gōng zhuāng měi fù yī dāi ， lüè gǎn è rán ， bù guò què yě méi yǒu chí yí shén me ， yù shǒu tái qǐ ， yī zhǐ xiàng qián diǎn qù ， suí zhe tā de dòng zuò ， hóng guāng zài qí tóu dǐng lüè yī pán xuán fēi wǔ ， suí hòu wěn wěn de zhuì rù le qí shǒu zhōng 。
宫装美妇一呆，略感愕然，不过却也没有迟疑什么，玉手抬起，一指向前点去，随着她的动作，红光在其头顶略一盘旋飞舞，随后稳稳的坠入了其手中。
A beautiful woman in court attire was taken aback, showing a moment of surprise. However, she did not hesitate and raised her jade hand, pointing it forward. As she moved, a red light hovered above her head for a brief moment before settling into her palm.
hóng guāng bào shè ， yī tuán huǒ yàn xiōng xiōng rán shāo qǐ lái le ， zhè jìng rán shì yī zhāng jí wéi gāo jiē de chuán yīn fú 。
红光爆射，一团火焰汹汹燃烧起来了，这竟然是一张极为高阶的传音符。
The red light burst forth, igniting a fierce flame. This turned out to be an extremely high-grade sound transmission talisman.
cǐ nǚ jīng yí zhī xià máng jiāng shén shí chén rù 。
此女惊疑之下忙将神识沉入。
The woman quickly sank her divine consciousness to investigate.
jǐn jǐn guò le shùn xī de gōng fu ， cǐ nǚ jiù hài rán shī sè ， biǎo qíng yī xià zi nán kàn qǐ lái ， bìng rěn bú zhù jīng hū 。
仅仅过了瞬息的功夫，此女就骇然失色，表情一下子难看起来，并忍不住惊呼。
In the blink of an eye, she was startled and pale, her expression turning grim as she couldn't help but exclaim in shock.
“ lú dào yǒu ， zěn me le ？”
“卢道友，怎么了？”
"Senior Daoist Lu, what's going on?"
nà nián qīng nán zi è rán huí tóu 。
那年轻男子愕然回头。
The young man turned his head in surprise.
shí zài xiǎng bù chū yǒu shén me shì qíng zhí de tóng bàn dà jīng xiǎo guài de ， rú jīn suǒ yǒu de yī qiè ， bù jiē zài zì jǐ sān pài de zhǎng wò zhī zhōng 。
实在想不出有什么事情值得同伴大惊小怪的，如今所有的一切，不皆在自己三派的掌握之中。
He could not fathom why this would cause such a reaction from his companion. Everything now seemed to be under the control of their three sects.
“ shì zhǎng mén shī xiōng mào sǐ fā guò lái de xiāo xī ， ràng wǒ men jǐn kuài chè lí 。” gōng zhuāng měi fù yī zì yī dùn de shēng yīn chuán rù ěr duǒ 。
“是掌门师兄冒死发过来的消息，让我们尽快撤离。”宫装美妇一字一顿的声音传入耳朵。
"It is Master Senior Guardian sending us an urgent message to evacuate as soon as possible," the woman said, her voice clear and firm.
“ shén me ， chè lí ， lú dào yǒu ， nǐ méi kāi wán xiào ba ！”
“什么，撤离，卢道友，你没开玩笑吧！”
"What? Evacuate, Senior Daoist Lu! Are you joking with me!"
nián qīng nán zi mǎn liǎn de bù kě sī yì ， fǎng fú tīng jiàn le shì jiè shàng zuì huāng miù de wèn tí 。
年轻男子满脸的不可思议，仿佛听见了世界上最荒谬的问题。
The young man's face was filled with disbelief, as if he had heard the most absurd question in the world.
