Chapter Seventy-Nine: No Escape

A chill that cut to the bone surged to the top of her head; almost instinctively, Hongjian obeyed Ding Chunxue’s urgent shout, immediately withdrawing her true essence from “The Flowing Companion,” severing the connection.

Chen Zaizhi, startled to see the change in Hongjian’s expression, hurriedly asked, “What happened? Is there news from our senior brother?”

Hongjian, her face drained of all color, repeated Ding Chunxue’s words: “Jing Li has killed Uncle Wen…”

A shiver ran through her. Only then did she begin to process what had just happened, hastily adding, “Senior brother is in grave danger. He told us to cut off contact and flee at once. I don’t know how much he’s revealed to Jing Li, and I can’t be sure whether that traitor saw you just now through the artifact. In any case, we need to run.”

Chen Zaizhi was stunned, overwhelmed by how sudden it all was. He stammered, “Uncle Jing… could he be a devil cultivator?”

Hongjian shot him an exasperated look. “What devil cultivator? Jing Li has lost his mind—he’s defected to Dai Mingchi!”

At such a moment, Chen Zaizhi still couldn’t grasp the danger. Hongjian wanted nothing more than to crack open his stubborn skull, but alongside her anger, a heavy grief welled up inside her: What will become of senior brother?

From “The Flowing Companion,” a surge of magical force pulsed, each wave more urgent than the last. Hongjian stared down at the artifact, a premonition gnawing at her—perhaps it had already changed hands, and the one now demanding contact was Jing Li, the killer.

She bit her lip, tightened her grip on “The Flowing Companion” without channeling any essence into it, and called to Chen Zaizhi, “What are you waiting for? Go!”

Chen Zaizhi summoned the “Brocade Sail Flying Vessel,” but hesitated. “Senior brother… shouldn’t we check again?”

For years, both had relied on Ding Chunxue as a brother and father. Now, suddenly bereft of their protector, they felt completely lost.

They skimmed through the forest on the artifact, keeping close to the ground. Hongjian, uneasy, urged, “Faster!”

The “Brocade Sail Flying Vessel” carried them farther and farther from Evening Tide Peak, where their senior brother remained. The fluctuations from “The Flowing Companion” grew ever weaker. Hongjian, torn, couldn’t help looking back repeatedly, but the distance was too great—contact was now impossible, even if she wished it.

Unable to harden her heart, Hongjian hurriedly instructed Chen Zaizhi, “Don’t make a sound, no matter what.” She shut her eyes tightly, channeling water essence into “The Flowing Companion” in her palm.

A voice, with a hint of surprise, echoed in her mind: “Oh, you’re willing to contact me now?” It was Jing Li, just as she’d expected. “What’s this? Why is everything pitch black?”

Hongjian relaxed slightly. As long as she kept her eyes closed, he couldn’t see her side. But her heart quickly sank—distance muddled Jing Li’s vision in her mind, sometimes clear, sometimes blurred. Even so, she saw the bodies of Ding Chunxue and Wen Chuiyang lying on the ground.

Ding Chunxue lay face down at Jing Li’s feet, his fate uncertain, body limp as if all strength had been drained from him. Uncle Wen’s corpse was shriveled and gray-black, eyes wide open in death, a method clearly neither just nor honorable. To think that Wen Chuiyang, a mid-stage Nascent Soul master, could be ambushed and murdered by a mere Golden Core junior—no wonder he died with his eyes wide open.

Hongjian dared not look any longer, her gaze fixed on her senior brother.

Jing Li bent low, and the ground was slick with blood. Ding Chunxue’s features stood out starkly. He was still alive.

Jing Li gave a cruel grin. “You can’t escape. Do you think I won’t know who you are just because you hide from my sight? Chen Zaizhi, come back to your uncle this instant!”

Hongjian kept her silence. She wondered: What had that treacherous dog seen through her eyes in that brief moment? It seemed he hadn’t discovered Chen Zaizhi, or he’d know the other half of “The Flowing Companion” wasn’t with him.

Receiving no answer, Jing Li changed his tone, trying to tempt her. “I know you’re hiding in the nearby woods. Come back. Give the Sect Heirloom Jade Slip to your uncle, and I swear to protect you and your senior brother. Don’t cling to false hope—I’ve already sent word. Master Gong and the others are searching for you. Once they find you, the Demon Refining Prison is not a place you’ll escape from. Besides, can you really bear to see your senior brother suffer for sheltering you?”

Sweat beaded on Hongjian’s brow.

She watched as Jing Li raised a hand, forming a seal with blinding speed and sending out a talisman. It spun through the air, stirring a small vortex and hovered above Ding Chunxue’s face.

Ding Chunxue’s body convulsed violently as he awoke, his eyes snapping open. As the talisman spun faster, he struggled desperately, veins bulging on his forehead, as if something unseen was being wrenched from his mind. Gradually, his strength ebbed, and blood began to seep from his seven orifices.

Hongjian trembled uncontrollably, her tightly shut eyes betraying the terror within. Chen Zaizhi, unsure whether to flee or stay, slowed their flight in alarm.

