Chapter Eleven: Danger Returns Once More

Boom...

At that moment, a deafening roar echoed from the horizon, causing Ye Qiu to leap straight out of his chair in fright.

“What’s happening?”

Outside the mountain, lightning flashed and thunder crashed, sparks shot skyward, and the earth trembled beneath their feet.

Cao He rushed down from the second floor, shouting, “Boss, this is really bad!”

“What is it? Don’t panic. Compose yourself and speak slowly...” Ye Qiu’s face grew cold as he scolded him.

After all, Fu Yao was right beside him. He couldn’t afford to lose his composure, lest he reveal his true nature as a mundane.

Cao He explained, “The sea of fire is spreading toward us. If nothing changes, in less than half a day, our place will be engulfed too...”

“What?” Ye Qiu’s anxiety spiked. He turned to Fu Yao. “Watch things here for me; I’m going to see what’s going on...”

“Go ahead, senior. I’ll keep an eye on things here...” With that, Ye Qiu turned and climbed to the second floor. Peering through the window, he was utterly stunned by what he saw.

“My goodness! What is happening...”

The sea of fire was unstoppable, thunder flickered incessantly at the horizon, the world trembled, mountains and rivers overturned, sun and moon shuddered, and the spectacle was magnificent.

A hundred miles away, he could just make out a gigantic ancient beast—one stride flattened an entire mountain range, and each attack unleashed divine lightning, exploding in all directions.

It was a ferocious ancient beast, the Suni, master of lightning, an unmatched power whose strength pierced the heavens.

Its opponent was a nine-tailed divine bird—the Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow.

The flames it spewed burned endlessly, boiling the whole world, the scene grand beyond imagining.

Aside from this battlefield, another raged to the north, where a nine-headed lion opened its jaws and swallowed an entire forest, leaving no living creature behind.

Its adversary was another ancient beast—the Fearless Giant Ape. Its thick arms hammered the earth, making it quake, and with a single grasp it tore up a mountain, hurling it at the nine-headed lion.

“This is a disaster! Are these monsters insane? They’ve been fighting for a month now and still won’t stop?”

Ye Qiu maintained a calm façade, but inwardly was in utter turmoil.

These four ancient beasts were the same ones that had rampaged through Tiandang Mountain earlier. Why they fought, Ye Qiu didn’t know, only that the battle had lasted over a month.

“Boss, what do we do now? At this rate, the battlefield will soon shift here. If this place falls, we’re finished...” Cao He’s voice trembled, fear overwhelming him, ready to flee at a moment’s notice.

“Stop panicking! Will panic solve anything?” Ye Qiu rebuked, brooding over what to do.

Against such formidable beasts, they had no means of resistance. Rely on the swords atop the roof?

Don’t be ridiculous. Those swords were merely ordinary weapons Ye Qiu forged to pass the time; they were fine for dealing with mundanes, but thinking they could battle ancient beasts was sheer fantasy.

“Survival Guide, Chapter Nine, Section Eight: of all stratagems, fleeing is best! Go prepare—if they come, we escape at once.”

Ye Qiu could no longer care about anything else. He’d made enough money; taking it and fleeing far away sounded much better than waiting here for death.

Cao He was about to prepare when he suddenly stopped, saying, “Boss, I’m afraid we can’t get out...”

Ye Qiu: “???”

“See for yourself downstairs...” Cao He gestured helplessly, despair in his eyes, surrendering to fate.

Ye Qiu, confused, followed his gaze to the southwest, where a massive force was flying toward them.

Despite the dark night, Ye Qiu could make out their forms—uniform black attire, fierce and ruthless faces, murderous aura surging as they approached.

“Damn... cultists again!”

Seeing them clearly, Ye Qiu was dumbstruck. These were the cultists he’d slaughtered by the hundreds earlier, and now even more had arrived, their numbers vast, their strength a hundred times greater than before.

How could he possibly handle this?

“This is it! This time I’m really doomed...”

Ye Qiu fell into despair!

He hadn’t expected that he’d provoke the great demon of the Underworld Cult this time. Now, he was truly finished...

If dealing with the cultists earlier had been luck, this time... luck would not save them.

“No, I absolutely can’t sit here and wait for death. I just made so much money and haven’t even had a chance to spend it. I refuse to die!”

Turning the thought over in his mind, Ye Qiu gritted his teeth. “Go, activate all the defense mechanisms. Every second counts! If we can’t hold on, we’ll hide in the underground palace and let the disciples of Luminary Sanctuary fight it out above.”

