As soon as Ling Yunhe's voice fell, their group of six and one beast immediately retreated, taking advantage of the others' momentary confusion.
"The main hall," Qin Xi said. They were some distance from the plaza behind them, but the main hall was right beside them.
"But Wushang..." Mo Tiange said with some worry. The aura of the divine beast within the hall was intense; she feared Nie Wushang and Yang Chengji might...
"We're fine," Nie Wushang immediately cut her off.
Without further hesitation, the group flashed into the adjacent main hall. Qin Xi flicked his sleeve, and the stone door of the hall began to close.
At that moment, True Person Yuan Mu's Exquisite Pagoda arrived. The originally small and delicate treasure pagoda suddenly enlarged, smashing toward them.
Jing Xingzhi was also swift. Within the sword light, a white tiger took form. With a thunderous crash, it collided solidly with the Exquisite Pagoda.
The stone door closed.
Ling Yunhe did not hesitate. He released his magic treasure flying ship. "Get on board!"
They knew full well that the stone door would soon be broken; it couldn't hold for long.
Just as they boarded the ship, a heavy impact sounded from the stone door, followed by it being forced open.
"Everyone, come here," Mo Tiange said rapidly. "I'm taking you to a spatial rift. Do not resist at all."
Once everyone nodded, she motioned for them to stand close to her. They placed their hands together, and she touched her glabella, summoning the pearl.
At that moment, spells were already striking the ship's hull.
Mo Tiange gazed indifferently at True Person Yuan Mu and the others outside the ship. Pressing down on the others' hands, a white light flared, transporting them into the Xuanyuan Realm.
Having lost its master, the magic treasure flying ship was quickly breached. The interior was empty. True Person Yuan Mu frowned deeply. "Where did they go?"
But no matter how they searched, even dismantling the ship, they could not find a single trace.
The white light surrounding them dissipated, and everyone opened their eyes.
They found themselves in a bamboo forest. A few bamboo huts stood among the trees. Spiritual energy was abundant. Beyond the forest was a vast expanse of white mist, blocking their view.
"This place is..." Nie Wushang was slightly stunned. Why did it feel so familiar?
"A spatial rift," Mo Tiange said. "I obtained the key to it by chance."
Jing Xingzhi scanned the surroundings and muttered, "Such dense spiritual energy. It must have formed in ancient times, right?"
"Probably," Mo Tiange said wearily. "We'll be hiding here for a while. Make yourselves at home." With that, she returned to her cultivation chamber. Qin Xi, very familiar with the place, followed her in.
Little Phoenix revealed her true form and returned to her nest deep within the bamboo forest. Feifei came out to greet them, then hid away again. Xiao Fan and Little Fire... well, they were cultivating. Little Fire had been working very hard recently. Little Phoenix had been providing him with Vermilion Bird's Breath, and he was reaching the point of attempting to break through to the eighth rank. As for Xiao Fan, he was absorbing Black Tortoise's Breath.
The others hesitated for a moment, then all followed into the cultivation chamber.
Seeing the four of them standing in a row before her, Mo Tiange raised an eyebrow and tossed out four meditation mats. "Sit."
The four sat down. After a moment of staring at each other, it was Nie Wushang who broke the silence first. "Have I been here before?"
"Yes," Mo Tiange said with a smile. "Back when we were being pursued by Mei Feng, we also hid here. But you were unconscious, so you didn't know."
"No wonder it feels a bit familiar," Nie Wushang said, looking around. She gave her evaluation: "It's really a good place. A perfect hideout when you're being hunted. Peaceful."
Yang Chengji asked, "If we hide here, will we come out in the same place?"
Mo Tiange nodded. "Yes."
"What if the flying ship is destroyed? Would that have any effect?"
"No. Unless the space itself is torn, there might be some effect then."
Ling Yunhe looked around and said, "Such a spiritually rich place, yet no spirit herbs are planted. What a waste."
"..." Mo Tiange said nothing. It was awkward to tell Ling Yunhe that there were actually plenty of spirit herbs, but she had them partitioned off.
"Ahem." Qin Xi cleared his throat and got to the main issue. "Fellow Daoist Ling, after doing this, can you still return to the Jiuyan Sect?"
Hearing this, Ling Yunhe fell silent.
"Yes, Fellow Daoist Ling," Mo Tiange also asked. "You left like that. Won't the Ling Family be in trouble?"
Ling Yunhe let out a long sigh. "If I didn't do this, was I supposed to just watch you all be killed?"
"We wouldn't necessarily be killed," Jing Xingzhi said, a trace of a cold smile at the corner of his mouth. "Your Jiuyan Sect only has five people here. True Person Yuan Mu may be at the late Nascent Soul stage, but his old injuries haven't healed."
Ling Yunhe shook his head gently. "What about the others? In a way, what happened today is related to the three of you—Mo, Qin, and Yang. After your Heavenly Tribulations, the Great Upheaval and Continental Shift occurred, leading to resource scarcity in Yunzhong and triggering today's events. Senior Uncle Yuan Mu definitely has ways to stir up everyone's emotions, making you the target of public criticism. We were already exhausted, barely holding on with pills. If we were surrounded again, could we still hold out?"
Jing Xingzhi fell silent. Thinking it over carefully, that was indeed the situation. If True Person Yuan Mu incited things like that, would the Yunzhong cultivators side with the Jiuyan Sect or with them? The answer was obvious.
