Hunkering Down

Neither of them expected it to be the other. Yan Zhuixing was surprised that Yue Qianchou was sitting inside this strange creature watching the show, seemingly quite relaxed, even holding a coconut in his hand. Yue Qianchou was even more surprised, never expecting this guy to be able to fly through the air; that required at least the early Tribulation stage realm!

Damn it! I thought my cultivation had improved fast enough, but I didn't expect there to be someone even more monstrous... Yue Qianchou looked at the other person's feet again and again, but he couldn't find any flying magic Law Artifact under Yan Zhuixing's feet. In addition, he couldn't see through the other person's cultivation at all, so he had to accept the conclusion that the other person was more powerful than him.

"To see Brother Yue here is truly a delightful surprise. Would Brother Yue not like to come out for a chat?" Yan Zhuixing's face broke into a genuine smile—or rather, a smile of joy. He seemed to have a sense of satisfaction at the moment.

Upon seeing Yue Qianchou, the Man Hu brothers immediately recalled their Second Brother's death at the opponent's Blade Drawing Tournament. Their faces betrayed their deep resentment, a clear indication of their burning desire for revenge. Coupled with the message from their master that they no longer needed to worry about Ziyi, their resolve for revenge only strengthened.

Damn! What a crappy aircraft! The soundproofing is so bad! Yue Qianchou waved awkwardly at the group and said, "Brother Yan, please wait a moment, I'll be right there."

He quickly went outside. He waved to the captain and whispered, "A powerful enemy has arrived. Immediately notify the other three flying Law Artifacts to close all hatches. Tell the people in the sea to hide there for now. It won't be long before the Huaxia Alliance's reinforcements arrive, and we'll be safe."

"Sir, we are willing to go out and fight," the captain pleaded, clearly unwilling to be cowards. The Ziyi nodded heavily, already pulling out a purplish-black bamboo stick, a fighting spirit surging from his entire body.

"Fight my ass! Two late Tribulation Transcendence stage have already cost us two hundred brothers. Now there are six late Tribulation Transcendence stage outside. Going out will only get you killed. Knowing it's futile and still doing it—well, that depends on the situation." Yue Qianchou's face darkened as he said, "Since when can orders be bargained? Execute orders!"

"Yes!" The two leaders immediately relayed the order, and the four flying magical Law Artifacts pulled the main mechanism almost simultaneously, and all the doors and shells closed tightly with a "whoosh".

Yan Zhuixing and Man Hu were taken aback by the commotion of the flying magical Law Artifacts in front of them. Needless to say, Yue Qianchou was definitely not coming out; it seemed he had made up his mind to stay inside.

The group felt like they'd been tricked. Yan Zhuixing's face darkened, and he tried to keep his tone calm as he said, "Brother Yue, what do you mean by this? I've heard you're incredibly audacious. There's nothing you wouldn't dare to do. Are you afraid of me, Brother Yue? Or are you just naturally inclined to bully the weak and fear the strong?"

"They actually tried to provoke me? That's a trick I'm tired of playing!" Yue Qianchou sneered, slapped the bulkhead made of Nether Iron, making a few muffled thuds, looked around, and nodded in satisfaction.

He swayed back to the rear cabin, jumped onto the bed, lay on his side, propped his head up with one hand, and chuckled smugly, "Brother Yan, you are mistaken. Back then, Brother Yan and I hit it off immediately and became brothers. How could I be afraid of you? It's just that I've seen Brother Yan's cultivation advance by leaps and bounds, so I wanted to test you and see if you could open these flying magical Law Artifacts of mine. I have absolutely no other intentions."

Yan Zhuixing's expression twitched; he knew that saying anything more would be a waste of breath, and the other party definitely wouldn't come out.

"Shameless scoundrel!" Man Hu roared, "Yue Qianchou, you think you can save your life with just a few flying magical Law Artifacts? You're delusional!"

Yue Qianchou leaned against the bed and chuckled, "Brother Yan, you are such a refined and cultured person, how could you associate with a bunch of vagrants? It's truly a pity!"

"Stop wasting words with him, let's all attack together and break it open. Let's see where he can hide then." Man Hu waved to his junior brothers, who nodded slightly. Cold light flew out of their Storage Bags, and six flying swords were simultaneously launched into the sky.

"Brothers, plug your ears!" Yue Qianchou shouted, grabbing a blanket and pressing it tightly against both ears. The others weren't stupid either; hearing what was happening outside, they knew what was going to happen, and they all stuffed their index fingers into their ears.

The six brothers pointed their fingers, and six cold beams shot down like lightning. With a loud "bang," the flying Law Artifact hit by the six flying swords was instantly shaken and dropped forty or fifty meters.

