Gritting his teeth, Qing Yuan willed himself to move. The demonic cultivator's movement was too fast to see, but the qi around him reacted, creating a gust of wind that shoved him—and the people around him—aside. The cultivator's blade stabbed the spot where he had just been. To his right stood Qing Yuan; to his left was a woman named Bai Xinya, who had once told him his hair was similar to her late husband's. For a split second, the cultivator could have swung right at Qing Yuan or left at the woman. He chose the closer target.

He swung his sword left, aiming for the wide-eyed Bai Xinya. Qing Yuan wished for the wind to push the demonic cultivator, and indeed, a gust slammed into the man and his sword. However, the push only made him slide back several centimeters, and the blade continued on its path. At that moment, several people moved. Qing Yuan pushed his feet against the air and tried to launch himself forward. Sister Fang Ruxue snarled as she extended her arms. Even his mother was moving. However, none of them were fast enough to stop him, and even if they were, none were strong enough. But there was one that could.

"Tide Walker!" Qing Yuan shouted.

The shark shot forward like a flash of lightning. Before the sword could cut her, Tide Walker appeared and bit down on the blade, stopping the cut and the impact it created. It clenched its jaw, and the sword shattered. The demonic cultivator's eyes widened. Tide Walker lunged, its jaw open wide, as if trying to eat his whole face.

Relief flooded Qing Yuan's heart, but he was already moving. He wished for the qi to lift everyone, and instantly, Sister Fang Ruxue, Su Nian, Bai Xinya, and all the others had their feet lifted from the ground. Qing Yuan then wished for a gust of wind to blow them away. Like kites with their tethers snapped, they flew through the air. Some shrieked in terror; others clamped their mouths shut.

Qing Yuan glanced back and saw Tide Walker fighting two demonic cultivators at once. Both were shrouded in a maroon aura, like dark blood turned to vapor. One of them had his fists wreathed in the images of two dragon heads, while the other snarled as he swung a broken sword.

He wished for a stronger wind to push them farther away when he noticed someone running on the ground following them. It was his mother. Qing Yuan looked around, verifying that it was truly her, and indeed, among the people flying around him, his mother was gone. She was running on the ground, following them, and the distance between them grew wider with every passing second.

His eyes widened. He had wished to lift everyone, no exceptions, but it seemed the qi had refused to lift her. Gritting his teeth, he focused his will, commanding the air to raise her, but he felt a stubborn unwillingness from the qi around him. It was at this point that he remembered the qi that surrounded him was not his own power. It was merely ambient energy that chose to get along with him.

As he looked back at his mother clutching the purple robe, her expression flushed with panic and beads of sweat rolling down her face, he truly wished the qi would lift her. Failing that, he finally decided to turn around and wish for the wind to push him toward her. He extended his hand, bracing for the force that would come, but instead of pushing him toward her, the wind shoved him away.

"No, no!" he shouted, his hands reaching for his mother, who likewise extended her hands toward him. "Let me get her!"

He knew he had decided to cut his connection with her. He had decided that from their earlier conversation, they would pretend not to know each other and live separately. He thought he was ready, but as his mother grew more distant and the wind pushed him harder, his heart ached. He had to make sure she would be okay.

Soon, Qing Yuan and the others were finally out of the forest. The sight of his mother running was obstructed by trees, thickets, and the terrain. Their direction was not exactly north, as the spirit beasts had come from there. But even in the dark, they could already see the sea.

"At least keep her safe!" he shouted. "Conceal her!"

At his newest wish, he could feel the qi reacting, albeit slowly and reluctantly, like a sulking child ordered to go home. Then, after a moment, the ambient qi indicated that it was done. The impression he got was that the qi itself had not protected and concealed her, but rather, it had activated some function of the robe she clutched, forcing her to don it as an outer garment.

What he truly wished was to go back to his mother, but the wind carried them faster and faster toward the sea.

In the distance, the raging fight was slowing down. The chanting golden fish's body was split in two, its remains resting against a mountain, blood gushing from the wounds like a red waterfall. The giant humanoid with the fish face was forced to its knees in front of a giant corpse construct made entirely of qi, its stench so foul and sinister it might as well have been death itself. Then, with an arm holding a sinister red blade, it beheaded the spirit beast. The neck severed, and the head fell onto the side of the mountain, rolling for a while before it stopped. While those two had died, the others were still alive. The giant mantis shrimp punched the air repeatedly, creating explosions that rattled the world, and the octopus with chain tentacles lashed out its limbs, bringing destruction to the side of the city wall. Parts of the wall were destroyed, flung into the air to land within the city itself, accompanied by shouts of fear and panic.

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Qing Yuan and his group finally landed on a beach, their feet sinking into the soft, wet sand. Some of the women had no energy left to even kneel and dropped to the ground, as if trying to embrace the sand itself. Qing Yuan felt his own heartbeat stabilize. He looked back to see the apocalyptic battle, which still seemed dangerous even though its intensity had lessened. They were far enough away now that he felt they wouldn't die from collateral damage.