“ zhè yàng de shì qíng qiè shēn qǐ huì hú yán luàn yǔ ， jù tǐ qíng xíng rú hé ， dào yǒu kàn le běn mén dà zhǎng lǎo de chuán yīn fú zì rán jiù yì qīng èr chǔ 。”
“这样的事情妾身岂会胡言乱语，具体情形如何，道友看了本门大长老的传音符自然就一清二楚。”
"Such matters would not be idle talk from this lady. The specific details will become clear once you read the message from our senior guardian."
gōng zhuāng měi fù de biǎo qíng nán kàn dào jí chù ， tā hé cháng bù xī wàng zhè jǐn jǐn shì yǒu rén kāi de yí gè wán xiào ne ？
宫装美妇的表情难看到极处，她何尝不希望这仅仅是有人开的一个玩笑呢？
The woman's expression was grim to the extreme. She wished it were just a joke, but her rationality reminded her that it was impossible. Senior Guardian was known for his resolute and tenacious nature; he would not make such serious matters light conversation.
rán ér qǐ pàn gù rán méi cuò ， lǐ zhì què zài shí kè tí xǐng zhe ， nà shì jué bù kě néng de ， yǐ dà zhǎng lǎo de xìng gé ， píng rì lǐ qīng yì bù xún yán xiào ， zhè zhǒng guān hū běn mén qì yùn de dà shì ， yòu zěn me kě néng ná lái yǔ zì jǐ hú shuō ？
然而企盼固然没错，理智却在时刻提醒着，那是绝不可能的，以大长老的性格，平日里轻易不荀言笑，这种关乎本门气运的大事，又怎么可能拿来与自己胡说？
Unless he had gone mad!
chú fēi tā fēng le ！
除非他疯了！
But a high-stage cultivator like him wasn't in seclusion or meditation; how could his mind be deranged?
dàn táng táng fēn shén hòu qī de xiū xiān zhě yòu méi yǒu bì guān dǎ zuò ， hǎo duān duān de shén jīng yòu zěn me kě néng cuò luàn ne ？
但堂堂分神后期的修仙者又没有闭关打坐，好端端的神经又怎么可能错乱呢？
So, regardless of whether he wanted to or not, the situation was clear: their three sects were facing an impending disaster!
suǒ yǐ bù guǎn zì jǐ yuàn bù yuàn yì ， shì qíng yǐ jīng hěn qīng xī ， sān pài miàn lín zhe miè dǐng zhī zāi de jié jú ！
所以不管自己愿不愿意，事情已经很清晰，三派面临着灭顶之灾的结局！
---
huò zhě xiàn zài zhè yàng shuō ， hái yǒu xiē wéi shí guò zǎo ， rán ér cóng chuán yīn fú zhōng de liáo liáo shù yǔ ， cǐ nǚ què rán gǎn shòu dào yī gǔ jué wàng de qíng xù 。
或者现在这样说，还有些为时过早，然而从传音符中的寥寥数语，此女确然感受到一股绝望的情绪。
Or perhaps it was too early to say so. However, from the few words in the sound transmission talisman, she indeed felt a sense of despair.
dà zhǎng lǎo de xìng gé tā qīng chǔ ， xiàng lái shì guǒ gǎn jiān yì de ， lián tā dōu bēi guān zhì cǐ qíng shì zhī wēi jī nǎ lǐ hái yòng dé zhe duō yú yán yǔ de miáo shù 。
大长老的性格她清楚，向来是果敢坚毅的，连他都悲观至此情势之危机哪里还用得着多余言语的描述。
She knew Senior Guardian's character well; he was always resolute and tenacious. If even he saw such a dire situation, there was no need for further elaboration.
yě xǔ bǐ zì jǐ xiǎng xiàng de hái yào zāo gāo dé duō ， cǐ nǚ nǎo hǎi zhōng niàn tou zhuǎn guò ， bù yóu de huāng luàn qǐ lái le 。
也许比自己想象的还要糟糕得多，此女脑海中念头转过，不由得慌乱起来了。
Perhaps it was worse than she imagined. The woman's thoughts raced, causing her to feel increasingly anxious.
