After running for a while, Elder Jing and Yang Wei grouped up with Elder Pao Haung.
"Elder Pao Huang, how's the situation with the disciples?" Elder Jing quickly asked in concern.
"The disciples were fine, Elder Jing. Luckily, I have quickly cast a spatial barrier and the disciples react fast enough otherwise, I'm afraid we would have lost some disciples," Elder Pao Huang quickly relayed what happened for Elder Jing.
They were about to do some hunting with magical beasts until the sudden explosion from the Pagoda.
Thankfully, they were far away from the Pagoda, to begin with so the blast radius didn't deal as much damage as it would have if they had stayed nearby the Pagoda.
Elder Jing nodded her head in understanding before her expression darkened as she mumbled softly, "Who would have thought my bad premonition actually came true?"
Elder Pao Huang twitched his mouth when he heard Elder Jing's words. He held a gawking expression as he wondered if Elder Jing jinxed the event to become this drastic.
Alas, he did not have the courage to ask Elder Jing and merely kept silent for further instruction.
Meanwhile, Yang Wei's attention was focused on the direction of the Pagoda, seemingly in deep thought.
'What could have happened for the demon's outbreak to start? Did the other sects trigger something for this cause?' Yang Wei pondered inwardly.
"Elder Jing, what are we going to do now that we have grouped up with everyone?" Yang Wei then asked Elder Jing for the next move.
Since Elder Pao Huang was present, Yang Wei no longer called Elder Jing by her full name and merely addressed her as Elder Jing.
Elder Jing didn't mind it at all as she thought for a while before pointing in the direction opposite of the Pagoda.
"For now, we must retreat far away from the Pagoda since we'll have no idea on how strong the demons are." Elder Jing said and continued.
"It's best to wait for the mysterious realm to start kicking us out and not cause any more unnecessary casualties."
Elder Pao Huang nodded his head as he quickly went toward the disciples that were resting for a bit to gather them up.
Sometime later, once all the disciples assembled in a single line, Elder Jing cleared her throat before briefing them on their situation.
"Currently, there is an outbreak of demons caused by the explosion of the pagoda and their numbers and strength remain unknown to us. Hence, we will retreat to safety until we are ejected out by the mysterious realm." Elder Jing said, causing the disciples' expression to turn completely pale as they never expected demons to appear from the explosion.
"D-Demons… I thought they were all extinguished back in the past. How could there still be demons alive in this world?" A disciple muttered in disbelief.
"They could be remnants that escaped from the purge so don't be like a country bumpkin," Lian Xinyue hurriedly scolded the disciple that tried to create more panic and chaos within the group.
Lian Xinyue's logical explanation seemed to be accepted by the disciples as they all clenched their fists and started regaining their composure.
Elder Jing nodded briefly at the calm composure of Lian Xinyue as she continued, "We have no time to waste so we shall start our journey now. Remember, we are to avoid the demons at all cost and prevent unnecessary casualties."
"Yes, Elder Jing" The disciples all said in unison as they began following after Elder Jing.
"Yang Wei, do you remember that secret area that we managed to find in the Pagoda trial," Elder Jing asked Yang Wei while advancing forward.
Yang Wei took a moment to recall before looking at Elder Jing with a gawking expression, "D-Do you mean the demons were hiding in that secret area the entire time?"
If that were the case then Yang Wei was relieved to be able to avoid the encounter with the demons since it was obvious he would only become a burden for Elder Jing.
Alas, Yang Wei was simply overthinking when Elder Jing shook her head in response to Yang Wei's question.
"No, what I want to say is that the Pagoda could have more hidden areas that are restricted to us and the reason why the demons were able to hide away from us this entire time," Elder Jing said.
"That could be a possibility… After all, the Pagoda is too mysterious and at the same time, it's a disgusting Pagoda with an eccentric personality." Yang Wei added.
He was still salty about being evicted from the Pagoda and was unwilling to accept the result since they were forced to do a trial at a high difficulty level.
Elder Jing chuckled softly at Yang Wei's behavior but soon turned solemn as she focused back on retreat.
While advancing forward, Elder Jing made sure to use her spiritual sense to check on the Pagoda's direction.
'The demons seemed to be lurking around the shattered pieces of the Pagoda… and where are the other sects?' Elder Jing exclaimed inwardly as she found the situation to be more confusing.
The Pagoda has exploded but the rest of the sects that were supposedly challenging the trial to obtain the inheritance was nowhere to be found.
"Sigh, I will think about it later on. Right now, the priority is to get the disciples to safety and create an illusion barrier to avoid detection from the demons," Elder Jing mumbled softly as she sped up her movement.
The rest of the disciples were surprised by the sudden pace but they gritted their teeth to try their best in keeping up with Elder Jing.
Sometime later, Elder Jing stopped in front of a high mountain as she used her spiritual sense to scout around the area.
Once Elder Jing confirmed there were no magical beasts lingering in the area, Elder Jing turned around to face the disciples.
"We will rest here for now and depending on the demon's movement, we might have to change our strategy so be prepared at any time." Elder Jing then shouted as she cast a large illusion barrier around them.
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