"A step too late!"
Concealed in the shadows, a dark figure built like a bear gazed into the distance at the Mi family ancestral grounds, now reduced to ruins.
A thick stench of blood still lingered in the air.
Vast fluctuations of spiritual energy slowly dissipated, bearing witness to how horrific the battle fought here had been.
Faintly, echoes of indignation and ferocious roars seemed to resound among the clouds.
The dark figure shook his head and turned to leave.
Suddenly, his body stiffened.
He raised his head rigidly, looking up at a silhouette in the sky that was scrutinizing him closely.
"A Jade Cauldron sword cultivator?"
The newcomer's eyes were extraordinarily sharp, as though holding ten thousand keen blades within them.
Yet as he looked down at the dark figure, hesitation flickered across his face.
"A human? Or a demon?"
The dark figure cupped his fists toward him. "You're too late as well."
With that, he vanished into the night.
In the sky, the Jade Cauldron sword cultivator was filled with suspicion. *Was this man one of Mi Shuhua's reinforcements, too?*
Yet he had never known Dahe Market harbored such a figure.
The man was clearly a human Foundation Establishment cultivator, but the demonic qi clinging to him was strikingly dense.
*Forget it. Pay him no mind for now.*
The task entrusted by the elder was the urgent priority.
"Late?"
"I am not late at all!"
With a cold sneer, sword light flared. Turning into a streak of azure rainbow, he flew toward the location he sensed.
***
Outside Crescent Moon Valley, the fierce battle raged on!
With Shan Xiu and Gao Tingyuan dead, Luo Chen, Murong Qinglian, Duan Feng, and Gu Caiyi were freed from their fights, instantly turning the tables!
Even though the Great River Gang had dispatched over thirty late-stage and sixty mid-stage Qi Refinement cultivators, the tide of battle began to turn once their leaders fell and Duan Feng joined the fray.
"Hall Master, are you all right?"
"Luo Chen, how are you?"
Luo Chen turned around to find Gu Caiyi, Zhou Yuanli, and the others looking at him with deep concern.
That earlier anguished roar from the depths of his soul had carried across nearly the entire battlefield.
It was no wonder they were so worried about him.
Luo Chen offered a faint smile. "I'm fine. Go help the others!"
Without hesitation, Murong Qinglian summoned her dharma artifact and charged toward the enemy.
Gu Caiyi moved to join the battle as well, but the moment she summoned her spiritual energy, she gasped in pain, her figure swaying unsteadily.
"The Laurel Pill's effects have worn off. Caiyi, stay behind and nurse your wounds!"
Luo Chen placed a firm hand on her shoulder, then turned his gaze to Zhou Yuanli and Liu Qiang.
The two instantly caught Luo Chen's intention, but just as they were about to move, peculiar looks washed over their faces.
"It's undone?"
"Gone?"
Seeing their reaction, Luo Chen asked in surprise, "What happened?"
Zhou Yuanli spoke in shock and uncertainty, "The seal the gang leader placed on me... has vanished?"
"Mine too!" Liu Qiang affirmed, his face immediately draining of color. "Could something have happened to the gang leader?"
The three exchanged glances. In an instant, a swirl of conflicting emotions welled within them—dread and fear, yet also relief and wild joy.
In the end, Luo Chen waved his hand.
"First go kill those Great River Gang curs. They went too far tonight."
Zhou Yuanli and Liu Qiang acknowledged the order, habitually obeying Luo Chen's command, and threw themselves into the battlefield.
With their addition, the flow of the battle became increasingly decisive.
Luo Chen swallowed two Dust-Cleansing Pills. Aided by the automatic qi-recovery effect of the Eternal Spring Art, his heavily depleted spiritual energy gradually began to replenish.
Standing in front of Gu Caiyi, his gaze swept across the battlefield.
From time to time, he hurled out waste Jade Marrow beads, or unleashed Fireball Arts and his Jasper Saber to assist his allies.
Under his ambush attacks, mid-stage Qi Refinement cultivators were utterly defenseless.
Even late-stage Qi Refinement cultivators, though capable of parrying a blow or two, were thrown into disarray and distracted, battered by the others until they teetered on the brink of collapse.
Before long, people began to flee.
Luo Chen did not send anyone in pursuit. His gaze settled on the interior of Crescent Moon Valley instead.
A formation encircled a vast stretch of spiritual fields.
Min Longyu's figure flickered repeatedly within it as he casually and effortlessly unleashed one attack after another.
In contrast to his leisurely ease, Granny Yuan was struggling desperately.
Her pickaxe dharma artifact had already been battered until its spiritual glow dimmed, and it seemed she would soon perish within the formation.
*The others are easy to deal with, but this Min Longyu is the most dangerous. Back on the Dao Discussion Platform, Han Dang, who was at the Great Circle of Qi Refinement, died a baffling death under his formation flags.*
*To think Granny Yuan could actually hold out this long?*
Luo Chen's eyes flickered, his lips moving silently.
The next instant, a burst of formidable spiritual energy erupted in the sky.
Duan Feng swept forward atop massive, surging torrents of water that bore down like a collapsing sky.
Standing amidst the waves, he swung his longsword repeatedly. Layer upon layer of colossal waves compounded, crashing down with overwhelming momentum.
Inside the formation, Min Longyu's face fell.
*To find the flaw in my formation so quickly?*
*Is there a cultivator outside who understands formations as well?*
Without hesitation, he flipped the formation plate in his hand, scattering sheets of yellow light.
At the same time, the altered formation shattered with a loud crack.
Min Longyu did not linger for a second, fleeing into the distance.
Granny Yuan's face was ashen, her pickaxe planted in the spiritual field.
"You want to leave? It won't be that easy!"
Her hands formed seals in a flash. Her withered, claw-like old hands moved with astonishing nimbleness.
