Journey to the West: A clone sacrifices to the heavens, possessing boundless magical power.

"rise!"

Fan Yuan let out a low shout, and the Qi vortex in his dantian spun rapidly. The spiritual power surged out along the meridian routes of the "Wind Control and Cloud Flowing Technique" and gathered at the Yongquan acupoints on both feet.

call!

The air beneath their feet instantly became viscous and solid, as if it had transformed into two invisible wisps of cloud.

Fan Yuan lightly touched the ground with his toes, and like a falling leaf, he floated up into the sky.

Ten zhang, twenty zhang, fifty zhang...

He stopped when he was hundreds of feet in the air.

Beneath his feet were dark mountains, and above him was a vast starry sky. The cold wind howled, making his robes flutter, but Fan Yuan felt no chill at all. Instead, he felt a sense of exhilaration, like a fish entering the sea or a bird soaring in the sky.

"This is flight!"

Fan Yuan spread his arms wide, his divine sense spreading out to capture the trajectory of every wisp of wind around him.

Here, gravity seems to have lost its restraint. He no longer needs to use leverage to push off; with just a thought, the wind beneath his feet will carry him wherever he wants to go.

"disease!"

Fan Yuan suddenly lunged forward.

He transformed into a streak of azure light, drawing a zigzag line across the night sky. One moment he was a hundred feet away, and the next he had already circled the mountain peak and appeared above the canyon on the other side.

The speed was three times faster than his previous maximum speed!

Moreover, and more importantly, is flexibility.

He soared and descended in the air, sometimes like a roc spreading its wings and soaring into the sky, and sometimes like a swallow skimming the water, moving swiftly close to the ground.

"Consumption is manageable."

Fan Yuan silently calculated the loss of spiritual energy.

At full speed, he would exhaust his spiritual power at the early stage of the Divine Refinement realm in one hour; if he flew at normal speed, he could last for four hours.

This is an astonishing endurance for a cultivator in the early stage of Spirit Refinement. After all, even with the help of magical artifacts, ordinary Spirit Refinement cultivators would find it difficult to maintain their flight for four hours.

"With this technique, even if I am pursued by a cultivator skilled in escape techniques, I will have a chance of survival."

Fan Yuan felt much more at ease.

The world of cultivation is fraught with danger, and killing to seize treasures is commonplace. While offensive techniques are important, the art of escape is the key to longevity.

He hovered in the air for a long time until his spiritual energy in his dantian was more than half depleted, then reluctantly descended from the clouds and landed deep in the desolate mountains.

After calming his turbulent blood and qi, Fan Yuan concealed his aura, changed into an inconspicuous gray robe, and once again sneaked towards Qingmu Market.

……

The lights of Aoki-bo Market were dim.

Although it was late at night, the nightlife was just beginning for cultivators. There were still many independent cultivators setting up stalls on both sides of the street, and their calls to sell rose and fell.

Fan Yuan lowered his straw hat, blended into the crowd, and prepared to return to the inn.

However, just as he was about to turn into that secluded alley, he suddenly stopped.

At the alleyway ahead, a graceful figure leaned against the wall, toying with an exquisite round fan in her hand, looking at him with a half-smile.

The woman wore a light purple flowing dress, her face veiled by a light gauze, revealing only a pair of captivating peach blossom eyes. Even from several feet away, one could smell a mesmerizing fragrance.

Mrs. Bai.

Alarm bells rang loudly in Fan Yuan's mind.

Unexpectedly, she had been staring at this spot the whole time.

"Young man, you seem to be in a hurry. Where are you headed?"

Madam Bai gently waved her round fan, her voice soft and sweet, as if it had a hook that pierced straight into one's bones.

Fan Yuan remained expressionless, cupped his hands and said, "Greetings, senior. I am just returning from gathering herbs and am about to go back to the inn to rest."

"Gathering herbs?"

Madam Bai's beautiful eyes darted around, her gaze sweeping over Fan Yuan as if trying to see through his disguise. "What kind of medicine are you gathering in the dead of night? Could it be... a yin-yang tonic?"

Fan Yuan frowned slightly, took a half step back to maintain a safe distance, and said, "Senior is too kind. I have other matters to attend to, so I will take my leave now."

Having said that, he turned to leave.

"Wait a minute."

Without moving, Madam Bai's invisible fragrance instantly blocked Fan Yuan's path.

She toned down her seductive manner, a hint of inquiry creeping into her eyes: "A few days ago, I saw you staying with another handsome young man. How come you've been going alone these past few days? Where...did that young man go?"

She was asking about Shen Feng, of course.

Fan Yuan sneered inwardly. If she hadn't been following his clone, she would never have known that Shen Feng was living with him. In the end, he had been careless.

But a hint of helplessness appeared on his face: "Senior, are you asking about Fellow Daoist Shen Feng? I only met him by chance and came here together. A few days ago, he said he was going to Wuzhuang Temple to try his luck and see if he could find a job. I know that I am dull-witted, so I stayed here to make a living. As for how he is now, I don't know."

This statement is partly true and partly false, but it makes perfect sense.

It's no secret that Wuzhuang Temple recruits temporary spiritual plant growers; many independent cultivators try their luck there.

"Did you go to Wuzhuang Temple?"

A hint of annoyance flashed in Madam Bai's eyes. "That rascal, he ran away so fast. If I had known this would happen, I should have just tied him up and brought him back to the cave that day, so that I wouldn't be unable to find him now."

She muttered a curse under her breath, seemingly quite regretful about missing out on Shen Feng.

But soon, her gaze fell back on Fan Yuan.

This time, her gaze became even more blatant, as if she were appraising a substitute.

"Never mind, one got away, so there's still one left."

Madam Bai moved gracefully to Fan Yuan's side, her breath sweet as orchids: "I see that although your cultivation is mediocre, your body is quite robust, your primordial yang has not been depleted, and your essence is well-conserved. Compared to that Shen Feng, you are even better."

Fan Yuan's muscles tensed: "Senior, you flatter me. I am of dull talent and do not meet your standards."

"Dull-witted?"

Madam Bai covered her mouth and chuckled, a glint of shrewdness flashing in her eyes. "To be able to conceal your aura so perfectly within half a month, and to return from testing magic late at night with your spiritual power weak yet not chaotic, young man, are you trying to fool anyone with your 'dull' label?"

Fan Yuan felt a chill run down his spine.

This woman had indeed been observing from the shadows all along. Although she had tried her best to conceal her spiritual energy depletion after her test flight, it was impossible to hide it.

"What exactly are your instructions, senior?" Fan Yuan dropped his pretense, his voice turning cold.

Seeing that Fan Yuan had torn off his disguise, Madam Bai actually showed a satisfied expression.

"That's right, talking to smart people saves energy."

She put away her fan and said seriously, "I won't beat around the bush. In three days, there will be an ancient cultivation cave in Black Wind Ridge, a hundred miles west of Qingmu Market. The cave is surrounded by a restriction that requires the combined efforts of several people to break. I need a helper."

"An ancient cultivation cave?" Fan Yuan sneered inwardly.

In the world of cultivation, this kind of reason is practically the standard opening line for murder and robbery.

"Senior, your cultivation is profound, and you have countless capable subordinates. Why would you need to find a lowly cultivator like me?" Fan Yuan retorted.

"Because that cave is somewhat special, it restricts bone age and requires someone who is proficient in the Five Elements Escape Techniques." Madam Bai gave Fan Yuan a deep look. "I noticed that you were walking lightly just now, which clearly indicates that you have practiced some kind of advanced wind-based escape technique, which is exactly what I need."