"How is this possible?!"

"The vehicles — they're flying on their own!"

Everyone on board went pale with shock. Those two armored vehicles weighed at least ten tons combined — and now they were simply floating in midair. If they hadn't seen it with their own eyes, none of them would have believed it.

"Break apart," the white-haired old man murmured. He swept his golden staff through the air once more. The two armored vehicles suspended in midair shuddered violently. A piercing shriek of metal rang out as massive cracks split across both hulls — the vehicles snapped in half like broken sticks, splitting into four separate chunks of wreckage.

Two heavy thuds boomed through the tunnel as the shattered vehicles crashed to the ground. Everyone inside was thrown clear, tumbling hard onto the floor.

"You've gone too far!" Kallen saw the white-robed men make their move and immediately charged toward them to attack.

"Get back." The white-haired old man glanced at her with an unhurried calm. A boulder nearly four meters across, lying nearby, rose silently into the air — and then shot toward Kallen with tremendous speed.

A dull, crushing impact. The boulder slammed into Kallen's chest and sent her flying seven or eight meters backward, crashing to the ground. The already battered armor on her body shattered completely from the blow. Kallen lay on the ground, gasping in pain, utterly unable to rise.

"Who are these two old men? How can they possibly be this powerful?!"

"They took down Kallen — are people from the Sanctuary homeland really that strong?"

The Rebels stared in disbelief. Captain Guan shouted at the top of his lungs: "Open fire! Shoot them now!"

Everyone grabbed their weapons and moved to fire on the two white-robed figures. The middle-aged man swept his silver staff — and with a series of sharp pops, every gun in the Rebels' hands exploded and burst apart on its own. They yelped in alarm and threw the ruined weapons to the ground.

The middle-aged man spoke: "Grand Sorcerer, sir — these people appear to be insurgents who stand against our Sanctuary. We need not hold back. We may eliminate them all outright."

"I see." The white-haired old man's face settled into a warm smile. He addressed the Rebels in a gentle, almost tender voice: "Though you are insurgents, all lives are equal before me. I shall hold compassion in my heart for you. There is no need to be too frightened — I will try to ensure you feel no pain. I will let you die instantly."

The old man's voice was kind, but every word sent a chill through the listeners. One of the Rebels cried out: "No — I want to live! I don't want to die!" He screamed and bolted in the opposite direction.

"Such pitiful mortals." The white-haired old man let out a sigh and shook his head. He gave his golden staff a flick — and the same boulder that had knocked Kallen down shot after the fleeing man with a hiss. It crashed into his back. He let out a scream, spat blood, and crumpled to the ground. Dead before he hit it.

"We have no chance. None at all." Captain Guan realized there was no escaping this day. He forced himself to stay calm and called out to the white-haired old man: "We have no quarrel with you. Can you not spare our lives?"

"To fulfill His Majesty the Emperor's long-held wish, I'm afraid we must trouble you a little." The old man murmured as he raised the golden staff again. The boulder rose and hurtled toward another person, killing them instantly.

"It's over. He's going to kill every one of us…" Captain Guan's body began to tremble without his willing it. A fear rose from deep within him — a primal terror. Standing before these two old men, he felt like a newborn with no power to resist whatsoever. Only now did he truly grasp how terrifying these two white-robed figures were. And in that moment, he finally understood why Rulu had been so desperate to make them flee earlier.

A sharp twin whistle cut through the air — two ice swords, each about a meter long, materialized out of the shadows and shot toward the white-haired old man's chest and throat. Caught off guard by the ambush, the old man hastily raised his golden staff across his chest and stumbled backward.

The ice sword aimed at his chest struck the staff with a clang and was deflected away. The one aimed at his throat grazed across his face, opening a shallow cut.

"Who dares ambush me?! Show yourself!" The white-haired old man looked shaken. The gentle expression on his face vanished in an instant, replaced by furious rage. He stopped controlling the boulder to attack the Rebels, and instead swept his gaze around the tunnel, searching for whoever had struck at him from hiding.

Rulu slipped up beside Captain Guan, pulling Nana along with him, and whispered close to his ear: "Captain Guan — get everyone out. I'll find a way to hold them off."

"What are you planning, Rulu? They'll kill you," Captain Guan said in a hushed, astonished voice.

"Don't argue with me. Go now, while they haven't spotted me yet. If he finds me first, none of us will make it out." Rulu said urgently.

Captain Guan hesitated. He weighed it, then said, "Alright. Take care of yourself, Rulu."

Rulu turned to Nana beside him. "Nana, go with Captain Guan and the others. I'll come find you when this is over."

"No — if we go, we go together. I can't just—" Nana realized what Rulu was doing — sacrificing himself to save her — and moved to refuse, but Rulu reached out and pressed his hand over her mouth, silencing her.

"Captain Guan — take Nana and go. No matter what happens, don't look back. Once I shake them off, I'll come find you." Rulu looked at Captain Guan with earnest, pleading eyes.

"I understand." Captain Guan seized Nana's hand, covered her mouth, and pulled her away from Rulu by force. Then he said quickly: "I'll wait for you in a village near the tunnel exit. You have to come out of this alive, Rulu."

With that, he pulled Nana toward the tunnel exit and called back to the other Rebels: "Everyone — follow me. All of you, move!"

The remaining Rebels helped Kallen off the ground and retreated quickly with Captain Guan toward the tunnel exit.

The white-haired old man saw the Rebels trying to escape and swung his golden staff, moving to direct the boulder to cut them down — but at that very moment, a flash of red light appeared out of nowhere, and four fireballs the size of basketballs, blazing yellow-red, came streaking through the air and slammed toward both the old man and the middle-aged man in white.

"Despicable wretch — always attacking from the shadows!" The white-haired old man cursed under his breath. Rather than pursuing the Rebels, he turned his attention to the four fireballs. A fierce gust of wind appeared from thin air, driving into the fireballs and pushing them into the stone wall. They smashed against the rock and exploded, dissolving into nothing.