Chapter 696: Turning the Tide, Unauthorized Withdrawal (Seeking monthly votes)

At this moment, due to the sudden retreat of the "Brother Chiyun Demon Emperor," the morale of the demon beast army was clearly and significantly impacted.

Whether it was the high-tier demon kings or the low-tier demon beasts at the Foundation Establishment and Qi Refining stages below, their momentum of attack had been blunted and was no longer as frenzied as before.

After joining the battlefield, Song Qingming did not immediately go to assist Song Qingyu and the others; instead, he flew straight toward the high altitude, intending to help Bai Yuxian and the others break free from their predicament.

However, just as he flew into mid-air, a massive Jin Gang phantom within the white clouds above his head plummeted straight down from the sky, landing not far in front of him.

"Junior Brother Song, where is that Brother Chiyun Demon Emperor?"

Having just shaken off their predicament, Bai Yuxian and the others, who were controlling the "Jin Gang Heavenly Net Formation," were just about to search for the "Brother Chiyun Demon Emperor's" figure. They had not expected to run into Song Qingming, who had come looking for them, the moment they landed, and they hurriedly spoke up to ask him.

"Senior Sister Bai, you have finally arrived. The Brother Chiyun Demon Emperor has already been repelled by us; I do not know where he has fled to now!"

"The Brother Chiyun Demon Emperor has fled? How did this happen?"

Hearing Song Qingming's reply, the few people inside the "Jin Gang Heavenly Net Formation" all revealed expressions of astonishment, harboring doubts about the truth of Song Qingming's words.

However, when they swept a glance over the entire battlefield below and discovered that the "Guiyun Workshop's" mountain-protecting formation was still intact and the human side was not at a significant disadvantage, with only the "Brother Chiyun Demon Emperor" missing, they gradually began to believe him a little.

"Senior Sister Bai, this matter is somewhat complicated. Since the workshop's formation is still in a critical state, it would be better to wait until we have repelled the demon beast army before I explain it to you in detail!"

Upon hearing Song Qingming's reply, Bai Yuxian hurriedly nodded and responded: "Mm! Junior Brother Song's words are very true. The most urgent priority right now is to repel the demon beast army as quickly as possible; otherwise, once the workshop's formation is lost, all our previous efforts will have been in vain."

After Bai Yuxian finished speaking, she immediately controlled the Jin Gang phantom and led Song Qingming and the others to charge toward the battlefield together.

Because the "Canglong Demon King" and several other demon kings from Red Yunshan had suddenly followed the "Brother Chiyun Demon Emperor" in withdrawing from the battlefield, the demon side's Jin Dan combat power on the battlefield did not hold much of an advantage over the human side at this moment.

After Bai Yuxian and the others joined the battlefield with the "Jin Gang Heavenly Net Formation," their strength while controlling this formation was approaching that of a Nascent Soul cultivator. Just to deal with the four of them, the demon side would need to have twice as many demon kings working together.

With the "Jin Gang Heavenly Net Formation" helping to pin down numerous demon kings, the human side finally surpassed the demon side in Jin Dan combat power, beginning to suppress the opponent in return, which instantly exerted tremendous pressure on the demon side.

The two sides fought fiercely for about another half-hour. As the Jin Gang phantom controlled by Bai Yuxian and the others successively killed three demon kings, the demon king side finally could not withstand it and was defeated, one after another beginning to break away from the battlefield and retreat backward.

Once the demon kings above retreated, the low-tier demon beasts at the Foundation Establishment and Qi Refining stages below suddenly seemed to lose their backbone, scrambling to turn around and flee north away from the battlefield.

"The demon beast army has retreated! Everyone, pursue them quickly! Do not let them go!"

Seeing that the demon beast army had finally begun a full-scale retreat, those human cultivators who had been fighting bitterly on the battlefield for a long time were finally able to vent their anger, one after another taking the initiative to pursue the demon beast army before them.

Seeing the demon side defeated and retreating, many of the Jin Dan cultivators above, including Song Qingming, were also restless, preparing to go and pursue the retreating demon kings.

However, just as everyone was preparing to act, Bai Yuxian stepped forward to block their path first.

"The demon side still retains its strength. Fellow Daoists, do not fall for the opponent's cunning plot; it is more important to guard the workshop first! We will go assist Senior Uncle Li in dealing with the Molong Demon Emperor. Junior Sister Xu, Junior Brother Song, Fellow Daoist Wei, I will trouble you few to take command here!"

