Faced with the sudden appearance of five Saint King–stage black-robed assailants, Fang Ting immediately considered two possibilities.

One was that they came from hostile powers such as the Three Sacred Grounds, the Duan clan, or the Jiuli Imperial Dynasty—all long-standing enemies of the Fang family who had long wished to eliminate him.

The other was that these men had attended the recent Wanbao Pavilion auction, and, driven by greed and envy, had come to rob him of the Fang family's treasures.

But now wasn't the time to think about such things. What mattered most was escaping alive.

They were over thirty continents away from Cangzhou, and even farther from the Ethereal Immortal Palace and Xuantian Holy Sect.

Even if Fang Ting used the emergency signal treasures given to him by Fang Mu Ge and Fang Ying, it would still take time for reinforcements to arrive. Unless a rare Emperor-stage expert happened to be nearby, no one could reach them in time.

At this moment, Yin Xianhong was clearly on the verge of collapse. The five enemies were all stronger than she was—just holding them off this long had already pushed her to her limit.

"You have nowhere left to run. Surrender, and I'll grant you a quick death."

One of the tall black-robed Saint Kings spoke coldly.

Yin Xianhong didn't respond. Her pale face and swaying form made it clear—she was barely hanging on.

Her weak voice reached Fang Ting's ears.

"I'll hold them off. You run."

Fang Ting understood: if he actually fled, she would die without a doubt.

"Let me try something," he said.

Fang Ting quickly formed hand seals.

Boom!!

His robes flared, and his aura surged explosively. It kept rising, with no signs of stopping. In just moments, the aura of his Grand Saint–stage cultivation broke through, reaching that of a Saint King.

The five black-robed Saint Kings sneered.

"Even if you forcefully raise your cultivation with a secret art, it's meaningless. It won't change anything."

Under normal circumstances, they were right.

They were all above Saint King Stage Six, and even if Fang Ting used a secret art, the most he could reach was Saint King Stage Three. He couldn't even take one of them in a fair fight.

But it was clear Fang Ting didn't plan to fight them conventionally.

Pfft!

The five enemies launched another coordinated strike, tearing through Yin Xianhong's red ribbon. The Saint weapon she had used for hundreds of years, now dulled and damaged, was closely attuned to her will. Both she and the weapon were gravely wounded.

Fang Ting had no time to hesitate. He took out a Saint weapon of his own, and poured in his true essence like a raging river.

The Saint weapon trembled violently, absorbing all the energy without resistance—like a starving beast finally fed.

In just a few breaths, the weapon began to shake uncontrollably.

The five enemies were stunned.

"He's going to self-detonate the Saint weapon!"

"He's mad! That's a fully intact Saint weapon!!"

"Stop him, now!!"

They remembered when, during the battle at the Sea of Stars, Fang Chen had been forced to detonate a damaged Saint weapon to escape encirclement. Even at a fraction of its original power, the resulting explosion had been devastating.

Now Fang Ting, having pushed his cultivation to the Saint King stage with a secret technique, was about to detonate a completely intact Saint weapon. The threat was on an entirely different level.

Their panic was justified.

There was also anger in their voices—not just fear, but fury.

To them, Fang Ting and Yin Xianhong were already doomed. Everything they owned should soon be theirs.

And yet, in his final moments, Fang Ting was about to waste a Saint weapon?

Unacceptable.

All five surged forward.

Yin Xianhong instantly understood Fang Ting's plan. It might just work—but only if she held the enemies back long enough.

She swallowed a pill, and her weakened aura surged once more. She raised her red ribbon again and moved to block their path.

"You're looking to die!!"

The five shouted in unison, attacking even more ferociously than before.

Yin Xianhong pushed her ribbon to the limit. Her power and laws were driven to their extremes. The violent clash distorted the surrounding space, as if on the verge of collapse.

Every moment she held on, her injuries deepened.

In just a few breaths, her body was covered in wounds. She looked like a flickering candle in the wind—ready to go out at any second.

Pfft!

Another mouthful of blood sprayed from her lips. Her face turned deathly pale. Her aura sank to rock bottom.

"Explode!!" Fang Ting roared.

The Saint weapon in front of him, now saturated with his purest energy, began to glow with radiant brilliance.

"No! The Saint weapon is going to explode!!"

"Fall back!!"

Though furious and reluctant, the five enemies had no choice but to retreat, unwilling to be caught in the blast.

At that moment, Fang Ting caught the unconscious Yin Xianhong and produced a token.

"He still has a treasure like that?!"

All five were stunned, visibly shaken.

It was a Void Token—a treasure only Emperor-stage experts could craft. It allowed for short-range void traversal, letting the user move rapidly between locations.

Such tokens were exceedingly rare. Only the elite young talents of the strongest forces had access to them.

Given the Fang family's current status and Wanbao Pavilion's mysteries, it wasn't entirely surprising—but it was still a painful blow.

A moment ago, they had the pair surrounded. Even if the Saint weapon exploded, Fang Ting and Yin Xianhong had no path to escape.

But they hadn't expected this.

And with the self-detonating Saint weapon in front of them, they couldn't close the distance.

They could only watch as Fang Ting activated the token and vanished into the void with Yin Xianhong.

Boom!!

The Saint weapon exploded immediately afterward. The blast ravaged everything within a radius of several thousand miles. Even the core space nearly collapsed under the force.

The five Saint Kings, having retreated several thousand miles, had to defend with all their might just to survive.

Had they been any closer, they'd have been seriously injured—if not killed.

Their expressions were a tangled mix of shock, frustration, and regret.

One of them said grimly,

"That token only allows for short-distance traversal. That woman's injuries are severe, and Fang Ting just used a secret technique. Neither of them has much strength left. We'll split up—one in each direction—and continue the pursuit." Love this story? Show your support on *.

"Agreed. We can't waste this chance."

They had invested significant manpower, resources, and time to wait for this rare moment when Fang Ting was away from the Fang family.

If he escaped today, it would be nearly impossible to get another shot.

So they wouldn't give up.

The five of them split off in different directions. Their powerful divine senses spread like an enormous net. At full speed, they conducted a carpet-style pursuit.

They were right: the token only enabled a short-range void jump—enough to get from one continent to another, not true long-distance escape.

Fang Ting knew they weren't safe yet. He activated one hidden card after another, pushing forward as fast as he could.

Before long, the time limit on his secret technique ran out.

A wave of weakness crashed over him. His body trembled, vision blurred—he nearly fainted.

Only sheer willpower kept him moving.

He took out a handful of pills, swallowed them, and kept running.

And so, the chase continued.

Two running. Five pursuing.

The ones fleeing didn't know if anyone still chased them.

The ones chasing didn't know if they were on the right trail.

But none of them stopped.

It was unclear how long the pursuit lasted or how many treasures Fang Ting used up.

All he knew was that he was utterly exhausted—too weak to even keep his eyes open.

Thud...

Completely drained, Fang Ting and Yin Xianhong finally fell from the sky, crashing into a small mountain.

Under normal circumstances, a fall from this height would be nothing.

But in their current state—like lanterns running out of oil—even minor injuries were hard to bear.

Both of them lost consciousness on impact.