Chapter 89 The person coming towards us was actually Ji Fuguang…
Inside the Palace of Eternal Night, there was a deathly silence, like that of a tomb.
The ghostly blue soul fire in the center of the altar had been completely extinguished, leaving only cold ashes and the lingering stench of blood in the air.
Ji Fuguang slumped on the edge of the altar, his back against the cold stone seat engraved with strange runes, motionless.
Overnight, his ink-black hair turned completely white, falling down his still handsome but bloodless face, creating a chilling and eerie scene.
The burning pain on his shoulder from the sword energy of the immortals, the stabbing pain from the unhealed sword wound in his heart, and the dull pain in his soul from the backlash of the forbidden technique... all these physical pains combined are far less than one ten-thousandth of the pain caused by the image that repeatedly appeared in his sea of consciousness.
The image seemed to have taken root, constantly drilling into his brain.
By the stream, on blue stones, in the warm sunshine.
That figure in pure white, that... dazzlingly bright smile.
There was no gloom, no reluctance, only vitality and freshness—the light I regained after leaving him.
"Heh..." A very soft breath escaped from his pale lips, carrying a deep sense of self-mockery. The strength he thought he had, the control he thought he had, he even... had pathetically harbored a sliver of delusion that she might still hold some old affection for him, all of which was shattered in this moment by that smile.
Everything he firmly believed in—power, authority, and even the "heartfelt joy" she had once spoken of—turned out to be incredibly fragile.
"It's not true..."
A faint yet persistent voice emerged from the darkest corner of his heart, like a poisonous vine, quickly entwining his sanity on the verge of collapse.
"That must be an illusion...it's interference from this forbidden technique...or she deliberately created it to annoy me..."
"How could she... how could she possibly be better off without me?"
Refusing to accept reality is a more terrifying emotion than anger and despair.
The extreme frustration began to mutate, fermenting into a paranoid, frantic desire for proof. He couldn't accept that he had become a complete joke; he had to prove it with his own eyes, to shatter the illusion that was causing him so much pain, or... to tear apart that obstructive peace with his own hands and bring her back to his side.
In the lifeless eyes, light slowly rekindled, but that light was cold, mad, and reckless.
He slowly stood up, his white hair cascading down like a waterfall.
The intense pain in his soul caused him to sway slightly, but he forced himself to steady himself, taking each step with exceptional firmness as he walked toward the gates of the Eternal Night Palace.
The heavy palace doors opened silently before him, and the demon guards kneeling outside sensed the unusual aura mixed with death and madness, which froze them in fear, causing them to bury their heads even lower.
"Summon all demon generals to the main hall for a meeting."
His voice was hoarse, yet it carried an undeniable resolve.
The main hall was filled with a sinister aura.
Upon hearing Ji Fuguang's calm yet earth-shattering command, all the demon generals were horrified.
"Your Majesty..." A demon general knelt down first, his voice trembling with fear, "Activate the 'Nine Netherworld Array'? This array requires the Blood Jade Soul Crystals accumulated by our clan over a thousand years as its foundation, and even more... even more, it requires the sacrifice of the souls of ten thousand elite demon soldiers as a catalyst to forcibly tear apart the spatial barrier and trace a specific soul! This will not only exhaust our clan's resources, but will also trigger a backlash from the laws of heaven and earth, and the location of the Demon Palace will be completely exposed to the immortals! At that time, the immortal army will press in, and our clan's foundation may be destroyed in an instant!"
Another demon general kowtowed and said, "Your Majesty, to gamble the fate of your entire clan for a woman, is that... is that too much to ask..."
"Is it worth it?" Ji Fuguang finished his sentence for him.
He sat high on the throne of the Demon Lord, his hair as white as snow, his face calm, only his unfathomable eyes gleaming with a chilling light.
His phoenix eyes slowly swept over the kneeling figures below, his tone indifferent as if discussing a trivial matter: "Establishment? Destiny?"
Now, when he hears these words again, he can't help but laugh.
Ji Fuguang chuckled softly, the sound echoing in the empty hall, carrying a hint of madness and suicidal madness.
