Is that a Wisp?
chapter-896

"What the fuck are the two of you?" Hrook stared with absolute shock as the laws that formed his Spiritual Incarnation were sucked towards the shield. They were still under his control but were pulled towards the shield at a strength beyond he could muster.

'I'm a Nascent God. How can a mere God Foundation Realm dreg do this to me?' Hrook thought to himself, cooling down his head as he was just about to activate his Spiritual Incarnation fully when Krune spoke.

Followed by a chuckle, Krune smiled. "Look around you. If we stay here any longer, we would be besieged by the Predominated Vines. If you still wish to receive a beating, feel free to come at us in the Sub-Realm."

Only now did Hrook look around, watching Rinrish and another of his companions struggle as they tried their best to stall the vines from creeping towards them. Unfortunately, they were quickly losing ground as the vines lashed onto the shield they had erected.

"Wash your necks and be ready," Hrook shouted through gritted teeth as he waved his hand, sucking in all the crimson he had unleashed, including the portion sucked in by Krune's shield, displaying a fraction of his real strength.

Ruana then landed beside him and placed a hand on his shoulder, teleporting him to the group as all of them vanished from the spot.

Cultivator had already taken action by the time he noticed their intention to retreat. He took out a ring and wore it, summoning a ring spirit that resembled a bird-type demon beast. It was different from the one they used to reach the Four Sector's Border Region from the Lawless Plains.

He then noticed Krune standing still on the ring spirit resembling a Zenith Plugger. His body was staggered as the Godly Energy circulating in him turned sluggish. Krune barely managed to store his shields as Cultivator pulled him onto the bird-type ring spirit and retracted the other.

Without any pause in his actions, the bird-type ring spirit flapped its wings and flashed through the main path, speeding along as Cultivator looked at the Predominated Vines that flashed, lashing out at their previous position.

The vines seemed to target them, as they had caused a massive commotion. Also, it seemed that the Godly Energy from their exchange of attacks had coursed through the air until it reached them, triggering the lot of them into taking action.

They crashed into the path, elongating through it as the sea of vines trailed right after them. It seemed that they were the target of the vines. Most of the other people who had been in the area were fine for the most part, except for some unfortunate soul who mistakenly touched a vine. He was quickly absorbed into the vine and digested until nothing of him remained behind.

"What happened to you, Krune?" Cultivator shouted as he saw Krune turn less responsive than usual.

"Just…give me a couple of seconds." Krune barely managed to utter those words as he circulated the Myriad Energies Technique with great haste, alleviating the sluggishness in his body. It had been brought about because he had used the Balance Laws for a greater duration than what he was allowed to.

His comprehension of them was insufficient. After all, unlike the regular laws, the Balance Laws was a cluster containing all the laws of the God Realm. Activating it meant activating all the laws in him. After obtaining his Spiritual Incarnation, it meant activating every part of his body.

Sadly, his comprehension of them was still insufficient. He couldn't maintain them for more than five seconds. And, to make a massive impression on his foes and prevent them from prolonging the fight, he had exceeded the duration.

Nevertheless, it wasn't a problem since he was only using what was his. Still, it was basically akin to overstraining himself. So, as Krune rested and continued circulating his Godly Energy, he quickly recovered.

If he had maintained his Balance Laws for a greater duration, then the damage would have become greater as well. He wouldn't have died, but his strength would have been suppressed for a long time. The duration of suppression would vary based on the amount of time he exceeded in maintaining the Balance Laws.

The moment he recovered, Krune looked around, paling as he saw the Predominated Vines crash into their travel path like a tsunami from all sides. Cultivator was solemn, trying his best to weave through them as he summoned the tiny ring spirit that resembled a fairy.

She continued to guide him, helping him avoid maneuvering through riskier places as the bird-type ring spirit moved through the gaps in the vines.

"How are they able to track us this much?" Krune thought aloud as he looked through the vines, occasionally noticing the silhouettes of some Mashed Serpents wriggling within. They were the cause that made this possible.

After thinking for a moment, Krune unleashed his Mental Energy, condensing it into a sphere that wrapped around them as a whole, including the bird-type ring spirit. For a moment, the ring spirit that looked like a fairy glanced at Krune, wondering the reason for a change in his stance.

She then noticed the Predominated Vines were suddenly unable to sense their location as clearly as before. Their aim was becoming wonkier as time passed. This allowed the bird-type ring spirit enough gap to fly through the vines.

"Thanks." Cultivator gazed at Krune as he heaved a sigh of relief. "That was too risky."

