Love & Redemption
Chapter 124: Volume 3 Heartless Xuanji - 31 Perilous String (Part 7)

Chapter 124: Volume 3 Heartless Xuanji Chapter 31 Perilous String (Part 7)

The crowd watched in horror as Zi Hu fell from the sword. They cried out in unison, but it was too late to rescue her. They could only watch helplessly as she hit the ground. Evil Spirits swarmed her, tearing at her clothes and hair, and opening their mouths wide to bite her warm flesh.

The Evil Spirits in front hadn’t even touched her when those behind surged forward. The previously orderly ranks descended into chaos as the Evil Spirits howled miserably, fighting viciously over the fresh prey. Shen Tu and Yu Lei seemed to realize something was amiss and turned around, abruptly raising their whips and lashing out with a "snap," turning countless Evil Spirits that were crowding and clamoring into black ash in an instant.

Zhong Minyan saw that the whip had no eyes, and saw that Zi Hu might be struck at any moment. That was a Divine Artifact, and so immense—if even a slight edge touched Zi Hu, she would likely not survive. He sweated profusely in his panic, biting his teeth, uncertain whether to go out and save her. Hesitating for a moment, Yu Sifeng had already burst forth from the crowd, dodged the great whip in a flash, landed on the ground, sword light flashing in his hand, pushing back the still-unwilling Evil Spirits. With his other hand, he grabbed Zi Hu, who had reverted to her unconscious fox form, and fiercely tossed her upwards.

"Xuanji!"

As he called out her name, she had already made her move. Turning neatly in midair, the hem of her white dress traced a beautiful arc, dancing like a swallow. With a raise of her hand, she tightly embraced the unconscious fox.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief when they saw that she was rescued unharmed. Xuanji was about to look for a gap to hide when she suddenly heard a low chanting from above. The sound was clear and simple, growing louder and louder until it sounded like thousands of people singing in unison.

She looked up in surprise to see Shen Tu and Yu Lei stopped there, unbuckling their swords and forming hand seals. The treasure swords glowed brilliantly, too dazzling to look at. The chanting was their incantation. The Evil Spirits on the ground had already been scared witless, flying about like headless flies, seemingly looking for a place to hide.

Those two Divine Generals slowly drew their swords and said in a deep voice, "The Heavenly Emperor decrees that humans and ghosts have different paths, and this is the cycle of reincarnation. Mortals must not intrude upon Buzhou Mountain on a whim. Those who defy this command, shall be killed without mercy!"

As Xuanji listened to their resounding voice carry for miles without understanding what it meant, Yu Sifeng behind her had already inhaled sharply and hissed, "We’ve been found! Xuanji, hide quickly!"

A thought struck her heart and she was about to turn back, but it was already too late. An inscrutable force, heavy as a thousand pounds, pressed down mercilessly from above. Her bones shook and her blood surged, her vision suddenly flooded with red, a faint buzzing in her ears. She involuntarily knelt on the sword.

Many voices seemed to reach her ears, people calling her name, along with urgent breathing, pounding hearts, and—wails like the howling of ghosts and wolves. Straining under the pressure, she forced her eyes open and looked up, only to see a treasure sword swinging towards her. As the vast Divine Artifact swung, the wind and clouds shifted mysteriously, and its mere presence bore down on her, rendering her immobile.

Even a fool knew what would happen if that sword struck. Not to mention the two of them, floating as flimsily as broken leaves—they, as well as Yu Sifeng and the others behind her, and even the entire expanse of the forest, would instantly turn to ash.

She couldn’t stay here, she had to move, to escape, or everyone would die. But at that moment, she could only kneel stiffly on the sword, her eyes fixed on the approaching treasure sword.

The sword was slender with a semi-transparent texture, radiating brilliance a thousand miles wide. Near the hilt, several large seal characters were inscribed in a style as flamboyant as dragons and as graceful as phoenixes. Without looking, she instinctively knew what those words were.

In days past, the Eastern White Emperor had personally sought two strange stones from the Heavenly River and, using the flames of the Phoenix Nirvana and scales from the Deep Sea Flood Dragon, forged two Evil Extermination Demon Driving Swords, which were handed to Shen Tu and Yu Lei, guardians of the gates to the Netherworld.

Evil Extermination Demon Driving... Evil Extermination Demon Driving... Since when had she become a demon? The vast Heaven had boundless laws that tightly constrained all beings. She could not resist and had escaped... Since she had fled once, what harm was there in fleeing again?!

