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Chapter 123: Rescue
Chapter 123: Rescue
‘Oh no… Master noticed my earlier hesitation within the formation.’
Lu Guo trailed behind Fang Xi, silently lamenting his predicament.
He realized that his lack of apparent loyalty had led to this critical moment, where instead of staying safely at Jade Cliff, he was now venturing into danger with Fang Xi.
‘Fortunately… after Master shattered the defensive barrier with a single strike, it seems his Body Tempering cultivation also experienced a breakthrough. With both realms advancing, even if we encounter someone at Peak Qi Refining, we should still be able to hold our own for a while…’
Having gained experience through past adventures, Lu Guo’s keen judgment told him that following Fang Xi during this chaos might actually be safer than remaining at Jade Cliff.
Fang Xi steered the Black Feather Boat, covering the distance of several miles swiftly.
Boom!
In the near vicinity, a spirit boat over thirty feet long unleashed relentless bombardment. Shockwaves and lightning danced wildly, combining with numerous magical artifacts’ attacks, causing the moonlight illusion on Mirror Moon Lake to shatter instantly, revealing the vast structures beneath.
The Water-Moon Grand Formation, broken!
“This…”As Lu Guo saw a figure clad in silver armor leap from the flying boat, he involuntarily exclaimed, “It’s a Silver-armored Demon?!”
He had hoped it was merely a group of ordinary tribulation cultivators, but instead, they encountered the worst-case scenario!
His face instantly turned grim.
“Ha ha… Kill!”
“Follow the boss, feast on victory!”
Rogue cultivators riding various magical artifacts descended like a swarm of locusts, setting ablaze both residences and spirit fields… Flames soared high, dispersing the night’s darkness for their amusement.
Soon, Twin Peaks were also engulfed in fire!
“Go!” Fang Xi shouted briefly, directing the Black Feather Boat towards Twin Peaks.
“Huh?” Lu Guo looked at his master, puzzled.
Without turning back, Fang Xi replied, “My life is far too precious to directly confront such a powerful Silver-armored Demon. We’ll head to Twin Peaks where there are fewer enemies; save as many as we can…”
In combat, he always emphasized overwhelming through superior realms.
His effortless defeat of Mo Qingyu earlier exemplified this strategy, combining mastery in Body Tempering, the ninth level of Qi Refining, and sheer dominance with divine sense!
Facing that pseudo-Silver-armored Demon, however, posed some risk.
After all, it was undoubtedly a master at least at the Peak Qi Refining level.
And Ruan Dan? What friendship did Fang Xi have with her?! In fact, there were minor grievances between them; thus, he wouldn’t be blamed for not rescuing her…
“I’ll head to West Peak, you go to East Peak and check on Mu Zhong’s family…”
With a startled expression on Lu Guo’s face, Fang Xi propelled him towards the eastern peak while flying himself to the west.
At West Peak:
The low-tier first-rank Illusion Formation had already been breached long ago.
From within the valley, continuous sounds of combat echoed out.
Swish!
Witnessing this scene, Fang Xi felt a chill surge through him. He poured magical energy into the Black Feather Boat, transforming it into a streak of black light as it swiftly entered the valley.
Inside the valley:
Flames engulfed the flower garden, casting a crimson glow across the surroundings.
Hua Chanjuan and her daughter, wielding their magical artifacts, battled against a group of tribulation cultivators, clearly struggling at a disadvantage.
Bzzz!
Countless jade bees vibrated their wings, generating a thunderous hum. Under the command of a queen bee, about palm-sized and pristine like white jade, they continuously swarmed towards three cultivators.
Leading these three cultivators was a male with an eighth-layer Qi Refinement cultivation base, his face twisted in a sinister grin. He controlled a red-skinned gourd, continuously spewing toxic smoke and flames that incinerated numerous jade bees.
The other two tribulation cultivators wielded sword-like magical artifacts, fiercely clashing against those released by Hua Chanjuan.
“Forget about the old hag; keep the young one alive!” shouted the male cultivator at the eighth layer of Qi Refinement. “I’m currently mastering this ‘Dragon Roar Art’ and need some high-quality furnaces! Heh heh… girl, if you surrender quietly, I might consider sparing your mother!”
