Liu Buli had already breathed a sigh of relief when the giant dragon appeared. Now, seeing the maiden leap from the dragon's back and block his path, Liu Buli was so moved he almost wept with joy.
He hadn't trusted the young girl in vain.
At this critical juncture, she was the only one Liu Buli could think of who would unhesitatingly throw herself into danger to save him.
Breathing a long sigh of relief, Liu Buli had intended to seize this opportunity to escape quickly. However, things didn't go as he'd imagined. Although the black dragon had the initial advantage, once the surrounding ghost clan members reacted, they began to attack it relentlessly.
The black dragon's massive body and hard scales did provide some defense, but when the attacks became too numerous, its sheer size became a hindrance.
Many attacks it couldn't dodge, and if it focused on the front, it couldn't deal with the ghost clan members swarming from behind. Seeing it being besieged by the ghost clan, Lu Wuming could only help from the side while fending off the divine sword that still occasionally attacked him.
As for Yun Xiang, even though her abilities had improved significantly, it was still a struggle for her to face the ghost clan alone. Perhaps at the beginning, she could maintain a stalemate, but as time wore on, her weaknesses gradually became apparent.
Looking around, Liu Buli realized he was the only one with a chance to escape.
But both his disciples were here protecting him. As their master, how could he…
"Master! You leave first, we can go with you!"
After all, Yun Xiang had come to rescue him at Liu Buli's notification, so she was well aware of the current situation and their objective.
Without waiting for Liu Buli to make a move, she voiced her thoughts: "Your staying here will only distract Senior Brother. Neither of us can hold on!"
Liu Buli was slightly stunned by her words.
He admitted that his spiritual energy was indeed almost depleted. Among this group, his current state made him the weakest.
However, being told he had become a burden was something he found hard to accept.
Compared to Yun Xiang's reasoning, Lu Wuming's actions were much more direct.
Mimicking Liu Buli's earlier move, he dashed forward. Grabbing Liu Buli by his clothes, he directly threw him towards the passage. As he was being flung away, Liu Buli clearly heard Lu Wuming say: "Don't come back. Run as soon as you're out. Remember what I told you. If I don't make it out, I'll wait for you to fully recover and then come back for me."
As Lu Wuming's voice faded, Liu Buli's surroundings instantly changed.
In the last moment before leaving the ghost realm, he saw the ghost clan member launch an attack towards him. However, Yun Xiang blocked all the attacks with her sword, her eyes crimson, and she declared word by word: "I told you, your opponent is me. You will not harm my master in front of me!"
The battle was already chaotic, and with the intervention of the black dragon and Yun Xiang, coupled with the divine sword's interference, the ghost clan member was already struggling.
Seeing Liu Buli being thrown out by Lu Wuming, he had only instinctively launched an attack. Thus, the speed and force of the attack were insufficient, and it was understandable that Yun Xiang could intercept it.
Upon seeing Liu Buli completely leave the ghost realm, the ghost clan member's expression turned grim. He let out a cold laugh and said, "One for two. Two came in, just to let him out alone. This is quite a good deal you've made, isn't it?"
"It's not just for him to get out alone, it's for all of us to get out," Yun Xiang stated, her voice as cold and steady as ever, her long sword held horizontally as she stared into the ghost clan member's eyes. "We just need to kill you, don't we?"
Much like Lu Wuming, Yun Xiang had always been naive, or to put it more bluntly, a bit foolish and not one to overthink.
Therefore, looking at the current battle, she could only think of what she considered the simplest and most effective solution.
While the other ghost clan members weren't weak, compared to the one before her, they were merely cannon fodder.
Her master had taught her more than once to remember a principle in a fight.
"Capture the king first."
Once the one in charge was dealt with, the remaining cannon fodder would be nothing but a disorganized mob.
Hearing her words, the ghost clan member burst into laughter, filled with mockery and disdain. Yun Xiang heard it clearly but remained unbothered.
She reached out and patted the black dragon beside her. Despite the light gesture, the dragon immediately understood her intent. As the black dragon coiled and ascended into the air, it unleashed its dragon breath towards the other ghost clan members once more, carrying them, whom Yun Xiang considered "cannon fodder," away into the distance, leaving the battlefield entirely to Yun Xiang and the ghost clan member.
Although the divine sword remained in place, the status of the divine dragon and the divine sword in the eyes of these ghost clan members was almost identical.
They could sense the vast difference between themselves and the divine sword. If they continued to clash with that sword, their leader might be the only one to benefit in the end.
But this dragon was different.
Ao Lie wasn't outrageously powerful, and precisely because of this, the ghost clan members felt they had a chance of victory looking at this dragon.
Whether it was dragon scales, dragon tendons, or even dragon blood and bones, they were all valuable. If they could kill this dragon, they could become stronger just by consuming a piece of its flesh and drinking some of its blood.
Everyone had the same thought.
In the blink of an eye, the surrounding ghost clan members had vanished.
Near the entrance, only the gatekeeping ghost clan member, Yun Xiang, the divine sword that relentlessly pursued them, and Lu Wuming remained.
Sensing that their companions had chased after the giant dragon, the ghost clan member spat fiercely.
Yun Xiang, however, smiled and glanced at Lu Wuming. "Senior Brother," she said, "although I don't quite understand what's happening here, with the two of us together, killing this annoying creature shouldn't be a problem, right?"