Birth of the Demonic Sword

Noah was unaware that three cultivators from the Crystal City had followed him into the forest. He had predicted that Zach and his organization wouldn't leave him alone, but he didn't expect them to catch up with him so soon.

After all, Noah had plenty of experience covering his tracks, and he didn't stop running for entire weeks before settling to cultivate.

Noah continued to avoid every powerful being sensed by his consciousness as he ran through the forest. Some of those presences belonged to magical plants, but he never had the chance to study them as he did his best to leave the area under Crystal City's jurisdiction.

His travel through the forest went smoothly. He didn't meet any problem during his exploration, but the scenery in his vision didn't change even after a few more months passed.

The forest seemed endless. It made sense for the Immortal Lands' environments to be wider, but he didn't expect that a single region could take entire months to cross.

Still, Noah never stopped moving. The heavy aura that covered the environment stirred his black hole to work faster and redirect most of its energy toward his body.

Noah was moving quickly. Ordinary rank 7 cultivators in the gaseous stage wouldn't match his speed unless they used movement techniques, but Noah guessed that they couldn't release much energy in that environment.

Yet, his belief shattered when he sensed a series of presences entering the range of his consciousness.

Surprise filled Noah's mind when he sensed those presences. They vanished after a second, but he could understand their nature during that time. They weren't living beings. They radiated the unmistakable aura of a spell.

'Did they find me?' Noah immediately guessed as he accelerated.

The chance that other cultivators lived in that environment was relatively low, and the likelihood that they had used spells when surrounded by the heavy aura was even lower.

The cultivator who had cast that spell was looking for something, and it was too coincidental that the technique vanished once it touched Noah's consciousness.

Noah ran at full speed. His black hole poured even more energy into his body and filled his dark vessels with dark matter. He became even faster due to that empowerment, but he still failed in shaking off his pursuers.

A series of ghostly wolves appeared in front of him at some point. Those creatures were identical to each other, but a horizontal black line cut them in half before they could howl at Noah.

The Demonic Sword had landed in Noah's hand as soon as the creatures appeared, and Noah didn't hesitate to slash at them. His attack also landed on some trees, but it didn't manage to sever their thick trunks.

The ghostly wolves began to disperse, but Noah jumped past them without even observing their end. He couldn't study his opponent's ability with the heavy aura being a constant threat in that environment.

Noah continued to run until the ground morphed in front of his eyes. Tall weapons came out of the terrain and tried to stab him. Dodging them made Noah slow down, but he persevered in his escape.

'They must be nearby,' Noah thought as he sensed that peculiar aura again.

The attacks that had appeared in front of him exuded the power of the gaseous stage. Noah knew that his pursuers had to be inside the range of his consciousness. However, he couldn't pinpoint their exact location due to their concealing method.

Transparent bubbles fell from the trees at some point. They shone with an azure light when the sky illuminated them, but they appeared empty. Yet, Noah could sense that they contained an immense amount of energy.

Noah tried to dodge the bubbles, but they released intense waves of energy when they exploded on the terrain. He couldn't escape those shockwaves, but his body managed to endure them without suffering grave injuries.

His priority remained to escape, but his mind began to analyze those attacks and their influence on the environment. There was something off in that situation. He couldn't explain how his pursuers could ignore the aura of the leader of the forest.

If his pursuers came from the Crystal City, they had to know the forest and had an idea about its dangerousness. The fact that they launched attacks so uncaringly hinted that the leader of the area wouldn't bother to intervene in those battles.

'They might also be complete idiots,' Noah thought as he continued to dodge attacks and wave his blade to press forward.

Underestimating opponents was a deadly flaw, but overestimating them could lead to similar awful outcomes. Noah respected those who had managed to reach the divine ranks, but the Immortal Lands had already shown him that he couldn't apply his values in that world.

Noah had understood that when he threatened Miss Canson. She was at his same level, but she appeared less experienced than all the powerhouses met in his life.

The natives of the Immortal Lands would have an easier path toward the higher ranks, especially if they had powerful backings. They would never suffer from a lack of knowledge about the ranks, and the environment around them was a paradise for cultivators.

Those favorable conditions often gave birth to idiots, but Noah couldn't bet on that just yet. He continued to run through the forest and waited for something to change.

Three different abilities converged on his position at some point. Ghostly wolves appeared in the distance and started to run toward him. Various weapons came out of the ground and tried to pierce him with their sharp side. Bubbles fell from the trees and released shockwaves that destabilized him.

Noah was ready to slash his way through those spells, but more of them appeared in his vision before he could perform his martial art. A single attack wouldn't be able to pierce them, so Noah felt forced to stop to take care of them.

Black lines flew under the trees' crowns as Noah attacked those abilities. The wolves and weapons weren't a problem since his sharpness could cut them, but the bubbles exploded even if he destroyed them before they touched the ground.

Shockwaves swept Noah and made blood accumulate in his mouth. He had suffered a few light internal injuries during the escape, and he immediately identified the cultivator behind that ability as the main threat.

Three figures appeared above him after he stopped. Noah could sense the peculiar aura again, but that concealing method couldn't hide his opponents from his awareness when they were so close.

Noah recognized Zach among the trio, and his eyes sharpened when he inspected his companions. The purple designs on their white robes revealed who was behind those abilities, and Noah immediately fixed his on the overweight woman.

"We meet again," Zach announced as he gazed toward Noah.

"How did you find me so soon?" Noah asked as he prepared for the imminent battle. "How can you not fear the leader of the forest?"

The three cultivators revealed a cold smile when they heard his questions. Their reactions told Noah that he wouldn't receive any answer, but he didn't feel surprised about that.

He wanted to gain a few more pieces of information before going all-out, but it seemed that those cultivators had no intention to speak.