Zheng Yuan let out a roar that nearly scared the souls out of Su Chan and Zhou Qin. Zi Yuan even flinched violently; despite her usual composure, seeing the specters from the Netherworld Five-Zhang Soul-Hooking Jade rush toward her made her face instantly pale, and her figure shot away into the distance.

Zheng Yuan, however, was set on "capturing the king first"—grabbing Zi Yuan, and then dealing with Zhou Qin and Su Chan. He immediately gave chase.

Zheng Yuan's Netherworld Five-Zhang Soul-Hooking Jade was an incredibly vicious magic artifact; when used unexpectedly, it was virtually unstoppable. However, Zi Yuan had witnessed him use it before and was prepared. Furthermore, she was one of the rare cultivators in the cultivation world who deeply studied both artifacts and spells, and she was aware of the Netherworld Five-Zhang Soul-Hooking Jade's strengths and weaknesses.

Zi Yuan’s form flashed to a distant location. While dodging the whistling specters and Zheng Yuan, she quickly transmitted a voice message to Su Chan, urgently instructing: "Su Chan, take Zhou Qin and Cliss and run! The weakness of this Netherworld Five-Zhang Soul-Hooking Jade is that it can only capture one soul at a time, and it must lock onto the target within five zhang. I will keep Zheng Yuan occupied; you all run now!"

Su Chan froze for a moment, then swiftly relayed the message to Zhou Qin. Although Zhou Qin was still shaken, she was after all a young lady from a prominent family who had seen her share of turmoil. She took a deep breath, immediately composed herself, and her thoughts moved like lightning as she declared, "No, Zi Yuan definitely cannot hold him off alone! Since Zi Yuan said Zheng Yuan's artifact can only target one person at a time, why don't we let Zi Yuan lure the enemy while you and I attack from the flanks?"

Su Chan paused, her eyes lighting up. She exclaimed loudly, "Good idea!" But she quickly added, "However, Sister Zhou Qin, your Yang Spirit flight is still unsteady; you cannot go. If Zheng Yuan turns to attack you, things will go badly! Perhaps I should cooperate with Sister Zi Yuan. I am fast; he won't be able to catch me!"

Zhou Qin considered this. She knew this was no time to argue. She firmly stated, "Fine! Be extremely careful! I will take Cliss and the others and leave this place first, so we don't become a burden to you two!"

Su Chan nodded, rapidly flying into the air and charging toward Zheng Yuan.

Although Zheng Yuan was older, his cultivation level wasn't much higher than Zi Yuan's, so his speed could never quite catch up to hers; he was always just a certain distance behind, especially with the Netherworld Five-Zhang Soul-Hooking Jade in his hand, which always seemed to be just one step away from snagging Zi Yuan but never quite closing the gap.

As Zheng Yuan was growing frustrated, he suddenly felt a powerful gust of wind approaching from the side. He turned his head to see Su Chan closing in on him like a phantom, a hairpin held between her fingers, aiming for his lower abdomen.

Zheng Yuan never expected a mere three-tailed fox like Su Chan to dare challenge him. He immediately became enraged, forgetting everything else, and pointed the Netherworld Five-Zhang Soul-Hooking Jade toward Su Chan, roaring, "Su Chan!"

Su Chan instantly trembled all over. Without thinking, she turned and fled, disappearing from sight in the blink of an eye before the specter from the Netherworld Five-Zhang Soul-Hooking Jade could even reach her.

When it came to the art of escape, if a fox spirit claimed to be second best, no one would dare claim the first.

And Su Chan was the cleverest among the clever sprites; when she resolved to flee, her figure flickered, and she vanished without a trace, moving even slightly faster than Zi Yuan.

Zheng Yuan was astonished by Su Chan’s speed and momentarily staggered. The soul-wraith from the Netherworld Five-Zhang Soul-Hooking Jade whistled past him, chasing after Su Chan into the distance. At this moment, Zi Yuan, who was far off, realized what had happened. Once the specter had flown far away, she immediately commanded her Nine Heavens Purple Silk to attack Zheng Yuan.

Zheng Yuan finally understood—this was their hit-and-run tactic: "When the enemy advances, we retreat; when the enemy retreats, we advance." Consumed by shame and anger, he gritted his teeth and commanded the Netherworld Five-Zhang Soul-Hooking Jade to become entangled in a fierce fight with Zi Yuan’s artifact.

For a time, the three of them battled fiercely in mid-air. Zi Yuan fought Zheng Yuan from a distance; whenever the ghost soul lunged at her, she would twist and flee, increasing the separation, and Su Chan would suddenly appear to launch a fierce assault on Zheng Yuan.

Although Su Chan’s cultivation was not high, she was at least a Foundation Establishment cultivator, and she aimed for the most vicious vital points. One hit from her would certainly be more than Zheng Yuan could bear.

However, Zheng Yuan’s artifact wasn't strong enough to fight two opponents simultaneously. If he focused his power on one, the other would exploit the opening. Especially since Lin Xueqing had also recovered from the grief of losing her master; she let out a furious, piercing shriek and, as if driven mad, lunged into the fray as well.

In an instant, the four of them darted back and forth, locked in a grueling aerial battle.

Meanwhile, Zhou Qin quickly returned to Cliss, John, and Alba, urging them, "Go! Go now!"

The three of them had no idea what was happening. John asked blankly, "What happened?"

Zhou Qin’s face was grim as she anxiously pushed them, "Don't ask questions, just run if you want to live!"

