Refuse to trample on the pride of heaven

"You want to escape from the battlefield?!"

Despite their best efforts to suppress the commotion and whispers in the rear, how could they escape the spiritual perception of the monks in front? A disciple from the Discipline Hall was the first to shout angrily. His face was resolute, his sword aura awe-inspiring, and his gaze like lightning swept over the figures with flashing eyes and retreating steps. His voice trembled slightly with anger.

"Even though you may escape this battlefield today, the demons will crush the mountains and rivers one day, destroying all living things and leaving no safe place in the nine heavens and ten earths. Where can you escape to? When the nest is overturned, no one can escape!"

The voice of questioning was like thunder, filled with the pain of being disappointed in someone and the awe-inspiring righteousness.

However, those monks who had made up their minds to leave either looked embarrassed, or avoided looking, or simply turned a deaf ear to it, and only sped up the speed of activating their escape techniques and crushing the talismans.

In the flash of spiritual light, dozens of figures turned into flowing lights, heading towards the distant mountains without looking back, and quickly disappeared into the sky.

"Don't worry about this or that, your life is what matters! Live today and we'll talk about tomorrow!" Someone muttered in a low voice, disguising selfishness and cowardice as a natural way of survival.

High in the sky, the powerful minds of several sect leaders and elders were so sharp that they had already taken in the chaos below.

Their faces were solemn, with disappointment or coldness in their eyes, but no one tried to stop them.

The Grand Elder closed his eyes slightly, then opened them again, his eyes calm and composed.

Jun Ningdaojun pressed his lips into a cold and hard straight line, and the coldness around him became three times stronger.

They knew that forcing those with weak resolve to stay was useless and might even become the ant holes that caused the dam to collapse at the critical moment of the war. It would be better to let them leave and purify the camp.

However, each sect will remember the consequences of deserting the battlefield and settle the accounts after this disaster is over.

"Lu Wensheng," Shi Yubai's voice rang out again, with a deliberately elevated, playful pity, breaking the brief commotion caused by the deserters. "You're not even a Nascent Soul cultivator, are you going to run? Considering that you were once my senior brother, I'm happy to... spare your life."

He could finally vent all the pent-up jealousy and humiliation of the past by leveraging the power of the Demon Lord.

That posture perfectly interprets the four words "a villain succeeds".

Even Min Xiao below couldn't help but frown secretly, and used his spiritual sense to urge him to fight quickly and decisively, and not to waste his words.

However, Shi Yubai seemed not to hear anything. He was enjoying the feeling of stepping on Lu Wensheng (at least in his own opinion) at that moment. He could attack at any time, but the real loss would be to miss the expression of fear or frustration that Lu Wensheng might reveal.

Lu Wensheng didn't even glance at him, as if the arrogant Demon Lord was just an insignificant noisy wind.

He turned slowly, his eyes calm and gentle, passing over his fellow disciples standing side by side on the deck of the spirit boat behind him, passing over his close friend who was flying in the air with his sword and his clothes fluttering, and passing over those young faces who came from different sects but had the same determined gaze.

"You." His voice was clear and steady, not high-pitched, yet strangely, it overwhelmed the rustling of the wind and the demonic howls on the battlefield, reaching the ears of every cultivator who chose to stay. "Is anyone else leaving? No one will blame you if you leave now."

"Why leave? I, Song Wen, am not a spineless coward!" Song Wen was the first to respond. His handsome face was still stained with a thin layer of red due to his anger just now, as if he had applied rouge, making him look even more vigorous and energetic.

He crossed his arms, raised his chin slightly, and glanced disdainfully in the direction of those fleeing people. He sneered, "You're deserting the battlefield. You might as well go home and embroider!"

"We have been honored with the title of Heavenly Pride, enjoying the resources of the sect and the worship of all living beings. How can we flee like rats in the face of a catastrophe? If we leave like this, we will truly disregard our cultivation and reputation."

