On a small mountain peak several li away, Ji Yuan stepped out of the void, his gaze sweeping over the several people before him.
Present, besides Elder Hong Tian, were Lin Yu Bai and two inner sect elders, along with Xu Lin from the Ming Jian Division, Old Man Chen from the Qian family, and Tie Xiong Xin from the Shan He Gang.
Including Ji Yuan, a total of eight third-realm existences had gathered.
Such a force, even a sect with orderly inheritance, would have its gates broken without question.
Unless a Golden Core stage existence was present, even sects with centuries of foundation could not withstand it.
Even if the cultivators of Shen Xuan Sect were powerful, if they were ambushed by everyone, they would at least suffer heavy casualties, and with a single misstep, be annihilated here.
Yet, despite their thorough preparations, the group of madmen never showed themselves.
"The situation has changed; the people of Shen Xuan Sect must have sensed something."
Ji Yuan said in a deep voice.
Previously, he had infiltrated the void and scouted an area of nearly twenty li, but he had not found any trace of Shen Xuan Sect cultivators.
"This is not in line with the style of those madmen."
Elder Hong Tian frowned. After much thought, he couldn't find any slip-ups on their part.
But if they hadn't received any prior warnings, given their usual behavior, they would have rushed in headlong, confident in their strength, even if they knew it was a trap.
Unless they knew that the danger they were about to face exceeded their own capacity to withstand it.
However, whether it was Old Man Chen of the Qian family, or the helpers from the Ming Jian Division and Shan He Gang.
They had been invited in secret and had been making preparations for more than half a month, making it impossible to be discovered.
Ji Yuan had even specifically used a divine power avatar to appear in the public eye and confuse them.
The reason he had kept Zhao Yuan Song and the others by his side was to create a misapprehension.
This was to prove that he had not been replaced by a fake body.
"Even if the message leaked, it has absolutely nothing to do with me."
Tie Xiong Xin spread his hands, immediately trying to absolve himself.
And what he said was indeed the truth; of the entire Shan He Gang, only he knew about this operation.
Even his disciples only knew that he was in seclusion for training and were unaware that he had quietly left the county town.
"The possibility of a problem arising from within our own ranks is slim."
Ji Yuan swept his gaze across everyone, then shook his head slightly.
Apart from the members of the Jiu Xuan Sect, the others were all carefully selected by him, and he had not revealed anything to them beforehand.
Therefore, the possibility of exposure due to this was not high.
So where did the problem lie?
Everyone looked at each other, at a loss for clues for the moment.
"Since we have not achieved our objective, let us return for now."
Old Man Chen spoke slowly.
He was supposed to be guarding the Ming Xin Xuan treasury for the Qian family and had been temporarily seconded. He should not be away for too long.
In the past, the Ming Xin Xuan had the Li family to contend with the Zhuang family, but now only the Qian and Zhuang families remained.
If he left for too long, there was no guarantee that the other party would not secretly tamper with the treasury.
"Let's go back."
Ji Yuan sighed involuntarily.
Failing to resolve the threat of Shen Xuan Sect this time would bring much more trouble and danger to his future actions.
Elder Hong Tian took out the flying artifact, and everyone ascended one after another, then broke through the void and departed.
Compared to their arrival, they no longer needed to conceal their figures, so their speed was naturally much faster.
Not long after, the group had flown more than ten li, and in a little over an hour, they would safely reach the county town.
However, as they got closer to the county town, Ji Yuan felt increasingly uneasy.
He subtly glanced around and noticed that in the expressions of the others, there were also some doubts.
Everyone present was a third-realm cultivator, and their spiritual senses were already very powerful, capable of foreseeing things that were not good for them.
At this moment, they all had a premonition, as if something was about to happen.
"Something's not right..."
Ji Yuan murmured in a deep voice.
He immediately formed a hand seal and opened his Dharma Eye to look around.
However, the surroundings were calm and peaceful; within ten li, there wasn't even a single mortal.
"This is a trade route, how can there be no ordinary mortals?"
His heart tightened, and he finally noticed what was wrong.
Within a radius of more than ten li, not only could no mortal be seen, but even birds, beasts, and other living creatures were absent!
"Alert!"
Ji Yuan shouted sternly.
In fact, there was no need for his reminder; everyone on the flying artifact had already mobilized their strength.
"Let's go down first!"
Tie Xiong Xin said immediately.
As for the others, it was fine; as cultivators, they could temporarily soar with their Dharma power.
But they, as martial artists, could not. Falling from such a height, even with their strong physique and powerful Qi protection, would not suffice.
They would probably be severely injured, if not killed, by the fall!
Upon hearing this, Elder Hong Tian immediately steered the artifact downwards, heading towards the deep forest below.
However, at this very moment, everyone's hearts tightened!
Without hesitation, they leaped, leaving the artifact beneath them at the fastest possible speed.
RUMBLE!!!
In an instant, the flying artifact shattered, and the spiritual energy within erupted!
Gusts of wind howled, stirred up by the violent spiritual energy, sweeping in all directions!
In a flash, Ji Yuan violently channeled the Dharma power within his body, then rapidly flew towards the nearest Xu Lin.
He reached out and grabbed the other's shoulder, then his Dharma power surged out, using the ability to temporarily soar to glide downwards.
They glided down from a height of a hundred zhang and then saw a sword light disappear above them.
That dreamlike hazy radiance, and the extreme cold that erupted with the sword light.
All of these indicated that the one who had launched the attack was precisely the white-haired middle-aged man from Shen Xuan Sect.
As expected, when Ji Yuan's gaze swept over, he immediately saw the other party's figure in a void.
This person had a talisman glowing with spiritual light pasted on him, and with its spiritual power, it prevented even Ji Yuan and the others from detecting him.
If he had not made a move, breaking the enhancement brought by the talisman, they would probably not have been able to see his figure until now.
And upon seeing someone looking at him, the white-haired middle-aged man revealed a smile, his eyes filled with icy killing intent.
Seeing this, Ji Yuan took a deep breath, and then dazzling sword light erupted from his body, along with surging Dharma power, enveloping Xu Lin, whom he was holding.
Enveloped by the sword light, the two accelerated their descent towards the ground.
But as they neared the forest below, the dazzling sword light suddenly exploded, counteracting the terrifying force.
And when the sword light dissipated, the figures of the two simultaneously disappeared into the forest.
A moment later, deafening roars suddenly sounded, and thick blood and qi covered an area of several li.
"How dare you!"
Tie Xiong Xin's roar shook the heavens, his terrifying aura permeating the air, giving the impression of an intent to destroy the world!