Qin Ruqing saw this grey-clothed figure and knew trouble was coming her way today!

Hiding like this, clearly not from the Qin family, she thought about the recent friction between the Qin and Zhang families—it was likely a little thief sneaking in from the Zhang family!

No, upon thinking of this person’s cultivation level, Qin Ruqing sadly amended her thoughts in her mind: it should be a major thief!

Who will come to save her!

While lamenting inwardly, Qin Ruqing infused a large amount of spiritual energy into the Thunderbolt Talisman in her hand.

The reason she could run so fast was, of course, thanks to good stuff.

This Thunderbolt Talisman was a treasure hidden at the bottom of her father’s box.

Her father had thought very carefully; Qin Ruqing was not lacking in spiritual energy recovery, was quite resilient to attacks, and had her own means of offense—just lacking a bit in escape skills.

For Qin Deming, who had been nicknamed “Old Turtle” for years, running away was not shameful.

As a good cultivator, the necessary skill was escaping.

However, after leading the clan for so long, running too fast also made him lose face.

So, he gave his precious hidden treasure to his beloved daughter Qingqing.

This Thunderbolt Talisman was made from high-grade purple talisman paper, infused with spiritual energy, and its flight speed could match that of a Foundation Building cultivator.

Now, this hidden treasure from the bottom of the box saved Qin Ruqing.

Upon determining that this person came from the Zhang family, Qin Ruqing immediately acted decisively to protect her life, using the Thunderbolt Talisman without hesitation.

Thus, the scene of her “dashing” away happened.

However, although the Thunderbolt Talisman ran fast, its effectiveness was limited.

Qin Ruqing did not dare to relax her vigilance.

She took advantage of the gap during her escape to send a message to the clan, then pushed forward with all her might.

Her goal in escaping was the Qin family’s residence.

As long as she reached there, her life should be safe.

“You people from the Zhang family, if you dare to catch me in front of my Qin clan members, wouldn’t that be equivalent to declaring war directly? Moreover, there are elders on duty at the residence.”

Qin Ruqing’s escape speed surprised Zhang Li.

How could a Qi Refining at Third Stage kid run so fast?

But after a little thought, he realized she must have used some kind of acceleration rune or artifact.

So he calmly chased after her.

Your runes and artifacts have time limits; as long as your speed slows down, I can catch up with you in an instant.

By then, capturing a Qi Refining Third Stage junior like you will be a piece of cake.

Speaking of which, Zhang Li’s infiltration this time was supposed to be secret, just to gather information about the Qin family.

If it were just an ordinary Qi Refining Stage junior from the Qin family, he wouldn’t bother chasing.

But this girl was different.

As an elder, he had good eyesight.

Just looking at the golden silk embroidered auspicious-patterned robe that didn’t get wet when she emerged from the lake, he knew it was extraordinary.

And the hairpin on her head, the collar on her neck—each one was a treasure!

She must be a direct descendant of the Qin family and highly valued.

If all this wasn’t enough, what Zhang Li was most concerned about was Qin Ruqing’s cultivation level—Qi Refining Stage three-layer.

Glancing over her, although he couldn’t determine her exact age, he felt she was about the same age as children who had just finished nurturing their spirits in the clan.

This is just Qi Refining Stage three-layer?!

Zhang Li’s intuition as an elder told him that she must be a talented individual cultivated by the Qin family as an elite seedling.

Maybe she’s a descendant of one of the elders. If I capture her, investigate her identity, there might be great potential.

As Zhang Li pondered this, he keenly sensed the red figure ahead slowing down.

Time’s up! Zhang Li sneered, accelerated, and caught up.

He even began thinking about how he would claim credit once back with the clan.

But as soon as he closed the distance a bit, the girl quickly pulled away again.

Zhang Li couldn’t figure out how she was speeding up.

What’s going on?

Confused, Zhang Li suddenly faced a fireball flying towards him.

He dodged to the side, but the fireball exploded directly.