ér zhè shí hòu ， yī páng de nián qīng nán zi yě tái qǐ tóu lú 。
而这时候，一旁的年轻男子也抬起头颅。
At this moment, the young man beside her also raised his head.
tā de liǎn sè tóng yàng shì yīn yù dào wú yǐ fù jiā de dì bù ， yuán běn de liè rén biàn chéng le liè wù ， fū hǎo de jú miàn tū rán jí zhuǎn zhí xià ， jiù suàn shì fēn shén qī cún zài ， yě tóng yàng yǒu xiē jiē shòu bù liǎo zhè yàng de luò chà 。
他的脸色同样是阴郁到无以复加的地步，原本的猎人变成了猎物，夫好的局面突然急转直下，就算是分神期存在，也同样有些接受不了这样的落差。
His face was equally gloomy, having turned from hunter to prey. A sudden reversal in fortune left even high-stage cultivators struggling to accept such a drastic change.
yǒu méi yǒu gǎo cuò ， shì qíng wèi hé huì biàn chéng zhè yàng de 。
有没有搞错，事情为何会变成这样的。
Wasn't something wrong with how things had turned out?
yuán běn yīng jùn de miàn róng ， cǐ kè bèi lì qì gěi bù mǎn le zhà yī kàn ， jū rán yǒu jǐ fēn xiàng xiàn rù qióng tú mò lù de yě shòu 。
原本英俊的面容，此刻被戾气给布满了乍一看，居然有几分像陷入穷途末路的野兽。
The once handsome face was now filled with anger, looking like a wild beast at the end of its tether.
“ hū hū ！”
“呼呼！”
"Huff! Huff!"
tā shēn shēn hū xī ， shǐ jìn chuǎn le jǐ kǒu cū qì ， cái ràng zì jǐ jī dòng de qíng xù jiàn jiàn píng fù xià qù 。
他深深呼吸，使劲喘了几口粗气，才让自己激动的情绪渐渐平复下去。
He took deep breaths and forced several heavy breaths to calm his agitated emotions. However, his expression remained grim as he spoke in a firm voice: "Impossible. With over twenty high-stage cultivators from our three sects setting up a Spirit Ghost Five Elements Formation, even adding the river of hell poison and finding a traitor from Cloud Concealment Sect, all these preparations should be enough to deal with that Lin Xuan brat. How could we fail? He’s not at the Tribulation Transcendence stage..."
dàn liǎn shàng de biǎo qíng yī jiù shì nán kàn yǐ jí ， yī zì yī dùn de shēng yīn chuán rù ěr duǒ lǐ ：“ bù kě néng ， wǒ sān pài lián méng èr shí duō míng fèn shén qī xiū xiān zhě ， bù xià líng guǐ wǔ xíng dà zhèn ， hái yǒu míng hé zhī dú ， shèn zhì cóng yún yǐn zōng zhōng xún dào le pàn tú ， zhè suǒ yǒu de bù zhì jiā zài yì qǐ jiù wèi duì fù qū qū yí gè lín xiǎo zi zěn me kě néng shī lì duì fāng yòu bú shì dù jié qī ……。”
但脸上的表情依旧是难看以极，一字一顿的声音传入耳朵里：“不可能，我三派联盟二十多名分神期修仙者，布下灵鬼五行大阵，还有冥河之毒，甚至从云隐宗中寻到了叛徒，这所有的布置加在一起就为对付区区一个林小子怎么可能失利对方又不是渡劫期……。”
His voice was slightly hoarse, as if questioning heaven or himself.
tā de shēng yīn dài zhe jǐ fēn sī yǎ zhī yì ， sì hū zài xún wèn cāng tiān ， yòu yǒu jǐ fēn xiàng shì zài wèn zì jǐ 。
他的声音带着几分嘶哑之意，似乎在询问苍天，又有几分像是在问自己。
But his response was a bitter smile: "Senior Daoist Lu asked me, and I can't ask anyone else. We have never seen that Lin Xuan brat, but this time, it's clear we underestimated him."
