Taking Refuge
"This time, the Witchcraft Association sent a total of four Rank 7s."
"If it were during our peak, our Floating Life Painting would naturally be assured of victory. But now the Fifth Hall is vacant, the Sixth Hall is severely injured and near death, and the Seventh Hall is dead. The Rank 7 Combat Power we can mobilize are only the Fourth Hall and the Eighth Hall two..."
"This means someone needs to hold back the remaining two Rank 7s of the Witchcraft Association."
The Second Hall's voice sounded from the Walkie-talkie.
"...So, one of them is me?" Wang Jincheng stared at the Rank 7 walking towards him and spoke calmly.
"Your [Pioneer]'s frontal Combat Power is very strong. Currently, it seems only you have the hope of holding back a Rank 7." The Second Hall paused for a moment.
"Remember, you only need to 'hold back'... Although our Rank 7 Combat Power is inferior to theirs, they only have one Rank 8. Once the deployment is completed and the situation is temporarily stabilized, I will personally make a move and sweep away all their Rank 7 Combat Power."
Wang Jincheng's brows rose slightly, and he spoke half-jokingly:
Bang——!
The next moment, the Walkie-talkie in Wang Jincheng's hand exploded out of thin air, as if an invisible hand had Kneaded it into a ball of scrap iron scattering sparks.
Translucent vengeful spirits wandered in the void. That black robe sneered,
"What? Treating me as if I don't exist?"
Wang Jincheng's communication was cut off, and his expression gradually became solemn. He gazed at the black-robed figure in front of him, and the earth beneath his feet began to tremble violently as if struck by war drums.
"...Then let me see what capabilities you wizards have."
...
Clang! Clang! Clang!
"All town residents! Pack your bags immediately! Head to the Red Dust main city to take refuge!!"
"Repeating once more!!"
"War has arrived! The Red Dust main city is temporarily open! Everyone! Head to the Red Dust main city immediately to take refuge!!! Abandon heavy sundries! Only bring daily necessities!"
Clang! Clang! Clang!!
Several Police Officers sped through the town streets banging bronze gongs. The maximum volume emitted from their loudspeakers echoed in the air, making everyone's hearts subconsciously tighten.
By the street, a group of Dusk Society members stood in a row, uniformly turning their heads to watch these Police Officers rush past, but no one noticed them at all.
"It seems the situation is gradually getting serious," Jack of Clubs spoke slowly.
"The Wuji Domain's goal is to slaughter civilians and refine Philosopher's Stones... The Red Dust Domain prioritizing the protection of civilians is necessary, otherwise the more casualties there are, the lower their chances of winning." Bai Ye gently pulled down his hat brim.
After speaking, everyone suddenly fell quiet.
Bai Ye turned his head in confusion and found the others all looking at him uniformly, their eyes full of bewilderment.
"Philosopher's Stone?"
"..." Bai Ye was astonished. "What? Did you guys really not know?"
Everyone shook their heads at the same time.
"I also only found out while investigating in the Wuji Domain... The Lord of Wuji has already awakened. He cooperated with the Vice President of the Witchcraft Association, Brand, assassinated the former President Shang Shaoquan, and even sacrificed an entire major district to refine Philosopher's Stones..." Bai Ye briefly introduced everything related to the Philosopher's Stone.
"I secretly tracked Brand and arrived at The Church where the Lord of Wuji resided, only then discovering these secrets... However, I was still detected. Later, I faced the combined pursuit of four Rank 7s from the Witchcraft Association. They used some unknown method to place a Curse on me. I barely managed to escape by hiding in the realm train... As for the rest, I have no impression."
Philosopher's Stone?
Extracting souls?
Hearing this, Chen Ling's body shook slightly, and the image of Kong Baosheng's Grandmother unconsciously surfaced in his mind...
"...I don't know, she suddenly fell ill, rolling on the ground in pain."
"She didn't miss a single dose of medicine, I... I don't know why this happened..."
"Grandmother she... she looked as if something was forcefully drawn out of her..."
"..."
Kong Baosheng's tearful voice echoed in Chen Ling's ears. He seemed to understand something. A surge of anger ignited beneath his eyes, and his fists clenched unconsciously...
"So that's how it is..."
Before this, although Chen Ling also suspected Kong Baosheng's Grandmother's death was related to the Scarlet Heaven Cult's attack, only now did he know that this wasn't a natural death from illness, but a dying soul being forcefully drawn out... And this wasn't the final ending. Even if the physical body died, her soul would be trapped in the Philosopher's Stone forever, enduring endless torment.
At this moment, in the void surrounding Chen Ling, "The Fourth Wall" trembled slightly along with his anger.
Chen Ling was very angry, but what could he do... Rush in front of the Lord of Wuji and pry the Philosopher's Stone out of his head?
In the final analysis, this was just a war between two realms. Who died, how many people died, didn't matter... As long as he could Reverse the Era and Reboot the World, everything was but nothingness.
As Chen Ling's mood calmed down, the faint black lines at the corners of Chen Ling's eyes gradually deepened. The trembling of "The Fourth Wall" lasted for a dozen seconds and finally returned to tranquility.
"In that case, the Red Dust Domain evacuating the town residents is indeed the correct choice," 10 of Diamonds said thoughtfully. "The towns near the edge of the realm have probably already fallen. Next will be the towns in the middle ring... Evacuating them in advance not only reduces casualties but also buys combat time for the Floating Life Painting themselves."
"But can the current Red Dust main city accommodate so many people?"
"After the previous Gray Realm Convergence, nearly half of the main city has been reduced to ruins. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say it's close to paralysis... Bringing in fleeing refugees at this time, I'm afraid the pressure on supplies will be huge."
"But this is also a matter of no alternative. Other than the Red Dust main city, where else can accommodate so many refugees?"
"True..."
"Anyway, this isn't what we should be worrying about," Jack of Clubs finally spoke.
"How Wuji and Red Dust fight is none of our business. Our mission is only to hold funerals for the realms and encoffin the Nine Monarchs... As for which realm's funeral and which of the Nine Monarchs to encoffin, there is no difference."
"We just need to be good 'Audience' for this war."
Hearing the word "Audience," Chen Ling's mind subconsciously stirred, as if something flashed across his mind.
"Then where are we going now?" Jian Changsheng asked. "Are we going to the Red Dust main city too?"
"They are going to the main city to take refuge. Why would we go to the main city? To walk right into a trap?" Nine of Hearts knocked on Jian Changsheng's head.
"The main city is definitely out. If the Red Dust Domain is defeated in the war, the main city will surely become a purgatory on earth... We'd better go to a place that won't be easily affected by the war and doesn't have too strong supervision, waiting for the final 'funeral' to begin."
Jack of Clubs rubbed his chin with one hand, deep in thought, "Then where else can we go..."
"Willow Town."
Chen Ling suddenly spoke. Under the bewildered gazes of everyone, he repeated it firmly,
"...We should go to Willow Town."