It was precisely because someone was attacking the gateway from the outside that this painted world kept trembling. Judging from the commotion, the attacker's cultivation was far from low.
Then again, the Pear Blossom Grotto-Heaven had a Seventh-Order cultivator like Xia Linlang standing guard. Who would dare cause trouble here without some backing?
Yang Kai burst into hearty laughter, gloating openly. "Heaven's retribution never misses! The cycle of karma is truly inescapable!"
This woman had schemed to trick him, and Yang Kai had been simmering with irritation ever since. Naturally, he was delighted to see her in a fix.
Xia Linlang shot him a cold look. "You think they're attacking me for no reason? If they break through the gateway, the first one who's finished is you!"
Yang Kai's laughter cut off abruptly as it suddenly dawned on him. "They came for me?"
"What kind of person do you think you are!" Xia Linlang sneered. "They want the Heaven and Earth Spring!"
"Those people?" Yang Kai immediately understood. Few knew about the Heaven and Earth Spring, but the high-rank Open Heaven cultivators who had fought over it in the now-shattered Qiankun Grotto-Heaven were certainly all privy to its existence.
And when Xia Linlang had seized Yang Kai at the end, an old woman had witnessed the whole thing.
Xia Linlang said, "I must have been watched by someone observant when I ventured out before. That's how they tracked this place down. Otherwise, they couldn't have found us so quickly."
Yang Kai was furious. "How could you be so careless?!"
Xia Linlang's lips curled into a mocking smile. "Didn't you just say heaven's retribution never misses? Why so nervous now?"
Yang Kai was momentarily at a loss for words. When it was none of his business, it was easy to sit back and watch the tigers fight. But when his own interests were directly at stake, how could he remain so detached? He couldn't be entirely sure whether Xia Linlang was telling the truth or not, but at a time like this, there was probably no reason for the woman to deliberately frighten him.
His expression shifted unconsciously.
Xia Linlang studied him, then suddenly broke into a dazzling smile. "Tell you what — I could open the gateway, and you can flee on your own. You're a master of the Space Laws after all. If you're truly determined to escape, even those high-rank cultivators might not be able to stop you."
Yang Kai retorted angrily, "You think I can outrun several high-rank cultivators in my current condition?"
"What's that got to do with me?" Xia Linlang's smile was radiant.
Yang Kai wished he could impale this woman with his spear!
Moments ago, he had been the one eager to watch the show. Now the tables had turned, and it was Xia Linlang's turn to enjoy the spectacle. How unpredictable this situation truly was.
Then Yang Kai suddenly reined in his anger and put on a smile. "Fine, open the gateway then. I won't flee — there's no point anyway. The Heaven and Earth Spring is a one-of-a-kind treasure, and those people surely aren't united. They'll inevitably start turning on each other. When they're busy fighting, I can fish in troubled waters. There might yet be a sliver of hope. Besides, they probably won't actually kill me. At most, they'll do what you did — find some way to push me to the Seventh Order before taking the Heaven and Earth Spring. I won't die either way."
He fixed her with a sly, calculating gaze and continued, "But as for you — with your aura so unstable right now, who knows if someone will seize the chance to finish you off? Hmm, you people have been hiding in the Shattered Heaven for so long that there must be all kinds of grudges between you. Setting aside the others, that old woman we encountered before — I'd wager she wouldn't pass up the chance to kick someone while they're down!"
Xia Linlang snorted coldly. "You think those people are as reasonable as me? You think everyone has my patience? The Heaven and Earth Spring is a unique treasure — if they can't have it, they won't let anyone else have it either. You won't have a life to worry about! But don't worry — after you're dead, nobody will bother collecting your corpse!"
Yang Kai waved dismissively. "Alright, alright. We're not children anymore. Let's stop trying to scare each other."
"Who's not young anymore!" Xia Linlang rolled her eyes at him, reaching up to brush the hair behind her ear and lifting her chin proudly. "I'm in the prime of my youth!"
Yang Kai curled his lip. "The bottom line is this: we're grasshoppers on the same rope now. If one suffers, we both suffer. If one prospers, we both prosper."
Xia Linlang fell silent. After a long pause, she gave a faint nod. "After all that talk, you've finally said something sensible!"
Yang Kai couldn't be bothered to bicker with her any further. "How many high-rank cultivators are actually out there?"
Though he was half-owner of the Pear Blossom Grotto-Heaven, this painted world had nothing to do with him. Only Xia Linlang could sense what was happening outside.
"Four," Xia Linlang replied. "All ones you've seen before."
Yang Kai's expression confirmed what he already suspected. Outside the shattered Qiankun Grotto-Heaven, aside from Xia Linlang, there had been a white-haired old woman, a middle-aged man, a woman, and a child with a towering hairstyle.
Those five had charged into the Qiankun Grotto-Heaven and fought each other inside, ultimately causing it to collapse.
"How do they compare to you in strength?"
"About the same, give or take. For Seventh-Order Open Heaven cultivators, we're the middling type — not particularly impressive, but not weak either." Xia Linlang smiled self-deprecatingly.
Yang Kai mused for a moment. "If we opened the gateway right now and caught them off guard, what are the chances we could escape?"
Xia Linlang looked at him oddly. "You should be the one answering that. You're the master of the Space Laws — the one who specializes in fleeing."
Yang Kai shook his head. "If I were at full strength, there might have been a chance. But in my current condition, there isn't a shred of hope. Besides, they know my abilities. They'll certainly be on guard outside."
Xia Linlang sighed. "The gateway won't hold out much longer either. When we were fighting earlier, this place was already damaged. Now with four people attacking with everything they have from the outside, they'll break through the gateway in half a day at most."