Chapter 1064: Escape

In the South Sea, within the Fire Boar Sea Area.

Fire Boar Island, 5,500 li long and 1,320 li wide, is one of the largest islands in the Fire Boar Sea Area. On the island stands an enormous city covering a vast area. Most of its city walls have collapsed, and the city is ablaze with towering flames. Over half of its buildings are destroyed, and countless corpses litter the ground and buildings, including those of cultivators, demon beasts, Sea Tribe members, and barbarians.

A team of cultivators was busy collecting bodies and extinguishing the fires.

Inside a magnificent red palace, ten Nascent Soul cultivators were gathered. Among them were a tall, well-built middle-aged man and an elegant young woman in a silver dress, both wearing a sun-and-moon emblem on their sleeves. The man was Du Chang, the Palace Master of the Sun Palace of the Sun-Moon Palace, and the woman was Fang Yue, the Palace Master of the Moon Palace of the Sun-Moon Palace. Both were late-stage Nascent Soul grand cultivators, skilled in joint attacks, and known as the Sun-Moon Dual Saints.

It was widely rumored that the Sun-Moon Dual Saints could contend with Spirit Transformation cultivators when working together. So far, ten Nascent Soul alien beings, mostly mid-stage, had fallen to them.

"Fellow Daoist Du, Madam Fang, today's battle truly opened this old man's eyes," said a round-faced elder in a silver robe, stroking his beard and smiling. "Even Bayana, the Great Shaman of the Golden Barbarian Tribe, died at your hands. The Sun-Moon Dual Saints live up to their reputation; this old man admires you greatly." The silver-robed elder, plump and cheerful with a guileless smile, had a white crow embroidered on his sleeve, giving him an approachable air.

The Nascent Soul cultivators present, however, dared not underestimate him. He was Han Shiming, the Northern Cold Elder, leader of the Five Immortals of the Outer Seas, and also a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator. Han Shiming's ability to cultivate to the late Nascent Soul stage as a rogue cultivator was certainly not due to mere chance.

"Fellow Daoist Han, you jest," Fang Yue said with a smile. "Had you not helped us hold off the Golden Flood Dragon King, we would have struggled to kill Bayana. In today's battle, we eliminated five Nascent Soul alien beings, making the upcoming conflicts much easier. By the way, Fellow Daoist Han, have you managed to contact Fellow Daoist Ren yet? If he joined the battle, the enemy would crumble even faster."

"Indeed! Fellow Daoist Ren's poison arts are renowned throughout the South Sea; it would be excellent if he could participate."

Han Shiming gave a wry smile and shook his head. "Fellow Daoist Ren lives up to his name, Ren Zizai [meaning 'at ease' or 'free']. He has no fixed abode and is unrestrained, so this old man cannot contact him. That said, the aliens' swift defeat this time was largely thanks to other fellow Daoists who infiltrated behind enemy lines and caused chaos, forcing the aliens to withdraw forces and dispatch personnel to encircle them."

Ren Zizai, one of the Five Immortals of the Outer Seas, was a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator. His movements were mysterious, and he rarely appeared, making him the most enigmatic of the five. However, his power was not to be underestimated; even Fang Yue, the Palace Master of the Moon Palace of the Sun-Moon Palace, held him in high regard.

"That's right! Especially the Azure Lotus Immortal Couple; they actually managed to kill ten Nascent Soul alien beings consecutively. According to confessions from captured half-demons, the Sea Tribe's Saintess, Jiao Mingzhu, personally returned to the rear to encircle them. Fellow Daoist Han also suffered a minor setback at her hands. If Jiao Mingzhu had remained on the front lines, we might not have achieved such a significant victory."

The Sea Tribe was divided into clans. All Sea Tribe clans jointly elected a Saint Son and a Saintess, whom they vigorously cultivated with all their combined resources. Any Sea Tribe member chosen as a Saint Son or Saintess had a very high chance of advancing to the Spirit Transformation stage. Jiao Mingzhu was a mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivator. She had clashed with Han Shiming, and he had suffered a minor disadvantage.