Suddenly, his eyes turned cold. Without him making any move, the two demon generals who had just questioned him let out two shrill screams. Their entire bodies were crushed as if by an invisible force, instantly exploding into a cloud of blood mist, their souls scattered.
"You two will become the first wisp of divine soul in the sacrificial array."
A strong stench of blood filled the air.
Ji Fuguang's voice remained calm, yet colder than ten-thousand-year-old ice: "I am not asking for your opinions, but giving you an order, understand?"
Absolute silence enveloped the hall. All the demons understood that the Demon Lord had gone completely mad, and any attempt to dissuade him would be futile and would only lead to destruction.
The demon generals kowtowed deeply, their voices bitter: "...Your subordinates obey."
The entire Demon Palace began operating frantically, with countless blood jades being transported from the secret vault and piled up at the pre-designated array points. The chosen soldiers were assembled in a daze. Above the Demon Palace, the already gloomy sky became even more somber.
The Nine Netherworld Thunder was gathering power in the clouds, its intense energy causing strong fluctuations in the surrounding atmosphere. The world was shrouded in darkness, and day and night had lost their meaning.
Ji Fuguang stood in the center of the great formation, his white hair flying wildly in the chaotic demonic energy. His face was as pale as paper, and a trace of blood remained at the corner of his mouth. Countless tiny bolts of lightning flickered around him, and his hands were covered with fine burns, but he seemed oblivious, simply tilting his head back to look at the thick bolt of spiritual lightning above him.
Finally, at the moment the last blood jade was thrown into the great formation, the heavens and earth roared with wind and thunder, lightning flashed and thunder roared, and a huge wave of spiritual energy swept out in all directions like a tsunami, causing the entire cultivation world to shake and be uneasy.
The divine lightning from the heavens gathered and coiled in the clouds, and the space above the Demon Palace began to show clear cracks, like fragile glass.
Without hesitation, Ji Fuguang stretched out his arm, and a large amount of blood rushed upward against the current, turning into a blood arrow, attempting to summon lightning to descend to earth.
"Boom—!"
Finally, the Nine Heavens Spiritual Thunder was attracted by the intense demonic energy in the blood, and a beam of light roared down from above. The entire formation flickered with light and electricity, transmitting countless pieces of information hidden in the laws of heaven and earth.
Ji Fuguang closed his eyes. Among all the messages that came his way, he only needed one thing: the location of Sheng Zhiyi.
No...no...
Why?
Why can't I find her?
Could it be... could it be that she is no longer alive...?
This thought was like a sharp blade, piercing Ji Fuguang's heart. He felt a sweet taste in his mouth and suddenly spat out blood from his chest, staining his lips red with blood.
Attracted by the demonic energy contained in the blood, the spiritual lightning suddenly grew stronger, its light intensifying as it leaped and flickered around Ji Fuguang.
Suddenly, he caught an extremely subtle message; this familiar aura was coming from an extremely distant and secretive direction!
The Demon Realm's Forbidden Land, Haiyaoyue!
The moment he succeeded, the Immortal Clan's long-awaited attack, like a cascading waterfall, crashed down on the Demon Palace's crumbling defensive array.
The deafening explosion resounded through the sky.
Amidst the violent tremors, Ji Fuguang looked up at Hai Yaoyue's direction, a crazed and obsessive smile curving his bloodied lips.
"I've found you."
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Sheng Zhiyi was pulled into the river by the huge suction force. The expected feeling of drowning did not come. Instead, it was as if she passed through a layer of icy water and fell into a completely new world.
She found herself standing on a bustling street, surrounded by people coming and going, with the sounds of vendors hawking their wares, laughter, and carriages filling the air. The warm sunlight shone down on her, carrying the unique warmth of everyday life.
"This is...an illusion?"
Sheng Zhiyi gripped the sword hilt warily, her brows furrowed in confusion; it all seemed unbelievably real.
But passersby seemed completely oblivious to her presence; not a single person looked at her.
After observing for a moment, Sheng Zhiyi walked up to a stall and tentatively asked, "Brother?"
The vendor, who was trying to attract passersby with his sugar paintings, ignored her words and showed no reaction whatsoever.
