Xiao Suo and Du An joined forces once again.
Du An led the vanguard, drawing everyone's attention so Xiao Suo could slip in unnoticed.
Although Xiao Suo was only an 8th Tier Black Robe, his methods were treacherous. He almost never fought Priest Ai Jing head-on, opting instead to entangle her and keep her distracted.
Meanwhile, Li Ban had to worry about Cat Girl's condition, which forced him to hold back.
Down below, Cat Girl's aura grew increasingly chaotic. If this continued, the Mutated Element inside her body would likely revert to chaos.
"Priest Qian Que!" Li Ban immediately called out to the priest hiding in the shadows.
"You cannot summon him," Du An said mildly. "Since we know you have multiple Solar Priests, why would only the two of us come?"
Priest Qian Que still hadn't made a move. Li Ban's heart sank.
Besides Xiao Suo, did the Black Robes have another 8th Tier priest here?
Using a telepathic spell, Li Ban instructed the other priests to do their best to soothe the enraged Cat Girl. He warned them not to swarm forward to fight, lest they be killed by the ruthless Du An and pointlessly hand over their Wizard Embryo Fragments.
Just as Li Ban tried to figure out how to break the stalemate, an arrogant voice rang out.
"Qian Que can't make it, but what if I step in?"
Priest Li He's figure suddenly appeared high above in the mist.
His arrival instantly lifted the spirits of all the priests.
Even Li Ban had to admit that despite Priest Li He's mercenary nature, his strength was absolutely unquestionable.
Realizing the tables had turned, Du An didn't hesitate. "It seems your luck is still holding up. I just wonder if it will stay that way forever."
Du An was trying to run?!
Li Ban immediately dashed forward. As he unleashed a spell, a string of beads abruptly materialized in his palm.
One of the beads instantly dimmed. A burst of azure smoke, distinctly different from the surrounding white mist, erupted and ensnared Du An.
A radiant light flashed across Du An's body and clashed with the azure smoke, hissing with the sound of corrosion.
Overhead, Priest Li He swiped his hand, instantly manifesting hundreds of sharp ice blades that shot in unison toward Du An.
Trapped by the azure smoke, Du An couldn't dodge.
Yet, when the ice blades—sharp enough to cleave space itself—sliced through, his figure had already vanished from the spot.
A scream suddenly tore from a priest below; his own shadow had lunged out in a sneak attack.
Just as Du An's hand reached into the back of the priest's head, Priest Li He blinked right next to the warden, a bright light flashing in his eyes.
Du An and the ambushed priest instantly seemed caught in slow motion, their movements and consciousness halving in speed.
Priest Li He had cast another powerful mental spell.
It was a spell Li Ban had never even heard of.
He flew into the air above Du An, releasing a beam of starlight in an attempt to pin him down so Priest Li He could deliver the killing blow.
However, Du An seemed intimately aware of the starlight's power. He immediately abandoned his attack on the low-tier priest and vanished once more.
"Watch the shadows," Priest Li He warned, darting forward again before the words had fully left his mouth.
Li Ban wanted to give chase, but seeing Xiao Suo still entangled with Priest Ai Jing and Du An leading Priest Li He away, he reconsidered. Instead of pursuing, he turned back to Cat Girl.
Watching her writhe on the ground in agony, he kept his distance, instead channeling starlight to soothe the elements wracking her body from afar.
Their true target must be Little Cat.
All the enemies were fighting merely to stall, not to win.
It wasn't hard to guess their intent to lure the tiger away from the mountain.
Only, the people serving as bait to lure away the tigers were far too exceptional.
Priest Ai Jing viewed Xiao Suo as her mortal enemy.
And Priest Li He would never let a traitor to the Myriad Ancient Pagoda go.
By now, Cat Girl had completely lost her original appearance.
She looked like a golden furball curled on the ground, twitching intermittently as she let out agonized moans.
Only when Li Ban's starlight enveloped her did her moans finally quiet down.
"Little Cat, who exactly sent you here?"
"Li Ban!" Overhead, Li He suddenly called out to him. "The chaos inside Cat Girl can no longer be suppressed! If this continues, she'll become an accomplice to the Black Robes! Kill her right now!"
A sudden explosion boomed in the distance, nearly making the ground tremble.
That had to be Priest Qian Que; a fierce battle had broken out on his side as well.
Priest Li He urged Li Ban again.
"Their target is Cat Girl! If you kill her, you can use this chance to advance!"
Advancing from the 6th Tier to the Seventh Tier required not only a sufficient wizard embryo and spiritual rhinoceros, but also an intense suppression of emotion.
One had to instantly dam up emotions that surged like a rushing river, permanently sealing both consciousness and power in order to compress their Star Glow into a core—the Dark Moon.
In that instant, Li Ban understood. Priest Li He's orders were likely meant to push the boat along with the current.
Since the enemy wanted to turn Cat Girl into a seed of chaos, the older priest intended to make her fertilizer for Li Ban's growth.
"Truly worthy of Priest Li He," Li Ban sneered, looking toward Cat Girl.
For a moment, all his experiences at the Recycling Station flashed through his mind. He stood rooted to the spot, seemingly caught in hesitation.
Right then, Cat Girl, who had been huddled on the ground, raised her head.
Her face was now covered in long fur, thick as a lion's mane. Only a pair of perfectly round, crimson eyes could be faintly seen beneath the hair.
"Don't. You. Dare. Kill. Me—"
She glared at Li Ban, her eyes seemingly brimming with hatred.
Suddenly, Du An emerged from the shadows near the swamp.
The moment he lunged out, he vomited mouthfuls of blood, yet a smile remained plastered across his face.
"Cat Girl, if you don't want to die, how about we cooperate one more time?"
Cat Girl violently whipped her head around to glare at Du An, emitting a feral, beast-like roar.
Seeing Priest Li He blink into view again, Du An vanished once more.
Just as Priest Li He was about to catch up to him, another earth-shattering boom erupted in the distance.
This time, the ground shook for a long while, nearly throwing everyone off their feet.
Who in the world is Priest Qian Que fighting?
This question flashed through the minds of all the white-robed priests.
Seeing Du An chased off, Li Ban stepped forward again.
But Cat Girl backed away several steps, seemingly terrified.
She moved on all fours, scrambling backward like a true wild beast.
"She's of no use anymore," Priest Li He loudly reminded him from the sidelines.
Yet Li Ban still didn't make a move.
Just as Priest Li He frowned, the thunderous roar of rushing water echoed from afar.
Hovering high in the air, Priest Li He and Priest Ai Jing simultaneously turned their heads toward the source of the noise.
"The River of Helplessness changed course?"
"How is that possible?" Priest Ai Jing turned pale with fright. "Who in the world is Priest Qian Que fighting that they broke the banks of the River of Helplessness?"
Taking advantage of the distraction, Xiao Suo broke away from Priest Ai Jing.
However, he didn't flee; instead, he bolted toward Cat Girl.
"Cat Girl, stop controlling yourself! Even if you refuse to give up, these white-robed priests won't let you live to become a ticking time bomb. Let go of your hesitation, and I can make you into an entire world."
Right as Xiao Suo was about to grab Cat Girl, Li Ban abruptly pointed a finger.
In the next second, Cat Girl's figure vanished, reappearing hundreds of zhang away.
On Li Ban's hand, a Plain Ring was glowing a stark, radiant black.
It was a Plain Ring Li Ban had never used before—the Exile Spell.
Meanwhile, Xiao Suo, who had been about to close in on Cat Girl, abruptly froze, as if firmly bound and completely unable to move.