Chapter 532: Departing After the Deed, Brushing Off One's Robes

An incompetent general exhausts the entire army.

Wan Wan Fangling was terrified almost the instant the battle began and fled in panic.

The ten-person squad she led was like a handful of loose sand!

When disaster struck, each teammate fled for their own life; from start to finish, they failed to mount any effective resistance.

Of course, it also didn't help that the Ran Sect members were overwhelmingly dominant, simply slaughtering everyone in their path!

The battle erupted in an instant and ended just as quickly.

All told, it probably lasted only a few dozen seconds.

"Sect Master, there are no enemies nearby!" Gao Gao Yunyan reported loudly.

"Stop the drifting sand," Lu Ran commanded.

The sky-full of dust and sand rapidly dispersed, leaving only the Liushahe River flowing.

Suddenly, whips made of fine sand materialized.

Emerging one after another from the riverbed of the Liushahe, they swept from west to east, as if intending to turn this place completely upside down!

High in the sky, Jiangjiang Ruyi, enveloped by Master Yu Fu's great formation, drifted gently down.

The Most Dongting Sect possessed no flight techniques; when fighting against such believers, staying high in the air was undoubtedly the safer position.

"Crack! Crack! Crack!"

Whip after whip of sand flipped over corpse after corpse of Most Dongting disciples, also locating the lotus buds within the river.

Far to the east, away from the battlefield, a huge lotus bud was lifted up.

The Liushahe River vanished accordingly; the lush mountain forest was nowhere to be seen, and the ground retained its undulating, wave-like terrain.

The scene was quite magnificent!

"You restrain these two; I'll directly absorb the rest into my pupils." Lu Ran, eyes wide with horizontal pupils, firmly grasped Deng Deng Yuxiang's wrist and reached toward the front-left.

"Lu Ran." A clear, cold voice echoed from high above.

Lu Ran looked up at Jiangjiang Xianzi: "What is it?"

Jiangjiang Ruyi's gaze lingered for a moment on Lu Ran's hand before her thin lips parted slightly: "Sword Lotus believers."

"Oh." Lu Ran turned his head to look.

Through those tender lotus buds, Lu Ran seemed to see a flock of ostriches.

Silence reigned all around; clearly, the battle had ended.

Yet the lotus buds remained; the people inside seemed too afraid to emerge, unwilling to face their fate.

Lu Ran scanned the surroundings, gathering the lingering souls of the dead on the battlefield into his possession.

Not counting Wan Wan Fangling, the ten Most Dongting disciples had left behind seven corpses; only three had escaped with their lives.

Only after accomplishing all this did Lu Ran approach the lotus bud.

Since the lotus was tightly closed, Lu Ran acted quite boldly, arriving directly via teleportation: "Everyone, you are safe now."

His words drifted into the lotus bud, filling everyone inside with terror.

Are all those people from Mount Jingting Mountain... dead?

So quickly?

Who exactly are these mysterious figures in conical hats and rain capes...

The Sword Lotus disciples' faces turned deathly pale, their bodies trembling uncontrollably.

The reason for this was likely the casual remark Deng Deng Yuxiang had made: "These Sword Lotus believers are mine."

In the cruel Spirit Saint Mountain, the weak naturally assumed they were destined to become captives.

Whether they would be killed or flayed remained unknown.

However, the Sword Lotus disciples did not know that Deng Deng Yuxiang had spoken thus merely to deceive the enemy.

The Great Dream Da Da Mengyan was no fool; she would not reveal that their side was reinforcements from the Yun Qianzhou Alliance!

What if some enemies managed to escape?

Would that not be handing intelligence to the enemy for nothing?

Facts proved the Great Dream Da Da Mengyan's concerns were correct; indeed, several Most Dongting disciples had escaped.

"Come out; I am a guest of your Yun Qianzhou Alliance," Lu Ran said again.

That simple sentence was like a sudden beam of light igniting within an endless abyss!

At the very least, it kindled a glimmer of hope in the hearts of several Sword Lotus disciples.

"Island Master Pei?"

"Island Master, we..." several people spoke softly, their tones filled with inquiry.

