Chapter 267: Enemy Retreat

Wang Mingzhong’s face also turned pale. Clearly, this attack had consumed a significant amount of his magic power. The yellow hurricane swiftly met the descending crimson firebird. As they collided, the yellow hurricane immediately dispersed and vanished, followed by a tremendous explosion. The crimson firebird also dissipated, transforming into a sky full of flames that scattered onto the surrounding buildings, igniting raging fires.

However, very quickly, an even larger crimson firebird swooped down and struck Wang Mingzhong.

A shrill scream echoed as Wang Mingzhong's body was engulfed by rolling flames, reduced to ashes.

The crimson firebird then struck the blue light barrier, which flickered wildly before also dissipating.

At that moment, countless golden flying needles flew out from within the pavilion, piercing through the crimson firebird's body and heading towards Lu Kun and his companions.

"Oh no, a Talisman Treasure!" Lu Kun exclaimed, his expression changing slightly.

Fortunately, his extensive combat experience had prepared him; he had anticipated this situation even before the fight began. His left hand had been clutching a Tier 2 Fire Escape Talisman, which he crushed without hesitation, transforming into specks of firelight that vanished.

The others also reacted quickly, hurriedly pulling out Tier 2 talismans and crushing them. However, three of them reacted slightly slower and were pierced by the dense golden flying needles. Seven people narrowly escaped.

Truth be told, they had wanted a quick victory, but the Wang family had too many puppet beasts, both on land and in the air, which caused them significant interference. Without this interference and Wang Mingzhong's desperate effort to buy time, Wang Changfeng might not have had the chance to activate the Talisman Treasure.

After the enemies fled, Wang Changfeng quickly retrieved the Talisman Treasure.

Wang Qingshan clenched his fists, gritted his teeth, his face etched with self-reproach.

His strength was still too weak; he couldn't help at all and almost became a burden.

"Qingshan, don't blame yourself," Wang Changyue consoled him. "This isn't your fault. If we had fled immediately when the enemies attacked, none of this would have happened."

"If we could have fled immediately, we wouldn't have stubbornly defended this place," Wang Changfeng sighed, his heart heavy. "The people from Bailing Sect told us to stay and defend Wangjiapu, saying that with the formation and Tier 2 puppet beasts, we could completely wipe out the enemies. Who would have thought that the demonic cultivators would send ten Foundation Establishment cultivators, two of whom possessed innate magical artifacts? If it weren't for the interference from the puppet beasts and their slight underestimation of us, I wouldn't have had the chance to activate the Talisman Treasure. It's a pity about Seventh Uncle; he died at the enemies' hands, trying to buy me time."

Wang Mingzhong had long wanted to retreat to Qingyue Market. However, the war was in a stalemate, and the demonic cultivators hadn't attacked yet. If the entire Wang family retreated, it would cause panic and demoralize everyone.

Not all cultivation families could retreat to Qingyue Market. If that happened and the demonic cultivators truly attacked, it would be inconvenient to deploy troops for resistance.

Seven Foundation Establishment cultivators, along with twenty Tier 2 puppet beasts, should have been sufficient to defend Wangjiapu. Unfortunately, the four Bailing Sect disciples stationed there refused to fight to the death. If all seven Foundation Establishment cultivators had been members of the Wang family, they might not have been without a chance of victory.

"If it weren't for Seventh Uncle, we wouldn't have survived," Wang Changyue urged, her eyes filled with worry. "Now that this has happened, if we retreat to Qingyue Market, the Bailing Sect will have nothing to say. Brother, let's leave quickly! The enemies will be back soon, and next time, no one will be able to buy you time."

"All right!" Wang Changfeng said. "Quickly collect the bodies of our clansmen, and let's retreat."

By the time Lu Kun returned to Wangjiapu, it was already deserted; Wang Mingzhong had long since moved all the valuables.

Enraged and embarrassed, Lu Kun set Wangjiapu ablaze before leading his people out of Wei State.

In Jinyan State, several streaks of light swiftly swept across the sky, with more than a dozen streaks of light following closely behind.

