Chapter 696: Reversing the battle situation, unauthorized withdrawal (Seeking Monthly Votes)

At this moment, due to the sudden retreat of the "Red Cloud Demon Emperor," the morale of the demon beast army side was obviously greatly affected.

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

After Song Qingming joined the battlefield, he did not immediately go to assist Song Qingyu and others, but flew straight to the high altitude, wanting to go to help Bai Yuxian and others get out of trouble.

However, just as he flew to mid-air, a huge diamond phantom in the white clouds above his head fell straight from the high altitude and came to a place not far in front of him.

"Junior Brother Song, where is that Red Cloud Demon Emperor?"

Bai Yuxian and others, who had just gotten rid of the predicament, controlled the "Diamond Heaven Net Array" and were looking for the figure of the "Red Cloud Demon Emperor." Unexpectedly, they met Song Qingming, who came to find them, as soon as they fell, and hurriedly asked him.

"Senior Sister Bai, you are finally here. The Red Cloud Demon Emperor has been repelled by us, and now I don't know where he fled!"

"The Red Cloud Demon Emperor fled? How did this happen?"

Hearing Song Qingming’s answer, the few people in the "Diamond Heaven Net Array" all showed astonishment and doubted the truth of what Song Qingming said.

However, after they scanned the entire battlefield below, they found that the mountain-protecting array of "Returning Cloud Market" was still intact, and the human side was not at a great disadvantage on the battlefield, only the figure of the "Red Cloud Demon Emperor" was missing, so they gradually believed a few points in their hearts.

"Senior Sister Bai, this matter is a bit complicated. Now the market array is still critical. Why don't we wait until we repel the demon beast army, and I will explain it to you in detail!"

After hearing Song Qingming’s answer, Bai Yuxian hurriedly nodded and responded, "Hmm! Junior Brother Song is right. The top priority now is to repel the demon beast army as soon as possible. Otherwise, once the market array is lost, our previous efforts will be abandoned."

After Bai Yuxian finished speaking, she immediately controlled the diamond phantom and took Song Qingming and others to kill toward the battlefield.

Only because the "Canglong Demon King" and other demon kings from the Red Cloud Mountain suddenly withdrew from the battlefield with the "Red Cloud Demon Emperor" before, at this time, the Golden Core combat power of the demon side on the battlefield did not occupy too much advantage over the human side.

After Bai Yuxian and others joined the battlefield with the "Diamond Heaven Net Array," their strength in controlling this array was already close to a Nascent Soul cultivator. Just to deal with Bai Yuxian and the four, the demon side needed twice as many demon kings to join forces.

With the "Diamond Heaven Net Array" helping to contain many demon kings, the human side finally surpassed the demon side in terms of Golden Core combat power at this moment, and began to suppress the other side in turn, instantly exerting huge pressure on the demon side.

The two sides fought fiercely for another half an hour. With the diamond phantom controlled by Bai Yuxian and others killing three demon kings one after another, the demon king side finally lost and retreated one after another.

After the demon kings above retreated, those low-level demon beasts at the Foundation Establishment and Qi Refining stages below were like losing their backbone, scrambling to turn their direction and flee to the north of the battlefield.

"The demon beast army has retreated, everyone hurry up and chase, don't let them go!"

Seeing that the demon beast army finally began to retreat comprehensively, those human cultivators who had been fighting hard on the battlefield for a long time finally had a chance to vent their anger and took the initiative to chase the demon beast army in front of them.

Song Qingming and other Golden Core cultivators above, seeing the demon side defeated, also had many people eager to move, preparing to chase the demon kings who were retreating in front of them.

However, just when everyone was preparing to act, Bai Yuxian took the lead and blocked in front.

"The demon side still has strength, fellow Daoists, don't fall into the other party’s trick. It is better to guard the market first! We will go to assist Senior Li to deal with the Ink Dragon Demon Emperor first. Junior Sister Xu, Junior Brother Song, Fellow Daoist Wei, I will trouble you to command here!"

Although they just repelled the demon beast army on the frontal battlefield, the loss of the demon clan was not great, and the overall strength was still more than the human side on paper.

And the injury of the "Red Cloud Demon Emperor" who fled, no one knew, so it was extremely dangerous to chase rashly. After hearing Bai Yuxian’s reminder, everyone stopped their steps and nodded one after another.

Subsequently, Bai Yuxian and others controlled the diamond phantom and flew straight to the high altitude, while Song Qingming and others went to various battlefields to command those cultivator armies that were already a bit out of control.

"Everyone listen to the order, do not chase the demon beast army, clean up the battlefield as soon as possible and retreat to the market!"

With one order after another, those low-level cultivators who were chasing the demon beast army gradually stopped their pace of pursuit and began to retreat toward the market.

Seeing that the cultivator army outside the market gradually stabilized and began to clean up the battlefield and retreat to the market in an orderly manner, Song Qingming greeted Xu Ziyan and returned to the market first.

By the time Song Qingming rushed to the cave dwelling where Li Xuanyi was, he found that she had already refined the elixir in her body and recovered a lot of magic power, and her complexion had completely returned to normal, which put down a trace of worry in his heart.

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

Seeing Song Qingming return here, Li Xuanyi immediately asked. Seeing Song Qingming nodding gently with a smile, a trace of joy immediately appeared on her face.

"The life-saving grace today cannot be repaid. Senior Sister Li, please accept a bow from me!" After Song Qingming walked to Li Xuanyi, he bent down and bowed to her, solemnly bowing first.

At that time, facing the pursuit of the "Red Cloud Demon Emperor," Song Qingming almost lost his life, and he was extremely moved by Li Xuanyi’s initiative to help him.

Although Li Xuanyi was his fellow sect member, facing such a life-and-death crisis, Li Xuanyi dared to stand up and help Song Qingming deal with a Nascent Soul demon emperor. This friendship is not something that every fellow sect member in the cultivation world will have.

Song Qingming did not mention much about this when he escorted her back, and it was also because the war outside was urgent at that time. Now that the demon beast army’s attack has been repelled, he should naturally come to thank the other party first.

Li Xuanyi saw this, hurriedly stepped forward to help him up, waved her hand with a smile, "Junior Brother Song, you and I are fellow sect members, and we should help each other.

Before we left, Master specifically urged us to look out for one another while abroad. As your senior sister, how could I just stand by and watch that Demon Emperor bully you?

If he had truly taken your life, who else here would be able to help me solve the difficulties in my cultivation technique? Wouldn't this trip have been a waste for me then?

"Since I received a life-saving grace from Senior Sister today, it is only right. Please rest assured, Senior Sister Li; once we beat back the demon beast army, I will certainly help you comprehend your cultivation technique," Song Qingming replied, immediately making a promise to her.

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

Having once experienced life and death together abroad, their relationship was better than that with other fellow disciples after they unexpectedly reunited in the sect. When Song Qingming occasionally asked her for advice on certain issues, Li Xuanyi would also patiently answer them for him.

Even though their relationship was already good, Song Qingming was still filled with emotion over Li Xuanyi's act of risking her life to save him this time.

Li Xuanyi nodded slightly and said, "Hmm! If I didn't trust Junior Brother Song, I wouldn't have come all this way specifically 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 strike 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 corners of her mouth as she said this, Song Qingming immediately shook his head gently:

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

Come to think of it, Senior Sister is not just my benefactor this time, but a great benefactor to the hundreds of millions of people in our Song Guo. After the war ends, the sect will surely bring out many spiritual items to reward you, so you need not feel too much regret over this."

"Haha! If that is truly the case, then I shall take your auspicious words!" Hearing what Song Qingming said, Li Xuanyi's mood improved instantly, and she replied with a smile.

After the two sat down in the cave dwelling and chatted alone for a long time, a sound transmission flew into the entrance of the cave, interrupting their conversation.

"It is Qingyu coming to find me for the meeting in the council hall. It should be that Senior Sister Bai and the others have returned. Senior Sister, please rest here; once I have seen Elder 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 to explain.

Seeing this, Li Xuanyi smiled and nodded, saying, "I am fine here; I will 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."

"Very well! I will not disturb you any further here. These elixirs are ones I specifically retrieved from the market treasury for you; I hope Senior Sister can recover soon."

After bowing slightly to Li Xuanyi, Song Qingming took a bottle of elixirs from his own person and placed it in her hand before rising to leave Li Xuanyi's cave dwelling.

After asking Song Qingyu, who was waiting outside, the two quickly turned into escape lights and arrived outside the council hall of Guiyun Market.

By the time Song Qingming walked into the hall, more than a dozen Core Formation cultivators had already gathered inside.

Except for Li Xuanyi and Zhao Menglian, who were in seclusion healing their wounds, and True Person Guangling, who had died in battle outside the market, all the Core Formation cultivators currently in Guiyun Market were gathered in the hall.

The result of Li Mu's battle with the Ink Dragon Demon Emperor this time was as expected: it remained the same as before, with the two fighting to a draw, neither able to defeat the other.

Later, when Bai Yuxian and the others arrived as reinforcements, the Ink Dragon Demon Emperor, seeing that the situation was unfavorable, immediately chose to pull away and retreat. Although Li Mu pursued him for a distance, he ultimately failed to stop the opponent, allowing the Ink Dragon 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 look of concern. Having been back for so long, Bai Yuxian, Li Mu, and the others had long since learned from other elders of the Carefree Sect about Li Xuanyi's act of repelling the Red Cloud Demon Emperor, and they also knew she was currently in seclusion healing from the injuries she sustained.

Regarding this person who had contributed so greatly, almost single-handedly helping the Carefree Sect turn the tide of the entire unfavorable war, Sect Master Bai Yuxian naturally felt very concerned about Li Xuanyi's condition.

"Senior Sister Bai, please rest assured. Fellow Daoist Li only sustained some minor injuries and is in no serious danger. I have already been to the treasury to retrieve 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 in no serious danger, Bai Yuxian finally relaxed and nodded with a smile: "Oh! That is good. This time, thanks to Fellow Daoist Li stepping in to defeat the Red Cloud Demon Emperor, we were able to hold the market and turn defeat into victory. Another day, when her injuries have improved, I will certainly visit her in person to express my thanks."

"Yuxian is absolutely right. For someone like Little Friend Li who has made such a great contribution to the sect, we should reward her well; we must absolutely not treat her unfairly." As soon as Bai Yuxian finished speaking, Li Mu, who was sitting in the seat of honor, also stood up and said.

Hearing Li Mu, an elder of the sect, express in person that he wanted to reward Li Xuanyi, the many Core Formation cultivators present immediately revealed looks of envy on their faces.

Although everyone was a meritorious official in this battle, compared to Li Xuanyi's achievement of repelling a Nascent Soul Demon Emperor and thus turning the tide of the war, they were truly far behind. Therefore, besides showing envy, no one dared to have any other thoughts in their hearts.

After praising Li Xuanyi's contributions in front of everyone, Li Mu turned to face the people in the hall and comforted 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 evaluate your merits and bestow rewards. 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 would also receive rewards, the people who had just been full of envy now had a bit more joy on their faces and hurriedly bowed to Li Mu to thank him.

Although Guiyun Market had luckily repelled the demon beast army today due to Li Xuanyi's act of repelling the Red Cloud Demon Emperor.

However, the demon beast army led by those two demon emperors had not suffered too much loss and was still gathered not far to the north of Guiyun Market, having not yet retreated. They still posed a huge threat to the market, and it was not yet time for everyone to celebrate and relax.

After encouraging everyone, Li Mu 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 Red Cloud Demon Emperor at that time.

Li Xuanyi was, after all, only a cultivator at the fifth level of Core Formation. That she could actually repel a Nascent Soul Demon Emperor who had been famous for a thousand years head-on.

Li Mu and Bai Yuxian, who had just returned to the market, both felt it was somewhat inconceivable upon hearing this, and naturally, their curiosity about Li Xuanyi's identity grew.

Seeing the two mention this, Song Qingming immediately reported the situation at that time in detail to Li Mu 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-Qi spiritual light placed on Li Xuanyi as being the work of his own elders.

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

After hearing Song Qingming's patient explanation, although Li Mu and Bai Yuxian showed some surprise, they did not ask further and only nodded at Song Qingming.

When Bai Yuxian had originally persuaded Li Xuanyi to stay and assist in guarding Guiyun Market, Song Qingming had already mentioned to Bai Yuxian that Li Xuanyi came from a Nascent Soul immortal clan in the Donghuangxianzhou cultivation world and was traveling in the Floating Cloud Mountain Range.

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

It was just that a protective measure placed by a fourth-level Nascent Soul cultivator like Li Mu obviously could not possess the power to directly force back the Red Cloud Demon Emperor.

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

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

Hearing that Li Xuanyi had even injured her own meridians to unleash this divine ability, Li Mu 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 honored guest of the Carefree Sect.

Seeing that the two did not ask further, Song Qingming hurriedly took the elixir, nodded, and withdrew.

After Song Qingming left, Li Mu 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 that Li Xuanyi and Junior Brother Song practiced during the Core Formation stage is indeed somewhat similar, but it is not exactly the same; there are still differences. Elder Li, do you think Li Xuanyi is related to the expert behind Junior Brother Song?"

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

Li Mu nodded slightly and said: "Qingming previously traveled alone to Donghuangxianzhou for a long time, and this woman happened to meet him there. I do have some guesses in my heart, but I cannot be certain of this matter yet.

