Cracks and leyline shifts beneath the embers
The soil beside the dry well was still moist with morning dew. As soon as the peach wood fragments at Lin Shen's fingertips touched the pile of earth, there was suddenly a slight tremor - not the aftermath of the rockfall, but a slow and dull vibration coming from deep underground, as if some huge monster had awakened underground and was scratching the ground veins of Qingwu Town with its sharp claws.
He suddenly looked up, gazing eastward. The azure sky, once ablaze after the blood mist had dissipated, had been covered with a layer of gray-black clouds. The clouds sat so low that even the sunlight was completely blocked. A wind, carrying a pungent earthy smell, swept through, picking up dead leaves and swirling around the dry well, bringing a bone-chilling chill.
"What's going on?" Meng Yao had just retrieved Xiuxiu's mahogany pendant from the mound, her fingers still stained with dirt when she shivered at the sudden chill. She instinctively clenched the pendant, only to find that the once warm wood had turned icy cold, even emitting a faint hint of black energy—the evil energy previously suppressed by the blood formation was now slowly resurrecting.
Chen Ba's expression suddenly changed, and she immediately pulled out her bronze compass. The needle in the center of the compass was no longer stable, but spun wildly clockwise. The blue light flickered, as if it would go out at any moment. She placed the compass on the ground, her fingertips tracing the lines on the surface. The vibrations from her fingertips grew stronger and stronger, making it difficult for her to stand steadily. She could only hold on to the edge of the dry well for support. "No... Although the blood formation is destroyed, the resentment has not completely dissipated. It has drilled into the ground along the earth veins and even disturbed the core of Qingwu Town!"
"The core of the earth vein?" Lin Munan stumbled and steadied himself, supporting Meng Yao. The two of them were nearly knocked over by the sudden tremor. He looked at the ground beneath his feet. The once smooth stone pavement was now beginning to show tiny cracks. A faint black aura seeped out from the cracks, like tiny black snakes, slithering across the ground. "Didn't we already destroy the core of the blood formation? How could there still be so much evil energy?"
Li Ye stuck the fire axe into the ground, gripping the handle with both hands, barely able to steady himself. He stared at the black energy seeping out of the cracks, his brow furrowed in knots. "Look, this black energy is even thicker than the previous resentment, and..." He pointed to a dilapidated house not far away. The corner of the house was collapsing at a visible speed. Black energy poured out from the collapsed area, condensing into blurry shadows in the air—not the previous black shadows, but larger, more sinister outlines. "They're gathering, as if they're about to form something!"
Lin Shen tried to grip the dagger, but found his arm weak. Earlier, during the battle with the core of the blood formation, he had nearly exhausted all his strength in order to mobilize the yang energy of the peach wood nails. Now, even lifting the dagger was a struggle. He watched the gathering black energy, then glanced down at the peach wood fragment in his palm—the yang energy on the fragment was weakening, even beginning to be corroded by the black energy, and the edges were gradually turning black.
"We've underestimated the impact of the blood formation." Chen Ba's voice trembled. She pulled out the last evil-breaking talisman and tried to light it, but found that the moment the talisman touched the lighter's flame, it was blown out by an invisible black gas. "A hundred years of resentment have long since permeated the earth veins of Qingwu Town. Destroying the stone pillars only severed the 'roots' of the blood formation, but didn't clear the 'poison' within the earth veins in time. Now the resentment is backfiring along the earth veins, and with the core of the earth veins disturbed, it won't be long before the entire Qingwu Town will be engulfed in the black gas. By then, not even the most powerful sorcerer will be able to escape!"
Meng Yao's tears welled up instantly. She clutched Lin Munan's arm tightly, her voice tinged with sobs, "What should we do then? We're out of peach wood nails, and we can't use talisman paper. Are we just going to wait to be drowned by the black energy?"
Lin Munan gritted his teeth, trying to comfort Meng Yao, but found he couldn't even finish his sentences. He could feel the yang energy in his body rapidly draining away. The black energy seeping from the cracks was drilling into his body through his pores, making his limbs feel heavier and heavier, and even his vision was beginning to blur.
Li Ye shook his head, trying to dispel the dizziness. He looked at Lin Shen with a hint of urgency in his eyes: "Lin Shen, think of a solution quickly! We can't just give up like this. Xiuxiu is still waiting for us to take her home!"
Lin took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. He stared at the gathering black energy, then glanced at the bronze compass. Though its blue light was faint, it consistently pointed toward the center of town. He suddenly remembered the blood letter he had seen in the underground stone chamber. It mentioned that Zhang Mingshan's ancestors had used their blood to suppress resentment, and the jade pendant in the sarcophagus was precisely Zhang Mingshan's blood token.