"Fellow Daoist Li, let's scatter and flee for our lives!" Wang Changping suggested to a white-robed scholar, his eyes filled with worry.

Jinyan State had invaded Xiliang, and Xiliang, being no match, had sought aid from the Five Sects of Wei State. The Five Sects of Wei State dispatched some reinforcements, and Wang Changping along with seven other Foundation Establishment cultivators were ordered to infiltrate Jinyan State, seeking opportunities for sabotage. Unexpectedly, the enemy was already prepared, and they fell into an ambush. Several Foundation Establishment cultivators died in battle. Although they managed to break through the encirclement, it wasn't long before they encountered Jinyan State's patrolling cultivators.

"All right!" the white-robed scholar said. "Let's break out separately and rendezvous in the Xuanqing Mountain Range." With that, he summoned a white flying boat, jumped aboard, and with a hand seal, the white flying boat carried him through the air and away.

Wang Changping summoned a Tier 2 mid-grade paper crane talisman soldier and jumped onto it. The paper crane talisman soldier spread its wings and flew into the distance, much faster than the others.

He was only at the second layer of Foundation Establishment, not very strong. Fortunately, before he left the sect to participate in the war, his second elder sister, Wang Changxue, had given him a Tier 2 mid-grade talisman soldier to keep for his life.

The flying speed of a Tier 2 mid-grade talisman soldier was comparable to a mid-grade flying magical artifact. It could be controlled with just a little magic power, consuming very little, making it much more valuable than a mid-grade flying magical artifact.

The dozen-plus streaks of light dispersed, pursuing Wang Changping and the others. Two men and one woman pursued Wang Changping, using a mid-grade flying magical artifact and following relentlessly.

Wang Changping glanced at the pursuers behind him, his brows tightly furrowed. The flying speed of a talisman soldier was fixed, while a flying magical artifact could temporarily accelerate if a large amount of magic power was infused into it. At this rate, it was only a matter of time before he was caught.

He made a hand seal, and the paper crane talisman soldier quickly flew towards the ground.

Being a target in the high sky was too risky; escaping on the ground would be relatively easier.

Before the paper crane talisman soldier could land, a loud whistling sound erupted, and hundreds of green wind blades shot towards him.

Wang Changping hurriedly summoned a black shield that spun erratically around him. With another hand seal, a thick protective barrier appeared around his body.

With a muffled thud, dozens of green wind blades struck the black shield. Some of the green wind blades struck the ground, creating numerous indentations. As dozens of the green wind blades approached a towering tree, the tree glowed with a blue light, revealing the figures of Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan.

Jinyan State was a country controlled by the demonic cultivation path. After the war between the righteous and demonic paths began, the Jinyan Sect imposed martial law. For Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan to return to Wei State as quickly as possible, the shortest route was through Jinyan State.

As soon as they entered Jinyan State, they encountered patrolling cultivators from Jinyan State. Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan fabricated an excuse, but the cultivators didn't believe it. So Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan acted, killing them, and stopped flying, opting to travel by land instead.

Along the way, they had some scares but no real danger. However, just now, Wang Changsheng sensed that someone was heading towards their location. He and Wang Ruyan had hidden beneath a large tree, but then Wang Changping also tried to escape by ground, which forced Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan to reveal themselves.

Wang Changsheng quickly summoned his Xuan Yin Sand, transforming it into a black shield to block in front of him.

Dozens of green wind blades struck the black shield, resulting in a muffled thud.

"Huh? Ninth Brother, Ninth Sister-in-law, why are you here?" Wang Changping exclaimed in surprise upon landing and seeing Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan.

"We heard about the war between the righteous and demonic paths and rushed back immediately," Wang Changsheng briefly explained. "Let's not talk about that now; let's deal with these people first." He then summoned his Ice Dragon Flag, made a hand seal, and furiously poured magic power into it.

The Ice Dragon Flag immediately glowed brightly, and a dragon's roar echoed. The flag transformed into a massive white flood dragon, which pounced menacingly towards the three Foundation Establishment cultivators.

Wang Ruyan simultaneously summoned five Tier 2 flying puppet beasts, which unleashed spells to attack the three individuals.