Since we met
"Clang—clang—clang—"
The bell tolled loudly and deeply, and the Phoenix Bell suddenly rang out, resounding throughout the entire clan.
The next moment, Master Xuantong burst out of the window, as light as a swallow, and transformed into a nebula-like force, flying towards the shady, populated area.
Before leaving, he uttered a sentence that still echoed in the sky: "My dear disciple, please be patient. Your master will go ahead first."
The Phoenix Bell rang out sharply, a sign of demonic chaos.
What kind of demon could possibly have startled my master into coming out of the world?
Thinking of this, Lin Yueyao suddenly stood up and followed on her sword. At that moment, Song Qingyun, who had received the news, took a shortcut and rushed over.
"Junior Sister Yueyao."
Only a lingering shadow remained on the horizon.
Lingfang followed immediately, her face as red as a ripe peach. She trotted after Song Qingyun and said stubbornly, "I want to go too."
"Go back." Song Qingyun always doted on her, but he showed no mercy at this moment. "It's too chaotic outside. You stay in the sect and take good care of Master and the others."
Having said that, a beam of moonlight enveloped Lingfang. Lingfang struggled, but couldn't break free, and angrily cried out, "Senior Brother—"
"obedient."
After speaking, his figure disappeared from the Wenyuan Hall.
Watching the figure fly like a shooting star towards the place shrouded in dark clouds, the junior sister gritted her teeth and muttered, "I'm going to follow anyway." She stood still, chanting incantations, and spiritual power surged from her limbs and bones, instantly shattering the restraints binding her body into dust.
The junior sister gave a soft snort, summoned the Frost Sword, and disappeared from the spot.
Lanxi Town
A demonic aura filled the sky, corpses lay strewn across the ground, and fires and dust rose everywhere, resulting in countless deaths and injuries.
The town is located near both the demon realm and the immortal sects, and has historically suffered greatly from its destruction. Each sect has its own defenses, but this time the demons have come with overwhelming force, catching the immortal sects completely off guard. When Lin Yueyao arrived, she found her master missing.
A demonic shadow lingered on the horizon, while the fleeing people scattered like birds and beasts. As they hid, the demon plunged into the crowd, opened its blood-red maw, and devoured them in an instant. After chewing for a moment, it spat out a pile of white bones.
Lin Yueyao frowned, her face grave and grim. Ignoring everything else, she called out in a low voice, "Wenqing."
Wen Qing responded immediately, gathering his spiritual power in his palm and unleashing it. The sword energy vibrated, instantly repelling the demon dozens of miles away.
She rushed into the crowd, slit her wrist, and used her blood to draw a circle, isolating the people inside.
The monster kept crashing into the barrier, making loud banging noises.
With a furrowed brow and murderous intent, Lin Yueyao stepped out of the barrier with her sword, but couldn't move. Looking down, she saw a boy of about ten years old hugging his legs, tears streaming down his face, trembling as he looked up at her.
"Don't go..."
Lin Yueyao said coldly, "Let go."
The child hesitantly let go, stammering, "The fairy said you would protect me..."
Immortal? Lin Yueyao took a closer look and saw that the child was clutching a sword tassel tightly in his palm, making it crumpled. Lin Yueyao frowned and snatched it away.
That was her master's sword tassel. She understood what the old man meant; this child must be extraordinary.
The most important thing now is to appease the people and suppress the evil spirits. Master is highly skilled and capable of protecting himself, so there's no need to worry for now.
"Stay close to me."
She went on a killing spree, with the child following her every step of the way. Seeing that she couldn't break through the barrier, the demon turned her brows and went straight for the child who was a burden behind Lin Yueyao.
The child was scared and kept tugging at her clothes.
The disciples' robes of the Misty Sect were made of plain gauze and brocade, which had excellent elasticity and could change size according to the wearer. Lin Yueyao did not care how the clothes were being pulled. Feeling the force of the clothes falling down, she said, "Since you are afraid, then close your eyes."
A demonic figure let out a wicked laugh, circling around Lin Yueyao. She unleashed her "Quest for Love" sword, its blade clanging loudly.
The evil spirits were slain by the sharp blades, but they kept regrouping.
Although they handled it with ease, these were all small fry; once one was eliminated, countless others would take its place.
Outnumbered and outgunned, they cannot hold out for long.