Zhang Li was a complete Qi Refining stage master, so of course, it didn’t cause much harm, just left him a bit dirty and delayed his progress.

Zhang Li was starting to get angry.

Did this Qin family girl really think she could hurt him with such a small spell?

However, before he could catch up, something even more astonishing happened.

Fireballs ahead were raining down on him like they cost nothing, one after another.

No matter how Zhang Li dodged, these fireballs managed to hit him.

Zhang Li found it utterly baffling.

Wait… she’s running away and still has the time to aim these fireballs at me with her spiritual sense? Who runs away and isn’t fully focused?!

The truth told him that Qin Ruqing’s fireballs not only could aim accurately but also seemed to be unlimited!

Zhang Li had never seen a Qi Refining Third stage cultivator with such an astonishing reserve of spiritual energy.

Even with potions, their recovery speed wouldn’t be this fast, right?

Qin Ruqing had no idea what Zhang Li was cursing about in his mind.

As soon as the Thunderbolt Talisman slowed down and its runes began to fade, she knew it was bad.

The gap in cultivation between her and the grey-clothed man was too large.

If she didn’t take action, he would catch up to her quickly.

So Qin Ruqing came up with a plan: exploding fireballs.

The technique of casting the spell provided significant forward thrust.

Qin Ruqing directed it backward, using this thrust to maintain her speed indirectly.

Hehe, you could say it’s a cultivation version of a fireball thruster, ever seen one?

As for why the fireballs were aimed at Zhang Li—well, that was just something Qin Ruqing did effortlessly.

Her spiritual sense was sharp, and with ample reserves, targeting Zhang Li wasn’t difficult at all.

As for why she aimed so accurately—when she wasn’t live-streaming the trashy game “Top Aristocrat Family,” she entertained herself by streaming “Angry Chickens.”

So, any pro players out there?

Qin Ruqing pushed her absorbed spiritual energy to the maximum, roaring forward like a vortex in human form.

By the end of the chase, Zhang Li had given up on capturing Qin Ruqing and taking credit back to the clan.

All that circled in his mind was one thought:

Let’s see how far you can go!

Zhang Li, being an elder with rich combat experience, ignored the annoying but ultimately harmless fireballs.

He deployed a protective barrier with a magical device, maximized his spiritual energy output, and sped up to chase after her.

In the end, Qin Ruqing’s cultivation level was too far below Zhang Li’s.

Combined with the Thunderbolt Talisman gradually losing effect and the reverse thrust from the fireballs not adequately bridging the gap, Zhang Li slowly closed in.

And Zhang Li also happily noticed that those annoying fireballs were becoming fewer and fewer, finally fizzling out like damp squibs.

disappeared.

Wow! Finally exhausted, huh? I thought you could keep going forever! Zhang Li thought gleefully in his heart.

As the fireballs vanished, Qin Ruqing’s speed slowed down completely, and Zhang Li finally caught up.

Qin Ruqing showed a “panicked” expression, still futilely trying to escape, shouting, “I am a direct descendant of the Qin clan! Who dares to pursue me? Are you not afraid of retaliation from my clan?”

Zhang Li chuckled.

The more panicked Qin Ruqing appeared, the happier he felt.

He felt that the inexplicable frustration from before had finally dissipated somewhat.

“Even if you’re a direct descendant of the Qin family, I wouldn’t exert this effort to catch you if you weren’t!”

Qin Ruqing seemed to realize she had “said the wrong thing,” revealing her identity.

She quickly changed her tone, “Senior, even though I am a direct descendant, I am not valued in the Qin family. If you capture me, other than angering the Qin family, it serves no purpose!”

“Well, we’ll see about that once you’re caught.” With the distance closed, Zhang Li didn’t want to waste words.

He reached out towards Qin Ruqing’s shoulder, intending to capture her by the collarbone.

Of course, Zhang Li wasn’t stupidly attempting to grab her bare-handed; a golden light shimmered on his dry fingers, indicating he had used a special technique.

