Cultivating for a hundred lifetimes to ascension Chapter 13 Gongsun, where are you fleeing to?

A long time ago, the prominent sects of the Cultivation World issued a perpetual mission: they would purchase the rare Purple Qi Mushroom from Heavenly Pillar Mountain in any quantity. Regardless of the herb's age or the amount brought forth, the rewards promised were immense.

These bounties consisted of gold, silver, Magic Artifact Talismans, and various Elixir Pills, including the coveted Foundation Establishment Pill.

A Red Fire Ganoderma aged five hundred years could be traded for a Foundation Establishment Pill or a Mountain Gate Token. With such a token, even a person with the meager Five Spirits Roots could join a Cultivation Sect without any conditions.

However, if one were lucky enough to stumble upon a thousand-year-old Purple Qi Mushroom... it would likely spell doom for an ordinary person. Without a cultivation level above Foundation Establishment, protecting such a precious treasure was an impossible task.

One must understand that this was a third-tier medicinal treasure that would incite even Golden Core Masters to violence.

This open-ended bounty drove countless individuals to chase dreams of wealth and the path to immortality.

Over the millennia, a steady stream of Martial World Knights, Qi Refining Practitioners, Foundation Establishment Purple Mansions, and even Golden Core Masters have swarmed the slopes of Heavenly Pillar Mountain. Despite the treacherous heights, they scaled the cliffs and braved the precipices, gambling their lives for the treasures they craved.

While Zhao Sheng was lost in these thoughts, a roar of fury erupted from above: "You shameless old thief, I have finally tracked you down! Let's see where you run today!"

Looking up, Zhao Sheng spotted a muscular man in his forties, characterized by a tangled beard and brown hair, suddenly appearing in the sky.

The burly man, his expression twisted with rage, stood atop a sword as wide as a door, diving rapidly toward the cliffside.

Seeing the man's approach, a smirk touched Zhao Sheng’s lips. He moved closer to the cliff’s edge, facing the biting wind.

With narrowed eyes, he suddenly threw himself into the abyss.

His body plummeted through the open air, gaining speed as he vanished into the swirling mist, where the silhouettes of gnarled trees and jagged rocks were barely visible against the mountain.

Zhao Sheng descended with the grace of a mountain eagle, skillfully maneuvering past the jagged rocks and branches that jutted out from the cliff.

After a fall of nearly ten thousand meters, Zhao Sheng flung his arms wide. Two canvas wings stretched from his hands to his waist, catching the updrafts and billowing outward.

Instantly, his terminal velocity dropped. He steered his descent toward a protruding stone ledge on the cliff face and landed with a light touch.

Not wanting to stay exposed, Zhao Sheng didn't waste a second. He tapped his feet against the stone, launching himself like a projectile into the surrounding fog.

Without needing the cliff wall for leverage, he glided through the air, covering hundreds of meters in a heartbeat.

Spotting a narrow fissure in the rock, Zhao Sheng killed his momentum, pressed his back against the stone, and slid inside. He immediately activated the Turtle Breath Technique to mimic a state of death.

At that moment, a fierce gale whipped through the area, sending the clouds and mist into a violent frenzy.

A thunderous voice, carried by the wind, reached his hiding spot: "Cloud Entering Dragon Gongsun Sheng, I have marked you. I will hunt you down eventually, you shameless old thief!"

When traversing the Martial World, being cautious is the most important rule!

Because of this, Zhao Sheng never utilized his true identity, instead calling himself Gongsun Sheng, known by the moniker Cloud Entering Dragon.

Hearing the retreating shout, Zhao Sheng gave a quiet sigh: "Alas, I only traded my Cloud Dragon Nine Transformations for your three-hundred-year-old Green Ganoderma. There is no need for such a relentless pursuit. Han Xuanwu, Han Xuanwu, you really are a stubborn one!"

To avoid a potential trap, Zhao Sheng remained motionless in the crevice for a full day.

Only after the wind shifted and darkness covered the land did he cautiously peek out, scanning the environment like a wary mole.

One cannot blame him for such cowardice; it is a common saying that caution allows one to sail the sea for ten thousand years!

Having survived two decades of bloodshed, ambushes, and desperate struggles for loot, he had witnessed it all.

He had seen medicine collectors kill each other over a single Spiritual Medicine, scenes so brutal they were beyond imagination. It proved the old adage—whether for gold or for life, men, like birds, often perish in pursuit of their desires.

If Zhao Sheng lacked this extreme level of care, he would have died in some forgotten corner twenty years ago.

Emerging slightly, he sniffed the mountain air. Sensing no "human scent" nearby, he finally relaxed. Stepping into the void, he propelled himself forward like an arrow, heading toward a specific coordinate.

His resting places were always changing; the location he had prepared the previous day was dozens of miles away, a journey that would normally take half an hour of travel.

Half an hour later, Zhao Sheng halted. The cliffside here was devoid of greenery, replaced by dark, jagged stones that looked haunting under the night sky.

Because of this desolation, the massive, glowing Light Flame Talisman hovering nearly a thousand feet away across the ravine was impossible to miss.

"Haha, a Light Flame Talisman from the Purple Sun Sect? What a stroke of luck."

Zhao Sheng smiled, pleased to find a trading assembly right as he was returning to his "nest."

He was indeed fortunate.

Due to the difficult landscape of Heavenly Pillar Mountain, it was hard for medicine collectors to travel. Consequently, many Major Sects would send disciples to host temporary trade fairs on the mountain. This allowed collectors to swap their finds for necessary goods and cultivation resources in a timely manner.

The dynamic was much like that of gold miners and the merchants selling them shovels. The 'Gold' obtained by the miners at the risk of their lives often ended up in the pockets of the 'merchants' providing the tools.

While many miners died or suffered, only a few ever struck it rich, but the 'merchants' always profited.

As he drew within a mile of the site, the people at the trade meet noticed Zhao Sheng's approach.

A mile? Even in the dead of night, a Qi Refining Immortal Cultivator possesses exceptional vision.

A few moments later, Zhao Sheng landed on the stone platform extending from the cliff, where several bonfires were burning brightly.

A group of medicine collectors stood around the flames, their faces showing the wear and tear of a hard life.

The two sides sized each other up.

The crowd was initially surprised by Zhao Sheng's arrival, but one man quickly leaped to his feet with sudden energy.

"Haha, Gongsun, you actually have the guts to show your face!"

Seeing the murderous glare on Han Xuanwu's face, Zhao Sheng cursed his misfortune, wishing he had checked the omens before leaving, as this idiot was back to cause more trouble.

Han Xuanwu was once a simple Martial World Knight until a passing master noticed his Spirit Root. After being given a Qi Refining Method by the master, who then disappeared, Han Xuanwu proved to have extraordinary talent. He reached the Sixth Level of Qi Refining entirely on his own in just twenty years.

Despite becoming a Cultivator, Han the Martial Enthusiast still viewed himself as a warrior and obsessed over collecting various Martial Arts Masterpieces.

Three months prior, during a similar trade meet, Zhao Sheng had "exchanged" his Cloud Dragon Nine Transformations for Han Xuanwu's 300-year-old Green Ganoderma.

Once he realized he'd been swindled, the fool had chased Zhao Sheng for three straight months, right up until this evening.

"Han the Martial Enthusiast, look around and see where you are before you start a fight!"

Unfazed, Zhao Sheng walked boldly toward the fire and stood his ground against Han Xuanwu.