The Heavenly Demon had intended to urge him once more to leave alone, while she executed the Demonic Disintegration to hold off the pursuers. However, upon hearing Lei Dong’s words, while moved, her resolve solidified even further. A tenderness unprecedented in her demeanor touched her brow, and she whispered, “Lei Dong, I often regretted pulling you down from the Ghost Shroud using the Grand Heavenly Demon Hand.” After a brief pause, she nestled gently into his embrace, her voice soft as she continued, “But now, I am profoundly fortunate. Fortunate that I did pull you down back then. That was the single best thing I have ever done in my life.”

As the two spoke, the Demon Subduing Vajra was already closing the distance to within a few li.

Lei Dong, taking both himself and the Ghost Shroud, instantly moved another ten li away. Then, holding the Heavenly Demon gently, he whispered, “Mei Mei, in the eyes of a cultivator of your stature, I am nothing more than an ant. To receive such favor from you is a blessing cultivated over three lifetimes for me, Lei Dong.”

Never having heard Lei Dong speak such intimate words to her before, the Heavenly Demon, experiencing the flavor for the first time, felt light and ethereal, like a young girl. But sensing the Demon Subduing Venerable persistently chasing after them, she sighed with a touch of melancholy, “It’s a pity. We’ve barely reunited, and this bald donkey has spoiled it. Now I only hope that the Buddhist doctrine of reincarnation is true, so in the next life…” Reluctant to part from Lei Dong, she mused on spending a little more time with him before returning to execute the Demonic Disintegration. No matter what, she was determined to eliminate that detestable Demon Subduing Venerable.

“Don’t rush.”

Lei Dong remained calm and composed, stopping the Heavenly Demon from reaching for a spirit pill. He retrieved a jade bottle, poured out a crystal-clear, intensely fragrant pill, and offered it to her: “I brought this back from Zhaozhou. Try it.”

The Heavenly Demon couldn't help but feel a wry smile; his words sounded exactly like trying to placate a child with candy. Wait, this pill was overflowing with spiritual energy. Just inhaling the scent caused her weakened Nascent Soul to recover slightly. This couldn't help but surprise her. Following this, she focused her gaze and gasped softly, covering her mouth, “Is this a Nascent Soul Condensing Pill?”

“Precisely. Good knowledge you have. I bought these in Zhaozhou, but due to limited funds, I only brought five for you.” Lei Dong rarely saw the Heavenly Demon astonished, which brought him a measure of happiness.

“You went to Zhaozhou? What? Five pills?” Even with the Heavenly Demon’s considerable wealth, hearing this made her feel unsteady. In disbelief, she stared fixedly at Lei Dong with wide, beautiful eyes: “Where did you get so many spirit stones? Did you buy these Nascent Soul Condensing Pills when you were feeling bloated? Why didn’t you buy some for yourself?”

The Nascent Soul Condensing Pill was a marvelous treasure. In Kangzhou, it was priced at twenty million spirit materials, yet it was often available only in theory—monopolized by major sects. Even so, the quantity produced by sects like the Yin Sha Sect was exceedingly rare. The Heavenly Demon had only managed to acquire one in her entire life up to this point. This item could not only effortlessly heal Nascent Soul injuries but also significantly nourish and strengthen the Nascent Soul, indirectly boosting cultivation and strength.

Given that the Heavenly Demon was at the peak of the early Nascent Soul stage, let alone five, just two pills gave her a high probability of breaking through to the mid-Nascent Soul stage within a year. It was simply a pity that this item was not only prohibitively expensive but also rarely appeared on the market. Even when it did, it would incite fierce competition among Nascent Soul cultivators, driving the price far beyond what ordinary people could afford. After all, for a Nascent Soul cultivator, advancing one's cultivation, even slightly, was no easy feat. And the Nascent Soul was the most crucial aspect for a Nascent Soul cultivator.

“Of course, I have plenty of good things for myself. Mei Mei, let me tell you, I struck it rich this time in Zhaozhou. I’ll tell you all about it later. What I brought you is far more than just this. Take this Nascent Soul Condensing Pill first; I’ll guard you.” Lei Dong genuinely enjoyed seeing her appear slightly exasperated, completely lacking the aloof aura of a Nascent Soul cultivator at this moment.

The Heavenly Demon’s expression finally softened considerably, but suspicion still lingered. However, the Demon Subduing Venerable was hot on their heels. Now, with the Nascent Soul Condensing Pill, her injuries would heal quickly, and the remaining medicinal power would nourish and solidify her Nascent Soul for some time to come. The way she looked at Lei Dong had changed significantly, and she thought to herself that her little paramour actually had some conscience. Even if she had to fight for just one of these pills, it would cost her at least thirty million spirit materials.

And for the Heavenly Demon to procure the pair of life-saving Asura Wings for Lei Dong, though they appeared to be sourced from her sect, she had actually accrued significant debt in contribution points and resources to the sect. This left her with hardly any spare funds or contributions to acquire good pills or spiritual treasures for herself.

What the Heavenly Demon didn't know was that pills in Zhaozhou were considerably cheaper than in Kangzhou, and more importantly, far less scarce. These five Nascent Soul Condensing Pills had cost Lei Dong only one hundred million spirit stones. And this money had been acquired from selling the spoils after Lei Long wiped out two Nascent Soul cultivators—it was practically like finding it for free.

