Chapter 460: Ju Men Rescued!

Chen Mu immediately sent a mental message to halt them, activated his Listening Wind skill, and leaned in to listen.

"There's a faint Star Token fluctuation to the left!"

Chen Mu informed Po Jun and Tian Xi of his discovery, using the Star Token as an excuse.

Left?

Upon hearing this, Po Jun Xingjun's vast divine sense—matured to the Heavenly Palace realm's peak—suddenly surged like an invisible, razor-sharp tide, instantly covering the mine area at the end of the left corridor.

His perception pierced through the corrupt energy field emitted by the ritual and the chaotic mental interference, precisely locking onto the target.

A black metal cage engraved with sinister patterns on the rock platform, and within it, a figure clad in a tattered Star Robe, whose aura flickered weakly like a candle in the wind.

Simultaneously, he "saw" the guard at the platform's edge—wearing a dark red robe embroidered with snarling beast heads, face masked by a fang-bared visage, aura at the peak of the Earth Altar realm.

Farther below, beside the massive demonic array, dozens of "Beast God" members in identical attire bustled about, their auras varying in strength; three of them radiated particularly noticeable Heavenly Palace realm pressure.

Their masks bore the features of the ancient monstrous beasts Ming She, Zhu Jian, and Shan Sao.

"Found it! Ju Men is trapped in the platform cage, the seal linked to the demonic array below. One guard, peak Earth Altar. Below, over thirty Beast God members, three of them Heavenly Palace—leaders wearing masks of Ming She, Zhu Jian, and Shan Sao!"

Po Jun Xingjun spoke at breakneck speed, the mental image shared clearly entering Chen Mu and Tian Xi's minds: "The guard is alert, facing the mine. The seal's core is a Heavenly Palace-level 'Corrupt Soul Piercing Lock'—it requires Heavenly Palace true qi or a special technique to break swiftly."

The situation was clear, and time was running out.

"I'll instantly kill the guard, but his position faces the mine—my attack's energy ripple and the guard's dying aura will instantly alert everyone below."

Po Jun Xingjun's voice turned icy, "Someone must lure him away from his post—even just a few steps, turning his back to the mine for an instant—to create a window for my killing blow, and slightly draw the attention below."

"I'll go." Chen Mu did not hesitate.

Ju Men Xingjun had once saved him; now was the time to repay the debt.

"Good. Wu Qu, retreat a short distance along your original path, create enough noise to draw the guard's attention without overdoing it—lure him near the corridor entrance, nothing more! Strike and flee—survival first!" Po Jun Xingjun instructed.

"Tian Xi."

He turned to Tian Xi Xingjun: "Once the guard is dead, chaos will erupt below—but there will be an extremely brief reaction window. You must rush onto the platform immediately, unleash your Heavenly Palace true qi to forcibly strike the core nodes of the 'Corrupt Soul Piercing Lock,' use your 'Tian Xi Po E Pearl's' properties to negate the backlash, and break it within three breaths!"

"Rescue Ju Men, do not linger—use the Star Token to bring him straight back to the Star Palace! This is the highest-priority order!"

"Understood." Tian Xi Xingjun nodded solemnly, warm orange true qi beginning to coalesce in his palms, a phantom image of a pearl with swirling auspicious clouds emerging.

The plan was instantly settled.

Chen Mu's form flickered, silently retreating backward, vanishing into the dim corridor.

Just seven or eight breaths later—

"Bang!"

"Rattle-rattle…"

From the direction of the corridor they had come from, came a distinct sound—as if a loose pile of rocks had been knocked over, and an abandoned mine cart kicked—loud and piercing in the silence.

Immediately after, a figure, deliberately suppressing most of his aura yet still radiating "panic" and "Earth Altar realm" fluctuations, flashed past the corridor entrance—as if trying to flee but making even louder noise.

The Beast God guard with the fang-bared mask spun his head sharply!

