Although that group of Loose Cultivators had retreated, the sinister look in Scarface’s eyes before he left left an imprint in Fang Hao’s heart like a venomous snake. He didn’t think this matter was over. In this Secret Realm, killing people to seize their treasures was all too common, especially since their group looked like ’fat sheep’—they had a little princess of noble status and low cultivation, and while the guards weren’t weak, they weren’t top-tier either.

"Everyone, stay sharp! Fang Hao, take two people to scout ahead and stay alert! The rest of you, tighten the formation and keep the Princess in the center!" Qin Lie, the veteran Captain of the guards, immediately adjusted their deployment, his expression even more solemn than before.

Fang Hao also secretly heightened his vigilance, pushing his Clear Spring Spirit Eyes to their limit. His Divine Sense swept through the surrounding mist and the sea of clouds below like a fine spiderweb. This place was beautiful, but the mist affected both vision and Divine Sense, making it far too easy for things to hide.

The little princess, Mu Zhenqing, also seemed to sense the wrong atmosphere. She reined in her playful thoughts and stayed obediently in the center of the guard circle, though her large eyes still couldn’t help but peer around curiously. 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

The team cautiously continued toward the target immortal mountain. Along the way, they indeed encountered several more groups of Cultivators from other factions. Some avoided them from afar upon seeing their formation, while others cast ill-intentioned glances. However, perhaps intimidated by the Aura of Qin Lie and the other Great Perfection Foundation Establishment guards, no conflicts broke out for the time being.

After traveling for about another half-hour, they were not far from the immortal mountain; they could even clearly see the outlines of pavilions and terraces on the mountain, along with patches of colorful spirit flowers and exotic herbs. The little princess grew excited again, pointing to a spot on the mountainside covered in pale blue, mist-like flowers and shouting, "Look! Those must be cloud dream flowers! So pretty! Let’s go over there quickly!"

Qin Lie observed the terrain. That flower sea was located on a relatively flat platform halfway up the mountain with a fairly open view, so he nodded in agreement. "Fine, we’ll go there. Everyone be careful and maintain the formation!"

The group descended toward the flower sea platform. The platform was large, spanning hundreds of feet. The cloud dream flowers swayed in the wind, emitting a refreshing fragrance, and the Spiritual Qi was denser here than in other places.

"This is great!" The little princess happily ran into the flower bushes, carefully picking the most beautiful cloud dream flowers, while her maid and Nanny followed to help.

Qin Lie directed the guards to spread out along the edge of the platform for sentry duty, while Fang Hao and the other Guest Elders provided support in the inner circle. Fang Hao did not relax; he felt this place was too quiet. Aside from the sound of the wind and the fragrance of flowers, there wasn’t even the sound of a bird or an insect, which felt indescribably eerie.

Suddenly, he paused. His Clear Spring Spirit Eyes caught an extremely faint spatial fluctuation behind a rock at the edge of the platform! That fluctuation was very subtle; if he weren’t somewhat sensitive to spatial power, he would have barely noticed it!

"Something’s wrong! There’s something there!" Fang Hao immediately barked out a warning!

Almost the moment his voice fell!

Boom!

The rock at the edge of the platform suddenly exploded! A massive, lizard-like black shadow, carrying a foul wind and a terrifying Aura, lunged out from underground!

This Demon Beast was over thirty feet long, its entire body covered in dark purple scales. Its head was hideous, its teeth like daggers, and its limbs were thick with claws flashing with a cold light. Most heart-stopping was the Demonic Qi radiating from it—it had actually reached the Early Stage of the Third-Ranked, equivalent to a human’s Early Golden Core Stage cultivation!

"A Third-Ranked Demonic Beast! A Purple-Scaled Cloud Lizard! Protect the Princess!" Qin Lie’s face instantly turned pale as he roared hoarsely! He never imagined a Golden Core level Demon Beast would appear in this Secret Realm! This completely exceeded all past experience and intelligence!

The Purple-Scaled Cloud Lizard’s cold vertical pupils instantly locked onto the little princess, the one with the ’freshest’ Spiritual Qi in the crowd. It let out a deafening roar and swung its thick tail, sending two Late Foundation Establishment guards blocking its path flying, their bones shattered! Its massive body moved like lightning, lunging straight for the little princess in the flower bushes!

"You beast, how dare you!" Qin Lie’s eyes nearly split from rage as he and several other Great Perfection Foundation Establishment guards desperately channeled their Magical Artifacts. Streaks of sword light and saber glows blasted toward the Purple-Scaled Cloud Lizard in an attempt to block it!

But a Golden Core Stage Demon Beast’s strength far surpassed Foundation Establishment! The Purple-Scaled Cloud Lizard didn’t even dodge. The purple scales on its body flashed with light as it tanked all the attacks. Its speed only slowed slightly, and its sharp claws still lunged toward the little princess, who stood frozen in terror, her face pale.

"Princess, watch out!" The maid and Nanny screamed in terror.

