“I can’t believe the Blood sect also sent people into the Green Illusion dimension.” An Ying looked down at the dried up corpse. “I seems the Ghost sect, the Blood sect, and the Hell sect all have their eyes on us. I just don’t know if the Hell sect… has also sent forces here. If so, I’m afraid the odds are going to be even more stacked against us.”
The appearance of the Blood sect’s disciples had sapped An Ying’s last remaining confidence regarding the journey into the Green Illusion dimension.
“What should we do?” Zheng Rui said, clearly worried. “How about we find a remote corner of the dimension and hide there for six months? If we haven’t emerged by then, our sect elders will surely come and check on us. We’ll be safe then.”
The rest of the trial takers, on the other hand, didn’t say a word.
Before coming to the desert, they focused on the idea of joining forces with the other three sects, returning to the glacier area, and killing every Ghost sect disciple.
However, the first thing they saw when they stepped into the desert was evidence that disciples of the Cloudsoaring sect were being slaughtered by the Blood sect.
It was human nature to fear death. Seeing the Cloudsoaring sect disciples, who they had originally thought to rely on for help, now in a difficult situation themselves, An Ying and her group were visibly shaken.
An Ying fell into silence as she pondered Zheng Rui’s suggestions.
All of a sudden, Pan Tao pointed to the distant sky, deeper into the desert. “There!”
Eyes squinting, Nie Tian discovered a line of dark-red smoke reaching into the clouds, like a dragon charging into the heavens.
“That’s the Cloudsoaring sect’s signal for help!” An Ying exclaimed.
Pan Tao thought for a moment, and said, “The Cloudsoaring sect’s people must have gotten into trouble, and are most likely battling with the Blood sect! Jiang Lingzhu’s strength is extraordinary. If it were the Lurker Lizard alone, she shouldn’t have given out the signal for help. Moreover, I wounded the Lurker Lizard in the glacier area. It couldn’t have completely recovered in such a short time.”
Various expressions flashed across Zheng Rui’s face. “It’s possible that the Cloudsoaring sect is being slaughtered by the Blood sect. When we get there they… may already be dead. If they’re facing the Blood sect and the Hell sect together, they’ll be killed off even faster. Once we get there, we might have to deal with the Blood sect and the Hell sect at the same time. What do you guys think?”
“You… you guys call it,” Guo Qi said weakly.
In his eyes, Nie Tian saw fear and cowardice, and couldn’t be more clear about what Guo Qi was thinking.
“I think…” said Nie Tian.
Surprisingly, the moment he spoke, everyone’s eyes became fixed on him.
“What do you say?” said Pan Tao.
“Since we know the people from the Ghost sect and the Blood sect are here in the Green Illusion dimension, we should consider us and the other three sects as a single group. We live and die together. The more disciples from the other three sects are killed, the worse odds we get. It’s totally imaginable that once the other three sects die out, the Ghost sect and the Blood sect will exert all means to find and kill us.
“The earlier they die, the more time the Ghost sect and the Blood sect will have to search for us.
“And when they find us, we will have to single-handedly fight the Ghost sect and the Blood sect. There will be no one to help us.”
With these words, Nie Tian threw a deep look at An Ying, and said gravely, “If you don’t have the confidence to keep the Ghost sect and the Blood sect from finding us in the Green Illusion dimension, we should get to where the Cloudsoaring sect has sent out the signal as soon as possible.”
“I, I…” An Ying stammered. After a moment of hesitation, she said somewhat disheartedly, “The Green Illusion dimension isn’t as big as you’d think. And the Blood sect is famous for their expertise in tracking people through the use of blood. I don’t think we can escape from their search just by hiding.”
Upon hearing her words, Guo Qi and the others’ faces suddenly turned pale from the unexpected blow.
“If that’s the case, then what are we waiting for?” Nie Tian countered.
Staring firmly ahead, An Ying finally made up her mind, and called out, “You’re right. Let’s head over there now and see what exactly they’ve run into!”
SHEW!
The second she finished talking, Nie Tian shot forward like a sharp arrow that had been released from its string.
This time, he didn’t try to hold anything back. Spiritual power exploded inside of him, and with his sturdy physique, Nie Tian rapidly whizzed forward at a speed that made even An Ying feel amazed.
He knew Jiang Lingzhu and Nie Xian were traveling with the Cloudsoaring sect’s group.
