Chapter 669: Retreat
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Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
The Thousand Feathers Alliance was in turmoil, with the fate of the Three Mountain Sea Realm cultivators hanging in the balance. Thousand Feathers City had long since become a desolate ruin, with only a few managing to escape.
Initially, with Thousand Feathers City’s defenses and the presence of the Three Mountain Sea Realm cultivators, it had seemed impossible for the city to be breached.
However, the strength of the five Monster Kings had been overwhelming, and one of them had possessed a talent perfectly suited for breaching the city. With a breach in Thousand Feathers City’s defenses, it had ultimately collapsed.
Within the Sea Peak City, all sects had begun to gather their belongings, preparing to relocate.
Located to the side of the Thousand Feathers Alliance, the Sea Peak City had still been a considerable distance from the sea area occupied by the sea monsters.
But now that the Mountain Sea Realms had vanished without a trace, this distance had no longer provided any sense of security. All sea areas belonging to the Thousand Feathers Alliance would soon be under the control of the sea monsters, having no relevance to humanity.
Chen Fei had floated in the air, gazing into the distance with a grave expression.
The Monster Kings had arrived too quickly. Chen Fei had thought that the Thousand Feathers Alliance could hold out for at least another decade, or even directly confront the sea monsters on equal footing.
So Chen Fei had enough time to break through to the Mountain Sea Realm.
By then, he could further cultivate several techniques of the Mountain Sea Realm, rapidly boosting his strength. While he might not single-handedly resolve the crisis posed by the Monster Kings, he could join forces with Min Yanlu and others to tackle the situation.
However, life had no “ifs,” and events would not unfold according to one’s desires.
The power of the five Monster Kings far exceeded what the Thousand Feathers Alliance could withstand.
Even if Chen Fei broke through to the Mountain Sea Realm at this moment, his efforts alone would be futile.
The Mountain Sea Realm was an entirely new realm. Chen Pel’s current foundation could only support his breakthrough to this realm.
Beyond the Mountain Sea Realm, the only way to rapidly increase strength was to cultivate Mountain Sea Realm techniques and refine the soul. Yet Chen Fei lacked even a proper Mountain Sea Realm technique.
Suppressing Dragon Elephant Soul Tempering was a Mountain Sea Realm technique, but it focused solely on the physique. Ultimately, one needed to cultivate elemental energy to advance in the Mountain Sea Realm.
From the refinement of essence, energy, and spirit in the Combined Aperture Tempering realm to the refinement of essence, energy, spirit, and soul in the Mountain Sea Realm was a substantial leap.
Faced with this situation, the only thing Chen Fei could do was lead the Primordial Sword Sect to avoid being caught in the vast vortex of the Thousand Feathers Alliance.
Immortal Cloud City could barely be considered a retreat route.
Ordinary sea monsters had no interest in it, but they would never allow high-level martial artists to live there.
That territory would eventually become a ranch, where humans would be herded like livestock.
Moreover, the heavenly and earthly energy in the territory of Immortal Cloud City could not support Chen Fei’s breakthrough to the Mountain Sea Realm; it lacked a certain vitality.
Within the Primordial Sword Sect, no one was willing to return to Immortal Cloud City.
After experiencing a broader world, no one wanted to retreat to a corner and accept being herded by sea monsters, with no control over their own lives.
Several months ago, in search of an escape route, Chen Fei had deliberately slain several third-tier early sea monsters, using the Dream Entry Technique to search their memories.
The center of the Boundless Sea was chaotic now, but not to the extent of all-out warfare.
These sea monsters were migrating mainly to preserve the strength of their population, especially the high-end forces within it.
There were too many strong individuals in the Boundless Sea. If a conflict truly broke out, it could escalate into an endless struggle.
If the Primordial Sword Sect were to migrate, they could first establish themselves in the peripheral regions of the Boundless Sea, securing their footing.
Although there were still disputes in those peripheral areas, the intensity had decreased significantly, and it was not even comparable to the current situation in the Thousand Feathers Alliance.
These migrating sea monsters didn’t choose those areas because their population numbers were too high, and those small places couldn’t accommodate them.
Chen Fei even meticulously planned out the migration routes using the Dream Entry Technique, just in case it became necessary.
Chen Fei himself hadn’t expected to utilize this escape route so soon.
When he went to seek the Pinnacle Peak Sect in front of the Thousand Yard Sect, intending to leave the Sea Peak City together, the Pinnacle Peak Sect politely declined.
If they were to leave, they would undoubtedly leave with the Primordial Sword Sect. Others might not know Chen Fei’s current strength, but Tong Linyun, who had experienced the mysteries of the Fallen Heaven Pavilion with him, could not be unaware.
In Tong Linyun’s eyes, with the disappearance of the Thousand Feathers Alliance in the Mountain Sea Realm, Chen Fei was almost the leader of the Thousand Feathers Alliance. No other peak Combined Aperture Tempering realm cultivator could surpa.s.s Chen Fei.
Thousand Yard Sect turned back to the Primordial Sword Sect, but once again, the Primordial Sword Sect did not agree.
This time, it sounded polite to call it migration, but the reality was fleeing. Nowadays, those sea monsters specifically hunted high-level martial artists, viewing them as rare nourishment.
Therefore, the more people there were, the greater the commotion, inevitably increasing the likelihood of attracting sea monsters.
The Primordial Sword Sect this time only acted together with a few allied sects like the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect, plus one Pinnacle Peak Sect, totaling six sects.
After spending two days, the six sects roughly packed up their belongings from their respective sects.
Since it was unclear when the sea monsters would come, to prevent any unexpected events, many things were directly abandoned.