“Never!” With a fierce determination, Hua Chanjuan spat out a mouthful of vital blood and performed a cultivation technique.
Instantly, her flying blade artifact glowed with a crimson aura, surging with immense magical energy, nearly reaching Late Stage Qi Refinement potency.
“Watch out, she’s using a secret life-threatening technique!” The tribulation cultivators’ artifacts were sliced apart by the scarlet blade light.
Hua Chanjuan expelled another mouthful of vital blood, transforming her flying blade into a streak of blazing crimson, directly targeting the leading male cultivator!
“Heh heh, mere trifles!” The male cultivator sneered, calmly summoning a green shield that effortlessly repelled the blade’s glow.
With his cultivation at the eighth layer of Qi Refinement, even if Hua Chanjuan employed a vital energy-consuming secret technique to go all out, she could barely surpass Late Stage Qi Refinement for a few strikes - insufficient to harm him significantly!
“Yi Xi, I’m going to detonate the queen bee, sacrificing myself to hold them off. You must flee immediately, don’t look back!” Hua Chanjuan, her hair disheveled and blood seeping from the corner of her mouth, resembling a fearsome demon, whispered urgently to her daughter beside her.
Twenty-year-old Wei Yixi, now grown into a young woman, eyes red with emotion, choked out, “Mother…”
In this moment, mother and daughter faced imminent separation.
Boom! Boom!
The ground suddenly cracked, unleashing sharp wooden spikes in a surprise attack.
“Ahh!”
Amidst agonized screams, all tribulation cultivators except the male attacker met their demise instantly!
“Who’s there?” Panicking, the male cultivator hastily positioned both his shield and gourd defensively around himself. “My boss is the silver-armored figure! Daoist friend, think twice before acting!”
Swish! Swish!
From the surrounding gardens, roots of spirit flowers and plants rapidly grew, twisting into numerous dark green vines adorned with fine thorns, swiftly enveloping towards the male cultivator.
“Move!” With a grim expression, he performed a cultivation technique, unleashing a torrent of flames from his red gourd to scorch the vines.
Wave after wave of vines turned to charcoal, yet more continued to surge forth endlessly from the ground!
“Not good!”
Feeling the immense depletion of his magical energy and noticing his diminishing room for evasion, the male cultivator decided to retreat. He hastily released a blood-red escape talisman, ready to activate it.
Ping!
Amidst countless vines, a peach wood sword suddenly pierced through, striking against the blue shield with a crisp sound.
Following closely behind the flying sword was a human figure!
His fist surged with true astral energy, resembling a colossal axe capable of splitting the heavens, as it descended forcefully!
Boom!
The shield flew aside, and effortlessly, even the cultivator’s magical energy barrier was torn apart.
In an instant, an astral energy bolt, akin to a flying sword, pierced through the male cultivator’s forehead, leaving a tiny bloodied hole. He collapsed onto the ground.
These swift actions unfolded like lightning, and throughout it all, the cultivator never had a chance to activate his life-saving paper talisman.
Countless vines recoiled back into the earth, revealing Fang Xi’s slender figure, sturdy as a pine tree.
He smiled at Wei Yixi and promptly collected the fallen cultivator’s bag of holding without hesitation. After a moment’s thought, he also retrieved the nearby tribulation cultivator’s corpse into the same bag.
“Uncle!”
Seeing the familiar figure just as she remembered, Wei Yixi exclaimed joyfully.
“Fellow Daoist Hua…”
Fang Xi looked at Hua Chanjuan, noticing her rapidly fading vital signs.
“It’s no concern; I merely expended some vital energy. I can still hold on! Won’t die just yet!” Hua Chanjuan recalled her flying knife magical artifact, and strands of her remaining dark hair instantly turned white, making her appear several years older within moments.
“Mama…”
Witnessing this transformation, tears welled up uncontrollably in Wei Yixi’s eyes.