Cold eyes beneath the mask instantly locked onto the source of the sound.

His duty was to guard the prisoner—any sign of approach or rescue must be extinguished.

A seemingly weak, clumsy fool exposing himself was right nearby.

The instincts to claim credit and eliminate threats drove him.

Without a word, his body shot forward like lightning, the dark red Beast God robe leaving a trailing afterimage as he leapt off the platform and charged toward the corridor entrance!

He did not pursue far—only a few zhang into the corridor, ensuring he could trap and swiftly eliminate this "rat," his gaze briefly turning away from the vast mine below.

The instant he stepped into the corridor entrance, his back turned to the broad view below—

"Die!"

Po Jun Xingjun, who had long been poised, his killing intent and aura suppressed to the extreme, erupted like a primordial beast awakening!

He stepped out from the shadows at the mine's edge, his silver-white spear transforming into an ultra-thin, razor-fine silver thread—no grand spectacle, only extreme speed and penetration!

Where the spear point passed, air split silently.

The Beast God guard never had time to turn—he felt only a soul-chilling killing intent strike from behind.

He was horrified, desperate to activate his protective aura and Beast God secrets—but it was already too late!

Puff~

The silver thread pierced precisely through his lower back, exiting through his chest.

Violent true qi and killing intent instantly obliterated all his life force, even shredding the phantom beast soul condensed within him!

His body stiffened, collapsing forward limply, eyes wide behind the mask, filled with utter disbelief.

Almost at the exact instant the guard's aura vanished—

"Someone!!"

Below in the mine, the Beast God Heavenly Palace cultivator wearing the Ming She mask, his aura icy, shouted the first alarm.

Though Po Jun Xingjun's spear strike had been concealed, the sudden death of the guard and the faint yet sharp killing intent ripple could not fool peers of the same realm!

Yet, from detection to confirmation to reaction, it still required an extremely brief one or two breaths.

That fleeting instant!

Shhh~

Tian Xi Xingjun's figure appeared on the platform as if teleported.

Both hands flashed onto the core patterns of the black metal cage, unleashing his entire Heavenly Palace realm's true qi into the "Tian Xi Po E Pearl!"

Hum~

Warm orange light, carrying a unique Dao resonance of purification, soothing, and dispelling negative states, instantly enveloped the entire cage.

The ink-black "Corrupt Soul Piercing Lock" patterns trembled violently, emitting shrieks like ten thousand tormented souls being burned.

The energy channels connecting to the demonic array below were forcibly disrupted and severed!

The Star Lord of Joy's forehead instantly broke into sweat as the three-second countdown began.

She used her own true essence as a blade, precisely cutting and flushing the most critical energy nodes of the seal.

On the first second, the outer chains dimmed.

On the second second, the core patterns flickered erratically and cracked.

On the third second—

Crack!

A sharp crack echoed as the talisman stone at the cage's center exploded.

The ink-black chains binding the Star Lord of the Great Gate shattered inch by inch!

The seal was broken!

The Star Lord of Joy did not pause; she seized the unconscious, barely breathing Star Lord of the Great Gate and gripped the Star Token tightly in her other hand.

She had no time to assess the Star Lord's injuries—she immediately activated the coordinates for the emergency teleportation point back to the Star Palace!

"Stop her!"

Below, the beast-god warrior wearing the Zhu Jian mask roared, swinging his arm to unleash a dense, earth-yellow aura surge like a charging wild ox.

The short figure wearing the Shan Sao mask lunged like a ghost, flicking out several searing crimson threads of poison flame from his fingertips!

But it was half a step too late!

Swish~

Thick starlight erupted from the Star Lord of Joy's token, instantly swallowing her and the Star Lord of the Great Gate.

Space rippled violently!

Boom~

Hiss!

The Zhu Jian's aura and the Shan Sao's poison flame struck empty air, only shattering and scorching the platform's rocks into hissing white smoke.

The starlight faded—the platform stood empty!