Chapter 1371: Second Month Yao

Qin Yuandai screeched an ear-piercing cry as her withered hand retracted like lightning, and she slammed her staff down.

A ghostly realm swiftly unfolded.

This staff was, in fact, another Ten Thousand Souls Banner, and its quality was far superior to Sun Ying's. When deployed, this ghostly realm could be used for both offense and defense, making it her ultimate magical artifact for combat.

However, it was still a step too late.

The ghostly realm had only just begun to unfold, and a defensive line had yet to be established when the crescent-shaped red light struck, cutting through the nascent realm and striking Qin Yuandai's gaunt body.

The hastily activated protective energy couldn't resist in the slightest. As the violent power erupted, the red light enveloped a vast area.

The shockwave swept outwards, causing Lu Ye, twenty miles away, to lose his footing. He was blown far away, like a drifting fallen leaf.

Even Tang Yifeng and the others, who were rushing towards the scene as Lu Ye made his move, lost their balance. They quickly activated their powers to resist, staggering and swaying.

Within the area covered by the red light, vital energies were extinguished one after another; more than one person had died. Clearly, the Star Constellations Qin Yuandai had brought with her were affected.

Lu Ye was pushed a hundred miles away by the aftershock of the red talisman's explosion. Only then did he manage to stabilize himself and quickly look towards Qin Yuandai.

He only cared about one thing now: Was the Moon Yao from the Azure Dawn Sect dead? At a glance, his face lit up with joy, followed immediately by surprise!

The joy came from Qin Yuandai's demise; her body was torn in half, blood splattering across the starry sky. Not only had she died, but seven or eight of the Star Constellations she brought with her had also perished. Nearly everyone else was injured, all casualties of the shockwave, now scattered in disarray and looking wretched.

The red talisman's explosive power surpassed Lu Ye's imagination. If he had known this, he wouldn't have risked so much to close the distance. Even from further away, Qin Yuandai likely wouldn't have been able to withstand it.

However, this was his first time activating a red talisman, and lacking experience, he naturally chose the safest approach.

The surprise came from a dazzling light rapidly approaching from a distance behind the surviving cultivators of the Azure Dawn Sect. Judging by the spiritual energy fluctuations emanating from it, this was clearly another mid-stage Moon Yao!

The Azure Dawn Sect had actually sent two Moon Yaos this time!

Earlier, when Lu Ye saw Qin Yuandai leading a group of Star Constellations, he had thought she was alone. In his original estimation, it was highly probable that the enemy would only dispatch one Moon Yao.

But they had dispatched two! And this second one had remained hidden in the star-ship behind them until now!

A bitter feeling welled up in Lu Ye's heart. This truly was a case of man proposing, God disposing. He had never imagined that to deal with a group of early-stage Star Constellations, they would actually deploy two Moon Yaos.

It was important to note that the entire Azure Dawn Sect only had three Moon Yaos. This meant they had left one to guard their home base while the other two had come here. What merit did the Star Constellations of Kyushu possess to receive such treatment?

Naturally, he didn't know that the second Moon Yao's presence was merely a coincidence and an accident. They hadn't come to avenge the deceased Star Constellations of Azure Peak Mountain but had other intentions, which was why they had remained hidden, intending to play a "white face" (a peacemaker or a less aggressive role) when Qin Yuandai made her move.

Yet, as they waited, Qin Yuandai died! Along with her, a large number of the Star Constellations she had brought were also killed!

How could he dare hesitate? He immediately flew over.

Sensing the aura of the second Moon Yao, Tang Yifeng and the others were also dumbfounded. According to their original plan, if Lu Ye's strike had succeeded, they would have swarmed forward to eliminate the remaining Star Constellations of the Azure Dawn Sect.

But in this situation, where was their chance?

What's worse, the shockwave from the red talisman's explosion had disabled their Illusionary Might Spirit Marks, revealing their true cultivation levels. They could no longer pose a threat to the newly arrived Star Constellation.

A moment later, the old man with a weathered face arrived at the site of the red talisman's explosion. Although he had been far away, he had been quietly observing the situation. He knew Qin Yuandai had been somewhat careless in her response; otherwise, she wouldn't have met such a terrible fate.

That red talisman was not an ordinary one at all. It was highly likely to be a red talisman from the Pygmy Race; otherwise, it couldn't have possessed such immense power.

If it had been a regular red talisman, Qin Yuandai's strength would have ensured her safety. But if it was a Pygmy Race red talisman, nurtured for an unknown period, no one would dare to be careless.

Gazing at Qin Yuandai's bisected corpse, the old man sighed heavily, his eyes filled with sorrow.

Over the past three millennia, he had been left with only one old friend. Now, that sole friend was also dead, and by the hands of an early-stage Star Constellation, no less.

"Collect her!" the old man commanded indifferently.

Immediately, several surviving Star Constellations from Azure Peak Mountain, still shaken, stepped forward with sorrowful expressions to collect Qin Yuandai's remains.

Only then did the old man raise his head, looking towards Tang Yifeng and the others. What he saw was a group consisting entirely of early-stage Star Constellations. Though their numbers were considerable, he didn't take them seriously.

Then he turned his head to look at Lu Ye.

Lu Ye was puffing out his cheeks, seemingly eating something. Sensing the old man's gaze, he quickly swallowed it whole.

Without a moment's hesitation, he turned and fled!