If Qin Ruqing were caught by him, even if she didn’t die, she wouldn’t escape serious injury.

Such a vicious heart!

Qin Ruqing’s eyes narrowed, but her face showed more “panic,” shouting loudly, “Help! Save me!”

Zhang Li grinned maliciously, about to capture her.

Little did he know, Qin Ruqing suddenly turned her head, changing from a panicked expression to a smile.

This smile gave Zhang Li a bad premonition, and instinctively, he wanted to retreat.

However, it was already too late.

Qin Ruqing directly triggered the rune given to her by her ancestors.

It contained the strongest attack a mid-Foundation Building stage cultivator could unleash.

With a loud boom, Zhang Li was blasted away, blood spraying, flesh tearing apart.

Meanwhile, although Qin Ruqing had anticipated this and had already used the last of the Thunderbolt Talisman’s effectiveness to escape urgently, she was still caught in the aftermath of the attack and flew out as well.

Qin Ruqing spat out a mouthful of blood, feeling like her internal organs were in chaos.

She desperately maintained her last bit of consciousness, sending her spiritual sense towards where Zhang Li had been blasted.

She could only hope that the attack just now would kill Zhang Li.

If it didn’t, and he survived, she feared she wouldn’t be able to keep her life.

However, the result was despairing.

Perhaps all her luck had been used up when she found the Heart of Frigid Ice earlier.

Zhang Li hadn’t died!

His whole body was a bloody mess, his face blurred, but he still clung to life, trembling as he stood up.

Zhang Li roared angrily, “I’m going to kill you!”

Such humiliation! He had been turned into this state by a junior!

At this moment, Zhang Li had no other thoughts in his mind except to kill Qin Ruqing.

Qin Ruqing closed her heavy eyelids, feeling her last bit of consciousness struggle with this grim news.

She was completely out of tricks now and feared she couldn’t change the outcome.

Qin Ruqing passed out completely.

Zhang Li’s spiritual sense swept over Qin Ruqing’s body, finding her aura quiet, like a dead person.

A hoarse laughter came from her throat, sounding like an old, broken bellows.

Dead from the blast? Good, saves me the trouble.

Could a junior like you at your level use such a grade of rune? Good riddance!

Zhang Li

With a grim smile, Zhang Li approached Qin Ruqing and discovered she was still breathing.

“No harm done. It’s a perfect chance for me to understand you personally,” Zhang Li said.

Curling his fingers into claws, he aimed for Qin Ruqing’s throat, but a swift sword wind intervened, causing Zhang Li to sidestep.

A clear female voice rebuked, “Who dares harm the Qin Clan’s direct descendants?” Qin Dexin swiftly flew in and stood before Zhang Li.

Glancing at the bloodied Zhang Li, Qin Dexin recognized him and frowned, “Zhang Li? How dare you intrude our Qin Clan’s secret realm, injuring our younger generation? Are the Zhang and Qin families starting a war?”

Seeing Qin Dexin wielding a sword, Zhang Li instinctively stepped back.

Then, he glanced at Qin Ruqing on the ground and deliberately said, “I didn’t expect the Qin Clan to hide such a talented individual. This child seems unusual. If my guess is correct, she might have awakened some special constitution, perhaps… Dao physique?”

As he squeezed out the words “Dao physique,” Qin Dexin’s pupils contracted, revealing a murderous intent.

“Haha! Looks like I hit the mark, huh?” Zhang Li laughed madly.

Seizing the moment when Qin Dexin’s attention shifted, he turned and fled.

He was indeed cunning, diverting attention with his words to create an opportunity for escape.

“Trying to run?” Qin Dexin raised his sword, full of killing intent.

By mentioning the Dao physique, Zhang Li had sealed his fate.

“Qingqing, Qingqing!” came the voices of Qirong and Luwei from behind.

The two children ran slowly and caught up.

Qin Dexin instructed Qirong upon appearing, “Take care of Qingqing.” Then, she chased after Zhang Li.