Concerned for her master, she arrived quickly, but before the sect's reinforcements could arrive, she was left alone and helpless.
The child knew he was useless, so he could only hold on tightly, which hindered Lin Yueyao's ability to move.
Dark clouds rolled across the horizon, accompanied by thunder and lightning. Lin Yueyao moved slowly, gathering her spiritual power. The power of her Asking Love Sword surged, increasing tenfold, and the demonic shadow floating in mid-air was instantly shattered into dust by the sword energy.
This attack did indeed cause the demonic shadow to restrain itself somewhat. Soon after, it sprang up again like bamboo shoots after a spring rain, hovering in the sky and obscuring the sun.
Now surrounded by enemies, Lin Yueyao was preoccupied with her own problems and unable to fully defend herself with the child by her side.
A demon swooped down, and Lin Yueyao, sword in hand, cleaved it in two with a single strike. The two halves fell to the ground and vanished into black smoke.
Another one attacked from behind when she was off guard. Lin Yueyao drew her sword to deal with it, but the demon still managed to sneak up on her.
Her neck, from the back to her throat, was scratched by sharp claws, and bright red blood seeped from the wounds.
The child was terrified; his face turned deathly pale, and he tried his best to suppress his cries.
"Cry if you want to, because you won't have time to cry later."
Upon hearing this, the child's fear intensified.
Lin Yueyao remained calm and composed, repeatedly forcing back the evil spirits, and managed to hold out for so long all by herself.
Just as they were overwhelmed, the demonic figure made its move, and the child was terrified, closing his eyes.
"Clang—" The arrow blocked the fatal blow, and Song Qingyun, holding the Moon Chasing Bow, descended from the clouds.
"Junior Sister Yueyao!" Ten arrows were fired simultaneously, raining down and carving a bloody path. Song Qingyun landed steadily beside Lin Yueyao. "Are you injured?"
The senior brother saw it all and felt a pang of pain in his heart. He clicked his tongue inwardly, blaming himself for arriving too late.
"It's just a minor injury, Senior Brother, you're overthinking it." She tore off a piece of her sleeve and wrapped it around the wound to prevent excessive blood loss.
"Senior brother—" Junior sister called from afar. Song Qingyun knew something was wrong. He nocked his bow and arrow, drew the bowstring taut, and shot out streaks of arrows to clear a path for his junior sister.
Lingfang landed steadily beside the three of them, her face beaming with joy. "Senior brother didn't even wait for me." The junior sister affectionately tugged at his sleeve, but he tore off the hand that was sticking to him as usual. The junior sister was all grown up now and he couldn't keep pulling her like that.
Song Qingyun looked displeased, but softened his tone slightly, "This place is dangerous and we shouldn't stay here long. What are you doing here? Go back quickly."
"I don't want to," the junior sister pouted, "Why can senior brother come, but I can't?"
Song Qingyun had no choice but to patiently explain, "I'm worried about Junior Sister Yueyao."
“I’m worried about my senior brother too.” Lingfang’s gaze fell on Lin Yueyao, sweeping over her with disdain. “She doesn’t need my senior brother. He should take care of me.”
"What time is it? They still have time to flirt and banter." Lin Yueyao found it so noisy that she had a headache.
Things are different now. Song Qingyun used to spoil her, but now it's a matter of life and death. If there's a slight mistake, her head will roll. So he shut his mouth and said no more.
The junior sister, having made a fool of herself, snorted a few times and glared at Lin Yueyao.
The child, caught in the middle, was young but not stupid. He was completely bewildered by the relationship between the three, and as an outsider, he could barely sense the malice the pretty girl harbored towards the older woman in red.
The thought that he had been holding onto the other person's clothes the whole time made him want to let go, and he was even more afraid of the flying monsters. His hesitant look was seen by Lingfang, who looked at his silly appearance and felt even more disdain.
The Moon Chasing Bow wiped out half of the demons, but returned a moment later.
The sheer number of demons was intended to trap them. Lin Yueyao realized something was wrong and threw out the Questioning Sword. The Questioning Sword conjured countless sword shadows, the sharp light shattering the demon shadows into dust. The demon shadows hovering in the sky let out painful roars, then, like willows swaying in a gentle breeze, they fluttered to the ground and turned into bubbles.
"Senior brother." Her voice was cold, but her face showed no sign of distress. She sheathed her sword at her waist and said, "Protect me."
