The Saint-Level Ambush

After Leilia left, Sean returned to his cultivation chamber.

By now, he knew what the Church's crisis was about, so he needed to make the proper preparations. The Earth Element surged around him, and suddenly he vanished from where he stood. When he reappeared, he was already ten meters away.

This was the Earth Element's level-eight spell, the Burrowing Technique. It fused Earth Element with the caster's body, allowing them to burrow underground. However, the spell was impractical: it was slow, and one mistake could leave the caster trapped deep underground. It also required a great deal of mental strength. Among Earth Element magi below Saint-level, practically everyone knew the spell, but few ever used it.

But Sean knew that this was Earth Walk, one of the six Mysteries of the Earth Element.

Over the past year or so, besides attempting to break through to level nine, Sean had also been trying to comprehend these supreme Mysteries. The most basic way to begin was naturally to reverse-engineer the magic passed down by the Overgod.

Gravity magic had to originate from Gravity Space, the Earth's Armor came from Earth Pulse, and the Burrowing Technique came from Earth Walk. Many other basic spells also derived from the Mysteries of Earth. As for the remaining two, Profundity of Strength and Vitality, Sean hadn't found any corresponding spells.

There simply hadn't been enough time—or perhaps his soul was too weak. He couldn't comprehend any Mysteries at all, and could only rely on incantations to keep practicing, gradually shortening the time it took to cast spells while improving his strength as much as possible.

Three months later, Sean came out of seclusion again. Though he still hadn't broken through to level nine, his mental strength had improved during those three months, and his command of magic had reached a new level. Meanwhile, training in Gravity Space had brought his warrior strength to the peak of level eight.

"Good day, Mr. Sean," several neighbors greeted him politely by the roadside.

"Good day," Sean replied courteously. He had lived in Shengyue City all his life and naturally knew many people. He got along well with them, too.

It was hard to imagine whether this city would be destroyed if a divine-level war really broke out.

Suddenly—

"Rumble!" The ground throughout the city began to shake. The earth rose and fell like waves, and in the blink of an eye, countless buildings collapsed. An untold number of people were buried beneath the rubble.

"Earthquake!" Many people who had escaped the first wave of damage in open areas immediately shouted and prepared to rescue others.

"This isn't an earthquake." Sean's expression changed. Earthquakes did happen in this world, but Shengyue City was the Radiant Church's heartland. A massive Magic Array had been set up here to ward off natural disasters. Even if a major quake struck nearby, it would filter out much of the damage. Besides, he sensed that the energy was coming from the sky.

Just as he had expected, a second "earthquake" soon struck, followed by a third. All the buildings around Sean collapsed. Fortunately, many people here were level-four or level-five warriors, who generally weren't afraid of being buried under rubble. Still, many ordinary people and frail magi suffered serious injuries.

Sean hurried toward his home. Too many people in the area were injured, and he couldn't save them all. Earth Element magic wasn't suited for rescue work; all he could do was get home as quickly as possible.

Sean's home had its own defensive Magic Array, so it had withstood the repeated shockwaves without collapsing. By now, many of his subordinates were terrified out of their wits. They didn't know what was happening, but they could tell something was terribly wrong.

"Go to my chamber. It should be safe to hide there," Sean said.

"Yes, Mr. Sean." The few subordinates bowed, then hurried inside.

Sean stood outside his home and waited. Before long, Leilia arrived, just as he'd expected. Sean asked, "Are people from the Darkness Church here?"

"Yes. Father told us to leave Shengyue City immediately." Leilia looked anxious. "The Darkness Church isn't the only one here. The Nature Church, Water God Sect, and Wind God Sect have all come as well. They've joined forces. The Church's experts are all focused on maintaining the Magic Array, but it may not hold much longer."

"No wonder they attacked so quickly. They've joined forces," Sean said with a frown.

Through Leilia, he had learned that the Radiant Church had at least eight divine-level experts, while the Darkness Church had only three. The other churches each had only one or two. Under normal circumstances, even combined, the other churches wouldn't be a match for the Radiant Church. They also had their own internal divisions, which was why the Radiant Church had long held unchallenged dominance over the Zhongyuan Continent.

But the Darkness Church had a Middle God. One against eight might not even be a problem for him. Still, the Radiant Church must have accumulated countless years' worth of resources. The Middle God from the Darkness Church should have made thorough preparations before coming. But with the other churches joining forces, there was no longer any need to wait.

"The Church prepared underground escape tunnels for us long ago. They had planned to send us out sooner, but no one expected Shengyue City to come under attack so suddenly," Leilia said. "Let's talk later. We have to go now."

"All right. Let's go." Sean didn't hesitate. He had already put everything he needed into his Spatial Ring, and the chamber was stocked with basic necessities. As long as it wasn't hit directly by an expert above Saint-level, the people there could hold out until the battle ended, whatever the outcome. He couldn't control what would happen to them afterward, but he had done all he could.

The two soon disappeared into the streets. Before long, they reached a slum, where several level-nine experts were keeping order.

"I never would've guessed the tunnel exit would be built here," Sean said in surprise.

"Putting it somewhere unexpected was the only way to keep it hidden. The area outside the city is already surrounded by an army. This tunnel is more than a thousand li long. Several Saint-level Magi of the Earth Element dug it together, and they finished in just a few months without disturbing the buildings above," Leilia explained.

"That's impressive." Sean was an Earth Element magus himself, and digging a cave wasn't a problem for him. But he couldn't imagine excavating a tunnel this spacious. If they'd had this kind of ability back on Earth, tunnel-boring machines would've been obsolete long ago.

After their identities were checked, Sean and Leilia joined many others heading out through the tunnel. Clearly, the people leaving weren't just promising young talents. Royal relatives, nobles, and family members of Saint-level experts could also escape through here. That was only natural.

A thousand li wasn't that far. In half a day, they had reached a point well beyond Shengyue City. As soon as they emerged, Sean's expression turned grave. He sensed a huge surge of elemental energy in the distance. Its power was so immense that it shook him.

"That must be divine-level experts fighting," Leilia said, her expression equally grim. His father might be among them. He wasn't worried about encountering a Saint-level expert; his father was one of the strongest Saint-level experts and was considered one of the candidates most likely to reach divine level. But if they ran into a divine-level expert, they'd be in trouble.

His father had told him that the gap between an early-stage Saint-level expert and a level-nine expert wasn't very large. With numbers—or even a sneak attack—there was a chance to turn the tables. But the gap between a divine-level expert and a peak Saint-level expert was like the difference between heaven and earth.

"We should move. This place isn't safe," Sean said after a moment. The tunnel's safety was questionable. If the Darkness Church was smart, they would search the area—but only if they had enough experts to spare. They would surely wait until they had defeated the Radiant Church's experts first.

"All right." Leilia was still worried, but he knew that staying there might only make him a burden.

"Leaving? It's far too late for that now. Hahaha! Who would've thought I'd discover the exit to an underground tunnel?" Suddenly, laughter rang out from all directions.

Sean's expression changed drastically. Several experts dressed in the Darkness Church's robes had instantly surrounded the dozens of people who had just emerged. But the number of enemies around him wasn't what concerned him. It was the lone figure hovering in the sky.

There was no trace of Wind Element magic. This man was a Saint-level expert.