Xuanji felt as though a limitless tide was surging within her chest, as complex emotions overwhelmed her all at once—resentment, regret, arrogance, coldness, pride... all these emotions intermingled. Her Bengyu at her waist pulsed and emitted a piercing sound, as if an uncontrollable urge yearned to unleash a certain power.

The crushing weight on her body suddenly vanished without a trace, she stood tall, and drew out Bengyu in one swift motion, producing a sound as clear as pearls clashing, while the blade of the sword overflowed with silver brilliance.

The wild wind rampaged, and the Evil Slayer Sword was already in front of her, hesitating for a moment as if uncertain. She was even less willing to yield, controlling her sword like a bolt of lightning flying upward, forcefully colliding with the Evil Slayer Sword, and decisively drawing a huge arc in the sky. Bengyu glided over it, sparking countless sparks. She felt very at ease in her hand, as if she were slicing through tofu without any resistance, then suddenly she swung the sword horizontally, her clothes billowing, and she stopped in mid-air.

Glancing back, she saw that the huge Evil Slayer Sword had been forcefully split into two sections by her stroke, with a loud clang, it smashed onto the ground, crushing who knows how many Evil Ghosts beneath, leaving a mess everywhere.

The Bengyu in her hand seemed extremely excited, vibrating intensely in her grasp, a pleasure she hadn’t felt in a long time. Her palm was damp, her heart was racing as if it wanted to leap out, leaving an empty chest behind.

Shen Tu, whose Evil Slayer Sword had been destroyed, simply looked down and murmured, "Ding Kun Sword... could you be that general?"

Xuanji did not speak, in fact, she didn’t know what to say.

Shen Tu and Yu Lei exchanged a glance, and said in unison, "Even if you are the General, you cannot break the natural order of things. Please leave!"

Xuanji gripped Bengyu tightly, not budging in the slightest. Like herself, she didn’t understand why she was being so stubborn at this moment. The opposition clearly didn’t want to fight her, had given her enough respect, didn’t blame her for trespassing on Buzhou Mountain, and even allowed her to leave. Yet, she had no desire to withdraw, this stubbornness erupting from every inch of her body, roaring as though to take a single step back would be a disgrace, proving she had lost from the very beginning. She was at a loss.

"If the General regards our prohibitions as nothing, weak though we are, we must still forcibly expel you!"

Seeing that the two of them still wanted to draw their swords and fight, Xuanji couldn’t resist the impulse to charge forward. Inside her, a voice seemed to say it wasn’t enough, she still craved... craved a more formidable opponent, yearned for more battle. There should be more, much more...

Zi Hu in her arms suddenly stirred, struggling out of her embrace, Xuanji couldn’t catch hold in time and, shocked, she turned to see Zi Hu jumping down from the sword, murmuring, "Save your own life! I’ve never told the truth... the demons’ lair... is to the northwest... Take care! Don’t you die!"

Xuanji exclaimed, leaning hurriedly to try and catch her, but it was too late. She heard the sharp whistling of the wind behind her and Yu Lei’s whip lashing toward her. Instinctively, she dodged, but the tip of the whip twisted slightly, scraping across the bottom of her feet like a serpent, the huge gust nearly flipping her over, floating like a leaf in the air, struggling to stabilize. She saw the whip curling toward Zi Hu, who plummeted rapidly, turning translucent, and vanishing as the whip unfurled.

Xuanji was terrified, thinking Zi Hu was dead, her tears flowed uncontrollably. Just as she was about to take another look, she felt the whip turning back towards her. Unable to evade, she was struck by a tremendous force, her bones cracking as if they shattered in an instant, she almost blacked out from the excruciating pain as she was whipped into the air.

Suddenly, someone fiercely grabbed her hand and crushed her against their chest. Xuanji’s chest was tight, her body immobilized; she barely managed to open her eyes, only to see Yu Sifeng’s worried and pale face.

She blinked, a large teardrop falling, murmuring, "Si Feng... Zi Hu is dead..."

Before she could finish, she tasted sweetness in her throat and coughed up a mouthful of blood, splattering on his cheeks and chest. Yu Sifeng’s complexion was as pale as paper, holding the back of her head tightly against his chest, feeling her fresh blood poured out incessantly, soaking his front, as though the fire was burning, searing him.

"She won’t die! And neither will you!" he said softly, controlling the sword and flying away swiftly from the daunting gates of the Netherworld, seemingly also losing the courage to look back. (To be continued, for more, please visit www.qidian.com. More Chapters are available, support the author, support genuine reading!)