Song Qingyun roused himself, sat cross-legged on the spot, and placed the Moon Chasing Bow flat on the ground, shimmering with light.
The junior sister reluctantly sat down, formed hand seals, and began casting a spell.
Lin Yueyao drew her sword, Wenqing, and plunged into the horde of demonic figures. She killed anyone who stood in her way and vanquished every demon she saw. In just a short while, she had lured the demonic figures into her territory.
"Heaven and earth, yin and yang, boundless universe. The demon-slaying formation is activated, and evil spirits are shunned."
Thousands of demons were lured into the formation. As the formation was activated, the sunlight intensified, becoming as bright as day. Under the hazy sky, everyone's attention was drawn to the light in the center of the formation.
"Bang--"
An explosion rang out, and in an instant, the demonic figure trapped in the formation had nowhere to escape and vanished into nothingness.
The eerie laughter in his ears abruptly ceased, replaced by gasps of amazement from the people.
Lin Yueyao landed gracefully, her hair slightly disheveled, and traces of blood seeping from the plain gauze wrapped around her neck. Her expression was calm as she gazed at the lingering gloom in the sky.
Who is behind this?
"Junior Sister Yueyao." Song Qingyun rushed forward, followed by a child. Lingfang immediately followed and shooed the troublesome little brat aside, "Go away, don't block your senior brother."
"Are you alright?" Song Qingyun's words were full of concern. Lingfang felt a pang of jealousy. "Why didn't my senior brother ask me anything?"
"Senior brother is so biased." Lingfang was unhappy, feeling a pang of bitterness in her heart. She turned to the side, pouted, and waited for her senior brother to coax her.
“Junior Sister Yueyao is seriously injured, and it is perfectly reasonable for me to care about her. This has nothing to do with favoritism.”
"Enough." Lin Yueyao was too lazy to listen to the two arguing. Looking at the dark clouds in the sky, she seemed about to relapse.
Now is not the time for idle chatter. We've been trapped here for so long, killing wave after wave of monsters. The most important thing now is how to escape.
The immortal sects and the demon races had been at peace for ten years, which had fostered a lazy attitude. The group was trapped here, surrounded by enemies, and wasting precious time.
Lin Yueyao snatched the Moon Chasing Bow directly, and under Song Qingyun's astonished gaze, she straightened the bowstring, fired an arrow, pierced through the thick clouds, and brought the sun to the horizon.
Bright sunlight streamed down, and the dark clouds that had enveloped the earth gradually dissipated.
The people, with tears in their eyes, clapped and cheered.
Just as they were overjoyed, dark clouds swept in again, carrying with them eerie, cold laughter.
"Not bad."
Everyone tensed up; the Sword of Inquiry was burning hot, just like its owner. The little boy instinctively grabbed Lin Yueyao's hand, feeling its scalding body temperature.
In an instant, the mountains and rivers were reversed, and the shadows obscured their vision, forcing the four people into a state of blindness.
They couldn't see or touch anything, caught in a mystery. In their panic, they touched each other; the child held onto her hand tightly. Lingfang hugged Song Qingyun's arm contentedly.
The four of them held each other tightly without saying a word. Song Qingyun took a deep breath and steadied himself. "Don't let go."
They remained motionless. The wickedly grinning monster, presumably the leader, coiled among them like a snake, exhaling a chilling aura that made Lingfang tremble and almost drop her grip.
Song Qingyun held her down, and the junior sister was both happy and embarrassed, feeling that the suffering was worth it.
Seeing that the four were putting on a brave face, the leader took the initiative to attack Song Qingyun.
Helpless, Song Qingyun had to divide his attention to deal with the situation. In this environment, the Moon Chasing Bow became useless, and the evil spirits in the shadows were like castles in the air, difficult to trace.
While holding the bow in defense, he realized that there was nothing on either side of him, that he had been tricked by the monster, and that he had been separated from the three of them for a long time.
"Senior brother, senior brother, senior brother." Lingfang's voice trembled at the end. She didn't know when her senior brother had disappeared. In her confusion, she was grabbed by a hot hand.
Feeling the soft, calloused palms, Lingfang stubbornly said, "I don't need your kindness."
"good."
Lin Yueyao let go decisively, and a girl's startled cry came from the darkness beside her, before she vanished in an instant.
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