rán ér huí yìng tā de ， què shì kǔ sè de xiào yì ， gōng zhuāng měi fù de xīn qíng ， yì diǎn yě bǐ tā hǎo bù dào nǎ lǐ huí guò tóu lú ， lù chū de xiào róng bǐ kū hái yào nán kàn dé duō ：“ dào yǒu wèn wǒ wǒ yòu qù wèn shuí ne ， nà lín xiǎo zi wǒ men shéi dōu bù céng jiàn guò ， dàn zhè yī cì ， xiǎn rán shì wǒ men sān pài tài guò xiǎo kàn tā le 。”
然而回应他的，却是苦涩的笑意，宫装美妇的心情，一点也比他好不到哪里回过头颅，露出的笑容比哭还要难看得多：“道友问我我又去问谁呢，那林小子我们谁都不曾见过，但这一次，显然是我们三派太过小看他了。”
"Underestimated?" The young man didn’t know how to respond.
“ xiǎo kàn me ？” nián qīng nán zi dōu bù zhī dào gāi zěn me shuō 。
“小看么？”年轻男子都不知道该怎么说。
With over twenty high-stage cultivators surrounding an equal-level opponent, using formations and poisons, even employing a double agent, if underestimating meant failure, then what constituted proper respect?
èr shí duō rén wéi gōng yī tóng jiē xiū xiān zhě ， yòu shì zhèn fǎ ， yòu shì shǐ dú ， shèn zhì hái yǒu fǎn jiàn jì xiāng pèi hé ， rú guǒ zhè dōu suàn xiǎo kàn de huà ， qǐng wèn yī xià ， xiàn jìng yào zěn me zuò ， cái néng suàn shì zhòng shì ne ？
二十多人围攻一同阶修仙者，又是阵法，又是使毒，甚至还有反间计相配合，如果这都算小看的话，请问一下，宪竟要怎么做，才能算是重视呢？
However, she opened her mouth but couldn't ask the question. At this moment, asking would be meaningless; no matter how well-intentioned the process was, it could not change an unfavorable outcome. Their three sects had suffered a significant defeat, and they might not even have a chance to retreat.
rán ér tā zhāng le zhāng kǒu ， zhè ge wèn tí dào dǐ wèn bù chū ， huò zhě shuō ， zhè shí hòu jí shǐ wèn ， yě sī háo yì yì yě wú ， zài hǎo de guò chéng yě jí bú shì yí gè yǒu lì de jié guǒ ， rú jīn de qíng kuàng shì ， tā men sān pài dà bài kuī shū ， shèn zhì hěn yǒu kě néng lián fàn běn de jī huì dōu méi yǒu le 。
然而她张了张口，这个问题到底问不出，或者说，这时候即使问，也丝毫意义也无，再好的过程也及不是一个有利的结果，如今的情况是，他们三派大败亏输，甚至很有可能连范本的机会都没有了。
"Alright, let's stop talking about this. It serves no purpose now. We must leave quickly. Senior Guardian risked his life to send us this message; I don't want all our efforts to be in vain, leading thousands of disciples to their deaths here."
“ hǎo le ， bú yào shuō le ， rú jīn tǎo lùn zhè xiē ， hái yǒu shén me yòng chǔ ， wǒ men bì xū kuài diǎn lí kāi cǐ chù ， dà zhǎng lǎo kě shì pīn zhe xiǎo mìng ér cái fā chū de chuán yīn fú ， wǒ bù xiǎng ràng tā de nǔ lì quán dōu fù zhū dōng liú ， ràng jìn wàn dì zǐ ， quán dōu jiāo dài zài cǐ chù 。”
“好了，不要说了，如今讨论这些，还有什么用处，我们必须快点离开此处，大长老可是拼着小命儿才发出的传音符，我不想让他的努力全都付诸东流，让近万弟子，全都交代在此处。”
The woman’s cold voice echoed, and she was the more alert of the two.
nà gōng zhuāng měi fù lěng lěng de shēng yīn chuán rù ěr duǒ ， tā dǎo shì èr rén zhōng qīng xǐng jiào kuài de yí gè 。
那宫装美妇冷冷的声音传入耳朵，她倒是二人中清醒较快的一个。
"Alright!"
