Chapter 678: Zhang Xuan Died Again?

For their sake, Teacher Zhang had lured away those puppets, venturing deep into the tiger's den without hesitation. If they stayed here waiting to die, they would be letting everyone down!

Tears streaming from their eyes, they all exerted strength beyond their usual limits and ran swiftly. After dozens of breaths, they returned to the stone steps.

Looking back again, the underground city seemed shrouded in night, the faint glimmers of the night pearls no longer visible.

Roar! Roar! Roar!

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Vaguely, they seemed to hear the howls of the Heterodox Spirit Clan corpse puppets and the sounds of explosions.

"This place isn't safe either. Let's go up first. Teacher Zhang... should be able to get out!"

Knowing that the stone steps were also unsafe—if another puppet charged over, they wouldn't be able to escape—Xing Yuan couldn't help saying.

"Mm."

Realizing it was useless to wait here, they turned and continued upward. Before long, they returned to the stone bridge.

"You're out! Are you all right..."

Luo Qiqi, who had been guarding above, saw them appear, her eyes lighting up with excitement as she hurried over.

"We're fine."

Yu Fei'er and the others showed no joy at having escaped the ordeal; instead, they couldn't help gazing into the stone steps with worry.

"What's wrong?" Seeing their expressions, Luo Qiqi frowned, then her body stiffened. "Where's Teacher?"

"Teacher Zhang..."

Xing Yuan clenched his fists. "To save us, he was surrounded by puppets..."

"Surrounded?"

Luo Qiqi's face turned pale, her delicate body rigid. "How many puppets? If it's only one or two, Teacher... should be able to get out!"

Teacher's methods were endless; with just one or two puppets, he should be able to escape without too much danger.

"It's... over twenty."

Xing Yuan's face was ashen.

"Over twenty?"

Luo Qiqi's body went limp.

Although she trusted her teacher, against so many puppets, he surely couldn't withstand them.

Earlier, in the underground palace, just one puppet had taken the two of them immense effort and nearly cost them their lives. Facing over twenty at once... that wasn't rescue—it was suicide!

"No, I have to go save Teacher..."

Gritting her teeth, Luo Qiqi was about to charge into the underground palace, but before she could take two steps, Yu Fei'er grabbed her.

"Qiqi, calm down. Teacher Zhang went deep into the encirclement to save us. If you go in now, wouldn't that waste all his efforts?"

Though also filled with reluctance, she understood Teacher Zhang's intention.

They were too weak. Charging in would only make things worse, and no one could save anyone.

"I..."

Luo Qiqi trembled, her eyes moist, and large teardrops rolled slowly down her fair cheeks.

Back in the small stone chamber, to let her escape first, Teacher had fought the puppet alone, unafraid of death!

To save Yu Fei'er, Teacher had known it was a puppet nest yet still went without hesitation, never declining!

And now, to save others, he was trapped deep in the encirclement...

Teacher, your kindness—how can we ever... repay it!

"Luo Qiqi, we all understand how you feel. Do you think we don't want to save him? But going to save him will only drag more in, and in the end, we'll betray Teacher Zhang's hope and friendship in sacrificing his life for us!"

Xing Yuan also came over. "The only thing we can do now is wait here obediently, wait for him... to come out! Hope... he can create another miracle!"

As top students of the Master Teacher Academy and five-star master teachers, they understood the situation perfectly.

In others' eyes, they were extraordinary in strength and talent, but fighting those puppets was like throwing an egg at a stone. Charging in would lead only one way... death!

"Yes, if Teacher Zhang is alone, his chances of escape are greater. If we go in, not only will we have no chance, we might even harm him..."

Ye Qian also spoke.

"I know..." Tears fell like raindrops, Luo Qiqi's red lips quivering.

Yes!

That was indeed the case.

After so long together, she clearly understood what kind of person Teacher was!

Teacher was exactly the kind who, when faced with a choice between life and righteousness, would unhesitatingly choose the latter!

Exactly the kind who, from every angle, commanded respect and had no flaws!

They were right—if they really charged in to save him, it wouldn't be rescue but burden.

"For now, we can only wait here." Seeing she understood, Xing Yuan nodded and was about to speak when suddenly he felt the ground shake.

Rumble!

Cracks appeared on the bridge, and the underground river seemed to boil in an instant.

"What's happening?"

Everyone was startled.

Everything had been fine—why the violent shaking?

Crash!

As they wondered, rubble fell from above, and the bridge along with the descending stone steps collapsed instantly.

"Damn, the underground palace is caving in..."

Xing Yuan's pupils contracted, and he shouted urgently: "Get out quickly!"

Knowing that if it collapsed, they would all be buried inside, dead beyond even divine salvation, no one dared hesitate. They dashed straight for the nearby stone steps.

These stone steps weren't long; in seven or eight breaths, they escaped. Just as they returned to the valley, they felt the ground beneath their feet soften, and the originally small valley instantly sank, forming a huge sinkhole.

The previous underground palace, everything, was like a dream, leaving no trace.

"Teacher..."

Luo Qiqi's body swayed, and she fell to the ground.

