Chapter 241
Chapter 241
His bright smile stirred something in Xia Ximo’s heart as well.
She looked away again and changed the subject. “This may be an Illusionary Realm, but Xueyin certainly will not let us off easily. Be careful.”
Ren Fengjue answered at once. “I will.”
They continued for a while before an old tree with withered branches suddenly appeared ahead.
An eerie laugh brushed past their ears. Then the bats roosting among the branches raised their heads one after another.
These were bat spirits, a kind commonly found in the Nine Abysses, ghostlike yet not quite ghosts. Though not especially deadly, they were very troublesome.
Xia Ximo remembered that when she first arrived in the Nine Abysses, Vengeful Ghosts who did not know better often came to provoke her.
These wicked bat spirits served as their guides.
As the Vengeful Ghosts mocked her without restraint, the bat spirits hissed with cold laughter beside them…
“Well, what a surprise. This time they have sent us a little girl scarcely out of swaddling clothes!”
“What terrible crime could a little girl commit to be locked up here?”
“Let us find out what she can do!”
They assumed she would be easy to bully. Only after fighting her did they discover how ruthless and decisive she was, never leaving a threat behind.
Her enemies therefore usually met only one end: death.
Utter, final death. Ghosts included.
The Vengeful Ghosts who came to provoke her were caught unprepared and slaughtered, their bodies and souls annihilated.
Word soon spread throughout the Nine Abysses Prison.
Fighting among Vengeful Ghosts was commonplace in the Nine Abysses. The Underworld Administration could not control it and did not care to try.
But once matters spiraled beyond control, they had no choice but to intervene.
She had not been in the Nine Abysses long before many Vengeful Ghosts fell at her hands.
Every day, wailing filled the prison.
These were no petty skirmishes, but struggles to the death. She left her opponents no way out, and left none for herself either.
When the Earth Lord heard of it, he personally visited the Nine Abysses once.
The Vengeful Ghosts actually flocked to lodge complaints.
She said nothing in response.
She had barely spoken in the Nine Abysses. The Vengeful Ghosts knew only how merciless she was.
After hearing their accusations, however, the Earth Lord merely said lightly, “In future, when you see her, take another path.”
From then on, no one in the Nine Abysses dared provoke her.
Thinking of the past, Xia Ximo grew a little dazed.
She glanced at the bat spirits above the tree. But after circling once in the air, a somewhat larger one swooped straight at them.
Xia Ximo hurriedly pushed Ren Fengjue aside.
Yet just as she tried to use her soul power to perform the Bone Art, she discovered something strange about herself.
Her soul power seemed sealed. She could not cast any spell at all.
In that brief hesitation, the bat closed in, baring sharp fangs and claws. Just as it was about to strike her, a hand pulled her away.
But there was no time to catch their breath. The bat continued attacking them.
Ren Fengjue had no choice but to draw the longsword at his waist and meet its assault…
Watching his back, Xia Ximo saw an image flash through her mind.
A young man in white stood before her with a longsword.
“Mogu, go. We will never see each other again.”
Amid a sky full of flashing blades, blood stained the entire sunset red.
…
She could no longer remember what the young man in white looked like, yet his back seemed gradually to overlap with Ren Fengjue’s before her.
A complicated feeling began spreading through her heart.
Ren Fengjue might be a mere mortal, but he was certainly skilled. After several exchanges with the bat in the air, he had not fallen behind.
Seeing that it could not overcome him, the bat suddenly shook its wings. All the bat spirits in the tree swarmed out at once, preparing to attack Ren Fengjue from both sides.
Xia Ximo could find no flaw in the illusion, but she had no intention of suffering needlessly here.
She knew that continuing this fight would only drain their strength.
The Illusionary Realm was so convincing. Who knew what else awaited them?
She darted forward, caught Ren Fengjue’s hand, and ran in another direction.
“Quickly!”
Seeing them flee, the bats pursued them for only a short while before disappearing.
Xia Ximo still held Ren Fengjue’s hand tightly. Even with the bat spirits gone, she dared not relax.
“Let us find somewhere to shelter first.”
Having lived in the Nine Abysses, she naturally knew which places were dangerous and which were relatively safe.
Looking around, she immediately spotted the Boulder Cavern nearby.
Its complex terrain made it easy to defend and difficult to attack. It was where she had spent the most time.
She was about to lead Ren Fengjue there when she saw him stumble slightly.
Xia Ximo looked back and was startled to see fresh blood seeping from his shoulder.
“You are hurt?”
Though her face remained composed, anxiety showed plainly in her eyes. She hurriedly reached out to support him.
Ren Fengjue was growing pale. He had clearly been wounded by a bat spirit’s sharp claws.
But he shook his head and forced himself to say, “I am all right. It is only a small wound.”
Xia Ximo did not answer. She gave him firmer support and slowed her pace.
By the time they finally reached the Boulder Cavern, Ren Fengjue could no longer hold back a mouthful of black blood.
Apparently, the bat spirit carried poison…
Alarmed, Xia Ximo hurried to find a place inside the cavern where he could sit.
Seeing the anxiety on her face, Ren Fengjue tried to reassure her. “Are we not in an Illusionary Realm? These wounds may be false too. There is no need to worry.”
Xia Ximo said nothing. She reached to unfasten his clothes so she could examine the injury.
Her gaze was utterly open, plainly free of any improper thought, yet it still flustered the Young Marquis.
“What… are you doing?”
“Looking at the wound.”
“There is no need…”
He was about to refuse, but had no strength left to resist.
Xia Ximo had never undressed a man before. For all her apparent confidence, she soon became decidedly clumsy.
Ren Fengjue’s ears burned red. Helplessly, he said, “You… have to undo the belt first.”
For convenience while traveling, he wore a belt fitted with hanging straps at his waist.
It was not easy to unfasten.
Xia Ximo puzzled over it for a long while without success, and the Young Marquis finally had to guide her.
Once his clothes were removed and she saw the wound on his shoulder, her gaze darkened immediately.
The wound was deep and had turned a dark, bluish color. In that short time, the surrounding flesh had already begun to fester. It was clearly poisoned.
Xia Ximo knew there was no other remedy available under the circumstances. She could only suck out the poison first.
Only a little light reached into the cavern.
With them so close together, Ren Fengjue instantly guessed what she meant to do. He was about to stop her when she pressed down on his shoulder.
“Do not move.”
A moment later, his whole body stiffened. “If it is poisonous, you will be in danger too…”
Xia Ximo gave no thought to the consequences. She held him down more firmly and quickly cleaned the wound.
Then she tore a strip from the hem of her skirt to bandage it.
Once she had finished, she sat beside Ren Fengjue, her limbs heavy with an unfamiliar weariness.
Her back was drenched in cold sweat.
Then she heard Ren Fengjue ask softly, “Mogu. Which two characters is that written with?”