“ hǎo ba ！”
“好吧！”
The young man remained silent for a few moments before nodding. No matter how much he resented it, in the cultivation world, strength spoke louder than words.
nián qīng nán zi chén mò le jǐ xī de gōng fu ， yě diǎn le diǎn tóu ， xīn zhōng zài bù gān yòu rú hé ， xiū xiān jiè shì yǐ shí lì shuō huà de 。
年轻男子沉默了几息的功夫，也点了点头，心中再不甘又如何，修仙界是以实力说话的。
If over twenty elders couldn't stop Lin Xuan, would he dare to go alone and risk his life?
sān pài èr shí duō wèi zhǎng lǎo dōu dǎng lín xuān bú zhù ， nán dào tā hái gǎn dān qiāng pǐ mǎ pǎo qù sòng sǐ me ？
三派二十多位长老都挡林轩不住，难道他还敢单枪匹马跑去送死么？
While he was enraged inside, whether he had the courage was another matter. Ultimately, his own safety was more important; only a fool would throw himself away.
xīn zhōng jī fèn shì yī huí shì ， yǒu méi yǒu dǎn liàng shì lìng wài yī huí shì ， guī gēn jié dǐ ， hái shì zì jǐ de xiǎo mìng gèng jiā zhòng yào yī xiē ， zhǐ yǒu shǎ guā cái huì qù bái bái sòng sǐ 。
心中激愤是一回事，有没有胆量是另外一回事，归根结底，还是自己的小命更加重要一些，只有傻瓜才会去白白送死。
Thus, he naturally had no objections or disagreements with the suggestion to retreat immediately.
yīn cǐ ， tā duì tóng bàn mǎ shàng chè tuì de tí yì ， zì rán bú huì yǒu fēn háo fǎn duì yǔ yì yì 。
因此，他对同伴马上撤退的提议，自然不会有分毫反对与异议。
No one would target him, but if not for the thousands of disciples nearby, he might have fled like the main den already.
méi yǒu rén ， huì yǔ zì jǐ guò bù qù ， ruò bú shì fù jìn hái yǒu jìn wàn dì zǐ ， shuō bù dìng tā jiù yǐ jīng xiàng zǒng duò luò huāng táo qù 。
没有人，会与自己过不去，若不是附近还有近万弟子，说不定他就已经像总舵落荒逃去。
"Alright!"
“ hǎo ！”
“好！”
Seeing that the young man did not argue, the woman's face lit up in joy. She was genuinely afraid he would make an irrational choice out of anger and drag her into it.
jiàn nián qīng nán zi bù fǎn bó ， gōng zhuāng měi fù lù chū dà xǐ zhī sè ， tā gāng cái hái zhēn pà duì fāng tài guò fèn nù ， zuò chū bù lǐ zhì de xuǎn zé ， ér jiāng zì jǐ yě yāng jí diào le 。
见年轻男子不反驳，宫装美妇露出大喜之色，她刚才还真怕对方太过愤怒，做出不理智的选择，而将自己也殃及掉了。
Fortunately, such concerns were unnecessary. So she turned around with a cold and authoritative voice: "You all heard me. Follow my edict; all disciples should evacuate immediately, abandon the siege on Cloud Concealment Sect and the mines, and return to your respective main den."
hǎo zài zhè zhǒng dān xīn shì duō yú ， yú shì cǐ nǚ mǎ shàng zhuǎn guò shēn qù ， shēng yīn huī fù le lěng mò yǔ wēi yán zhī yì ：“ nǐ men dōu tīng dào le ， chuán běn gōng fǎ yù ， suǒ yǒu dì zǐ lǐ jīn é chè lí ， fàng qì duì yún yǐn zōng de wéi gōng yǐ jí duì kuàng mài de zhàn jù ， lì kè huí dào gè zì běn pài de zǒng duò lǐ 。”
好在这种担心是多余，于是此女马上转过身去，声音恢复了冷漠与威严之意：“你们都听到了，传本宫法喻，所有弟子里金额撤离，放弃对云隐宗的围攻以及对矿脉的占据，立刻回到各自本派的总舵里。”
"Aye!"
