Siege

The purplish-black bamboo shook off its filth in the air and whistled back into the Ziyi's hand. Below, the old man in brocade robes hissed, "You wretch!"

With a cold snort, the woman in Ziyi landed directly opposite him without being told what to do. Carrying a bamboo stick, she slowly approached with a frosty expression, seemingly still not satisfied with the fight.

Yue Qianchou knew he was in trouble. This girl was stubborn and admired Old Man Bi's ruthlessness. She might not care about the life or death of Hundred Flower Fairy and her daughter. He quickly said to Hundred Charm Demoness, "Tell her to be careful not to do anything rash, or the other party might hurt the mother and daughter."

Hundred Charm Demoness understood the gravity of the situation and quickly relayed the message telepathically. Ziyi glanced over and stood guard opposite the old man in brocade robes. The old man in brocade robes, seeing his junior brother dead, initially wanted to abandon the mother and daughter and rush to avenge them. However, upon seeing Ziyi arrive, he immediately remembered that he might not be a match for her. He quickly grabbed the mother and daughter tightly and said in a deep voice, "If you dare to act recklessly, I'll let these two die before you even realize it."

The Ziyi didn't say anything. She just stood there staring at him, putting immense pressure on him.

Black-clad figures descended from all directions, surrounding the battleground. Each wielded a magical Law Artifact, exuding murderous intent, ready to strike at a single command. The old man in brocade robes and Yan Bugui around and were simultaneously startled; these people were definitely not their own.

"It's Yue Qianchou's Rogue Cultivator!" The Cultivation Alliance cheered. They confirmed the identity of the rogue cultivators by the words "Rogue Cultivator" on their chests. It was indeed Yue Qianchou leading the Rogue Cultivator who were swaying around.

But then everyone noticed something was off; their aura was completely different from the original Rogue Cultivator. The original ones stood haphazardly without any order, and couldn't even form a proper ranks. But these people, just standing there casually, exuded a sharp, ready-to-pounce aura, especially their eyes, which were covered and exposed, brimming with murderous intent, making them look like wolves waiting to pounce.

Hundred Charm Demoness looked at these people in surprise. Although she could see the words "Rogue Cultivator" on their chests, she thought of something else. The "heroes" who robbed them back then were all dressed in black and masked. Could it be them?

He glanced at Yue Qianchou subconsciously, only to see him calmly walking out from behind a few trees with his hands behind his back. Standing on the hillside, he surveyed the surrounding men in black with his eyes, and an air of arrogance began to emerge on his face.

They were all at the early Tribulation stage, totaling over six hundred people! My goodness! Where did they all come from? The Hundred Charm Demoness clicked her tongue in amazement and silently followed him out. Suddenly, she heard the sound of wind coming from both sides and immediately became alert.

"Don't be nervous, they're one of us," Yue Qianchou said calmly, glancing at her.

Two men in black swiftly appeared and stood before Yue Qianchou, bowing silently with their right hands placed on their chests. The surrounding six hundred-plus men in black also turned to Yue Qianchou and bowed in unison, their indescribable aura creating a palpable sense of pressure.

Yue Qianchou nodded slightly, and the men in black resumed their battle preparations. The two men in black in front of him flashed to Yue Qianchou's left and right sides to await orders. Hundred Charm Demoness was slightly taken aback, and had no choice but to stand guard behind Yue Qianchou.

From the perspective of the crowd below, Yue Qianchou and the men in black on either side of him were calmly observing the battle below. Yan Bugui's expression changed the moment he saw Yue Qianchou; this guy had ruined his plans time and time again, which was truly infuriating.

"Yue Qianchou, why aren't you calling your men to make a move? How long are you going to wait?" Chou Wuyuan shouted from below. It was clear that his True Essence was indeed somewhat depleted after his continuous Dongfang Changao.

"Elder Qiu, I'm so sorry we're late. Please ask Elder Dongfang to lead everyone out of the Rogue Cultivator. Leave the revenge to us rogue cultivators. Don't let it interfere with our actions," Yue Qianchou shouted.

The Hundred Charm Demoness rolled her eyes. He'd clearly arrived early, yet he claimed to be late. She extended a sharp index finger, intending to poke him in the lower back again. Unexpectedly, the two men in black beside him simultaneously turned sharply, staring coldly at her. Although the Hundred Charm Demoness's cultivation was higher than theirs, she was still somewhat intimidated by their sharp gazes and awkwardly withdrew her hand.

Dongfang Changao and Chou Wuyuan exchanged a glance from afar, then shouted loudly to the crowd, "Everyone, get out of the encirclement of the Rogue Cultivator, quick!" As they spoke, they struggled to break free from the entanglement of the few people, retreating while doing their best to cover everyone.

However, the foreign monks also understood that once they withdrew, the men in black would likely kill them, so they all clung to them and relentlessly pursued them.

Yue Qianchou frowned and whispered, "Order: Provide backup!"

"Yes!" the two men in black answered in unison, then quickly gave the order via hand signals. The surrounding men in black immediately formed well-trained three-person combat formations, rapidly tightening the encirclement and pressing towards the fighting crowd.

Hundred Charm Demoness was greatly shocked. It was unbelievable that a few simple sign words could command so many Tribulation Transcendence stage cultivators as if they were one person. Yan Bugui and the old man in brocade robes were even more astonished and felt a serious threat.

