Tang Sui was silent for a few seconds before saying, "When we get back, set up a cenotaph for the fallen disciples. If they have any next of kin, they should be comforted."
The situation had been so desperate at the time that it was impossible to take their companions' bodies with them; they could only bear to leave them there.
Titan nodded, "This old servant understands."
"Vice Sect Master, are we going to rest here for a while before we set off?" Niu Gao couldn't help but get a headache thinking about the injured members of their team.
Tang Sui reassured them, "You can rest for a while now. I've already dispatched 21 guard knights to the nearest town to rent carriages. It's the same town where we stopped to replenish supplies on our way here. The towns along that route haven't been ravaged yet. If things go smoothly, they should be back in about two hours."
Seeing that Tang Sui had everything arranged perfectly, Bai He's tightly furrowed brow finally relaxed, "That would be excellent."
And just as Tang Sui had said, an hour and a half later, 21 commercial and passenger carriages of various sizes and models were parked at the mouth of the canyon.
With the 21 carriages and their drivers' seats, they could barely accommodate the more seriously injured individuals.
The grand procession set off again, almost rivaling the scale of a prince's procession.
Luo Hong and Tang Sui, one a titled Douluo at the peak Douluo level, and the other able to fly without consumption, followed at a hundred meters above the team, scouting from high altitude for any other suspicious individuals who might approach.
Half of the 60 accompanying Black Armored Knights were deployed to clear the way in front, while the other half remained at the rear to maintain vigilance, with Titan and the others advancing behind the carriages.
The 21 carriages were already a considerable number, so during their slow progress, they bought all available horses from horse merchants whenever they passed through small towns with people.
Tang Sui decisively recorded this large expense in the Tang Sect's internal ledger.
Along the way, Si Long, who had recovered, found Tang Sui and Titan, and recounted the entire battle with the Spirit Empire soldiers to Tang Sui and the others. Su Dan Novel Network.
The thought of Geng Xin City, where they had lived for many years, falling into the clutches of the Spirit Empire, and the un-transferred castings and other resources being lost, made him tear up. He beat his chest and, covering his face, sobbed that he had failed to protect the legacy of their teacher.
Tang Sui, who had pocketed the resources and even had the Black Armored Knights pry away the casting platform along with its foundation, fell silent. Watching Titan comfort Si Long by patting his shoulder and filling him with a lot of life-affirming platitudes, her gaze drifted slightly.
Well... perhaps it was best not to say anything.
Ten days later, Tang Sui and the others finally returned to the familiar territory of the Heaven Dou Empire.
Tang Sui entrusted the resettlement of Si Long and the others, who had been rescued from Geng Xin City, entirely to Titan, as Titan was also a high-ranking member of the Blacksmith's Association.
She dispatched people to inform Xue Beng and the Master separately about the fall of Geng Xin City, as a large number of people were entering Heaven Dou, and it was necessary to inform the ruler of the territory.
Tang Sui also sent a letter bird, a sharp-tailed swallow, to notify Lou Gao of the Clear Sky School. She then went to Shrek Academy to exchange intelligence with the Master and others. After tying up all loose ends, she stored the Black Armored Knights in her domain, opened a spatial portal, and sent them back to the City of Slaughter. Then, using the demon power mark left on Sea God Island, she made a secondary jump there.
More than two months had passed since Tang Sui left Sea God Island, and it was just a few days shy of three months.
Tang Sui went directly to the Sea Horse City Lord's Mansion to find Tang San and the others and informed them of the latest intelligence from the mainland.
Everyone's faces turned cold upon hearing that the Spirit Empire had attacked Geng Xin City.
Dai Mubai, who was now the Crown Prince of the Star Luo Empire, clenched his fists and slammed them on the table with a "bang," his eyes filled with anger: "The Spirit Hall... the Spirit Empire... this is simply too much!"
Tang San's gaze was filled with chilling calm as he analyzed, "After the Spirit Empire's actions this time were thwarted by Sui Sui, they will undoubtedly not let it go. They are likely to retaliate fiercely against the Tang Sect or the entire Heaven Dou Empire. Everyone, I think we must speed up the progress of our assessments and return to the mainland as soon as possible."
"Yes, I agree," Oscar said, raising his hand first to express his support. The others had no objections.
Tang Sui looked at their backbone, Tang San, "Brother, your fourth trial is to kill the Sea Demon Whale King, right? This time, I plan to participate. After all, Bai and I had an alliance agreement to jointly fight the Sea Demon Whale tribe."
After her encounter with Tuoba Xi and the others, she once again realized the importance of strength.
The Sea Demon Whale King was her brother's assessment target, and the Sea God had chosen it as his eighth spirit ring, so she naturally wouldn't compete with her brother for it. However, other Sea Demon Whales were not reserved.
In any case, their cultivation was mostly obtained by devouring other sea spirit beasts or spirit masters. They were all fish in the same murky pond; what was wrong with some preying on each other?
Tang San nodded, "Of course, you can."
Then, everyone exchanged information about their current spirit ability capabilities and chatted about their activities in Sea Horse City over the past two months.
Upon hearing that Tang San had taken in a young man named "Ji Xiang" as a disciple while scouting in the nearby sea, and had mentioned that Tang Sui could go and see him if she was interested, and perhaps give his cheap disciple a见面礼 (meeting gift), Tang Sui blinked and sighed inwardly at the corrective nature of fate.
However, it was only a sigh, with no other worries or fears.
After all, she was no longer the "black household" who could only be secretly targeted without any resistance.
Thus, the action to hunt the Sea Demon Whales was scheduled for the day after tomorrow.
Tang Sui had originally wanted to act tomorrow, but upon learning that Tang Sui had sustained minor injuries in the battle at Geng Xin City, Tang San and the others sternly insisted that Tang Sui rest well for a day and that it wouldn't be too late to depart the day after tomorrow, emphasizing that maintaining peak condition was the most important thing.
Currently, the spirit power levels of the Shrek Nine Monsters were:
Dai Mubai, Level 78.
Oscar, Level 75.
Tang San, Level 80.
Ma Hongjun, Level 76.
Xiao Wu, Level 77.
Ning Rongrong, Level 76.
Zhu Zhuqing, Level 77.
Bai Chenxiang, Level 59.
Tang Sui, Level 83.
The group arrived at the edge of the island and gazed out at the vast blue sea.
Oscar was troubled, "Although our fourth trial is related to Bai, we haven't seen Bai for over a year since passing the second trial. How do we find her now?"
Tang Sui looked towards the ring-shaped sea not far away, "Of course, we'll ask the 'messenger' to help us inform Bai."
The swordfish school inhabiting the ring-shaped sea suddenly felt a chill on their backs.
Not long after, the group standing at the edge of the ring-shaped sea saw a huge gray-blue shark head emerge from the water. Its fierce golden eyes held surprise and uncertainty. Its massive mouth opened slightly, and its voice emanated from within:
"You only passed your third trial a little over two months ago, why are you already planning to proceed to the fourth trial? You know, unlike the previous ones, the fourth trial cannot be retried if failed. If you fail this time, you will truly lose your lives!"
—Author's notes—
See you next year~