I Can See Your Combat Power
Chapter 1156 - Chapter 1156 Chapter 450 Retreat

Chapter 1156: Chapter 450: Retreat Chapter 1156: Chapter 450: Retreat “Master be careful!”

Yun Huan, despite his injuries, shot a finger as swift as an arrow through the clouds and loudly warned from a distance. Trusting the words of his own clan’s elder, Yun Ji instinctively pulled Xiu’er behind him and then fully expanded the Yun Flow Qi Curtain.

Thanks to this subconscious action, Yun Huan’s Cloud-Piercing Sword Finger did not harm Xiu’er, as it was blocked by the Yun Flow Qi Curtain.

However, the seventy-two dark cloud chains that followed were not so courteous, shattering the Yun Flow Qi Curtain and continuing their relentless thrust towards the siblings, with unstoppable momentum.

By then, Yun Huan could no longer deny that he had been deceived. With the help of the divine artifact, Xiang Yan’s combat power had significantly increased, especially after the seventy-two Cloud Chains were reinforced with immortal cloud silk, becoming incredibly tough. Even with the shamed Elder Yun Huan burning his True Spirit and unleashing forbidden techniques, he still failed to sever the Cloud Chains.

Just as the Yun clan’s lineage seemed doomed to perish on the spot, Yun Ji detonated the Taiyi Eight Treasures Cloud Platform, using the power generated from the self-destruction of the soul artifact to retreat, narrowly escaping the Yanyun Grandmaster’s lethal Cloud Chains.

Having missed his strike, Xiang Yan inwardly lamented the lost opportunity. With just a breath’s more time he could have remedied the situation, but Yun Huan, enraged like a wild tiger, had already charged over, and with many from the Yun Clan Dire Domain closing in from afar, persisting in another attack would not yield immediate results. Therefore, he retracted the seventy-two Cloud Chains and engaged in a fierce battle with Yun Huan.

Yun Ji, heavily wounded from the self-destruction of the soul artifact, and Xiu’er, knocked unconscious by the explosion, both felt so weakened in spirit and discomfort in body that they nearly passed out.

But Yun Ji knew he could not afford to lose consciousness. Xiang Ange had vanished at the start of the battle, and since it had been almost half an hour, reinforcements could arrive at any moment. He needed to immediately recall his forces and prepare for retreat.

However, after the self-destruction of the soul artifact, all the Yun Beasts turned to ashes, making it impossible to communicate the intelligence across the battlefield in real time.

Yun Ji could only muster his spirit and issue orders to the Yun Clan Dire Domain that was rallying around him, “You few, hurry and go notify the Daoist brethren from Zhongzhou to return!”

“But Master…”

“Go quickly!”

“Yes, Master!”

Thanks to Yun Ji’s decisiveness and authority, the Yun Clan finally managed to gather their people before the reactivation of the Cold Moon Spirit Concealment Array.

However, retreat was not going to be easy. They had to select a rear-guard team to buy time for everyone else.

The group of powerful allies looked at each other, eventually turning their gaze to Yun Ji.

No one wanted to be left behind; facing two Grandmasters and An Yuanxi, acting as a rear-guard equated to a death sentence.

But someone had to make the sacrifice. Yun Ji really wanted to just summon the Yun Family’s direct lineage and abandon these Daoist brethren here, but he knew he could not do so.

The Yun Family was already unwelcome in the world. These weaker ones could only survive by sticking together. If even he abandoned this coalition, then the Yun Family would truly sever themselves from the rest of the world.

After exchanging glances with the Elder and the two Corpse Bone Protectors from the Blood Tower, Yun Ji, with a heavy heart, addressed the crowd, “I am deeply grateful that all the noble Daoist friends have come to aid me; as for the matter of rear-guard, leave it to the Yun Clan. Please enter the passage in groups, and ensure the retreat is completed before the activation of the Cold Moon Spirit Concealment Array.”

In the end, the ones chosen for rear-guard duty were the Corpse Bone Protector from the Blood Tower and members of the Yun Family’s direct lineage disguised as Yun Peak council members.

The passage to the Spirit Realm began to close, and Yun Ji saw the Great Elder Yun Shu, who looked like a crazed tiger attacking Xiang Yan, the devoted Yun Quan, who fought as if his life depended on it, and Elder Yun Kai, Elder Yun Song, Elder Yun Ning, Elder Yun Yi…

These pillars of the Yun Clan had sacrificed themselves due to one rash action, and Yun Ji felt as if his heart was being wrenched in pain.

For a ragtag group, there was nothing more nerve-wracking than failure, though they were all highly skilled martial artists, their steps were heavier than one another’s.

Each of them harbored deep resentment, moving within the oppressive passageway, where their anger could explode at any moment.

This was because, during the battle, everyone could only focus on the fight before them, but as soon as it was time to analyze the situation afterward, each person would remember many mistakes.

And while everyone had their own perspectives, they were often used to scrutinize others.

“We could have won the battle in the northern court if you had used the Bone of Eternal Destruction sooner!”

“How can you blame me for this? I had just consecrated the Bone of Eternal Destruction, and it was not yet perfected, easily losing control. Besides, there were several strong fighters from Youzhouwu at the northern court; what difference would one less Bone of Eternal Destruction make?”

“Those are just excuses. You’re just too precious about that Bone, afraid it’ll get damaged. If everyone hoards their resources like you do, it’s no wonder we were defeated!”

“Bullshit. Is the dire situation in the northern court all because of my Bone of Eternal Destruction? It was obviously because those bastards from Fen Island were too cowardly to take action, cowering behind and only daring to mess with some shedding worldly armor soldiers. If they had cooperated, the northern court’s defenses would’ve been torn apart long ago!”

“You can eat recklessly, but you mustn’t speak carelessly! There are numerous mighty individuals present, yet if we were to count the kills, it would surely be Fen Island at the forefront. If you want to talk about lack of effort, perhaps you should ask what the masters from Tiandaoan were doing!”

“Hah, do you think killing some shedding worldly armor soldiers can be considered an achievement? If my Tiandaoan hadn’t held back the Wang Patrol Wind Department and the forces from all sides, your little Fen Island cats would’ve probably been killed already!”

“The Wang Patrol Wind Department was restrained by the experts from my sect,” a protector from Mingxin Sect said bitterly, holding back his anger. “The plan was for you to break through the wounded soldiers from the Four Directions Camp and then come to our aid. And what did you do? You went toe-to-toe with a group of wounded family soldiers and dare to claim the name of a sect!”

If they had won, it would have been good for all; their strength would’ve been praised, their divine power lauded. But once they suffered defeat, the biggest flaw of this makeshift team was exposed.

Everyone felt they had put in enough effort and wanted to claim all the credit for themselves, while defeat was attributed to the allies’ hoarding or inaction.

The atmosphere of mutual blame intensified, starting with the northern court until all the battle zones were embroiled in disputes.

Whether it was the absence of a master who could defend the front lines or a powerful physical fighter to break through and disrupt magic, or even issues with coordination during the fight.

The passage to the Spirit World became a battlefield of its own, with everyone trying to absolve themselves of blame, while the leading Yun Clan displayed a silent sorrow. Even those who wanted to speak out were held back by a tug on their sleeve by someone nearby.

Defeated, they were indeed defeated, whether due to a lack of intelligence or insufficient strength, this operation had undeniably failed, and the Yun Clan had suffered the most tragic losses of all forces involved.

After this battle, it would take at least twenty years to recover, and a Great Elder capable of opposing grandmasters, who knew how many years it would be before another would emerge.

Were they angry? Of course, they were angry; however, the way the Yun Family expressed their anger was different from the others.

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