Chapter 31 The Calamity of Shangxu: Yue Qimeng?

That's strange... none of these worms are biting her.

Thick fog enveloped the forest, and a chilling aura swept over them. Apart from the ghostly red figure that appeared and disappeared intermittently, the surroundings seemed devoid of any life.

Xie Xingzheng pursued relentlessly, but even though the crimson stain was right before his eyes, he was always just a breath short of catching up. Each time he felt he could reach out and touch it, he was abruptly pulled away.

It was as if he was chasing a ghost, not a human...

The wind whistled past his ears, his eyes were cold, his breathing was extremely low, and he poured all his inner strength into his feet, suddenly increasing his speed even more.

Those who engage in deception, whether human or ghost, he will capture them today!

Just as the red figure was about to appear, it suddenly vanished as if swallowed by white mist.

Xie Xingzheng's pupils contracted sharply, sensing something was amiss, but it was too late to stop. He emerged from the fog, and suddenly the view opened up before him, with a clear blue sky hanging high, but the road ahead had already come to an end.

Everything clearly indicates that a precipice lies ahead!

Suddenly, the ground beneath his feet gave way to a feeling of weightlessness. In that critical moment, his instincts, honed from years of battlefield experience, kicked in, and he plunged his longsword back into the cliff face.

"Clang—!"

The iron blade pierced the stone, sparks flying. Although it slowed his descent, it still dragged him several meters down the cliff face. He pressed his armor back against the rock face, the friction of metal against stone producing a piercing sound. It took him a while to finally stop his fall.

Finally, he managed to steady himself on the cliff face. At this moment, half of his body was hanging in the air, and the veins on his arms were bulging.

Looking down, one sees an extremely steep cliff that extends straight down into the dark, churning lake below. Waves crash against the rocks like ghostly howls, as if waiting for people to walk into a trap.

Xie Xingzheng was not afraid of heights, but looking up at that moment, he couldn't help but feel dizzy for a moment. If he had really slipped and fallen, he would surely be smashed to pieces and swallowed by the lake waves by now.

He gritted his teeth and steadied himself, gripping his sword in one hand and climbing up the rock face with the other. With a sudden burst of strength, he propelled himself upwards. Then, using the sword as leverage, he leaped back onto the cliff with the speed of a bird. After landing and regaining his footing, he let out a long breath and discovered that cold sweat had soaked through his back.

He stood on the edge of the cliff, his expression cold and indifferent.

The red figure disappeared only when he chased it to the edge of the cliff. But he heard no sound of it falling into the water, and there was nowhere to hide.

Could it really be a hallucination?

But he clearly hadn't inhaled any mist. If it was a hallucination, how could the feeling of being pursued be so real? If it wasn't a hallucination... then where did that person go?

Xie Xingzheng frowned even more deeply, slowly tightening the empty scabbard in his hand, his eyes as cold as iron, his thoughts churning.

*

Tang Yu was in a daze, and she seemed to vaguely hear the muffled sound of the stone door sliding, the hurried footsteps, and the conversation through the fog.

The dull pain in the back of her head felt like a hammer blow, and her eyelids felt as heavy as a thousand pounds; no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't open them.

A strong, nauseating stench of blood permeated the surroundings, mixed with the damp, putrid smell and bitter medicinal odor, invading her nostrils without warning. The smell was familiar yet disgusting, a scent she hated to the core.

She gasped for breath, the pungent, fishy smell somehow bringing her back to her senses, and she began to try to make out the sounds around her.

The one who spoke seemed to be a young girl, with a sweet and delicate voice, but also a hint of panic and fear.

"Sister Yueying, he... he didn't fall! What if they come after us?"

Hearing the familiar name, Tang Yu's brow furrowed slightly, but she remained unable to open her eyes. At the same time, a question lingered in her mind: Who didn't fall? And where will they fall to?

Immediately, a soft, melodious yet sinister female voice rang out, accompanied by a cold laugh: "What's the panic? The entrance here is hidden, and the secret passages inside the cave are as winding as a maze. Even if Xie Xingzheng has superb martial arts skills, there is no way he could find the correct entrance so quickly."

His tone was full of certainty, as if he had everything under control.

Hearing the familiar name again, Tang Yu felt a surge of urgency and couldn't wait to open her eyes. But drowsiness and alertness were locked in a fierce battle within her, neither able to gain the upper hand.

As she struggled, the slight trembling of her body caught the attention of the people talking nearby.

Two pairs of eyes then fell on her.

At this moment, Tang Yu was almost completely submerged in a pool of blood. Her hands were held down by iron chains, the ends of which were hooked to the cave wall to prevent her from sinking completely into the cold, sticky blood.

The pool was not filled with ordinary blood, but with a thick, black, foul-smelling liquid. Upon closer inspection, one could see various unknown medicinal herbs floating in it, as well as live venomous insects and snakes swimming within, crawling up her blood-soaked body to her neck and even her cheeks.

As consciousness gradually returned, Tang Yu not only realized her situation, but also found the pain in her body becoming more and more obvious.

The blood pool contained hundreds of toxins that seeped into the bones and blood through the pores and skin, like invisible needles pricking wildly inside the body, or like sharp blades cutting through the flesh bit by bit.

Tang Yu clenched her teeth, cold sweat seeping from her forehead and rolling down, eventually dripping into the pool of blood. At this moment, her breathing trembled, yet she couldn't utter a sound.

