Chapter 122: Escape from Life and Death, Desperate Confession

Youming's escape was like dropping a boulder into a calm lake, sending ripples swiftly across it. Ye Li knew full well that the Dark Eyes were a mysterious and unpredictable force, and they would never give up. Although they had lost several men in the previous battle, Youming's dying roar and the powerful spatial fluctuations unleashed by the shattered jade pendant had undoubtedly transmitted their locations and identities.

"We must leave this place immediately!" Ye Li said urgently, leaving no room for doubt. She quickly cleared the area of ​​any remaining aura, took Qin Yixuan's hand, and chose an area with more complex terrain opposite the altar. She unleashed her "Universe Traceless Step" to its fullest potential, transforming into two blurry afterimages and escaping at high speed.

Qin Yixuan also understood the gravity of the situation. She suppressed the discomfort from the previous battle and the restlessness of the Goddess's essence, and tried her best to keep up with Ye Li's pace. She could feel Ye Li's grip on her hand tighten, not just with nervousness, but with a deep, protective desire that seemed to ingrain her into her very bones and blood.

The two of them sped along at lightning speed, not daring to pause for even a moment. The Primordial Secret Realm was vast and boundless, its terrain treacherous and ever-changing. They chose to navigate through dangerous areas where the energy was chaotic and difficult for divine sense to detect, attempting to evade any possible pursuit.

However, the tracking method of "Dark Pupil" obviously exceeded their expectations.

Shortly after they passed through a twisted stone forest riddled with spatial cracks, a suffocating, terrifying pressure, like an invisible giant net, suddenly enveloped them from all directions! This pressure was far more powerful than that of the Yuandan realm, even more terrifying than many of the supernatural cultivators they had encountered. It carried with it a shadowy and deadly aura of the same origin as the Netherworld, yet even more refined and profound!

"Not good!" Ye Li's face changed drastically. He stopped abruptly and protected Qin Yixuan behind him. The Xuanbing Sword instantly appeared in his hand, the sword body humming and exuding cold energy.

The void ahead rippled like water waves, and three figures slowly emerged.

The leader was a figure shrouded in a vast black robe. His face was obscured, revealing only a pair of eyes blazing with a faint blue flame, gazing coldly at them. His aura was as deep and sea-like as the ocean; he was a great cultivator in the middle stage of supernatural powers! Behind him, the two men, similarly cloaked in black robes, had a slightly weaker aura, but had also reached the level of the early stages of supernatural powers!

Three magical powers!

Ye Li's heart sank to the bottom. This was definitely not a force they could currently contend with! To capture them, or perhaps to capture Qin Yixuan's Goddess Origin, they had actually deployed such a powerful force!

"Hand over the bearer of the goddess' origin, and you can keep her body intact." The black-robed man in the lead spoke, his voice hoarse and dry, like two pieces of rusty iron rubbing against each other, without any emotion.

Qin Yixuan felt the murderous intent and pressure that was as tangible as a substance. His face turned pale, but he took a step forward stubbornly and stood shoulder to shoulder with Ye Li: "Don't even think about it!"

"You are so stubborn." The man in black robe seemed too lazy to say anything more and just waved his hand lightly.

The two black-robed figures behind him, at the early stages of their magical powers, immediately moved! Their figures resembled ghosts, one on the left and one on the right, carrying a monstrous shadow force as they attacked Ye Li and Qin Yixuan respectively! The shadow force transformed into countless ferocious ghost hands and chains, overwhelming the sky and blocking all their escape routes!

"war!"

There's no retreat, only battle! A ruthless look flashed in Ye Li's eyes. The fragments of the Samsara Mirror spun at an unprecedented speed within her sea of ​​consciousness, and a vast source of power surged into her every limb! Her cultivation instantly surged, approaching the late Yuan Dan stage. The chill of the Xuanbing Sword suddenly grew deep and dark, as if it could freeze even light!

"Ice Emperor Sealing Heaven Art - Absolute Zero Domain!"

She swung her sword, not at the enemy, but with herself as the center, unleashing her extreme cold field at full force! Within a hundred feet, the temperature plummeted to an incredible level, as if space had frozen. The whistling shadowy ghost hands and chains slowed significantly, their surfaces coated in a thick layer of frost!

