[Magic auto-update complete. This is a minor version update. The Magic's effects have been adjusted as follows.]
[Clear Wind Technique: New effect added—transform into Clear Wind, with a built-in stealth effect.]
Lines of Ancient Seal characters, like ink dispersing in smoke, materialized before him. Qi Yun's expression jolted. He subconsciously formed a Seal Technique with his right hand as the True Qi within him began to surge.
The next moment.
Qi Yun felt his body suddenly lose all weight, as if he were floating on air, utterly free and unrestrained.
Like an ice crystal thrown into the sun, he instantly dissolved into a stream of formless, substanceless, and ethereal Pure Qi.
It silently dispersed backward.
Chuff?
The ferocious expression on the black panther, which had just witnessed Qi Yun's disappearance, froze instantly.
Its massive head snapped up, its amber beastly eyes filled with pure bewilderment and confusion.
It twitched its sensitive nose, sniffing the air frantically. Its huge paws scraped anxiously at the ground, but it could no longer catch the slightest trace of its prey's scent.
Its nascent intelligence simply couldn't comprehend this ghostly disappearance.
And at this very moment, Qi Yun's true self was hovering silently less than a zhang away from the panther.
His body, now composed entirely of colorless, Formless, and shapeless Pure Qi, seemed to have merged into the very air currents flowing through the valley.
Even with the black panther's incredibly keen sense of smell, it couldn't detect the presence of this wisp of "Clear Wind" at such a close distance.
"This is a truly earth-shattering change."
Observing his form composed entirely of Pure Qi, Qi Yun's initial surprise gave way to the triumphant feeling of a smile born from surviving a disaster.
'I get it now. The auto-update was so slow before because it didn't have much "data." That Treasure Grass I found earlier must have been some kind of Celestial and Earthly Spiritual Object. When the Divine Mystery Panel performed its Refinement on it, it was like adding a "data package." As soon as the data was available, the update naturally finished!'
Having figured out the mystery of the auto-update, Qi Yun looked at the Divine Mystery Panel again.
[Mastered Magic]
[Clear Wind Technique: Auto-updating (Current Progress: 1%)]
'Huh? It's still updating?'
A sharp glint flashed in Qi Yun's eyes as he noticed the words on the panel.
He had originally thought that the Clear Wind Technique couldn't be updated again after this.
He never expected the updates to be seemingly endless!
'If that's the case, then I only need to learn a few simple, easy-to-understand minor Magic techniques and let them update and upgrade. That would save me the massive amount of time and effort spent on studying Magic. I could then dedicate all of it to honing my Cultivation.'
In just an instant, Qi Yun clearly saw the terrifying potential and infinite possibilities that this unique ability offered.
'But that's all for later. Right now, I need to get through this trial.'
Suppressing his excitement, Qi Yun focused his Heart and Spirit, his gaze turning serious.
'I have version 2.0 of the [Clear Wind Technique] now. I can find a place to hide, and even if those Demon Sect Cultivators find me, I can escape using it. As long as I survive for one day, I'll pass this trial!'
His mind made up, Qi Yun gave a final glance at the black panther still pacing anxiously and sniffing the air in vain. His body of Pure Qi silently changed direction and drifted away, toward the deeper, darker corners of the valley.
...
Meanwhile, in other corners of this cold, gloomy valley.
The young Cultivators, who had been randomly teleported to various spots and were still in a daze, were just beginning to come to their senses.
And the Black-clothed Cultivators, wielding Talisman-covered rods, had already arrived to kill.
A young Cultivator stared at the black-clothed man who had abruptly appeared before him, holding a long rod wrapped in strange, purplish-black Talismans. His face was full of shock and disbelief as he subconsciously raised a finger to point at the man, trying to ask:
"Aren't you guys..."
WHAM!
He couldn't even finish his sentence. Riding a heart-stopping, vicious wind, the rod smashed down on his unprotected head with lightning speed!
Flesh splattered and his skull caved in.
With a muffled groan, the young Cultivator collapsed, unconscious. His body twitched and convulsed.