The vast fleet of ships was lined up on the sea, and when Tong Zhongqiu and the others saw Chen Fei, they all gestured with clasped hands, to which Chen Fei responded in kind.
Turning his head to look at the disciples of the Primordial Sword Sect, many of them still wore expressions of confusion and anxiety about the future.
After all, they were about to leave the Thousand Feathers Alliance directly and go to a completely unfamiliar place. What the future held, what they would encounter along the way, whether they would encounter powerful monsters, no one could say for sure.
Nowadays, the only thing they could trust in was their sect.
Compared to the ordinary disciples in the Body Tempering realm, the elders in the Combined Aperture Tempering realm were much calmer.
Many of them had been in the sect since the days of Immortal Cloud City, and they held a strong belief in the Primordial Sword Sect. At worst, they would face life and death alongside the sect. Over the years, they had done this many times.
Standing on the deck, they looked up at Chen Fei in the sky.
“Set sail!”
With Chen Fei’s command, the fleet began to sail, heading out to sea in a grand procession.
This route would steer far away from the areas invaded by the sea monsters, so it would take a much longer path.
Based on the information Chen Fei obtained from the sea monster’s memories, if everything went smoothly, it would take several months to sail far away from the Thousand Feathers Alliance and reach Thousand Geese City.
Thousand Geese City was Chen Fei’s destination this time, located tens of thousands of miles away from the Thousand Feathers Alliance.
Without sufficient protection, ordinary ships couldn’t navigate such a long distance.
Inside the cabin, Chen Fei’s main body sat cross-legged, cultivating the techniques of Suppressing Dragon Elephant Soul Tempering, while his clone patrolled the surroundings outside the cabin.
In the blink of an eye, more than ten days had pa.s.sed, and the fleet had encountered no major setbacks, stabilizing the emotions of the people considerably.
However, the minds of several Combined Aperture Tempering realm cultivators in the fleet were gradually becoming tense.
The reason they hadn’t encountered any incidents these days was because the route the fleet was taking was still within the territory of the Thousand Feathers Alliance.
Although the sea monsters were wreaking havoc, the time was still too short, and the fleet was following a route that avoided them.
But next, the fleet would leave the waters of the Thousand Feathers Alliance and truly enter the open sea. That would be the real test, or rather, the test was just beginning.
The Thousand Feathers Alliance was truly in chaos. Recently, wherever they pa.s.sed, no matter which sea area, they could feel the pervasive sense of anxiety.
Fights broke out in various cities, and many fleets silently followed behind the Primordial Sword Sect after seeing their imposing presence.
The Primordial Sword Sect didn’t drive them away because soon enough, the two fleets gradually distanced themselves from each other.
Relying solely on the speed of the ships, it was impossible to quickly leave the Thousand Feathers Alliance.
The ships of the Primordial Sword Sect and several other sects were powered by rotating Combined Aperture Tempering realm cultivators, drawing upon the elemental energy of heaven and earth. Only this way could they cross nearly half of the Thousand Feathers Alliance in just over ten days.
Among those fleets wishing to follow, the strongest cultivators were at most in the Combined Aperture Tempering realm and couldn’t keep up at all.
Leading so many people to flee to Thousand Geese City was already pushing the limits for the Primordial Sword Sect and the other sects. They simply didn’t have the extra capacity to take more people along.
As night fell, the sky twinkled with countless stars.
An hour ago, the fleet had completely entered the open sea.
Chen Fei’s main body continued to cultivate in the cabin. Over the past few days, Chen Fei had rarely shown himself, as many matters could be handled by his clone.
In the flickering lamplight, Chen Fei’s eyes suddenly opened. His figure flickered, disappearing from the cabin.
When he appeared again, Chen Fei was already in midair.
The Qjanyuan Sword appeared in Chen Fei’s hand. With the sound of the sword being unsheathed, the Qjanyuan Sword burst with dazzling brilliance, its sharp sword intent soaring into the sky.
After this period of nurturing and refinement, the Qjanyuan Sword had reached the level of a top-grade magic treasure.
Hundreds of sword elements intertwined in the void, forming a Profound Heavenly Sword Formation standing in midair, blocking the path ahead of the fleet.
“Boom!”
A surge of demonic power materialized out of thin air and crashed into the Profound Heavenly Sword Formation.
The Sword Formation emitted radiant light, its sword elements circulating and gradually dissipating the surging demonic power until it vanished completely, leaving only the flickering brilliance of the Sword Formation.
Hearing this tremendous commotion, Tong Zhongqiu and the others appeared one by one in midair.
“Hahaha, as I said, today we’re going to have a hearty meal!”
A ma.s.sive black shadow appeared in the sky, overlooking the fleet. Its enormous pupils pierced Chen Fei, its eyes unable to conceal the delight—the joy of seeing food!
It had nine tails, four ears, and eyes on its abdomen.
Each tail was covered in dense thorns, sharp enough to pierce through the clouds. The four ears trembled slightly, resonating with the elemental energy of heaven and earth.
Its single eye on its abdomen was incredibly large, already enormous in its own right, but taking up half of its abdomen, it appeared terrifying from a distance. Tong Zhongqiu and the others sensed the aura of the sea monster, their faces instantly turning pale. It was at the peak of the third stage, and compared to other peak third-tier sea monsters, the pressure it exerted was much greater.
Faintly, the sound of tearing and biting echoed in their ears, and Tong Zhongqiu and the others’ gazes became unfocused.
“Clang!”
The Qjanyuan Sword emitted a resounding sword cry, and Tong Zhongqiu and the others’ gazes suddenly cleared.
They turned to look at Chen Fei, their eyes gradually widening.. Peak Combined Aperture Tempering realm?