469: Chapter 469 After Cangsongzi and his two companions retreated, someone else arrived.

Cang Bozi turned around and looked at Xu Ruyu, his eyes filled with complexity.

There was wariness, anger, resentment, and a hint of... helplessness.

He knew that the flaws Xu Ruyu mentioned were all real.

Those were indeed the fatal weaknesses of their Cultivation Technique.

If Xu Ruyu truly used a Forbidden Array to target these weaknesses and launch an attack, they might not be able to withstand it.

Furthermore, according to what they had heard from their clansmen, Xu Ruyu was a man who never fought a battle he wasn't prepared for.

Since he dared to wait for them here, he must have a trump card.

Cang Songzi had also considered this point.

His face was as dark as water as he slowly lowered the soul suppressing ruler, the runes on its body gradually dimming.

He took a deep breath, suppressing the fury and resentment in his heart, and said word by word:

"Xu Ruyu, consider yourself lucky to be alive."

He turned and walked toward the direction of Tianyin Mountain.

His footsteps were heavy, making a 'crunch, crunch' sound as he stepped on the gravel.

Cang Bozi and Cang Yunzi exchanged a glance and followed him.

As Cang Bozi passed by Mo Feng, he grabbed him by the collar and dragged him off the ground.

Mo Feng was dragged along, struggling to stand up, but Cang Bozi's hand was like an iron pincer; he couldn't break free at all.

"Old Ancestors, you can't leave! You can't leave!"

Mo Feng shouted, his voice full of unwillingness, almost screaming in a roar.

"He's just bluffing! He really can't hold on anymore. Look at him, he can barely even stand straight. You—"

Cang Bozi delivered a knife-hand strike to the back of his neck. Mo Feng's voice stopped abruptly, his eyes rolled back, and he fainted.

Cang Bozi hoisted him onto his shoulder and walked away without looking back.

The three figures vanished into the night.

Xu Ruyu stood where he was, watching their departing backs as the smile on the corners of his mouth gradually faded.

His face was as pale as paper, and his forehead was covered in cold sweat.

His hands were trembling slightly, and his legs were shaking; he could barely stand steady.

As the night wind blew past, his thin frame swayed like a small tree that could be blown over at any moment.

But he remained standing, refusing to fall.

Because he knew that someone was still watching him from the darkness.

He couldn't fall. Once he did, the jackals hiding in the shadows would pounce and tear him to pieces.

He took a deep breath, trying his best to steady his breathing.

His gaze swept across the surrounding darkness, and his Divine Sense spread out like spilled mercury, searching every inch of the surrounding space.

He didn't find anything unusual.

But he knew someone was there.

His intuition told him that someone was spying on him from the shadows.

That person might be a scout sent by Cang Songzi and the others, a remnant of Situ E's faction, or some other power.

He didn't know. But he knew that person was still there.

He couldn't fall.

Gritthing his teeth, he forced himself to stand straight, his gaze looking firmly into the distance.

The moonlight spilled over him, stretching his shadow very long, like a withered branch about to snap.

His body swayed, and he nearly fell over.

He quickly reached out to support himself against a nearby rock, stabilizing his form.

The rock was very hot, still retaining the residual heat from the explosion of the great array. It burned his palm with pain, but he didn't let go.

He was too tired.

From being driven out of the Taihu Clan, to being besieged by Situ E and Zhao Qianyi, to setting up the Acetylene Great Array, to detonating it, and then using words to scare off Cang Songzi's trio—he had barely rested.

His spiritual power was completely exhausted, his Divine Sense was nearly dried up, and his body had reached its limit.

Every inch of muscle was protesting, and every bone was groaning.

But he couldn't fall.

He took a deep breath, took out a Medicinal Pill for recovering spiritual power from his storage ring, and swallowed it.

As the pill entered his stomach, it turned into a stream of warm energy, slowly nourishing his parched Meridians.

But that bit of energy was just a drop in the bucket compared to his current depletion.

It wasn't enough.

He took out another one and swallowed it.

Still not enough.

He took out one more and swallowed it.

After three pills, his complexion improved slightly, no longer looking so deathly pale.

But his body was still weak, his hands were still trembling, and his legs were still soft.

Leaning against the rock, he panted heavily, trying to steady his heartbeat.

He closed his eyes, silently regulating his breathing.

Right at that moment—

"Clap, clap, clap."

A burst of crisp applause came from the darkness.

The applause was neither fast nor slow, rhythmic and clear, piercing through the silent night air with startling clarity.

It was as if someone were enjoying a brilliant performance and was clapping in praise for the actor.

Xu Ruyu's pupils constricted sharply. He snapped his eyes open and looked toward the sound.

In the darkness, two figures were slowly walking over.

The moonlight fell upon them, illuminating their faces.

A flash of complex emotion crossed Xu Ruyu's eyes.

There was pleasant surprise and there was shock.

His body tensed up, but he didn't move.

He just quietly watched the two figures as they walked toward him step by step.

Under the moonlight, their faces became clearer and clearer.

Xu Ruyu looked at them, his mouth opening slightly as if to say something, but not a single word could come out.

His body finally couldn't support itself anymore.

Leaning against the rock, he slowly slid down to sit on the ground, gasping for air.

The two figures reached him and came to a stop.

The moonlight fell on them, casting their shadows over Xu Ruyu—one was a thin, withered figure of an old man; the other was a sturdy, robust figure of a man in his prime.

Xu Ruyu looked up at them, a bitter smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

"Heh, you guys... finally decided to show yourselves."