“Lad, surrender now, or I shall take you down myself! Your young cronies are panicking and trying to flee; they must be carrying quite a few treasures.

It would be best if you handed over your personal valuables willingly. If they are valuable enough, this old Daoist might just spare your life!” Seeing that his three Golden Core cultivators had surrounded the outnumbered Ye Qin, the burly man, Wei Zhuanghan, became immediately arrogant, certain of victory.

Ye Qin couldn't be bothered to argue with the brute over verbal sparring. He only needed to stall for a brief moment until Zhou Yao, Liao Xiaocui, and the other four had safely distanced themselves; then, he would break out and return to the Northern Isles.

“Brother Wei, Brother Zhu, attack together! Don't give him any chance to escape!” Although the elder, Ge, couldn't figure out what plan Ye Qin was hatching by staying behind, he was decisive by nature and unwilling to let a sure thing slip away.

He shouted an order, commanding Wei Dahan and the younger cultivator Zhu to strike with full force. “Brother Ge, why bother with two of us against a mere first-layer Golden Core brat!

Let Brother Wei defeat him, and I will stand guard to ensure this lad doesn't flee!” The cultivator surnamed Zhu, from Dongqing, crossed his arms with considerable self-assurance, refusing to attack Ye Qin alongside Wei Dahan. In Zhu cultivator's view, since he and Wei Dahan were second and third-layer Golden Core cultivators respectively, teaming up against a first-layer opponent was an overreaction that diminished their stature.

“Alright! Brother Zhu, you wait on the side.

Let me gauge this brat’s ability first! Hah!” Giant Wood Technique!

Wei Dahan roared with immense excitement, his internal mana churning wildly. His entire green robe billowed under the intense aura of his power.

He didn't use an artifact. Instead, he clapped his large palm forward, releasing a massive ball of azure energy.

Then, with a grab in mid-air, the azure mana rapidly transformed into a colossal, heavy wooden beam, five zhang long and one zhang thick, carrying a pervasive mist of green energy. The cyan vortex surrounding the massive wood was the poison of the Wood element; contact would easily lead to poisoning and various negative afflictions.

“A Wood element magic cultivator?!” Ye Qin’s expression shifted slightly. This brute had unleashed a high-level Wood magic technique of immense power almost instantaneously.

This level of proficiency was only achievable when Wood magic had been cultivated to an extremely pure degree. This man must be a cultivator dedicated solely to Wood magic.

Even without any magical artifacts, the sheer might of his Wood spells alone was ferocious enough to contend with a Golden Core cultivator of the same tier. “Southern Bright Li Fire Sword!” Ye Qin did not hesitate.

He spat out a faint glimmer of fire. The faint light surged with the wind, transforming into a sheet of blazing flames within a breath, accompanied by flying fire crows.

A dazzling, purple fire-element flying sword stood proudly in the air, circling once before hacking down directly at the crashing azure log. Crack!

The sharp purple sword light instantly split the head of the massive log open by several feet, then followed the fissure, cleanly severing the wood into two halves. The log disintegrated.

Under the shower of flames and fire crows, the azure energy was incinerated entirely, vanishing without a trace. “Brat, your fire sword is decent, but this is just the beginning!

Giant Wood Array! Let’s see how you deal with this!” Wei Dahan laughed wildly, clapping his hands repeatedly.

One massive log, two, three—a group of over ten azure logs hovered in the air, forming a collision array. The pervasive green energy created a terrifying spectacle.

Wei Dahan struggled visibly to control the array; once it reached eleven logs, he could add no more. With a sweep of his hand, the mass of azure logs charged toward Ye Qin with great momentum.

“Is that all you have?” Ye Qin smiled languidly. He suddenly opened his mouth wide, and four Primordial Spirit flying swords shot out.

He patted his storage pouch and released the Water Shell Spirit Pearls. The four Primordial Spirit swords and one Spirit Treasure deployed simultaneously, meeting the Giant Wood Array head-on.

Ye Qin controlled the Water Shell Spirit Pearls, making a grasping motion in the void. Dozens of small water dragons instantly materialized in the air, intercepting the wood array.

