Grass Baby
The second vertebra?!
Having figured this out, Shui Buyun seized the opportunity to use the force against him, his figure sweeping across the ruins. Xiu Shen's scarlet eyes narrowed, and in his pupils, Shui Buyun's longsword drew a sharp, cold light.
Ding! Bang!
Xiu Shen almost caught Shui Buyun, but Shui Buyun, having failed in his attack, used the momentum to leap up. Xiu Shen looked up, but his blade was a step too slow. Shui Buyun's cold eyes were fixed on his back when a sword suddenly appeared.
The sword strike was swift and ruthless, piercing his second vertebrae with perfect accuracy.
Xiu Shen's pupils suddenly contracted, and the veins on his body bulged. The next moment, his demonic power surged, and he blasted Shui Buyun back.
With a thud, the long sword fell to the ground, and his body began to convulse uncontrollably until his knees buckled and he knelt on the ground.
Shui Buyun wiped the blood from his lips, watched as Xiu Shen slowly raised his head, seemingly glancing in his direction, and his lips twitched slightly.
"...Thank you."
call--
The mountain wind howled, catching him completely off guard. Before Shui could react, a blue-green figure swept past him, followed by a flash of sword light.
Whoosh, ding!
The man staggered back a step, his gray robe flicking helplessly. He had been very thin before due to his unhealed injuries, and now he was even more emaciated.
His withered hand retracted the cold, icy sleeve chain, and his sword, Chenyun, hung at his waist, as if he had been shaken unsteadily by the force of the previous impact.
Within sight, there was no trace of Shui Buyun, and even Fuyi, who had just received the Sleeve Flying Chain, was nowhere to be found.
He gave a silent, eerie laugh, "Fuyi, Fuyi!"
After saying that, he slowly walked up to Xiu Shen. If he didn't know how much of Xiu Shen's consciousness had been taken away by the Gu before, he should know now.
Otherwise, how could Shui Buyun have killed him so easily?
No, it's about freeing him from this predicament.
Gui Sang knelt on one knee and gently closed Xiu Shen's not-yet-fully-closed eyes.
"Don't worry, it'll be over soon..." He chuckled self-deprecatingly after saying that, adding, "Probably..."
The birds took flight in fright, and two figures moved swiftly through the woods. If Shui Buyun hadn't recognized Fuyi, he might have struck her with his sword.
But before he could speak, Fuyi spoke up, "It was Shuhui who sent a message asking me to stop you."
Upon hearing Shu Huixin's name, Shui Buyun instantly wilted and followed Fuyi obediently like a quail.
Boom—
Suddenly, an untimely, slight tremor came from the precipitous peaks. The tremor was strange, as if some huge thing was about to overturn the mountains.
Kou Qiyu, Lan Fengguang, and She Liuying rushed to the courtyard first. Mie Chenhuan sat up on the roof with a start. Le Qing, Xiao Cangdao, and Xiao Feilian appeared from inside the house at the same time.
Everyone felt a sudden, inexplicable panic, as if something was about to happen.
This feeling... is really bad! Mie Chenhuan frowned, gripped the hilt of his knife tightly, and the eyes on his head darted around.
The western mountains faced the direction of Yanshi Ridge. Xiao Litian looked solemn. With a cry of an eagle, another person appeared beside him.
"What happened over there?" Yingmou's face was gloomy.
Xiao Litian shook his head, unsure, "I don't feel well."
No sooner had the words left his mouth than the mountains beneath his feet trembled with another thunderous roar.
The earth roared, as if in sorrow or weeping.
A large flock of birds scattered in panic, flying off to all corners of the world. Inside Yanshi Ridge, the group of half-dead demon corpses suddenly became restless.
The demon corpses near the cave entrance scattered. Deep inside the cave, the Gu Queen felt the ground tremble slightly, and an indescribable, chilling, and evil force surged out from within the cave. The Gu Queen subconsciously took a step back.
Immediately following, a giant wave of eerie green liquid surged forth, eventually coalescing into a weapon resembling a knife, a hook, and a claw, which slammed into the ground.
