Chapter 315: Troubles Everywhere

"Hide now?" Shi Chun looked surprised and confused. He then reminded, "You think we have a chance to win, and Gong Shixi also thinks we have a chance. Calculating by outside time, there are still about twenty days. If we hide at the exit for twenty days, do you think Gong Shixi would just sit by and do nothing while we hide there?"

Xu Anchang hesitated, "There are a group of elders guarding the exit. Even if Gong Shixi wanted to, he couldn't do anything."

Shi Chun: "Staying there means being completely passive. Twenty days! Do you think someone who can come up with the current scheme wouldn't find a way to attack us during that time? If I were him, I could come up with several ways to deal with you."

Xu Anchang fell silent.

You Mu said, somewhat annoyed, "Find them and get rid of them directly!"

Shi Chun: "We're only guessing; we have no evidence that he orchestrated this. Even if you report them after we get out, it'll be useless because you have no proof, just hearsay. Given the Three-Lineage Alliance, we can't openly confront them.

In other words, we know each other's identities, and no one can openly attack another without being sure of absolute discretion. That's why the other party only dares to operate from the shadows.

Of course, we won't just take a beating, but the biggest problem now is that the situation has escalated. Killing them now wouldn't solve anything; dealing with them will be for later. First, we need to get out of this predicament before we can think about settling scores with them."

Xu Anchang then asked, "What do we do now?"

Shi Chun pondered for a moment before frankly stating, "Currently, there's no other option but to escape. If we keep being followed by these people, we'll be exposed, watched no matter what we do, and unable to act. And if this continues, more and more people will be watching us. We must first shake off their surveillance before we can do anything else."

Thinking about it, that was indeed the top priority right now.

Representing the Four Tripod Sect, Xu Anchang made the decision, "Alright, let's first figure out how to get away."

With their decision made, they still needed to coordinate with the Summer Dao Mountain group. When more parties are involved, communication is essential, and there's no way around it.

Shi Chun then found Gu Lianni to explain their decision. At this point, they needed to rely on the strength of Summer Dao Mountain. They couldn't abandon them and run; everyone had to be in the same boat.

The Summer Dao Mountain group had also discussed it internally, so Gu Lianni agreed, "Exactly. First, we shake them off. Then we'll see. If all else fails, we can go to the exit and wait for it to open. Our elders will protect us there, so there shouldn't be any problems."

Go to the exit again? Shi Chun was strongly against going to the exit early.

Going early could endanger his Bright Mountain Sect group and even risk betrayal from Summer Dao Mountain.

He had experienced too many betrayals and double-crosses in the Land of Exile; such things were commonplace there. Thus, he had a premonition, or rather, experience, in this regard.

To entrust his life to Elder Jin of Summer Dao Mountain, hoping he would withstand pressure from other sects for their sake, was not something Shi Chun would ever consider, given the habits he'd formed in the Land of Exile.

Some things were quite imaginable to him.

If a group of people were forced to hide at the exit, it would be strange if the elders there didn't figure out what was going on.

Once asked, and learning there was a quick way to obtain divine fire, how many artificers could resist such a massive temptation? Could Elder Jin alone withstand the desires of the other nine elders, or could he defeat them all?

Once the power to wipe out a sect was in others' hands, he didn't believe those elders would stick to any rules. It would simply be a matter of silencing witnesses.

At that point, if Summer Dao Mountain didn't want to be annihilated and wanted to protect its interests, it would have to yield. Elder Jin wouldn't fail to weigh such pros and cons.

Summer Dao Mountain's stated methods for finding divine fire were limited. The person truly holding the secret was Shi Chun. His trick of using a broken incense stick wouldn't stand up to serious scrutiny.

Would he have to reveal the secrets he held at that time?

Therefore, given the current situation, he absolutely could not go and hide at the exit prematurely. If he were to go to the exit, it would have to be near the end of the time limit, when the elders guarding the exit would know that even if they got the secret, there wouldn't be enough time to find more divine fire, and that it wasn't necessary to risk a life-and-death struggle with Summer Dao Mountain over it. Only then could Summer Dao Mountain protect him.

At that point, if the elders still wanted the secret, they would be willing to let him leave alive with it. Once he was outside and external forces intervened, those artificer sects would no longer have control.

Moreover, with Gong Shixi secretly manipulating things, if Shi Chun were controlled at the exit, he would be far too passive. Thus, he couldn't go to the exit early.

Of course, there was no need to discuss these points with Gu Lianni and the others for now. They were still partners, and talking about potential betrayal was unnecessary.

Whether one would be betrayed didn't depend on others, but on the path one chose. If you pushed yourself into a dead end, who else would they betray but you? Could you really expect them to face life and death with you?

The priority now was to escape without breaking their cooperative trust.

Once opinions were unified, both sides immediately gathered their respective teams.

Before departing, Shi Chun called Xu Anchang and You Mu aside for instructions. "You two are unfamiliar to the other sects, so don't stay with us. After we've led away these trackers, you two shouldn't show yourselves. Instead, arrange for someone to do one thing: contact your moles in the various sects and have them spread rumors about the Thousand Crag Sect. Say that the Thousand Crag Sect also knows a quick way to find divine fire, and that the Bright Mountain Sect obtained its method from them, and that they too have acquired a lot of divine fire.

