Chapter 50

Yifeng's guess was not wrong; the place they were in now was indeed the very center of the Thousand Death Ridge. The cultivators from other sects, whether victors or losers, all received hints to head towards where the Taiheng Sect members were.

"Yifeng, even if we are at the center of the Thousand Death Ridge, it doesn't mean they will all come looking for us," said Liu Changxing, a core disciple and a physical cultivator. He and Yifeng were of the same generation, and Liu Changxing had participated in several martial arts competitions due to his solid foundation and experienced skills. "Moreover, I agree with Sister Yixia's point. Although this poem reveals our location, it's not certain that the green flag isn't nearby!"

Yifeng frowned, unwilling to explain.

"I don't want to explain anything. Just remember, the Sect Master ordered everyone to follow my commands before we entered. You can choose not to listen, but from then on, you will no longer be a disciple of the Taiheng Sect!"

Liu Changxing couldn't help but get angry upon hearing this.

"Yifeng, we are of the same generation. They call you Senior Brother, but I won't be afraid of you. Do you really think you are the Sect Master now?"

Yifeng was of a higher generation, had higher cultivation, and was handsome. He was usually quiet, but even a single action would draw the attention of many young disciples, making him increasingly arrogant. At least within the Taiheng Sect, he didn't take anyone outside the three academies seriously.

"Stop arguing, someone is coming!" Yixia, seeing this, had to intervene to stop their argument.

Yixia's words were not false. Although they couldn't detect anything with their senses, the few white dots under the dark gray sky were particularly noticeable.

"We shouldn't stay here; let's change direction." Yifeng said and headed in another direction.

This second round of the flag-grabbing competition was not about leaving the arena and entering the next round once the green flag was obtained. The Thousand Death Ridge would be open for three days, and its size was about five times larger than the original Blood Arena. Within these three days, cultivators had to find the green flag and protect it until the Thousand Death Ridge disappeared and everyone was teleported out. The person who held the flag at the end would be the true victor.

Of course, if a sect's disciples suffered more than half casualties, they would also be teleported out of the competition.

A powerful sect like the Mountain Collapse Sect would naturally choose to control the flag first. After all, seizing the flag would result in casualties, and once they obtained it, weaker sects would not dare to challenge them. This way, they could enter the next round of the competition unscathed.

However, the Taiheng Sect was different. If they obtained the green flag too early, they would be attacked by other sects, and it was common for the sect's disciples to suffer more than half casualties in the second round of the competition.

Sure enough, after the Taiheng Sect members changed direction, the cultivators who were originally heading towards them did not pursue but continued to move towards the center.

"What we need to do now is to lie low and preserve our strength. The three powerful sects like the Mountain Collapse Sect will definitely seize three spots, and the remaining one will be the most fiercely contested. Our only hope is to seize the flag that the three major sects have not taken." Yifeng's plan was very cautious, avoiding risks, but the chances of success were extremely low. The key to success lay in the timing of the attack and how to preserve the flag after obtaining it.

After Yifeng spoke, everyone fell silent. Liu Changxing actually knew that seizing the flag at the beginning was not useful, but his personality was such that he couldn't bear to let a good opportunity slip away.

Lying low in the mountains was not difficult. Besides reaping the benefits of others' efforts, it also saved energy. Here, although they could fly freely up to three zhang, it still required the consumption of energy.

Time quietly passed. The Taiheng Sect members found a mountain peak and sat down to rest. Unconsciously, a day had passed.

According to Yifeng's initial plan, the last day was when the true victor would be decided. However, as the saying goes, "Heaven has unpredictable weather, and man has unforeseen misfortune." A group of cultivators suddenly flew towards the Taiheng Sect members from a distance.

"Brother, there are more cultivators flying over there," said Yulin, who was worried about his brother's condition and had not entered a meditative state. After his proud brother was beaten to a pulp, he no longer acted arrogantly and became a considerate little brother.

Yuwang slowly opened his eyes, glanced, and then closed them again. "Don't worry, Yulin. How many cultivators have passed by us today? We don't have the green flag, so they won't pay any attention to us. Just meditate in peace."

Guxuyao also opened his eyes upon hearing Yulin's words. The cultivators flying towards them were wearing green robes, clearly from a sect they had not encountered before. As Yuwang said, many cultivators had flown past the Taiheng Sect members over the past few days, but none had paid attention to them. In the Thousand Death Ridge, no one would provoke trouble, as fighting would weaken their sect's strength.