“ shì ！”
“是！”
The soldiers and maids nearby could hear their conversation clearly since they did not use sound transmission techniques. Although they didn't see the sound transmission talisman, from the elders' agitated expressions, they guessed the situation was dire.
liǎng míng lǎo guài wù duì huà shí ， bìng méi yǒu shī zhǎn chuán yīn shù ， yú shì cù yōng zài yī páng de jiǎ shì yǔ shì nǚ zì rán yě tīng dé qīng qīng chǔ chǔ 。
两名老怪物对话时，并没有施展传音术，于是簇拥在一旁的甲士与侍女自然也听得清清楚楚。
They had already been in a state of panic for some time.
suī rán tā men méi yǒu kàn jiàn chuán yīn fú ， dàn kàn liǎng wèi tài shàng zhǎng lǎo huāng luàn de shén qíng ， duō shǎo yě cāi dào qíng shì zāo gāo dào jí chù 。
虽然他们没有看见传音符，但看两位太上长老慌乱的神情，多少也猜到情势糟糕到极处。
However, the cultivation world had its hierarchy; if the two elders did not leave, no one dared to act rashly.
zǎo jiù rén xīn huáng huáng le 。
早就人心惶惶了。
They could only wait anxiously. Now seeing the elders making such choices, they were overjoyed and immediately contacted their respective sects using unique methods.
zhǐ bù guò xiū xiān jiè zūn bēi yǒu xù ， liǎng wèi zhǎng lǎo bù zǒu ， jiè tā men yí gè dǎn yě bù gǎn qīng jǔ wàng dòng 。
只不过修仙界尊卑有序，两位长老不走，借他们一个胆也不敢轻举妄动。
On the other side, facing the fierce attack from the three-sect alliance, Cloud Concealment Sect's disciples fought valiantly but in vain. The gap between them was too great; their average cultivation levels could not match theirs, and they were outnumbered tenfold. How could they fight? It was a one-sided battle.
zhǐ néng zài nà lǐ jiāo jí de děng dài jié guǒ ， rú jīn jiàn liǎng wèi zhǎng lǎo zuò chū zhè yàng de xuǎn zé ， tā men zì rán shì xīn xǐ dào jí chù ， xíng le yī lǐ hòu ， lì kè yǐ běn mén pài tè yǒu de fāng shì lián luò 。
只能在那里焦急的等待结果，如今见两位长老做出这样的选择，他们自然是欣喜到极处，行了一礼后，立刻以本门派特有的方式联络。
If not for the fact that the enemy did not capture prisoners, surrendering or being captured would result in soul extraction and essence refinement. Cloud Concealment Sect would have disbanded long ago if it weren't for this. Now knowing there was no escape, they fought on but how long could they hold out?
A beautiful woman in court attire was taken aback, showing a moment of surprise. However, she did not hesitate and raised her jade hand, pointing it forward. As she moved, a red light hovered above her head for a brief moment before settling into her palm.
**Bang!**
The red light burst forth, igniting a fierce flame. This turned out to be an extremely high-grade sound transmission talisman.
The woman quickly sank her divine consciousness to investigate.
"What?"
In the blink of an eye, she was startled and pale, her expression turning grim as she couldn't help but exclaim in shock.
"Senior Daoist Lu, what's going on?"
The young man turned his head in surprise.
He could not fathom why this would cause such a reaction from his companion. Everything now seemed to be under the control of their three sects.
"It is Master Senior Guardian sending us an urgent message to evacuate as soon as possible," the woman said, her voice clear and firm.
"What? Evacuate, Senior Daoist Lu! Are you joking with me!"
The young man's face was filled with disbelief, as if he had heard the most absurd question in the world.
"Such matters would not be idle talk from this lady. The specific details will become clear once you read the message from our senior guardian."
The woman's expression was grim to the extreme. She wished it were just a joke, but her rationality reminded her that it was impossible. Senior Guardian was known for his resolute and tenacious nature; he would not make such serious matters light conversation.
Unless he had gone mad!
But a high-stage cultivator like him wasn't in seclusion or meditation; how could his mind be deranged?