They coiled around the ten-plus logs, and the projectiles’ flight speed immediately slowed, making them appear sluggish and clumsy. Though these small water dragons possessed little offensive power, they exerted a powerful slowing effect, immediately rendering the once fearsome Giant Wood Collision Array as harmless as slow-moving turtles.

Ye Qin’s expression was composed. He pointed a finger, and the four Primordial Spirit flying swords simultaneously shot toward the massive formation, frantically hacking the azure logs to pieces.

Before the Giant Wood Collision Array could travel even a few dozen zhang, it was shredded by the sword net formed by the Primordial Spirit flying swords, completely collapsing and disintegrating. Ye Qin had shattered Wei Dahan’s Giant Wood Array with a mere wave of his hand.

He casually glanced toward the northern horizon. In the time it took, Zhou Yao, Liao Xiaocui, and the other four had completely vanished from sight, bringing him great relief.

“This little skirmish here should conclude soon! These treasure-hunting cultivators are average in strength.

Fighting them one-on-one is hardly a fair fight. Perhaps a three-on-one might present a slight challenge.” Ye Qin muttered to himself.

If the elder Ge and cultivator Zhu knew Ye Qin’s thoughts at this moment, they would likely cough up blood from anger. Wei Dahan stood frozen, stunned, unable to process such an absurd outcome.

The Giant Wood Array, honed through decades of practice, had been dismantled so effortlessly by a first-layer Golden Core cultivator he had scorned. Then again, against an ordinary Golden Core cultivator, the Giant Wood Array was indeed powerful, equivalent to over ten high-grade magical artifacts attacking simultaneously.

But against Ye Qin, who was equipped with Primordial Spirit artifacts and Spirit Treasures all over his body, it was utterly inadequate. Ye Qin's Primordial Spirit artifacts could easily destroy high-grade magical artifacts; these logs stood no chance.

Just as Wei Dahan was momentarily lost in shock, Ye Qin’s counterattack had already begun. A flash of golden light, after neutralizing the giant logs, spun in the air and shot toward Wei Dahan’s chest.

“Not good, Brother Wei, dodge! Danger!” “Quickly, lend Brother Wei a hand!” Elder Ge and cultivator Zhu’s faces changed color almost simultaneously.

Cultivator Zhu flung several top-tier flying swords toward Ye Qin. Elder Ge spat out a small yellow seal.

A withered, ancient tree-like hand emerged from his wide robe, rapidly forming hand seals. The seal flared with yellow light, expanding to several dozen zhang long, weighing over ten thousand jin—a massive earth-element seal.

The seal seemed engraved with a mysterious array formation, containing numerous wood spirits, stone monsters, vine demons, tree demons, mudstone spirits, and fire-rock monsters, greatly augmenting the power of the Grand Earth Seal. Grand Earth Seal!

Elder Ge released the seal, and the large withered hand slammed downward. The Grand Earth Seal smashed toward Ye Qin’s head.

If struck, even a small hill would be reduced to dust. Ye Qin’s eyes narrowed as he watched the descending seal.

This earth-element seal posed a genuine threat to him. The three treasure-hunting Golden Core cultivators clearly operated with long-honed synergy.

Cultivator Zhu bought time while Elder Ge unleashed a potent Primordial Spirit Seal, relentlessly attacking Ye Qin. By this time, Wei Dahan had also snapped out of his stupor and twisted his body, attempting to evade the golden sword light Ye Qin had unleashed.

Splat! “Ah!” Wei Dahan cried out in pain; his left arm was severed, blood splattering, as he failed to dodge in time, instantly losing an arm to the golden light.

“Brother Ge, Brother Zhu, kill him! Avenge me!” Wei Dahan shrieked, his voice torn by agony.

Seeing his comrade severely injured, Elder Ge was both enraged and alarmed. He disregarded the cost of his mana, fiercely urging the Grand Earth Seal onward, joining cultivator Zhu in a frenzied siege against Ye Qin.

Three Golden Core cultivators attacking one was far more complex than simple addition. Ye Qin’s four Primordial Spirit artifacts and one Spirit Treasure could easily defeat any one of them individually, but they were insufficient against three coordinated Golden Core cultivators.

