Evacuation

They were already at a disadvantage, and just as the Rank 9s were finally about to turn the tide, King Huai suddenly ordered the Rank 9 city lords to join the battle. This was undoubtedly the final straw that broke the camel's back.

"Damn it, Forbidden City Catacombs, evacuate in order!" Li Xianling roared. Since the Outer Region city lords had joined the fray, he had to order a retreat. Otherwise, once their Rank 9s could no longer hold the line, the losses would not just be limited to the Rank 9s; the entire human race would likely suffer a crippling blow.

First, the people from the Forbidden City Catacombs began to evacuate, followed by the low and mid-rank martial artists; some were still fighting, while others retreated in an orderly fashion. There was no helping it—some lone wolves and others couldn't leave even if they wanted to. Entangled by the people of the Catacombs and lacking the strength to break free, they had no choice but to stay behind.

In the end, everyone knew the fate that awaited those who remained!

"Zhang Tao, retreat!" Wang Zanghai bellowed at this moment. There was no other way; although the situation on the Rank 8 side had shown signs of recovery, the city lords of the Catacombs had joined the battle. The consequences were easy to imagine, so Wang Zanghai had no choice but to tell Zhang Tao to run first while he held on for a little longer.

Zhang Tao frowned. Was he just going to retreat like this? He felt a sense of unwillingness, but as someone who was only at the early stage of Rank 8, what could he do? Although his vitality was immense and his recovery strong, and he even had Life Essence in his ring, he was not a Rank 9. He could not change the outcome of a Rank 9 war. Once the Rank 9 battlefield collapsed, they would all die regardless.

Zhang Tao felt a deep sense of powerlessness. This was the current plight of humanity. Once again, Zhang Tao felt it in his bones. Taking a deep breath, he turned and left. He wanted to change all of this, but clearly, now was not the time.

Seeing Zhang Tao leave without throwing a tantrum like some hot-headed youth, Wang Zanghai felt a sense of relief. This was what a qualified successor to a leader should look like.

"Everyone, rally toward me! We are breaking out!" Wang Zanghai shouted.

At this moment, the Rank 7s, Rank 8s, and Rank 9s were all fighting for their lives. From time to time, the sounds of self-detonation echoed. By the time Zhang Tao reached the Forbidden City, many of the Rank 7s had also retreated, though compared to when they had set out, only a handful remained.

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

Zhang Tao did not leave; he waited there. Sure enough, he saw Wang Zanghai and the others charging toward him. Feeling slightly relieved, Zhang Tao once again erupted with powerful vitality, infused it into his divine weapon, and hurled it. The divine weapon exploded directly behind Wang Zanghai and his group.

Zhang Tao's face turned deathly pale, but he recovered quickly. The Rank 8s following Wang Zanghai were hindered by the self-detonation of the divine weapon, and Wang Zanghai's group reached the Forbidden City.

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

After entering the passage to the Forbidden City Catacombs, Wang Zanghai roared, "Hold this passage at all costs! No one is allowed to retreat!"

Indeed, they had to guard the passage here. The space was narrow, neutralizing the enemy's numerical advantage, allowing them to hold the line.

Sure enough, many Rank 8s from the Catacombs charged in. Wang Zanghai took the lead, charging forward, with Zhang Tao following closely behind. Although his divine weapon had been destroyed, he did not rely solely on it; his powerful vitality and recovery meant that Zhang Tao was no weakling among the Rank 8s.

For a time, the fighting within the passage was exceptionally brutal.

The Rank 8s of the Catacombs also realized that fighting in the passage was too foolish. After all, their advantage was their numbers, and the passage couldn't accommodate so many people. Fighting the people of the Land of Rebirth in the passage would surely put them at a disadvantage!

Thus, no more Rank 8s from the Catacombs dared to force their way in. Zhang Tao and the others leaned against the walls of the passage. One Rank 8 with a Golden Body, looking like a skeleton, said, "Kid Zhang, thanks to you this time, otherwise this old bag of bones would have been left behind!"

If not for the Life Essence Zhang Tao had provided, they truly wouldn't have held on!

Just as Zhang Tao was about to say something, he heard exclamations from outside the passage. Shortly after, Li Xianling stumbled in, followed by Guo Weicheng, who was also stumbling while supporting Li Wujie. The three of them entered just like that, and no Rank 9s pursued them from behind.

However, of the original five Rank 9s, only three remained.

After helping Li Xianling out of the passage, Zhang Tao turned around and saw the passage actually beginning to solidify. An old man appeared instantly, sighed, and said, "You don't need to worry about the rest. Get some rest!"

Zhang Tao recognized this person; it was the Eastern Guardian, King Gu, Chen Guyang!

After Zhang Tao helped Li Xianling to the Culture Academy, Li Xianling returned the blade to Zhang Tao and bowed to Li Wujie, saying, "Many thanks, Brother Wujie. If not for you using the Mental Power Avatar of the Heaven Suppressing King, we might not have been able to escape!"

Li Wujie shook his head and said, "It was something the ancestor gave me for emergencies. Academy Head Li, please don't be so formal!"

After a few pleasantries, Li Wujie took his leave. Only then did Li Xianling sigh. This time, Huaguo had suffered heavy losses. Two Rank 9 Grandmasters had died in battle. The Rank 8 Grandmasters had fared better; with Zhang Tao's help, only four had died, while the others were merely severely injured.

The Rank 7s had suffered heavy casualties, and as for the low and mid-rank martial artists, no one had even bothered to count; the death toll was surely not low.

Zhang Tao also learned why the Rank 9s hadn't pursued them into the passage—it turned out that many had been killed by the Mental Power Avatar used by Li Wujie. Given the strength of the Heaven Suppressing King, he didn't doubt how many could be killed.

It was just that the old ghost had always been evenly matched.

"Academy Head, I still have plenty of Life Essence here. You should distribute it!" As he spoke, Zhang Tao took out all his Life Essence. This had all been given to him by the Grey Cat, and for the current Zhang Tao, such things were of little use.

After all, his recovery relied on the Kongtong Seal; he no longer needed external objects.

Li Xianling did not stand on ceremony. After accepting the items, he said, "Zhang Tao, focus on your cultivation. I thought I wouldn't be coming back this time. However, while you cultivate, you must also learn to handle the affairs of the Culture Academy!"

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

"Don't feel burdened. For now, you must accelerate your cultivation. I hope that when we retake the Forbidden City Catacombs, you will be able to lead everyone. By then, I will have died for a worthy cause," Li Xianling said calmly. It was clear he had already prepared himself for the next life-and-death battle in the Catacombs.

Zhang Tao could only nod. After leaving the Culture Academy, Zhang Tao didn't go to see Li Zhen—Li Zhen wouldn't die anyway—and began to temper his Golden Body.

As Zhang Tao used a large amount of Indestructible Substance to temper it, he quickly reached the second refinement.