"If you were killed, I might never get that answer," Ling Yunhe said, his gaze firm. "Knowing there's a sword hanging over our heads that could fall at any moment, that this world might be destroyed, I can't eat or sleep in peace every day. How could I give up this opportunity? As for the Ling Family..." He revealed a bitter smile. "My Granduncle is still around. The Ling Family won't be in serious trouble. It's just..."
"In my opinion, it's too early to worry about that," Nie Wushang interrupted him. "Whether we can even get out is still up in the air."
"Yes..." Nie Wushang's words immediately brought the topic back on track. Mo Tiange sighed. "This time the trouble is really huge. When we were trapped in the Far West, we could still call for help. Where can we call for help now?"
Jing Xingzhi frowned, looking thoroughly unlucky. "What rotten luck. Trapped by Ghost Cultivators once, and now trapped a second time!" How similar was this situation to the Far West? Except, the Ghost Cultivators in the Far West were conscious, actively trapping them, while the Ghost Cultivators here were mindless, guided by others.
"Speaking of which, how exactly did Demon Lord Yueying and the others manage it? They actually managed to lure these Ghost Cultivators out of the gorge," Mo Tiange mused, letting her thoughts wander.
Nie Wushang shrugged, unconcerned. "Who knows? There are Ghost Cultivators in Yunzhong. Perhaps this Demon Lord has dealings with them, so he knows some of their characteristics."
Everyone fell silent again.
After a long while, Yang Chengji spoke up. "Enough idle talk. What do we do now? Nearly fifty Nascent Soul Cultivators, and so many Ghost Cultivators outside. Do we just wait?"
"Exactly. Wait," Qin Xi said. "We can't go out now. We can only wait."
"...Wait until when?"
Qin Xi smiled, looking at Yang Chengji. "In the Ruins Sea Immortal Palace, we waited for decades. What's there to wait for now?"
Yang Chengji pondered for a long time, then sighed. "I suppose that's the only way."
Ling Yunhe said thoughtfully, "We really can only wait. If we go out, Senior Uncle Yuan Mu won't let us off."
"Fellow Daoist Ling," Mo Tiange suddenly asked, "do you think they can leave?"
"Whether they can leave or not, I don't know. But Senior Uncle Yuan Mu isn't the type to sit and wait for death. He will definitely think of a way," Ling Yunhe said, showing confidence. This was the confidence in the Sect Leader that had been cultivated over a long period as a disciple of the Jiuyan Sect.
"Actually, there's a simple, crude method," Jing Xingzhi said lazily. "As long as they don't fight among themselves, go out from time to time to kill a few Ghost Cultivators, retreat to the sacrificial temple when it gets tough, and keep killing like that. Eventually, they can wipe out all the Ghost Cultivators."
Everyone considered this. It was indeed a method, though it would take a long time, but it was relatively safe. No matter how many Ghost Cultivators there were, their numbers were finite. These people were all Nascent Soul Cultivators. The only threats to them were the Nascent Soul Ghost Cultivators; the others were not a concern. Over a hundred Nascent Soul Ghost Cultivators sounded terrifying, but if they were divided and killed off, it wouldn't be that difficult.
"If we can think of this, Demon Lord Yueying probably has too," Qin Xi said. "In my opinion, they must have a backup plan."
"In that case, hiding here and watching the show is our best choice," Nie Wushang said after some thought.
Hearing this, Ling Yunhe's face showed struggle. For him, watching the people of the Jiuyan Sect walk to their deaths was unbearable.
"It seems... you're right," Mo Tiange said after careful consideration. "Anyway, we're not in a hurry. We can wait for them to fight their way out, both sides suffering losses, and then leave. It's not too late."
As her words fell, Ling Yunhe suddenly stood up. "Fellow Daoist Mo, please send me back."
The gazes of the other five all fell on him. Mo Tiange was astonished. "Fellow Daoist Ling, you..."
Ling Yunhe said, "The Ling Family raised me. The Jiuyan Sect nurtured me. The reason Ling Yunhe is where he is today is precisely because of my seniors and masters in the sect. Now that they are in danger, how can I only think of myself?"
Yang Chengji frowned slightly and said, "Fellow Daoist Ling, after what you just did, even if you go out now, True Person Yuan Mu might not forgive you. Why bother..."
A bitter smile appeared on Ling Yunhe's face. "No matter how Senior Uncle Yuan Mu treats me, what I should do, I should not shirk. Saving you was for righteousness. Returning to fight side by side with my sect brothers and sisters is also for righteousness. If I disregard their lives and deaths, how can I say I haven't betrayed the Jiuyan Sect?"
Ling Yunhe was someone who, when necessary, would not hesitate to use ruthless methods. But at his core, he retained a stubborn loyalty and righteousness. He was not like Jing Xingzhi, whose cold treatment after his master's passing had severed his sense of belonging to his sect. If it were Jing Xingzhi, since they had already turned hostile, why look back? But Ling Yunhe was different. He had always been an elite disciple of the Jiuyan Sect, receiving focused training since childhood, even receiving personal instruction from a Nascent Soul Cultivator. Later, he even became the Sect Leader, regarded by True Person Yuan Mu as his successor. Even after his later setbacks, those over two hundred years of preferential treatment were not false.
"Let him go," Qin Xi suddenly spoke.
Mo Tiange was somewhat surprised. "Senior Brother?"
"If it were you and me, at a time like this, would we abandon our sect brothers and sisters?"
Mo Tiange was taken aback, her brows knitting in thought. If it were them... even if Dao Lord Zhenyang one day disagreed with them, it wouldn't change the fact that the Xuanqing Sect had cherished and nurtured them for hundreds of years.
Mo Tiange sighed and stood up. "Fellow Daoist Ling, come with me."