Although they had just repelled the demon beast army on the front lines, the demon race's losses were not significant, and their overall strength on paper still exceeded that of the human side.

Moreover, no one knew the extent of the injuries of the "Brother Chiyun Demon Emperor" who had fled. If they were to pursue rashly, it would indeed be extremely dangerous. Hearing Bai Yuxian's warning, everyone immediately stopped in their tracks and nodded one after another.

Subsequently, Bai Yuxian and the others controlled the Jin Gang phantom to fly straight into the high altitude, while Song Qingming and the others headed to various parts of the battlefield to begin commanding the cultivator army that had already become somewhat uncontrollable.

"Everyone listen to my orders: do not pursue the demon beast army! Clean up the battlefield as quickly as possible and retreat back to the workshop!"

As one command after another was passed down, those low-tier cultivators who were pursuing the demon beast army gradually stopped their pursuit and began to retreat toward the workshop.

Seeing the cultivator army outside the workshop gradually stabilize and begin to clean up the battlefield in an orderly manner to retreat back to the workshop, Song Qingming greeted Xu Ziyuan before returning to the workshop first.

By the time Song Qingming hurried to the cave dwelling where Li Xuanyi was located, he found that she had already completely refined the elixir in her body and recovered a significant amount of magic power, and her complexion had returned to normal. Only then did he set aside a trace of worry in his heart.

"Junior Brother Song, has the demon beast army outside already been repelled by you all?"

Seeing Song Qingming return, Li Xuanyi immediately asked. Seeing Song Qingming smile and nod gently, a trace of joy immediately appeared on her face as well.

"I have no way to repay the life-saving grace of today. Senior Sister Li, please accept a bow from me!" After Song Qingming walked up to Li Xuanyi, he bowed and cupped his hands toward her, performing a bow with a solemn expression.

At that time, facing the pursuit of the "Brother Chiyun Demon Emperor," Song Qingming had almost lost his life, and he was naturally extremely moved by Li Xuanyi's initiative to step in and save him.

Although Li Xuanyi was his fellow sect member, in the face of such a life-and-death crisis, Li Xuanyi's courage to step forward and help Song Qingming deal with a Nascent Soul demon emperor was a sentiment not every fellow sect member in the cultivation world would possess.

When Song Qingming escorted her back, he did not mention much about this matter because the war outside was urgent. Now that the demon beast army's attack had been repelled, he naturally had to come and thank the other party first.

Seeing this, Li Xuanyi hurriedly stepped forward to help him up, waving her hand with a smile: "Junior Brother Song, you and I are fellow sect members; we should naturally help each other. You don't need to be so formal.

Before we left, Master specifically instructed us to look after each other while outside. How could I, as a senior sister, stand by and watch that demon emperor bully you because of his superior strength?

If he had really taken your life, who else would be here to help me solve the problems in my cultivation technique? Wouldn't I have made this trip for nothing?"

"Regardless, today I received a life-saving grace from Senior Sister, so this is only right. Please rest assured, Senior Sister Li; after we repel the demon beast army, I will definitely help you comprehend the cultivation technique well." Hearing this, Song Qingming immediately made a promise to her.

Regarding this little senior sister Li Xuanyi, Song Qingming sometimes felt a bit of a headache when facing her in the sect, but over the years, Li Xuanyi had indeed always taken good care of him as a junior brother.

The two of them, who had once experienced life and death together outside, had a relationship that was better than that of other fellow sect members after meeting unexpectedly in the sect. When Song Qingming occasionally asked her for advice on some problems, Li Xuanyi would also patiently answer them for him.

Even though their relationship was already good, Song Qingming was still filled with emotion regarding Li Xuanyi's move to risk her life to save him this time.

Li Xuanyi nodded slightly: "Mm! If I didn't trust Junior Brother Song, I wouldn't have come all this way to find you for help.

The life-saving divine ability Master gave me was meant to be used at such a critical moment. It's just a pity that I couldn't kill that demon emperor with one sword this time and let him escape; otherwise, we might have been able to share quite a few precious spiritual items."

Seeing Li Xuanyi sigh slightly at the corner of her mouth when she said this, Song Qingming immediately shook his head gently:

"That Brother Chiyun Demon Emperor is a demon emperor who has been famous for many years; how could he not have a few life-saving methods? It is already a great fortune for us that Senior Sister was able to repel him with one strike; otherwise, we would definitely have been unable to hold the workshop in this battle.

Speaking of which, Senior Sister is not just my benefactor this time, but also a great benefactor to the hundreds of millions of people in our Wei State. After the war ends, the sect will definitely bring out many spiritual items to reward you, so you don't need to feel too much regret over this."

