Retreat

They had already been on the back foot. The Rank 9s had finally been about to turn things around, but then King Huai suddenly ordered the Rank 9 city lords into battle. That was absolutely the last straw.

"Damn it! Everyone in the Forbidden City Catacombs, withdraw in an orderly fashion!" Li Xianling roared. Now that the Outer Region city lords had joined the fight, they had to pull people out. Otherwise, if their Rank 9s couldn't hold on, the losses wouldn't be limited to the Rank 9s—the entire human race would likely be dealt a crippling blow.

The people in the Forbidden City Catacombs were already withdrawing. As for the low- and middle-ranked martial artists, some were still fighting while others withdrew in an orderly fashion. There was no other choice. Some lone fighters and the like couldn't get away even if they wanted to; the Catacombs fighters had them tied down, and those without the strength to break free could only stay where they were.

Everyone knew what would happen to those who stayed!

"Zhang Tao, fall back!" Wang Zanghai roared. There was no choice. The Rank 8s had finally started to recover, but now the Catacombs cities had joined the battle. The outcome was obvious. Wang Zanghai had no choice but to tell Zhang Tao to get out first while he held on a little longer.

Zhang Tao frowned. Were they really retreating just like that? He was reluctant to give up, but what could he do when he was only at the early Rank 8 stage? His vitality was formidable, and he recovered quickly; he even had Life Essence in his ring. But he wasn't a Rank 9 and couldn't turn the tide of a Rank 9 battle. Once that battlefield collapsed, they would all be doomed.

Zhang Tao felt utterly helpless. This was the human race's current predicament. He felt it all over again, took a deep breath, then turned and left. He would change everything—but clearly, not now.

Seeing Zhang Tao leave without shouting and carrying on like some hotheaded youngster, Wang Zanghai felt relieved. Now that was a worthy successor to a leader.

"Everyone, gather around me! We're fighting our way out!" Wang Zanghai roared.

At that moment, the Rank 7s, Rank 8s, and Rank 9s were all fighting for their lives. The sound of self-detonations rang out now and then. By the time Zhang Tao reached the Forbidden City, quite a few Rank 7s had made it back too. But compared with the force that had set out, only a handful remained.

"Get out, quickly!" Zhang Tao urged. The few surviving Rank 7s nodded and immediately darted through the passage.

Zhang Tao stayed behind to wait. Sure enough, he saw Wang Zanghai and the others fighting their way over. Somewhat relieved, Zhang Tao once again unleashed his powerful vitality, channeled it into his divine weapon, and hurled it. The weapon exploded right behind Wang Zanghai and the others.

Zhang Tao's face turned deathly pale, but he recovered quickly. The Rank 8s following Wang Zanghai were held up by the divine weapon's self-detonation, giving Wang Zanghai and the others time to reach the Forbidden City.

"Go!" Wang Zanghai said, grabbing Zhang Tao and rushing into the passage.

Once they entered the passage leading out of the Forbidden City Catacombs, Wang Zanghai roared, "Hold this passage at all costs! No one is to retreat!"

That was right—they had to hold the passage here. The space was narrow, so the enemy couldn't take advantage of its superior numbers. They could hold the passage.

Sure enough, quite a few Catacombs Rank 8s charged in. Wang Zanghai led the way, with Zhang Tao right behind him. His divine weapon had blown up, but he wasn't reliant on it alone. His formidable vitality and recovery meant that he was no pushover among the Rank 8s.

For a time, the passage became a scene of carnage.

The Catacombs Rank 8s knew that fighting in the passage was foolish. Their advantage lay in their numbers, but the passage couldn't fit many of them. Fighting the people from the Land of Rebirth there would only put them at a disadvantage.

So no more Catacombs Rank 8s tried to force their way in. Zhang Tao and the others leaned against the passage walls. A skeleton with a Rank 8 Golden Body said, "Young Zhang, we owe you one this time. Without you, these old bones of mine would've been left back there!"

If Zhang Tao hadn't supplied him with Life Essence, they really wouldn't have been able to hold out!

Zhang Tao was about to say something when he heard a commotion outside the passage. Then Li Xianling staggered in. At the same time, Guo Weicheng stumbled in supporting Li Wujie. The three of them made it through, and no Rank 9s pursued them.

But of the five Rank 9s they'd started with, only three remained.

After helping Li Xianling out of the passage, Zhang Tao turned around and saw it solidify. An old man appeared in an instant and sighed. "You can leave the rest to us. Get some proper rest!"

Zhang Tao knew who he was. He was Chen Guyang, the Eastern Guardian!

After Zhang Tao helped Li Xianling to the Culture Academy, Li Xianling returned the saber to him. Then he cupped his hands toward Li Wujie. "Thank you, Brother Wujie. If you hadn't used the Heaven Suppressing King's Mental Power Avatar, I'm afraid none of us would've escaped!"

Li Wujie shook his head. "The Old Ancestor gave it to me for emergencies. There's no need to thank me, Academy Head Li!"

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Li Wujie took his leave. Only then did Li Xianling sigh. Huaguo had suffered terrible losses this time. Two Rank 9 Great Grandmasters had fallen. The Rank 8 Grandmasters had fared better thanks to Zhang Tao's help; only four had died, while the rest had been seriously injured.

The Rank 7s had suffered heavy losses. As for the low- and middle-ranked martial artists, no one had even counted them. Their casualties must have been high, too.

Zhang Tao also learned why no Rank 9s had pursued them into the passage. Li Wujie's Mental Power Avatar had killed quite a few of them. Given the Heaven Suppressing King's strength, Zhang Tao had no doubt he could kill as many as he wanted.

That old devil had just kept things even at every turn.

"Academy Head, I still have plenty of Life Essence. Please distribute it as you see fit!" As he spoke, Zhang Tao took out all the Life Essence he had. Grey Cat had given it to him, and Life Essence was basically useless to Zhang Tao now.

After all, he relied on the Kongtong Seal to recover and no longer needed outside help.

Li Xianling didn't refuse. He accepted it and said, "Zhang Tao, focus on your cultivation. I thought I wouldn't make it back this time. But while you cultivate, you also need to learn how to manage the Culture Academy!"

Zhang Tao understood. Li Xianling was preparing to hand power over to him.

"Don't feel pressured. For now, you still need to cultivate faster. I hope that when we retake the Forbidden City Catacombs, you'll be able to lead everyone. Then I'll be able to die knowing my death meant something." Li Xianling spoke calmly. It was clear he was ready to fight the Catacombs to the death again next time.

Zhang Tao could only nod. After leaving the Culture Academy, he didn't go see Li Zhen. Li Zhen wasn't going to die anyway. Instead, he began tempering his Golden Body.

After tempering it with a large amount of Indestructible Substance, Zhang Tao soon reached the second refinement.