The palace-robed woman's face flickered with a trace of despair at the sight, but she immediately gritted her teeth, a flush of crimson rising to her cheeks. She was about to execute a forbidden technique of her clan, intending to drag the leading demon down with her regardless of the cost.
But before her fingers could even form the hand seal, the air above suddenly rippled, and with a flash of silver light, a curvaceous, indistinct figure materialized as if out of thin air.
This sudden development left every human cultivator and all the surrounding demons stunned.
The figure's gaze swept over the demons all around, and a pleasant yet frigid snort rang out: "You demons dare set foot here? You're courting death! Kill them all!"
The words had barely left her lips when silver light blazed forth from her body with a roar. A sharp, piercing sound tore through the air as countless gossamer crystal threads erupted outward in every direction, radiating in a devastating barrage.
The surrounding demons were horrified. Some activated their demonic arts to defend, others hastily summoned demonic artifacts for protection — but the crystal threads paid no heed to any of it. They flickered through everything and pierced straight through every demon's body, sending them toppling to the ground like withered grass.
Among them was even that Void Refining demon with the serpent upper body.
As his corpse plummeted toward the ground, his face still bore an expression of shocked disbelief and rage.
No wonder he wore such a look.
He had led this pursuit under the assumption it was a simple matter — chasing down a group of human cultivators far weaker than themselves. To have someone suddenly intervene from the side, and to fall because of it — it was utterly unacceptable.
The palace-robed woman and the other human cultivators were overwhelmed with mingled shock and joy.
At once, led by the palace-robed woman, the entire group bowed deeply toward the hazy figure in the sky. The palace-robed woman spoke with the utmost respect: "This junior thanks the senior for the great mercy of saving our lives. Had the senior not intervened, this junior and the younger members of the Xu family would surely have fallen to these demons' vicious hands."
"The Xu family? Could it be the Xu family to which Fairy Ice Soul belongs?" The figure in the air seemed somewhat surprised, and after a brief pause, asked.
"Does the senior perhaps know our ancestor? We are indeed the descendants of our forebear, Fairy Ice Soul!" The palace-robed woman was momentarily taken aback but replied carefully.
"I do not know Fairy Ice Soul herself, but one of my close friends shares a deep connection with your ancestor. How did you come to be chased here by demons?" The silver light around the figure in the air faded, revealing a gracefully sculpted figure and a face of unearthly, celestial beauty. She smiled gently as she spoke.
This woman was none other than Silver Moon, who had crossed through the void from the basin.
During her time with Han Li, she had long since learned of Fairy Ice Soul and the Xu family from his words, which was why she was being so amiable.
Otherwise, had these been ordinary human cultivators she had no connection to, someone of her Spatial Tempering cultivation would never have been so courteous.
"A close friend of our ancestor! May this junior ask for that senior's honored name? I may well have heard of them." The palace-robed woman felt a weight lift from her heart but still asked respectfully.
"What is your name?" Silver Moon did not answer right away. Instead, she looked the blue-robed woman up and down several times before asking thoughtfully.
"This junior is Xu Qianyu. If the senior has any instructions, please do not hesitate to give them." Xu Qianyu's heart tightened and she hastened to reply.
This woman of the Xu family was none other than the "Fairy Xu" whom Han Li had once met in Sky Origin City. After all these years, she had already advanced to the late stage of Deity Transformation. How she had ended up leading a group here and being desperately chased by demons, no one could say.
"Xu Qianyu! From your appearance, you truly are the member of the Xu family he mentioned.
In that case, I am going to temporarily commandeer you and the rest of the Xu family members. This area is to be off-limits to outsiders for the time being. I want you to patrol the vicinity and make sure no other strangers slip through." Silver Moon gave a light laugh and issued her orders without the slightest pretense of politeness.
"It would naturally be this junior's honor to serve the senior. However, our cultivation is quite low. If a powerful figure were to come, we likely wouldn't be able to stop them, and we might end up delaying the senior's important affairs." Xu Qianyu was bewildered by the request but did not dare show any hesitation in her response.
"That's fine. I'll give you several talismans. If you truly encounter someone you cannot handle, don't try to fight — simply activate a talisman. Once I receive word, I can arrive in an instant." Silver Moon had clearly come prepared.
"Since the senior has already thought everything through, this junior will do her utmost and not fail your trust." Xu Qianyu bowed her head slightly and agreed at once.
Silver Moon nodded in satisfaction. She was about to say something more to the palace-robed woman when a flash of silver light suddenly appeared at the distant horizon behind them, followed by a faint, muffled boom that rumbled through the sky. Even the ground beneath them trembled slightly.
"Good. Take these talismans. I have other matters and must leave immediately." Silver Moon's expression changed. With a flick of her sleeve, several silver talismans shot out toward Xu Qianyu. Then, with a deafening roar, she transformed into a streak of silver light and tore through the sky, vanishing beyond the horizon in just a few flickers.
Xu Qianyu caught the talismans and gazed in the direction where the silver light had disappeared, a hint of suspicion creeping onto her face that she could no longer conceal.
But the next moment, she turned around and issued an unquestionable command to the other members of the Xu family: "You all heard the senior's instructions. Split into groups of five immediately. Each group takes one person and patrols in different directions. But no one is to venture deeper into this region."