At this critical moment, a green shadow appeared before the little princess like a ghost! It was Fang Hao!

He had been on full alert and judged the beast’s target the moment it appeared! He pushed his Divine Spirit Steps and Shrinking the Ground to an Inch to their limits, arriving first despite starting later!

"empty clarity mirror! Spatial Distortion!"

Fang Hao unhesitatingly sacrificed the empty clarity mirror, its light shining directly in front of the Purple-Scaled Cloud Lizard’s lunging claws! That patch of space instantly became blurred and distorted!

The Purple-Scaled Cloud Lizard’s claws seemed to strike a mass of thick glue. Their trajectory deviated and their speed plummeted, grazing the edge of the little princess’s clothes. The fierce wind pressure knocked her to the ground, but she finally escaped the fate of being disemboweled!

"Roar!" The Purple-Scaled Cloud Lizard was infuriated by its missed strike. It turned and spat a thick cloud of purple poisonous mist at Fang Hao, who had ruined its plans! The mist had a foul, pungent stench and was clearly extremely toxic; even the cloud dream flowers it touched withered instantly!

"Five Elements Spirit Shield! Thick Earth as the core!" Fang Hao was prepared, instantly layering earthy yellow light shields in front of him while retreating rapidly!

Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle! The poisonous mist corroded the spirit shields, making a tooth-aching sound as the shields quickly dimmed! But they managed to block this wave!

"Form the array! Entangle it!" Qin Lie took the opportunity to roar. The surviving guards suppressed their fear and formed a battle array, raining down various Spells and Magical Artifacts on the Purple-Scaled Cloud Lizard. Although it was hard to deal a fatal blow, they successfully drew part of its attention.

Enraged, the Purple-Scaled Cloud Lizard temporarily gave up its pursuit of Fang Hao and the little princess, turning to fight the guards’ battle array. Roars and collision sounds were incessant; the scene was pure chaos!

Fang Hao took the chance to pull up the shaken princess and handed her to the Nanny who had rushed over. "Take the Princess to a safe place!"

He turned back to the battlefield, his heart heavy. Although Qin Lie and the others were brave, the power gap was too large. The battle array was wavering under the Purple-Scaled Cloud Lizard’s frantic attacks, with guards constantly getting injured and spitting blood. At this rate, total annihilation was only a matter of time!

He couldn’t use the golden puppet! There were too many people here; once the nascent soul puppet was exposed, the consequences would be endless! He could only rely on himself!

Fang Hao’s eyes turned sharp as the yitian sword appeared in his hand, its blade humming! He had to find a way to heavily wound this beast!

However, misfortunes never come singly! Just as Fang Hao was focusing on assisting Qin Lie against the Purple-Scaled Cloud Lizard, his keen Divine Sense suddenly detected over a dozen figures silently appearing in the mist on the other side of the platform! It was the group of Loose Cultivators who had retreated earlier! Their leader, Scarface, was staring at the chaotic battlefield with greedy and cruel eyes, specifically at the panicked little princess protected by the Nanny!

"Damn it! They really came!" Fang Hao cursed inwardly. These hyenas were indeed trying to fish in troubled waters!

A Golden Core Demon Beast attacking from the front, and Loose Cultivators eyeing them from behind! The situation was critical to the extreme!

Qin Lie also noticed the appearance of the Loose Cultivators. His eyes turned red with desperation as he roared, "Guest Official Ning! Protect the Princess and leave first! We’ll hold them off!"

Leave? Where to? Three sides of this platform were empty air, and one side was a steep cliff. The only exit might have already been blocked by the Loose Cultivators! Moreover, in front of a Golden Core Demon Beast, how far could he run with a little princess at the Qi Refinement Stage?

Fang Hao took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. The more critical the situation, the less he could afford to panic! His gaze swept rapidly across the battlefield, his brain working frantically.

Purple-Scaled Cloud Lizard... Loose Cultivators... Little Princess... Escape route...

Suddenly, his gaze fixed on the hole the Purple-Scaled Cloud Lizard had crawled out of behind it! The hole was pitch black, and he didn’t know where it led, but it might be the only chance for survival!

A bold and risky plan instantly formed in Fang Hao’s mind!

He transmitted his voice to Qin Lie, shouting, "Captain Qin! Don’t fight it head-on! Fight and retreat, lure that beast toward the cliff! Create an opening for me!"

After speaking, he ignored Qin Lie’s reaction. His body moved, executing the Divine Spirit Steps. However, he didn’t charge toward the Purple-Scaled Cloud Lizard but instead, like a swimming fish, used the chaos of the battlefield and the cover of the mist to silently circle toward the flank where the Loose Cultivators were!

What was he doing? Qin Lie was stunned, but he had no choice now. He could only grit his teeth and execute the plan, directing the battle array to painstakingly lure the rampaging Purple-Scaled Cloud Lizard toward the cliff on the inner side of the platform.

Meanwhile, Fang Hao had already approached the group of Loose Cultivators who were watching the show, prepared to reap the benefits like a ghost. His target was Scarface.