"Haha! If that's really the case, then I'll take your word for it!" Hearing Song Qingming's words, Li Xuanyi's mood immediately improved, and she responded with a smile.

After the two sat down in the cave dwelling and chatted alone for a long time, it wasn't until a sound transmission flew into the entrance of the cave dwelling that their conversation was interrupted.

"It's Qingyu looking for me to go to the conference hall. It should be that Senior Sister Bai and the others have all returned. Senior Sister, please rest here. After I go see Senior Uncle Li and the others, I will come back to see you!" After opening the sound transmission and taking a look, Song Qingming hurriedly stood up and explained.

Seeing this, Li Xuanyi immediately nodded with a smile: "I'm fine here; I'll be fully recovered in at most a few days. You go ahead and get busy; if I need anything, I will come find you myself."

"Alright! Then I won't disturb you any further. This bottle of elixirs is something I specifically collected for you from the workshop's treasury; I hope Senior Sister can recover soon."

After bowing slightly to Li Xuanyi, Song Qingming took out a bottle of elixirs from his own body and placed it in her hand, only then standing up to leave Li Xuanyi's cave dwelling.

After asking Song Qingyu, who was waiting outside the door, the two of them quickly turned into escape lights and arrived outside the "Guiyun Workshop's" conference hall.

By the time Song Qingming walked into the hall, more than a dozen Jin Dan cultivators had already gathered there.

Except for Li Xuanyi and Zhao Menglian, who were in seclusion healing their injuries, and the True Person Guangling, who had died in battle outside the workshop, all the Jin Dan cultivators currently in "Guiyun Workshop" had gathered in the hall.

Li Mufeng's battle with the "Molong Demon Emperor" this time, as expected, ended in a draw, just like before; neither could defeat the other.

Later, when Bai Yuxian and the others arrived as reinforcements, the "Molong Demon Emperor," seeing that the situation was unfavorable, immediately chose to withdraw. Although Li Mufeng chased him for a long way, he ultimately failed to stop the other party, allowing the "Molong Demon Emperor" to successfully escape back into the demon beast army.

"Junior Brother Song, how is the situation with Fellow Daoist Li? Does she still need any healing elixirs?" Seeing Song Qingming walk in, Sect Master Bai Yuxian immediately stepped forward and asked with a concerned expression. Having been back for so long, Bai Yuxian, Li Mufeng, and the others had long since learned from other elders of the "Xiaoyao Sect" about Li Xuanyi's move to repel the "Brother Chiyun Demon Emperor," and they also knew that she was injured and currently in seclusion healing.

Regarding this person who had almost single-handedly helped the "Xiaoyao Sect" reverse the entire unfavorable war situation, Sect Master Bai Yuxian naturally cared very much about Li Xuanyi's condition at this moment.

"Senior Sister Bai, please rest assured. Fellow Daoist Li only suffered some minor injuries and is not in any serious danger. I have already gone to the treasury to collect some elixirs and sent them to her; I estimate she will be fully recovered after resting for a few days."

Hearing Song Qingming say that Li Xuanyi was not in any serious danger, Bai Yuxian finally felt relieved and nodded with a smile: "Oh! That's good. This time, thanks to Fellow Daoist Li's move to defeat the Brother Chiyun Demon Emperor, we were able to hold the workshop and turn defeat into victory. Another day, when her injuries improve, I will definitely pay a visit to thank her in person."

"Yuxian's words are very true. For someone like Little Friend Li who has made such a great contribution to the sect, we should reward her well and must never treat her unfairly." As soon as Bai Yuxian finished speaking, Li Mufeng, who was sitting at the head of the table, also stood up and said.

Hearing Li Mufeng, an elder of the sect, state in person that he wanted to reward Li Xuanyi, the many Jin Dan cultivators present immediately revealed a trace of envy on their faces.

Although everyone present was a meritorious official in this battle, compared to Li Xuanyi's achievement of repelling a Nascent Soul demon emperor and reversing the war situation, the difference was truly vast. Therefore, apart from showing envy, no one dared to have too many other thoughts.

After praising Li Xuanyi's merits in front of everyone, Li Mufeng turned to face the people in the hall and spoke to comfort them:

"Fellow Daoists, please rest assured. You all have merits in this battle. Regardless of whether you are disciples of this sect, after the great war ends, I will personally reward you according to your merits. I hope all Fellow Daoists can work together with this sect to hold this place."