However, the Divine Power Stage is the Divine Power Stage! The huge gap in strength cannot be easily bridged by relying on secret methods. The two black-robed men simply paused for a moment, and the shadow power around them exploded, shattering the frost on their bodies. Although their attack was blocked, it was still fierce!

The black-robed figure on the left slapped Ye Li with a palm strike, the palm wind containing a shadow toxin that corroded the soul! The black-robed figure on the right formed five fingers into claws and grabbed Qin Yixuan. The claw wind tore through the air and went straight for his Dantian Qi Sea. His intention was clearly to destroy his cultivation and capture him alive!

"The mysterious water turns into a shield, and the bright moon protects the body!" Qin Yixuan shouted, and the light of the Canghai Mingyue Pearl was extremely bright, reflecting each other with the Buddhist beads, turning into layers of water curtains and Buddha light barriers, resisting the attack of that magical power!

Boom! Boom!

Two loud bangs erupted almost simultaneously! Ye Li used his Mystic Ice Sword to counter the palm wind, only to feel an overwhelming force. His throat felt sweet, and blood couldn't be suppressed from oozing from the corners of his mouth. He flew backwards and slammed heavily into a huge piece of glass rock, which was instantly covered with cracks!

Qin Yixuan was also in a bad situation. The water curtain and the Buddha's light barrier were shattered layer by layer. Although she barely blocked the claw, the huge recoil force made her blood boil, and her internal organs seemed to shift. Her pretty face was pale, and it was obvious that she had suffered serious internal injuries.

After a brief encounter, both were injured! The gap between magical powers and Yuandan was like a chasm!

"With the power of an ant, you dare to shake the sky?" The black-robed man who attacked snorted disdainfully and approached again.

Ye Li struggled to her feet, wiping the blood from the corner of her mouth, her eyes growing colder and more determined. She glanced at Qin Yixuan, who was also struggling to hold on beside her, and a thought swelled within her—I can't hide it any longer! Even if it means revealing the secret of the Samsara Mirror, I must protect her!

"Yixuan, believe me!" she said in a voice transmission, her tone carrying an unquestionable determination.

Qin Yixuan looked at her. Although she didn't know what Ye Li was planning, she saw the burning determination in her eyes and nodded without hesitation: "I will always believe in you!"

Just as the two black-robed men launched another attack, Ye Li made a startling move! She didn't engage them, but instead plunged her Mysterious Ice Sword into the ground, her hands forming an ancient and complex hand seal in front of her chest! Within her sea of ​​consciousness, the two fused fragments of the Samsara Mirror erupted with an unprecedentedly brilliant light!

"Reincarnation Forbidden Technique - Thousands of Mirror Images, Shifting Myriad Worlds!"

Buzz——!

With Ye Li at its center, an incomparably profound wave, harking to the very origins of space and time, erupted. Countless mirrored images, like ripples of water, appeared out of thin air, layer upon layer, reflecting her and Qin Yixuan's figures, making it difficult to distinguish reality from illusion. The surrounding space began to violently twist and fold, as if countless parallel dimensions intersected there!

The attacks of the two black-robed men fell into the mirror image, like a stone sinking into the sea, and it was impossible to lock onto the true bodies of the two men!

"Is this... the power of time and space?!" The black-robed man in the middle Nascent Soul stage, who had been observing coldly, showed surprise for the first time in his dark blue eyes. "How could this woman have such a precious treasure?! Capture her! Capture her alive!"

He finally took action himself! A giant hand, formed entirely of shadows, obscured the sky and sun, clutching directly at the chaotic mirrored space with a terrifying power that suppressed everything! He was determined to use his absolute power to forcibly break the forbidden space-time technique!

However, just as the giant shadow hand was about to fall, all the mirror images suddenly shrank and converged at one point, and then suddenly burst out with a blinding light!

After the strong light, only broken space ripples remained on the spot, and the figures of Ye Li and Qin Yixuan had disappeared!

"Space teleportation? No! It's the more advanced space-time shift!" The black-robed figure in the middle Nascent Soul stage retracted his shadowy giant hand, feeling the lingering fluctuations of the laws of space and time in the air that made him a little nervous. A glint of doubt flickered in his dark blue eyes. "Chase! They're forcing themselves to activate such a forbidden technique. They'll definitely pay a heavy price. They won't get far! Notify the other teams and seal off this area! We must obtain the Goddess's Origin and that precious space-time treasure!"

