Chapter 567: On the chopping block like fish and meat

Trapped within the Illusion Array, Wei Que, though startled, remained composed. After all, he possessed cultivation at the ninth level of the Cloud River Realm. Lu Ye, a mere fourth-level cultivator, could only trap him; he had no ability to kill him.

His only immediate goal was to escape quickly. Although Tan Sheng and Xia Liang were stronger than him, two fists couldn't contend with four hands, and they were surely no match for the wolf pack. It was no longer realistic for them to expect him to swiftly kill Lu Ye. If he lingered here, regardless of Tan Sheng and Xia Liang's fate, his own outcome would certainly be grim.

But how could he escape from here?

Annoyed, Wei Que gritted his teeth and roared, "Lu Ye, is this all you've got? Come out and fight!"

As a ninth-level cultivator, he would have been too embarrassed to shout such words at a fourth-level cultivator unless absolutely forced. Of course, he merely shouted it; he didn't expect it to have any effect.

As long as Lu Ye wasn't foolish, he certainly wouldn't show himself.

However, to Wei Que's utter surprise, just as his words faded, he suddenly sensed a distinct aura flowing not far ahead.

It was the mixed aura of spiritual power and vitality from a cultivator!

It was right there!

Wei Que was overjoyed. He raised his hand and unleashed a golden arc, like a bolt of silk, striking forward. At the same time, he lunged forward, ready to seize Lu Ye.

The golden arc struck the target with a dull thud. It felt as if his spell had struck an indestructible defense.

Wei Que didn't think much of it and continued his momentum. It wasn't until a tall silhouette appeared in the mist ahead that he suddenly realized something was wrong.

Lu Ye's physique... wasn't that burly, was it?

The mist churned, and a large, fan-like hand emerged from it, grabbing for Wei Que's neck. The hand's grasp wasn't fast, but it carried an overwhelming, sky-covering aura.

Even Wei Que, a ninth-level Cloud River Realm cultivator, couldn't help but feel a delusion that once caught by this hand, he would be utterly unable to escape.

What was this?

An illusion?

Wei Que was momentarily bewildered. Spiritual power surged around him, and a golden arrow shot forward, striking the outstretched hand. With a boom, the spell exploded. The large hand paused slightly from the impact but quickly descended with even greater speed.

Wei Que's blood ran cold. He froze, then rapidly retreated.

However, before he could regain his footing, the incessant clang of swords rapidly resounded. At the same time, a stinging sensation spread across his skin.

"Flying swords!" Wei Que's face changed drastically. He frantically urged his spiritual power to protect himself.

The next instant, flying swords slashed at him from all directions, causing spiritual light to flicker continuously around him, and his protective spiritual power rapidly dimmed.

More spells assailed him from the side, making his body tremble violently.

This wasn't over. Just as Wei Que was bewildered, another figure flashed past him. A fiery red saber gleam slashed down, its fierce strike shattering his protective spiritual power.

The figure vanished in a flash. Before Wei Que could even counterattack, the opponent was gone, leaving only a gash of torn flesh and blood on his body.

Wei Que cried out in alarm. The burly figure in front of him pressed forward like a mountain, delivering a punch.

With a boom, Wei Que was sent flying, landing awkwardly and scrambling to his feet. He looked around bewildered. Besides the swirling mist and colorful light bands, there was no one else in sight.

He was truly stunned by the assault!

He had initially thought he only needed to deal with Lu Ye, a fourth-level cultivator. But judging by the recent turn of events, there was more than just Lu Ye in this Illusion Array!

In that short time, four individuals had attacked him. Besides Lu Ye, there were three others!

A burly body cultivator, a sword cultivator, and a spell cultivator!

The sword cultivator... was Li Baxian!

Wei Que immediately realized. They had previously suspected that Lu Ye would invite Li Baxian to reside in the spiritual land. However, when they charged into the spiritual land, they only saw Lu Ye and no trace of anyone else. He hadn't thought much of it at the time, but now it seemed Lu Ye wasn't alone in the spiritual land; the others had hidden themselves in advance.

The sword cultivator who attacked him must undoubtedly be Li Baxian. Their cultivation level also matched.

The spell cultivator must be Feng Yuechan. Those two were always inseparable.

As for the body cultivator... Wei Que had no clue. He figured it must be a helper Lu Ye had found from somewhere.

Understanding all this, Wei Que's heart sank to rock bottom.

Trapped in the Illusion Array, he hadn't felt much sense of danger yet, because a single Lu Ye couldn't do much to him. If the opponent truly wanted to kill him, he could completely seize the opportunity to counterattack.

But now he faced not just Lu Ye, but three others. With the Illusion Array added to the mix, Wei Que already smelled the scent of death.

Thump, thump, thump...

