Chapter 2930: Abandoned Dragon City

“He was determined to fight to the death, and I had my reservations,” Xing Zhou replied.

Xue Wei frowned deeply. Si Shengya was exceptionally strong, almost her equal, and if he truly fought with his life on the line, Xing Zhou would indeed be wary.

Though reluctant, she had no choice but to accept the inevitable. While she could be unsparing in her reprimands toward Fei and other Half-Sages at times, she still had to show basic respect to Xing Zhou, the First Half-Sage.

She let out a soft sigh. "Let him go. There will be other opportunities."

As she spoke, she turned her head to look in the direction of Dragon City.

At that moment, Dragon City was moving swiftly.

This would have been utterly impossible before, given Dragon City's immense size. However, after the recent battle, only the core area, centered around the Central Hall, remained, significantly reducing its mass. This transformation made what was once impossible now feasible.

Numerous Dragon Half-Sages had retreated into Dragon City, with the puppets in hot pursuit, now relentlessly assaulting the city.

Although the number of puppets had decreased by over a dozen compared to before, their remaining force was still formidable.

Inside the Dragon Palace, a flash of light emanated from the teleportation array as Lu Ye and his companions, all looking disheveled, materialized.

Having just escaped Xue Wei and her pursuers, they had immediately used the Hèhé Realm as a transit point to return to Phoenix Nest, and from there, used Phoenix Nest's grand teleportation array to arrive back at Dragon City.

Stepping out of the main hall, Lu Ye's gaze fell upon Xue Wei and the other Half-Sages standing in the void nearby. Their eyes met; Xue Wei's gaze turned icy, while Lu Ye remained expressionless.

"Lu Ye." The Dragon Venerable, who had arrived back in Dragon City earlier, approached him. As his Dao Orb was already within Dragon City, he naturally didn't need to transit through Phoenix Nest.

"What's the damage?" Lu Ye asked urgently.

He had only sensed the successive extinguishments of life forces from the Dragon clan, but he didn't know the exact number of Dragon Half-Sages who had fallen.

"Nearly ten of our ancestors have fallen, and most of the rest are severely wounded..." The Dragon Venerable's expression was somber.

It was safe to say that aside from himself, who had sustained minimal damage, all surviving members of the Dragon clan were wounded, most of them gravely.

This blow had truly crippled the Dragon clan.

Lu Ye's heart sank. Their greatest advantage had been the numerous Dragon Half-Sages on their side, but Yuan's cunning maneuver had instantly nullified that strength.

It was truly difficult to accept such an easy reversal of the situation.

"Let me see!" As Lu Ye spoke, he reached out and took the Dragon Venerable's wrist. A brief examination clearly revealed something foreign within the Dragon Venerable's body.

This was evidently the mysterious seal created from Yang Qing's blood. With this seal active, all members of the Dragon clan would be unable to draw upon external power.

A question arose in Lu Ye's mind.

He himself was unable to wield external power because he was specifically targeted by Yuan's will. If Yuan possessed such capabilities, why would it still need to use a single drop of Yang Qing's dragon blood to manifest such a method?

It could simply brand all Dragon clan members as traitors, subjecting them to the same treatment as Lu Ye!

After careful consideration, Lu Ye vaguely suspected this might be due to the sheer number of individuals involved. The Dragon Half-Sages gathered in Dragon City outnumbered even the puppet Half-Sages.

Yuan's will likely lacked the capacity to focus on each individual.

Just as it couldn't concentrate on the puppets, it was important to remember that while those numerous puppet Half-Sages were nominally Yuan's puppets, they were currently controlled by Xue Wei and others.

Lu Ye wasn't sure if his hypothesis was correct, but the immediate reality was that the Dragon Half-Sages could no longer draw upon any external power.

Interestingly, the cultivators within Dragon City who possessed the Dragon bloodline remained unaffected. This was not surprising, as Dragon City's defenses had been continuously active. Earlier, when Yang Qing's dragon blood had exploded into a fine golden mist, it had been entirely blocked by the city's protective barriers.

"Hmm?" The Dragon Venerable suddenly raised an eyebrow. He discovered that the mysterious seal within his body was weakening, as if being incinerated by something.

He immediately realized this was Lu Ye's doing, much like how Lu Ye could incinerate the corrosive power accumulated within the Primeval Parasol Tree.

Lu Ye didn't press further, only testing the waters. He merely wanted to see if the power of the Talent Tree could alleviate the current plight of the Dragon Half-Sages.

The result proved it could.

But there was no longer enough time!

"Dragon Venerable..." Lu Ye looked up.

The Dragon Venerable's expression was bitter. "So, it truly comes to this, after all."

Abandon the city!

Before the outbreak of this great war, Lu Ye had numerous discussions with the Dragon Venerable while he was in the River of Time, analyzing various possible outcomes of the conflict.

The worst-case scenario, however, was abandoning the city.

Two of Dragon City's three defensive layers had already been breached, leaving only the final one. Even before the war erupted, this last layer was already teetering on the brink, meaning it couldn't possibly hold out for long.

The puppet Half-Sages outside were launching a relentless assault. Within a day or two at most, this final defensive layer would inevitably shatter, leaving them with no further protection.

Yet, how difficult it was to make such a decision?

Although Dragon City had previously shrunk in scale and many auxiliary cities had fallen, the losses hadn't truly shaken its foundations because the core area of Dragon City remained intact.

