As a newcomer who had only been in the Spirit Creek Battlefield for about three months, Leaf Gray naturally couldn't understand the intricacies behind this.

However, the glow from the battlefield mark made it easier for him to act.

Currently, he and Amber were positioned behind the four members of The Arcaneum Gate, about thirty zhang away. As The Arcaneum Gate four continuously retreated, the distance between them closed.

The burly man sustained more and more injuries, and the situation became increasingly unfavorable for The Arcaneum Gate four.

Just as the burly man was about to reach his limit, another third-layer cultivator beside him shouted fiercely, "All of you, go to hell!"

Saying this, he took out a golden, glowing spirit talisman, channeled his spiritual power to activate it, and instantly, a golden disc the size of a washbasin, flowing with Spirit Patterns, appeared in front of him.

This was unmistakably the Gold Wheel Talisman that Leaf Gray had used against the wolf pack when he first entered the Spirit Creek Battlefield.

This talisman's single-target killing power wasn't as strong as the Fire Snake Talisman, but its advantage was its persistence. Back then, Leaf Gray used this talisman to repel the encircling wolf pack.

Amidst the brilliant golden light, crescent-shaped golden slashes shot out from the disc, accompanied by the sound of tearing through the air.

For low-level cultivators, a single talisman was quite valuable. But as long as one had sufficient financial resources, everyone kept one or two in reserve as a life-saving trump card.

The moment this person activated the Gold Wheel Talisman, the fourth-layer cultivator from The Ennead Star Sect immediately took a step back. Although his cultivation was higher than the others, he didn't dare to recklessly take the Gold Wheel Talisman's attack head-on; that would be suicidal.

He promptly pulled out a palm-sized round shield from the storage pouch at his waist and held it in front of him. Simultaneously, his two fellow disciples placed their hands on the shield.

The three of them channeled spiritual power into the shield together. The palm-sized shield instantly expanded to the size of a tabletop, shielding the three figures behind it.

The crescent-shaped golden slashes slammed into the shield, producing loud thwack sounds. The impact force pushed The Ennead Star Sect trio back repeatedly, and numerous slash marks of varying depths appeared on the shield. However, the Gold Wheel Talisman's slashes clearly couldn't break through the shield's defense.

This shield was a defensive spirit artifact.

The four from The Arcaneum Gate gradually felt despair...

As the golden disc formed by the Gold Wheel Talisman slowly dissipated, the fourth-layer cultivator from The Ennead Star Sect put away his shield, his face murderous: "Now you won't even get a clean death!"

Although his defensive spirit artifact had blocked the opponent's attack, it was severely damaged. Repairing it would cost who knew how many spirit stones, making his heart ache as if bleeding.

He raised his weapon, about to step forward and attack, when he looked past the four from The Ennead Star Sect with a stunned expression.

At the same time, the four from The Ennead Star Sect also sensed something unusual – someone was rushing towards them rapidly from behind. Before they could turn to look, a shadow leaped over their heads.

The next moment, a large, pure white tiger appeared in their field of view. On the tiger's back rode a young man dressed in black...

White tiger, young man...

In an instant, all seven cultivators present understood who had arrived.

Leaf Gray, hand on his sword hilt, leaped out from the tiger's back. His gaze fixed on the fourth-layer cultivator, he drew his long sword and swung it down from above, aiming for the opponent's neck.

The fourth-layer cultivator reacted quickly. When Leaf Gray appeared, he discerned Leaf Gray's cultivation level – third layer of the Spirit Creek Realm, exactly as Shixiong Kelly had speculated.

His cultivation was one layer higher than Leaf Gray's, so he naturally wasn't afraid of this strike. He blocked the fierce slash with his weapon held horizontally to the side. However, because Leaf Gray had seized the initiative and carried the momentum of his charge, the force of the blow made him crouch lower.

Before he could dissipate the force, Leaf Gray, still in mid-air, had already pulled back his sword and thrust straight forward.

This thrust was extremely tricky. The fourth-layer cultivator found it difficult to defend against immediately. He was also a ruthless character; he immediately activated his protective spiritual power to shield the area about to be struck, while simultaneously swinging his own weapon down towards Leaf Gray's neck.

Although there was only a one-layer difference between the third and fourth layers, the difference in strength was significant because the number of apertures required to open for the fourth layer increased substantially.

Therefore, this man believed Leaf Gray's thrust would, at most, inflict a minor injury on him; his protective spiritual power wasn't just for show. But if Leaf Gray took one of his hits, his entire head would be chopped off.

Remembering the bounty of one thousand spirit stones, the fourth-layer cultivator's heart burned with excitement. With that many spirit stones, he could easily cultivate to the sixth or even seventh layer!

Thump! The long sword pierced through his chest. The intense pain shattered the fourth-layer cultivator's fantasies. What shocked him even more was that his seemingly certain strike had failed to harm Leaf Gray in the slightest.

The moment his weapon struck Leaf Gray's neck, something faint flickered and vanished, blocking his attack.

Leaf Gray flipped over him and delivered another slash to the back of his neck.

The sharp blade severed his neck as if cutting through tofu. His protective spiritual power was useless. His head flew off, blood spurting from his neck.

Leaf Gray rolled upon landing, a stream of blood spurting from his waist and abdomen – another third-layer cultivator had taken advantage of his distraction to stab him. However, the injury wasn't serious, merely a flesh wound.

At that moment, he had to activate the Defense Spirit Pattern to block the fourth-layer cultivator's fatal strike, leaving him unable to defend against other attacks. He could only rely on his protective spiritual power, but fortunately, his spiritual power was pure enough, offering decent protection.

The sudden turn of events within the blink of an eye left the four from The Arcaneum Gate dumbfounded.

They thought they were doomed, only for the youth riding the white tiger to charge out from behind them, decapitating the opponent's fourth-layer expert in a single encounter.

While they were stunned, Leaf Gray didn't pause. The instant he landed, dust flew under his feet as he charged towards the third-layer cultivator who had stabbed him.

The opponent was clearly shocked by his Shixiong's death. Facing Leaf Gray's incoming downward slash, he only instinctively raised his sword horizontally to block.

However, the long sword snapped with a sound! Not every low-level cultivator possessed a spirit artifact. A blade enhanced by Sharpness could only be somewhat resisted by a spirit artifact; ordinary weapons couldn't withstand it at all.

The sharp blade descended from the opponent's nose bridge, splitting his face open, and tore a foot-long wound down his chest and abdomen. Blood and internal organs spilled out before the man let out a scream. Leaf Gray raised his sword and cut him down.

Second one!

The remaining last third-layer cultivator was currently in a fierce battle with Amber. When Leaf Gray charged over riding Amber, he had targeted their fourth-layer opponent, while Amber pounced on another third-layer cultivator. Amber was somewhat outmatched by its opponent, being slashed repeatedly, roaring incessantly, its tiger roars shaking the sky.

But once Leaf Gray joined the fray, the situation changed. Though both were at the third layer of the Spirit Creek Realm, Leaf Gray's combat prowess far exceeded his opponent's. Coupled with the big tiger coordinating beside him, they quickly dispatched the opponent in short order. Amber, still unsatisfied, bit through the man's neck. Warm blood sprayed all over its head and face, making it look even more ferocious and terrifying.

The fierce battle subsided. All three members of The Ennead Star Sect were dead. The entire fight had lasted no more than ten breaths, so fast that the four from The Arcaneum Gate hadn't even processed it.