121: Chapter 121 Covering the Rear

With the million Spirit Stones delivered in full, the guarding Elder, seeing Lin Qing's decisive actions and lack of hesitation, immediately raised his hands to form seals, activating the teleportation Formation.

Lin Qing stood in the center of the platform as countless ancient Formation patterns lit up layer by layer from beneath the ground, with silver light winding and flowing between them, converging toward the center of the platform like the veins of a waking galaxy.

As the Formation was activated, the radiance grew increasingly bright, with dazzling halos of light stacking layer upon layer until a blinding silver glow enveloped the entire teleportation platform, completely obscuring the surrounding light of the world.

Lin Qing felt his entire body enveloped by a gentle force.

The next moment, space shook and twisted, and the scenery before his eyes blurred, transforming into scattered, colorful patches as all things in the world seemed to lose their outlines.

After a full cup of tea's time, the tremors in space slowly subsided, the sensation of weightlessness faded, and Lin Qing regained the feeling of having his feet on solid ground as the blinding light slowly dissipated, revealing the surrounding scene to his eyes.

He had already crossed an unknown number of miles of territory, successfully arriving at the teleportation plaza in the imperial capital of the Beichen Empire.

Looking up, he saw buildings stacked layer upon layer within the city, with towering skyscrapers rising from the ground, bustling with traffic and a weaving stream of people, far more magnificent than the capital of the Great Qi Dynasty by dozens of times.

After confirming the direction of Great Qi, Lin Qing did not linger. In the next instant, he leaped, taking flight directly into the air, transforming into a pure white, sharp streak of light that tore through the sky as he flew at high speed toward Great Qi!

His act of flying openly above the imperial capital instantly startled the countless Cultivators and commoners passing by below.

As the capital of an Empire, there was naturally a ban on flight.

"Damn! Who is that? What nerve! To dare to fly in the imperial capital? He must have a death wish!"

"That looks like the attire of a True Disciple of the Chuyun Immortal Sect!"

"No wonder he's so arrogant!"

Lin Qing naturally knew that the main cities of the various Dynasties and Empires all had rules forbidding flight, but at this moment, Luoxia Valley was in imminent danger, and he had no time to worry about such things.

The capital of the Beichen Empire was simply too vast; if he were to travel honestly on the ground, he feared it would take several days just to leave the city.

He had previously contacted Jue Chenzi, but the reply he received was that the other God Realm experts in the Sect would not interfere in such matters. While Jue Chenzi could ignore the rules, he was currently far away in the Central Continent, and it would take at least a month to return, which was simply too late.

The Divine Thought imprint in his ring also had a range limit, so even if he needed Jue Chenzi to intervene, Lin Qing had to reach Great Qi first.

After Lin Qing left, in an inconspicuous room beside the plaza, a middle-aged man with an ordinary face and plain clothing slowly raised his eyes, looking through the window crack toward the horizon where Lin Qing had disappeared.

He then raised his hand to take out a communication token and reported in a low voice:

"Target Lin Qing has left the Immortal Sect and arrived at the Beichen Empire; he did not stop afterward and is heading straight toward Great Qi."

Meanwhile, within Luoxia Valley in Great Qi, the bustling and lively scene of the past was long gone.

The entire valley was filled with a dead silence and pervasive panic, with the bleak wind sweeping through the forests, everywhere revealing the oppression and sorrow of an impending storm.

It was estimated that only one hour remained before the allied forces composed of surrounding small and medium-sized factions descended upon them.

Before this, all the high-level Elders of Luoxia Valley were fully mobilized, racing against time to evacuate the ordinary Disciples.

However, Luoxia Valley was only a mid-tier faction, with very few Elders above the fifth rank, and most of them were only at the Early Stage or Middle Stage of the fifth rank, making their individual transport capacity extremely limited.

One Elder could only escort a dozen or so ordinary Disciples to safety at most, and a single round trip would exhaust most of their Qi, leaving everyone exhausted with shallow breathing and pale complexions.

They dared not settle these Disciples in one place, fearing the target would be too large and they would be wiped out by the pursuing forces; they could only hide them in batches, diverting them, and concealing them in separate areas.

Some Disciples shed their Daoist robes, cut their long hair, and changed their appearance, disguising themselves as mountain hunters, and were quietly sent by Elders into the surrounding rolling mountains.

Some Disciples changed into coarse linen clothes, disguising themselves as ordinary villagers or city folk, and were dispersed and settled in nearby villages and towns.

Everyone was fully disguised and hiding their tracks, severing all ties with Luoxia Valley, seeking only to preserve their lives amidst the chaos.

But even though the Elders were running about desperately, the base number of ordinary Disciples was too massive, and the evacuation speed still could not keep up with the speed at which the crisis was descending.

Time was becoming increasingly tight. In front of the Luoxia Valley mountain gate, Yuan Kun, his green shirt stained with dust, had an exhausted aura. He turned his head to look at Sect Master Shen Yurong beside him:

"Sect Master, we cannot delay any longer; there is not enough time!"

"You must immediately take Yun Nian, Yuan Chong, and the other Disciples and retreat. Leave the evacuation work for the remaining Disciples here to us."

Sect Master Shen Yurong looked at the weary faces of the Elders and gazed at the vast Luoxia Valley, a sense of bitterness and reluctance welling up in her eyes as she said softly:

"But..."

"There are no buts!"

Yuan Kun interrupted decisively, his tone firm:

"The Core Disciples are the future of Luoxia Valley! They must not perish here!"

"There aren't many ordinary Disciples left now; we will escort them as quickly as possible. Once things are done, we will meet at the Hundred Thousand Mountains."

Sect Master Shen Yurong stared blankly at Yuan Kun and the group of Elders behind him, who wore calm expressions, her heart filled with a complex mix of emotions.

With a desperate situation upon them and having no other choice, she could only grit her teeth and nod.

Thus, the people of Luoxia Valley split into two groups, each heading toward vastly different fates.

The first group, led by Sect Master Shen Yurong, took Yun Nian, Yuan Chong, and the other Core Disciples and retreated toward the vast and boundless Hundred Thousand Mountains.

The Hundred Thousand Mountains were steep and rugged, with vast seas of forests and intricate terrain sufficient to hide all traces. Their territory was also much larger than the entirety of Great Qi, making it the only place of survival at this moment.

The second group consisted of some Elders, including Yuan Kun. They were generally older and voluntarily remained at Luoxia Valley to continue evacuating the ordinary Disciples.

Meanwhile, although Lin Qing was rushing over with all his might, the Beichen Empire was simply too far from Great Qi, and even at his speed, it would still take two or three days.