The purplish-black Talismans wrapped around the [Soul-Catching Rod] suddenly flashed, and a cold, sinister power spread through the air.
A blurry, distorted, human-shaped phantom, filled with terror and agony, was brutally ripped from the Broken body, letting out a silent, mournful wail.
But the flesh, now devoid of its soul, maintained its "fresh" warmth and elasticity. Only its eyes were vacant, like a meticulously prepared... ingredient.
"Tsk, our Holy Sect is truly unparalleled in its benevolence."
The Black-clothed Cultivator who had struck the blow looked down at the "ingredient" on the ground, his tone as detached as if he were evaluating a piece of merchandise:
"We only take your skin, flesh, and blood. Out of great Compassion, we even let your souls live to be reincarnated.
Such a great kindness is something you should remember well and repay in your next life."
As he spoke these cold remarks, he expertly untied a bulging leather pouch from his waist. Its surface was covered in a dense network of dark red, twisted Talismans.
He formed a seal, chanted a Curse, and opened the mouth of the bag.
WHOOSH—
A black wind, thick with the stench of blood, surged from the bag. Like a living tentacle, it precisely coiled around the warm and "intact" "flesh-and-blood Talent" on the ground, dragging it into the bag in an instant.
The Black-clothed Cultivator tied the bag shut with a blank expression, weighed it in his hand, and seemed quite satisfied.
Without a second glance at the bloodstains, brain matter, and bone fragments on the ground, he set off, silently and swiftly pursuing the scent of the next terrified target.
All that remained was a faint breeze, tinged with blood and cold. It swirled for a moment before, like the dissipated soul, vanishing completely into the cruel valley.
...
THUD—
A dull impact!
The young figure, head covered in blood and body still in a forward-lurching posture, fell stiffly to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.
Flicking the sticky blood from the tip of the [Soul-Catching Rod] in his hand, the Black-clothed Cultivator let out a long breath.
"Damn kid, you run pretty fast. If I hadn't been prepared, you might've actually gotten away."
As he spoke, he skillfully untied the bulging [Blood Mountain Bag] from his waist—the one covered in dark red Talismans—muttering an incantation and once again summoning the black wind that stank of blood.
WHOOSH—
The black wind moved with precision, coiling around the still-warm, high-quality "flesh-and-blood Talent" on the ground.
However, just as the Talent was about to be completely sucked into the bag...
PLINK!
A translucent Treasure Grass, crystalline and flawless, faintly emitting wisps of gentle light.
It landed perfectly, right at the Black-clothed Cultivator's feet.
"Hm?"
The Black-clothed Cultivator's brow twitched. A flicker of surprise in his eyes, he bent down with a hint of confusion and picked up the tender sprout.
The moment he got a clear look, the Black-clothed Cultivator's breath caught in his throat.
Immediately after, an irrepressible ecstasy erupted from the depths of his eyes, instantly dispelling all his fatigue.
"Holy crap, Wind Concealing Grass!"
The Black-clothed Cultivator carefully held it up to examine, muttering to himself:
"This is a rare celestial Treasure Medicine. If I offer it to the Pill Tower, I can get at least three [Qi Spirit Pills] for it."
The joy on his face was practically overflowing. He looked at the Wind Concealing Grass, then glanced at the "Talent" on the ground, shaking his head and clucking his tongue.
"To be able to find a Treasure Medicine like this, you must have had some great fortune.
Unfortunately, treasures from Heaven and Earth belong to the virtuous.
You had more than enough fortune, but not enough virtue.
So, I'll do you the favor of holding on to this Treasure Medicine for you."
Gleefully, he gently tucked the Wind Concealing Grass into the pocket closest to his chest. The Black-clothed Cultivator felt a sense of complete well-being and couldn't even stop himself from humming a little out-of-tune melody.
However, the somewhat smug and careless Black-clothed Cultivator had no idea that on a tree branch less than ten meters away,
a figure made of Formless Clear Wind was silently watching him.
Or rather... watching the Wind Concealing Grass he had just tucked away.
...