In that struggle between breaths, she felt as if she were living a lifetime.

Suddenly, the little girl bent down, leaned closer, and stared at her for a while. Her sweet voice was filled with surprise: "Huh, that's strange... these Gu worms don't bite her at all."

The words had barely left his mouth when the blind old man, who had been silent and barely noticeable, suddenly jolted. A look of joy flashed in his cloudy eyes, and he asked in a trembling voice, "Little Qimeng... is what you're saying true?"

When questioned, the little girl retorted defiantly, "Of course! Look, she hardly has any Gu worms crawling on her body!"

But the air suddenly froze. Yueying's icy gaze swept over, and the little girl was so frightened that she immediately covered her mouth and fell silent, quietly retreating. She didn't know what she had said wrong, but she dared not say another word.

Seeing the old man's incredulous yet overjoyed expression, Yueying snorted and poured cold water on his enthusiasm, "Don't be too happy yet."

A smile instantly returned to her lips as she slowly walked to the blood pool, looking down at Tang Yu, who was now able to slightly open her eyes.

She was trembling with pain, her lips were pale, and a strong sense of pleasure appeared on Yueying's beautiful face.

“Look at her…” Yueying said softly, her tone seemingly gentle but actually full of sarcasm: “She’s in so much pain she’s about to die.”

The next moment, she bent down and leaned close to Tang Yu's ear, her smile malicious: "Or... I could help you and just kill you?"

As soon as she finished speaking, she flipped her wrist and drew a dagger from her waist. With a flash of cold light, she stabbed it into Tang Yu's left arm, right where the crescent moon mark was!

A sharp pain shot from her arm straight into her brain, and Tang Yu shuddered, fully waking up from her dazed state!

"No!" The blind old man smelled the blood and rushed forward, anxiously stopping Yue Ying. His voice trembled as he cried, "Lord of the Ruins! She might... really be Yue Qimeng!"

Moonlit Dream?

This was the first time Tang Yu had ever heard this name.

But for some reason, a moment of panic arose in my heart, as if something had suddenly struck my chest. The name echoed in my ears, seemingly unfamiliar yet strangely familiar, as if I had whispered it countless times before.

This made her wonder if it was just a hallucination she was experiencing after falling into a coma.

However, the stinging pain in her arm became more and more intense, and even the burning pain from the blood pool poisoning her bones seemed to be suppressed. Instead, it made her mind clearer than ever before, and her drowsiness completely disappeared.

Even though she was imprisoned, Tang Yu was not afraid at all. When she raised her eyes, her gaze was as cold and sharp as a knife as she stared at Yue Ying, as if she were looking at a dead man.

That one glance completely enraged Yueying. A flash of hatred crossed her eyes, and she raised the dagger high again, thrusting it straight down!

"Stop!" The old man acted quickly, grabbing her wrist and forcefully taking the dagger away.

However, before Yueying could even lash out, the stone wall at the entrance suddenly shook violently!

"boom--!"

With a loud bang, the heavy stone door was smashed open by a sharp force, and rubble flew everywhere, dust and debris scattered in all directions. A tall figure rushed in through the breach.

It was Xie Xingzheng!

The expressions of the group changed drastically, but the blind old man reacted the fastest. He immediately drew his Miao sword, unleashing a fierce aura, and pounced forward like a ghost to block them.

The two men's fierce sword energy clashed, sending up a flurry of flying stones and creating a terrifying spectacle.

In the chaos, a fierce glint suddenly appeared in Yueying's eyes. She picked up a large rock and smashed it against the iron chain hanging on the stone wall!

A maniacal smile played on her lips as she slammed her fists together, causing her palms to ache.

"clang--!"

With a snapping sound, the chain on Tang Yu's left hand broke. Yue Ying, her eyes filled with madness, immediately swung a stone at the chain on her other hand!

Xie Xingzheng and the old man realized her intentions almost simultaneously.

Xie Xingzheng's heart tightened suddenly, and his sword strike rose like a whirlwind, forcing the old man back several steps! He was about to step forward to stop him when he was surprised to find that the old man had suddenly turned and rushed straight towards Tang Yu.

Thinking he was about to kill him, Xie Xingzheng immediately raised his palm and struck!

Although the palm strike carried internal force, it was not difficult to dodge. Unexpectedly, the old man actually took the blow head-on, staggered forward several steps, blood spilling from the corner of his mouth, but he still managed to reach out and grab Yueying's hand that was smashing the chains.

The iron chain that originally bound Tang Yu's wrists to prevent her from sinking completely into the blood pool has now broken on one side, while the other side is being stopped by the old man. Although it is teetering on the brink of collapse, it has not been completely broken by Yueying.

At this moment, Yueying was in a frenzy, but she couldn't shake off the old man, so she could only glare at him fiercely.

Xie Xingzheng frowned, a strange feeling rising in his heart for a moment, but he had no time to think about it.

"Clatter!"

A soft, crisp sound.

The chain, which was not completely broken at first, finally snapped completely as Tang Yu's body sank!

"Su Yutang!" Xie Xingzheng's eyes narrowed, his heart sank, and he exclaimed in surprise.

But it was too late.

With the weight of the iron chains, Tang Yu sank into the blood pool instantly. The crimson blood surged, causing the venomous insects and snakes in the pool to writhe wildly.

Xie Xingzheng didn't have time to hesitate at all. He leaped into the blood pool!

[Author's Note]

One shout per chapter:

Tang Yu: Help!