203: Chapter 203 Escape!

...

The hundred-zhang sword radiance briefly deterred the crowd, and Sun Yao quickly retreated along with it.

"Retreat!"

Sun Yao issued the order. She did not let emotions cloud her judgment and cause everyone to lose their lives; this was not a discussion, not a request, but an order!

It was the final order she, as the leader of the White Cloud Temple expedition, had obtained at the cost of her cousin's life.

Grief could drown the mind, but it could not destroy the will.

She must not let the fruits of that sacrifice go to waste!

"Protect Sun Yao!" Elder Rat's sharp voice, like a steel needle, pierced through the deathly silence shrouding everyone's hearts.

The next moment, the battle situation shifted abruptly.

It was no longer entanglement, no longer a stalemate, but a desperate resolve to trade life for life.

"Roar!"

Kuang Dou roared at the sky. The lava-like crimson flames around his body were no longer for protection; instead, they swept out in all directions like a volcanic eruption.

He abandoned all defense, converting all his Yao Race power into the most violent flames, rushing toward the nearest Xuanqing Sect Disciple.

In terror, that Disciple hurriedly activated the Black Water Flag to defend.

But this time, the flames were so dense they were nearly tangible, actually boiling the frigid water flow!

Amidst the rising steam, one of Kuang Dou's sharp claws had already ripped open his chest.

Lei Nu was the same; he no longer maneuvered or dodged.

Instead, he allowed two Flying Swords to pierce his back, using that momentum to charge into the Haoran Sect crowd. Pale white thunder exploded from the tip of every hair on his body, turning into an all-encompassing electric net that enveloped three Cultivators.

The smell of burning flesh permeated the air, and the screams did not even last a single breath before they abruptly ceased.

This was trading wounds for lives, blood for blood!

"Go!"

Liu Qing flicked his sleeves, and two trails of emerald green poisonous smoke transformed into two spirit snakes, coiling toward the fire spirit puppet.

The poisonous smoke corroded the flames on the Puppet's surface, making a "sizzling" sound. Although it could not destroy it, it successfully delayed its movements.

The Qingguang Sect Disciples behind him formed a Three Talents Sword Formation, with sword light interweaving to block the pursuers for the group.

Sun Chengzhu's eyes were bloodshot; he had no time to collect Sun Lin's remains.

He only had time to lift the heavily injured Shi Mo from the water with one hand, while his other hand recalled the nine remaining Flying Swords, hovering them around his body.

"Chief Disciple Han Yue!"

Sun Chengzhu gritted his teeth, his gaze locked onto the purple-robed youth:

"Today's grudge, I will surely repay in the future!"

"If one day in the future I can, I will surely slaughter my way into Wei State and bathe your Taiqing and Xuanqing Sects in blood!"

Chief Disciple Han Yue's expression was equally dark, dark enough to drip water.

He had not expected that this group of Cultivators from a remote small School in Qingcang Kingdom would be so fearless of death, nor did he expect that the female Cultivator could unleash such an astonishing sword strike at the very last moment.

"Want to leave? Leave the heaven and earth qi behind!"

How could he give up? The small red bronze tripod shone brightly once more, and he prepared to pursue.

But just at this moment, another unexpected change occurred.

Bi Luo, who had been assisting from the side, finally used her trump card.

Seeing her chanting, a drop of verdant essence blood seeped from between her brows and dripped onto the ground, unleashing a secret Divine Ability.

"Be buried here, all of you!"

Rumble!

The entire giant island trembled violently.

With Bi Luo at the center, the stone ground within a hundred zhang radius cracked open, and countless tree roots as thick as Dragon burst from the soil.

These tree roots were not ordinary plants; their surfaces were covered with cyan Yao markings, exuding an ancient and barbaric aura.

The tree roots intertwined, knotted, and grew wildly. In the blink of an eye, they formed a cage made of living giant wood, trapping Chief Disciple Han Yue, Fang Zeyuan, and dozens of pursuing Cultivators inside.

"This is... the Green Ape Clan's Bloodline Divine Ability!"

Chief Disciple Han Yue, who was well-informed, recognized it at a glance.

This was no longer an ordinary Dao Spell, but a talent the Yao Race derived from the Legacy deep within their Bloodline.

Inside the wooden cage, vines were like snakes, poisonous flowers bloomed one after another, and illusion mist permeated the air.

Those trapped Cultivators, whether they used Flying Swords to hack or Spells to bombard, the severed tree roots would instantly heal, and even grow thicker.

"Damn it!"

Fang Zeyuan played his flute, drawing in marsh water to constantly wash over it, but he could only slightly slow down the growth rate of the wooden cage.

This Bloodline Divine Ability could not trap them for too long.

But it was enough to buy a few dozen breaths of time...

After Bi Luo unleashed this move, her face turned as pale as paper, and she stumbled, nearly falling. This was a strike that overdrawn her Origin; without decades of bitter cultivation, it would likely be difficult to recover.

"Hurry, go!"

Everyone dared not delay at all, protecting Sun Yao as they fled into the water, using the marshland as cover to constantly travel underwater and withdraw from the battlefield.

Above the water surface, the wooden cage's vibrations became increasingly intense.

Accompanied by a heaven-shaking loud noise, a purple-red pillar of fire shot into the sky, forcefully burning a huge gap in the ancient wood cage.

Chief Disciple Han Yue rushed out with disheveled hair. The Cultivators behind him were all in a wretched state, and a few had even been poisoned by the vines, their bodies turning black and their breathing faint.

"Pursue!"

Chief Disciple Han Yue's rage was enough to almost set the entire marshland ablaze:

"Even if you have to dig three feet into the ground, drag them out for me!"

"Kill her, and the heaven and earth qi will be mine!"

Chief Disciple Han Yue's eyes were bloodshot. He had prepared for this battle for ten years, yet the heaven and earth qi had been snatched away by a Disciple of a small School from Qingcang Kingdom!

How could he not hate this!

Even if this wisp of heaven and earth qi was not compatible with him, as long as he obtained it, he could exchange it within the Sect for the heaven and earth qi he needed.

Such an opportunity, how could he easily let it go!

...