"How could they be here?!" Flower Butterfly Fairy exclaimed in a low voice, her entire body going cold.
"If not for the dangerous surroundings letting me notice the faint anomalies, I never would have detected their traces. Move!" Zeng Luozi urged, his expression panicked.
"There's a traitor among us! Split up and run!" Temple Bright God's face was ashen, having already figured it out. His gaze swept like lightning across Tu Toutuo, Tong Hua, and Zeng Luozi, pausing especially on Fang Yuan.
Obviously, he suspected this Chu Ying the most, because he still hadn't been able to thoroughly investigate his background.
"Hahaha, I originally planned to follow you all the way to find the Azure Dragon Whale. Since we've been found out, none of you will escape." As Shen Congsheng spoke, his fingers flicked, and several pulses of sound waves rapidly spread outward, catching up to Temple Bright God and the others.
Temple Bright God's group of Gu Masters were enveloped by the sound waves, their speed plummeting instantly.
Shhhh—!
Shen Congsheng blew a long whistle on the ocean floor.
Flower Butterfly Fairy shrieked as countless sound wave threads bound her body, and Shen Congsheng yanked her toward him.
"Little Butterfly!" Bee General saw this, his eyes splitting with rage, and threw himself back to help despite everything. But his strength was too meager, and he was also captured by Shen Congsheng.
Shen Congsheng's cultivation had reached the Eighth Transformation, and his mastery of the Sound Path was exceptional. In his previous life, within the Dragon Concealment Cave, he had even been able to capture the Eighth Transformation Gu Master Old Man Beifeng alive. Capturing small fry like Flower Butterfly Fairy and Bee General was naturally no trouble at all.
"Run!" Bee General roared.
But he was immediately grabbed by the throat by Shen Congsheng and knocked unconscious on the spot.
Shen Congsheng snorted coldly: "Strike."
The Shen family Gu Masters beside him, along with Ren Xiuping, had long since locked onto their targets and struck.
They had been tracking from behind for quite some time and had clearly coordinated and assigned opponents beforehand. Thus, their attack was not only orderly but also mutually supportive.
The one targeting Fang Yuan was Shen Tan of the Shen family, a conventional Water Path Gu Master.
He released a water ring the size of a water vat, about to envelop Fang Yuan's head.
Fang Yuan was unwilling to fight back, and suddenly transformed into a small seahorse no bigger than a palm, shooting out with lightning speed.
Shen Tan's attack hit empty air. Startled, he attacked repeatedly, forming three water rings that appeared in Fang Yuan's path.
Fang Yuan then transformed into a swimming fish, weaving left and right with extreme agility, dodging all three water rings.
Shen Tan's expression darkened, and he called out to Ren Xiuping beside him: "Fellow Immortal Ren, please lend me a hand."
Ren Xiuping was attacking Tong Hua, commanding two vicious sharks. Hearing Shen Tan's words, he immediately nodded: "Of course."
One of the sharks harassing Tong Hua immediately changed course and charged toward Fang Yuan.
Fang Yuan scanned his surroundings with lightning speed and realized that if he passed this obstacle, he would become the one running at the very front.
So he slowed down, feigning being blocked by the shark.
With this delay, Shen Tan laughed aloud and manipulated four water rings to trap Fang Yuan: "Where do you think you can run now?"
He had no idea who he was blocking. Had he known Chu Ying's true identity, he would likely have been trembling all over.
Fang Yuan pretended to fight like a cornered beast, patiently observing his companions.
Tu Toutuo had already been intercepted. As an earth path practitioner, his speed was mediocre to begin with, and on the ocean floor he was at an even greater disadvantage.
Tong Hua was being harried by Ren Xiuping's two vicious sharks.
Zeng Luozi was like a white phantom on the ocean floor, darting left and right in a race against the Shen family's Shen Qi, temporarily in the lead.
Ghost Old Seven traveled alongside Temple Bright God. As two Shen family Gu Masters closed in, he suddenly roared: "My lord, go quickly! I'll hold them off."
He halted abruptly and thrust both palms backward.
With a muffled bang, a vast expanse of pitch-black thick fog rapidly spread outward.
The two Shen family Gu Masters were moving too fast and plunged straight into the thick fog, vanishing without a trace.
"Old Ghost, take care!" Temple Bright God knew the situation was dire. His eyes filled with tears as he suddenly shot upward.
Shen Congsheng had completely subdued Bee General and Flower Butterfly Fairy. Seeing this, he sneered: "Where do you think you're going?"
As he spoke, several invisible sound waves chased after Temple Bright God like lightning.
Temple Bright God's hair stood on end, alarm bells screamed in his mind, his gaze flashed like lightning, and he bellowed as he unleashed a Space Path killing move at the critical moment.
His figure vanished abruptly, then reappeared a hundred paces ahead. The next second, he vanished again, and when he reappeared, he was another hundred paces further from Fang Yuan and the others.
Flickering in and out like this, Temple Bright God successfully escaped and burst through the ocean surface.
Shen Congsheng let out a soft "hmm," somewhat surprised.
His technique was the genuine article of the Eighth Transformation, yet Temple Bright God had actually managed to escape. Truly remarkable.
Temple Bright God was the most critical target. Without bothering to stuff Flower Butterfly Fairy and Bee General into his immortal orifice, Shen Congsheng simply tossed them to his companions and shot out in pursuit.
Temple Bright God burst from the ocean, his head drenched in cold sweat.
"My escape technique normally lets me flash over a hundred li in a single blink. But in front of Shen Congsheng, I can only manage a hundred paces. Is this the power of an Eighth Transformation Gu Master?"
Behind him, the ocean surface suddenly shattered with a boom, and Shen Congsheng shot out.
Temple Bright God's body and mind shook violently, his speed plummeting instantly as he was struck by Shen Congsheng's killing move once again.
Watching himself about to be captured, Temple Bright God struggled with all his might, but despair only grew in his heart.
Just then, a piercing cry suddenly rang out.
An ancient Thunder Phoenix shot forward like lightning, lunging at Shen Congsheng.