However, the Gold-Munching Mice along the route soon relayed a steady stream of information back to him.
Jiang Chen was mildly surprised. "I've underestimated the Sacred Sword Palace before. I didn't expect Elder Chen to be this cunning — scheming to lure the people of Grand Sage Hall away so he could chase me down alone?"
He had to admit he had misjudged the Sacred Sword Palace. He had thought their people were all full of themselves yet simple-minded.
Now, looking at Elder Chen, he realized how naive that assumption had been.
None of the old foxes from the six great sects were saints or pushovers.
Grand Sage Hall's Elder Xiang Qian and Three Star Sect's Elder Tan Lang were both angling to reap the rewards of others' labor — playing the mantis stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.
As for the Soaring Cloud Sect, they had apparently learned their lesson this time. Elder Wuhen had actually led his people and departed.
That surprised Jiang Chen slightly. He had assumed the Sacred Sword Palace and the Soaring Cloud Sect would be the most eager to deal with him.
From the look of things, was the Soaring Cloud Sect genuinely trying to settle their score?
Jiang Chen didn't really care either way. He hadn't come out behind in his dealings with the Soaring Cloud Sect. Wei Qing had been killed by him, and Elder Wuhen, who had been plotting to seize his Thousand Illusion Hidden Cloud Pine, had ended up handing over a Heaven-grade Spiritual Medicine instead.
When he tallied it all up, he had come out ahead.
If the Soaring Cloud Sect truly wanted to turn over a new leaf, Jiang Chen was perfectly fine with that.
After all, fewer enemies was no bad thing for Alchemist Palace. Especially since Alchemist Palace had been the biggest winner this time around.
Having gained so much, it was only wise to keep a low profile and rein things in a bit.
But since Elder Chen had firmly set his sights on causing trouble, Jiang Chen not only didn't mind — he even felt a faint thrill of anticipation.
Setting aside the old grudges between Alchemist Palace and the Sacred Sword Palace—
During the Phantom Wave Mountain alchemy competition and the harvesting expedition this time, how many times had the Sacred Sword Palace suppressed him, how many times had they gone out of their way to make trouble for him? And Wang Han had attacked him on sight, trying to kill him outright.
Now this Elder Chen was clearly coming with ill intent, obviously to hunt him down.
Jiang Chen had given the Sacred Sword Palace the antidote not out of generosity, but because circumstances had demanded it. If he hadn't, the other sects would inevitably have turned hostile toward Alchemist Palace.
Without the other sects in the picture, if it were just Alchemist Palace against the Sacred Sword Palace, Jiang Chen would never have even revealed the secret of the Spirit-Bewildering Miasma. He would have happily watched from the shadows as they succumbed to the poison and died, then swept up their belongings for an easy prize.
Giving them the antidote had been for the greater good.
But now, with Elder Chen coming after him alone — no one else around — there was no "greater good" to worry about.
The killing intent Jiang Chen had suppressed for so long came roaring back to full force.
Information kept flowing in from the Gold-Munching Mice. Jiang Chen now knew that the rest of the Sacred Sword Palace members had already lured away the people from Grand Sage Hall and Three Star Sect.
In other words, inside this area, it was down to just him and Elder Chen.
"Hmm?" Jiang Chen's ears twitched, and a faint smile tugged at the corner of his lips. "Here he comes?"
He neither hid nor dodged. He stood leisurely by the lakeshore, gazing out at the island at the center of the lake. He had been about to head onto the island just moments ago.
But with this Elder Chen still haunting his heels, he was nothing short of a lingering threat.
...
Elder Chen had been following the Sword Butterfly's guidance the entire way, and he discovered that Jiang Chen's route was heading directly toward the lake island.
Elder Chen was alarmed and quickened his pace. He feared that if Jiang Chen reached the island again, the chase would become far more difficult.
After all, the island was full of Spirit-Bewildering Miasma. Even though they had taken the antidote, once its effects wore off, who knew if it would still protect them?
So Elder Chen pushed hard, traveling at nearly his maximum speed to reach the lakeside area.
Suddenly, he halted mid-stride. There, standing by the lake, was a solitary figure — arms crossed, perched atop a boulder at the water's edge. He looked like a jade tree swaying in the wind, giving off an air of otherworldly detachment and lofty solitude.
It was Jiang Chen!
Elder Chen felt a mix of shock and delight.
The shock was that Jiang Chen was just standing there, so calm and unhurried that it caught him off guard.
The delight was that Jiang Chen hadn't made it to the island yet — he could still corner and kill him here by the lake.
"Old man Chen, you're here?" Jiang Chen turned around slowly, a faint smile on his face.
Elder Chen's heart sank. His voice was cold as he said, "What? You knew I was coming?"
Jiang Chen smiled coolly. "Whether I knew or not — did it stop you from showing up? So tell me, what exactly are you planning to do?"
"What am I planning to do?" Elder Chen threw his head back and laughed. "You tell me. You've humiliated my Sacred Sword Palace time and time again. Did you really think this old man came here for a heart-to-heart?"
"So you're here to kill me, is that it?" Jiang Chen's expression was caught somewhere between a smile and a smirk.
"Drop the act. You're courting death. If I were you, I'd have left quietly. Once outside, this old man wouldn't have been able to lay a finger on you. But you just couldn't tear yourself away. Seems there's something on this island you simply can't bear to leave behind?"
Jiang Chen nodded. "Old man Chen, I have to admit — I underestimated you. You managed to find your way here and shake off the people from the other sects. I'll give you that; you're not as stupid as I thought."