Chapter 98 Wings Anyone with wings knows
When neither of them spoke, the sounds below became particularly clear, like the panting of someone carrying a heavy load, or the low growls of wild beasts in the mountains, coming in waves from the entrance of the steps.
Jiang Yuhuo placed his hand on his sword, staring intently at the entrance.
The hall was brightly lit, and nothing could hide from it. Whatever came up, no matter what it was, she could swiftly slash it with her sword.
Li Mengbai also picked up a talisman and prepared for battle.
Under their close watch, a round, spiky hedgehog jumped out of the entrance.
The hedgehog stretched out its pointed nose and sniffed hard, its four short legs darting quickly across the ground, and it had no demonic aura on its body.
Jiang Yuhuo released his sword and watched as the hedgehog charged straight at Li Mengbai without hesitation.
Li Mengbai was so frightened by the little thing that he jumped up and was about to throw the talisman at the hedgehog.
Seeing this, Jiang Yuhuo immediately grabbed his hand, "It won't hurt you, why are you killing it?"
Li Mengbai said indignantly, "I can't stand these disgusting things crawling on the ground!"
Jiang Yuhuo was speechless for a moment, but then she saw a panting, shriveled thing crawl out of the entrance to the steps. It was covered with only a few pieces of cloth whose original color could not be identified. Its head was also shriveled and had no eyeballs. But Jiang Yuhuo could still feel that its gaze was on them. She patted Li Mengbai on the shoulder.
"And then something even more disgusting happened."
Li Mengbai turned around and let out an even sharper scream, "Why are there still zombies here?!"
Before he could finish speaking, more zombies surged in like a tide, using their hands and feet to climb all over the entrance to the steps, and then quickly launched themselves toward the two of them.
Jiang Yuhuo drew her spirit sword and slashed at them one by one. The spirit sword itself had its own spiritual power, so she didn't have to exert much effort. Killing these zombies was as easy as cutting vegetables and melons.
The only drawback was the sheer number of zombies, like cockroaches crawling all over the ground; dealing with them one by one was ultimately too much trouble. Jiang Yuhu channeled his spiritual power and unleashed a move called "Across the Four Seas." When the sword was planted in the ground, the shockwave from the sword energy shredded the oncoming zombie army, leaving behind a chilling scene of white bones scattered everywhere.
Li Mengbai was somewhat stunned. Jiang Yuhuo stepped on the bones and strode forward without any fear.
He had been worried that she might be scared.
After clearing the entrance to the steps, the two continued down. Each level they descended was filled with demons, and the lower the level, the more difficult the demons were to deal with. But each time, before Li Mengbai could make a move, Jiang Yuhuo would rush up with her sword. The dazzling sword light crisscrossed in each level of the tower, and the demons fell one after another under her sword, their bodies and souls destroyed.
Li Mengbai watched as she fought until her cheeks flushed and a thin layer of sweat appeared on her forehead. She was single-minded, with only the demons about to die under her sword in her eyes. She was a veritable god of death.
Since the Immortal Sect Grand Competition, Jiang Yuhuo hasn't really fought much, partly because she hasn't had the time and partly because she hasn't had the opportunity. All the spiritual energy she's cultivated these past few days has had nowhere to go, so now she can finally have a real battle and give this sword a good test.
The sword pierced the spiritual aperture of the last demon. The huge demon, which was entirely black, had sharp fangs, and a pair of wings, instantly transformed into a bat no bigger than a palm on the ground, and then its body completely dissipated.
From the top of the tower down, there are nine floors in total. Jiang Yuhuo has already fought her way to the last floor, and countless demons that blocked her path have died under her sword.
The noise finally subsided, and the tower fell silent once more. Jiang Yuhuo let out a soft breath and wiped the blood from her sword with the handkerchief Li Mengbai had given her earlier. The sword gleamed with a silvery light, and it slayed demons with far greater ease than her usual iron sword. She felt exhilarated after using it this time, and couldn't help but cherish it even more.
Jiang Yuhuo carefully examined the sword, confirming that there were no scratches or dents. She decided it would be best to return it after leaving. She just wondered how that person was doing, and whether anyone had found him.
Li Mengbai frowned. "Don't you think that strange smell seems stronger?"
Jiang Yuhuo looked around. They had reached the bottom level, at the foot of the Feather God statue. The ground was covered with bones, and a strong, strange fragrance filled the air.
Li Mengbai leaned over and smelled Jiang Yuhuo's clothes, then wrinkled her nose and fanned herself with her hand, saying, "You smell like that all over."
Jiang Yuhu sniffed, and sure enough, it was just as he said, "It should be those demons."
Although it vanished completely, the strange fragrance in the blood remained.
Li Mengbai narrowed his eyes. "The Heavenly Palace's Spirit-Sealing Array should not be used to imprison demons of this level, let alone be broken into by such demons."
"You mean, these things grow from inside?" Jiang Yuhuo sheathed her clean sword, holding a blood-stained handkerchief in her hand. "But why would Tianque raise these things for no reason? To give the disciples practice?"
Li Mengbai glanced at her, pressed his thumb against her face, and forcefully wiped away the blood.
"I think you've gotten carried away with the killing. This godforsaken place is inaccessible to disciples and inaccessible to demons. How are you supposed to practice?"
Jiang Yuhuo was taken aback by his words, and then realized that she was still immersed in the battle just now. She didn't know why, but she didn't seem to get tired here. The more monsters she killed, the more she craved battle.
"Regardless, it's best not to inhale too much of this energy, as these demonic creatures might have been created because of it."
