"The game is over."

Xie Chen's voice, like a frigid polar wind, froze the air in the prayer room. The dark energy that had gathered condensed in his palm into a collapsing black hole, seemingly capable of swallowing light, emanating a destructive aura far more terrifying and absolute than the black flame longsword he had wielded before. This time, there was no struggle of emotion, only pure, icy killing intent. Su Nian's act of touching the seal had completely crossed the line of his tolerance.

Su Nian's blood seemed to freeze at that moment. Her hands were still pressed against the violently trembling black stone. She could feel the almost desperate anxiety and urging emanating from the earth's source, but the tangible threat of death behind her made it incredibly difficult for her to even muster a trace of power. The gap in strength was displayed vividly at this moment.

Escape? There's nowhere to escape.

Trying to stop it? Like a mantis trying to stop a chariot.

Could it be... that she really is going to die here? Die in this world that she had gone through so much hardship to find, the world that held the true fragments of his soul?

No! She was not willing to accept it!

Just as that ball of destructive energy was about to be released—

"Master, please calm down."

A rigid, steady voice, yet carrying a certain unwavering strength, suddenly rang out.

Derrick's figure appeared silently, like a ghost, slightly behind Xie Chen, bowing slightly. The timing and position of his appearance were extremely clever, expressing both respect and subtly creating a delicate restraint.

Xie Chen paused almost imperceptibly as he gathered his energy. The killing intent in his blood-red eyes did not diminish; instead, he turned coldly to Derrick: "You want to stop me?"

"This old servant dares not." Derrick's voice remained steady, but his gray eyes lifted to look directly at Xie Chen. "However, if Master were to completely destroy her at this moment, I'm afraid... it would bring even greater trouble."

"Trouble?" Xie Chen's lips curled into a cold, mocking smile. "A lowly blood servant, tampering with taboos, deserves to die. What trouble could there be?"

“Her blood is currently the only medium you’ve confirmed can alleviate the ‘Primal Agitation,’” Derrick said calmly, his words like a stone thrown into a still lake. “If she disappears, how will you deal with the next ‘Agitation’? Although the border rebellion has been quelled, there are still those within the dynasty who covet the prince’s power. If they were to launch an attack while you are in an unstable state…”

He didn't say anything more, but his meaning was clear. Su Nian's existence was not merely a "blood bag," but also a crucial tool for Xie Chen's dark side to maintain stability and suppress potential threats. Killing her would be tantamount to cutting off his own arm, and could even trigger a chain reaction that could shake his rule.

Xie Chen's face was terribly grim. Derrick's words struck a nerve with his rational considerations. He truly needed the "quiet" that the blood brought. The primal, agonizing turmoil beneath the earth, like a persistent, insidious disease, constantly eroded him; he absolutely did not want to return to that perpetually restless state unless absolutely necessary.

But his boiling killing intent and the rage of being disturbed made it difficult for him to give up. His gaze swept back and forth between Derrick's calm and expressionless face and Su Nian's pale but stubborn back, the dark energy gathered around him surging violently, showing the intense struggle in his heart.

Inside the prayer room, the atmosphere was as tense as a fully drawn bowstring. The strange phenomenon of "two moons in the sky" continued, with silver and dark gold light intertwining to create an eerie scene of a stalemate between the three parties.

Su Nian's heart nearly leaped out of her chest. Derrick actually intervened at this crucial moment! Was he truly concerned for Xie Chen's stability? Or... did he have ulterior motives? She dared not be distracted and could only desperately maintain contact with the black stone, using the precious time Derrick had bought her to communicate with the source of the earth.

"Quickly...he...wavered...opportunity..." The thoughts from the source of the earth came intermittently, but carried a hint of urgency for a desperate escape.

Just as Xie Chen's killing intent and reason were engaged in their final tug-of-war—

Mutation and regeneration!

Perhaps the influence of the "two moons in the sky" phenomenon had reached its peak, or perhaps the source beneath the earth sensed the stalemate in the outside world and made a final effort, the suspended black stone suddenly burst forth with an unprecedentedly brilliant light!

"Buzz—!!!"

A beam of light, a blend of dark gold and silver, shot up from the center of the stone like a dragon breaking free from its restraints, crashing violently into the already shattered dome of the prayer room! The entire castle shook violently, as if an earthquake had struck!