"I hope they are alright!" Du Chang said in a deep voice, his face filled with killing intent. "Junior Martial Brother Li is already severely injured. Now that the aliens are retreating, we must seize this excellent opportunity to reclaim the Fire Boar Sea Area in one fell swoop."

Han Shiming and the others expressed their strong agreement and began discussing the counterattack routes.

In an unknown sea area, the sky was cloudless and bright.

A streak of azure light appeared on the horizon, swiftly soaring through the sky at extreme speed.

An extremely peculiar screeching sound emanated from beneath the sea. The calm surface of the ocean violently churned and surged as over a dozen enormous demon beasts emerged: blue whales over fifty zhang long, sharks covered in red patterns, golden octopuses with hundreds of eyes, and more. On the back of each demon beast stood a Nascent Soul Sea Tribe member, their expressions cold and faces filled with murderous intent.

The azure escape light converged, revealing an azure lotus platform. Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan were seated within it.

Wang Changsheng wore a blue robe stained with numerous brown bloodstains. His face was pale, his aura weak, and his clothes tattered. There were two foot-long bloody gashes on his back, and his right arm was scorched black. Wang Ruyan's face was bloodless, and her blue palace dress was covered in a large patch of brown blood, her expression filled with terror.

"Damn it! The Sea Tribe intends to wipe us out completely," Wang Changsheng gnashed his teeth, his face contorted with murderous rage. "If I ever find out who plotted against us, I'll grind them to dust."

It was unknown which Nascent Soul cultivator had killed five Sea Tribe members and pinned the credit on Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan, leading to a massive encirclement by the Sea Tribe, with demon beasts also joining the pursuit.

Two fists cannot contend with four hands. Facing two Nascent Soul enemies, Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan, even if outmatched, could still escape without issue. However, there were too many enemies. During one encirclement, after Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan had killed a Nascent Soul demon beast and severely wounded two Nascent Soul Sea Tribe members, a mid-stage Nascent Soul Sea Tribe member suddenly appeared, unleashing a powerful divine ability that heavily injured both of them. Had they not used the secret technique, Heavenly Moon Escape Light, to flee, they would surely have died.

That particular Sea Tribe member was proficient in both lightning and water divine abilities. One of their water-based divine abilities resembled a mirage, capable of creating illusions. Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan, even working together, failed to wound their opponent. Instead, they were severely injured by the opponent's lightning-based divine ability, forcing them to use the Heavenly Moon Escape Light to escape.

Had they not consumed the Three Yuan Heart Protection Pill, a unique secret medicine from the Taiyi Immortal Sect, they would have succumbed to their severe injuries long ago.

They had barely managed to break through the encirclement, but the Sea Tribe was relentless, dispatching heavily armed forces to hunt them down.

The Sea Tribe excelled in water-based divine abilities, and their water escape techniques were unparalleled. With numerous demon beasts serving as their eyes and ears, it was incredibly difficult for Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan to evade the Sea Tribe's pursuit.

"Husband, if this continues, we're certainly doomed," Wang Ruyan suggested. "Why don't we fight them head-on, wound them first, and then escape?" She explained that if they kept fleeing, their magic power would be depleted, leaving them like fish on a chopping block, at the mercy of the Sea Tribe.

"There's a Nascent Soul cultivator ahead," Wang Changsheng transmitted. "Let's fly over there first and have him help us draw off some of the pursuers. Better a dead fellow Daoist than a dead me." Wang Changsheng transmitted this message. His spiritual sense was slightly stronger than Wang Ruyan's, allowing him to detect a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator a hundred li ahead, who could help them alleviate some of the pressure.

At present, the alien races viewed humanity as a thorn in their side. Even if the other party was unwilling to help, the Sea Tribe would still split their forces to attack them.

The azure lotus platform flared with light, its escape speed more than doubling.

"Pursue them! Don't let them escape," a red-robed man with red scales on his hands said in a deep voice, his eyes full of murderous intent. "Their magic power is running low, and the Saintess will arrive soon. Once she's here, they're dead for sure." The divine abilities of these two Nascent Soul cultivators were considerable; two Nascent Soul Sea Tribe members who pursued too closely had been severely wounded. As long as they didn't escape their spiritual sense range, there was nothing to worry about.

Over a dozen massive demon beasts accelerated, chasing after Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan.