Chapter 54: Fleeing in Panic

“What is this place? A ten-thousand-mile roc, a longevity tortoise?”
Haoming’s steps felt insubstantial as he touched the ground; everything around him seemed utterly unreal.
“How is it that this place remains intact? The Nanjing Mountains have already collapsed to a certain extent, yet this area seems untouched?” Zhu Xin asked in bewilderment.
Behind them, rows of elders were also disembarking from the treasure ship.
Among them, an old man in a gray robe, his hair pure silver, stared wide-eyed at a certain woman ahead.
In their eyes, this woman was chopping at the longevity tortoise with what appeared to be an ordinary kitchen knife, striking again and again.
If that were all, it would have been surprising enough. But what was truly astonishing was that the impenetrable shell of the longevity tortoise was actually being cleaved straight through!
Heavens! Everyone gasped in shock!
Even standing at such a distance, separated from the woman, he could easily sense that this kitchen knife was no ordinary object!
The tortoise shell, which even a Supreme could not break, was being sliced as easily as chopping vegetables under that blade.
What on earth was this?
“Go! We must leave at once—this is no place for us. We’ll be in great danger if we linger!”
The old man in gray shouted, scrambling back onto the ship with all the haste and clumsiness of panic.
In the blink of an eye, the treasure ship lifted into the sky and vanished from sight.
Those left behind were dumbfounded, still too stunned to react.
Zhu Xiaoyuan had been about to step forward and greet them, but before she could, everyone had disappeared.
She had no idea what they were running from!
Huanyue and Ruofeng, however, exchanged glances, both somewhat surprised.
“Ruofeng, what’s going on? Why did Haoming suddenly flee like that?”
Huanyue was still confused.
Ruofeng glanced at Zhu Xiaoyuan beside her and lowered her voice, “I just saw Supreme Xiao Tianya come down from the ship. Haoming and Zhu Xin are clueless, but an expert like Xiao Tianya can see the truth. With Senior Zhu standing here, of course they’re afraid!”
With that, Huanyue instantly understood.
That made perfect sense!
“Then we have nothing to fear at all, do we? As long as our teacher is here, even a Supreme couldn’t harm us!”
Huanyue’s confidence soared, and she spoke with excitement.

Ruofeng laughed as well.
What Huanyue said was entirely true. After all, when Hongxi and Supreme Xieming had visited Senior Zhu’s little courtyard, they had been unfailingly respectful, even addressing her as ‘Senior’!
“So they left so quickly? I was hoping to have a good conversation with them,” Zhu Xiaoyuan said with a helpless smile to Ruofeng and Huanyue.
Now Ruofeng felt even more at ease.
If Senior Zhu had intended to chat with them, what was there to worry about?
“Come on, let’s head back for now. It’s best not to go out for a while—things look far too dangerous out here!”
With that, Zhu Xiaoyuan turned and left.
Life was precious—staying safe came first!
The little white cat, Hong Xiaoyue, blinked her big eyes, gazing longingly at the corpses of spirit beasts outside, her eyes filled with hunger.
So many spirit beasts!
If she could eat their flesh and blood, the White Tiger Clan’s strength might increase greatly!
But...
The little white cat let out a pitiful meow.
“Oh, you little glutton! Stop drooling over the meat out there. I’ll cook some for you later!” Zhu Xiaoyuan laughed, picking up Hong Xiaoyue and heading back.
Hong Xiaoyue allowed herself to be carried away, her feline eyes brimming with joy.
She could finally eat the Gold-Swallowing Beast!
Hahaha!
...
Haoming and his companions drove the treasure ship at its utmost speed!
“Uncle-Master, I really don’t get it—we weren’t in any danger, so why did we have to run?”
Haoming sounded impatient; after all, he had finally found Ruofeng and Huanyue.
With just a little action, he could have easily taken their lives, eliminating all future threats.
Yet now, not only had he failed to capture them, but he himself was inexplicably forced into retreat.
He truly couldn’t understand.
“Be quiet!” Supreme Xiao Tianya was furious. “Do you even know what place that is? It’s a forbidden ground!”
“Daring to linger there is courting death!”
He had seen with his own eyes how that kitchen knife had effortlessly chopped through the tortoise shell—such a terrifying sight! If that blade were to strike him...
Xiao Tianya could not even imagine it!

He supposed he wouldn’t even have the chance to resist before perishing!
Haoming and Zhu Xin were stunned into silence by Xiao Tianya’s words.
It was just a little mountain village! Could it really be as terrifying as Xiao Tianya claimed?
...
It wasn’t long before Haoming and the others returned to their starting point.
The massive treasure ship still hovered in midair.
Tieming and a few others were watching the condition of the Nanjing Mountains.
“Haoming and the others have returned!”
The elder with a writing brush tucked at his waist smiled.
“Those two girls, Huanyue and Ruofeng, are probably dead by now! I’ve always said that what our founder left behind can only be claimed by our people. No one else is worthy!”
Tieming merely nodded at this.
“That’s true. But make sure to handle things cleanly—if anything happens, it won’t look good for us.”
As he finished speaking, the ship carrying Haoming and his group landed, and they poked their heads out.
“Senior Brother! We’re in big trouble!”
Even before the ship had fully settled, Xiao Tianya’s voice rang out from within.
In the next instant, a flash of light, and Supreme Xiao Tianya appeared before Tieming and the others.
After hearing Xiao Tianya’s words, the faces of Tieming and his companion darkened.
“What do you mean? Did something go wrong while you were taking action?”
Xiao Tianya took a breath, his expression grave. “Senior Brother, Ruofeng and Huanyue are currently inside a secret realm.”
“And that secret realm—I sensed its aura—it’s terrifying. Even I wouldn’t dare set foot in there recklessly!”
Xiao Tianya quickly recounted what he had witnessed near the mountain village.
After hearing his story, the two Supremes, Tieming included, turned pale.
They exchanged glances.
“You mean there’s another forbidden ground within the Nanjing Mountains? Even with the mountains in ruins, that forbidden ground remains untouched?”
“And none of the spirit beasts, not even the quasi-Supremes or the Supremes, dared set foot there?”
“Are you certain it was a kitchen knife? I’ve never seen any weapon capable of cutting through a longevity tortoise!”