Ji Yuan left the county town that day, rushing towards the border of Luoxia County with great urgency.
He even directly deployed his flying artifact, not shying away from the significant consumption of his spiritual power.
Clearly, he understood that with Elder Hong Tian's strength, dealing with one late-stage Ming Dao realm cultivator and two mid-stage Ming Dao realm cultivators would already be challenging.
After all, the former had condensed two "Peak Three Flowers."
And the opponent hailed from the Shen Xuan Sect, a sect with a thousand years of history!
With additional helpers now, Elder Hong Tian, despite his power, would likely find himself unable to cope.
Several days later, Ji Yuan, piloting his flying artifact, arrived at the border between Luoxia County and Jinyang County.
He approached a mountainous region, and below, the landscape was already devastated, clearly the aftermath of a fierce battle.
Seeing the traces left behind, even he couldn't help but feel a chill.
At the same time, he couldn't help but sigh, realizing that Elder Hong Tian's strength far surpassed his imagination.
After a moment of reflection, he took out a jade disk and casually infused several streams of spiritual power into it.
For anyone else, finding their location would have been quite difficult.
However, he and Elder Hong Tian had made preparations long ago, and with the jade disk in hand, he could easily pinpoint their position.
In just a few breaths, the jade disk indicated the direction.
Upon seeing this, Ji Yuan immediately put away his flying artifact and sped towards the sky.
While using the artifact could increase his speed, the flying artifact itself lacked defensive capabilities or combat power.
Should any unforeseen event occur, it could lead to the artifact's destruction, and the resulting restrictions and spiritual energy could harm him.
More than half a day later, Ji Yuan suddenly halted, the light in his eyes flashing rapidly.
Without hesitation, he formed a hand seal and merged into the void, concealing his presence to the utmost.
Almost in the next second, a divine sense swept across the area.
Within that divine sense, a formidable aura emanated, causing even the void to ripple slightly.
Ji Yuan, hidden within the void, felt his expression shift, and he began to move silently.
He moved cautiously, advancing several miles.
During this time, several powerful divine senses repeatedly swept across the surrounding area.
"That is... Elder Hong Tian!"
Ji Yuan's brows furrowed, his suppressed aura nearly fluctuating.
His gaze pierced through the void, focusing on a mountain peak about a mile away, where a figure sat cross-legged.
Elder Hong Tian was seated on the mountain, his entire body shimmering with arcs of lightning.
Countless bolts of lightning intertwined, forming a formation dozens of feet wide, shielding him within.
Around the mountaintop, four figures hovered in the air, each with a formation flag floating before them.
Four cultivators at the mid-stage of the third realm, working together, had deployed a powerful formation, attempting to refine the person within.
Simultaneously, about ten feet away, a late-stage third realm cultivator hovered in the air, observing.
Without a doubt, these five third realm cultivators were all from the Shen Xuan Sect!
"What a grand display!"
After confirming that Elder Hong Tian was temporarily safe, Ji Yuan breathed a sigh of relief.
Upon witnessing the force deployed by the Shen Xuan Sect, he couldn't help but marvel.
Such power, an ordinary sect might not be able to withstand it, perhaps even having their gates shattered.
A late-stage Ming Dao realm cultivator who had condensed two "Peak Three Flowers,"
coupled with four formidable mid-stage Ming Dao realm cultivators.
Unless there was a Golden Core level powerhouse present, this force was sufficient to directly assault a sect's mountain gate.
"There must be something wrong here!"
Ji Yuan's gaze deepened, and he mused to himself.
He had already sensed that the Shen Xuan Sect's reaction was overly extreme.
Even if there was a deep hatred between the Xuán Tiān lineage and them, redirecting their anger to the Jiu Xuan Sect was already the limit.
To dispatch such a powerful force for the sake of an elder of the Jiu Xuan Sect was truly unreasonable.
After all, in the current Chong Yuan Prefecture, the influence of the Wang Sheng Lou and the rebels was even more severe than in Ling Yang Prefecture.
Furthermore, it was rumored that the Shen Xuan Sect itself was experiencing significant internal issues.
At this time, they should be desperately in need of personnel.
Yet, they were expending such a force to hunt down an elder of the Jiu Xuan Sect?
But if there was something wrong, what kind of issue could it be?
Ji Yuan's eyes flickered, and a possibility suddenly emerged in his mind.
He probed the colorful cloud jade pendant with his divine sense, his attention falling on two small banners entwined with vengeful spirits.
These were the Ten Thousand Souls Yin Spirit Banners!
This item was a spoil of war from Nine Lang Mountain, and it was given to him by Elder Hong Tian.
Originally, he had intended to liberate the spirits within but had never found the time.
Suddenly, a bold thought crossed his mind.
Could the Shen Xuan Sect... also be secretly connected to the Wang Sheng Lou?
If not, he really couldn't think of any other plausible reason.
And besides the Ten Thousand Souls Yin Spirit Banners, he could find no other reason that would prompt the Shen Xuan Sect to act in this manner.
"However, rescuing Elder Hong Tian will be incredibly difficult!"
Glancing into the distance, Ji Yuan felt a great headache.
To break through a grand formation that sealed off an entire area under the watchful eyes of five third realm cultivators,
and then to extract Elder Hong Tian, the difficulty was indeed extraordinary.
With Ji Yuan's current strength, breaking the formation would not be difficult; the challenge lay in how to face the siege of five powerful third realm cultivators afterward.
Even if he and Elder Hong Tian joined forces, they would likely gain no advantage.
As he pondered a strategy, the third realm cultivator hovering nearby suddenly spoke.
"Hand over the item."
The middle-aged man with white hair spoke with a thunderous voice.
Upon hearing this, Ji Yuan's expression immediately shifted, and he focused, listening intently.
"If I hand it over, will you let me go?"
Elder Hong Tian opened his eyes and looked up into the sky.
A cold sneer and a mocking expression appeared on his face.
"Perhaps I can give you a quick end."
The middle-aged man retorted with a cold smile, "At least you won't have to suffer the torment of your soul becoming a lamp wick, burning for decades."
Ji Yuan's lips twitched. Why did cultivators always resort to such methods, threatening to turn one's soul into a lamp wick?
However, while complaining inwardly, his expression also grew serious.
From the ensuing conversation, it truly confirmed his suspicion that the Shen Xuan Sect likely had problems.
"Hand over the Ten Thousand Souls Yin Spirit Banners, and I guarantee you a swift end!"
The middle-aged man said coldly.
As his words were uttered, the temperature of the surroundings plummeted significantly.
Even snowflakes began to drift down, creating the appearance of an impending winter.
"A swift end like your soul scattering to the winds?"
Elder Hong Tian scoffed, "They say the people of the Shen Xuan Sect are lunatics, and it seems that is indeed true."