Heavy footsteps once again came from the side, as if some colossal creature was running. When Wei Que turned his head to look, he saw the burly figure reappear, crashing through the mist and charging directly toward him, like a bolt of lightning, crashing into him.

Wei Que hastily dodged, while simultaneously casting a spell to strike him.

The spell struck the opponent, but the burly figure merely paused slightly, showing no signs of injury. While his attention was drawn, the clamor of clashing swords rang out once more. Immediately after, Wei Que felt himself engulfed by a storm of attacks.

Besides the flying swords striking at him, spells also bombarded him from unknown directions, causing him to stumble and his vital energy to churn.

Behind him, a sharp killing intent surged. Wei Que hastily turned around. What met his eyes was a fiery red saber light.

As the saber fell, accompanied by Wei Que's cry of alarm, a massive wound appeared on his chest, spilling blood.

The burly figure had already closed in, and delivered another seemingly clumsy punch, yet it contained terrifying force. Wei Que was sent flying like a ragdoll, constantly spitting blood while airborne.

Landing in a hurry, his expression was already one of panic. He opened his mouth and cried out, "Brother Xia, Brother Tan, save me!"

He had never imagined that pursuing Lu Ye would land him in such dire straits.

The cultivators attacking him weren't particularly strong. All were at the fourth or fifth level. In a normal environment, Wei Que, even alone, could have handled them with ease.

But being in the Illusion Array made it impossible for him to fully utilize his strength. In contrast, the opponents were like fish in water within this array. They attacked intermittently, striking and then retreating, leaving him no room to retaliate.

He was like fish on a chopping board, with enemies occasionally coming to slice at him...

In such a situation, if he didn't call for help, he could only await death.

A desperate cry for help rang out. Within the spiritual land, Tan Sheng and Xia Liang, who were battling the wolf pack, both had their expressions change.

Their own situation was also extremely dire at the moment. The number of demonic wolves was simply too great. Had it not been for their profound foundations, any ordinary ninth-level cultivator would have long since given up.

Even so, both struggled to cope with the relentless attacks from the wolf pack.

They had originally hoped that Wei Que would succeed quickly. That way, once Lu Ye was killed and they obtained the array jade token, they could retreat calmly. But after waiting and waiting, what they heard was Wei Que's cry for help!

How could they not be startled by this?

Stealing a moment to glance towards the source of the sound, they saw mist swirling and surging over a vast area. There was no sign of Wei Que or Lu Ye at all, only flashes of light bursting intermittently from within the mist, mixed with Wei Que's gasps and screams.

What was happening?

Tan Sheng and Xia Liang were both dumbfounded.

Since entering this spiritual land, everything they encountered had been unexpected, leaving them struggling to adapt. Although they didn't know what Wei Que was facing, the sounds emanating from his direction indicated that he was in a dire situation.

In the current situation, let alone killing Lu Ye, it was questionable whether any of them could escape unscathed.

They were annoyed, wishing they had brought more people.

They had thought that with three ninth-level cultivators working together, once they found Lu Ye, he wouldn't be able to cause any trouble. But who knew things would turn out like this?

Amidst the fierce battle, Tan Sheng and Xia Liang exchanged glances. Though they didn't speak, they understood each other's thoughts.

This was no place to linger!

Whatever Wei Que was facing over there, it was related to Lu Ye. If Wei Que died and Lu Ye was freed, the two of them would certainly also face a grim fate.

Therefore, leaving quickly was paramount.

However, the spiritual land was currently enveloped by a trapping array. To leave, they first needed to break the array. As for whether to rescue Wei Que, that was no longer within their consideration. The prerequisite for saving others was being able to protect oneself. If they couldn't even protect themselves, how could they talk about saving anyone?

Having made up their minds, the two cooperated tacitly, shifting their battlefield towards the edge of the grand array.

In such a situation, it was no longer realistic for them to break the array by themselves. Surrounded by wolves, they barely had enough power to protect themselves. So, if they truly wanted to break the array, they would have to rely on the wolves' strength, allowing the ripple effects of their mutual battle to strike the array.

Although this method was less efficient, it was better than waiting for death here.

To break the trapping array faster, both spared no effort. This resulted in them constantly sustaining more injuries, making them appear extremely disheveled.

Time passed. Inside the Illusion Array, Wei Que was disheveled, covered in wounds and blood. He frantically channeled his spiritual power, unleashing powerful spells, firing them aimlessly in all directions.

He didn't know where the enemies were hiding. He only knew that the moment he showed a weakness, he would be met with a storm of attacks. In less than an incense stick's time, he had accumulated seven or eight new wounds. The most severe was a wound on his abdomen, pierced by a flying sword, bleeding profusely. The pain twisted his face into a grimace.

So, even though he knew his actions were like drinking poison to quench thirst, he couldn't stop, because stopping would mean dying even faster.

This approach was quite effective. At the very least, no one dared to launch a sneak attack while he continuously cast spells.