Ziyi stared in disbelief at her surroundings. The men in black exuded an astonishingly cold and imposing aura. Were these the same scattered group that Yue Qianchou had been leading around Yue Qianchou ago? The men in black simply stepped across the front of the Hundred Flower Palace, ignoring her and the old man in brocade robes, and only surrounded the people outside the Hundred Flower Palace.

The encirclement shrank, like a sieve, gradually filtering out the disciples from various factions of the Cultivation Alliance and forcing the foreign cultivators back. Some tried to escape during the entanglement, but as soon as they stepped forward, one person from each of the groups of three immediately stepped forward.

The surrounding formation remained intact, yet several people attacked simultaneously. The foreign cultivator's flying sword was released before he even had a chance to retract it; he was instantly cut into several pieces and killed in a flash.

A few who tried to escape by Flying Immortals also met the same fate. The power displayed by the collective sniping attack immediately stunned the entire scene. Yan Bugui longer dared to easily test their strength and were forced to retreat. The surviving cultivators of the Cultivation Alliance finally managed to retreat safely.

In front of the Hundred Flower Palace, within a radius of a hundred meters, more than thirty foreign cultivators huddled together in a panic, unsure of what their fate would be.

As soon as Dongfang Changao and Chou Wuyuan emerged, they flew to Yue Qianchou's side. Upon seeing the two men in black beside him, they both looked them up and down with curiosity. Chou Wuyuan asked in surprise, "Yue Qianchou, are they those Rogue Cultivators?"

Yue Qianchou looked at the two men covered in blood and laughed, "If it weren't for them, where would I have gotten these men?" He then pointed at Yan Bugui and ordered his men, "Capture this man alive. I want to use him to exchange for hostages. Leave no one else alive, kill them!"

The two quickly issued orders, and the encirclement formation changed again, becoming small teams of ten. Half of them rushed into the encirclement, while the other half quickly tightened the encirclement once more. A decisive battle of attrition, with overwhelming superiority, unfolded before the surviving members of the Cultivation Alliance, truly shocking them.

The opponent had almost only one chance to strike. Once their magical Law Artifact or Law Treasure was used, there was no going back, and they became lambs to the slaughter. Thirty or so Tribulation Transcendence stage faced over three hundred. They were quickly separated and forced to face a group attack alone, and the opponents' coordination was flawless. Their fate was predictable.

It was a battle without any suspense. The masked, black-clad Rogue Cultivator, without suffering any casualties, swiftly slaughtered his opponent, leaving only one survivor. Yan Bugui around in horror; he was truly the only one left. He never dreamed that Hundred Flower Valley would harbor so many Tribulation Transcendence stage experts. Fortunately, his opponent clearly didn't intend to kill him.

The old man in brocade robes stared down at the scene below, his face ashen. Although he was not surrounded, the Ziyi in front of him made escape difficult. The two women in his hands were now his last lifeline, and he had no choice but to hold on to them tightly.

Yue Qianchou shouted at him, "Listen up, you old man in the flowery clothes! I'm too lazy to argue with you. Release them both right now, and I'll let you and Yan Bugui leave."

"Words are meaningless! How can I believe you?" the old man in brocade robes immediately shouted.

"I Yue Qianchou, value my word above all else. I have never gone back on my word. I guarantee you with my reputation, so you can rest assured," Yue Qianchou said.

The old man in brocade robes chuckled coldly, "Reputation? Do you really think I'm a three-year-old? If you were to make a solemn oath, I would think that would be more appropriate than reputation."

"You have no right to bargain with me. I said I would let you two go, and I will keep my word." Yue Qianchou said indifferently, "I'll count to ten. If you still don't release them, Ziyi! Bring me that old guy's head." He then stared at Yan Bugui and said in a deep voice, "Don't spare his life either."

"No!" Dongfang Changao and Chou Wuyuan exclaimed in unison. Dongfang Changao shook his head and said, "Yue Qianchou, we can discuss it further."

The Hundred Flower Fairy had already closed her eyes, while Yan Zixia stared at Yue Qianchou with teary eyes, but he ignored her.

"I've never gone back on my word. If you're so capable, rescue them now." Yue Qianchou said indifferently to Dongfang Changao, then turned around and began counting: "One, two, three..." and quite quickly at that.

The Ziyi slowly took a step forward. The old man in brocade robes' expression changed drastically. He hadn't expected the other party to force him to make a decision without even considering it, and so hastily at that. When he counted to eight, he finally shouted, "Wait!"

"Speak quickly if you have something to say, I don't have the patience for that." Yue Qianchou snorted and continued counting "nine".

"I agree," the old man in brocade robes shouted. "I hope you will keep your promise."

He truly had no choice, even if it meant killing the mother and daughter. Abandoning Yan Bugui and escaping from Ziyi's grasp—such a serious matter would inevitably reach Yan Zhuixing's ears sooner or later; concealing it was impossible. Given the relationship between Yan Zhuixing and Man Hu and his group, he feared they would eventually find him unacceptable. He might as well take a gamble. If he could escape, releasing the mother and daughter was still an escape, at least he could explain himself to Yan Zhuixing. And if the other party kept their promise? That would be even better.

Upon hearing this, Dongfang Changao and Chou Wuyuan, whose hearts had been in their throats, finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"Good. You can doubt anything in this world, but you absolutely don't need to doubt my character, Yue Qianchou. It can withstand any test." Yue Qianchou nodded and said calmly.

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