Chapter 2498: Chapter 2498
After subduing this formidable opponent, Ye Liuyun turned to Mosha and said, "You should come with me too! If you’re the only one who returns while everyone else is dead, you’ll definitely raise suspicions!"
"Understood!" Mosha had actually been worrying about this very issue. Now, he felt a weight lift off his shoulders.
Ye Liuyun stowed them all away in his spatial world before summoning the Nine-Headed Demon Dragon and soaring into the starry expanse. He also recalled the team of hunting falcons.
Then, astride the Nine-Headed Demon Dragon, he began circling the Sacred Land. Whenever he spotted dense forests or mountain ranges below, he would pause to scan the terrain, searching for any trace of the alien races.
The Sacred Land Dynasty had deployed numerous Swift Swallow patrols across the starry skies. However, Liu Kui had already instructed these teams not to interfere with Ye Liuyun.
After returning, Xiao Mu’an had spread the news that the alien races had infiltrated the Sacred Land. Thus, Liu Kui knew Ye Liuyun was hunting for them and naturally made no attempt to stop him.
Following Ye Liuyun’s instructions, Xiao Mu’an had also informed Liu Kui to deploy Swift Swallows to patrol the Sacred Land’s perimeter, preventing the escaped alien races like Wan Teng from returning to the Sacred Land Dynasty.
However, Ye Liuyun’s search method relied on the alien races either setting up their altars on the ground or being spotted while active—both of which required sheer luck.
Regrettably, after spending considerable time circling the Sacred Land, Ye Liuyun found no trace of the alien races.
Left with no other choice, he headed straight for the Satellite Island to seek out Liu Kui.
Now, his only option was to gather details from Liu Kui about the incident, hoping to uncover clues about Wan Teng and the others’ escape route. Perhaps they hadn’t even reached the Sacred Land yet.
"Mr. Ye!" Liu Kui greeted him with utmost courtesy.
"I’d like to ask Commander Liu about the circumstances surrounding the alien races’ escape," Ye Liuyun inquired.
Understanding the gravity of the situation, Liu Kui immediately recounted the events: "At the time, both our forces’ Swift Swallows were nearly depleted. Those alien elites had been targeting them relentlessly—only now do I realize their intent.
Then, just as our entire army launched a final assault to wipe out the remaining aliens, their golden-armored commander and two other elite warriors summoned Swift Swallows and fled outright."
I immediately mobilized all our Swift Falcons to give chase. At that time, we still had about two to three hundred vessels left. But due to the time gap, we never managed to catch up with them.
We pursued them relentlessly for over three months, but they kept fleeing. In the end, seeing it was hopeless, I ordered our men to turn back."
"Did all your Swift Falcons return?" Ye Liuyun pressed.
"Not yet, but they should be back in a day or two!" Liu Kui replied.
"Let’s hope we’re not too late! I suspect they might be trailing your Swift Falcons. I’ll take the Skyhawks to scout ahead—your fleet should just proceed as planned.
But are you certain only three of their elites escaped? From what I recall, after I commandeered one of their warships, they should’ve still had over eighty strong warriors left."
At this, Liu Kui summoned all the commanders who had participated in the battle to verify the numbers. After careful discussion, they concluded that over twenty were unaccounted for.
Liu Kui broke into a cold sweat—he hadn’t realized so many had slipped away.
"That means far more than three escaped! And we don’t even know when—they could’ve left long before!"
Ye Liuyun couldn’t hide his frustration at the revelation.
Before leaving, however, he offered Liu Kui a suggestion: deploy soldiers with trained beasts to search remote areas for traces of the aliens, while using the Swift Falcons for aerial surveillance.
He also advised keeping an eye on isolated mountain villages—any sudden disappearances should be thoroughly investigated.
Liu Kui was reminded that the aliens might have multiple hideouts. Even if one was discovered, the search must continue.
Finally, Ye Liuyun left Liu Kui a communication talisman for urgent updates. "Contact me immediately if you find anything suspicious—no matter how small," he insisted.
Liu Kui agreed and promptly reported the findings to the Sacred King, requesting authorization for a full-scale search.
Ye Liuyun unleashed the Nine-Headed Demon Dragon and dispatched five thousand Falcon-class vessels, spreading them out in a wide net formation to sweep forward.
A day later, he encountered the returning Swift Swallow Squadron.
Having already received Liu Kui’s orders, the squadron avoided conflict with Ye Liuyun’s Falcons, passing by without incident.
Ye Liuyun swept his golden pupils over them, confirming they were all human soldiers before letting them proceed.
"Full speed ahead! Report any Swift Swallows spotted immediately—no unauthorized engagements!"
Retracting the Nine-Headed Demon Dragon, Ye Liuyun switched to a Falcon and surged forward alone.
For the next two days, he found nothing. But on the third day, his golden eyes locked onto a lone Swift Swallow—its markings unmistakably those of the alien race.
"Hold formation, decelerate. Leave this fight to me!"
Without hesitation, Ye Liuyun gave chase while the rest of his Falcons slowed, watching as he charged ahead.
A single Falcon against a Swift Swallow was hardly a fair fight.
The alien vessel veered sharply sideways the moment it detected Ye Liuyun, but after half a day’s pursuit, he closed the gap. A barrage of energy cannons shattered its defenses.
An alien warrior burst free, attempting to attack Ye Liuyun’s Falcon.
In response, Ye Liuyun recalled his ship and, alongside his doppelgänger, subdued the warrior, branding him with a slave seal to extract intel on the others.
Armed with the information, he immediately contacted Liu Kui: "I’ve captured a live alien. According to him, ten of their kind infiltrated the Holy Land shortly after the war began."
"There are seven more alien vessels tailing your Swift Swallow fleet. Leave those to me—you focus on hunting down the infiltrators who’ve breached the Sacred Land!"
"Ten have already infiltrated?" Liu Kui gasped in shock before immediately reporting the situation to the Sacred King.
Meanwhile, Ye Liuyun swiftly maneuvered his Falcon back into formation, leading the fleet at full speed in pursuit of the alien intruders.
Wan Teng and the six other aliens had maintained a two-day gap between themselves and the scout they’d sent ahead—the very one Ye Liuyun had captured. Before its capture, the scout had already relayed its findings, prompting Wan Teng and the others to immediately reverse course and flee.
Despite the Falcons’ blistering speed, it still took nearly four days to close the distance.
Through his golden pupils, Ye Liuyun spotted the aliens aboard two of the Swift Swallows—one of them unmistakably the golden-armored Wan Teng himself.
In a desperate bid to slow Ye Liuyun down, Wan Teng abandoned one of the Swift Swallows as a decoy.
After a moment’s deliberation, Ye Liuyun ordered the fleet to decelerate, deciding to handle the situation personally. He couldn’t risk the aliens hiding reinforcements within their spatial realms.
If he sent other Falcons to attack and they were captured, the enemy might reverse-engineer the technology and replicate it.
Playing it safe, he also commanded all Falcons to regroup tightly, minimizing the risk of Wan Teng launching a surprise assault.