Island Master Pei, clad in a great red robe, silently gritted his teeth and unfolded the lotus bud.

Prolonging this was meaningless.

Sooner or later, they would have to face judgment by fate.

"You... you are here as a guest of our Yun Qianzhou Alliance?" Island Master Pei asked, slightly bewildered, looking at Lu Ran.

He had expected to face a mysterious man dressed in a green rain cape and conical hat.

Unexpectedly!

Before him stood a dignified young man draped in a loose white robe.

High above, a noble and cold woman in a white skirt was looking down at everyone.

Such attire further signified that the two held different statuses!

"I have an old connection with your Qinghedao Master of the Seven Bihou Islands; she is the one who invited me as reinforcements," Lu Ran said with a gentle smile, nodding slightly.

"What?"

"Reinforcements, reinforcements?" Nearly twenty Sword Lotus disciples erupted into an uproar.

Great sorrow, great joy.

One second ago, they were wondering if they would die miserably or survive in wretched misery.

The next second, their fate had changed completely!

"Thank you, Mr., for stepping in to save us!" Island Master Pei cupped his fists and bowed, his face full of gratitude, "I am Pei Hong; may I ask your honorable name?"

The disciples surrounding Island Master Pei displayed a wide variety of expressions.

Some were dazed, seeming unable to believe it.

Some were filled with the relief of surviving a disaster, and some were even weeping with joy.

Lu Ran introduced himself, then added a piece of advice: "Go back early."

"Lu Menzhu's immense kindness, Pei will keep etched in his heart!" Pei Hong bowed deeply, "If you do not disdain it, please accompany me back to the island so that I, Pei, can properly..."

"No need, I still have a mission." Lu Ran raised his hand, cutting off the other's words.

By this day, he had already grown accustomed to Wei Hai Jing experts treating him with utmost respect.

So-called temperament and aura were also cultivated continuously through experience after experience.

"Then I, Pei..."

"Gate Master." Deng Deng Yuxiang walked over.

In an instant, the Sword Lotus disciples' faces changed one after another.

It was not hard to see the deep dread in people's eyes.

It was precisely this terrifying Wei Hai Jing expert who had forcefully declared all the Sword Lotus disciples as subordinates.

"The battlefield is cleared; let them handle the corpses and bring all the weapons back to Qinghedao," Deng Deng Yuxiang suggested softly.

Lu Ran: 【Any divine weapon embryos?】

Deng Deng Yuxiang: 【No, they are all Fan Pin. There are over fifty Divine Power Beads, though.】

Lu Ran snorted coldly: 【Truly rich enough to be dripping with oil.】

After communicating via telepathy with Great Dream Da Da Mengyan, Lu Ran turned his gaze toward Island Master Pei.

Pei Hong immediately said, "Lu Menzhu, please go execute your mission; we will send the spoils of war back to Qinghedao for you right away."

"Troubling you."

"No trouble at all!" Pei Hong repeated hastily, "I hope Lu Menzhu completes the mission safely and returns to the island soon; at that time, I, Pei, will visit your door to express my thanks again!"

Lu Ran smiled and nodded, then turned and departed.

The way his robes fluttered was exceedingly free and easy.

How others saw it was unclear, but Jiangjiang Ruyi, standing suspended in mid-air, watched with rapt attention.

"Let's go, Jiang Ruyi," Lu Ran called.

"Mm." Jiangjiang Ruyi responded with a sound and drifted down gracefully.

Under the gaze of Island Master Pei and the others, the figures of the Ran Gate group gradually receded into the distance, disappearing into the mountain forest.

"The Qinghedao Master actually knows such a powerful organization..."

"The Gate Master is so young!"

"Lu Menzhu seems to be only at Jiang Jing? Why do those two Wei Hai Jing experts submit to him?"

"Cut the nonsense, clean up the battlefield quickly, let's get back immediately; this place is not safe!"

The Sword Lotus disciples whispered among themselves; Lu Ran, who had already gone far away, knew nothing of this.

At this moment, he was gazing at the tall figure to his front-left and called out, "Feng'er!"