At East Twin Peak, Lu Guo wielded his shuttle-shaped magical artifact, transforming it into a streak of light that pierced through the chest of a tribulation cultivator unable to dodge.
“Dying… dying…”
He was also holding onto a young boy, whom he had rescued from Mu Zhong’s family. The situation there had been dire; Mu Zhong instructed Lu Guo to escape with the child while their entire family stayed behind to delay the attackers.
Despite their sacrifice, even as Lu Guo fled down the mountain with the boy, they were still pursued by tribulation cultivators.
“Heh heh… you think we’d let you get away?” A female cultivator clad in nearly translucent palace attire emerged from the darkness, smirking. “It’s only because our second-in-command heard about beautiful female cultivators on the West Peak, their yin essences intact, and rushed over impatiently. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have made it this far…”
“Headed to the West Peak, huh? They’re likely doomed now…” Lu Guo coughed, responding with a cold smile.
“You seek death!” The alluring yet icy-faced female tribulation cultivator waved her snowy-white serpent whip, ready to send Lu Guo to his demise.
Pffft! Pffft!
In the next instant, numerous vines erupted from the ground, swiftly entangling the surrounding tribulation cultivators.
“Is this…the Entangling Spell? Help me!”
“How can such a basic spell be so powerful? Ah…”
Countless thick vines ensnared the tribulation cultivators, constricting like pythons with relentless force until their bones snapped and they perished.
“Ah, spare me, Senior! Spare me!” The expression of the alluring female cultivator drastically changed as she knelt, pleading for mercy.
In the next instant, a merciless wooden splinter pierced her exquisite head without hesitation.
“Lu Guo…” A flying boat halted nearby, Wei Yixi’s voice resonating from it; she still recognized this helpful companion.
“Hua Auntie, I’m relieved you’re both safe!” Lu Guo spotted Hua Chanjuan and her daughter, visibly easing his tension.
“All right, take him along, and prepare to leave.” Fang Xi stood at the bow of the Black Feather Boat, hands clasped behind his back, gazing towards Mirror Moon Lake.
With so many people aboard, the Black Feather Boat appeared quite crowded.
This was all he could manage; the rest would merely involve staunchly defending Jade Cliff.
Hmm, if these tribulation cultivators ventured into his territory, it might indeed be quite a spectacle.
Jade Cliff was his stronghold, fortified by the Demon Tree, making it virtually impregnable…
At Mirror Moon Lake.
“Kill them!”
“Charge!”
Young men and women, mostly in their twenties, eyes filled with fervor, fiercely engaged at the frontline.
The glow of magical artifacts and paper talismans illuminated the area, but due to their shallow realms and weak magical power, they were often swiftly overwhelmed by tribulation cultivators, resulting in decapitation after just a few exchanges.
These individuals were past generations’ immortal sprouts, raised from childhood with unwavering loyalty. They represented the most devoted group to Ruan Xingling and were meant to be the future backbone of her forces, yet now, they met meaningless deaths…
It was eerily reminiscent of the Lu Clan’s annihilation decades ago.
Bang!
Kou Clan’s leader, clad in white turtle armor, crushed someone’s head underfoot, akin to a cat playing with its prey. He scrutinized a young girl dressed in red across from him, standing before a tier-2 spirit peach tree.
With his strength, he could effortlessly kill Ruan Dan, but orders demanded she be taken alive. Thus, Kou Clan’s leader didn’t mind indulging in some sport.
“You fiend!” Ruan Dan spat, crossing her hands to ring the ‘Mind-Bewitching Bells’.
Jingle!
As the crisp bell sound echoed, Kou Clan’s leader momentarily froze.
Seizing this opportunity, Ruan Dan quickly activated a terrifying tier-one high-grade talisman. A flash of lightning pierced through, shattering Kou Clan leader’s magical force shield.
‘A chance!’ Ruan Dan’s expression hardened as she unleashed both her red ribbon and mirror artifacts, wielding a short jade-red sword. With a swift motion like a rainbow piercing the sun, she aimed straight for Kou Clan leader’s throat!
That junction between the armor seemed relatively weaker, potentially a vulnerable spot!