There are two objectives. First, to let Gong Shixi know that we've identified the mastermind behind the rumors. This is a warning to him: if he pushes us to a dead end, we'll reveal their identities, leaving them no way out. This should force him to restrain himself later and prevent him from applying more pressure.

Second, to teach him a lesson. Once the rumors are out, if he wants to prove his innocence, he'll have to allow someone to inspect whether the origin energy he cultivates has fused with divine fire. They have demonic essence within them, and its ability to conceal wouldn't withstand such close scrutiny. If they don't dare to be inspected, they won't be able to explain themselves clearly.

This will suppress their influence, preventing them from easily collaborating with other forces against us. After the exit opens, I'd like to see if he dares to leave easily. Let's see if he's scared, because if the elders at the exit decide to apprehend them for verification, that would be interesting."

Hearing this, Xu Anchang and You Mu's hearts pounded with fear.

You Mu quickly objected, "Isn't that inappropriate? What if he retaliates? We also have demonic essence, so wouldn't we be unable to leave either?"

Shi Chun had no intention of letting them pass the exit scrutiny anyway. He advised, "Do we even need retaliation? The elders at the exit already know we're in league. With what that dog Gong Shixi has done, do you really expect your Four Tripod Sect to be an exception if the Bright Mountain Sect ends up being inspected?"

Their faces changed drastically at his words. Xu Anchang immediately cursed, "The Three-Lineage competition is not supposed to reveal secrets externally! That dog Gong Shixi broke the rules. He's playing with fire and burning himself!"

Shi Chun pressed his hands down to calm them. "Don't worry, I won't set myself up for failure; I'll have a way to get you out then. This trick probably won't stop him from leaving; it's impossible to check everyone individually after the exit opens, and there won't be time. Blending out shouldn't be difficult. This is just to scare him and tie his hands and feet, so he doesn't act recklessly from the shadows."

At his explanation, their greatly changed expressions finally stabilized. They then took their orders and went into hiding.

Soon after, both groups converged into a single team and took off.

Those from the various sects who had been watching from a distance also took off in a flurry, some trailing far behind, others circling to either side, keeping pace from afar.

After they had flown far away, Xu Anchang and the others, who had been hiding deep in the gully, emerged.

The task of instructing the moles to spread rumors was delegated to their subordinates, while Xu Anchang and his companions continued to follow from behind.

After flying for a while, the Bright Mountain Sect and Summer Dao Mountain groups stopped again. They sent people back to directly issue a forceful threat: "Dare to follow us again, and we will kill you!"

However, threats of killing are only effective if one has the ability to carry them out. Everyone had wind scales, so who was afraid of whom? It was simply a matter of "you chase, I run; you kill, I flee." With so many people, how many could they possibly kill?

Driven by greed and instigated by someone, they all waited.

They themselves dared not start a fight with the Summer Dao Mountain group; they were waiting for the major sects to engage them. Once a conflict began, they wouldn't dare attack the entire group, but would they hesitate to go after an injured or fleeing individual? The thought of getting their hands on someone and extracting the secret method for finding divine fire filled them with anticipation.

They clearly understood that only by relentlessly pursuing them could the major sects quickly find the Summer Dao Mountain group and witness the scene they anticipated. If the Summer Dao Mountain group managed to escape or disappear, their chance would be lost.

Ultimately, it was due to the effective instigation of the malicious parties.

"Everyone has tried the normal methods. Do you think you can find divine fire before the end? By now, you probably have a good idea that most sects are destined not to find it. This might be your only chance to find divine fire. Do you want it or not?"

Even death threats failed to deter these persistent nuisances. After several rounds of pursuit and expulsion proved ineffective, the Bright Mountain Sect and Summer Dao Mountain groups truly realized they couldn't shake them off. They were stuck, problems tightly clinging to them. Continuing like this would only lead to greater trouble.

Given this situation, they dared not easily let anyone fall behind. It was imaginable that if someone were isolated, they would face a group assault.

Their current group size had been thoroughly ascertained by the various sects through tracking, making it difficult to even secretly lose a single member along the way.

And sects encountered along the way were continuously joining the pursuit, increasing the number of entangled individuals.

Even Xu Anchang and the others following behind broke into a cold sweat for Shi Chun's group, realizing that Gong Shixi's tactics were truly vicious. They wondered which lineage had sent such a ruthless person.

Facing continuously mounting pressure, after some time, Gu Lianni, who had been constantly scanning the surroundings from the air, also felt overwhelmed. She flew to Shi Chun's side and loudly declared, "This won't work! We can't shake them off. We need to quickly change course towards the exit. The longer we drag this out, the more trouble we'll be in!"

Before entering the Divine Fire Domain, she had never imagined that she and Summer Dao Mountain would receive such treatment, potentially finding themselves in a situation where they were ganged up on by various sects.