…

At the same time, thousands of miles away from the original place, there was a dead silent area covered with pale bone mountains.

The void twisted, and two figures seemed to be thrown out by an invisible force, falling heavily into the cold bone powder.

"puff--!"

As soon as Ye Li landed, she suddenly spat out a large mouthful of blood, even mixed with a few fragments of internal organs! Her face was as pale as paper, her breath was extremely weak, and her meridians were tearing with pain. Her sea of ​​consciousness felt like it was being pierced by billions of needles, and the light of the fragments of the Samsara Mirror dimmed a lot.

Forcibly activating the forbidden Samsara Mirror technique "Teleportation of All Realms", which was far beyond her own realm, caused extremely severe backlash on her! This not only overdrew her spiritual power, but also damaged her essence!

"Ye Li!" Qin Yixuan, not caring about her own injuries, rushed to her side. Seeing her vomiting blood, her heart felt like it was being stabbed by a knife, and tears welled up in her eyes. She frantically took out all the healing pills and wanted to feed them to Ye Li.

"No... I'm fine." Ye Li spoke with difficulty, her voice hoarse and weak. She held Qin Yixuan's trembling hand and forced a soothing smile, "It's just... a little exhausted... Just a little rest... I'll be fine."

She said it lightly, but how could Qin Yixuan not see that she was at the end of her strength? Her pale face, her weak breath, all showed what a heavy price she paid for this escape!

"Why are you so stupid...why are you trying so hard..." Qin Yixuan's voice was filled with tears, and her tears were like pearls that had broken off the string, dripping onto the back of Ye Li's cold hand, burning her skin.

Ye Li looked at her tearful face, and the softest part of her heart was touched. She raised her trembling hand and gently wiped away the tears on Qin Yixuan's face, her movements gentle and cherishing.

"Because... you're here." She stared into Qin Yixuan's eyes. Those eyes, as deep as a cold pond, now reflected her face clearly. There was no longer a trace of coldness, only deep affection and attachment. "I can't... lose someone important again."

The betrayal and loneliness of a past life, the encounter and warmth of this life, intertwined in this moment. She didn't want to repeat the same mistakes, didn't want to bear it all alone again. This cold yet gentle woman before her, since when, had become the most indispensable light in her life.

Qin Yixuan's sobs abruptly stopped. She stared blankly at Ye Li, into those eyes that had never before revealed her feelings so clearly, and listened to those simple yet weighty words. An indescribable mixture of heartache, emotion, joy, and sorrow washed over her like a flood, instantly breaking through all her reserve and defenses.

"Ye Li..." She choked and held Ye Li's hand tightly with her backhand, as if to pass on her strength. "I won't let anything happen to you! Absolutely not!"

She took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down. Looking around, she saw a mountain of bones stretching as far as the eye could see, shrouded in a veil of death. Her spiritual sense was also suppressed here, but for the time being, she could not detect the presence of pursuers.

"Let's find a place to hide first. You must heal your wounds immediately!" Qin Yixuan said in a firm tone. She put Ye Li's arm around her neck and helped her up.

Ye Li was extremely weak at the moment, leaning almost half of her weight on Qin Yixuan. Feeling the warmth and firm support of the person beside her, she felt a sense of peace in her heart.

The two supported each other and trudged forward among the jagged bones, searching for a place to hide. Finally, they found a relatively dry and secluded depression beneath a huge skull of an unknown animal.

Qin Yixuan carefully set Ye Li down and immediately began to set up a concealing formation. She applied her knowledge of formations to the utmost, layering several concealing, defensive, and even disorienting formations to completely isolate this small corner from the outside world.

After doing all this, she returned to Ye Li and looked at her still pale face, feeling distressed.

"Your injury..." Qin Yixuan hesitated to speak. She could see that Ye Li's injury could not be cured by ordinary elixirs. It involved a deeper level of the root cause.

Ye Li leaned against the cold bone wall, breathing lightly. She knew that it was time to let the person before her know some secrets. After experiencing life and death and understanding each other's feelings, there should be no more hiding between them.

"Yixuan," she called softly, looking at her calmly, "Do you know why I can perform the art of time-space displacement?"

Qin Yixuan shook her head, doubt and worry in her eyes. The power of time and space was at an extremely high level, far beyond the reach of a Yuan Dan realm cultivator.