But this time was different. What Yuwang and Yulin couldn't see, Guxuyao might. None of them had experienced what it was like to be hunted.

"Something's wrong. The speed of this group is too slow, and their formation is too loose. If they are flying, it means they are searching for the green flag, but such an important task wouldn't be done leisurely and slowly..."

Guxuyao thought to himself and stood up from the ground.

"Brother Guxuyao, what's wrong?"

Guxuyao didn't answer. He was carefully observing the approaching group of cultivators. Although their speed was slow, they were gradually getting within ten miles of the Taiheng Sect. "Killing intent, the trajectory of their flight carries killing intent!"

If someone had killing intent, it would be evident in their body, eyes, and even their steps. It was hard for ordinary people to notice, but Guxuyao, who had been baptized in blood, could!

"Everyone, run! The enemy has killing intent!" Guxuyao shouted.

Guxuyao's shout woke everyone from their meditation. At the same time, the approaching group of cultivators seemed to have noticed the Taiheng Sect's reaction and immediately changed their formation of sixteen people into an attack formation in an instant!

"Bad! Everyone, retreat quickly!" Yifeng reacted very quickly, seeing the enemy's intentions at a glance. He pulled Zibi and used the flying technique.

However, the situation was too sudden, and not everyone could escape from the mountain peak in time. The attackers were clearly from a Daoist sect. After forming the attack formation, a seven-inch-long sword flew out from behind each person, glowing with energy. As the owners of the swords exerted their power together, countless energy swords shot out from the formation, heading straight for the Taiheng Sect's location!

A rain of swords suddenly fell, turning the entire mountain peak into a beehive.

"Senior Brother!" Among the new disciples, two physical cultivators from the academy did not have time to escape and were instantly killed by the flying swords. The total number of Taiheng Sect members was now reduced to fourteen.

"What's going on? We don't have the green flag, why are they attacking us? Is it targeting our sect? Damn it, I'll kill them!" Tian Li's eyes turned red, and he was about to charge forward.

However, Guxuyao promptly stopped Tian Li.

"Stay calm! This is not the time for rash actions. We have been ambushed and lost two fellow disciples. The enemy is already in formation. If we go over now, we will be sending ourselves to our deaths!"

At this moment, Tian Li's mind was hot, and he didn't realize that Guxuyao was his junior. Guxuyao also didn't pay attention to such details.

"Senior Brother Yifeng, I think we must leave this place. The motives of these cultivators attacking us are unclear. We must find out why they are attacking us; otherwise, we will never be able to lie low!"

Yifeng had to admit that he had underestimated Guxuyao time and time again. However, he didn't have time to think about other things, nodded, and led everyone to fly away quickly.

However, this attack was not a random one. The group of cultivators who attacked the Taiheng Sect did not leave after the Taiheng Sect members fled but followed their trail, chasing after them!

This only fueled Tian Li's anger.

"What are these people trying to do? Do they think the Taiheng Sect is easy to bully!"

Guxuyao frowned. Tian Li's hot temper was too likely to cause trouble, and he needed to come up with a plan.

Coincidentally, as Guxuyao thought this, he looked at Yifeng, and Yifeng was also looking at him. They instantly understood each other's intentions and nodded at each other.

"Senior Brother Tian Li." Guxuyao called out to Tian Li.

Tian Li heard his name and looked at Guxuyao. At this moment, he suddenly realized that his actions had been stopped by Guxuyao, which made him feel somewhat embarrassed.

"Hmph, kid, what do you want? Do you think stopping me once makes you great? Don't forget, you..."

Tian Li's words were cut off, and he collapsed. However, two strong hands caught him, and then Yifeng threw the unconscious Tian Li to Liu Changxing.

"At this moment, we cannot panic. If we panic, more of our fellow disciples might die in the Thousand Death Ridge. Especially you, do you remember how many of our Taiheng Sect members died here twenty years ago?"

Yifeng said this, scanning the other cultivators except for Yixia, and finally, his gaze settled on Yixia.

At this moment, Yixia's face was still cold, but compared to usual, she had an indescribable emotion.

Yifeng pretended not to see it, withdrew his gaze, and continued to lead the Taiheng Sect members to flee in the Thousand Death Ridge.

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