However, abandoning the city would mean forsaking the Dragon clan's legacy, built up over tens of thousands of years.

"I am a sinner against the Dragon clan!" The Dragon Venerable sighed heavily. "No Dragon Venerable throughout history, even in the most desperate times, has ever made this decision. I have failed the trust of our ancestors."

"Feng Xian," the Phoenix Lord addressed the Dragon Venerable with rare solemnity. "Our ancestors never faced a crisis like this. Moreover... the deepest root of today's danger can be traced back to our greatest ancestor."

The Dragon Venerable paused, then realization dawned upon him.

What she said was true. Yang Qing was indeed the most ancient ancestor of the current Dragon clan. If he hadn't been the First Saint, how could his true blood have been so easily exploited by Yuan?

The heavy-hearted Dragon Venerable felt a strange mix of emotions after the Phoenix Lord's words. However, he was not one to dither. The situation had escalated to a point where, if the city wasn't abandoned, absolute annihilation awaited the Dragon clan.

As the saying goes, "As long as the green mountains remain, there's always wood to burn." If Dragon City couldn't be saved, then at least the Dragon clan's elites had to be preserved.

"Abandon the city!" the Dragon Venerable commanded in a low voice.

With that declaration, it meant the fall of yet another of the Ten Greats, following Yifu City, Senluo City, Shibu City, Baizhan City, Wangu City, and Chiluan City.

And this one was even acknowledged as the foremost of the Ten Greats within the Star Abyss!

One could only imagine the shock that would ripple through the cultivators when this news spread.

With the order to abandon the city issued, the many cultivators within Dragon City began to act swiftly and methodically.

A significant number of cultivators, all elites drawn from various locations, were currently gathered in Dragon City. Now, there were only two viable routes for their withdrawal.

One was to use a Dao Orb as a transit point to enter the Hèhé Realm, and the other was to travel via the teleportation array to Phoenix Nest.

With both routes utilized simultaneously, the number of cultivators within Dragon City steadily dwindled.

This, however, introduced another problem: the continuous weakening of the grand protective formation's power.

The strength of the grand protective formation was inherently linked to the number and collective power of the cultivators sustaining it. Thus, as more cultivators departed the formation, its power naturally diminished.

If this situation continued, the formation would likely break before all cultivators could evacuate the city. Anyone unable to depart in time would be left behind, leading to devastating losses.

Left with no other choice, the Dragon Venerable instructed the Dragon Half-Sages to temporarily take control of the grand formation's core, ensuring its continued operation.

Although most of the Half-Sages were injured, and their wounds were not light, performing this task posed no significant issue. As long as they avoided direct combat with the enemy, they would largely be fine.

Furthermore, due to their immense power, each Half-Sage could contribute many times more effectively than an ordinary Dao Integration cultivator.

As a result, the grand formation, which had been weakening, surprisingly stabilized once more.

After nearly a full day, all cultivators had completed their evacuation from the city. At present, only the Half-Sages remained.

"Xiao Ye, are you certain you don't need me to stay and help?" Si Shengya asked with concern.

While this evacuation was halfway complete, many Dragon Half-Sages were still left behind. If they couldn't be evacuated as well, then all prior efforts would be meaningless.

Lu Ye had a plan, but Si Shengya remained somewhat uneasy.

"Saint Si, there's no need to worry. I have it under control," Lu Ye reassured him.

Si Shengya said no more, simply nodding slightly. "Then I'll wait for you at Phoenix Nest!"

With that, he stepped into the teleportation array.

"Xiao Ye, you must be careful!" Qin Feng also urged, his form vanishing. Mu Yungui and Huan Caiyi followed closely.

The Phoenix Lord stated, "I'll come to meet you."

Xue Jiu silently eyed Lu Ye, uttering no words.

He was secretly hoping Lu Ye would meet an early demise...

"Lu Ye, I'm entrusting this to you!" the last remaining Dragon Venerable said solemnly.

"Rest assured, I will bring back every one of these Dragon ancestors without fail," Lu Ye replied with a slight nod.

Only then did the Dragon Venerable step onto the teleportation array. As soon as his figure vanished, Lu Ye drew his blade and struck. With a single slash, the teleportation array, which had stood for countless millennia, crumbled into pieces.

This array connected to Phoenix Nest, and since the decision had been made to abandon the city, it naturally couldn't be left intact.

After destroying the array, Lu Ye turned and walked towards the Central Hall. He then sat down cross-legged before the Dao Orb.

He calmed his mind, focused his spirit, and took a moment to adjust his breathing.

He had also sustained some injuries in the previous battle, though they were not severe.

Time passed.

Approximately an incense stick's time later, Lu Ye suddenly spoke, "Everyone, we only have ten breaths of time!"

Once all the Dragon Half-Sages withdrew from the formation's core, Dragon City's third defensive layer, though still active, would only last a maximum of ten breaths under such intense assault before collapsing!

Therefore, if Lu Ye and the others couldn't depart within those ten breaths, their fate would undoubtedly be grim.

"Understood, we've been waiting," Zhu Pang exclaimed boisterously.

"Then let's begin!" After speaking, Lu Ye raised his hand and pointed at the empty space before him. Instantly, a portal materialized.

It was the gateway to his inner world.

From various points across the city, surges of energy rapidly converged on the Central Hall, rushing inside and directly into the portal, where their figures vanished.

In a mere three breaths of time, Lu Ye was the only living being left within the entirety of Dragon City.