Jiang Lingzhu was the beloved daughter of the Cloudsoaring sect’s master, Jiang Lingzhu. He had only met her once in Black Cloud City, but she left him a good impression.
Nie Xian, on the other hand, was one of the few clansmen that Nie Tian thought highly of.
Even if it were only for Jiang Lingzhu and Nie Xian, Nie Tian wouldn’t sit back and watch the Cloudsoaring sect’s people getting slaughtered.
Not to mention that he knew better than anyone that the more trial takers of the Cloudsoaring sect they could save, the better odds of survival they would have fighting the Ghost sect and the Blood sect in the Green Illusion dimension.
He was always able to make a rational analysis of the situation in crucial moments, and thus understand how to save himself.
He knew very well that helping the Cloudsoaring sect meant helping themselves!
In the middle of the desert, by a lake…
Six trial takers from the Cloudsoaring sect, including Jiang Lingzhu and Nie Xian, were engaged in fierce fighting against Yu Tong and other four disciples of the Blood sect. Numerous streams of blood-colored light were passing quickly over the battlefield.
Off to the side, two trial takers from the Cloudsoaring sect were lying in pools of blood, dead.
Closer to the lake, there lay a few badly mutilated spirit beast corpses, and shockingly, the Lurker Lizard was among them.
Not long ago, Jiang Lingzhu and her group had found the Lurker Lizard in this area, and after a hard-fought battle, they eventually slaughtered it.
Just when they were about to severe the Lurker Lizard’s head, five Blood sect disciples suddenly showed up, with Yu Tong as their leader.
It seemed that the Blood sect disciples had been waiting in the dark for their battle with the Lurker Lizard to end.
One side had exhausted all their strength while the other side was full of vigor. The battle had been skewed from the start.
After a short fifteen minutes of fighting, two of the Cloudsoaring sect disciples had died by the hands of the Blood sect disciples.
With merely six people left, the Cloudsoaring sect were at an absolute disadvantage facing the five Blood sect disciples. Therefore, they had to release the signal for help, hoping people from the other three sects were in the vicinity and could rush over upon seeing the signal.
WHOOKSH! WHOOKSH! WHOOKSH!
Countless blood snakes, as thick as a thumb and five to six meters long, slithered along by Yu Tong’s side, making sounds that sounded like the cracks of a whip.
They emanated the pungent odor of blood, within which pulsed a strange power that could make people lose control of their own blood.
During her fight with Yu Tong, Jiang Lingzhu was forced to spare some attention to suppress the strange movement of her blood. She was in a terrible situation.
WHOOKSH!
A long blood snake suddenly emerged from the sand behind Jiang Lingzhu, viciously lashing Jiang Lingzhu on the back with its tail.
Sensing the burning pain, Jiang Lingzhu let out a muffled groan, and staggered several steps forward.
WHOOKSH! WHOOKSH!
Under Yu Tong’s control, even more blood snakes targeted Jiang Lingzhu and shot toward her with the intention of ripping her into shreds.
“Cloud Illusion Shield!”
Numerous cloud clusters suddenly emerged from the silver shield that Jiang Lingzhu held in her hand, which turned into a shield of clouds that completely enveloped her.
WHOOKSH! WHOOKSH! WHOOKSH!
One whipping sound after another rang out, as the blood snakes lashed their tails onto the thick layer of clouds.
Jiang Lingzhu’s face suddenly turned pale, apparently from having consumed a large amount of spiritual power. Rage filling her heart, she said, “Despicable! If I hadn’t lost some of my spiritual power because of killing the Lurker Lizard, you wouldn’t be able to hit me even once!”
“Whatever,” Yu Tong said indifferently, continuing with her deadly attack.
WHOOKSH!
In this very moment, a figure suddenly appeared from behind a sand dune.
“Nie Tian!” exclaimed Nie Xian, even as he staggered backward because of the attack of a Blood Sect disciple. By this point, he had almost been pushed into the lake itself.
“Nie Tian!” Jiang Lingzhu cried out in joy. Enlivened, she asked, “Where’s An Ying? Are they behind you?”
“Yes, they’ll be here shortly,” Nie Tian shouted.
Upon hearing the news that the forces from the Spiritual Treasure sect would arrive soon, the desperate Cloudsoaring sect disciples suddenly seethed with excitement.
“Everyone, hang on for a little longer!”