"Scoundrel!" the old man growled in a low voice.

Had he realized the danger and abandoned his companions? How could his old friend have died at the hands of such a coward!

For an early-stage Star Constellation to try and escape from a powerful cultivator like him was a pipe dream. Even if he gave Lu Ye a head start, he was confident he could easily catch up. As he was pondering whether to deal with the other early-stage Star Constellations first before pursuing Lu Ye, a loud voice echoed from the depths of the starry sky: "Tang Jun, if you dare to kill even one person from my Peerless Alliance, I will slaughter your entire Azure Dawn Sect!"

Tang Jun abruptly turned his head, staring in the direction Lu Ye had fled. The next instant, his figure blurred as he gave chase, calmly uttering, "If you seek death, this old man will grant it to you!"

How could a mid-stage Moon Yao like him tolerate such a threat from an early-stage Star Constellation? Furthermore, this young man possessed one red talisman; there might be a second. It would be better to deal with him first.

Especially since the opponent had just activated a red talisman, he was likely in a state of exhaustion now.

As for the Peerless Star Constellations... Qin Yuandai's subordinates weren't all dead; more than ten remained, including late and mid-stage Star Constellations. Although outnumbered, their cultivation was higher, so dealing with them shouldn't be an issue.

How fast was a mid-stage Moon Yao? Even though Lu Ye had immediately fled upon realizing the dire situation, he clearly felt the opponent's aura locking onto him from behind, with the distance rapidly closing.

Seeing the grim situation, Lu Ye immediately burst a drop of vital blood within him, activating the Blood Escape technique.

At this point, he no longer cared about maximum speed. If he were caught, it would be a dead end. Naturally, his priority was to boost his speed as much as possible. With the Blood Escape technique's augmentation, he quickly surpassed his own maximum speed. Lu Ye secretly prayed that no sudden obstacles would appear ahead; he was already in a weakened state, and if he collided with anything else, he might as well just wait for death.

His luck held out; flying all this way, he didn't collide with anything.

Although there were many asteroids drifting in space, they were actually very scattered and not easy to hit under normal circumstances, unless one encountered an asteroid belt. As Lu Ye led Tang Jun away, Tang Yifeng and the others, though heavy-hearted, understood his intention.

Kyushu's side simply couldn't withstand an opponent with mid-stage Moon Yao cultivation. Even if Lu Ye had stayed and fought alongside them, they would inevitably have been defeated one by one.

That was why he decisively chose to flee.

Fleeing was not the goal; it was merely a means to draw away the enemy's strongest combatant!

Lu Ye's diversion was proceeding smoothly. As for whether he could escape a mid-stage Moon Yao's pursuit, no one knew.

Tang Yifeng and the others could do little but eliminate the enemies before them, ideally capturing a few alive, just in case!

Struck by the lingering power of the red talisman's explosion, the four fake Moon Yaos had also revealed their true cultivation levels. Coupled with the tragic deaths of Qin Yuandai and her companions, the surviving cultivators of the Azure Dawn Sect were enraged. Shortly after Tang Jun departed, they actively launched an attack on the Kyushu Star Constellations.

When it came to group battles, the Kyushu cultivators were quite experienced. They immediately leveraged their numerical advantage to set up defenses and resist the enemy's assault.

In the space near Peerless Continent, the scene became a chaotic frenzy!

Although they had a numerical advantage, their cultivation levels were ultimately lower. Especially with the two late-stage Star Constellations on the enemy's side, whose techniques were extremely powerful, the Kyushu cultivators found it very difficult to defend.

But they could only persevere.

The situation became somewhat tense.

Meanwhile, a star-ship was urgently rushing towards Peerless Continent. The star-ship was the Silver Fish, and on board were the third batch of Star Constellations brought over from Kyushu by Nianyue Xian.

They had arrived a little late and missed the previous battle. Inside the star-ship, Nianyue Xian piloted it while taking out a sound talisman, attempting to contact Lu Ye. There was no reply; at this moment, Lu Ye was being chased by Tang Jun and had no time to respond.

She then tried to contact Jian Guhong and received a reply a moment later, learning generally about the situation on Peerless Continent and what had transpired.

After a brief discussion with Jian Guhong, they settled on a strategy to defeat the enemy.

The ability of the sound talisman to transmit messages meant they weren't too far apart. At the Silver Fish's speed, they would reach the battlefield in half a day at most!

By then, this batch of Star Constellations could catch the Azure Dawn Sect completely off guard!

Naturally, they couldn't achieve this with their own strength alone, but Nianyue Xian had two purple talismans, which Lu Ye had given her earlier, nurtured within her!

Not only did Nianyue Xian possess them, but every cultivator in the first group who came to Peerless Continent with Lu Ye, including Jian Guhong and Feng Wujiang, also had one. Lu Ye had distributed them earlier as a precaution.

The power of purple talismans was far less than that of red talismans, but they were more than sufficient for dealing with Star Constellations.

They had been waiting for an opportunity to use them—a chance to completely wipe out the invading enemy!

Nianyue Xian's arrival was perfectly timed.

In an instant, the Silver Fish had reached its designated position. Nine cultivators from Kyushu emerged from the ship. After giving a few quick instructions, Nianyue Xian activated a secret art to conceal her form and suppress her aura, quietly approaching the battlefield. Simultaneously, she messaged Jian Guhong, telling them to prepare.