Chapter 595

Chapter 595: Departure

The Fireburst Talisman appeared more than ten miles away from Wang Chen.

But he pushed his flying sword to the limit, darting along the treetops amidst dazzling sword light. In just a moment, he arrived at the scene of the incident.

Wang Chen immediately saw that in the dense forest ahead, a group of loose cultivators was besieging three disciples of the West Sea Sect!

The opening and closing times of the Biluotian secret realm were fixed. Once the time limit passed, all cultivators exploring within would be automatically teleported out.

The teleportation location was entirely random.

Thus, some cultivators who had missed the entrance or were too afraid to venture inside lay in ambush in the surrounding areas, ready to intercept those who emerged.

Since many had endured fierce battles within the secret realm, their spiritual energy might be depleted, or they might be injured.

Once they encountered these "vulture" cultivators, the consequences were all too predictable!

The three West Sea Sect disciples had clearly been unlucky, stumbling upon such a group.

Fortunately, they carried protective spiritual symbols and had managed to stick together, forming a simple defensive formation back-to-back to barely withstand the frenzied attacks of their enemies.

But with the enemy outnumbering them, it was clear to anyone that they wouldn’t last long.

"Finish them quickly!"

A masked loose cultivator barked sharply, "We don’t have time!"

The besieged West Sea Sect disciples had sent out a distress signal; reinforcements could arrive at any moment. If they didn’t eliminate the three immediately, the entire team risked annihilation.

The West Sea Sect disciples were not to be trifled with!

The loose cultivators involved understood the stakes and quickly drew their magical artifacts and spiritual symbols, revealing their ace in the hole.

Seeing this, the three besieged disciples wore expressions of utter despair.

Crack!

Yet, at that critical moment, dazzling lightning abruptly rained down from the sky.

It struck right in the midst of the loose cultivators!

"Sky Thunder!"

Screams of agony followed, filled with despair.

The hunters had become the prey; they had never expected the West Sea Sect reinforcements to arrive so swiftly.

Two Qi Training cultivators couldn’t sustain their magical shields under the lightning’s onslaught and were obliterated on the spot, leaving no trace behind.

The stronger ones, who had magical artifacts or spiritual symbols for protection, barely escaped the calamity.

But their greed vanished like smoke under the thunder’s strike, and they scattered in all directions, fleeing for their lives.

This vulture team was a coalition of self-interest—a disorganized mob, at best. They excelled at preying on the weak but couldn’t be relied upon to face a strong enemy head-on.

The crisis for the three West Sea Sect disciples was instantly resolved.

Yet, they were seething with anger, unwilling to let their enemies escape unscathed. Each of them employed their own methods to pursue the fleeing loose cultivators.

"Don’t chase the desperate enemy."

Wang Chen landed on the ground and said, "Let’s regroup with the others first."

These loose cultivators were all desperate and reckless; killing them wouldn’t yield much benefit, and with the treacherous terrain and magical beasts lurking in Mount Taiwu, splitting up to chase them wasn’t a wise choice.

Though the three fellow disciples felt reluctant, they knew Wang Chen was right, so they grudgingly halted their pursuit.

"Thank you, Brother Wang."

One of the cultivators bowed gracefully to Wang Chen in gratitude.

It was Li Mengyan.

The female cultivator looked quite disheveled, her robes stained with blood and riddled with tears.

Her face was pale, clearly showing the toll of her depleted magical energy.

Had Wang Chen arrived even a moment later, disaster might have struck!

"Don’t mention it,"

Wang Chen replied with a smile. "We’re fellow disciples; it’s only natural to watch out for one another."

At that moment, Wang Chen realized he hadn’t been expelled early from the secret realm—he was just like everyone else.

This meant the flow of time in the Tower of Heaven was entirely different from the outside world!

Suppressing his doubts, he first stood guard for the three, allowing everyone to rest and recover before setting out to find the others.

Not long after, a few more fellow disciples arrived.

The group quickly grew in number.

They continuously sent out signals to locate their comrades, and eventually, twenty-seven people gathered together.

Along the way, they encountered several groups of vulture-like loose cultivators, but these opportunistic bullies quickly fled at the sight of Wang Chen and his group, not daring to cause trouble.

No one bothered to pursue them.

However, after thoroughly searching the surrounding area, no other fellow disciples appeared.

This included Sun Wenxuan and Yin Sùlán.

They were nowhere to be found!

Wang Chen didn’t know whether they were still trapped in the secret realm or had met with misfortune after escaping.

Regardless, a heavy sense of unease settled over everyone.

Such occurrences were not uncommon; the Biluotian secret realm was a place of endless mysteries and dangers. Even after centuries of exploration by countless cultivators, its secrets remained largely hidden.

Countless lives had been lost within the secret realm, and the disciples of the West Sea Sect were no exception!

If something had truly happened to Yin Sùlán…

Wang Chen gripped a talisman, ready to activate it, when a streak of sword light shot out from the trees like a bolt of lightning.

The next moment, the sword light dissipated, revealing a graceful figure.

Yin Sùlán!

Wang Chen exhaled in relief. "Senior Sister!"

Yin Sùlán wiped the sweat from her brow and smiled. "I ran into a few petty thieves when I emerged just now."

She spoke casually, but it was clear she had endured a fierce battle.

Wang Chen didn’t press for details. "As long as you’re safe."

Yin Sùlán glanced around. "Is everyone here?"

The group exchanged uneasy glances, unsure how to respond.

Only about half of their original number had gathered; the losses were severe.

The journey of cultivation was fraught with peril; just days ago, they had laughed and talked with their fellow disciples, but now some were gone without a trace. Even the most hardened hearts couldn’t help but feel a pang of sorrow.

Wang Chen said, "Let’s keep searching."

They expanded their search area, sending out signals at regular intervals.

Eventually, they found two more fellow disciples.

One of them was seriously wounded; had Wang Chen and the others not found him, he might have faced grave danger.

But Sun Wenxuan was still missing.

"We need to go,"

Wang Chen said as the sky darkened. He took out his magical flying ship, preparing for their retreat.

The flying ship had been a gift from Changhe Zhenren—a small vessel capable of holding nearly twenty people.

Though cramped, they could squeeze in seven or eight more if needed. Comfort was the least of their concerns at such a time.

All the disciples of the West Sea Sect boarded the flying ship, and they swiftly departed from the Mount Taiwu range.

This place was no longer safe!