As Long as You're Alive, You Have a Chance to Escape
Just as the Demon King were about to give chase, the voice of the fourth-tier tiger king came from the high slope:
"Stop chasing them. Just send a group of demonic beasts to guard the cave entrance and prevent them from coming out."
"Third Brother, what do you mean by this? You're not letting them out?"
The Black Iron Bear was completely dumbfounded, scratching its head with its paws.
"Those humans are all severely injured. Now is the time to press our advantage and wipe them all out. What are we waiting for?"
"Third Brother has his reasons for doing this."
Profound Water Crocodile glanced at Black Iron Bear, and before the Tiger King could speak, he interrupted.
"First, clean up the battlefield and see if there are any survivors."
The Demon King dispersed and began searching the battlefield beyond the pass, where corpses littered the land.
A moment later, the Profound Water Crocodile dragged back a blood-covered figure, its vertical pupils gleaming with excitement.
"Third Brother! We found one alive! A Grandmaster, and he's still breathing!"
The fourth-tier Tiger King stepped forward and looked down at the unconscious human Grandmaster.
It stretched out its paw, pressed it against the figure's chest, felt the faint heartbeat, and nodded in satisfaction.
"Besides this, what else did you gain?"
"We have killed three Grandmaster and eight Hua Jin humans," Profound Water Crocodile reported.
"Okay, okay, okay."
The fourth-tier Tiger King uttered three "good"s in succession, its smile impossible to hide. It turned to the Black Iron Bear and gave the order.
"Fool, take this man away and find a place to rest and recover properly."
"Yes."
Black Iron Bear carefully hoisted the unconscious Grandmaster onto his shoulder.
The fourth-tier Tiger King glanced around and noticed that all the Demon King had subconsciously taken a half-step back.
It is all too familiar with this reaction.
It grinned, its gaze sweeping across the demon horde before finally settling on a small, three-tailed Three-Tailed Cat.
You stay.
The Three-Tailed Cat froze, its face filled with terror, but dared not disobey, and followed the Tiger King into a stone cave at the back.
A moment later, the Three-Tailed Cat's shrill screams echoed from inside the cave.
The Demon King, standing outside the cave, finally relaxed upon hearing the sound. They exchanged glances and quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
"That Grandmaster must be well taken care of," a Demon King whispered.
"That goes without saying," the other chimed in.
"Our safety will depend entirely on him from now on."
Several Demon King gathered around the place where the human Grandmaster was imprisoned, glanced at him through the stone wall, and looked at him with a strange eagerness in their eyes.
It was as if it weren't a prisoner, but a life-saving treasure.
The Grandmaster vaguely sensed someone watching him. He barely opened one eye and saw several demonic beast faces huddled together. He shuddered in fright and fainted again.
He didn't know what he would face next, but he knew at least he wouldn't die for the time being.
As long as you don't die, there's a chance to escape.
The fourth entrance is inside the gate.
After Lu Feng and his companions retreated back into the passage, the Demon King did not pursue them.
Lu Shuang walked at the back, glanced back at the pass, and frowned slightly.
The fact that the monster didn't chase after her made her somewhat uneasy.
But she didn't think too much about it; the most important thing right now was to ensure everyone's safe evacuation.
Jiang Han and Lin Jingfeng took the initiative to guard the entrance to the passage, one on the left and one on the right.
The others sat cross-legged inside the passage and began to heal their wounds.
Lu Shuang quickly walked to Lu Feng's side, squatted down, and carefully examined his face.
"How are you? Is anything bothering you?"
"It's nothing. Just a minor injury."
Lu Feng waved his hand, his tone relaxed.
"I could pick up a gun and go into battle right now, no problem."
He was telling the truth.
After circulating his internal True Essence several times, most of his injured internal organs had recovered.
The Five Elements Primordial Chaos Art's recovery ability far surpasses that of ordinary people; this injury will heal in less than half an hour.
But Lu Shuang didn't believe it.
She witnessed firsthand how the attacks of three fourth-tier Demon King simultaneously struck Lu Feng.
She herself had faced three Demon King; if struck by all three simultaneously, she would be severely injured, if not killed.
No matter how strong Lu Feng's physical body is, it's impossible for him to only suffer minor injuries.
"Don't push yourself."
Lu Shuang softened her voice a few degrees.
"If you're injured, just get it treated properly. No one will laugh at you."
Lu Feng opened his mouth, feeling that something was off about what he was saying, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.
"After we retreated back inside the pass, the monsters didn't chase us in. Focus on healing your wounds and don't think too much."
Seeing Lu Feng's slightly furrowed brows, Lu Shuang assumed he was worried about the demonic beasts, and softened her tone.
"The monsters didn't attack?"
Lu Feng not only didn't relax, but his brows furrowed even more.
"No. They attacked the fourth entrance to lure out reinforcements and wipe them out in one fell swoop. Now that they have the upper hand, it doesn't make sense for them not to press their advantage."
He paused, then suddenly looked up. "Unless, their goal isn't here at all. They want to lure us away so they can attack other passes."
Upon hearing this, the people who had been whispering in the corridor instantly fell silent.
Jiang Han was the first to stand up. "I'll go check the entrance."
If the monsters really retreated, it means they were changing targets.
Jiang Han's figure disappeared around the corner of the passage.
The remaining few people looked at each other, anger rising on their faces.
"These beasts actually know how to use a diversionary tactic!"
Lin Jingfeng clenched his fist and slammed it hard against the wall.
Lu Shuang didn't reply, her gaze remaining fixed on Lu Feng.
A moment later, Jiang Han returned from the entrance of the passage, his expression somewhat strange.
"How is it? Have the monsters outside retreated?" Lin Jingfeng was the first to ask.
"We didn't retreat." Jiang Han shook his head.
"The area outside the pass is teeming with demonic beasts; not a single one has left."
"They didn't leave? And they didn't attack?" Lu Feng asked.
No attack.
Jiang Han's tone became even stranger.
"They stood guard there, completely surrounding the entrance to the cave. Judging by their posture, it seemed... they were afraid we'd get out."
Are you afraid we'll go out?
Lu Shuang repeated it, her expression suddenly changing.
"You mean, they're blocking us off?"
"Yes, it's a lockdown."
"All the demonic beasts are facing the pass, arranged in a besieging formation."
The passageway was silent for a moment, then a chorus of low curses rose up.
"It seems Lu Feng was right."
"The monsters have blocked our way to prevent us from going out to support other passes. Their main force has probably already gone to attack other entrances."
"Then what do we do?" Lin Jingfeng asked anxiously.
"We can't just sit here and wait, can we?"
"Should we all return to our respective checkpoints?" someone suggested.
"Anyway, it's safe here for now. Let's all go back and guard our own territory."
"No way." Lu Shuang rejected the idea outright.
"If we all go back, it's like going back to the previous state of fighting alone. The monsters can attack whichever they want, and we can't even get messages out. We're too passive."
"Then what do you suggest we do?"
All eyes turned to Lu Feng.