Chapter Thirty-Five: The First Signs of Deadly Intent

Wang Li was not the only one to experience this; every cultivator within a hundred-mile radius of Pure Yang Temple under the age of one hundred met the same fate. In an instant, over ten thousand people vanished from their original locations.

A flash of white light, and the once imposing gates of Pure Yang Temple disappeared. In their place, before Wang Li's eyes, stood the ruins of a vast city.

Looking out, he saw collapsed stone buildings scattered everywhere. Unfamiliar vegetation had overgrown the streets, some plants climbing up and covering much of the massive stone houses.

The city seemed to have been destroyed by war—Wang Li even spotted several siege rams as thick as a man’s arm still embedded in the crumbling distant walls. Who knew how many years had passed, but the once-steel heads of these rams were rusted, and many shafts had long since decayed, leaving only the ram heads deeply driven into the blue stone, silent testimony to the brutality of that battle.

Wang Li did not move recklessly. Instead, by instinct, he kept a distance from the surrounding structures.

Though he had never fought in a war, he came from a family of generals, had read countless military treatises sent by his parents, and received guidance from his father in letters. He knew how perilous battlefield ruins could be. With his meager cultivation, a powerful war spirit could easily annihilate him.

Moreover, this city had clearly endured a desperate siege. Who could say if the defenders' traps had all been dismantled? If he were to trigger a large one, even a Golden Core cultivator might lose their life.

So, for the first time without Master Sheng’s influence, he chose to hide.

He had barely retreated when, about a dozen yards away, two figures—one large, one small—appeared.

Wang Li glanced over and recognized Jiang Yue and a young woman with an air of nobility, both gazing around in utter bewilderment.

He ignored the child and focused on the unfamiliar young woman.

Wang Li knew nearly every disciple of Pure Yang Temple and immediately dismissed the possibility she was one of them.

“If she isn’t a disciple yet is with the little girl, and wears gloves at the Foundation Establishment stage, she must be Jiang Yu.”

He quickly confirmed Jiang Yu’s identity and was about to greet them when Jiang Yue spotted him.

“Hey, Wang Li, where is this place? Are you up to no good again?”

Jiang Yue waved at him, delighted to see a familiar face, though her words were as sharp as ever, immediately labeling Wang Li as the culprit.

Her reasoning was simple: everyone said Wang Li was a hidden master, and strange events like this would not be beyond him. If something so bizarre happened and Wang Li was present, who else would she suspect?

To her, it was a perfectly logical deduction.

Wang Li, upon hearing this, swallowed his greeting, grumbled “lunatic” under his breath, and turned away toward somewhere safer.

Seeing Wang Li ignore her, Jiang Yue became even more convinced of her theory and shouted, “You’d better send us back right now, or my grandfather will make you pay!”

Jiang Yu was momentarily stunned to see Wang Li, but quickly covered the little girl’s mouth, warning, “We don’t know what’s going on—don’t provoke him. We’ll need him to get out of here!”

“Let me go or I’ll bite you!” the little girl struggled free and sank her teeth into Jiang Yu’s hand.

“Ow! You bit me—let go! That hurts!”

Tears welled in Jiang Yu’s eyes from the pain, and she hastily shook off the child.

“Ugh!” The little girl spat twice and said, “What are you afraid of? If Grandpa and the others realize we’re missing, they’ll come looking for us. We can deal with Wang Li then.”

Jiang Yu shook her hand and retorted, “Fool! You really think anyone can just teleport people like this? Wang Li is only at the second level of Foundation Establishment—he doesn’t have that kind of power.”

Jiang Yue insisted, “Who else could it be? This is revenge, for embarrassing him in the arena.”

“What arena? Look over there!” Jiang Yu pointed to where figures were appearing one after another. “If he wanted revenge on you, why bring so many people?”

Jiang Yue glanced skeptically where Jiang Yu pointed and saw more and more people materializing out of thin air, including several familiar faces.

She was puzzled.

“So many people!”

“What is Wang Li up to?”

“Aren’t those disciples from the Sacred Medicine Hall? Why were they brought here too?” The little girl muttered, analyzing the scene. After a burst of imagination, she came to a new conclusion. “I get it—everyone here must have watched my match with Wang Li. He’s gathered us all to silence the witnesses! Yes, that must be it. That old monster is so petty!”

“What about me?” Jiang Yu was at a loss for words at the child’s logic.

Jiang Yue considered, “Maybe he thinks you’re a fraud and wants to get rid of you too.”

“Shut up! You’re the fraud!” Jiang Yu finally lost patience with the scatterbrained girl, snapped at her, and hurried after Wang Li.

Always meticulous, Jiang Yu had noticed something else: all the people appearing here were young. No matter their cultivation, the oldest was barely over eighty. For cultivators, such a concentration of youth in an unknown place was highly unusual.

Sensing this, she instinctively wanted to stay near Wang Li, the old monster. Age meant experience, and compared to higher-level but inexperienced youngsters, he seemed more reliable.

“Hey, why are you leaving? I haven’t finished!” Jiang Yue trotted after Jiang Yu, still chattering about her “deductions.”

Jiang Yu grew increasingly irritated by her, and seeing Wang Li pulling farther away, she sped up.

Jiang Yue, still caught up in her theorizing, looked up to find Jiang Yu far ahead and hurried to catch up.

More and more people appeared among the ruins, reaching a peak before the arrivals slowed to a trickle.

Over ten thousand people had been thrust into this strange place, each reacting differently to the vast ruined city. Some were anxious, some shouted, some were bewildered, some called out for friends.

Few, however, thought to immediately flee such an ominous place. Most simply stood there, at a loss.

Wang Li, seeing so many people and recalling the voice he’d heard earlier, picked up his pace. By the time no more people were appearing, he was moving as fast as he could.

His goal was a barren hillside in the distance, well away from the city walls, devoid of vegetation except for a few scattered rocks—unlikely to conceal any dangers.

Just as he was about to reach the hill, a shiver ran through his spirit.

Without hesitation, he summoned his Explosive Flame Sword and soared into the air.

Boom… rumble…

Strange noises rumbled from the ground, followed by tremors.

The sudden quake sent many cultivators sprawling, cries and thuds echoing through the ruins.

Roar! Roar!

Amid the trembling earth, thunderous roars resounded through every corner of the city.

Hearing these, the cultivators blanched and hurriedly summoned their swords, taking to the sky.

“It’s a pack of Earth Howlers! Everyone, get airborne!”

“Hurry, there’s no time!”

Those who had already ascended looked toward the source of the sound, only to see countless massive beasts—each over ten feet long, their shoulders as high as a grown man—bursting from the ruins in all directions, about to collide with those still on the ground. They urgently shouted warnings below.

The threat had come so suddenly, there had been no time to prepare.