However, if it weren't for Li Xuanyi suddenly stepping in to repel that old fellow Red Cloud today, we would likely have been driven out of Guiyun Market 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, one should still diligently cultivate a relationship with someone with such a deep background and get on good terms with her. You must never offend the other party, otherwise, it may be unfavorable for the sect in the future."

"Elder Li, please rest assured, I know how to handle it!" — On a high mountain several dozen miles north of Guiyun Market.

The Ink Dragon Demon Emperor, who had just withdrawn from the front line of the battlefield not long ago, now looked at the dozen or so Demon Kings standing below with an extremely ugly expression.

In this great battle, he had borrowed the heavy treasure "Two Forms Heavenly Star Bead" to the Red Cloud Demon Emperor in advance to use against Bai Yuxian and the others.

He had thought that they had victory in their grasp in this battle, never expecting that the Red Cloud Demon Emperor would be defeated by a Core Formation cultivator like Li Xuanyi, causing the demon beast side to ultimately fall short and return in a crushing defeat.

"But she is only a mid-stage Core Formation cultivator; how could she cause Old Ghost Red Cloud to be so heavily injured? What exactly happened?"

Hearing the Ink Dragon Demon Emperor's inquiry, the Flame Tiger Demon King standing to the side hurriedly lowered his head, stepped forward, and reported the events that occurred on the battlefield earlier, as well as the detailed process of Li Xuanyi using green sword light to heavily injure the Red Cloud Demon Emperor with one strike, to the Ink Dragon Demon Emperor.

"Ancestor, this woman's cultivation is only at the fifth level of Core Formation, but the divine ability she unleashed far exceeded us Core Formation cultivators; it had at least reached the Nascent Soul level, otherwise it would have been absolutely impossible to injure Ancestor Red Cloud."

"Hmph! A mere little Core Formation cultivator, how could she easily unleash a divine ability that only Nascent Soul cultivators possess? It must be that a fellow expert placed a method on her, and Old Ghost Red Cloud was careless for a moment and fell for the other party's trick."

After listening to the Flame Tiger Demon King's detailed explanation, the Ink Dragon Demon Emperor said with full disdain, his heart still filled with anger over the Red Cloud Demon Emperor being defeated by Li Xuanyi's hand.

Just as the Ink Dragon Demon Emperor was feeling resentful, a letter suddenly flew in from the entrance and landed directly in his hand.

Seeing this, the slightly surprised Ink Dragon Demon Emperor hurriedly picked up the letter to open and read it, but before long, a layer of frost suddenly covered his already ugly face.

"Ancestor! What happened?"

Seeing the Ink Dragon Demon Emperor's expression becoming increasingly wrong, the Flame Tiger Demon King standing to the side could not help but ask carefully.

As soon as he spoke, the letter in the Ink Dragon Demon Emperor's hand was instantly crumpled into powder by him, who was furious at this moment! "Old Ghost Red Cloud and the others have already left this place and retreated north back to Red Cloud Mountain!"

"What! The demon race of Red Cloud Mountain has all run away? How could they retreat without even discussing it with us? Ancestor, what should we do now?"

Hearing the news that the Red Cloud Demon Emperor had suddenly taken his people and retreated, not only the Flame Tiger Demon King but also the other Demon Kings standing below revealed looks of shock on their faces.

Although they had failed to conquer Guiyun Market and retreated in defeat today due to an accident on the Red Cloud Demon Emperor's side.

But the demon beast army still had its strength and had not suffered too much loss, and they still held many advantages over the human side. The Red Cloud Demon Emperor leaving the battlefield without saying goodbye truly exceeded the expectations of all the Demon Kings present.

That such a situation would suddenly occur, the greatest possibility they could think of was that the Red Cloud Demon Emperor was truly heavily injured and could no longer continue to fight.

Thousands of low-level demon beasts, and even several Core Formation Demon Kings, dying on the battlefield did not have much impact on the overall war situation.

However, the Red Cloud Demon Emperor suddenly taking his people and leaving was a extremely heavy loss for the demon beast army besieging Guiyun Market, almost instantly losing thirty to forty percent of their strength.

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

"Hmph! Old Ghost Red Cloud is truly a shameless villain. All his life he has only known how to follow behind others to pick up bargains; the moment he encounters difficulty, he immediately shrinks back. How can such a short-sighted and treacherous person achieve great things? No wonder Jin Yu refused to cooperate with him back then."

Facing this situation, the Ink Dragon Demon Emperor could not help but angrily rebuke the Red Cloud Demon Emperor, who had already retreated without authorization.