From the depths of the pitch-black cave, a figure vaguely appeared, sweeping out along with the chilling, malevolent aura.
The Gu Queen hastily retreated, but in the blink of an eye, the person appeared next to the strange weapon and casually pulled it out.
"From now on, this will be my weapon, unbreakable and resilient."
His voice was low and hoarse, carrying a hint of vicissitude and weariness. As he walked out of the deep cave, the ground behind him suddenly collapsed, raising clouds of dust.
The Gu Queen had already left the deep cave and was standing under a withered old tree half a zhang away. Thick smoke billowed out and was dispersed by a gust of wind. The sunlight fell at an inopportune moment, illuminating her tall figure amidst the flying dust. A trace of death flashed in her dark eyes as she met the warm sun. Scars from burns she had suffered as a human were still visible on her forehead and left cheek.
Wang Rongku greedily basked in the sunlight, took a deep breath, and finally came back to life. No, he had just been asleep for too long.
"The Queen of Gu." Wang Rongku's gaze shifted towards the treacherous peaks. "Let's go."
As soon as he finished speaking, he vanished without a trace.
In an instant, the bright blue sky was covered with dark clouds.
A deathly silence, like the end of the world, hung over Qiling Mountain.
"Ren Xiangxiang!" Mo You grabbed Ren Xiangxiang, who was about to escape. "Have you thought this through? How do you plan to escape? Are you really going to give up halfway and abandon everything?"
"Then what should I do?" Ren Xiangxiang cried bitterly, ignoring the Fire Scorpion Consort present, and shouted loudly, "Am I supposed to kill Caowa with my own hands? Caowa is Yingzhongzhen! Caowa, it is what I need Yingzhongzhen, do you understand? Do you realize? You want me to kill it, you want me to—"
Fire Scorpion Consort was instantly enraged, "What did you say? What do you want? You want to kill Grass Boy? What Shadow Within a Shadow? What exactly is going on?"
After saying all this, the pent-up resentment, anger, and despair that had been suppressed in her chest for so long could no longer be contained. "I can't do it, I really can't. He's a grass child! He depends on me so much and likes me, how could I... how could I... I can't do it..."
"What about Qiling Mountain?" Mo You's voice softened unconsciously, but every word he uttered was like a knife, piercing deep into Ren Xiangxiang's heart. "Have you thought about Qiling Mountain? Have you thought about Lei Gong? What about those who died in battle, your father, my sister, and so many others who sacrificed their lives for the demonic Gu? What will happen to them?"
Ren Xiangxiang was stunned, her eyes filled with tears as she looked at the seemingly calm young man in black before her.
"If the Gu King is resurrected, will he spare Qiling Mountain? Will he spare your friends and family on Qiling Mountain? You can't escape, but what about them? We've already come this far, do you think there's any way out?"
Every word was piercing and heart-wrenching.
Fire Scorpion Consort was stunned. She subconsciously said, "Since demonic Gu is so troublesome, perhaps..."
“No, Sister Fei…” Ren Xiangxiang shook her head in anguish, “What… what should I do?”
"Xiangxiang..." Mo You held Ren Xiangxiang's shoulders, letting her cry her heart out, "I'm sorry...we...we don't have much time left..."
The grass child inside the Yin-Yang Pass of the Underworld could clearly see everything outside, and he suddenly became quiet, having been jumping around all the time.
“Grass Child…” Si Xie was about to speak when Ming Tu stopped her and shook his head.
"Father, Mother," Caowa's voice was hollow, "Am I... really the Yingzhongzhen that Xiangxiang spoke of?"
Si Xie gritted his teeth, but before he could speak, Ming Tu interrupted him, "You have a choice. Stay here, and no one can hurt you."
Caowa smiled silently, looked up at Ren Xiangxiang's desperate and helpless reflection in the mirror, and muttered to himself, "That's it."
After saying that, he lifted his foot and walked outside.
"Grass Child—" Si Xie cried out in desperation, "You can't go! She wants your life! Your true form is the eye on your forehead!"
"Yes, I know." Caowa nodded, but did not turn around.
"Grass Doll—" Si Xie rushed forward, but Ming Tu pulled her back from behind.
