Chapter 287: I Come to Aid You

While cultivating the Void‑Evasion Gate, nothing major happened in the whole Qian Dao Imperial Capital; instead, Yan Buji sensed that a storm was about to break.

But as soon as Yan Buji finished cultivating the Void‑Evasion Gate technique, he went straight to find Hu Bing.

"Junior brother, I've seen you training diligently lately; why did you leave the sect today?" Hu Bing said with a smile.

Yan Buji looked at him and laughed: "Senior Brother Hu, do you still remember the reward I chose at the Technique Hall after winning the Lianqi Grand Competition?"

Hu Bing raised an eyebrow: "You actually chose the Void‑Evasion Gate? I told you beforehand that no one has managed to master this technique yet; don't come to me…"

"I've mastered it."

"What?!"

In Hu Bing's shocked gaze, Yan Buji summoned a pristine white gate; this is the Void‑Evasion Gate, also a teleportation technique historically practiced by great cultivators, the Heaven Gate Law.

After learning its origin, Yan Buji realized the Void‑Evasion Gate's strength lies in spatial teleportation; even with low aptitude, mastering it would indeed spare many troubles.

However, since Yan Buji's copy wasn't the oldest version of the Heaven Gate Law, the Void‑Evasion Gate wasn't crucial to him; it merely allowed him to grasp a glimpse of the Way of Space.

"This!! This… this is the Void‑Evasion Gate?!" Hu Bing stared in shock at the gate before him; he had never seen what the completed Void‑Evasion Gate looked like, and now Yan Buji had raised his hand to summon it, unsure of its function.

But there was one thing.

He believed Yan Buji wouldn't deceive him; he truly had mastered it!!

"Senior brother, look at my side…"

Hu Bing took a deep breath: "Let's go! We'll return to the sect immediately!"

"The Offering Hall side…"

"Never mind, just leave a letter. The Gate Master will probably learn and won't blame us; let's go!!"

Hu Bing was quite anxious, because the Void‑Evasion Gate involved the Gate Master's orders, and Yan Buji was still at the Lianqi Phase; returning alone to the sect was extremely risky, so Hu Bing felt he had to escort him back.

Yan Buji's face was complicated—not because he minded Hu Bing escorting him, but because he foresaw his own fate and felt Hu Bing was leading him into a trap.

But sorry, a dead fellow cultivator, not a poor cultivator; Senior Brother Hu, rest in peace.

Yan Buji and Hu Bing immediately left Qian Dao Imperial Capital, soaring rapidly toward the Green Mountain Gate.

The round trip took over a dozen days, and a month had passed since Pang De returned to the sect without any word; Hu Bing likely worried about this and wanted to go back to inquire.

Yan Buji thought for a moment and asked: "Senior Brother Pang should have arrived at the sect, right?"

Hu Bing's expression darkened as he replied: "Yes, why hasn't Senior Brother Pang sent any news? Did something happen?"

Yan Buji had considered that Pang De might have hoarded the credit, but after days together, he saw Pang De was greedy only within limits, not unrestrained, and knew how to share.

Thus, the notion of Pang De monopolizing the credit vanished, yet now there is no news; the sect wouldn't ask how they fared at the Offering Hall, leaving Pang De's whereabouts unknown.

Hu Bing was clearly worried, entertaining the worst case: perhaps Wang Jie shattered the Earth‑Demon Array and killed Pang De in retaliation.

Yan Buji recalled the youth he had encountered; most likely… Pang De might already be dead.

"Anyway, now you've mastered the Void‑Evasion Gate, it's even more… who!"

Hu Bing seemed to sense something, conjuring several magical flying swords that shot aside; the air beside them warped briefly, and a silhouette suddenly materialized!

Wang Jie!

"Hehe, I didn't expect you Green Mountain Gate disciples to be quite formidable," Wang Jie squinted at Hu Bing, then turned his gaze to Yan Buji.

Hm?

Why does this old man feel familiar?

In the previous battle Wang Jie hadn't focused on the lower area, but now that he sees it, he knows trouble is coming.

Wang Jie looked at Yan Buji, sneered: "I'm not playing with you any longer, I'm leaving!"

Hu Bing, furious beyond control, brandished his long sword and instantly swept a river of sword shadows, blocking Wang Jie's path:

"Want to leave? Did you ask my sword? Where is Senior Brother Pang? What did you do to him?!"

Wang Jie smiled: "Hehe, I'm standing here unharmed; your senior brother's fate is probably the one you imagine…"

"Demon, you're courting death!"

Hu Bing and Pang De were close friends, and aside from their existing mutual interests, now that Pang De is dead, Hu Bing's outburst must stem from more than just profit.

Moreover, the two were likely comrades supporting each other within the Green Mountain Gate; hearing of Pang De's murder, Hu Bing was enraged and vowed to slay the culprit before him.

Yan Buji squinted from the side, watching the duel, momentarily caught in a dilemma.

Wang Jie's eyes said it all: he worked under that True Lord and was certainly monitoring him from the shadows.

The True Lord's intention was clear: to safely send him back to the Green Mountain Gate, so he knew their connection; once revealed…

Hu Bing might spare him, but ruining the True Lord's grand plan would make death inevitable.

Should Hu Bing be killed?

Yan Buji's eyes flickered, a bit conflicted.

"In the end, this is a contest between two Nascent Soul True Lords; I'm just a small Martial Dao Foundation Establishment cultivator—what does it matter? Wang Jie is no good fellow; if he can safely escort me back to the sect, he would never let me leave the Green Mountain Gate alive, which would only add variables and be undesirable!"

Yan Buji formed a plan in his mind; the moment he saw Wang Jie, he recalled the dead Pang De.

Green Mountain Gate disciples leave their life‑soul cards inside the gate; since Pang De is dead, it would inevitably attract the sect's attention.

Whether spoken well or poorly, he's still a Foundation Establishment cultivator; the Green Mountain Gate may lack manpower but wouldn't disregard a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

Thus it would certainly draw attention, yet Hu Bing and Yan Buji received no news before Wang Jie's appearance, indicating…

"The Green Mountain Gate most likely knows what's happening in Qian Dao Imperial Capital, yet does nothing! Perhaps the Gate Master of that level already sensed the arrival of that unfamiliar True Lord but didn't want to make enemies, so they treated Yan Buji and Hu Bing as expendables."

What about the death of a few Foundation Establishment disciples?

Is provoking a Nascent Soul True Lord of unknown origin a good choice?

The Green Mountain Gate truly puts profit first, but it does give Yan Buji another option now.

Since they want to fight, let them fight.

However, Wang Jie is like a hunting dog chasing prey; he'll never stop staring at me.

"Senior brother, I'm here to help you!"

Yan Buji, without a word, joined the battle.