"Jade pendant!" Lin Shen suddenly pulled out the jade pendant from his arms. The jade pendant had turned cold, but it still retained a faint trace of yang energy. "Zhang Mingshan's jade pendant is blessed with his bloodline. Perhaps it can temporarily suppress the resentment in the earth veins! Chen Ba, the compass points to the center of the town. Is that the core of the earth vein?"
Chen Ba immediately looked at the compass. Although the needle was still spinning, it was roughly pointing to the town center. She nodded, then shook her head. "The town center is the hub of Qingwu Town's earth veins and the core of resentment. We can barely even walk now, so how can we get there? And even if we do, a jade pendant alone will probably only temporarily suppress the problem, not solve it at all!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the ground suddenly shook violently. Everyone fell to the ground. Lin Shen subconsciously protected the jade pendant in his arms and looked up towards the center of town. The sky there was completely shrouded in black air, and bursts of dull roaring sounds came from the black air, as if something was about to burst out from the ground.
"It's too late!" Chen Ba struggled to get up. She pointed in the direction of the town center and said in a voice filled with despair, "The core of the earth vein is about to collapse! Once it collapses, the entire Qingwu Town will sink. We..."
Before she could finish her words, she was interrupted by an even stronger tremor. Lin Shen felt as if he were being grabbed by an invisible hand and pinned to the ground, his chest choking with a tightness. He stared at the approaching black energy, then at his struggling companions, and suddenly remembered Xiu Xiu's last pale smile. He couldn't give up just like that. Even if he was weak, he had to fight for his companions' chance of survival.
Gathering his last bit of strength, he raised the jade pendant above his head. It glowed faintly in the darkness. Though the light was faint, it temporarily stopped the surrounding darkness. He looked at Chen Ba and said in a hoarse voice, "Didn't you...didn't you say the compass can attract yang energy? Even though we're weak, we have to try... Let's take everyone to the town center and use the jade pendant... let's take a gamble!"
Chen Ba looked at Lin Shen's determined gaze, then at Meng Yao and Lin Munan, who were almost collapsing beside him. He gritted his teeth, picked up the compass from the ground, and injected his remaining yang energy into it. Although the blue light of the compass was weak, it finally stabilized and pointed towards the center of the town.
"Let's go!" Chen Ba supported Meng Yao, Li Ye pulled up Lin Munan, and Lin Shen, clutching the jade pendant tightly, followed at the end. The five of them supported each other as they struggled forward on the constantly shaking stone pavement. Dark energy swirled around them, and from time to time, tiny shadows pounced. They could only dodge with their remaining strength, and every step felt like a race against death.
The roar from the town center grew closer, the cracks in the ground widened, and even a swirling black gas could be seen beneath the ground. Lin Shen felt his consciousness fading, but he clutched the jade pendant tightly—it was their last hope and a promise to Xiuxiu.
Just as they were about to reach the center of town, a massive crack suddenly appeared in the ground. Meng Yao slipped and fell toward the gap. Lin Munan, quick-witted and quick-handed, grabbed Meng Yao's wrist, but her weight dragged him down as well. Li Ye immediately lunged forward and grabbed Lin Munan's other hand. The three of them hung suspended above the gap, a swirling black air below them. If they let go, they would be engulfed by it.
"Lin Shen! Chen Ba! Help me!" Li Ye's voice was filled with roars, and his arms had begun to tremble. It was obvious that he could not hold on for much longer.
Lin Shen and Chen Ba rushed over, trying to grab Li Ye, but the ground began to shake again, and the crack continued to widen. Chen Ba pulled out her last piece of talisman paper, gnawing on her lighter with her teeth, and finally ignited it. She threw the talisman at the black energy in the crack. The burning talisman temporarily drove back the black energy, but it also exhausted her last bit of strength. She staggered and fell to the ground, unable to stand up again.
Lin Shen looked at the three people hanging on the gap, then at Chen Ba lying on the ground. His heart felt like it was being tightly grasped by a hand. He knew he no longer had the strength to pull them up, but he couldn't give up. He took a deep breath, stuffed the jade pendant into his arms, and then rushed towards the gap, grabbing Li Ye's arm with his remaining strength.
The four men hung suspended above the gap, black energy swirling beneath their feet. The ground shook more and more intensely, as if it would swallow them all at any moment. Lin Shen felt his arm about to break, and his consciousness began to gradually fade. But as he looked at his companions and the pile of earth in the distance, he had only one thought in his mind: I can't lose, I absolutely can't lose!
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