So, regardless of whether he wanted to or not, the situation was clear: their three sects were facing an impending disaster!
---
Or perhaps it was too early to say so. However, from the few words in the sound transmission talisman, she indeed felt a sense of despair.
She knew Senior Guardian's character well; he was always resolute and tenacious. If even he saw such a dire situation, there was no need for further elaboration.
Perhaps it was worse than she imagined. The woman's thoughts raced, causing her to feel increasingly anxious.
At this moment, the young man beside her also raised his head.
His face was equally gloomy, having turned from hunter to prey. A sudden reversal in fortune left even high-stage cultivators struggling to accept such a drastic change.
Wasn't something wrong with how things had turned out?
The once handsome face was now filled with anger, looking like a wild beast at the end of its tether.
"Huff! Huff!"
He took deep breaths and forced several heavy breaths to calm his agitated emotions. However, his expression remained grim as he spoke in a firm voice: "Impossible. With over twenty high-stage cultivators from our three sects setting up a Spirit Ghost Five Elements Formation, even adding the river of hell poison and finding a traitor from Cloud Concealment Sect, all these preparations should be enough to deal with that Lin Xuan brat. How could we fail? He’s not at the Tribulation Transcendence stage..."
His voice was slightly hoarse, as if questioning heaven or himself.
But his response was a bitter smile: "Senior Daoist Lu asked me, and I can't ask anyone else. We have never seen that Lin Xuan brat, but this time, it's clear we underestimated him."
"Underestimated?" The young man didn’t know how to respond.
With over twenty high-stage cultivators surrounding an equal-level opponent, using formations and poisons, even employing a double agent, if underestimating meant failure, then what constituted proper respect?
However, she opened her mouth but couldn't ask the question. At this moment, asking would be meaningless; no matter how well-intentioned the process was, it could not change an unfavorable outcome. Their three sects had suffered a significant defeat, and they might not even have a chance to retreat.
"Alright, let's stop talking about this. It serves no purpose now. We must leave quickly. Senior Guardian risked his life to send us this message; I don't want all our efforts to be in vain, leading thousands of disciples to their deaths here."
The woman’s cold voice echoed, and she was the more alert of the two.
"Alright!"
The young man remained silent for a few moments before nodding. No matter how much he resented it, in the cultivation world, strength spoke louder than words.
If over twenty elders couldn't stop Lin Xuan, would he dare to go alone and risk his life?
While he was enraged inside, whether he had the courage was another matter. Ultimately, his own safety was more important; only a fool would throw himself away.
Thus, he naturally had no objections or disagreements with the suggestion to retreat immediately.
No one would target him, but if not for the thousands of disciples nearby, he might have fled like the main den already.
"Alright!"
Seeing that the young man did not argue, the woman's face lit up in joy. She was genuinely afraid he would make an irrational choice out of anger and drag her into it.
Fortunately, such concerns were unnecessary. So she turned around with a cold and authoritative voice: "You all heard me. Follow my edict; all disciples should evacuate immediately, abandon the siege on Cloud Concealment Sect and the mines, and return to your respective main den."
"Aye!"
The soldiers and maids nearby could hear their conversation clearly since they did not use sound transmission techniques. Although they didn't see the sound transmission talisman, from the elders' agitated expressions, they guessed the situation was dire.
They had already been in a state of panic for some time.
However, the cultivation world had its hierarchy; if the two elders did not leave, no one dared to act rashly.
They could only wait anxiously. Now seeing the elders making such choices, they were overjoyed and immediately contacted their respective sects using unique methods.
On the other side, facing the fierce attack from the three-sect alliance, Cloud Concealment Sect's disciples fought valiantly but in vain. The gap between them was too great; their average cultivation levels could not match theirs, and they were outnumbered tenfold. How could they fight? It was a one-sided battle.
If not for the fact that the enemy did not capture prisoners, surrendering or being captured would result in soul extraction and essence refinement. Cloud Concealment Sect would have disbanded long ago if it weren't for this. Now knowing there was no escape, they fought on but how long could they hold out?