The human-faced Mandrill moved quite leisurely.
...
Chu Liang didn't want things to turn out like this as well.
Originally, they were all following behind Fang Ting, even lagging a bit behind him.
When they saw Fang Ting knocked to the ground by a large tree branch, Lin Bei let out a mournful cry, "Ah! It seems that Senior Brother Fang can't keep up with that demonic creature! Our mission is going to fail."
With a sigh, Chu Liang calmly replied, "If Senior Brother Fang can't do it, I suppose I have to give it a try."
"Hmm?" Lin Bei turned to him with a tilted head upon hearing this, feeling that something seemed odd.
Then he saw Chu Liang take out a talisman.
That's right, if Fang Ting was able to catch up with the Mandrill, he certainly didn't want to use up his only talisman obtained from the White Pagoda.
The Spirit Cat Leaping Talisman!
It is said to substantially enhance agility.
With two fingers, Chu Liang casually tossed the talisman into the air. The talisman was consumed by a flame and exploded with a loud bang.
Bang.
As the talisman was activated, Chu Liang immediately felt a cat spirit awakening within him, and his body began to move in a straight line involuntarily.
With a slight effort, he could leap several meters effortlessly and land lightly.
This Spirit Cat Leaping Talisman is indeed powerful!
The effect was surprisingly good.
If the White Pagoda had a post-purchase review system, he would definitely give this talisman a five-star rating.
After quickly getting used to this new power, he began sprinting at full speed to catch up with the Mandrill. From a high vantage point, one could see a dark and a white silhouette maintaining a jaw-dropping speed and rapidly closing the distance.
Gradually catching up to the Mandrill, Chu Liang even felt a sense of thrill. He could feel the cat spirit inside him being excited about the hunting experience.
Luckily, the effects of this talisman could only last for a short quarter-hour. If they persisted too long, he might end up being affected in some adverse way.
However.
The moment when the Mandrill looked back and saw him, its face expressing utter terror...Chu Liang was uncontrollably excited, almost instinctively licking his palm.
It wouldn't know how much mental trauma this light lick had caused the young Mandrill.
The Mandrill had already sensed that there was something wrong with this man and turned to run as if wishing for another pair of legs.
But could it escape?
It's difficult.
Chu Liang fought off the urge to continue toying with it, dashed forward, and made a direct slash with his sword, the aura of the three-foot blade swirling out!
The Mandrill seemed to have sensed something, and immediately turned transparent, evading the close-range slash!
This creature was incredibly agile, but its fighting strength wasn't formidable. Its only inherent divine skill was this momentary transformation into a phantom, which was exactly how it had escaped Fang Ting's Sword Qi Prison earlier.
Unfortunately.
This transformation could only last for a brief moment.
It had little significance against an enemy that could match its speed.
By the time the Mandrill's form solidified again, Chu Liang's left hand had already shot up, a red beam shooting out from his sleeve.
The Demon Binding Rope!
Up close, there was no avoiding it.
The human-shaped Mandrill was promptly bound by the Turtle Shell Binding method.
At that moment, its mind seemed like it was being trampled by countless horses, a voice screaming inside it...
Shit!
I knew this guy was a freak!
See? I was right!
Living in the Zhennan Region's Mountain, filled with countless evil demons, every one of them has to be prepared for death at any moment.
But...
It could accept death, but found it difficult to accept death in such a disgraceful manner.
Yet, isn't that life? Many things are hard to accept, yet they invariably occur. Like how the autumn wind causes flowers to whither, or how the unceasing river carries away all that is past, or how the mournful cries to the heavens are to no end.
Before the curtain fell, the sight was full of sword light.
The killing blow was dealt.
Chi.
...
Seeing Chu Liang holding the Human-Faced Jade Essence Flower and returning to the group, the rest of the team were somewhat incredulous.
No matter what, they couldn't have imagined that, at the moment when the mission was on the brink of failure, he stood out to stem the tide!
