C16 Escape

Duan Dali was momentarily stunned before erupting into boisterous laughter. "Haha, this has got to be the funniest joke I've ever heard. I'm dying of laughter here!" His laughter grew louder, inadvertently aggravating his wound and triggering a fit of coughing.

At the sound of the cough, Chu Tianyu snapped out of his daze, scooped up Qin Ming, and dashed into the dense forest's depths.

"Cough, cough, keep running! Push yourself!" Duan Dali was in no rush. Chu Tianyu was merely an ordinary person, and even if he were a Level Four or Level Five warrior, he would still be insignificant in Duan Dali's eyes. How could he ever escape his grasp?

Qin Ming, on the other hand, was completely drained, devoid of any Genuine Qi. Even with a Spirit Weapon, she posed no threat. The thought of that invaluable Spirit Weapon lit up Duan Dali's face with excitement.

"Truly, she's the Princess of the Qin Empire, far beyond what a minor king like me could match. But ultimately, she's unwittingly crafted a wedding dress for me. A Heaven Creation Pill is indeed priceless!"

Duan Dali yearned to see their pathetic and desperate state when they realized escape was futile, to quell the fury in his heart. So, he waited until they were out of sight before leisurely pursuing them.

His pace appeared slow, yet it was deceptively masterful, employing the Heaven Ranked Footwork. Each step he took spanned over thirty meters, making him at least four or five times faster than Chu Tianyu, and that was without him going all out.

A Level Nine Warrior remains a Level Nine Warrior, even when gravely injured. He's like a tiger on the brink of death, incomparable to a monkey.

Chu Tianyu sprinted for his life, covering ten meters in a flash, exerting every ounce of his strength. Soon, he reached the heart of the forest. Realizing Duan Dali hadn't followed, he breathed a sigh of relief and his pace involuntarily slowed. After all, he was still carrying someone.

Despite Qin Ming being a woman, she weighed significantly more than Chu Tianyu had anticipated—easily five or six hundred pounds, which was heavier than two Chu Tianyus combined. Running, therefore, was extremely strenuous for him. Even with his strength far surpassing that of an average person, he was utterly worn out.

"Ah, why are you so heavy? I'm exhausted," Chu Tianyu gasped, leaning against a large tree for support.

Qin Ming's expression soured instantly. Age and weight were subjects women considered highly sensitive. Had it not been for Chu Tianyu's earnest efforts, despite lacking notable achievements, she would have slapped him already.

"Hey, are you going to say something? I've gotten a lot stronger and barely weigh over two hundred pounds. But you, you must be at least five hundred pounds. Even a typical strong man doesn't weigh more than three hundred pounds."

Chu Tianyu's comments were grounded in fact. In this world, objects were over twice as heavy as on Earth. Three hundred pounds here would be roughly one hundred fifty pounds on Earth, and six hundred pounds would translate to over two hundred pounds there. On Earth, that would be considered quite heavy. Yet Qin Ming appeared so slender, with only her chest and hips being more pronounced. Where did the rest of the weight go?

Unable to bear his incessant chatter any longer, Qin Ming bellowed, "Can't you just stop?"

Her commanding presence was overwhelming, effectively silencing Chu Tianyu, who barely dared to take a deep breath. He replied, feeling aggrieved, "But it's true."

Qin Ming was at a loss for words. It seemed necessary to educate him on some basic knowledge; otherwise, he would never drop the subject. "I can't fathom where you sprang from. You're ignorant of things even a three-year-old would understand."

"I'm from Xianyang," Chu Tianyu tried to declare with pride, but his voice faltered, barely louder than a mosquito's buzz.

Qin Ming gave him a dismissive glance, her skepticism clear. It would be surprising if she believed him. How could someone from Xianyang be so uninformed? After all, it was the imperial capital, not some obscure rural area!

Ultimately, Qin Ming clarified the matter to Chu Tianyu. She couldn't let him continue thinking she was overweight—that was simply unacceptable.

The most striking difference between this world and Earth is the presence of spiritual energy—a wondrous, enigmatic, and potent substance invisible to the average person. Only the mighty can sense it, yet its existence is undeniable.

The presence of spiritual qi ensures the space here is exceptionally stable and the pressure immense, several times greater than that of Earth. Consequently, objects are intensely compressed, increasing their density to the point where a stone the size of a fist weighs ten pounds and has the durability of iron as found on Earth.