Under the draw of her spiritual energy, the many remaining rice stalks in the fields suddenly burst with golden light.
About three breaths later, the spell was primed.
Golden radiance flared in Granny Yuan's eyes. "Go!"
Countless rice leaves transformed into miniature golden swords, shooting after Min Longyu with the speed of a thunderclap.
"Grass-Mowing Geng Metal Sword Art!"
Midair, Min Longyu whipped around.
"Old hag, to think you still had this move up your sleeve!"
The formation plate in his hand shifted through a flurry of lights, finally unleashing a blaze of fire that met and melted the ten thousand golden beams head-on.
Not only that, but a surging tide of flames rolled back, pressing toward Granny Yuan.
By now, Granny Yuan's strength was completely spent, leaving her with no spiritual energy left for defense.
She closed her eyes, calmly resigning herself to death.
Yet several breaths passed without the slightest sensation of pain or scorching heat.
Opening her eyes, she saw a large cauldron floating above her, draping down strands of flowing radiance to shield her completely.
"Hall Master Luo, this old woman thanks you deeply."
Looking at his back, Granny Yuan bowed in heartfelt gratitude.
Without looking back, Luo Chen waved a dismissive hand. "No need. Your son and I get along well; it was just a small effort!"
As he spoke, a disheveled figure stumbled out from the Medicine Hall's pavilion behind them.
"Mother, are you all right?"
"Are you hurt anywhere?"
"Luo Chen, thank you, thank you so much!"
Yuan Dongsheng was drenched in blood, his face streaked with hot tears.
Supporting his elderly mother, he choked out his thanks to Luo Chen.
Luo Chen offered a few words of comfort, keeping his focus on the battlefield.
Under the suppression of two ninth-layer Qi Refinement cultivators alongside experts like Luo Chen, Zhou Yuanli, and Liu Qiang, the originally one-sided battle had completely reversed.
The Great River Gang cultivators were either killed or routed.
By Luo Chen's estimate, it would not be long before the fight came to an end.
It should not have been this easy.
The five ninth-layer Qi Refinement cultivators sent by the Great River Gang were practically all powerhouses among their peers.
The only weaker one had been Shan Xiu, whose severed hand had severely undermined his strength.
With such a lineup, wiping out the old, weak, women, and children of Crescent Moon Valley should have been child's play.
Yet, as luck would have it, they had vastly underestimated Luo Chen.
The moment he struck, he had slain Shan Xiu, evening the playing field among their top combatants.
Then he detonated over ten thousand Jade Marrow beads, not only heavily wounding Gao Tingyuan, but also wiping out seven late-stage Qi Refinement cultivators in a single breath.
With Gao Tingyuan dead, the situation had fallen entirely under Luo Chen's control.
Duan Feng's arrival was an unexpected boon.
His silent execution of the fleeing Lan Tianyun had been an even greater surprise.
By now, it could practically be declared that the battle of Crescent Moon Valley was a total victory for the Pill Hall under Luo Chen's leadership.
Looking across the corpses strewn over the field, Luo Chen gave a low chuckle.
"Looks like today's harvest won't be small at all."
Just as he was calculating how to divide the spoils later, his heart suddenly gave a violent jolt.
Two streaks of light tore across the distant sky like lightning.
Their colossal Foundation Establishment auras made no attempt at concealment.
Wherever they passed, howling gales erupted, forcing the cultivators still locked in combat below to halt their hands.
Abruptly, the two figures came to a stop outside Crescent Moon Valley.
Luo Chen watched the two from afar with a solemn expression, quietly taking a few steps back.
However, after only a few steps, he stopped.
Both figures had locked onto him almost simultaneously.
"Luo Chen!"
"Danchenzi!"
Luo Chen forced a smile. "Gang Leader Wang, Elder Zhou, what brings you two here as guests?"
"Guests?" Wang Haichao smiled faintly. "From now on, this place belongs to the Great River Gang. How could you call me a guest?"
Elder Zhou took a step forward. "Danchenzi, welcome to the Lianyun Merchant Alliance. From now on, we are family."
As the two spoke, the battlefield fell dead silent; none dared utter a word.
Only the wind, groans of pain, wails, and the crackle of flames reached the ear.
Luo Chen parted his lips, only to let out a helpless sigh in the end.
Talk about escaping the wolf's den only to enter the tiger's lair!
"*Sigh...*"
The sigh resounded for ten li!
Wang Haichao's expression flickered.
Elder Zhou turned around sharply.
A figure tore through the sky like a sharp sword.
"*Sigh*, unwelcome guests at the door!"
"Yet in name, doesn't this Crescent Moon Valley still belong to my Jade Cauldron Sword Sect?"
Deacon Miao landed steadily above Crescent Moon Valley, cupping his hands and offering a bow to the two.
"Return to where you came from."
"Please, you two!"
Wang Haichao hesitated, then shot a venomous glare at Crescent Moon Valley before flicking his sleeves and departing.
The surviving Great River Gang cultivators below scrambled to follow in his wake.
Elder Zhou, however, looked rather surprised. "You didn't go save Mi Shuhua?"
"The Great Dao lies within oneself, and life and death are left to fate. I might save him for a moment, but I cannot save him for a lifetime. In the end, it all comes down to his own choice."
Deacon Miao did not answer directly, offering only that single remark.
Yet upon hearing it, Elder Zhou looked pensive, as if deep in thought.
He returned the bow with equal courtesy and departed unhurriedly.
Once everyone had left, Deacon Miao descended into the cliffside, landing inside the Pill Hall.
Facing the young man in the valley, he offered a faint smile and gestured invitingly.
After a moment's contemplation, Luo Chen strode forward and flew into the Pill Hall.
Chapter 143