Everyone inside was jolted, slamming against the cabin ceiling before falling back down. Yue Qianchou even bounced off his bed, crashing onto the deck and rolling several times, sending a pile of coconuts tumbling everywhere. He scrambled to his feet and ran around inside and out, finding the flying Law Artifact unharmed, and immediately breathed a sigh of relief. Then he covered his ears again, bracing himself for another shock.

Lu Qing and Niu Sen, who were floating in the air, looked at each other in surprise. To their surprise, neither of them expected that Yue Qianchou would hide inside and not come out, which was quite inconsistent with his arrogant and domineering personality.

When Man Hu and the others caught sight of the descending flying Law Artifact, they were filled with disbelief. It only had a few slight dents; the extent of damage they had imagined was nowhere to be seen. This was truly beyond their expectations. Seventh Brother exclaimed, "Good heavens! What on earth is this flying Law Artifact made of? It's so sturdy and reliable! No wonder this guy preferred to be a coward!"

"I refuse to believe that with the combined cultivation of the six of us, we can't break through a flying magic Law Artifact. Let's give it a hard fight!" With a shout from Man Hu, all six of them gripped their flying swords and instantly conjured six giant sword energies in the air. Without needing to be told, the six of them exerted their strength simultaneously, and the six giant sword energies roared down in unison.

"Bang!" The sound was deafening, startling even those engaged in a chaotic battle in the distance. They glanced over briefly, but seeing it wasn't their problem, they resumed their fight. The flying magical Law Artifact was cleaved directly into the sea, creating huge waves. It sank a few meters before bobbing up again, swaying incessantly.

Those inside were all shaken and staggered, exchanging bitter smiles. It was a truly unpleasant experience, but fortunately, given their cultivation levels, they were not seriously injured.

The group chased it back to the surface to investigate. While the impact was powerful enough, and the dent was deeper, it was clearly far from enough to destroy it. They had never heard of such a sturdy flying Law Artifact before.

Yan Zhuixing's expression changed repeatedly. He was truly unwilling to let Yue Qianchou go like this, but even with the combined strength of six people, they couldn't open the gate, so he himself was even more helpless. He couldn't help but laugh angrily, "Brother Yue, the feeling inside must be unbearable! You really can endure it!"

"Don't get cocky, kid. I'll get my comeuppance eventually!" Yue Qianchou shook his head and forced a smile, "Brother Yan, you probably don't know this, but these flying magical Law Artifacts cost a fortune. Their shockproof features are unparalleled in the Cultivation World. It's a pity I can't invite you to experience them with me."

The Ziyi expression changed slightly from the shock, glared at him, as if to say, "You're just putting on a brave face."

Yue Qianchou gave her a helpless wry smile and continued, "By the way, as brothers, there's something I need to remind you. You all need to be careful. The people you're fighting right now are just bait. Soon, carefully observe the east and south sides of Wuji Island. A large number of experts from the Cultivation Alliance will take advantage of Wuji Island's vulnerability to massacre Wuji Island. Brother Yan, if you have any relatives, friends, or valuables on Wuji Island, it's best to move them in advance, lest you regret it later. Don't blame me for not warning you, haha!"

These words caused the group's expressions to change. For Yan Zhuixing, besides his father, there was also the combined wealth of the father and son on Wuji Island. If what Yue Qianchou said was true, then the problem was serious. Man Hu and the others, whose disciples from the Great Snow Mountain were mostly on the island, were also somewhat alarmed. Although they suspected Yue Qianchou was lying, they still subconsciously glanced east and west.

In truth, Yue Qianchou's words were merely conjecture, but not entirely baseless speculation. Judging from various signs, the Cultivation Alliance was slowly losing ground, and their previous overconfident plans were clearly no longer effective. Since the forces in the southeast and north were no longer functioning properly, they would inevitably have to be called in to support this side; otherwise, a safe retreat would be a problem, Wuji Island would certainly press its advantage and inflict heavy losses on the Cultivation Alliance.

"Brother Yue, judging from your words, it seems you're trying to get rid of us! It's probably not as comfortable inside as you make it sound!" Yan Zhuixing thought he had seen through Yue Qianchou's trick. He said in a deep voice, "Imperial Preceptor, don't hold back! Continue the fight, let Brother Yue have some fun!"

"Beast!" Yue Qianchou cursed under his breath, and was about to cover his ears again when he heard someone outside shout, "Oh no! Senior Brother, Young Palace Lord, look!"

"Damn it! Trying to fool me with such a little trick!" Yue Qianchou rolled his eyes and covered his ears tightly. Ziyi was stunned for a moment, but always trusted his judgment, so he also covered his ears. It was hard for people outside to imagine the deafening noise inside the metal space; even Ziyi, who was at the late Tribulation Transcendence stage Realm, felt somewhat overwhelmed.