Humans living in this environment have, over time, become significantly more robust than Earthlings; otherwise, survival would be impossible. Another factor is that even those who do not practice cultivation are still passively nourished by the spiritual energy. As a result, the inhabitants here are incredibly strong, enjoy extended lifespans, and are free from illness and disaster, with the average person living healthily well into their nineties.

Warriors, however, gain strength by absorbing and refining spiritual qi into Genuine Qi. While spiritual qi lacks mass, it serves as nourishment, fortifying the warrior. When the concentration of Genuine Qi within a warrior reaches a certain threshold, a transformation occurs, and the warrior ascends to a higher level.

This spiritual qi infuses the warrior's muscles, blood, bones, internal organs, and even their soul, purging impurities and rendering the body's tissues more resilient and ever-evolving.

Cultivation, in essence, represents the evolution of life to a more advanced state. While living to a hundred is considered a long life for a non-cultivator, warriors can live well beyond a century, maintaining their youth even into their later years.

Qin Ming, as a Level Nine Warrior, has experienced nine such transformative enhancements of her Genuine Qi. This signifies that her physical constitution has been reinforced nine times beyond that of an ordinary person, elevating her existence far above the norm. Her body is so formidable that conventional weapons cannot even pierce her skin.

Take Chu Tianyu as another example. In less than a month of cultivation, he hasn't yet achieved Level One, but his body is already undergoing evolution. Previously standing at 1.6 meters, he now approaches 1.7 meters. While his frame hasn't drastically changed, his strength has multiplied exponentially. Each muscle now brims with immense power, a stark contrast to his former lax physique.

Qin Ming had kept to herself that she had once witnessed a single drop of a Saint's blood capable of slaying a Level Nine expert. A mere strand of hair could rival a divine weapon, and even more impressively, a person's body could topple mountains!

People move in different circles, and Qin Ming believed that an ordinary person like Chu Tianyu would never cross paths with such formidable individuals. To her, mentioning it would be pointless.

Chu Tianyu had an epiphany. "That explains it. You're just a bit fleshier than me. How could you possibly weigh so much more?"

Chu Tianyu, who had lived as a boyish man for over forty years across two lifetimes, found the temptation unbearable. His heart rate skyrocketed, pounding like a drum, as his face flushed with a surge of blood.

Chu Tianyu gasped for air, his breaths heavy, while two rivulets of red traced their way down from the heavens.

Qin Ming couldn't help but notice the change in Chu Tianyu. His unexpected nosebleed made her worry he was injured without realizing it. She leaned in closer to get a better look.

With a "Puchi!" Chu Tianyu's heart raced even faster, and his nose bled profusely.

Previously, Qin Ming had used a bone to fend off Duan Dali's attack, but the force had torn her clothes. Caught up in their escape, neither had noticed until Chu Tianyu inadvertently...

Qin Ming's thoughts were in disarray, a single thought echoing in her mind: "This kid saw everything, and he's left his filthy nosebleed behind. Oh my god, how could this have happened?"

Caught red-handed by his master, Chu Tianyu was mortified. As his nose continued to bleed, he seized the moment to tilt his head back and gaze at the sky.

Qin Ming reflexively covered herself with her hands, then realized she was only fooling herself. She wanted to punish the young man, but she also knew it wasn't his fault, especially since he had risked his life to help her before.

Feeling helpless and adrift, Qin Ming realized that her strength, intelligence, and beauty were of no avail. Even as a favored daughter of the heavens, she felt less significant than an ordinary girl.

The eerie silence was abruptly shattered by Duan Dali's mocking laughter. "Haha, run! Run faster! Can't keep up, can you? Maybe you should beg me to give you a break?"

Their faces went pale, and any previous embarrassment was quickly forgotten as they whirled around to see a small black dot rapidly growing larger. In no time at all, it was just a few hundred meters behind them.

Chu Tianyu bolted through the dense forest, darting left and right in a desperate attempt to lose Duan Dali. But no matter how hard he pushed himself, Duan Dali remained relentlessly on his tail, a mere thousand feet away. The smirk on Duan Dali's face was unmistakable, the kind one only sees when a cat toys with a mouse.