"We thank the Senior for the rewards!" Hearing that they could also receive rewards, the people who had just been full of envy now had a bit more joy on their faces and hurriedly cupped their hands to thank Li Mufeng.

Although "Guiyun Workshop" had luckily repelled the demon beast army today due to Li Xuanyi's move to repel the "Brother Chiyun Demon Emperor,"

the demon beast army led by the two demon emperors had not suffered significant losses and was still gathered not far north of "Guiyun Workshop," not having retreated. They still posed a tremendous threat to the workshop, and the time had not yet come for everyone to celebrate and relax.

After encouraging everyone, Li Mufeng and Bai Yuxian kept Song Qingming behind alone to ask him about Li Xuanyi's current condition and how she had managed to repel the "Brother Chiyun Demon Emperor" at that time.

Li Xuanyi was, after all, only a cultivator at the fifth layer of the Jin Dan stage. That she could actually repel a Nascent Soul demon emperor who had been famous for a thousand years in a head-on confrontation—

Li Mufeng and Bai Yuxian, who had just returned to the workshop, both felt it was somewhat inconceivable after hearing about this, and they naturally became a bit more curious about Li Xuanyi's identity.

Seeing the two mention this matter, Song Qingming immediately gave a detailed account of the situation at that time to Li Mufeng and the other.

However, in order not to expose matters related to the "Grand Void Gate," Song Qingming did not mention Master Lingxu Daoist, but instead described the sword energy spiritual light placed on Li Xuanyi as being the work of his own family's elders.

This was also the explanation that Song Qingming had already discussed with Li Xuanyi before coming here to deal with this matter.

After hearing Song Qingming's patient explanation, Li Mufeng and Bai Yuxian both revealed a trace of surprise, but they did not ask any further questions, only nodding toward Song Qingming.

When Bai Yuxian had originally persuaded Li Xuanyi to stay and help guard "Guiyun Workshop," Song Qingming had already mentioned to Bai Yuxian that Li Xuanyi came from a Nascent Soul immortal clan in the "Donghuang State" cultivation world and was traveling in the Fuyun Mountain Range.

There are many capable people in the cultivation world, and it is not rare for Nascent Soul stage experts to place a protective measure on their descendants.

It was just that a protective measure placed by a fourth-layer Nascent Soul cultivator like Li Mufeng obviously could not possess the power to directly force back the "Brother Chiyun Demon Emperor."

According to their estimation, the Nascent Soul elder behind Li Xuanyi's family was likely a powerful late-stage Nascent Soul great cultivator to be able to display such a formidable divine ability.

Thinking of this, Li Mufeng and Bai Yuxian attached even more importance to Li Xuanyi's identity.

Hearing that Li Xuanyi had also injured her own meridians to display this divine ability, Li Mufeng took out a high-quality third-grade healing elixir on the spot and handed it to Song Qingming, instructing him to take good care of Li Xuanyi, this "benefactor" of the "Xiaoyao Sect."

Seeing that the two did not ask any more questions, Song Qingming hurriedly took the elixir, nodded, and exited.

After Song Qingming left, Li Mufeng put away the smile on his face and said to Bai Yuxian beside him: "Have you asked others? Is this Li Xuanyi's cultivation technique of the same origin as what Qingming practiced before forming his core!"

"I have already asked. The cultivation technique Li Xuanyi and Junior Brother Song practiced during the Jin Dan stage is indeed somewhat similar, but it is not exactly the same; there are still differences. Senior Uncle Li, do you think Li Xuanyi is related to the expert behind Junior Brother Song?"

Hearing Li Mufeng suddenly ask about the cultivation technique Li Xuanyi practiced, Bai Yuxian immediately guessed the question he really wanted to ask in his heart.

Li Mufeng nodded slightly: "Qingming traveled alone to the Donghuang State for a long time before, and this woman happened to meet him there. I do have some guesses in my heart, but I cannot be sure of this matter yet.

However, if Li Xuanyi hadn't suddenly stepped in to repel that old fellow Brother Chiyun today, we would probably have been driven out of 'Guiyun Workshop' by the demon beast army long ago. I have to say she helped us a great deal this time.

You only need to continue investigating this matter in secret; you must not be too hasty, lest others notice.

Regardless of what relationship Li Xuanyi has with Qingming, for someone with such a deep background as her, we should still try to make friends with her and maintain a good relationship. We must never offend the other party; otherwise, it might be unfavorable to the sect in the future."

