By the time the Undying Creature gave chase, Ye Wushuang’s figure had already vanished into the woods.

The Undying Creature searched the area for a long time, but still couldn’t find any sign of Ye Wushuang. He had simply vanished.

"ARGH!"

In a fit of rage, he let out a furious roar.

The Ghost Fruit was no ordinary Spirit Medicine; it contained a vast amount of Soul Power.

This Soul Power, nourished and purified by the world itself, was exceptionally pure. If devoured, it could dramatically increase one’s soul strength. In a way, it was even more precious than some Ancient Medicine Kings.

For him especially, it could nourish his Spirit Body and strengthen his cultivation. That was why he had spared no expense, even exhausting his Spiritual Body Power, to snatch it from the Blood-Winged Demon Tiger.

But at the critical moment, Ye Wushuang had snatched it away.

"You bastard! No matter where you run, I will flay your body and devour your soul!"

The Undying Creature roared in frustration, its shrill cry echoing through the world, lingering for a long, long time.

Deep in the forest, Ye Wushuang’s figure moved with agility, weaving through the trees. He covered several miles in the blink of an eye, his speed astonishingly fast.

Of course, he had heard the earth-shattering roar, but he paid it no mind. His Divine Sense scouted ahead as his figure flickered forward at high speed.

WHOOSH! WHOOSH!

A series of sharp whistles tore through the air.

"Looks like we’ve got some prey!"

At the same time, behind a large rock formation, several pairs of eyes were fixed on the approaching Ye Wushuang, their gazes burning with greed.

"This kid’s fast!"

"What’s there to be afraid of? He’s just some True Essence Third Layer trash!"

"Quiet. Conceal your auras and wait for the kid to take the bait."

The hushed whispers died down, and all their auras vanished. The dense forest returned to its previous calm.

As Ye Wushuang sprinted forward, the corner of his mouth curled into a slight smile.

His Divine Sense was far beyond that of an ordinary person—more than ten times stronger, in fact, covering a radius of dozens of miles. How could he possibly fail to notice the activity up ahead?

WHOOSH! WHOOSH!

A moment later, Ye Wushuang’s figure passed by the rock formation.

Kill!

Kill!

Bursts of killing intent erupted from behind the rocks. Three figures leaped out in succession, unleashing waves of immense True Essence Energy. The attack descended from above, blanketing a several-mile radius around Ye Wushuang.

The three attacked with utter viciousness, their every move intended to be fatal. The terrifying energy sealed off all of Ye Wushuang’s escape routes, aiming to obliterate him.

RUMBLE!

The ground instantly roiled. The terrifying energy whipped up a massive vortex, flinging rocks and trees into the sky. The tempest raged for a long time before finally subsiding.

The three men stood in a triangle formation around the epicenter of the blast, watching with caution. If Ye Wushuang wasn’t dead, they were ready to strike again.

As the dust settled, the center of the explosion came into view, revealing the scene to the three men. Their expressions, however, froze in stunned surprise.

"He’s gone? Did he really just die like that?"

One of the young men stared at the other two, dumbfounded.

"He must be!" another replied. "The kid was only at the True Essence Third Layer. He was too weak, too fragile. How could he possibly withstand an attack from the three of us at the True Essence Fourth Layer? He was probably blasted to bits."

"Hahaha! With this kill, our points will go up by one. Add that to my previous two, and I’ll have three points!"

The last youth, the one with sharp, monkey-like features, burst into laughter.

But his laughter died just as suddenly as it had begun.

His gaze then fixed on the empty space between his two companions.

A figure was standing there quietly, his cold eyes locked onto him.

That icy stare froze the smile on his face. His mouth opened and closed slightly, as if he wanted to say something, but the words were caught in his throat.

"Skinny Monkey, what are you looking at?"

The other two noticed their companion’s theatrical expression and frowned.

The young man called Skinny Monkey didn’t answer them. He just kept staring at Ye Wushuang.

’I just can’t figure it out,’ he thought. ’We were fast enough, our attack covered several miles, completely sealing his escape routes. How did he get away? And without a scratch!’

Seeing Skinny Monkey’s expression, the other two sensed something was wrong. They whipped their heads around to look at the empty space beside them. Their pupils contracted in utter shock.

SHIING!

In an instant, Ye Wushuang’s body shuddered. Two crimson bursts of Spiritual Light erupted, and two blood-red blades of light slashed through the air, striking both young men.

SPLURT! SPLURT!

Instantly, two figures were sent flying, blood spraying everywhere. Their faces were frozen in surprise, the light already gone from their eyes.

BOOM!

With a reach of his hands, Ye Wushuang pulled their bodies into the Dragon Blood Divine Cauldron. At the same time, he took a step through the void, heading toward Skinny Monkey.

Two cultivators at the True Essence Fourth Layer, killed in a single move in less than half a breath. Skinny Monkey was utterly flabbergasted, completely dumbstruck by the sight.

The icy chill of death instantly gripped his heart, snapping him back to his senses. Terrified, he hastily drew a Spiritual Artifact and swung it wildly at Ye Wushuang twice. Without even checking to see if his attack had landed, he turned and fled.

’I’ve really messed with the wrong person today!’ he thought. ’I can’t believe this kid is a wolf in sheep’s clothing!’

’Who would’ve thought someone at the True Essence Third Layer could be a master, cutting down True Essence Fourth Layer cultivators like they were weeds!’

Terrified, Skinny Monkey turned tail and ran without a second thought.

But he hadn’t taken more than a few steps before Ye Wushuang’s figure appeared right in front of him.

At this sight, Skinny Monkey’s heart trembled with utter terror. He dropped to his knees and begged in a tearful voice, "Please, don’t kill me! Sir, spare my life!"

This display made Ye Wushuang frown.

He then took a few steps forward and said coldly, "I can spare you. Tell me how to check my points."

The Earth Palace trial was a competition among the disciples. The more points one accumulated, the richer the treasures they would receive later on.

The Sect Master, Nangong Liuyun, had mentioned it before, but hadn’t gone into detail. Ye Wushuang wasn’t sure how the points were calculated.

Hearing Ye Wushuang’s question, Skinny Monkey hurriedly answered, "Sir, if you want to check your points, you just need to have them checked at a testing platform."

"A testing platform?"

Ye Wushuang’s eyes narrowed. This was the first he’d heard of such a thing, and a flicker of curiosity sparked within him.

Skinny Monkey was skilled at reading people. Noticing Ye Wushuang’s curiosity, he immediately said, "Sir, the testing platform is what records the points for everyone in the trial. There are many of them throughout the Earth Palace. You want to check your points, right? I can take you to one."

"There are many of them?" Ye Wushuang murmured. He turned to Skinny Monkey, sneering inwardly. ’When you have no power, they call you ’kid.’ When you have power, they call you ’sir.’ It seems strength really does decide everything.’

"Take me there," Ye Wushuang said coldly.

’I was going to kill him,’ Ye Wushuang thought, ’but since he knows about these testing platforms, I’ll let him live for now.’

"Yes, yes! I’ll take you there right now!"

Skinny Monkey let out a sigh of relief, terrified that Ye Wushuang would finish him off with a single strike, just as he had the other two.