A throbbing heart hangs above the red, dark river.
The black lines rose and fell continuously, and the enormous heart stretched and contracted in mid-air, making a huge sound, as if the underground river below was flowing and boiling under its sound.
Qi Nuan stared at the enormous heart; they all knew that the core source was hidden inside.
However, they did not act rashly.
The calmer the exterior, the more unknown traps are hidden beneath.
Countless steam gushed upwards from the red underground river.
It seemed to foreshadow the unrest that was about to come.
In an instant, thousands of strange beasts rose from the river, each with a different shape and a ferocious expression, seemingly harboring the stench of blood, and stirring restlessly high in the sky.
The thumping of his heart grew increasingly rapid.
No, that's not the sound of a huge heartbeat above the dark river, but the individual heartbeats of Qi Nuan and the others.
In a short while, their throats felt as if they were being squeezed tightly, making it increasingly difficult to breathe, and their hearts pounded incessantly in their chests, as if they were about to leap out of their chests at any moment.
Cold sweat beaded on her forehead. Song Ning bit her red lips and swiftly and viciously slashed her palm with the dagger in her hand, instantly drawing blood.
The red light reflected in Jiang Yu's eyes, and a dark glint flashed in his usually cold eyes. His fingers gripping the longsword unconsciously tightened, but he quickly regained his composure.
A blood bead as red as ink slowly rose from Qi Nuan's palm, radiating an eerie light in the high sky. At the same time, Ye Sheng, enduring the discomfort in his chest, took out a black scimitar and leaped to stab the giant heart above the dark river.
Just as she made her move, the strange beast in the sky launched an attack on Qi Nuan and the others, its gentle, red blood transforming into the hardest weapons, which it fired at them at lightning speed.
Qi Nuan quickly took out her bow and arrows, and while dodging, she kept shooting arrows into the sky to cover Ye Sheng's movements.
Gu Yucheng looked at Jiang Yu, and there was nothing he didn't understand. They had recovered their spiritual power because of that blood bead, something they had never seen before.
Under the influence of the blood beads, their divine power is slowly recovering.
What's this?
Gu Yucheng was astonished that even their divine power could be restored, and most importantly, they could withstand the will of Heaven.
Jiang Yu did not respond to his question, but simply raised the divine staff in his hand to deflect the attacks around him. However, he did not attack the strange beasts on the dark river. Gu Yucheng did not know whether it was because he was unwilling to help them or because their intervention would bring them greater difficulties.
All he could do was follow orders blindly.
He looked up at the people high in the sky, a worry flashing in his eyes that even he himself was unaware of.
The closer Ye Sheng got to her heart, the faster her heartbeat became, and the more difficult it was to breathe. The blood in her heart was flowing rapidly through her body, and she could feel her consciousness fading, but she could not give up.
Sharp teeth pierced her lips, bringing her a moment of clarity. With renewed vigor, she charged towards her heart...
Unfortunately, the scimitar in her hand failed to pierce the flesh of the enormous heart; instead, the heart, which had suddenly swelled to a tremendous size, was thrown away by the force of the impact.
"ah……"
Before the others could react, Ye Sheng plummeted to the ground with a scream. Qi Nuan and Gu Yucheng, who had been watching Ye Sheng closely, leaped up and caught her as she fell.
With just one glance, Gu Yucheng felt a surge of anger and heartache, but he was quickly pushed away from Qi Nuan.
Her voice was icy cold. "Get out of the way."
Before my eyes was Ye Sheng's face, corroded by blood to the point of revealing bone. The immense pain caused her features to contort in agony, but apart from that initial scream, she uttered no further groans. The dark red blood continued to spread outwards, corroding her precious flesh.
Without a moment's hesitation, Qi Nuan swiftly and fiercely shaved away the rotten flesh on Ye Sheng's face with the dagger in her hand, and then placed her already injured left hand near Ye Sheng's mouth.
Ye Sheng had lost consciousness from the pain, and only the instinct for survival compelled her to suck the blood from her mouth.
Bright red blood flowed continuously from her palm into Ye Sheng's mouth.
Only after Qi Nuan's face turned pale and her lips lost all color did the flesh on Ye Sheng's face slowly grow back.
Pushed aside, Gu Yucheng picked up his longsword and shielded the two behind him, wielding it continuously and channeling all his anger into the incoming attack. The two collided in mid-air and vanished into nothingness.
His hands kept moving, but his eyes were fixed on the heart high in the sky.
After Ye Sheng was placed in a safe location by Qi Nuan, he tried to get up and fly towards his heart, but was stopped by Jiang Yu.
Gu Yucheng looked at Jiang Yu with an unreadable expression in his eyes. Although he regarded Jiang Yu as his leader, he was not afraid of him.
Anger and a vague sense of regret began to fester in his heart, constantly eroding his reason.
He looked at Jiang Yu, who was surrounded by countless grotesque and monstrous beasts. Jiang Yu held up his divine staff to defend against the attacks from behind, his calm face showing neither anger nor joy, making it impossible to discern his current expression.
Gu Yucheng knew he was trying to stop him.
The two looked at each other, the meaning of their gazes known only to themselves.
Gu Yucheng turned around and saw Qi Nuan coldly staring at Jiang Yu. The person in front of him twitched slightly.
Gu Yucheng suddenly laughed, his smile wicked.
"If it were her who were injured, what would the Divine Lord Xihe do?"
All three of them knew what he meant. He didn't know what Xihe Shenjun was thinking, but as an observer, he knew all too well how much Xihe Shenjun cared about Qi Nuan.
But today, he absolutely has to destroy this heart.
Jiang Yu saw the determination in his eyes, but did not answer him. She simply turned her body slightly to the side, tacitly approving of his actions.
After he flew away, Jiang Yu walked to Qi Nuan's side, slammed his staff into the ground, and a transparent protective shield rose up around them.
As time went on, their divine power recovered more and more, while Qi Nuan and the others became weaker.
Qi Nuan's face was excessively pale. Due to excessive blood loss and internal injuries, her physical condition was no better than that of the unconscious Ye Sheng, so she did not try to be brave.
She simply watched quietly as Gu Yucheng battled with his own heart.
A warm current flowed from her palm; it was Jiang Yu healing her wounds, and Qi Nuan did not refuse.
"Give up, for no one can enter the void."
His voice rang in her ears, somewhat ethereal and indistinct.
They were all in a sorry state and had no strength left to fight. All four of them were now perfectly clear that they would not kill them, but they would not help them either.
Should they give up? Qi Nuan thought that they had no way back, and entering the void was their only belief and the driving force for their survival.
But do they really want to enter the void? Perhaps even they themselves don't know.
Qi Nuan let go of his hand, walked to Ye Sheng's side, picked her up, and brushed the stray hairs from her face. Her face had recovered completely and she was still as beautiful as ever. Ye Sheng's brows were furrowed, and she was not sleeping soundly even in her sleep.
She held Ye Sheng's hand tightly, and the slightly warm touch gradually made Ye Sheng relax.
She looked past Jiang Yu and up at Gu Yucheng high in the sky, and suddenly made a decision in her heart.
The thumping of their hearts echoed through the four of them, growing increasingly rapid, as if they were sharing a single sense.
Ye Sheng, who was in a coma, suddenly opened her eyes.
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