At the same time, a roar, seemingly unleashed with all its might, a mixture of pain and liberation, came from the depths of the earth! The roar pierced through layers of seals and exploded directly in everyone's souls!

The seal... has loosened! And it's loosened on a large scale!

"Ugh—!"

Xie Chen let out a painful groan from the dark side. The massive dark energy around him instantly became extremely unstable, and the destructive energy that was about to be unleashed suddenly dissipated due to this unexpected, primal impact! He pressed his hand hard against his chest, his face turning deathly pale, his bloodshot eyes filled with disbelief and rage!

The impact of the earth's primordial energy directly affected him! This was something that had never happened before!

"Now!" A glint flashed in Derrick's eyes, and his previously restrained aura suddenly erupted. Although it was far inferior to Xie Chen's, it carried an ancient and obscure rhythm! He did not attack Xie Chen, but instead quickly formed hand seals, and a hazy gray light barrier instantly unfolded, blocking Su Nian and Xie Chen!

"Derrick! How dare you—!" Xie Chen was both shocked and furious. He never expected that the old butler who had served him for countless years would choose to stand against him at this moment!

"Miss! Hurry!" Derrick shouted at Su Nian without turning his head. Fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead, clearly indicating that maintaining the light barrier to resist Xie Chen's aftershocks was extremely difficult for him. "Go to the end of the west corridor! There's a secret passage out of the castle there! Quickly!"

This sudden and drastic change left Su Nian's mind blank for a moment. Derrick had really defected?! And the impact from the earth's primordial source was so violent?!

She had no time to hesitate! This was her only chance to escape, bought with enormous risk!

She took one last look at the black stone whose light was gradually dimming, and at Xie Chen behind the light barrier who was temporarily unable to use his full strength due to the impact of the source and could only stare at her with furious eyes. She gritted her teeth, turned around and rushed out of the prayer room!

"You can't escape!" Xie Chen roared, forcibly suppressing the shock to his soul. A shadow thorn tore through the air, bypassed Derrick's light barrier, and shot straight at Su Nian's back!

Su Nian sensed the deadly danger approaching from behind, but it was too late to completely dodge! She could only desperately turn to the side, gathering the power of the Ice Soul on her back!

"Pfft!"

The Shadow Spike pierced her left shoulder, spraying a mouthful of blood! A sharp pain shot through her instantly, but she used the force of the impact to increase her speed even further, bursting out of the shattered prayer room entrance like an arrow released from a bow!

"Chase her! Capture her! Kill her without mercy!" Xie Chen's furious roar rang out behind him, accompanied by Derrick's muffled groan and the sound of the light barrier shattering.

Su Nian clutched her bleeding left shoulder, enduring the excruciating pain and the dizziness caused by excessive energy depletion, and desperately sprinted towards the end of the dark corridor! Behind her, the dense and rapid footsteps and the sound of air being cut quickly approached; her personal guards were coming to pursue her!

Her consciousness began to fade, and the weakness from blood loss and exhaustion washed over her like a tidal wave. Her vision blurred, and she could only stumble forward, relying on instinct and the memory of Derrick's last guidance.

Finally, at the end of the corridor, she saw a seemingly ordinary stone wall carved with intricate vine patterns. The secret passage Derrick spoke of… was it here?

With her last bit of strength, she pressed her blood-stained hand against the center of the stone wall.

The vine patterns on the stone wall seemed to come alive, greedily absorbing her blood and emitting a faint red glow. Then, the stone wall silently slid open inward, revealing a pitch-black passage that extended downwards, barely wide enough for one person to pass through.

A cold wind, carrying a musty smell and an unknown aura, blew out from the depths of the passage.

The sounds of pursuers were already very close.

Su Nian glanced back at the depths of the ancient castle, filled with slaughter and imprisonment, and then at the bottomless, uncertain secret passage.

There was no choice.

She took a deep breath and leaped into the darkness.

The stone wall quickly closed behind her, completely isolating her from the roars of the pursuers and the clamor of the ancient castle.

(End of Chapter 61)

---

Next Chapter Preview: Severely injured, Su Nian falls into an unknown secret passage. Where will she end up? Is Derrick's sudden defection genuine help or is he plotting something else? The subterranean source forcefully breaks the seal—has she gained partial freedom, or has she fallen into a deeper crisis? How will Xie Chen, driven by his rage and dark side, track down her whereabouts? The road to escape is fraught with danger; a new chapter begins in the darkness!