If there had been a chance for Teacher to escape earlier, now... there was no hope at all!

Yu Fei'er's pretty face also turned pale, her legs giving way as she sat on the ground.

She had always wanted to compete with him, to win their bet, but she had never wanted him to die!

Moreover, if Zhang Xuan hadn't been trying to save them, how could he have met such a fate?

Recalling the moments with this guy, she suddenly felt that he simply ignored her, but in reality, both his strength and knowledge far surpassed his peers...

Even she, always proud, couldn't help but admire him immensely.

"I'll go back to the palace right now and ask Father to send troops... Even if we have to dig three feet into the ground, we must rescue Teacher Zhang..."

After a moment of gloom, Ye Qian clenched his fists, veins bulging on his head.

"Right, I'll go with you. If Ye Wentian won't send troops, I'll report to my father the king!"

Hearing this, Yu Fei'er stood up, gritted her silver teeth, and was about to leave with Ye Qian.

At this moment, she had only one thought in her heart... he must not die!

"You can't go!"

Just as they were about to leave, Xing Yuan moved to block their way.

"What? You want to stop me?"

Yu Fei'er's eyes narrowed, and her aura surged.

The strength of the Mortal Deity Sixth Layer Bridge Heaven Realm burst forth instantly, carrying a heart-stopping power.

In her contests with Zhang Xuan, she had been constrained at every turn and couldn't fully display her strength, but facing Xing Yuan, she was by no means weak.

"I'm not stopping you, but... have you thought it through?"

Unexpectedly, the sixth princess was about to attack him, Xing Yuan's face paled, but he gritted his teeth: "This underground palace involves Wu Yangzi and the Heterodox Spirit Clan. If news leaks, what will be the consequences?"

"Consequences? Step aside!"

Yu Fei'er snorted.

"Xing Yuan is right."

Luo Qiqi stepped forward. Though her delicate body still trembled, her voice had steadied: "Once the Heterodox Spirit Clan puppets in the underground palace are dug out, even one could destroy the entire Huanyu Empire... Then, countless lives would be lost—definitely not what Teacher would want to see!"

"I..." Yu Fei'er clenched her fists.

"Teacher is benevolent and virtuous; he couldn't bear to see you killed, so how could he bear to see billions of lives fall into death?"

Luo Qiqi's eyes reddened.

Saint-level puppets... and over twenty of them at once—too terrifying!

They were far beyond what a second-rate empire could contend with. Even if His Majesty Ye Wentian came with all his soldiers, they couldn't save Teacher. Only a true Saint could do that.

If the puppets went on a killing spree, Teacher would not rest easy even in death.

Because...

He was such a great person.

"Then... what do we do?" Yu Fei'er's pretty face was pale.

"The urgent task now is to return to the Master Teacher Academy immediately and report this to the elders, asking them to come handle it personally!" Luo Qiqi said.

"Right. If we truly want to save Teacher Zhang, we should hurry back to the academy and report this to the higher-ups, asking the academy to send people. Otherwise, no one can do anything!"

Xing Yuan nodded.

"Alright then. Xing Yuan, Senior Wu Yangzi's body is in your storage ring. You and Ye Qian go back to the academy now. Qiqi and I will wait here, wait for... him to come out!"

Yu Fei'er nodded and said.

"This..."

Unexpected that she would stay here, Xing Yuan was stunned.

"Fei'er is right. She and I will wait here. You two hurry back. This matter is too significant; you must report it in person, or the academy won't send a Saint."

Luo Qiqi nodded.

Although they could send a message, to get a Saint to come personally, there had to be sufficient evidence. With Wu Yangzi's body here, if they didn't go in person, it would be hard to convince them.

"Alright."

Understanding this reasoning, Xing Yuan hesitated for a moment, then nodded: "If we take the flying beast away, how will you get back?"

When the four of them came, they had only ridden one Mortal Deity Sixth Layer flying beast. If the two of them left, what would the others do?

"Don't worry about us. If necessary, the Huanyu Beast Hall is nearby. With our master teacher identities, borrowing a flying beast should be simple."

Luo Qiqi waved her hand and looked down at the sinkhole, hoping that the earth would stir and that teacher, who was younger than her, would crawl out.

If that happened, even if he were dirty and disheveled, she would definitely run to him without hesitation...

"Alright, we're off!"

Knowing there was no time to delay, Xing Yuan didn't dwell on it. He called out with Ye Qian, and a sharp cry rang from the sky as a flying savage beast descended and landed before them.

"Let's go!"

The two jumped onto the beast's back and flew straight into the sky, disappearing from sight in the blink of an eye.

After they left, Luo Qiqi and Yu Fei'er stared blankly downward, waiting in silence.

Teacher Zhang, with so many extraordinary methods... surely he wouldn't die!

Though they thought so, they had no confidence, especially as time passed, and that confidence eroded more and more.

In the blink of an eye, three days passed, and there was no movement below.

The hope of the two gradually turned to despair.

Could it be...

Teacher Zhang was really dead this time?

Even if he truly died, just playing dead and popping out to play for a while would be some comfort...