"He's been discovered by that bastard! Run!"

At the exit of a gorge, two young men lay sprawled on the lush grass, drenched in sweat. But as soon as they managed a few breaths, they yelped and sprang up, once again fleeing in panic toward the dense forest on the opposite side of the canyon like hunted dogs, wishing they had been born with extra legs.

A hundred meters away, Nie Kong watched the two figures scrambling away with a faint smile.

This was already the fifth day since Nie Kong left Luocheng.

Having temporarily resolved the issue with Long Meixian, Nie Kong mounted the Phantom Eagle King, which had just arrived in Luocheng from the Flower Butterfly Secret Realm, and headed toward his planned first stop: the Hunter Immortal Mountains of the Shatu Empire. However, just as Nie Kong reached the edge of the Hunter Immortal Mountains, something utterly ridiculous occurred.

Nie Kong had descended from the high sky to the ground, intending to proceed into the mountains on foot. This was partly to allow the Phantom Eagle King, which had been flying continuously for days, some rest, and partly out of respect for the powerful figure he was about to visit.

Just as he was about to enter the mountains, Nie Kong realized he had forgotten to prepare a gift. He summoned a few Grade Eight medicinal herbs from the Spirit Mansion Medicine Pagoda via his pet pack, intending to select one. Yet, before Nie Kong could make a decision, two young men rushed over from behind, claiming he had stolen herbs belonging to the Hunter Immortal Sect.

Then, without another word, they attempted to snatch them.

Nie Kong understood their intentions perfectly. The claim of stealing Hunter Immortal Sect herbs was merely an excuse; in reality, those few Grade Eight herbs had ignited the greed in their hearts. Nie Kong had noticed the two men long ago; they were only at the Spirit Fusion realm, so he hadn't paid them much mind. He hadn't expected them to dare provoke him. At that moment, Nie Kong had wanted to swat them dead with a single palm strike.

But remembering they claimed to be disciples of the Hunter Immortal Sect, Nie Kong suppressed his killing intent and deliberately chased them deep into the Hunter Immortal Mountains, playing with them like a cat toying with a mouse.

Counting from his entry into the mountains, several hours had passed.

"That must be the Hunter Immortal Sect!"

Trailing behind the two young men, Nie Kong walked at a leisurely pace for about fifteen minutes more. The palaces situated on the peak ahead were beginning to appear faintly. The two men ahead, already utterly exhausted, now ran with desperate abandon, like desert travelers parched for days suddenly spotting an oasis.

Seeing this, Nie Kong couldn't help but let out a slight smile.

The Hunter Immortal Sect was an extremely powerful sect on the Tianling Continent. Although it couldn't compare to spiritual master holy lands like the Moluo Sacred Mountain or Lingyu City, it still commanded four Heavenly Spirit experts. Moreover, the Great Sect Master of the Hunter Immortal Sect was a Medicine King, possessing that status thirty years ago. Of course, very few people knew the Sect Master was a Medicine King; without the intelligence provided by Mu Chonglou, Nie Kong would likely not have known either.

Not long after, Nie Kong arrived at the foot of that peak. A long flight of stone steps stretched straight up the mountain.

"Help, someone help us..."

The two men scrambled and leaped up the steps, stumbling as they went, shouting desperately.

"How dare you chase my Hunter Immortal Sect disciples!"

A stern shout suddenly rang out from the hundred-meter-high stone steps. Following the voice, a grey-robed elder, appearing to be over fifty, materialized. His face was square, his hair and beard were graying, and his long eyebrows slanted sharply towards his temples, giving him an imposing air even without anger. In an instant, his figure was before the two men.

"Help us, Fourth Sect Master, that scoundrel is trying to kill us! He chased us all the way from outside the Hunter Immortal Mountains. If we hadn't run fast, we would have been dead by now!" Upon seeing the grey-robed elder, the two young men clutched at him like a lifeline, crying tears of excitement and despair.

"Fourth Sect Master, do you think that if I truly intended to kill them, they could have fled all the way from outside the Hunter Immortal Mountains to the sect gates with my ability?" Hearing this, Nie Kong couldn't help but chuckle softly. He stopped concealing his cultivation, and the natural fluctuations of his Origin Power instantly radiated from his body.

