Chapter 1625: Reverse Interception

“This… this is a Void Refining expert!”

Just as Li Yan realized the situation was dire, the figures of the other twenty-odd cultivators behind the sickly man dissolved like bubbles. It was then that Li Yan knew he had fallen into a trap. The enemy had anticipated their moves.

While Li Yan had been in hiding, he had sensed something unusual about the passing grey clouds. He had probed carefully and detected faint auras. To him, that was enough to launch a strike. He had accurately identified the strongest aura and even wounded a few of the lower-level entities with his first probe. He had immediately followed up with a lethal attack on the “leader,” wanting to eliminate the strongest threat instantly.

But now he saw that only the blue-robed man was real; the rest were merely illusions created by a technique.

“An ambush!”

Li Yan’s reaction was instantaneous. Realizing he was outmatched, he plummeted toward the forest below like a falling meteor. His expression was grim. He had used a high-level lightning talisman specifically designed to counter ghost cultivators—something he had bought at the Moji Dao Sect—and a powerful gold-attribute treasure. Yet, as he tried to recall the sword, it was held fast by the man’s power.

Li Yan didn’t hesitate; he abandoned the treasure. Although the sickly man was hiding his power, Li Yan’s attack had given him a sense of the man’s strength. This was a mid-stage Void Refining expert. He couldn’t hope to win; his only option was to run.

“The Mocha Palace cultivators anticipated our plan. They even set a trap with a mid-stage Void Refining expert. Does this mean they’ve already sent another force around to attack Mu Guyue? I have to get back!”

As he fell, Li Yan’s mind raced. The Mocha Palace cultivators were far more cunning and dangerous than he had imagined. They had played him at his own game.

The blue-robed man watched Li Yan’s rapid reaction and chuckled dryly. “Hehehe… a lone Spirit Transformation cultivator… how bold. But since you’re here, why not come to my Mocha Palace for a visit? We are gracious hosts. We certainly can’t let a guest leave empty-handed!”

As he spoke, he swept his sleeve. He dove downward like a predatory hawk. Without any visible movement, a point of cold light shot toward Li Yan’s head. It was a white “bone-piercing nail,” designed to seal the target’s Sea of Consciousness. The man wanted to take him alive.

The man had formulated this plan the moment he suspected the newcomers were experienced. He had sent his men to launch a real attack on the Beacon Tower—shortly after their earlier “test.” He calculated that the garrison, believing the Mocha Palace was only probing them, wouldn’t expect a full-scale assault so soon.

Meanwhile, he had personally set out, using a technique to disguise himself as a group of scouts and traveling along the most likely path for an ambush. If the garrison were veterans, they would try to strike at his “scouts” to discourage further probes.

The man wouldn’t go to the tower himself; he feared being lured into a trap set by a Moji Dao Sect Void Refining expert. If he appeared, the tower would immediately alert the rear army. But a small-scale raid didn’t warrant the mobilization of a main army. This gave them an opportunity. Even if they didn’t take the tower, they could damage the fortifications and disrupt the Moji Dao Sect’s plans, making them pay a heavy price.

As the cold nail reached Li Yan’s head, it struck an invisible barrier.

Hum!

The nail was momentarily halted. But in the next instant, the barrier erupted in a burst of green light.

Bang!

With a muffled sound, the barrier shattered. It hadn’t held for even half a second. But that brief interval was all Li Yan needed. His falling figure vanished into the forest below.

“A thoughtful plan. You even set up a defensive array for your retreat. But where can you run?”

In that same instant, the sickly man reached the treetops. Seeing his attack blocked by a hidden array, he narrowed his eyes. This person was indeed experienced. Usually, when someone’s ambush failed, they would try to flee across a thousand li, but most teleportation talismans took time to activate. Against an expert of his level, that tiny window was more than enough to strike. This person, however, had prepared an array as a buffer.

Activating a teleportation talisman took time, but plummeting back into the forest was instantaneous. Furthermore, the black-robed youth had purposefully stayed close to the forest during his attack, allowing him to dive back into cover the moment things went south.

But a mere Spirit Transformation cultivator could only do so much. He would crush him like an ant.

As Li Yan hit the ground, his figure blurred and vanished. In the next heartbeat, he had merged with the earth like a wisp of black smoke. He hadn’t expected to use his retreat plan so soon, but against a Void Refining expert, direct confrontation was suicide. Using the “Earth Evasion Art” to flee was better than flying.

He was only several thousand li from the Southern Fangs Beacon Tower. As long as he could shake this man, he could return to the tower’s grand array.

As the defensive array shattered, the blue-robed man landed. His Divine Sense could still see the top of Li Yan’s head as he vanished into the ground.

“You think you can escape me with the Earth Evasion Art? Ridiculous!”

As he sneered, the bone-piercing nail, having been diverted by the array’s explosion, struck deep into the ground nearby. Li Yan, having anticipated the attack and used the array’s distraction, had already veered away and dove deep into the earth.

Mu Guyue stood on the green-armored wall. Strangely, the soldiers who were usually on patrol were nowhere to be seen. Outside was the pitch-black night, with the relentless wind blowing across the desert as it always had.

But at a certain moment, a brilliant sphere of light erupted before her eyes, accompanied by a deafening explosion that soared into the sky. Then, a series of fiery bursts appeared along the wall like a line of flaming trees. Bang, bang, bang!

Amidst the thunderous explosions, the entire Beacon Tower shook violently. Mu Guyue instantly extended her Divine Sense.

As the explosions rang out, a group of over a hundred figures appeared in the sky like ghosts. They stood in a long line, their hands moving in complex seals as magical treasures and talismans rained down on the wall. The six leaders at the front were particularly formidable.

Mu Guyue narrowed her eyes. “So, they launched a sneak attack.”

Her Divine Sense also revealed that the other Beacon Towers, several hundred li away, were under attack at that same moment. Although they had the grand array, the sheer scale of the enemy offensive—combined with specialized array-breaking treasures—meant the fortifications could fall at any moment.

The Moji Dao Sect couldn’t afford to keep the arrays at full power at all times, as the consumption of spirit stones was staggering. The Mocha Palace often exploited this by sending Spirit Transformation-led squads with specialized tools. Even if they weren’t Body Integration experts, they could momentarily unleash attacks comparable to a Void Refining expert.

Furthermore, these Mocha Palace squads seemed to know that the Southern Fangs garrison was currently weak. They had arrived in force and launched their full power from the very beginning.

Because Li Yan was gone, the entire burden of defense rested on Mu Guyue’s shoulders…