A few breaths later, Yue Rong took out a yellow array flag and shook it vigorously in a certain direction.

The Thick Earth Dual Aspect Formation suddenly dispersed, revealing the outside situation.

Steward Liao and the two red-robed brothers were each urging their flying artifacts, shooting towards them from the direction of the small stone mountain. All three had traces of blood on them, seemingly heavily injured, especially Steward Liao, whose figure appeared unstable. Cui Wuran was nowhere to be seen.

Behind them, a cloud of dust was chasing relentlessly, with flashes of blinding golden light within.

The three and the cloud of dust passed by the vicinity of the Thick Earth Dual Aspect Formation.

“Attack!”

Yue Rong shouted, summoning a silver nail-shaped artifact and striking it into the dust cloud.

Others, including Zuo Qinghui and Hua Zhi, also made their moves, various artifacts fiercely striking out, instantly tearing through the drifting dust, revealing a seven to eight zhang long, barrel-thick, ferocious centipede.

The creature seemed to be cast from gold, each segment of its body shining brightly, its hundred feet sharp and menacing, making a clanging sound as it scraped the ground, sparks flying.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Everyone’s artifacts struck the Crimson Gold Centipede, sparks flying but causing little harm, at most leaving a few marks.

The Crimson Gold Centipede, feeling the pain, abandoned Steward Liao and the others, turning to pounce on the group, spewing a cloud of dark green poisonous mist.

The flying artifacts coming towards it were instantly deflected upon contact with the mist, covered in a layer of dark green, losing their spiritual essence and falling to the ground, startling everyone.

“Don’t let the poisonous mist touch you,” Yue Rong said solemnly, urging the yellow command flag in her hand.

The ground nearby rumbled, yellow sand-like light reappearing, forming a thick yellow light screen.

The dark green poisonous mist fell on the light screen, making a “sizzling” sound, like a green wave hitting a reef, the mist rolling and dispersing.

But before everyone could breathe a sigh of relief, Steward Liao’s figure appeared above the Thick Earth Dual Aspect Formation, his previous unsteady stance gone.

He waved his hand, sending out several yellow array flags, which floated around the formation in a strange array.

As several incantations flashed and landed on these flags, they trembled, various lights flashing, and threads of light shot out, connecting into a peculiar formation, covering the Thick Earth Dual Aspect Formation.

Several multicolored spiritual lights fell from the peculiar formation onto the Thick Earth Dual Aspect Formation below, causing the yellow light screen to tremble violently, showing signs of collapse.

“Liao Zhong! What are you doing?” Yue Rong shouted in anger and surprise, shaking her sleeve and quickly shooting seven or eight array flags towards the formation.

“Yue Daoist, watch your step, retreat quickly!” Zuo Qinghui suddenly shouted coldly, a blood-red cylinder appearing in his palm, shooting a blood-colored pellet the size of an egg towards the ground behind him.

However, the ground there slightly bulged, and seven or eight black needles shot out first, hitting Yue Rong’s legs.

Yue Rong groaned, falling to the ground with a thud, the light of the seven or eight array flags dissipating and falling to the ground.

The blood-colored pellet flashed and disappeared into the ground, followed by a scream from below.

At this moment, the Thick Earth Dual Aspect Formation completely collapsed, and the Crimson Gold Centipede spewed another cloud of dark green poisonous mist, engulfing the five figures.

Yue Rong’s angry voice came from within the poisonous mist, three yellow beams of light shooting out in a triangular formation.

A vast yellow light surged from the ground, creating a strong storm that instantly swept away all the poisonous mist.

The five figures within the formation appeared, their auras weak and dispirited, with patches of poison marks on their faces, arms, and other parts, clearly poisoned by the Crimson Gold Centipede.

Yue Rong was in the worst condition, with seven or eight black needle holes on her legs, the black poison rapidly spreading.

But she was remarkably resilient, still standing with gritted teeth.

Around them, seven or eight cultivators had appeared at some point, all in the Foundation Establishment stage, wearing yellow robes, surrounding them with mocking eyes.

Steward Liao, the Wang brothers, and Cui Wuran stood outside the encirclement, clearly in league with the yellow-robed men.

Cui Wuran’s right arm was severed at the shoulder, the wound clean, clearly self-inflicted, his gaze towards Zuo Qinghui full of resentment and fear.

He had been hit by the blood-colored pellet underground, his arm rotting rapidly. If he hadn’t cut it off in time, he would have turned into a pool of blood.

The red-haired youth from the exchange meeting yesterday was also among them, scanning the five in the formation, seemingly looking for something, finally withdrawing his gaze in disappointment.

Yue Rong and the others felt their hearts sink. At this point, anyone could see they had fallen into a trap.

Zuo Qinghui, however, was not as worried as the others. Hua Zhi had already extended a slender vine from the ground, absorbing the poison from his body.

The poison marks on his body quickly faded, but he retained the marks on his hands and face to deceive the enemy.

Zuo Qinghui’s gaze swept over the yellow-robed men, finally landing on the Crimson Gold Centipede beside them.

The centipede lay beside them, not fighting the yellow-robed men, but rather seeming to join forces against a common enemy.

