The battle became much more difficult after suffering a few wounds. The Sound Sword Sect Master quickly swallowed some healing pills and controlled his body to stop the bleeding, there was no way a powerful Nascent Soul Cultivator could be killed by just a few puncture wounds. Nor would he allow such wounds to destroy his precious body. Even so, these wounds still affected his strength. Previously, his speed and power were great enough to hold off the trio of Purple Mist Sect members combining their strength, but now he was the one on the back foot. He could no longer attack constantly to keep his foe off balance, and now he had to start defending himself and defending was not the strong point of his style.

Sage moved his attention from the Sound Sword Sect Master and onto the next person that had given him grief in the past. The woman with the serious and austere appearance suddenly felt a chill, stopping her fist in mid-flight and suffering a minor injury from the backlash of her own power. A light flashed past her face, disappearing into the ground. She had to stop her attack mid-release and the power that she was on the verge of releasing was pulled back into her body and smashed around her insides. Then she stomped onto the ground, releasing the echoing force into the earth.

There was a loud boom and a crater appeared beneath her. She turned to see where the attack had come from, but she was immediately interrupted by the three snakes assaulting her again. There was a furious look on her face and she brandished her fists, releasing blasts of booming sound with each blow. She knocked the three Purple Mist Sect members back and then looked around for her other attacker. Her vigilance was rewarded with a dozen streaks of light coming at her from different directions. She thrust her hands out with open palms, causing her sound blasts to strike a wider area and knock away the incoming attacks. Then she felt a sharp pain on her back, spinning around and knocking away the tip of a spear that was darting at her a second time. The Purple Mist Sect member used the Shard Rifle attacks as cover to strike with their spear.

Sage repeated this tactic, firing at the Yincha Sect Leader, the Shou Clan Leader and the Shou Clan Ancestor. Each of them were either injured by his Shard Rifles or the Purple Mist Sect while they were distracted by his attacks. As for the three mercenaries, he left them alone for now. He wanted them to realize how outclassed they were and also didn’t want to push them into a corner yet. Mercenaries were in it for the money after all. As long as their lives were not at risk, they never really gave it their all.

Once he had harassed each of the Alliance leaders into an injury, he turned his attention to the weaker members. He just wanted to weaken them enough they were tied down, now that goal was accomplished it was time to start cleaning things up. The Shard Rifles swished through the air, changing positions and firing rapidly. Glittering purple crystals, Indigo Quartz, darted through the air and punched clean through the bodies of the Alliance’s rank fives. Sage started a massacre, wiping out all these lower level cultivators. The Nascent Souls on his size contained them, keeping them from escaping while he shot them down from above. The leaders of the Artful Life Alliance were furious and wanted to rush to reinforce them, but what could they do fighting three against one? The injuries they’d already received made it hard for them to even protect themselves let alone others.

Out of desperation, the stoop backed old man yelled loudly and activated a secret method. His eyes burned with a red flame, and he released a strange fluctuation of energy. His body rapidly strengthened. The old man’s back straightened, his frail body started to fill out with muscles and his white hair darkened. The wrinkles on his face faded away, and his aged and leathery skin regained its suppleness. In just a few moments the old man suddenly became a young man again. He was a ferocious looking man, tall and well muscled with jet black hair and a predatory gleam in his eyes. The Shou Clan Ancestor let out a loud roar and swiped his hand through the air towards the three Nascent Souls facing off with him. For a moment nothing seemed to happen and then the three Purple Mist Sect members were knocked backwards, coughing up blood and clutching their chests in pain.

The Shou Clan Ancestor rushed over to the Shou Clan Leader and knocked away those fighting her in a similar manner. He swooped back and forth, freeing all of his allies from their fights and then ordering everyone back together. In just a few moments, the Artful Life Alliance had regrouped, freeing themselves from the battles and forming into a large unit once again. The many rank fives were cheering at this sudden change, feeling optimistic about the great strength of their Ancestor. Yet, there was someone who was not pleased. The Shou Clan Leader had tears running down her cheeks, “Ancestor… why do you have to do this?”

The ferocious man shook his head, “We are already facing the end. Whether I do this or not, we are on the verge of death. At least this way, I might be able to buy a chance for you.”

“No, stop it! We can just die together and be family again in another life. If you burn away your soul there will be no hope for reincarnation!”

“The young ones of the Shou Clan need you to protect them. Tears will not help us here.”

Across from them, Sage’s forces allowed the enemy to fall back and regroup. They were still surrounded, so they didn’t fear their escape. None of the laws these people revealed so far allowed them to fly, so if they used their strength to leap through the air, his own side could do the same. Unlike the enemy, Sage’s side was not fighting desperately for their lives. Sage had instructed them to all act extremely cautiously, prioritizing their own safety and keeping the Alliance contained. They were in no hurry to overextend themselves and trade injuries with their foes. That was why they were fighting three against one and not achieving a quick victory. They had the overwhelming advantage and there was no rush for time.

This scene in front of him was quite touching, but Sage did not let it affect him. These people had not shied away from doing terrible things to others, flaunting their power and taking advantage of others. They’d come to kill him in the past, so they would receive no sympathy. Why did villains only seem to care about their choices when it came time for them to face the consequences? Such pride and arrogance to think that only their own people were important, while others were worthless.

With the enemy back into a large group, they were a little more troublesome to handle. If the eight Nascent Souls attacked in unison, it opened up many opportunities for his own side to be gravely injured or killed. The Alliance would surely suffer for it, but Sage wasn’t in the mood to be sticking his hand in the mouth of a dying animal.

He made a gesture and the trios that had been facing off against the Alliance Nascent Souls rejoined the other Purple Mist Sect members and the symbol on their armor lit up. All fifty of them were now releasing large clouds of poison, creating a thick ring of purple mist around the Alliance’s position.