Sheng Zhiyi took a few steps back and stood in the middle of the road, and passersby walked straight through her.
She suddenly realized that this river did not record the real present, but rather fragments of time that had happened in the past. These images were the imprints left by countless living beings in this world.
But if that's the case, she can only be an observer here. How can she leave?
While pondering, I slowly walked forward along the street.
This was indeed a place she had never seen before, but judging from the attire of the passersby, it must be a bustling and prosperous town.
The streets were bustling, and after searching for a while without finding anything unusual, she continued forward with the flow of people.
She walked through the city walls built of massive stones and left the town.
The further they walked, the fewer people they saw. Sheng Zhiyi stopped, secretly hesitating whether to turn back to the town.
Just then, two figures walked towards them from the opposite direction.
Just as Sheng Zhiyi was about to step forward for a closer look, she froze upon seeing one of the people's faces and instinctively hid behind a tree.
Approaching them was none other than Ji Fuguang!
As her fingers passed through the tree trunk, she suddenly realized that she was in an illusion, and the person who had come was not Ji Fuguang himself, but just an afterimage of him.
Her heart was pounding, and Sheng Zhiyi chuckled to herself, thinking that her reaction was a bit too much.
She teleported here using spatial magic, so Ji Fuguang would never find her. Moreover, Haiyaoyue is a forbidden area of the Demon Clan, and even as the Demon Lord, Ji Fuguang cannot easily come here.
Right now, the battle between immortals and demons is raging, and she is nothing more than a plaything for Ji Fuguang to manipulate. Without her, Ji Fuguang can easily find some more puppets with just a flick of his finger.
How could I possibly infiltrate Hai Yaoyue's illusion?
Only after thinking this through did she regain her composure. Just then, the two people slowly walked over, and Sheng Zhiyi looked up to observe them carefully.
Ji Fuguang was still dressed as a white-robed cultivator. The woman standing next to him had a slender figure, with layers of lotus-colored ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress) and a belt tied below her chest, which made her look even taller and more graceful.
"Senior sister, Ning'an City is just ahead. We just had a fierce battle with that monster. Why don't we go into the city to rest for a while?"
Ji Fuguang smiled gently, his voice soft and slow.
Sheng Zhiyi hadn't seen Ji Fuguang like this in a long time.
Inside the Demon Palace, Ji Fuguang seemed to have completely torn off his disguise. He always had a cold expression, and his occasional smiles were tinged with contempt.
For a moment, she was stunned.
Upon hearing this, the senior sister dressed in a ruqun paused slightly and stopped by the roadside.
Ji Fuguang seemed a little puzzled, but he also stopped.
He looked over calmly, his face showing a hint of gentleness and concern, quietly waiting for what would follow.
The senior sister took a deep breath and exhaled softly. Her eyelashes trembled slightly, and she lowered her eyes slightly.
Seeing this, Sheng Zhiyi felt a slight stirring in her heart and roughly guessed what she was going to say.
Sure enough, the senior sister looked up, her voice trembling slightly.
"These past few days, as we went down the mountain to exorcise demons, you have taken good care of me in every way, and today you even risked your life to protect me..."
Ji Fuguang's arm was indeed wrapped in bandages, with faint traces of blood showing through.
"I have long since fallen for you... I wonder if you feel the same way about me..."
Her words were interrupted by a soft laugh. Ji Fuguang's face still held a gentle smile, like a spring breeze caressing her face and willows swaying in the breeze.
"Senior sister, don't you find what you're saying... ridiculous?"
Before the woman could say anything, Ji Fuguang's spiritual power suddenly surged.
The senior sister looked down, staring incredulously at her chest.
Fresh blood gushed out, slowly staining the lotus-colored ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress) red.
Standing behind the tree, Sheng Zhiyi looked at the smile on Ji Fuguang's lips and suddenly remembered what Ji Fuguang had said that day:
"That's how I snapped my adoptive parents' necks, killed my senior sister who was confessing her love, and pierced through my elders who were giving me earnest advice."
But just now... she clearly saw...
The senior sister's fingers, hidden behind her back, had already formed a deadly magic seal.
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