Sect Leader's Rise to the top!

The group flew until the fog was no longer visible. When Kai could no longer sense the Qi fluctuations, he breathed out a sigh of relief and looked at Wu Xianhai.

"How much longer can this thing keep flying?"

"One more hour at most, flying at this speed uses up a lot of Qi...". She said after some hesitation.

Kai nodded his head while recalling the map's details. He had spent a lot of time memorizing just in case. After some time, Kai lifted his head again.

"Beauty, how long have you been down here?", Kai asked with some curiosity.

"Again with the beauty...", She said in a hushed tone before she continued, "...I have been here for over a month now".

Kai nodded his head again. "Seeing as you've survived this long, you should have a way of tracking the illusion demon's movements, yes?", Kai asked with some expectation.

Wu Xianhai was hesitant at first but decided to answer honestly. She figured that her chances of survival were higher with Kai helping her.

"I don't have a way of tracking it, but I have been able to figure out its objective over the last few weeks. In short, it is slowly eating the pocket dimension one piece at a time..."

"Can you explain in detail?..." Kai hurriedly asked, seeing as he had come up with a similar hunch.

Wu Xianhai sighed softly then continued. "It all goes back to when we first got here. This wasn't the first illusion beast we have dealt with, so when it appeared, the elders dispatched our elite unit of inner disciples to eliminate the creature. However, we quickly realized that this illusion demon was completely different from the others". Wu Xianhai seemed to be recalling the memories as she spoke.

"The first thing we learned was its above-average intelligence. The demon lured us into a trap by pretending to be weak. Only when our victory seemed assured, did it unleash its true power...". 

Kai could feel Wu Xianhai's body shivering as she recalled the details. 

"[Grade-4]...". Kai said quietly, prompting Wu Xianhai to nod her head.

"It had hidden its Qi fluctuations well. When it finally unleashed its power, our elites were all killed within a matter of minutes. It was all I could do to escape with my life by sacrificing the protection artifact that my great-grandfather gave me."

"How have you survived this whole time then?". Kai asked with some curiosity.

"I ran...", She said while dropping her head in shame. "To my surprise, it did not give chase. Instead, it simply ignored me and began to slowly eat away at the dimension. Everywhere that fog goes will eventually be broken down and turned into more fog. The fog has been spreading over the last few days and now likely covers more than 70% of the pocket dimension". Wu Xianhai was solemn as she spoke.

This news derailed Kai's plans but also confirmed some of his suspicions. 

"Why did you not leave when the portal opened earlier?", Song Wei asked skeptically, but this only made Wu Xianhai shake her head.

"That portal only allows things to enter. The one that will allow us to leave will only open two days from today...just two more days...". Wu Xianhai's words trailed off as her mind started to wander.

Kai cleared his throat and brought her back to reality. 

"Since you're being honest, tell me...why did you come for me?. You even went in the direction of that dangerous illusion demon to come after me. Why?".

"..." 

Wu Xianhai did not immediately answer, but after some thought, she decided to share the information truthfully.

"I need your veil elixir..."

"You want to hide from the regular beasts?...but why would you need to do that?...unless...", Kai said after some thought.

"Yes...", Wu Xianhai confirmed. "At the current speed, the extraction point will be completely covered in fog. When that happens, the remaining beasts trying to escape the fog will likely go into a rampage making leaving this area even more dangerous. However, with a veil elixir..."

"...You can eliminate the risk of being attacked by the regular beasts. This way, you would only have to worry about the Illusion demon." Kai said while approving of Wu Xianhai's plan, but another question popped into his head. 

"Is the fog even safe for us to go into?". Kai asked after some consideration. 

"The fog itself is harmless for short exposure. The only thing it really does is absorb small amounts of Qi. But you must be careful. Staying in it for too long will end up turning you into a lifeless husk...". Wu Xianhai said while shrugging her shoulders.

"Well, that doesn't seem harmless at all...". Kai whispered to himself.

"What about fighting it?". Hou Zhou chimed in, prompting a strange look from Song Wei.

"Mr. Handsome, I hope your looks aren't the only thing you have going for you. The demon killed an elite squad of Twin-Lions sect disciples within minutes. What exactly could we do to such an existence?!...". Song Wei said while shaking her head.

"I know...but...". Hou Zhou stopped mid-sentence and glanced at Kai who seemed strangely calm throughout their discussions.

"Mr. Kai, what would you suggest we do?....", Hou Zhou asked with expectation in his voice.

"I would rather not take the risk if I can avoid it. After all, this is an entity at [Grade-4] we're talking about...But, I would be lying if I said that I wasn't curious to see how I would match up against it...", Kai said honestly. 

The two women looked at him as if he was crazy, but Hou Zhou seemed inspired as his eyes shone. Kai ignored their looks and continued to speak. "But for now, I'm laying low for these last two days and waiting for the portal to open. With this magic carpet, we will be able to fly over the creatures and..."

"That won't work...". Wu Xianhai quickly cut him off.

"The Qi inside of the flying artifact will be absorbed within minutes if I fly anywhere near the fog, causing us to fall to our deaths..."

"Really?...then this magic carpet is pretty useless for our escape..."

"It's an artifact!...

"

"Right, magic flying carpet artifact..."

"..."

"...Looks like flying is out of the question then. Wait, what about the people who came in with us?. Do they know of this?". Hou Zhou asked carefully. 

Wu Xianhai shook her head after some thought. "Unlikely. Anyone sent in now is not expected to survive. They wouldn't have much information..."

"Is this how the Twin-Lions Sect sees the people of Huang City?. Fodder to be thrown into the meat grinder for whenever the need arises?!". Song Wei yelled in anger while clenching her fists.

Wu Xianhai ignored Song Wei's outburst and turned towards Kai. "I have given you the information. Now, please give me one of the veil elixirs. We have a higher chance of escaping if the two of us work together. Once we are outside, I can guarantee that you will receive immediate entry into the Twin-Lions Sect and even direct promotion into the inner court as an inner disciple!".

"..."

Hou Zhou and Song Wei couldn't believe their ears. Seeing as she was the one and only Sword Princess of the Twin-Lions sect, it wasn't a stretch to say that she could make all of that happen.

Kai was about to respond when he noticed a large group of people coming into view from a distance.. In front of the group were four youths wearing green and gold robes.