Fang Ting frowned and asked, "Junior Brother Chu... how did you do it?"
Xu Ziqing asked excitedly, "Senior Brother Chu, you are so amazing. Why didn't you tell us before?"
Lin Bei asked with admiration, "Brother Chu, how did you master such a professional technique? Can...can you teach me?"
Xu Ziqing looked at him, confused, "Huh? What technique?"
The young girl still couldn't quite understand the peculiarities of the Demon Binding Rope.
"Oh, body technique, body technique!" Lin Bei hastily corrected himself.
"It's nothing..." Chu Liang responded with a faint smile, "Actually I just used a fairly powerful talisman. Once it's used, it's done, and it really hurts me to do so."
"I see." Everyone suddenly realized.
Actually, they had guessed this as well. Given Chu Liang's cultivation at the early stages of the Divine Consciousness Realm, he quite likely wouldn't possess such body technique. If he had such divine skills earlier, there would have been no need to hide them.
Most likely, he used some kind of last-resort elixir or talisman.
As for the origin of the talisman, no one questioned it further.
In the Immortal Cultivation World, it's considered rude to ask about others' magic artifacts, talismans, elixirs, or divine skills...
The reason is simple: cultivation levels are visible to the naked eye, and unless there is a large disparity, it's very difficult to hide them. But these artifacts can be hidden, and can also be used to cover up the disparity in cultivation levels during crucial moments.
Everyone has their own little secrets, some of which are lifesaving items and naturally they wouldn't like others to know. Sometimes, a little information can mean the difference between life and death.
Where the treasures come from is less of an issue in places like Shu Mountain Sect, but for non-mainstream cultivators, many of them do not have clean hands.
However, regardless of where, it is quite unprofessional behavior to ask directly.
Plus, Chu Liang being the sole disciple of Silver Sword Peak and his master's entire devotion would imply that it wasn't surprising for him to be blessed with some treasures.
What they were currently thinking was that the talisman, which allowed Chu Liang at the early stage of the Third Realm to burst into a speed that far surpassed Fang Ting of the Fourth Realm, must certainly be precious.
It might even be his life-saving treasure.
The reward from this mission, Sword Coins, definitely wouldn't be enough to exchange for such a talisman.
However, for everyone to be able to complete the team mission, he was willing to use such a precious treasure! He was absolutely selfless!
After the short journey, everyone, who initially felt hostile towards Chu Liang because he was from Silver Sword Peak, had drastically changed their impressions of him.
A man's charm.
If Shu Mountain Sect were to choose a model disciple now, they would undoubtedly cast a vote for Chu Liang without hesitation!
The attentive young girl Xu Ziqing smiled and said, "Senior Brother Chu, since you used such a precious talisman, I'll give you my share of the mission reward to help make up for some of your loss."
After all, she truly didn't care about the reward. She was more about gaining experience and her master and elder brother had her back.
Hearing this, Chu Liang smiled, "Is that really okay...?"
Listening to this, Fang Ting also said, "True enough. You made such a great sacrifice for the success of all our missions. You really should not suffer a big loss. You can also have my share."
His main purpose for coming here was to escort Xu Ziqing, so he was not that concerned about the reward. Also, he was almost humiliated when the Human-Faced Mandrill snatched away the Jade Essence Flower. Chu Liang reversed the situation and ultimately saved the day, for which he was beyond grateful.
Just as Chu Liang was about to refuse, he heard Lin Bei calling from the side, "Brother Chu, don't refuse! Everyone can see how much you had to give up! You're our hero, how can we disappoint you? I'll give you Lu Ren's share as well. If you don't accept it, you are considering us strangers!"
"Erm..." Chu Liang smiled again and could only say, "This is really too embarrassing for me."
Lu Ren opened his mouth, wanting to say something. However, he grunted twice and suddenly felt he didn't need to say anything else. Didn't he?
"Huh?"