Ye Li slowly raised her hand, palm facing upward, and with a slight movement of her mind, a faint golden light, imbued with endless mysteries, slowly condensed in her palm, eventually transforming into an extremely blurry, shattered mirror image with starlight flowing around the edges.

Although it was only a phantom, the moment the image appeared, Qin Yixuan felt a faint resonance and... awe within the divine essence within her body. It was as if she had encountered a being of a higher rank.

"This is..." Qin Yixuan's beautiful eyes widened, filled with shock.

"It's called... the Samsara Mirror." Ye Li's voice was soft, but it resonated like thunder in Qin Yixuan's heart. "It's... a broken ancient super-divine artifact. And I am its current owner, or rather, the bearer of its fragments."

She paused, looking at Qin Yixuan's shocked eyes, and continued slowly, "In my previous life, I was the Supreme Being of the Spirit Realm, known as 'Li Zun'. However, I was betrayed by my best friend and fellow apprentice, and died... Fortunately, this fragment of the Samsara Mirror protected a trace of my true spirit, allowing me to be reborn."

She briefly recounted the hatred of her previous life and the mystery of her rebirth. Without too many details, it was enough for Qin Yixuan to understand the heavy burden she carried, and the source of her vicissitudes and strength that far exceeded her peers.

Qin Yixuan was utterly shocked. She could never have imagined that Ye Li had such a shocking background! Reborn as a supreme being! An ancient super artifact! All of this seemed like a myth, yet it actually happened to the person she cared about most!

She finally understood why Ye Li was always so calm and steady, and why there was always a loneliness and depth in her eyes that was inconsistent with her age; why her cultivation speed was so incredible and her combat power was so powerful; why she had such a deep hatred for the "Dark Pupil" force!

After the shock, what surged into her heart was an even greater surge of heartache. She couldn't imagine how Ye Li had endured this overwhelming hatred and secrets all by herself, step by step to where she was today.

"So...what you used just now was the power of the Samsara Mirror?" Qin Yixuan's voice trembled slightly.

"Yeah." Ye Li nodded. The shadow dissipated, and her face became even paler. "Forcing it will cause a lot of backlash. But... for you, it's worth it."

The words "worth it" were more touching than any love words. Qin Yixuan couldn't hold back any longer, she leaned over and hugged Ye Li tightly, burying her face in her neck, tears silently falling.

"Idiot...you big idiot..." She cursed with a sob, but her arms tightened, "Don't do this again! Your life is important, more important than anything else! We must survive together and face all enemies together!"

Feeling the soft body in her arms and the unreserved care and dependence, Ye Li's cold heart was completely filled. She slowly raised her hands, hugged Qin Yixuan back, and gently patted her back.

"Okay, let's do it together." She promised in a low voice, her tone more gentle and firm than ever before.

Deep in the dead silence of Bone Mountain, surrounded by powerful enemies, the two embraced each other tightly, their feelings for each other never as clear and close as they had ever been at that moment. All the secrets and barriers disappeared in this moment, leaving only the purest trust and dependence.

After a long time, Qin Yixuan raised her head with a red face, but still held Ye Li's hand tightly: "Your injuries are too serious and you must heal as soon as possible. What can I do?"

Ye Li looked at her worried eyes, and a warm feeling surged in his heart: "I need time to cultivate myself and guide the essence of the Samsara Mirror to repair my injuries. The formation outside..."

"Leave it to me!" Qin Yixuan said immediately, "I will stay here and will never let anyone disturb you!" Her eyes were firm, as if she was making a vow.

Ye Li nodded, saying no more. She slowly closed her eyes and began to channel the dim fragment of the Samsara Mirror within her sea of ​​consciousness, drawing upon the endlessly regenerative power within, repairing her damaged meridians and soul. She knew the danger outside wasn't over yet, and Dark Eyes' pursuit would soon arrive. She needed to recover her strength quickly to protect the person beside her whom she was willing to protect with her life.

Qin Yixuan stood guard, her eyes warily gazing at the deadly world of Bone Mountain beyond the formation, her sword tightly gripped like the most loyal of guards. She knew that from the moment Ye Li confessed everything to her, their fates had been completely tied together. The hatred of past lives, the enemies of this life, they would bear the burden together, until death.

The heartfelt confession and life-or-death support they shared in this desperate situation ultimately elevated and reaffirmed their relationship. The road ahead might be thorny, but as long as they held hands, they would have nothing to fear.