"Senior Uncle Li, please rest assured. I know how to handle this!" —— On a high mountain several dozen miles north of "Guiyun Workshop."

The "Molong Demon Emperor," who had just retreated from the front-line battlefield not long ago, looked at the dozen or so demon kings standing below, his expression extremely ugly.

In this great battle, he had borrowed the precious treasure "Yinyi Heavenly Star Pearl" to the "Brother Chiyun Demon Emperor" in advance to deal with Bai Yuxian and the others.

He had thought that victory was already in their grasp, but he never expected that the "Brother Chiyun Demon Emperor" would be defeated by a Jin Dan cultivator like Li Xuanyi, causing the demon side to ultimately fail at the last moment and return in defeat.

"But she is only a mid-stage Jin Dan cultivator; how could she make that old ghost Brother Chiyun suffer such heavy injuries? What exactly happened?"

Hearing the "Molong Demon Emperor's" inquiry, the "Flame Tiger Demon King" standing to the side hurriedly lowered his head, walked forward, and reported the events that had occurred on the battlefield earlier, as well as the detailed process of Li Xuanyi using green sword light to severely injure the Brother Chiyun Demon Emperor, to the "Molong Demon Emperor."

"Chen Chen Laozu, this woman's cultivation is only at the fifth layer of the Jin Dan stage, but the divine ability she displayed far exceeds that of us Jin Dan cultivators; it has at least reached the Nascent Soul level; otherwise, it would be absolutely impossible to injure Brother Chiyun Chen Chen Laozu."

"Hmph! A mere little Jin Dan cultivator, how could she easily display a divine ability that only Nascent Soul cultivators possess? It must be that a fellow expert placed a means on her, and Brother Chiyun Feng Laogui fell for the other party's trick due to a moment of negligence."

After listening to the "Flame Tiger Demon King's" detailed explanation, the "Molong Demon Emperor" spoke with disdain, his heart still filled with anger that the "Brother Chiyun Demon Emperor" had been defeated by Li Xuanyi.

Just as the "Molong Demon Emperor" was feeling resentful in his heart, a letter suddenly flew to the door and landed directly in his hand.

Seeing this situation, the "Molong Demon Emperor," feeling slightly surprised, hurriedly picked up the letter to open and check it. But before long, a layer of frost suddenly covered his already ugly face.

"Chen Chen Laozu! What happened?"

Seeing the "Molong Demon Emperor's" expression becoming increasingly wrong, the "Flame Tiger Demon King" standing to the side couldn't help but ask carefully.

As soon as he spoke, the letter in the "Molong Demon Emperor's" hand was instantly crumbled into powder by him, who was furious at this moment! "Brother Chiyun Feng Laogui and the others have already left this place and retreated north back to Red Yunshan!"

"What! The demon race of Red Yunshan has all run away? How could they withdraw their troops without even discussing it with us? Chen Chen Laozu, what should we do now?"

Hearing the news that the "Brother Chiyun Demon Emperor" had suddenly taken people and retreated, at this moment, not only the "Flame Tiger Demon King" but the other demon kings standing below also revealed expressions of shock one after another.

Although they had failed to conquer "Guiyun Workshop" and retreated in defeat today due to an accident on the "Brother Chiyun Demon Emperor's" side,

the demon beast army still retained its strength and had not suffered significant losses, still holding many advantages over the human side. The "Brother Chiyun Demon Emperor" leaving the battlefield without saying goodbye truly exceeded the expectations of all the demon kings present.

The biggest possibility they could think of for this sudden situation was that the "Brother Chiyun Demon Emperor" was truly severely injured and could no longer continue to fight.

Thousands of low-tier demon beasts and even a few Jin Dan demon kings dying on the battlefield had little impact on the overall war situation.

However, the "Brother Chiyun Demon Emperor" suddenly taking people away was a tremendous loss for the demon beast army besieging "Guiyun Workshop," almost instantly costing them thirty to forty percent of their strength.

Under these circumstances, even if their strength was not weaker than the human cultivator side, it was obviously no longer possible to conquer "Guiyun Workshop."

"Hmph! Brother Chiyun Feng Laogui is truly a shameless villain. All his life he has only known how to follow behind others to pick up cheap gains, and he retreats immediately upon encountering difficulties. How can such a short-sighted, treacherous person accomplish great things? No wonder Jin Yu refused to cooperate with him back then."

Facing this situation, the "Molong Demon Emperor" could not help but angrily rebuke the "Brother Chiyun Demon Emperor" who had already withdrawn his troops without authorization. (End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 697 =====