"That makes sense! So, Ye Xuan is still alive? But how is that possible? Fifty Sub-City Lords couldn’t take him down? Is someone who awakened a Divine Beast Soul really that powerful?"
"I know why Ye Xuan is still alive."
"Ah, why?"
"Because Ye Xuan is hiding. The people of an entire city simply cannot find him. It’s as if he vanished into thin air without leaving a single trace."
At the same time, near the Big Mountain.
Fifty City Lords led their elite subordinates to this ordinary mountain range.
"My lords, on the day Ye Xuan and his group fled, someone saw them heading in this direction. Should we search this Big Mountain?"
"Search! Of course we search!"
The fifty City Lords all wore very ugly expressions. When they set out, they had confidently sworn to take the lives of Ye Xuan and the Ye Family within half a month. But now, half a month had passed, and they still didn’t even know where Ye Xuan was.
"Hopefully we can find that brat here, otherwise, we really won’t know where to start looking. This mountain range isn’t small. Gather all nearby forces to search for me. Do not miss a single corner."
"Yes, sir!"
Before long, the area around the mountain range swarmed with people. Almost everyone from the nearby towns had been drafted into the search.
Meanwhile, inside the Big Mountain.
Hua returned to the peak and found Ye Xuan.
These past few days, Ye Xuan had been continuously comprehending the Array. However, without Spiritual Light, comprehending it was merely a waste of time.
"Young Master, I’m back."
"Hua, what took you so long? Any news?"
"Young Master, a city dispatched fifty Sub-City Lords all at once to kill you."
"Fifty City Lords? They really think highly of me."
"Young Master, they also threatened to take your life within half a month."
"Half a month? I’m afraid the time is already up."
"It is indeed."
"Then have they gone back?"
"No, Young Master. They are still searching for your whereabouts. Furthermore, they are currently searching this very mountain range where we are hiding."
"Oh? They actually found their way here?"
Ye Xuan instantly grew tense. Didn’t Man Tian say the City Lords wouldn’t be able to find this place? But they had already come looking. The City Lords of a city really did have some tricks up their sleeves! So, would they discover the Illusion Array?
At this thought, Ye Xuan let out a whistle. The sound echoed throughout the entire Big Mountain.
The Long-beaked Eagle suddenly appeared, flying right above his head.
"I need to go down and take a look."
"I will accompany you, Young Master."
The two jumped onto the eagle’s back and quickly flew toward the foot of the mountain. Ye Xuan held an Earth-rank mid-grade longsword. This longsword was obtained from Sun Zhenwu’s Storage Ring. Even if the Sun Family had resources to raise their cultivation, they had already consumed them. However, there were still some high-level Spirit Medicines and weapons left.
As soon as the longsword was drawn, the Long-beaked Eagle suddenly crouched to the side, trembling in fear. This was because Ye Xuan had unleashed his Dragon Soul. His body was entwined by a Golden Dragon. If anyone truly wandered in by mistake, he would take their life in an instant.
Ye Xuan stayed fully on guard and did not leave. Three days passed, and no one had entered through the entrance. A Natural Illusion Array wasn’t so easy to break. Within its thousand-meter range, a single wrong step meant they couldn’t enter.
"It seems I was overthinking it."
Ye Xuan retracted his Dragon Soul.
Meanwhile, outside.
"Reporting to the City Lord, all the mountain peaks have been scouted, but there is no one. City Lord, should we retreat? Or should we continue heading east to keep searching? But a little further ahead is Hero City."
"Hm? Are we already this close to Hero City? Where on earth has this little brat hidden himself? Could it be... inside the mountain?"
One City Lord couldn’t hold back anymore and fiercely struck a palm toward the mountain range ahead. With that strike, the Big Mountain fractured and cracked as boulders came tumbling down. The distance was entirely engulfed in dust and smoke. The dust billowed into the sky like a soaring dragon. A massive hole was blasted directly into the Big Mountain, but inside, there was absolutely nothing.
After striking several mountain ranges in succession, this City Lord finally stopped.
"It looks like we’re going to become the laughingstock of the world. We confidently swore to kill that brat within half a month, but now, we haven’t even seen his Shadow! City Lords, what should we do now?"
"What else can we do but retreat? We’ll have everyone in the small towns patrol every day. If there’s any trace of Ye Xuan, they are to notify us immediately. Under the whole heaven, every land belongs to the king. As long as he is in the Moyue Kingdom, I refuse to believe he won’t show his face!"
"No, doing that wastes too much time and energy. I think we should contact the Celestial Secret Pavilion instead. Although getting the people of the Celestial Secret Pavilion to act comes at a tremendous price, if we split the cost evenly among fifty cities, it won’t be a big deal. What do you all think?"
"Contact the Celestial Secret Pavilion?"
"That is an excellent proposal. Rather than running around like headless flies, it’s better to just have the Abnormal Warriors of the Celestial Secret Pavilion directly use their Inference Technique to deduce the brat’s whereabouts."
"Agreed."
"I agree as well!"
"Since everyone is in agreement, I will send a message to the Celestial Secret Pavilion immediately and await their reply. In the meantime, let’s go to Hero City and stay there temporarily. Everyone in the Sun Family in Hero City is currently fearing for their lives; staying with them will allow us to look out for one another."
A few minutes later, the fifty City Lords departed one after another on their Flying Beasts. When they reappeared, they had already arrived at Hero City.
A day later, the news of the fifty Sub-City Lords returning in failure spread rapidly throughout the Kingdom, with Hero City as the epicenter.
"Did you guys hear? The Sub-City Lords returned in failure! For the past twenty days, they haven’t even seen Ye Xuan’s Shadow, let alone killed him!"
"That’s great! Does that mean they’ve given up?"
"Give up? How is that possible?! Ye Xuan killed a City Lord, so he will definitely be hunted down by the other City Lords. I heard that the Sub-City Lords have already sent a message to the Celestial Secret Pavilion!"
"Why would they send a message to the Celestial Secret Pavilion?"
"You don’t even know that? The Abnormal Warriors of the Celestial Secret Pavilion are adept at divination and calculations. Even if Ye Xuan is in hiding and never comes out, they can still use their divination Inference Technique to figure out his hiding place!"
"What? It’s that miraculous? But will the Celestial Secret Pavilion definitely help?"
"Of course! Have you forgotten? Sun Juguang from the Sun Family is a member of the Celestial Secret Pavilion."
"If you hadn’t brought it up, I really would have forgotten."
"Sigh, if the Celestial Secret Pavilion takes action, they will be able to calculate Ye Xuan’s position in less than three days. Ultimately, he cannot escape death. It’s rare for me to admire someone in my life, but it seems that in this world, defying the strong never ends well."
"Indeed. Under the heavens, there are many who work hard and struggle upstream, but how many of them meet a good end? Going against the current nine times—if you fail to withstand it or push through just once, you will be swept away by the torrent. From then on, it’s a catastrophic downfall with no future."
"Ye Xuan, you are ultimately just a Dao Light. Perhaps you can illuminate the sky, but such brightness is ultimately only temporary."
People were all sighing for Ye Xuan.
They all knew that once the hiding place of Ye Xuan and the Ye Family was calculated, the tale of the teenage hero would come to an end. In this world, it was never easy being a hero. The ultimate fate of a hero could be summed up in two words: dead end.