Yan Zhuixing, Man Hu, and the others looked in the direction Seventh Brother pointed, and their expressions changed drastically. Looking into the distance, they could see dense swarms of gray shadows advancing from two directions to the southeast.

"Damn it! This guy is telling the truth." Man Hu glanced at the flying Law Artifact still bobbing on the sea with a strange expression.

"Brother Yue, thank you for your advice. I will repay you handsomely in the future!" When Yan Zhuixing said this, a murderous Sha Qi like that of a ghost cultivator surged from his body, showing that he was quite angry that he had failed to kill Yue Qianchou. However, there was nothing he could do for the time being, so he waved his hand and said, "Back to Wuji Island!" The group quickly left.

Yue Qianchou waited inside for a while, but seeing no movement, he quietly opened his ears and looked around with suspicion. Could it be that these guys really left?

He hesitated and paced inside the cabin, wanting to send out his Divine Sense to investigate, but the Nether Iron's properties were so strange that it could block Divine Sense. People outside could not investigate inside, and people inside could not investigate outside.

After waiting for a while with no movement, Yue Qianchou raised an eyebrow, realizing that Yan Zhuixing and the others wouldn't waste time with him. He walked to the outer cabin, glanced at everyone, and cautiously opened a small window to peek outside.

Just as he expected, large numbers of troops were rapidly approaching from the southeast and two other directions. Yue Qianchou immediately clapped his hands and laughed, "It's alright, take off. Notify the people in the sea to continue, tell them that a large number of Storage Bags will fall down soon, but also tell them to be prepared to retreat at any time. This battle won't last long."

The flying Law Artifact took off again, and the protective shell of the rear cabin reopened. Yue Qianchou hooked a coconut with his foot, casually fixed it, and then continued watching the spectacle with renewed interest. Ziyi glanced at the scene outside, looked at him with surprise, and asked, "How did you know that people from the southeast and southwest would come?"

Yue Qianchou pointed to his head and said smugly, "Brain, rely on your brain. Now you understand why my master entrusted me with such an important task? So, listening to me is the right thing to do."

Ziyi pouted, but didn't refute, turning her head to look at the intense group battle that had escalated in the distance.

Yan Zhuixing of seven rushed across the battle area. Man Hu shouted, "Everyone, the enemy has sent a large number of reinforcements. Be sure to notify all personnel remaining on the island to engage in battle." In fact, even without his words, everyone had already noticed that long howls resounded in the air, and countless people immediately took to the sky from Wuji Island.

A flying sword whistled towards Yan Zhuixing as he flew. Yan Zhuixing let out a sharp cry, and his hands were suddenly shrouded in two clouds of black mist. His claws moved like phantoms as he grabbed the flying sword. He twisted the sword in his hands, and a piercing "crunching" sound rang out. The flying sword immediately twisted into a ball and was casually thrown away.

The person who released the flying sword, though only at the Nascent Soul Realm, was startled and tried to flee. But Yan Zhuixing's figure blurred past, and he immediately caught up, plunging a claw into the man's back and carrying him away at high speed. By the time Yan Zhuixing casually shook him off, the man was already a dried-up corpse falling into the sea.

The people around were so shocked by the strange and terrifying attack that no one dared to approach. Even the people from Wuji Island looked at each other in dismay, not expecting Yan Zhuixing to be so powerful. They all made way for the seven people to fly quickly towards Wuji Island.

Yuan Jiukui and Duan Tianbo were clearly not prepared for this situation. What would happen if their main force was crippled? So when they encountered people from Wuji Island rushing up to block them, they did not linger. Instead, they ordered the late Tribulation Transcendence stage experts from various sects to quickly provide assistance. Most of the experts immediately broke away and rushed to the main battlefield.

It's just a pity for those minor factions, who couldn't get away for the time being and were forced to play a role in obstruction and delay. Their miserable fate goes without saying.

Dozens of late Tribulation Transcendence stage Transcending experts arrived at once, instantly changing the battle situation at the top, with the Cultivation Alliance immediately launching a strong offensive. The brocade-robed elder Chang Mandong, suddenly heard a shrill scream behind him. Turning around, he saw that one of the cultivators protecting him had been attacked by three late Tribulation Transcendence stage Transcending experts who had rushed in, and had been accidentally cut in half at the waist.

Chang Mandong cried out in grief, "Junior Brother Qiu!" Four of his fellow disciples had come, and now two were dead. How could he explain this to his master?

However, after the three late Tribulation Transcendence stage experts killed Chang Mandong's junior brother, they immediately shot at him again. Chang Mandong was shocked. Ignoring his grief, he turned around and desperately fought off his entangled opponents, forcibly taking off into the air to escape...

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