"Gate Master?" Xue Xue Fengchen immediately stopped, turned, and looked over.

Lu Ran smiled and said, "You need to step up your efforts! Look at General Yan sweeping across the battlefield; how majestic!"

Xue Xue Fengchen's face turned slightly red.

In the battle just now, he had also contributed, using Drifting Sand and the Barbarous Sand Sea.

But whether in terms of divine technique scale, effectiveness, or results, he ranked nowhere within the team.

If a tactical statistics table were drawn up, Xue Xue Fengchen would inevitably be the one at the very bottom!

Even the Evil Shadow Protector, who held the lowest rank within the team, could crush him.

Lu Ran added, "When will you advance to Wei Hai Jing?"

Xue Xue Fengchen said in a low voice, "This subordinate will work hard."

Look how this child has been ruined!

The West Wasteland General, at the peak of Jiang Jing, was speaking without any confidence~

Lu Ran, of course, was not mocking a comrade but wanted to urge the other party.

Especially after seeing Gao Gao Yunyan's combat power, he desired even more for Ran Gate to gain another West Wasteland Divine General!

"No problem." Gao Gao Yunyan stepped forward a few paces, reached out to put an arm around Xue Xue Fengchen's shoulder, and gently shook it.

It was comfort, and also encouragement.

"Let me teach you a phrase!" Lu Ran remembered something and said, "I have a brother in the mortal world; every time I ask him when he will advance, he always replies with one sentence."

Everyone looked curiously at Lu Ran.

Jiangjiang Ruyi, however, could not help but smile, already knowing what the phrase was.

Sure enough, a sentence popped out of Lu Ran's mouth: "Soon, soon!"

Xue Xue Fengchen: "..."

"This is psychological suggestion!" Lu Ran looked at the other party, "Feng'er, when will you become a vast sea?"

Xue Xue Fengchen fell silent for a moment, then said in a low, firm voice: "Soon!"

"Mm." Lu Ran nodded repeatedly in satisfaction.

Suddenly, a gaze enveloped him.

Lu Ran turned to look, only to see Deng Deng Yuxiang casting a gentle glare at him.

She naturally knew that the "brother in the mortal world" Lu Ran spoke of was her own good-for-nothing younger brother.

She wondered how Deng Yutang was faring now.

Had he already broken through to the Jiang Jing?

Or was he still stuck at some high-tier stage within the River Realm, unable to advance?

"Da Da Mengyan."

"Mm?"

"Give me a departed soul; we'll interrogate while we move."

"Yes." Deng Deng Yuxiang raised her hand and gently shook her wrist.

Lu Ran lifted a clump of black mist; immediately, a man's face, filled with terror, appeared within the Soul Prison.

Towards enemies, Lu Ran had never been soft-hearted or hesitant.

"Ah! Ahhh!" As Lu Ran unleashed faint ghostly flames, the captive instantly let out a miserable scream.

Amidst the piercing background noises, Lu Ran said, "This time, our tactical execution was quite good."

"Drifting sand blinds the eyes, shifting sand alters the terrain... it's simply a burial ground tailor-made for the Most Dongting faction!"

"It's just a pity..."

Watching the soul wailing in agony, Deng Deng Yuxiang comforted Lu Ran, saying, "It was just a lack of luck."

Lu Ran replied, "Let's think carefully about whether we can optimize the tactics further."

Jiangjiang Ruyi suddenly said, "Do you remember how you slew Elder Peng of Tianhuang Mountain back at Ten Thousand Blades Mountain?"

Lu Ran raised his eyebrows slightly: "In the sky?"

"The Most Dongting faction cannot fly either; once airborne, without a point to borrow force from, they lose their absolute speed, leaving them at your mercy."

As she spoke, Jiangjiang Ruyi frowned slightly, seemingly finding the departed soul too noisy.

Lu Ran dispelled the ghostly flames, and the world finally fell silent.

He pondered tactics silently for a long while before turning to the departed soul in the prison and asking in a cold voice:

"Within your Mount Jingting Mountain, how many Ming Hai Jing cultivators are there in total?"

(End of Chapter)