Ji Yanli's voice was as clear as an ice spring hitting jade. His hand with distinct knuckles was on the hilt of the sword, his posture was as straight as a pine tree, and the sword's heart was clear and without any impurities.

Qin Xiao, dressed in a dark suit, landed on the side of the Wenxian Sect's spiritual boat. Upon hearing this, he laughed out loud, his fighting spirit burning: "Lu Wensheng, why are you still asking these questions at this time? Let's compete later to see who has killed more demon cubs! Don't let me beat you!" His brows were full of arrogance and confidence, as if what he was facing was not a world-destroying demonic disaster, but a hearty competition.

Yan Zhaoming immediately stepped forward, his red robe dancing like fire, and shouted impatiently, "Add me! Such a grand event, how can I be without Yan Zhaoming! Let's have a demon-killing ranking!"

Needless to say, people like Wu Feipeng and Yu Shuoyang took a step forward and expressed their stance.

"Hahaha! Okay! Count me in!"

"Let's go together! How can we let Senior Brother Qin take all the credit?"

"Slaying demons and eliminating evil is the time for us to achieve great things!"

For a moment, the young disciples responded one after another, laughing loudly and full of heroic spirit.

They joked with each other, and their eyes met with unspoken trust and tacit understanding.

Some were arranging the ribbons of their magical instruments, some were gently wiping the blades of their swords, and some were clapping hands and swearing oaths with their companions. The atmosphere was strangely relaxed and uplifting, as if they were not going to a fierce battle with an uncertain life or death, but were going together to complete a long-awaited experience. They had agreed to set out together and return triumphantly together.

The youthful vigor, sincerity and fearlessness converged into a stream of scorching air at this moment, diluting the oppression brought by the appearance of the Demon Lord.

Shi Yubai looked at this scene, seeing Lu Wensheng surrounded by everyone, like the moon surrounded by stars, while he, the dignified Demon Lord, was completely ignored. A surge of evil fire rushed to his head, and he felt his face getting hot, and he was ashamed and angry.

He was already a demon king capable of overthrowing the Three Realms! Why was Lu Wensheng still so calm? Why did those ants dare to chat and laugh in front of him?! A fury of being slighted threatened to overwhelm his sanity.

Most of the other demons watched in confusion, their limited brain capacity making it difficult to understand the complex emotional confrontation between the humans. They only felt that the two sides seemed to be "shouting", thinking it was some kind of pre-war ritual, and some demons even imitated them and made meaningless roars.

Only Min Xiao held his forehead with his hand, almost unable to bear to watch any longer, cursing inwardly: "Usually he's full of cunning schemes, his mind is denser than a beehive, but the moment he met Lu Wensheng, it was as if he'd been bewitched, his IQ plummeted! If he had the power to crush him, he should have just crushed him directly. Why did he have to waste time on this, giving him a chance to rally his morale!"

Lu Wensheng slowly turned his gaze back at this moment, with a very faint arc at the corner of his lips. That smile contained a calmness that seemed to see through everything, and a trace of imperceptible pity, as if he was watching a lousy actor performing hard.

He looked at Shi Yubai, whose face was ashen, and said in a calm tone, but every word was clear: "You, have seen the answer?"

"Hehe..." Before Shi Yubai could react, Min Xiao's sinister laughter interrupted him. His gaze was deep, looking past the crowd and locking onto the icy Shelu Daojun.

"Even if you try your best, you can only seal it. What's the point of sacrificing yourself in vain? Jun Ning Daojun, it must have been hard to watch your familiar elders and fellow disciples fall one after another, and to sacrifice yourself to seal it. If you were willing to submit to the trend of the times, not only could you avoid unnecessary casualties, but perhaps... we could get along well. After all, staying alive is more important than anything else, isn't it?"

His words were full of temptation and provocation, trying to tear open the other party's dusty scars and shake his determination.