The man in the ox mask quickly decided to duck down while using his strongest arm to guard against the attack, slowing the "Severing Law." Sacrificing his right arm was far better than losing his life.

He gritted his teeth and fell backward onto the floor while concentrating every ounce of his spiritual qi into reinforcing the defense around his right arm.

The moment his vital parts moved out of the way, the "Severing Law" instantly sliced his arm clean off near the base of his shoulder. The severing blade passed just above his nose as he dropped to the ground, surviving the calamity by a hair’s breadth.

Splurt!

Blood burst from the stump of his severed arm, but the man in the ox mask only let out a grunt before quickly sealing the acupoints around the wound to stop the bleeding.

He picked up his severed arm, only to notice that both the stump and the cut surface of the detached arm were shrouded in the Severing Law. The arm could no longer be reattached.

He looked toward Yin Lan, his eyes widening in disbelief.

"How could she use an attack that carries a trace of law within it!?" the man in the ox mask exclaimed in shock.

Yin Lan, on the other hand, was barely able to stand.

That final attack had consumed everything she had. Her stamina, spiritual qi, and even part of her essence blood had all been poured into that strike. Right now, she could barely maintain consciousness.

"Ugh..."

Yin Lan gritted her teeth as exhaustion crashed over her entire body. Her knees hit the ground before she could no longer hold herself upright.

"I’m sorry, young miss... I failed..."

She muttered before collapsing face first onto the floor, losing consciousness completely.

After Yin Lan fell, Zhang Tianlong let out a sigh of relief. This outcome was still favorable for them. No one had been killed, meaning they would not earn the full ire of Wei Chen and the Hidden Ancient force behind him.

It was a good thing Yin Lan had not fully mastered that technique yet.

Otherwise... they might not have survived, and she might have been capable of launching a second strike. That would have been catastrophic for them.

"How are you holding up, Ox?" Zhang Tianlong asked the man in the ox mask.

By now, the man in the ox mask had already bandaged the stump of his severed arm.

"I need to remove this ’Severing Law’ from my wound first. Otherwise, I can forget about ever reconnecting my arm back," said the man in the ox mask.

— Meanwhile - The Vault —

Monkey was at the final threshold of opening the vault door. It had taken more time than he had anticipated, but finally, the last mechanism was about to be removed.

Click... clack!

With a series of clicking and clacking sounds from the door mechanism, the vault finally opened. The massive vault door, weighing more than a hundred tons, slowly swung open as Monkey pulled it from the outside while channeling his cultivation base.

Once the door fully opened, the scene behind it revealed itself.

Mountains of glittering blue spirit stones and spirit crystals were piled up like small hills the size of two or three story buildings. There were sections where many valuable artifacts and mysterious curios were kept within transparent glass cases.

The glass was forged from enhanced crystal that could withstand a full power strike from a Soul Transformation Realm expert. Even the cases themselves were valuable enough that stealing them alone could already be considered a huge profit for anyone who managed to open the vault.

Snake’s eyes did not show any surprise at all. She had already expected this kind of wealth inside the vault. This level of wealth was something she had witnessed many times within her clan.

"Quick! Look for the case containing the Primordial Divine Metal!" Snake said hurriedly as she quickly helped Monkey search for the target they had come to steal.

The two frantically searched, completely forgetting the outside world. They moved rapidly from case to case, even searching beneath the piles of spirit stones in case the Thousand Treasure Pavilion had hidden their target underneath the mountains of wealth.

But... the vault was far too vast. Even moving at high speed, the search was not going to finish anytime soon.

Crunch... crunch... crunch...

While the two were frantically searching for their target item, a series of noises sounded within the silent vault. The sound was coming from behind them.

The two immediately tensed up, glanced at each other, then slowly turned around.

A beautiful voluptuous woman with an athletic build stood there watching them as if she were enjoying a show. In her hand was a bag of potato chips, with white steam still rising from the bag as though they had just come fresh out of the fryer.

It was none other than Yan Rongjun, the former Supreme General.

"What are you two searching for?"