Upon swallowing the Nascent Soul Condensing Pill, she immediately felt an incomparably pure medicinal power spreading out, threads of coolness gently nourishing and repairing her Nascent Soul. She was overjoyed; at this rate... she would recover in the time it takes for one stick of incense to burn. If she had taken an ordinary pill, it would have taken seven or eight days just to see significant effect.

With this realization, her hopes of escaping with Lei Dong, rather than perishing together, grew immensely.

Seeing her enter meditation, Lei Dong became slightly wary. His spiritual sense kept watch on the distant pursuers; every time the pursuer closed a certain distance, he would instantly shift again to draw them apart.

This enraged the Demon Subduing Venerable, who sneered repeatedly. This brat clearly underestimated him, a Nascent Soul cultivator nearing the middle stage. His aura was robust; flying steadily like this, he could last at least a month. As for this little demon cub, how long could he sustain the spatial sacred artifact with his Foundation Establishment cultivation? One day? Two? In any case, the Heavenly Demon could not recover in such a short time. As long as she remained injured, and with this boy distracting her, the Demon Subduing Venerable was absolutely certain of victory. Furthermore, the direction they were fleeing was toward the Hengduan Mountain Range, but so what? A Nascent Soul cultivator faced little danger entering the Hengduan Mountain Range. It was the boy who faced mortal danger.

Unfortunately, the Demon Subduing Venerable was unaware that Lei Dong’s intentions were entirely different from what they presumed. Their course was not one of simple escape, but a genuine plan to eliminate this blasted Demon Subduing Venerable. If it were based solely on Lei Dong’s own strength, eliminating the Demon Subduing Venerable would be quite strenuous and costly. But with the Heavenly Demon recovering her strength, the chances of a successful counter-kill were not small. Of course, Lei Dong was reluctant to deploy his Wing of Soaring Heaven, otherwise, the counter-kill would be nearly one hundred percent assured.

No one besides Lei Dong knew that twenty terrifying Earth Giants were lying in ambush within the Hengduan Mountain Range. Not only were the Earth Giants immensely powerful, but one of their innate techniques, Gravity Art, was truly perverse. Twenty Earth Giants using it simultaneously was more vexing than a small-scale anti-flight formation. After all, an anti-flight formation targeted everyone, but the Giants’ Gravity Art could be focused on small areas or specific targets.

To buy time for the Heavenly Demon, Lei Dong deliberately took a wide detour before heading straight toward the troop station. To avoid alerting the Demon Subduing Venerable, Lei Dong intentionally used rapid, repeated instant movements over the last few hundred li, pulling the distance between them by over a hundred li, and then fled desperately.

The Demon Subduing Venerable mistook this for Lei Dong trying to accelerate his desperate escape, so he also gave chase with all his might, unwilling to let Lei Dong slip outside the range of his divine sense. He failed to realize that Lei Dong had secretly contacted his troops, ordering them to conceal their presence and set an ambush.

At this moment, the Heavenly Demon also rose from her healing state, her injuries gone, her spirit radiant. She looked at the greatly depleted Lei Dong and whispered, “Leave the rest to me. The chances of us escaping completely are very high.”

“Escape?” Lei Dong grinned wickedly as he swallowed another pill to restore his true essence. Filled with resentment toward the Demon Subduing Venerable, he retorted, “Mei Mei, that damned bald donkey dared injure you this badly; we can’t just let it go like this. The opportunity is perfect now; we must counter-kill, annihilate his very soul.”

Although the Heavenly Demon was battle-hungry, she felt a slight hesitation at this moment. “The chance of a counter-kill is slim. If those Arhats catch up, the trouble will be immense.”

“Mei Mei, just listen to me. This time, those damn bald donkeys will pay the price,” Lei Dong stated with an air of calm and utter confidence.

This demeanor caused the Heavenly Demon to feel quite surprised. Her little paramour had been missing for over a decade; not only had his cultivation advanced from mid-stage to Great Perfection, but his bearing and confidence had grown even more. Had he encountered some incredible fortune? What exactly had he experienced during these ten-plus years to be able to bring her five Nascent Soul Condensing Pills? In her memory, the former Lei Dong, in front of her, always held his head high, appearing confident, but deep down, he harbored some inferiority complex. He was nothing like the man now, who completely treated her as his woman, his dependent.

Lei Dong’s transformation did not repel the Heavenly Demon; rather, it secretly brought her joy.

What woman does not enjoy being doted upon and loved like a delicate young woman by her man? Even one as powerful as the Heavenly Demon was, inherently, still a woman. To be cherished by the man she loved brought her a feeling of unprecedented happiness and security.

“Mm, I will listen to you.” The Heavenly Demon, who struck fear into the hearts of countless righteous cultivators and was regarded as death itself, now nodded obediently like a young wife.

Through several maneuvers, Lei Dong finally guided the Demon Subduing Venerable into the prepared encirclement. The distance between them was now only a few li. The Demon Subduing Venerable laughed maniacally, “Heavenly Demon, where do you think you can run now?”

Suddenly, the Demon Subduing Venerable felt an immense force yanking him downwards. Simultaneously, dozens of massive stones, mixed with precious arts, assailed him from all directions. “Damn bald donkey, still arrogant when death is at your door!” Lei Dong stood proudly atop the Ghost Shroud: “Hand over your Nascent Soul obediently.”

...

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