"Are we safe?" Su Nian asked, her breathing ragged, beads of sweat dotting her face.

"No," Sister Fang Ruxue shook her head. "The enemies are cultivators. They could cross the distance between here and there in the blink of an eye. Let's not stay here. We need to move."

"But where? To the sea?" he asked, pointing forward. Qing Yuan felt he could wish for the qi to make them fly across the water, but he also felt there was a limit to how long it could sustain them. Not only that, but deep in his heart, he was unwilling to go further. The reason was selfish. Qing Yuan looked back toward the line of trees across the beach. Far from here, his mother was running alone. But even if he wanted to go to her, the qi was unwilling to let him back, and he couldn't leave this group either. With Tide Walker preoccupied, he was the only one who could protect them.

Sister Fang Ruxue bit her inner cheek. "Yes, I think we need to go into the sea. We need to get away from this island. Even if you can't carry us to another island and we have to swim halfway, it's better than staying here."

Qing Yuan thought it was logical. While he still believed Liu Xing would come, it was better to prepare for the worst. However, swimming in the middle of the sea, in the middle of the night, was akin to seeking death. But before Qing Yuan could even think about how to do it, several bubbles popped on the surface of the ocean not far from their position. Soon, the water broke, and a person emerged. It was a man with short red hair and red eyes, wearing a black robe with red, blood-like patterns and wielding a white spear in his right hand.

Upon seeing this, Qing Yuan moved to the front of the group while the others hid behind him. An enemy! They needed to go!

Instantly, Qing Yuan wished for the qi to lift them, and their feet left the sand. However, before the gust of wind could carry them away, the man with red hair looked at them with a sharp gaze. Like a candle flame blown out by a strong wind, the qi that lifted them dispersed, and they fell to the sand again. Qing Yuan's eyes widened. He wished for the qi to gather again, but the man once again projected his own qi toward them, and the ambient qi dispersed once more.

The man began to walk toward them, his steps slow and deliberate as he slicked his wet hair back. "If I'm not mistaken, and the report is true, your name is Qing Yuan, right?"

Qing Yuan wished for the qi to gather, but it felt as if the ambient qi was a school of small fish in front of a whale. It couldn't gather, couldn't lift them. It was powerless in front of this man.

He felt his throat go dry and his heart beat faster. "Indeed, my name is Qing Yuan," he said, his voice trembling.

"You're fascinating. Using qi even though you're not a cultivator, and not even human," the man said as he kept walking, resting his spear on his shoulder. "But in the end, it's merely a trick. Once I know the trick, I can easily disperse it."

Qing Yuan gulped. This was bad. Truly bad. He was the only obstacle between this man and the women behind him.

"I want to clear up a little misconception that has probably bloomed in all of your minds. It's true that we're from the Nether Lotus Sect, and it is true that we are all demonic cultivators. However, contrary to popular belief, not all of us are crazy." He glanced back at the battle still raging in the distance. "Not all of us are controlled by our desire."

"Is that so?" Qing Yuan asked. This was the worst. Should they use Su Nian's plan and scatter to make sure at least some of them survived? "But I seem to remember that that fight," he pointed behind him with his thumb, "started because one of you couldn't control their desire and wanted to kill me."

The man finally stepped off the beach and onto the sand. His robes were drenched, as were his face and hair, but he didn't look bothered at all. "Yes, you're right. And for that, I despise them. They follow their desires like little children. No restraint at all. And most of the time, their lack of thought is what gets them killed."

"And you're different?" Qing Yuan asked, urging the people behind him to back away slowly.

"Yes," he nodded. "I am a logical man. I am not controlled by my desire. I approach my missions seriously and take logical steps to achieve my goals. The Young Master decided to leave you intact because he, too, is controlled by his desire. And the result was this chaos. While it is preferable to bring all of you back in an intact condition, it is no problem if you're a little damaged, as long as all of you are successfully transported back. That is why I believe it is better to immobilize all of you."

The moment the words left his mouth, Qing Yuan screamed, "Scatter!"

But as he finished his words, the man vanished. Before Qing Yuan could process it, the red-haired man materialized in front of him and thrust his spear into his stomach, tearing through his insides and out his back. Qing Yuan's eyes widened as he looked down at the spear piercing him. Before he could even feel the pain, the man swung the spear to the side, throwing Qing Yuan violently onto the sand.

"Run!" he shouted, his mouth full of blood. His own blood ran cold, his heart beating so crazily it felt like his chest was about to explode. But his shout, his wish, could do nothing.

The man appeared behind Su Nian. With a single sweep of his spear, he severed her feet from her body. Blood sprayed across the sand as she fell and howled in pain. From there, the man moved methodically to the next target. Each time he swung his spear, limbs flew, blood sprayed, and another person thudded onto the beach, their shouts a mixture of fear, panic, and agony.

Rage and despair pooled in his body. Qing Yuan tried to rise, but his strength left him as a large amount of blood pooled beneath him. He could do nothing as the people he had begun to care for were cut down one by one.

He began to cry, his mouth gurgling with blood. "I'm sorry... I'm sorry!"

The night beach was painted red.

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