It wasn’t that Ye Qiu lacked conscience, but at such a critical moment, conscience was worth little.

The core rule of survival: let others die before you do. Ye Qiu would remember them in his heart.

Cao He responded, “All right, I’ll get it done right away.”

With that, he returned to the counter and activated all the defense mechanisms, while Ye Qiu followed him downstairs.

“Senior...”

At this moment, all disciples of Luminary Sanctuary had awakened, their spirits high, oblivious to the looming danger.

“Senior, what’s happening outside? Why is the commotion so great?”

They asked, puzzled.

Ye Qiu forced himself to appear calm, answering seriously, “Nothing much, just the old monsters of the Underworld Cult seeking revenge. No need to worry...”

The entire hall was stunned.

“What?”

“You say we shouldn’t worry? My heavens, the old monsters of the Underworld Cult are powerful enough to rival our Sanctuary. Yet in the eyes of senior, they’re insignificant. That’s audacious...”

Yang Xuan patted his chest. “Phew... Good thing senior is here. That should solve the problem. Otherwise, we’d surely be doomed...”

He had no idea Ye Qiu was planning to run! It was laughable—he thought Ye Qiu would stand and fight.

Fight? Ye Qiu wouldn’t dream of such a suicidal act.

Could it be, could it be! Could anyone truly believe, just because someone’s called ‘senior’ a few times, that they’re a celestial, forgetting even their own name?

As everyone relaxed, Ye Qiu continued, “Don’t worry, everyone. Take it easy, take it easy! Aside from the Underworld Cult, there are four ancient beasts outside—the Suni, Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow, Nine-Headed Lion, and Fearless Giant Ape.”

A hush fell over the hall, so quiet that even breathing could be heard.

Four ancient beasts, and you tell us not to worry?

The mood, which had just settled, was shattered again as Ye Qiu frightened them all, faces pale with terror.

Don’t worry?

Good heavens, those are ancient beasts! Even thousand-year-old monsters would kneel before them, and you say not to worry?

“This is it, we’re doomed now!”

Everyone panicked, lost for what to do—even Fu Yao was gripped by fear.

Last time, a mere aftershock from the Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow had devastated them. Now, facing it directly, death was certain.

These creatures were beyond their ability to fight—even if the Grand Elder of Luminary Sanctuary arrived, it would be useless. There was simply no way to win.

“Senior brother, what do we do? I don’t want to die!”

Everyone panicked, turning to Yang Xuan and Fu Yao.

Yang Xuan was anxious too, but he barked, “Silence! Everyone, quiet down! What good is panic? Just look at yourselves—cowards, all of you. If you ever go out, don’t claim to be disciples of Luminary Sanctuary. I won’t stand for it...”

Chastened, everyone lowered their heads in shame.

In truth, anyone would buckle under such circumstances, and Yang Xuan didn’t blame them.

He then turned to Ye Qiu, as if seeing hope. Given the situation, if there was any chance of survival, it lay with Ye Qiu.

If Ye Qiu couldn’t hold out, then no matter how hard they tried, they wouldn’t survive.

“Senior, the enemy is at our gates. What should we do? If you need anything, just command us—we’ll do our utmost to assist you...”

“Senior, please instruct us...”

Everyone placed their hopes in Ye Qiu.

Ye Qiu was panicking too!

Don’t look at me—I have no idea what to do!

Damn this high-and-mighty act. It’s all nonsense.

I struggle to kill a chicken, and you want me to fight those beasts?

Ridiculous! I won’t do it.

Even husband and wife fly apart in disaster, let alone acquaintances. We should all go our own way—don’t overestimate me. If you have time, better to flee; maybe there’s a chance for survival.

Ye Qiu suffered terribly inside, but couldn’t dare say so—terrified to reveal himself as an ordinary man. It was unbearably stifling.

If only the ancient beasts were coming, he could still slip away before they arrived.

But the cultists had already surrounded the place; they couldn’t escape even if they sprouted wings.

Don’t panic, don’t panic!

“I wonder if the defenses can withstand the first wave. Let’s see. If not, we’ll have to hide in the underground palace...”

Ye Qiu was desperate, but maintained his pride. “No need to panic, everyone. Follow me upstairs to see what’s happening...”

With that, Ye Qiu went upstairs again, followed by Yang Xuan and the others, hearts pounding with anticipation.

If Ye Qiu could act, this crisis would surely be resolved.

Back on the second floor, Ye Qiu saw, dozens of miles away, the massive force approaching.

At that moment, all defenses in the tavern were activated, awaiting their arrival...