Yunxi followed the sound of the voice and saw it was Song Ke from the Haoran Sect. He had reached the early Out-of-Body stage by now, his fingers moving with precise, twitching motions as he controlled several intricate puppets. The mechanical constructs shredded the low-level beasts charging out from the thick tree line of the Wolong Mountain Range, their wooden blades whistling through the air.
Song Ke flashed over to her side, his gaze guarded as it landed on Bing Li.
"Ran Xi Zūnshàng, why are you here? Are you injured?" he asked, his eyes scanning her for any visible wounds.
Bing Li looked at the wary expression on his face and rolled her eyes inwardly before she spoke, her voice carrying a note of pride.
"This Lord is friends with Ran Xi. If the two of us hadn't risked our lives to hold back the ninth-rank Lu Zhihui, you wouldn't have even made it in time for support. Xiaolong City would have already been flattened by now."
She was clearly very good at polishing her own image in front of others.
Yunxi turned to Song Ke and said, "Ancestor Hao Ran stopped Lu Zhihui after he was controlled by an evil soul. I'm worried he might be at a disadvantage in there. Are there other Zhēnzūn coming to support him?"
Before Song Ke could answer, several brilliant streaks of light shot straight toward the inner perimeter of the Wolong Mountain Range, lighting up the sky. She glanced up and immediately knew that three Zhēnzūn had already entered the inner area. Only then did she finally let out a long breath of relief.
"Zūnshàng, please rest assured. The Zhēnzūn have arrived to help. Ancestor Hao Ran will be fine now. You should return to Xiaolong City to recover your strength."
"Don't worry," Bing Li replied at once. "This Lord will personally escort your Ran Xi Zūnshàng back to the city."
Song Ke muttered to himself that he wasn't all that reassured by her words, but he still looked toward Yunxi for confirmation.
She waved her hand and said, "You should stay here and block the beast tide. This Lord will recover nearby instead."
"Yes, Zūnshàng."
On the outer edge of the Wolong Mountain Range, behind the front line where cultivators and beasts were fighting in the churned mud, she found an open patch of ground. She tossed out her capsule-style dwelling, which expanded instantly into a small house. She forced herself inside, dropped the defensive restrictions into place with a flick of her fingers, then spat out a mouthful of dark blood and collapsed to the floor.
Bing Li was in slightly better shape than she was, but she also needed to heal her internal wounds. After sacrificing one layer of cultivation to preserve her life, her spiritual energy was nearly drained dry. She set down her "general store" dharma treasure next to the dwelling and slipped inside to recover as well.
At this moment, the inner perimeter of the Wolong Mountain Range was eerily silent. Ancestor Hao Ran had already unfolded his region to trap the beast king. Because he had comprehended the laws of time and space, his region formed an independent area of distorted spacetime, filled everywhere with jagged spatial rifts that shimmered with a dangerous light. If Lu Zhihui took a single wrong step, what awaited him would be a loss of lifespan and the shredding force of spatial blades.
Lu Zhihui's true form was a nine-winged deer, and his speed was terrifying to behold. With a single flap of his wings, he could dodge the spatial blades, yet within the region, he still couldn't gain the upper hand.
At that moment, a clear and lingering sound from a bamboo flute slipped into his ears. His movements slowed, and everything around him seemed to come to a standstill. Only the quiet, mournful tone of the flute echoed through the distorted space.
No one knew how much time passed before the black in his eyes gradually faded, returning to a deep brown color. Moments later, he transformed back into human form, staring at his injured body in confusion.
Only then did Xiao He Zhēnzūn withdraw the flute and exchange a glance with Ancestor Hao Ran. They flashed forward and appeared before Lu Zhihui.
"Lu Daoyou, can you stop the beast tide for now?"
He frowned deeply. After looking at the two of them and then at his bleeding wounds, he asked, "I triggered a beast tide?"
"Yes," Ancestor Hao Ran replied calmly. "You were briefly controlled by an evil soul and attempted to break out of the Wolong Mountain Range. The two of us had no choice but to stop you. You also seriously injured two of this Lord's juniors."
"Lu Daoyou, please recall the beasts that aren't controlled," the two Zhēnzūn could only reply. "We will handle the rest."
He nodded. "Alright."
Xiao He nodded to Ancestor Hao Ran and said, "This Lord will stay and assist Lu Daoyou. Hao Ran, you should go oversee the outer perimeter."
He nodded and vanished instantly. On the way, he encountered two other Mahayana Zhēnzūn who were rushing over, Hua Ye and Yuan Shuang.
"Hao Ran, how is the inner perimeter?" Yuan Shuang Zhēnzūn asked first.
The familiarity in his tone was obvious.
"Xiao He and I helped Lu Zhihui regain his consciousness. He can only recall some of the rampaging beasts for now. Others still ignore his deterrence and continue charging outward. This beast tide likely won't end anytime soon."
Hua Ye sighed. "Truly misfortune upon misfortune. Yixian Gate has had terrible luck this time. Thankfully, the cultivators in Xiaolong City reacted quickly and blocked the first wave. This Lord has already informed the sect. They will send reinforcements to Xiaolong City."
"That's all we can do for now," Ancestor Hao Ran said. "Let's return to the rear and hold the line. This Lord needs to check on the juniors of the sect."
The three of them turned into streaks of light and returned to the outer perimeter of the Wolong Mountain Range.
She had no idea how long she was unconscious. She came to when she heard Li Li calling her name.
Li Li, now in her human form, was using beast power to protect Yunxi's heart meridian. When she saw Yunxi open her eyes, she said happily, "Zūnshàng, you're awake. If you hadn't woken up soon, Li Li was going to run out and beg for help."