Chapter 532: Joining Forces
Wang Chen's mind stirred, and the door of the Defense Area silently swung open.
The rules of West Sea Sect were strict, not only forbidding fratricide among fellow disciples but also imposing a duty to aid those in distress.
When Yun Feifei ran to the gate seeking help, it didn't matter that Wang Chen had a good relationship with her—even if they had been strangers, he would have been obligated to lend a hand.
Seeing the door open, Yun Feifei and the two other females felt as if they had received a grand reprieve, sweeping into the Defense Area at their greatest speed.
Wang Chen immediately closed the door and reactivated the Defensive Array.
He stood up and left the Array Control Room, entering the large hall outside.
"Senior Brother Wang..."
Yun Feifei and the other two female cultivators were in the hall, and seeing Wang Chen appear, she bowed gracefully and said, "Thank you!"
"There's no need for politeness."
Wang Chen waved his hand, "It's only right for fellow disciples to help each other."
He nodded toward the woman standing next to Yun Feifei, "Junior Sister Sun, we meet again."
She was indeed Sun Yulian, who had once bought Spirit Rice from him.
Sun Yulian, bashful, greeted, "Senior Brother Wang."
Wang Chen's gaze then fell upon the third female cultivator.
The woman had a slender and graceful figure, but her face was veiled, revealing only a pair of eyes as bright as the stars.
"Senior Brother Wang, let me introduce you,"
Yun Feifei said, "This is Senior Sister Li Mengyan."
Li Mengyan was an Inner Sect Disciple who had entered the Yin Nether Realm to cultivate a year ago. The territory assigned to her was adjacent to Yun Feifei's, and thus the two became acquainted and formed a small team during this mission to eradicate the Evil Nest.
Considering that female cultivators tended to have weaker combat strength, destroying Evil Nests occupied by Evil Spirits was undoubtedly far more challenging and dangerous, hence teaming up was the optimal strategy.
Li Mengyan, with her higher cultivation level and having arrived earlier, naturally took on the role of the leader of this team of female cultivators.
Together, they confronted the Evil Nests within their territories.
They had successfully destroyed an Evil Nest earlier, but today, while dealing with the second one, a sudden cataclysm spewed forth a tide of Evil Qi with no time to prepare, resulting in heavy casualties among their small team.
Yun Feifei, Li Mengyan, and Sun Yulian were fortunate enough to escape with their lives, but unable to return to their own defense areas due to the severed path, they were forced to seek refuge with Wang Chen at the last moment.
"Junior Sister Zhang and Senior Sister Wang have met with misfortune..."
Yun Feifei's eyes reddened as she spoke, "If I'd known this was going to happen, I never would have led everyone into the mountains."
It was clear she felt a great deal of guilt.
"It's not your fault,"
Li Mengyan spoke with a cool tone, "No one wishes for mishaps, but once they occur, it's all a matter of fate."
Yun Feifei wiped away her tears and said no more.
The atmosphere in the hall grew incredibly tense.
Wang Chen sighed and said, "Senior Sister Li, Junior Sister Yun, Junior Sister Sun, our current situation is extremely precarious, and even here we cannot guarantee safety."
"So, do you plan to stay and defend the Defense Area with me or make a break for Weifa City?"
Yun Feifei and Sun Yulian looked at each other.
Lacking the ability to make decisions, they turned their gaze to Li Mengyan.
Li Mengyan pondered for a moment and then said, "Given that the situation is unclear and we haven't received any orders from the Sect's Law Hall, instead of risking a breakout, it might be wiser to stay put in the Defense Area and wait for reinforcements. What do you think, Junior Brother?"
Wang Chen nodded, "Good!"
It was apparent that Senior Sister Li's mind was very calm, not affected by the sudden emergency.
In Wang Chen's view, staying in the Defense Area was indeed better than the risk of breaking out.
Li Mengyan then said, "During this time, we'll have to trouble junior brother. If you need us to exert any effort, we will not shirk as long as it's within our power."
Yun Feifei and Sun Yulian nodded in agreement.
Wang Chen said with a smile, "We're all in the same boat, facing the hardship together; there's no need for pleasantries."
Boom!
His voice had just fallen when the Defense Area suddenly shook, and a multitude of dust cascaded down.
This is bad!
Wang Chen inwardly cursed, immediately activating the Water Mirror to inspect the situation.
He saw a large number of Evil Spirits gathering from all directions, including those that liked to throw stones, which Wang Chen had managed to repel earlier. They waved their long tentacles, charging at the forefront, and hurling large rocks at the Defense Area.
Besides these Evil Monsters, there were all sorts of strange creatures, some emitting black smoke from their bodies, some resembling lions and tigers, and others like giants, with roars and screeches reverberating continuously.
It felt like all the Monster Spirits and Evil Wraiths of the Yin Nether Realm had mobilized!
"Quick, follow me!"
Without a second thought, Wang Chen led Li Mengyan and the other two women to the Array Chamber and said gravely, "Senior Sister Li, Junior Sisters, I'll leave the defense here to you; I'm going to the Defense Tower to fight the enemy!"
The Defense Area Wang Chen had built was essentially a Building Spiritual Artifact provided by the sect, small but complete in every sense, with very comprehensive settings, especially for defense.
The Array Chamber was the central hub for controlling the Array, and the Defense Tower was the combat unit, but in the past, Wang Chen had been on his own, only able to sit in the Array Chamber for defense, unable to utilize the Defense Tower's functions.
Now that he had handed over control of the Defensive Array to Li Mengyan and the other two women, he could focus on combat.
And since all three women were Inner Sect Disciples of the Purple Mansion, their combined strength in controlling the Defensive Array would surely exceed Wang Chen's lone efforts.
Understanding the gravity of the situation, Li Mengyan and the others didn't waste any words and immediately sat at different nodes of the Array, injecting their Mana to bolster it.
Their Defense Area had the exact same design as Wang Chen's, and with access to the Array's control privileges, they faced no obstructions in operating it—they could get started right away.
The Defense Area's Array immediately shone brightly, the entire building emitting a faint light, and the Mana Barrier it formed blocked all the flying stones from the outside.
After entrusting the control of the Array to the three women, Wang Chen quickly rushed to the Defense Tower.
The Defense Tower was situated to the left of the Star Observation Platform, seamlessly integrated with the Defense Area; from the outside, it just appeared as a protruding part of the latter, with its top designed as a cultivator's station, equipped with a node of an Array.
When Wang Chen arrived at the top of the Defense Tower, the bronze mirrors embedded in the walls lit up simultaneously.
The bronze mirrors displayed the scene from outside.
At that moment, the army of Evil Monsters was only a few hundred steps away; they were like tides of black currents, swiftly surging up the hillocks, trampling over the Spirit Fields Wang Chen had painstakingly cultivated, attempting to engulf the Defense Area perched atop the rocky hill!
"Thunder Come!"
Wang Chen immediately formed a spell with his hands and exerted his full strength to cast the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder.
Above the Defense Tower, he could leverage the full supporting power of the Array to increase the might of the Spells he cast.
Here, compared to his previous stint in the Array Chamber, Wang Chen could observe more comprehensively, cast spells faster, and unleash greater power.
The next moment, dazzling thunderbolts struck down, bombarding the Evil Monsters attacking the Defense Area on their heads.
Evil Monster after Evil Monster was struck by the lightning; some were turned into dust, others shattered into pieces, and some were pierced through, screaming as they fell to the ground.
-----------
Here's the first update.