Crunch... crunch... crunch...

"Can you tell me?" Yan Rongjun asked as she shook the bag lightly while looking down at the potato chips, as though considering which piece to eat next.

Monkey did not say a word. He immediately rushed out of the vault, abandoning everything as he poured all of his spiritual qi into his legs. He activated the strongest movement technique he possessed and vanished from the spot.

Snake, realizing that Monkey clearly knew who this woman was, no longer cared about anything else and followed right behind him. Whoever this woman was, she was definitely someone they could never hope to defeat.

The two slipped out of the vault. Monkey and Snake rushed out of the underground floor and met up with Zhang Tianlong and Ox.

"Abandon the plan! Scatter and retreat!" Snake shouted in panic, not even waiting for the two to respond. If they could not escape in time, then even better. They could serve as sacrifices to hold that expert back for a little longer. Even a few extra seconds were valuable.

Ox was slow to react, but seeing Snake panic-stricken, he immediately understood the severity of the situation. Without saying another word, he quickly rushed out of the building. His speed was not as fast as Monkey or Snake, but at least he started running earlier than that arrogant Heaven’s Chosen.

Zhang Tianlong, however, was completely confused by all the commotion. He stood there speechless at how fast the Zodiac members had fled. Had they encountered some god of plague or calamity or something? Why were they in such a rush?

These people from hidden clans are all cowards. As expected, the more they have, the more afraid of death they become, Zhang Tianlong thought to himself with a smirk, looking down on the Zodiac members after reaching his conclusion.

At that moment, Yan Rongjun leisurely walked up from the underground vault and met Zhang Tianlong face to face. Her calm and confident steps, without revealing even the slightest opening, told Zhang Tianlong that this woman was an absolute supreme expert.

Worse...

He could not sense her presence or cultivation at all. And he knew for certain that she was definitely not a mortal, because his survival instinct was screaming at him about how dangerous she was.

"Huh? Aren’t you going to run like your friends?"

Crunch... crunch...

Yan Rongjun asked while chewing on the potato chips in her mouth.

Zhang Tianlong’s eyes grew determined. He had no choice but to use his trump card.

"Junior Zhang Tianlong greets Senior. I merely got lost and accidentally stumbled upon this scene. This junior asks Senior not to hold it against him," he said politely as he bowed with cupped fists, displaying the demeanor of a respectful junior meeting an elder or supreme expert.

"Hahaha! Hahahaha! Ahhahaha!" Yan Rongjun suddenly burst into laughter.

Zhang Tianlong also forced himself to laugh along. As the saying goes, "A great man can bend and stretch." He had no qualms about acting shameless when it mattered.

"I know I’m not as smart as Qiqi, but..." Yan Rongjun’s expression suddenly turned solemn.

"Do I really look that stupid to you?" Yan Rongjun spat coldly, the casual and friendly air around her vanishing instantly.

Zhang Tianlong: ...

— A Few Minute Later - At the Hideout —

Snake, Ox, and Monkey panted listlessly as they arrived at the hideout. This was a different hideout from the one they had used in the morning. In case the heist failed, they had already prepared another hideout nearby.

"Ha... ha... ha... Who... who was that!? Is she... is she an Immortal Realm expert!? Someone who can bend the laws of Heaven and Earth and still remain in the lower realm!?" Snake asked while looking at Monkey, the one who knew the ins and outs of the Thousand Treasure Pavilion the best.

Monkey slowly caught his breath before replying, "Her name... is Yan Rongjun. From what I gathered, she’s some kind of General, and she should be even stronger than the woman named Youqi. And that woman, Youqi, crushed the Heaven’s Spire Sanctuary Patriarch with only her cultivation pressure."

"What!? Then why the hell didn’t you know she was at the Thousand Treasure Pavilion!? Were you trying to get us all killed!?" Snake shout in anger.

"How the hell was I supposed to know!? Am I supposed to know her private schedule!? You know as well as I do that the plan only started this morning, and the latest information I gathered was from last night!" Monkey shouted back.