"Search the area. They can’t have gotten far!"

The leader, Kang Haotian, a Core Formation Stage expert, scanned the forest before him with a sharp gaze. As far as the eye could see, there was only dense forest—a perfect place for someone to hide.

At his command, the dozens of Spirit Refining Stage Cultivators by his side quickly fanned out to search the surroundings. They meticulously checked every nook and cranny, leaving no corner uninspected.

The forest had lost its former peace, now suffused with a murderous aura that, combined with the surrounding frozen snow and ice, created a terrifying atmosphere. Fortunately, only this group of Cultivators was present. Had any disciples of Merak Palace been here, they would have been paralyzed by such killing intent.

Inside a cave, the Merak Palace disciples hiding within felt their hearts seize with panic as they sensed the heavy footsteps overhead. Terror was written all over their faces as they trembled at the vibrations.

"Elder, are we safe hiding in here?" one of the female disciples asked worriedly.

"We should be fine. As long as they don’t tear up the entire ground and dig two or three zhang deeper, they won’t find our secret passage." Grand Elder Mo Yu gripped the sword in her hand tightly. Her expression seemed calm, but inwardly, she was already starting to panic.

There weren’t many disciples hiding in the secret passage, just a few of them. Their reason for venturing out was simple: to meet with people from Celestial Phoenix Tower and bring back food. After all, with so many people in the Celestial Sinking Ruins and no way to farm inside, self-sufficiency was impossible. They had to go out and buy food to bring back.

It was impossible to purchase rations for so many people all at once on short notice. Normally, Merak Palace was self-sufficient, and with what little they transported back, they usually only had a few days’ worth of food stored up, rarely a month’s supply.

Even asking a shop to prepare that much was impossible. Rations for hundreds, even thousands of people, for several months at a time—who could possibly produce that on demand?

So after making the arrangements, they had come out to a remote area to conduct the trade. They never expected Cyan Profound Mansion to send people to investigate. Panicked, they had retreated immediately, but they were still spotted during their withdrawal.

Grand Elder Mo Yu certainly could have escaped on her own, but her disciples could not. She couldn’t just abandon them.

No sooner had she spoken than vibrations echoed from above; they were clearly getting closer. They had only simply concealed the cave entrance. Although nothing looked amiss from the outside, if the search continued, it would definitely be discovered.

"Keep checking over here!" The voice drew nearer. There were a great number of Cyan Profound Mansion disciples outside, including two Core Formation Stage experts. Grand Elder Mo Yu could not possibly deal with them all on her own.

"Grand Elder, what should we do?" They trembled, their faces filled with terror.

A desolate expression appeared on Grand Elder Mo Yu’s face. She sighed deeply and said, "What’s fated to be cannot be avoided. Perhaps this is the great calamity of our Merak Palace..."

THUMP THUMP THUMP!

Heavy footsteps thundered from above, each one pounding on their hearts and making their breaths grow heavy. As the sounds drew closer, they knew that waiting here any longer meant certain death.

Worse, they only had one exit. If they were cornered here, escape would be impossible.

"In a moment, we will sneak out the exit. Save yourselves if you can. If you are captured... I hope you can be decisive." Grand Elder Mo Yu closed her eyes in pain. Her ’decisiveness’ meant suicide; being captured alive would surely lead to extreme humiliation.

"We will!" The female disciples all showed resolute expressions. Though none of them wanted to die, it was better than being humiliated.

Immediately, Grand Elder Mo Yu led them to the exit. After creating an opening, they quickly scrambled up. The Grand Elder saw that the coast was clear and led her disciples out of the passage, making a break for it.

But they had barely taken a few steps before they were spotted. A furious roar echoed, "They’re over here!"

At that shout, people swarmed in from all directions, completely blocking their escape route. There was nowhere left to run!

"Elder of Merak Palace, what’s the hurry? The elders and deacons we sent out have vanished without a trace. I wonder what happened to them. Care to explain?" Kang Haotian’s face was ferocious. The people he had sent were gone, and Merak Palace was empty. They had clearly fled.

As for why they retreated, it was undoubtedly because they had done something to feel guilty about.

So they had immediately begun to search the mountain, and sure enough, they had found some people—and an Elder-level figure, at that.

SHIIING!

The disciples all drew their swords, their blades flashing in the light. But facing so many powerful enemies, they felt overwhelmed and unable to act. Especially with two Core Formation Stage experts and numerous Spirit Refining Stage cultivators surrounding them, they couldn’t even dream of escaping.

"I don’t know what happened to them! It has nothing to do with us!" Grand Elder Mo Yu, of course, would admit nothing, glaring at them with a cold expression.

"Nothing to do with you? Do you really think we’d believe that explanation?" Kang Haotian sneered. "You must have used some trick to kill them, or maybe you’ve imprisoned them! Whatever the case, you have two choices: either come with us willingly, or we’ll take you by force!"

Their hearts turned to ice. If they truly surrendered without a fight, everything would be over.

"What do you think you’re doing!"

Just then, Zhu Yuwei arrived in a hurry with her people. She was the one who was supposed to meet with Grand Elder Mo Yu, having prepared a large supply of food. She had vaguely sensed that something was wrong with Merak Palace, and now it was clear: they had provoked the behemoth that was Cyan Profound Mansion.

"So, it’s the Purple Pavilion Master of Celestial Phoenix Tower. What business do you have here?" Kang Haotian said in a low voice. "If you have no business here, I suggest you leave at once. Otherwise, don’t blame us for being impolite!"

"Purple Pavilion Master, that’s Cyan Profound Mansion we’re facing! We should retreat..." an elder beside her hurriedly advised. Cyan Profound Mansion was far stronger than Merak Palace.

Zhu Yuwei’s gaze was like ice. She suddenly drew her Spirit Sword, pointed it at the people from Cyan Profound Mansion, and roared, "Charge!"

"ROAR!"

Her trusted followers sprang into action. The Guards she had brought with her obeyed her command without hesitation, charging forward to kill. The elder beside her went pale and hastily led the others in a retreat.

"You—this is treason! How dare you oppose Cyan Profound Mansion... I-I hereby expel you from Celestial Phoenix Tower! From this day forward, you have nothing to do with us!" The elder shouted at the top of his lungs, his face full of terror, as he and the others quickly fled.

Zhu Yuwei paid him no mind, leading her Guards directly into the fray and carving a bloody path through their enemies!

"Quick, escape this way!" Zhu Yuwei shouted, her beautiful eyes gleaming. "We’ll break out together!"

While a chaotic battle erupted on one side, Yi Tianyun was rushing over from the other. The Black Dragon he rode was incredibly fast. Whenever they encountered anyone from Cyan Profound Mansion along the way, there was no hesitation—only slaughter!

’I hope I make it in time. Please let nothing have happened...’ Yi Tianyun’s expression grew darker and darker. His cultivation had improved significantly, but he still felt utterly insignificant!

He needed to become strong. He needed to become stronger!