"What are you doing? Are you really going to just watch him go and die? He's just a child, what does he know? How could he—"
"But that was his choice." Ming Tu suppressed his grief, looking up at the blue sky, white clouds, birdsong, and fragrant flowers that they had conjured with magic. After Caowa left, the place returned to darkness.
"We are powerless to change this." Ming Tu's voice echoed for a long time, mixed with Si Xie's sobs.
"Grass Child...my child..."
Caowa walked very fast, but when he was almost at the cave entrance, he suddenly slowed down. He looked back and his face was already wet with tears.
"Xiangxiang!"
Ren Xiangxiang felt utterly hopeless. She was afraid that time was passing too quickly, yet also afraid that it was passing too slowly. She knew she had reasons she couldn't escape.
"Think of your master. She's still waiting for you to return to Qiling Mountain. Are you really going to give up like this? You—"
“I can’t do it…” Ren Xiangxiang shook her head desperately. “Shadow in the shadows…” “Let’s think of another way? Maybe Master will have another way? It doesn’t have to be the real one! Mo You, I beg you… let me, let me…”
"Xiangxiang".
A clear voice suddenly came from behind, startling everyone present.
"Grass Boy, why are you out here?" Fire Scorpion Queen took a step forward, trying to stop Grass Boy from coming over, but Grass Boy shook his head and walked past her.
"Xiangxiang, I knew you would come looking for me."
Caowa skipped and hopped over to Ren Xiangxiang. At that moment, Ren Xiangxiang's heart felt as if it had been torn to pieces, each piece filled with despair.
She wanted Caowa to go back.
She wanted to make it seem as if she had never met Caowa.
She wanted the past to vanish like smoke.
She wanted to disappear on the spot.
"Xiangxiang, don't cry." Caowa gently cupped her tear-streaked face as she shook her head desperately; she was crying so hard she couldn't utter a single word.
"No..." Ren Xiangxiang wanted to push him away from a distance. She could not, and should not, use these hands to take Caowa's life.
"I heard everything." Caowa gently wiped away her tears. "I'm so happy to have met Xiangxiang."
"No..." Overwhelming despair suffocated her, her heart screaming wildly, "Why did I come out? Why didn't I leave? Why couldn't I selfishly live on? Why?"
"If my life could save many, many people, I would give it to you." Caowa said each word with utmost seriousness.
"I'm willing to give you my eyes, Xiangxiang."
"don't want……"
"Grass Boy!" In her haste, Fire Scorpion Consort almost attacked, but fortunately Qiong Ming appeared in time to stop her.
"What are you doing? They want the baby..."
"If you want to stop Caowa, Master and Mistress have plenty of ways," Qiongming said calmly, his gaze shifting towards the Underworld and the Gate of Heaven.
Fire Scorpion Queen was speechless, "How is this possible... how..."
"I only have one request." Caowa closed his eyes, his figure fading away. Ren Xiangxiang reached out to grab him, but grasped only air. "No Caowa! No! No—"
"We must kill the demon...and...protect everyone in the valley...my most important family..."
"No, no—"
Ren Xiangxiang desperately grabbed at the fallen straws, trying to piece the straw doll back together.
"No, Grass Boy, no no no no... Ahhhhhh..."
The straw covering the ground was dazzling, leaving only the eyes of the straw doll in the sky. It slowly emerged and finally crashed into Ren Xiangxiang's arms without hesitation.
"Caowa likes...Xiangxiang..."
She seemed to hear the Grass Child's soft laughter again. Ren Xiangxiang looked around blankly. Fire Scorpion Consort, Qiongming, Moyou... so many people. A gust of wind rose, blowing the straw all over the sky. Ren Xiangxiang wanted to grab them all in her hands, wanting the Grass Child to come back.
My mind is blank; even my memories seem unreal. What is she doing? Why is she here?
she……
Her tears had dried, leaving only hoarse cries; she seemed to realize that she had lost something very important... or perhaps a person...
Or... even that heart...
The world spun around, and all things fell silent.
Why is this happening?
"Xiangxiang!!!"
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