Cliss looked upward, watching the four figures locked in battle in the sky under the moonlight. Stunned, her feet seemed rooted to the spot, unable to move.

Alba also asked with bewilderment, "What exactly happened?"

No sooner had she spoken than a sound like a thunderous roar echoed from above. Zheng Yuan had seized the moment when Lin Xueqing, consumed by the fervor of revenge, was charging recklessly. With a mighty shout, the Netherworld Five-Zhang Soul-Hooking Jade instantly locked onto her form, plunged into her body, and pulled out her three souls and seven spirits.

With her soul gone, Lin Xueqing’s body dropped straight toward the ground, landing with a sickening thud right in front of Alba, shattering into a bloody pulp!

Alba froze in horror. She tremblingly touched her face and found it smeared with several drops of hot, steamy blood—ghastly and scarlet!

Alba let out an involuntary, piercing scream, as if suddenly imbued with inexhaustible strength, and turned to flee behind her.

Though Cliss was also trembling from the sight, she managed to remain relatively calm and shouted urgently, "Alba, don't run blindly!"

But Alba had lost all reason in her terror. She bolted away in extreme fright, stumbling constantly. Every time she fell, she scrambled frantically back up, only to fall again.

Cliss stamped her foot and immediately gave chase. John quickly called out, "Cliss!"

Seeing that they had at least started moving despite their panic, Zhou Qin shouted to John, "Stop shouting and hurry up and catch them!"

John snapped out of his daze and quickly followed.

The four of them—two fleeing for their lives in front, two desperately chasing behind—with Zhou Qin watching the surroundings vigilantly while retreating and pursuing.

When spurred by the proximity of death, humans always unleash infinite potential. Alba, who had been on the verge of collapse from exhaustion, now ran wildly, seemingly immune to fatigue. She ran wherever there was a path, squeezed through every opening, and in her heedless flight, she plunged directly into the Huangshan Cable Car system.

When Cliss and John, who were chasing close behind, came to their senses, they realized they were already inside the cable car system, halfway up the mountain. A fierce wind whistled around them, the iron chains of the cable sang their metallic tune, and the ground below felt like tumultuous waves, threatening to send them plunging down at any moment.

Cliss and John instinctively grabbed the guide chains, shouting desperately at Alba, "Alba, stop! Are you trying to die? Look around you!"

Alba’s reserves had finally been depleted. Hearing Cliss and John’s shouts, she stopped, looking around blankly. She saw a sheer cliff face on one side and a dark abyss on the other; she was standing on a perilous high-altitude cable car line.

Alba gasped violently and leaned her head over the edge of the cable car. What she saw below was an abyss, like the gaping maw of a demon, ready to swallow her at any second!

Especially when a gust of wind blew through, causing the cable car to sway violently, like a huge wave, nearly knocking Alba off balance.

Overwhelmed with terror, Alba’s legs went weak, and her body involuntarily tilted, sending her falling toward the cliff face.

Cliss and John cried out in horror at the sight, their bodies collapsing onto the cable car platform.

Zhou Qin, who was behind them, felt her heart seize. She gritted her teeth, shot forward like a startled swan, and flashed swiftly to Alba’s side!

At that moment, Alba had already dropped out of the cable car. Zhou Qin didn't hesitate; she leaped from the cable car herself, her hands reaching out like grasping for the moon, and slapped onto Alba’s arms. With a strong hook of her ankles, she caught onto the iron cable of the line, steadying herself.

Zhou Qin had barely managed to grab Alba, left hanging upside down from the cable car. She bit down hard, flicked her wrists, and roared, "Up!"

Alba was then flung onto the cable car platform like a sandbag. Cliss and John, watching with precise timing, simultaneously reached out and clumsily caught Alba.

Alba, having just brushed against the gates of death, was now completely stunned, trembling uncontrollably, her limbs shaking so violently she couldn't stand.

Cliss and John watched as Zhou Qin, who had been hanging upside down, suddenly folded her body like a swift swallow and elegantly sprang up from beneath the cable car platform.

Americans worship heroes, and even though Cliss and John were still reeling from shock, they couldn't help but let out a gasp of admiration and awe. A look of intense reverence involuntarily appeared in their eyes.

But before they could say anything, they heard a sparse applause coming from the end of the cable car line they had just used.

Curious, Cliss and John turned to look and saw a woman dressed in fashionable, sexy attire approaching them with a cold sneer playing on her lips, clapping slowly.

This woman’s gaze was fixed firmly on Zhou Qin. Her claps became slower with each one, yet each was delivered with more force, like the approaching footsteps of Death itself. She sneered, "Good form, impressive skill! Truly worthy of someone who has jumped off buildings several times!" As she spoke, she poked her head out from the cable car structure and glanced down, letting out a cold chuckle. "No wonder you're so high up, and yet you show no fear!"

Zhou Qin caught sight of this woman and immediately frowned. She said grimly, "Ding Nan… why are you here?"

This woman was none other than Ding Nan. She said to Zhou Qin with a cold smile, "If you can be here, why can't I?"

Seeing the sheer hostility and killing intent in Ding Nan's eyes, Zhou Qin became secretly vigilant and asked, "What are you doing here?"

Ding Nan laughed loudly, "What am I doing here?"

As she spoke, Ding Nan's face suddenly contorted into something incredibly ferocious and fierce. She hissed out, "What am I doing? I am here to take your life!"