"Hmm?"

The grey-robed elder paused, his expression changing abruptly.

The two young men, however, continued their tearful complaints: "Fourth Sect Master, you must uphold justice for your disciples! You don't know how detestable this rogue is. We painstakingly found several herbs outside, and not only did he snatch them all, but he tried to kill us to silence us. He clearly knew our identity, yet dared to act this way—he clearly has no regard for our Hunter Immortal Sect. Fourth Sect Master..."

"Silence!"

The grey-robed elder’s face grew uglier the more he listened, and he roared in anger, "Lian Peng, Lian Que, are two mere Spirit Fusion masters worth being pursued by a Spirit Cave expert?"

"Cave... Cave Spirit..."

Lian Peng and Lian Que instantly turned pale, staring at the smiling Nie Kong in disbelief, their tear-streaked and snotty faces contorted into ridiculous masks.

Before they attacked, they had judged Nie Kong’s age and assumed he was at most Spirit Fusion level. They were confident that the two of them combined could certainly defeat him, which is why they had made the rash decision. But after the initial clash, they realized with horror that their opponent might be a Spirit Transformation master, causing them to flee for their lives.

Previously, they had been quite proud of their escape speed, but upon hearing the Fourth Sect Master reveal that this young man was a Spirit Cave expert, their smugness vanished. It dawned on them that they hadn't been running fast; Nie Kong had deliberately been playing with them.

The grey-robed elder said sternly, "Speak! What happened!"

Lian Peng mumbled, "He... he robbed us of our herbs..."

"Slap!"

A palm strike landed squarely on Lian Peng’s face, sending him tumbling onto the stone steps. The grey-robed elder was furious. His sharp gaze fixed on Lian Que, "You tell me!"

"Fourth Sect Master, I... we..." Lian Que stammered fearfully, unable to articulate a clear explanation for a long time.

"Ahem."

Nie Kong coughed lightly and smiled, "Fourth Sect Master, perhaps I should explain. Your two disciples saw me holding some rather fine medicinal herbs and decided they wanted to borrow them for a few days of admiration. In fact, you two needn't have bothered borrowing them from me; one of the herbs inside was actually intended as a welcoming gift for your Great Sect Master."

Borrow? It was clearly robbery!

The grey-robed elder was aghast that his own disciples would commit such an act, and chase the victim all the way to the gates of the Hunter Immortal Sect! If this story got out, the reputation of the Hunter Immortal Sect would be utterly ruined! The elder’s face instantly turned ashen: "Lian Peng, Lian Que, is this true?"

"..."

Lian Peng and Lian Que dared not argue further, shrinking their heads like ostriches, not daring to even breathe heavily.

"Get out!"

The grey-robed elder roared furiously, "Imprisoned in the Refining Wind Cave for one year!"

Lian Peng and Lian Que tumbled down the steps to the foot of the mountain, looking utterly devastated as they shuffled toward a peak opposite. Only then did the grey-robed elder turn his attention back to Nie Kong, forcing a smile onto his grim face, "Friend, are you satisfied with my handling of the situation?"

Nie Kong felt a bit speechless. He had already dealt with them, yet he still asked if Nie Kong was satisfied. If he said he wasn't satisfied, would the elder increase the punishment? In a situation like this, if the other party had been a Heavenly Spirit expert of a different stature, even if Lian Peng and Lian Que had been killed, the Hunter Immortal Sect, being in the wrong, would have had no choice but to accept the loss.

However, Nie Kong's purpose in coming to the Hunter Immortal Sect was not to haggle over two minor characters. He smiled then, "I have long heard that the rules of the Hunter Immortal Sect are strict; seeing it today, I confirm it is so. The Fourth Sect Master's disposition is very appropriate."

However, Nie Kong's purpose in coming to the Hunter Immortal Sect was not to bicker over two minor characters. He smiled then, "I have long heard that the rules of the Hunter Immortal Sect are strict; seeing it today, I confirm it is so. The Fourth Sect Master's disposition is very appropriate."