"That thing is still onto us," Krune said as his forehead was covered in sweat. He could feel a sharp gaze right on him, making him shudder. He didn't know what it was, but he dared not confront it. Cultivator, too, seemed to share the same opinion as him.

They were just strong individuals. They weren't peerless powerhouses that could shake the God Realm with their power. They could only face off against normal Nascent God Realm cultivators, and probably cultivators in the same realm but with Spiritual Incarnations.

Even though they just fought against that group of five with Spiritual Incarnations and where all of them had been at the Nascent God Realm, none of them had gone all out. Moreover, they hadn't even fully activated their Spiritual Incarnations.

So, it wouldn't be a measure of their real strength.

Even otherwise, in case Krune and Cultivator only faced normal cultivators in the Nascent God Realm, even though they could mow down through a lot of them, they would fall eventually. Not to mention that all the Predominated Vines were at least at this level. There was also the fact they were equipped with the ability to even digest Spiritual Incarnations, making them the worst enemy to face.

In this sea of vines, it would be foolish if they stopped to fight. That was why Cultivator didn't delay and quickly began to make escape plans.

"Hold tight," Cultivator said as he watched Krune follow his command immediately. The both of them held a protrusion along the back of the bird-type ring spirit. The tiny fairy-like ring spirit went into Cultivator's robe as it took safety, knowing beforehand of what would happen next.

"Can you do it now?" he looked at the bird-type ring spirit and asked.

"Yes, but I can only sustain it for ten seconds. My form would collapse immediately after." The bird-type ring spirit replied as its body subtly changed. Its tail curled up to morph into a head as its wings elongated.

Now, it seemed two of them had been cut along their middle and attached to one another. Two heads were replacing the tails of one another. Cultivator had chosen this ring spirit because, despite its lower duration of flight, it could take sharp turns in the air. Moreover, the second reason was this…

The head that had popped out of its tail-end opened its mouth as it condensed a multitude of laws within, consisting of the law of flames, wind, gravity, and so on. All the Godly Energy it had amassed flowed into it, fueling them into activation. Slowly, a miniature sun formed in its mouth, turning from bright yellow to white with a mild tint of blue.

The miniature sun began to rotate at massive speeds in its mouth as tongues of fires arched out from time to time. Even its head was slightly melting from the heat it itself had generated.

Followed by a mild spark, it unleashed a fire jet, causing a massive trail of compressed fire behind them. Immediately, the speed of the bird-type ring spirit exploded as the air around them quaked, forming ripples and vapor cones.

Using the fairy-like ring spirit's help, Cultivator had already jotted down the path and relayed the information to the bird-type ring spirit. The moment its speed skyrocketed, it flashed through the Predominated Vines.

Even the trail of fire it left behind in the air caused them to latch onto a fire. Their staggering speeds were beyond what they could react to. After all, they were sensing by using the Mashed Serpents as beacons. By the time they came to know about it, the targets had vanished from the scene.

"Whaaaaaaaaaattttt?" Krune's words were stretched taut as his facial muscles danced like the cloth in the wind. He was unable to even see anything as his limbs felt like they would come apart. The force was just too much, rocketing his insides, causing blood to clash everywhere in his body. The winds were like knives that slammed into him. Intense heat also coiled around him, burning him up.

Ten seconds later, the bird-type ring spirit abruptly collapsed into specks of Godly Energy, causing them to make a beeline at the tremendous speeds they were traveling at. They were like meteors.

Both Cultivator and Krune had long since fully activated their Spiritual Incarnations as they crashed into the path and made a massive trench through it, spanning at least 200 meters long. It was apparent as to the momentum they were carrying with them.

Their massive speeds had caused them to travel more than twenty kilometers from the scene, making them escape the pursuit. Though, there weren't any sounds from the two trenches. It was completely silent in the area.

A couple of travelers were startled at the impactful sound and the massive trench that split the path into three. Feeling curious, one of them appeared at the end of the trench and peered into it, noticing a squirmy blob of gelatinous fluid that swished within.

A bit of the Godly Energy in the air was consumed as the squirmy mess meshed itself into a humanoid figure, slowly turning into the appearance of Cultivator. He had taken almost ten minutes to do so.

A couple more minutes later, followed by a groan, Krune climbed from his trench, laying flat on the ground the moment he came up. He looked at the clear sky and at the surrounding Predominated Vines that were still, sighing as he muttered, "Just how many deaths did we court in that short time?"