surroundings.

Not long after, he noticed something amiss: many of the leaves he had placed in easy-to-step spots in the forest had been moved.

Picking up one of the pieces, you can still clearly see the marks of being trampled.

The footprints of ordinary animals don't look like this.

These are human footprints!
Li Xiangming's hair stood on end. It was impossible for an ordinary person to appear in this dense forest; the one who left these traces must be a cultivator.

Moreover, judging from the traces, they shouldn't have gone far.

Li Xiangming picked up a few more leaves to compare and quickly confirmed that the other party had left in the east.

Since he went east, it's unlikely he came in from the east. This means that he crossed the jurisdictions of other police officers to get here, and the Li family was completely unaware of it.

"Letting you leave like this would be a dereliction of duty!"

Li Xiangming muttered something to himself, took out a talisman from his storage bag, lit it with his magic, and then chased after it with his head down.
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"Boom!"

The explosion startled birds and beasts from all directions, and the old trees, long covered in dust, burst into flames, offering light to the dark forest.

An old man with fair skin squatted on a tree and questioned, "Young man, why are you being so aggressive?"

At the same time, his sharp eyes kept darting around, trying to search for any possible targets in the surroundings.

"I have never liked to force anyone. Let's stop this, exchange names, and sincerely become friends. Wouldn't that be wonderful?"

Li Xiangming hid behind one of the large trees, mastering the art of concealing his aura.

After exchanging blows, he had determined that his opponent was a late-stage Qi Refining cultivator, with an actual cultivation level likely around the seventh or eighth level of Qi Refining. He knew he couldn't afford to fight him.

"Hehe, you are from a prominent family, and I am not worthy of your esteem. There is no need for us to befriend you. Just let me go here, and I will never set foot on your Li family's territory again."

"Very well, you may put down what you have behind you and leave on your own."

The pale-faced old man laughed angrily: "Do all you aristocratic families use robber logic?"

"I don't think you dare to swear an oath to heaven to prove that the child in your body is your bloodline."

The pale-faced old man's expression changed, and he stared intently at Li Xiangming: "When did you find out?"

Li Xiangming did not answer. He was unsure before, but now he was completely clear.

"I originally intended to downplay the matter and let you off the hook."

The white-faced old man touched his back, where a bamboo basket about two feet tall was hanging. It was the result of his hard work over the past two months and could not be lost.

“But you have a way to die.”

The pale-faced old man shouted sternly, raised his arm, and the iron caltrops he had been preparing for a long time flew out, heading straight for Li Xiangming's location.

This person knows how to locate sounds!

Li Xiangming's face darkened, and he jumped back hastily. The iron caltrops penetrated deep into the wood, and the explosive talismans attached to them activated, blasting the trees to smithereens.

Through the smoke, the pale-faced old man's eyes were fierce, and his thin, claw-like fingers were aimed straight at Li Xiangming's face.

Already in mid-air, Li Xiangming had no choice but to activate his magic seal.

In an instant, waves surged and rapids roared.

Faced with the towering waves, the white-faced old man was terrified. He paused, stopped in his tracks, and hurriedly retreated, unwilling to confront the attack head-on.

Unexpectedly, Li Xiangming was also bluffing. Seeing that he had forced his opponent back, he decisively withdrew his magic and turned to hide in the dense forest.

The two stopped short of a confrontation, leaving the situation at a stalemate. The old man with the white face said angrily, "You coward, come out and have a go at me!" This time, Li Xiangming didn't reply, and the dense forest fell silent.

"This little rascal is really good at hiding."

The old man with the white face had a toothache, but his spiritual sense couldn't find the other person.

Ignoring this guy is a potential problem; we won't be able to take the Danggui Mountain route next time.

Let's chase after them. They know the terrain well, and it will take at least three to five incense sticks' time to make a mess of things.

This is exactly what the little brat wanted; the Li family's reinforcements should arrive by then.

After weighing his options, the pale-faced old man cursed a few times and left with a dark expression.

Where exactly is this person going?

Watching the departing figure, Li Xiangming was filled with deep doubt.

To the east of Danggui Mountain lies a desolate wilderness, beyond which lies the Puyin Mountain Range.

The Puyin Mountains are teeming with demonic beasts and demonic cultivators, so he probably wouldn't dare to go in. Only the north and south routes remain.

To the north is Mount Dai, but to get to Mount Dai, you don't need to take the road through Mount Danggui.

Should we head south?
Li Xiangming recalled the children the old man with the white face was carrying, and a vague guess began to form in his mind.

Because of the presence of his child, he dared not confront him directly, but not taking action did not mean he could not do anything.

Want to go?

Li Xiangming sneered. He wasn't in a hurry. He first left markers around the area before following them.

He didn't know the Mao District inside and out, but he had patrolled it for a month.

In his view, although the white-faced old man was rushing eastward, the route he took was crooked and erratic. He didn't even need to follow behind; he could naturally catch up by walking straight.

Sure enough, only a quarter of an hour later, Li Xiangming saw the white-faced old man again.

The pale-faced old man was very alert; as soon as Li Xiangming appeared, he immediately turned around.

Upon seeing the familiar yet repulsive face, the old man's face turned as red as a pig's liver: "You little brat, I've never offended your Li family, is it really necessary to go to such lengths to exterminate us?"

After learning that the old man with the white face was hiding a child in the bamboo basket behind him, Li Xiangming didn't bother to waste any more words with him.

If the other party wanted to leave, he wouldn't stop them, he would just follow; if the other party wanted to fight, he wouldn't be able to intervene, he would simply retreat into the depths of the dense forest.

In short, as long as he didn't leave the Mao area, he would stay at a distance and linger there.

Seeing this, the white-faced old man took a deep breath and secretly resolved to get rid of this brat.

"That brat is only relying on this dense forest and his ability to conceal his presence. He's as disgusting as a fly. I need to lure him out."

After a moment's thought, the white-faced old man gritted his teeth and said loudly, "Fine, I'm scared. Don't you want what's behind me? Here you go."

After saying this, the white-faced old man took off his bamboo basket and threw it into the air.

At the same time, he kept a close eye on the shadows. He believed that one must risk one's life to catch a wolf, and he refused to believe that the other party would simply watch the bamboo basket fall to the ground.

Sure enough, the bamboo basket flew to its highest point and fell straight down, and a dark shadow emerged from the dense forest.

"Gotcha."

The white-faced old man grinned, his figure flashed, and he directly jumped over the bamboo basket, rushing in front of Li Xiangming. This was the effect of the Instantaneous Movement Talisman.

"You little brat, prepare to die!"

The white-faced old man locked Li Xiangming's collar with his eagle claws, and with his other hand, he slapped Li Xiangming's crown with lightning speed.

The young cultivator couldn't react in time; his eyes glazed over, and his entire head flew off.

Seeing how easily things were done, the white-faced old man laughed heartily. Suddenly, he noticed that his hands were soaking wet, and half of the little brat's body had turned into a puddle of water and slumped on the ground.

Amidst the water stains lay a dull, lifeless talisman.

"not good."

The old man with the white face hurriedly turned around and saw that Li Xiangming was carrying the bamboo basket on his body.

"You little brat, you're asking for it!!"

(End of this chapter)