Under the surprise attack by the Heaven, Earth, and Yellow alliances, the Eastern Earth and other realms suffered heavy casualties. Fortunately, they had retreated to where Ling Tian and the others were. Lei Zhan and the others had abandoned their pursuit because they feared the North Profound and Profound Realms might intervene. That was the only reason Dong Ye and the others had survived.
But when they tallied the results of the battle, Dong Ye and the others turned ashen. The Eastern Earth and several other realms had fallen out of the top five, while the Western Earth and North Earth Realms had dropped into the bottom five because so many of their people had been killed. The Western Profound Realm, which had ranked fifth before, was now dead last. It had only one hundred and seven cultivators left.
They had gone from being rewarded to being punished, and the Western Profound Realm had even ended up in last place. It was easy to imagine how bitter and humiliated Sima Teng and the others felt.
Seeing the Eastern Earth and the other realms return, Ling Tian and the others weren't particularly surprised. They allowed them to enter their former encampment, but treated them much more coldly. Their refusal to meet with Dong Ye and the others was proof enough.
Dong Ye and the others had come to see Ling Tian for a simple reason: they hoped the North Profound and Profound Realms would pursue the people from the Heaven, Earth, and Yellow alliances. They no longer expected to return to the top five, but escaping the bottom five and avoiding punishment would still be a good outcome.
By refusing to see them, Ling Tian and the others had made their position clear: they wouldn't help them again.
Dong Ye and