Chapter 860: Taking a Loss Again

“Quick, quick, quick, what are you all standing there for?”

Watching the enraged Xue Qiong, the commanders dared not delay and swiftly flew out from the mountain peak.

Boom! Boom!

Immediately, the army of the Ninth Branch of Shixue Hall surged out from various peaks of Huangquan Shanmai like a black ocean, heading straight for Huangquan Ancient City. To catch up with Haotian Shijia, they needed to use the teleportation array there.

Thus, the world, which had just quieted down, became lively once again.

In Zhenlong Ancient City, most of the people from Haotian Shijia had already teleported to Nanyang Ancient City.

High above the ancient city in the virtual sky, Ye Chen, wearing a mask, stood quietly like a monument. His sharp gaze scanned the surrounding skies, ready at any moment to handle sudden situations.

“Chen Ye.”

A female voice called from behind, but the one approaching was not Haotian Shiyue and the others; it was the wife of Haotian Xuanzhen: Huaxu.

In response to Huaxu’s call, Ye Chen withdrew his gaze and, out of courtesy, offered a ritual smile.

“Thank you for coming back to save us.”

Huaxu stepped forward slightly, her gratitude sincere.

“This matter arose because of me, Senior. No need for that.”

Ye Chen turned his gaze back to the surrounding virtual sky.

“He still hasn’t fully accepted Haotian Shijia.”

Huaxu murmured to herself, especially when she heard Ye Chen address her as “Senior,” she couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. By family seniority, Ye Chen should call her aunt.

In the end, this masked white-haired youth in front of her still harbored resentment toward Haotian Shijia.

For a moment, both fell silent.

After a while, Huaxu looked at Ye Chen.

“Chen Ye, about your mother...”

“Senior, that’s all ancient history.”

Ye Chen interrupted Huaxu’s words immediately.

“No matter what, it was Haotian Shijia that let your mother down.”

Huaxu took a deep breath. Even though Ye Chen didn’t want to discuss it, she still spoke up. It was a knot in his heart that needed to be untied.

“No one let anyone down; it was just my mother’s bad fate.”

Ye Chen’s smile carried a hint of sarcasm, and his tone grew colder.

As soon as she heard this, Huaxu clenched her jade hand inside her sleeve and sighed inwardly once more. She wanted to help Ye Chen resolve his inner conflict, but she had underestimated his temperament.

Silently, she turned and walked down from the virtual sky.

No sooner had she left than a sharp glint flashed in Ye Chen’s eyes, fixed dead on one side of the void. Although he didn’t know how far away it was, he seemed to vaguely see the army rushing like a black ocean.

Boom!

Soon, thunderous roars echoed from the distant horizon, audible even from such a distance.

“They’re coming?”

Hearing the roars, Haotian Xuanhai and the others stepped onto the virtual sky, their gazes like Ye Chen’s, looking toward the distant horizon.

“My dao body has already destroyed the teleportation array.”

Ye Chen said calmly.

“Huangquan Ancient City and Zhenlong Ancient City are over thirty thousand li apart. Without the teleportation array, they won’t catch up in a short time.”

“But we can’t rule out the Shixue Hall army attacking from other places.”

Ye Chen took a deep breath. “Our whereabouts have been exposed. Shixue Hall won’t let Haotian Shijia leave. There will definitely be an interception ahead.”

As soon as he said this, everyone’s faces darkened.

Previously, when they withdrew, their speed was slow, but Shixue Hall didn’t know their whereabouts.

Now, it was different. With their location exposed, Shixue Hall’s army had a clear target, and their speed would be extraordinarily fast. Beichu Ancient City had countless paths and intersecting teleportation arrays; it was only a matter of time before they attacked.

Let’s go!

While everyone was pondering, Ye Chen was the first to turn and dart into the teleportation array like a streak of light.

Behind him, Haotian Xuanzhen and the others glanced at the distant horizon before following him into the teleportation array.

Damn it! Damn it!

In the midst of the endless mountains, Xue Qiong’s roars of anger echoed.

Just moments ago, as they were using the teleportation array, they encountered the collapse of the spatial passage once again.

Again? Why say again?

It was because they had been tricked before. During the Haotian Shijia’s domain gate teleportation, the Ninth Branch of Shixue Hall suffered heavy losses, with almost everyone below Kongming Realm perishing in the spatial rifts.

As the hall master and a seasoned veteran, he had never made such a basic mistake twice in just three days, turning his already furious self into a raging demon.

“Hall Master, let’s take a detour through other ancient cities!”

A disheveled commander limped over. “The teleportation array in Huangquan Ancient City has been destroyed, and Zhenlong Ancient City’s will surely be destroyed too. The same goes for the upcoming Nanyang Ancient City. It’s a full ninety thousand li; flying alone, we’ll have a hard time catching up. To pursue them in the shortest time, we must find other ancient cities with teleportation arrays and keep teleporting. Compared to flying, teleportation arrays are still faster.”

“Besides Zhenlong Ancient City, what’s the nearest place?”

Xue Qiong asked with a ferocious expression.

“Tianzang Ancient City, nearly sixty thousand li from here.”

The commander replied immediately. “I’ve checked; their teleportation array is still intact.”

“Assemble the army and head to Tianzang Ancient City.”

Xue Qiong ordered at once. “Also, send a message to Shixue Hall headquarters. We need reinforcements to intercept Haotian Shijia ahead.”

“Understood.”

By now, Ye Chen and his group had arrived at the teleportation array in Nanyang Ancient City, where the Haotian Shijia members who arrived first were teleporting in batches.

As soon as he landed, Ye Chen flipped out a massive map and narrowed his eyes as he scanned every location on it.

“Boss, if there’s something, just say the word.”

His dao body rubbed his hands and approached eagerly. “I’m pretty good at screwing people over.”

“Here, Tianzang Ancient City.”

Ye Chen pointed to a spot on the map. “At all costs, destroy their teleportation array for me. Set off now.”

“Got it!”

His dao body didn’t hesitate and vanished in an instant.

“You’re worried that Xue Qiong and the others might detour through Tianzang Ancient City using the teleportation array?”

The old fellows were incredibly sharp and instantly saw through Ye Chen’s plan.

“After being tricked once and fooled twice, they won’t make the same mistake a third time. Compared to flying, teleportation arrays are still faster.”

Ye Chen nodded lightly. “As long as we destroy the teleportation array in Tianzang Ancient City, they won’t catch up in a short time. Then, we just need to deal with the interception ahead. Once we break through, we’ll have clear skies ahead.”

“You kid know a lot!”

Haotian Xuanhai exclaimed with emotion.

“After experiencing many wars, you naturally learn a lot.”

Ye Chen said as he turned and left.

Behind him, the whole group fell silent, their gazes toward Ye Chen subtly changed.

War! Indeed, war!

This youth, only twenty years old, was far more impressive than they imagined. Such strategies made them feel ashamed, and no wonder he had unified Nanchu in less than a year.