On a sand dune a hundred miles away, a yellow figure sat quietly, it was Yuan Ming.

He wore a yellow robe with a hood, covered in scale-like patterns, completely concealing his aura.

This yellow robe was made from the skin of a Yellow Slime Lizard from the Black Wind Desert, effective in concealing his aura, though not as good as the gray cloak given by Xiying, still quite effective.

He had originally planned for Zuo Qinghui and Hua Zhi to follow the City Lord’s Mansion people to hunt the Crimson Gold Centipede, while he would follow behind, looking for an opportunity to snatch the centipede’s corpse. Unexpectedly, things had taken a turn, leading to the current situation.

“It seems this mission was a trap from the start, but at least there is indeed a Crimson Gold Centipede,” Yuan Ming thought to himself.

He rose, summoning the White Jade Flying Shuttle, and flew towards the small stone mountain.

…

“Liao Zhong, what are you up to?” Yue Rong looked at Steward Liao, her voice cold.

Steward Liao looked down, seemingly not hearing Yue Rong’s voice.

“I’ve heard that the steward of Quicksand City’s Lord’s Mansion, surnamed Yue, is naturally charming and seductive. Seeing you today, it seems the rumors are true. Brothers, we’re in for a treat today!” A tall man stepped forward, his eyes filled with undisguised lewdness as he looked at Yue Rong.

This man had a long face and a big mouth, quite ugly, with a yellow horn on his forehead, his cultivation at the late Foundation Establishment stage.

The other yellow-robed cultivators laughed, their eyes fixed on Yue Rong, as if they wanted to strip her with their gaze.

Shi Chuan was furious but dared not speak out.

“Who are you people? Although Quicksand City is a small place, this mission is for the Wulei Sect. Don’t make a mistake,” Yue Rong said calmly, as if she hadn’t heard the vulgar words.

“Wulei Sect? You Zhao Country cultivators fear that name, but to us from Qin Country, it’s worthless,” the horned man said disdainfully.

Yue Rong frowned. Even in Qin Country’s cultivation world, the Wulei Sect was renowned, and even lawless rogue cultivators wouldn’t dare speak so disrespectfully.

These people disregarded the Wulei Sect, their origins unknown.

“Fellow Daoists, if I’m not mistaken, these people should be disciples of the Returning to Origin Sect from Qin Country,” Madam Gu San’s voice sounded in the ears of the other four.

“Returning to Origin Sect!” Yue Rong and Shi Chuan’s hearts tightened.

Zuo Qinghui’s eyes flickered. The Returning to Origin Sect was Qin Country’s top sect, the leading force in the Black Wind Desert, rivaling Zhao Country’s Wulei Sect in power and influence.

“How did you figure it out?” Yue Rong asked, using her spiritual consciousness to communicate, covering only the five of them.

“The Returning to Origin Sect excels in joint attacks, with strict rules and a hierarchical structure. Their disciples are brave and known for their discipline. I’ve fought their disciples before, and their positions, though seemingly scattered, hide a subtle strategy, resembling the Returning to Origin Sect’s joint attack formation,” Madam Gu San replied.

Zuo Qinghui observed the yellow-robed cultivators. Their positions, though seemingly random, had a hidden strategy, their auras subtly connected, resembling a special joint attack technique.

It seemed these people were indeed Returning to Origin Sect disciples.

But Zuo Qinghui didn’t care. Whether they were Returning to Origin Sect or Wulei Sect disciples, it was all the same to him. His goal was the Crimson Gold Centipede.

“So, you are Returning to Origin Sect disciples. No wonder you disregard the Wulei Sect. But when did the esteemed disciples of Returning to Origin Sect become desert bandits? If this spreads, what will your sect’s elders think?” Zuo Qinghui stepped forward, his expression calm.

Yue Rong and the others were shocked.

Zuo Qinghui had directly revealed their identity, wasn’t he forcing them to kill?

“Zuo, you’re seeking death, don’t drag us down!” Shi Chuan angrily transmitted.

“Don’t panic, follow my instructions, and I will help you escape. I’ll first remove the poison from your bodies,” Zuo Qinghui’s voice sounded in their ears.

Yue Rong and the others were stunned, then felt a slight pain in their feet, as if something had pierced them.

The poison in their bodies gathered at their feet and was quickly absorbed.

Especially Yue Rong, not only was the centipede poison absorbed, but the poison from the black needles in her legs also quickly dissipated, her body rapidly recovering, more effective than any antidote elixir.

“Haha, who would have thought that the esteemed disciples of Returning to Origin Sect would become thieves. How laughable,” Yue Rong felt joy in her heart, but her face showed a mocking smile.

“Oh, you recognized us. Then we can’t let you live. Attack!” The horned man’s face darkened, waving his hand.

The yellow-robed cultivators almost simultaneously stepped forward, closing in.

“I advise you not to approach. My companion practices a sinister poison technique. Once unleashed, everything within a hundred zhang will be destroyed. Haven’t you noticed the air smells different?” Zuo Qinghui pointed to Hua Zhi, who was wrapped tightly, and smiled.

“Not good, retreat!” The horned man sniffed a faint fragrance, his expression changing, retreating quickly.

Seeing this, the others, whether they smelled it or not, all retreated.