But there was no way forward or backward, and it seemed they had already reached the bottom of the tower. Where else could they go to escape these auras?
Li Mengbai took out a round disc. The wooden surface was divided into many small squares with red lines, and a golden pointer trembled and swayed uncertainly. He muttered something, and the pointer began to spin rapidly, finally pointing steadily in one direction.
Without a word, Li Mengbai grabbed her hand and said, "Come with me."
He led Jiang Yuhuo behind the statue, where there was indeed a very hidden secret door. Li Mengbai placed his hand on it, and the engraved patterns on the door appeared—a pair of enormous wings. But the light only shone for a moment before quickly going out.
Li Mengbai tried pushing the door, but it wouldn't budge. He looked helplessly at Jiang Yuhuo, perhaps he just wasn't strong enough.
"Why don't you give it a try?"
Jiang Yuhuo stroked the pair of engraved wings, his sense of familiarity with this place reaching its peak at that moment.
When the light shone, gold and red threads intertwined on her wings, almost exactly like her former wings, with red feathers and gold edges.
Because the pain was so intense back then, she has almost never thought about those wings that were brutally cut off over the years.
At this moment, when the wings she once had were presented before her, she finally couldn't help but tremble slightly. The pain that pierced her soul in her shoulder blade returned, and the immense pain was branded on her back, as if the wings had been cut off from this body back then.
Li Mengbai noticed that her silence was a bit strange. When he got closer, he saw that she was clenching her teeth tightly, as if she was enduring something.
"What's wrong with you?" He turned her face and found that she was pale, covered in sweat, and even her hair was wet.
A visible hint of panic flashed in his eyes, and he quickly channeled his spiritual energy to check her breathing. "What's wrong with you? I told you that the aura was poisonous, but you didn't take it seriously!"
Jiang Yuhuo pushed his hand away, breathing heavily, "It's nothing."
“Here,” she pressed on an inconspicuous spot on the lower edge of the wing, rubbing her fingers over it, “this is where the wing is most ticklish.”
Anyone who has ever grown wings knows that once you touch this place, you can't help but fold your wings.
As she spoke, she wiped the blood that had spilled from her lips with her finger, then pressed her blood-stained finger down hard on that spot.
Suddenly, the engraved lines on the wings lit up, revealing a pair of incredibly beautiful wings with red scales edged in gold. The engraving technique was superb, with each stroke meticulously drawn, making the wings almost lifelike. The colors were now fully revealed, as if they were about to unleash a gust of wind at any moment.
Jiang Yuhu stared wide-eyed, feeling an indescribable sadness. She had never treated her wings well; they hadn't even had the chance to grow to this size.
Li Mengbai forgot to ask why she knew these things. He turned his head to look at the person next to him, his curiosity burning.
She bit her lip until blood flowed, but she didn't utter a sound of pain. What kind of experiences must a person go through to become like her?
But he didn't have time to investigate, because the hidden door was slowly opening.
*
In the deepest part of the Endless Sea, his mother found him and said in a majestic voice, "Gayue, never let your people lose sight of you."
He is the son of the Mermaid King, the possessor of the blood of the Mermaid God, and the future ruler of the Sea Kingdom, destined to inherit his mother's authority and rule the Mermaid race. They even hope that he can become the new Mermaid God, leading the Mermaids into the immortal realm of the gods, just like other ancient races.
He listened to his mother's strict, almost harsh, teachings, placed his small hand in hers, and let her lead him back to the palace made of coral. Bright and dazzling was his deepest impression of the palace.
The palace reached its brightest moment only when it was engulfed by lava.
The palaces collapsed, and fires raged from the ground.
Amidst the chaos of war, he thought he had finally found a chance to hide himself from everyone's gaze.
Those heavy gazes made it hard for him to breathe.
But his mother still found him and handed him over to a tailless person, asking him to take him to land.
Going to land is not to hide, but so that we can return in the future.
He grasped his mother's hand, begging her to come with him, but she pried his knuckles off, saying, "Jia Yue, I'm sorry, I have to stay."
The next moment, the mother's face suddenly transformed into that woman's, and she calmly told him.
"I'm sorry, I have a reason to go in."
Then, without any mercy, she took away the last bit of warmth from his side.
Inside the pool, the merman suddenly opened his eyes.
Along with the physical pain, he also felt a tremendous sense of resentment and jealousy, which weighed heavily on his heart and squeezed his already severely damaged heart meridians.
He had to surface hastily, gasping for breath.
He tried to circulate his spiritual energy, but the sluggish flow of spiritual energy caused him to cough violently.
A warm spiritual energy rushed into his heart, lingering and seeping into it, attempting to mend his wounds.
He closed his eyes in pain.
Why?
Why did you try to save him even though you abandoned him?
If you don't love him, why make it impossible for him to even hate her wholeheartedly?
The commotion inside the hall alerted the guards outside.
Qingping pushed open the door and came in, and saw His Highness sitting by the pond, with his huge fish tail dangling in the water.
He was hunched over in pain, his long gray-blue hair falling into the water, obscuring his expression. One could only sense that he was trapped in some kind of suffering, unable to extricate himself from it.
Qingping knew that his injuries were very serious this time.
"Your Highness, Elder Xingxuan is outside the hall. Shall I ask him to come in and take another look at you?" Qingping looked at Jiayue with concern and asked softly, her face showing undisguised heartache.
She was one of the older merfolk in Tianque. Over the years, she had come to regard Qiandeng as her child and His Highness as her younger brother.
The room was completely silent.
After a while, the mermaid, who was sitting bent over by the pool, beckoned to her to let people in.
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