Jing Li fixed the bizarre talisman with a flourish, proudly proclaiming, “Do you recognize this? It’s the famed ‘Otherlife Talisman.’ Before it takes root, it will rip your soul from your body. Good disciple, don’t say your master didn’t give you a chance. Have you nothing to say to your junior?”

A shadow of death clouded Ding Chunxue’s eyes. Enduring excruciating pain, his bloodied lips trembled, taking a long moment before he could answer. He forced out, “You… are you not afraid of the demon in your own heart for doing this?”

Jing Li’s tone was light. “A heart demon? Once Master Ji locates the Mirage Divine Palace, what can a mere heart demon do to me?” He patted Ding Chunxue’s face, trying to rouse him further. “Don’t dawdle. Soon your precious junior brother will be caught by the Nascent Soul and Golden Core masters, and then you’ll be worthless.”

Ding Chunxue coughed up blood, mustering his remaining strength to glare at the “Flowing Companion” now in Jing Li’s possession, shouting, “Run! Don’t betray our founder’s dying wish—don’t come back…”

Unaware that “The Flowing Companion” was now with Hongjian, he thought he was speaking to Chen Zaizhi. His bloodshot eyes brimmed with hope, stabbing into Hongjian’s heart like burning blades.

Realizing what was happening, Jing Li shoved Ding Chunxue aside in a rage before he could finish.

Hongjian, not waiting for Jing Li to activate the talisman again, channeled her essence and crushed “The Flowing Companion” in her hand. Tears burst from her tightly closed eyes.

Chen Zaizhi, terrified, asked in a trembling voice, “What happened? Is senior brother…?”

Hongjian did not reply. She wiped her tears away, desperately hoping that, with the connection severed and no one left to threaten, that wretched Jing Li would lose interest in tormenting her senior brother, perhaps sparing him more suffering.

Judging by Hongjian’s expression, Chen Zaizhi could guess what had occurred. He abruptly stopped the “Brocade Sail Flying Vessel,” eyes red with grief. “Senior sister, I’m going to see Mu Fengshan. You find Second Uncle. As long as there’s a Nascent Soul master, they can activate the Sect Protection Array and rescue senior brother!”

Seeing him panic and grasp at straws, Hongjian snorted, her voice hoarse. “If it were that simple, our founder’s Nascent Soul could have returned to the sect directly. Why would he go to such lengths to entrust the Sect Heirloom Jade Slip to you?”

Chen Zaizhi couldn’t bear her sarcasm. With a burst of frustration, he cut off his essence and the flying vessel fell to the ground. Clenching his fists, he shouted at her, “Then what do you suggest? Are we to abandon senior brother and only care about saving ourselves?” Though Hongjian had always treated him coldly, Chen Zaizhi had endured it with quiet patience—this was the first time he’d lost his temper at her.

Hongjian did not argue further, only said, with a strange tone, “Only care about saving ourselves? As if you had the ability to escape.”

Careful, she extended her spiritual sense in all directions, detecting nothing unusual. Yet she knew Jing Li would not make empty threats—a moment’s delay and their enemies would be upon them. Two mere Foundation Establishment cultivators would stand no chance against the spiritual senses of so many Golden Core and Nascent Soul masters.

Without another word, Hongjian left the flying vessel and told Chen Zaizhi, “The pursuers are already here. If you want to play the hero, I won’t stop you, but hand over the Sect Heirloom Jade Slip before you go to your death.”

Flushed with shame at her taunt, Chen Zaizhi hesitated, put away the vessel, and gritted his teeth as he followed her. “Since the founder gave it to me, I can’t give it to you.”

Hongjian snorted inwardly. She dared not linger; finding a nearby ditch, she jumped in. “If you don’t want to be found, follow me and hope for the best. Come!” Once he joined her, they hid among the dead leaves and grass. Hongjian produced “Fortune’s Domain.”

The artifact, which had once been of great use, had lain idle for years—she’d nearly given it away. Never did she imagine she’d once more rely on it for her life.

When she was still in the Qi Refinement stage, “Fortune’s Domain” had hidden her from Foundation Establishment cultivators. Now, she and Chen Zaizhi were both at Foundation Establishment. She could only hope it might shield them from Golden Core pursuers. As for Nascent Soul masters—only luck could save them.

They each placed a hand on the artifact and channeled water essence together. Years of Ding Chunxue’s supervision had made them a well-coordinated pair, despite their mutual dislike—no one who saw them now would believe how they usually quarreled.

Chen Zaizhi had no idea how effective this little thing would be, nor dared he release his spiritual sense to check.

After a tense wait, the wind suddenly howled overhead, scattering leaves above them. Chen Zaizhi felt Hongjian’s fingers tighten and quickly squeezed back in reassurance, promising to remain silent.

Hongjian’s nerves were tauter than she showed. Closing her eyes, she silently prayed, “Fortune’s Domain, please work. Heaven, please watch over me and that wretch Chen Zaizhi. The fate of Dan Cliff Sect, thousands of years in the making, all hinges on this moment!”