Waiting for Rescue
The cage was pulled up to its highest point, creaking and groaning.
Those locked in the other cages were already used to this scene. When they discovered that someone else had been dragged into the dark room, they felt nothing but a sorrowful sigh for themselves and the other person.
Those who have just arrived here may have some desire to resist, but they have been imprisoned here for too long and have lost too much of their Spiritual Power. They have seen too many people who were initially tough and refused to bow their heads, only to be tortured and beaten by their guards in the blink of an eye.
Having witnessed their utter inescapable predicament, the monks in the cage gradually gave up the idea of leaving; they knew they certainly couldn't escape.
Just like the three newcomers, they too cannot escape.
After Duan Hanyi "suddenly regained consciousness," she started shouting and yelling wildly, demanding that Zhao Ting come and see her.
The guard, having seen many like him who couldn't see reality, sneered, "You still want Steward Zhao to come see you? You probably don't even know that your current predicament is all thanks to Steward Zhao!"
"Why are you explaining to these flies? If you really find them noisy, just put them down and beat them up. They don't have any Spiritual Power left anyway," another guard said.
Duan Hanyi seemed to find it hard to believe, shouting "Impossible!" and then made a gesture as if she were activating her Spiritual Power.
But before long, his face turned deathly pale. "How could this be?! How could this be?! Where did my Spiritual Power go? What have you done to us?"
The guards burst into another round of gleeful laughter, their mockery of Duan Hanyi quite evident.
"What have we done to you? Before you ask these questions, you should think about how much you've eaten in our sect!" It was the same cultivator who spoke first; he seemed to really enjoy seeing the expressions of despair and pain on the faces of the visiting cultivators.
Upon hearing this, not only Sang Ying and her two companions, but also the other cultivators in the cage all turned their gazes toward them.
So it was food sent by the Listening Tide Sect. They had been wondering why the Listening Tide Sect was giving them so much preferential treatment. Even if it was to keep them in the sect, there was no need to send them so much good food. Moreover, the people from the Listening Tide Sect hadn't done anything to them, yet their Spiritual Power had suddenly disappeared.
It turns out that all of this was because they tampered with the food!
Red Lotus, in the middle of the cages, silently closed her eyes. She dared not look over there, for that direction would allow her to see her sister.
Green Lotus was captured a few days earlier than Sang Ying and the others, but before that, she had already learned from Lan Fusheng that Sang Ying and the others had a way to rescue them.
So even though Green Lotus saw her sister's despairing expression, she only felt sorry for her, but did not give up hope like her.
Green Lotus desperately wanted to get close to her younger sister, or at least make eye contact with her, so as to let her know that she shouldn't give up hope.
But Red Lotus believed that she was responsible for her sister's arrest, so she dared not look Green Lotus in the eye.
Sang Ying and the others couldn't fathom the complex thoughts running through the two sisters' minds; they were simply pondering the most opportune moment to make their move.
They were worried that if they were captured, the Listening Tide Sect would take away their important belongings, and they were even more worried that if the other side obtained their communication talisman, they could break the restrictions on it and discover their plans.
Therefore, before being captured, Sang Ying and the other two had already gathered up their valuables. They even made some arrangements for the ordinary communication talismans that were placed outside, in order to prevent the Listening Tide Sect from noticing anything unusual.
However, this also meant that they were unable to contact Lan Fusheng and the others under the watchful eyes of the guards in the days that followed.
Sang Ying closed her eyes in the cage, praying only that her three junior brothers and sisters would not have any accidents and that they could arrive at the Listening Tide Sect with reinforcements at the time agreed upon by everyone.
With Lan Fusheng's help, Dong Fuzhu sat on the back of the demon bird. The demon bird's powerful wings flapped, and the huge shockwave sent the Listening Tide Sect members who had surrounded them flying far away.
She turned her head and looked over, only to find that Lan Fusheng and Bai Kejin hadn't gotten on yet. Dong Fuzhu immediately became anxious. "Hurry up and get on! The demon bird is about to fly away!"
"We must capture these Listening Tide Sect members first, and prevent them from escaping back and leaking the news!" Although the Beast Soul Sect's demonic bird mounts are very fast, even if the Listening Tide Sect disciples escape, they may not be able to reach the Listening Tide Sect faster than them.
But what if?
This matter concerns the lives of so many foreign cultivators, so we cannot be careless!
The other disciples of the Beast Soul Sect and the Array Sect simply watched them work coldly, showing no intention of offering any help.
Dong Fuzhu was furious and couldn't help but ask the senior brother from the Beast Soul Sect who had been specially assigned to help, "Weren't you here to help? Why aren't you helping us stop these Listening Tide Sect disciples?"
The other person sat at the very front of the flock of demonic birds, his cold face sweeping over as he heard the voice, but he didn't answer Dong Fuzhu's question, as if it were a ridiculous question.
A male disciple beside him scoffed, "Isn't that obvious? We're going with you to rescue the outsider cultivators trapped by the Listening Tide Sect, not to fight against them. Why should we help you at a time like this?"
Seeing that his senior brother didn't intend to interrupt him, the male disciple seemed encouraged and became more and more enthusiastic. "I really don't understand why the sect leader wanted us to help. Isn't it only right that these outsider cultivators are locked up and taught a lesson? Who told them to insist on coming to the Cloud Mulberry Realm? We've already said that the Cloud Mulberry Realm doesn't welcome them!"
The male disciple's words made Dong Fuzhu both angry and anxious. She was about to argue with him when Lan Fusheng and Bai Kejin had already subdued all the Listening Tide Sect disciples.
Thinking that killing the Listening Tide Sect disciples in front of the Beast Soul Sect and the Array Sect might provoke their displeasure, the two simply took out array plates and trapped these people in a confinement array.
Anyway, cultivators won't starve to death even if they don't eat or drink; being trapped in the array doesn't really affect them except for not being able to get out.
As for how long it will take to get out, that's not their concern.
Lan Fusheng had sat back down on the demon bird, comforted Dong Fuzhu with a few words, preventing her from continuing to argue with the disciples of the two sects.
Although they clearly stated when they sought help that the Listening Tide Sect had devised a ritual to find living people as sacrifices.
But clearly the leaders of the other two sects did not believe them, and did not even take their words to heart.
Lan Fusheng couldn't help but feel worried. She didn't know if the plan could proceed smoothly. At this moment, her senior sister and the others were probably already locked up in the Listening Tide Sect's dungeon.