Twenty hours before of what had happened in the Illusive Ethereal Sanctuary, in the Blazing Phoenix Country, the army of the Wu Martial Kingdom was gathering inside a rocky area very far away from the Red Mountain city.

This was a very secretive operation and only a bit more than five hundred soldiers were gathering at this place.

The Wu Martial Kingdom had used the special forces the Lion's Pride Golden Palace had made available to them, to attack those cities and create a huge distraction. Their main objective was to divide the Blazing Phoenix Country forces, making it easier to initiate their conquest.

However, what was happening here was a small-scale operation that even their own allies weren't apar from.

Although they would be initiating their operations today, it didn't mean that things would be simple and quick. A war wasn't something that was able to be resolved in a single day.

Right now, they were taking slow and secretive steps, entering a city called Misty Horizon located not so far from the Blazing Phoenix City. That's one of the reasons this operation needed to be secretive. The other reason though, was certainly more important than the first one.

The Wu Martial Kingdom was keeping this a secret even from the Lion's Pride Golden Palace, because whatever they were going to do here, was highly attached to their future rise, and when entering on those matters, it was always better to be reserved.

In front of the five hundred men, there was man donned in martial robes leading the entire battalion through the rocky terrain. They kept advancing until they saw the entrance of a forest. This region was hardly visited by anyone and it was a relative safer place. Because it was hard to reach, since there were many rocks everywhere. However, the woods in front of them was a relatively more accessible place.

"We've arrived! Put down your things and be prepared to work! We are going to mount our encampment here. I want eyes on all sides, watching over everything twenty-four hours per day. Make sure to mount your time shift to never leave a post with no one standing on watch. Our orders are to guard this place and not let anyone approach here.

"

After the man ordered, some soldiers started to set up the tents, while others started to mount barricades around some rocks.

One of the lieutenants approached the commander and asked:

"What about that forest over there?

"

"Didn't I make myself clear? Do I need to repeat it? I want eye everywhere. It is oblivious that the forest needs some supervision.

" The commander said in discontentment.

"I'll provide for that now.

" The lieutenant left and mounted some small squads, sending them to scout the forest area.

After some hours have passed, the encampment was already taking form and the soldiers were working on their tasks.

Three soldiers were a bit farther from the group, scouting the forest area, searching for any signs of people or anything important. They had orders to silence anyone that approached from certain radius from their encampment, while at the same time, they had to map the possible escape routes people might take.

That work led them towards an open area where many herbs were growing on the floor. After recognizing those herbs, the soldiers were able to identify it as common leaves used to brew tea. Unfortunately, none of them had the right equipment right now to use those leaves.

When they were still observing the whole area, they started to hear the sound of someone humming. All of them quickly hid and waited for the individual that was making those noises to appear.

A very graceful figure of a purple haired female approached the area they were hidden. Even though the area was open, there were many bushes and plants scattered through the whole place, not letting her see that there were three men some hundred meters away from her.

"Mother will like this for sure! The leaves are really fresh and fragrant, just like how she told me to get. I can barely wait to taste her tea.

"

She kept collecting the plants thinking that her mother would be content by the quantity and quality of the leaves she was able to acquire.

However, while she was distracted, the three scouts were already moving towards her, blocking the possible routes she could take in order to escape. They moved slowly, silently approaching where she was.

Suddenly...

Swoosh!

A really cold breeze swept past Chun Meiyi's hair, trying to warn her of the incoming danger. She stopped what she was doing and felt that something was off. The forest was too quiet and even the animals were not emitting any sounds. There was a frigid sensation warning her that there was something wrong.

Meiyi decided to head back, because she was satisfied by the number of leaves she had collected already. But suddenly, a Profound Qi initial-stage realm soldier advanced towards her from one of the nearby bushes, pushing her body towards the ground and making her basket fall, dropping all the tea leaves on the floor.

"Ah! Who are you? Release me!

"

Meiyi tried to stand up, but the soldier was already pushing her down once again, while at the same time, he was trying to silence her by putting his hand on top of her mouth. After many tries, he was able to block her mouth, not letting her talk anymore.

"Hmm! Hm! Hmmmmmmm!

"

Suddenly, two more men appeared beside him, while looking towards the girl he was pushing down on the floor. Their eyes sparkled after they observed how beautiful she was. Certainly, a fine piece of art.

"Hehehe... You've got us a good surprise here. Who would think that a Blazing Phoenix Citizen would be this beautiful?

"

"Ahahaha, that's true. I've never seen a woman so beautiful at the Wu Martial Kingdom before. What a nice surprise!

"

"We're lucky. How about we... Argh!

" The man holding Meiyi down, suddenly felt a strong bite sensation on his hand and a sharp pain arrived right after that. When he was talking with the other scouts, he turned his head to look at them, letting his guard down and letting the girl injure him.

He started to bleed and his mood suddenly got bad. He planned to do things slowly before, but now he wanted to be aggressive.

Pah!

"Ahhh!

"

"You bitch! How dare you bite me?!

" The man slapped Meiyi, making her fall down and hit her head on the ground.

No one noticed that she had been severely injured by that fall. Her head started to bleed profusely and at the same time, many changes began happening inside of her body.

"Stop! Man, look at what you've done... How are we supposed to...

"

"The **?! That bitch dared to bite me, she deserved it.

" The man interrupted his friend while showing him his bleeding hand.

The third man suddenly approached and said:

"Come on guys, are you going to go in or not? We don't have the entire day and if we take too long, the others might notice.

"

While they were discussing with each other. A purple haze started to cover the area, but none of them noticed anything. The purple mist was illusory and ethereal, just like it was a smoke within a dream. It was able to change their perception, making them start to see things they were not supposed to some seconds later.

"Ah!!! What's that?!

"

"Hm? Are you crazy? What are you screaming for? Fuck! Are you trying to scare me **less?

"

"Man, there is something wrong with this forest... I've just seen a ghost!

"

"Ghost? Come on, there is nothing... Ah!!!

"

One after the other, they started to see many different things. However, they suddenly felt they were not able to run, their legs missed the strength to move. They could only stay there, seeing and feeling the apparitions that were coming their way.

Meiyi was unconscious, but her eyes were shining in a purple color. Her bloodline was activating and advancing at this perilous time.

The soldiers around her, were experiencing many rounds of sheer terror. Seeing and feeling things they were not supposed to. Their auras were sealed by a forceful external factor and they were unable to move. That only intensified the fear they were feeling, making their hearts start to beat so quick that it didn't seem to be normal.

The purple mist kept circling around the area where they were, making the already cold air, turn a degree colder.

Suddenly...

Thud!

Thud! Thud!

One after the other, their bodies dropped lifeless on the ground. They had ghastly expressions on their faces. The cause of their deaths was a sudden heart attack. Be it because they were unable to handle everything or because of the influence of that purple mist.

Meiyi's body suddenly vanished.. She was carried away by that purple mist, disappearing from that area, only leaving behind the mystery the other individuals from the battalion would have to solve.