After a brief struggle, Ye Qin realized he could not defeat the trio. “My mana will soon run out; I can’t sustain a direct confrontation!

Zhou Yao and the others are far away; there’s no need to fight these three to the death. Battling them is purely a waste of time.” He began to harbor thoughts of retreat.

Immortal Body Great Technique! After repelling a fierce wave of attacks from the three Golden Core cultivators, Ye Qin swiftly freed both hands and rapidly formed hand seals, using magic to conjure another ‘Ye Qin’.

As the two ‘Ye Qins’ appeared, they separated and rapidly flew off in the South and North directions, respectively. “How did he turn into two identical Golden Core cultivators?” “What kind of illusion technique is this?” Elder Ge’s divine sense scanned both figures, unable to discern the genuine from the fake, causing him to gasp in surprise.

The cultivation world harbored myriad strange techniques, many illusions capable of fooling even the sharpest eyes. Wei Dahan and cultivator Zhu were left dumbfounded, unable to tell which was the true Ye Qin.

“Brother Ge, one of them must be a fake illusionary body; let’s split up and chase! You pursue the one heading south, and Brother Zhu and I will take the one heading north!” Wei Dahan, having just stanched the bleeding from his severed arm, was furious.

Seeing Ye Qin on the verge of escape, he roared. “No!

Any one of us alone cannot defeat him. At best, he escapes; at worst, we perish.” The yellow-robed elder’s expression was grim as he vetoed the suggestion.

After a moment’s thought, he stated gravely, “This brat was originally flying north. I estimate that to mislead us, he is highly likely to change course and head south!

Let’s pursue the one heading south, together.” The yellow-robed elder took the lead, flying south. Wei Dahan and cultivator Zhu immediately followed on their swords.

This was purely a gamble based on luck. If they caught him, great; if not, they would have to accept their misfortune.

Sometimes, one had no choice but to rely on chance. Ye Qin was indeed flying south.

He flew relentlessly for several thousand li before looking back. To his dismay, he could still see the yellow-robed elder, Wei Dahan, and cultivator Zhu pursuing him relentlessly without splitting up to chase his dharma body.

“How did they see through it? Did they just guess?” Ye Qin muttered an oath about bad luck, feeling quite helpless.

Defeating these three seasoned treasure-hunting Golden Core cultivators by himself was too much of a stretch. Since he could not trick them into splitting up to chase the northern manifestation, he could only continue flying furiously south.

Elder Ge, a mid-stage fifth-layer Golden Core cultivator, had an extremely high sword-flight speed. Fortunately, Ye Qin’s Black Cloud Veil artifact also allowed for rapid flight, and without the burden of Zhou Yao or Liao Xiaocui, his artifact-assisted speed was slightly faster than Elder Ge’s.

Under the high-speed pursuit, the distance between them was slowly widening, from an initial one or two hundred zhang to several dozen li. The three Golden Core cultivators trailing behind were unable to close the gap, cursing in frustration, but the grudge over the severed arm prevented them from giving up easily.

Several hours later, over the vast ocean, Ye Qin guided his high-speed black light and arrived above an archipelago. On the largest island of this cluster stood a cultivation city spanning one hundred li in circumference.

Inside, dozens of streets and alleys crisscrossed, easily accommodating hundreds of thousands of people. It was quite large, bustling with activity.

Cultivators, mortal humans, and even native Earth Clan strongmen could be seen everywhere. At the city gates, numerous late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators stood guard.

Many Foundation Establishment and Golden Core cultivators flew in from afar, entering or exiting the city, or taking off on their swords to depart to distant locations. “This place is extremely remote, far from the East Sea Islands.

How could such a large city be built here? What is this place?” Ye Qin was surprised and abruptly halted the Black Cloud Veil.

On the city wall hung a huge plaque. “Linhai City!” Ye Qin clearly made out the three shining, golden characters on the plaque and murmured the name internally.

Cultivation cities usually prohibited fighting within their walls. It would be almost impossible for those three treasure-hunting cultivators to pursue him inside this great city.

Perhaps he could finally shake off the relentless hounding of those three Golden Core cultivators in this city. With a thought, Ye Qin descended directly.