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墨書 Inktalez
They followed Fu Sang in succession. Xie Wanjun and Pei Huaizhi moved with relative ease, while He Guannan, injured, felt a sharp pain in his back every time he made a significant movement. His agility was not as fluid as theirs. They were all aware of this; if his wound burst open during their journey and he fell from the air, it would be disastrous. Therefore, Pei Huaizhi stayed at the back, keeping an eye on He Guannan, ready to lend a hand if necessary.
With each step Fu Sang took, she paused momentarily to allow Xie Wanjun to memorize their position. Xie Wanjun was not disappointed; as soon as Fu Sang moved on, she followed closely behind, occasionally glancing back to check on He Guannan and Pei Huaizhi. She dared not look too long, fearing that Fu Sang would move too quickly and she would lose track of her position. It was an anxious journey indeed.
The leaves rustled as He Guannan focused on the path ahead. He prepared to jump, his toes touching the ground as he leaned forward and pushed off with force. Suddenly, leaves obscured his vision, and in his panic, his hands flailed at his face. The leaves brushed against him, heightening his anxiety about landing in the right spot. He dared not voice his fears; speaking would surely alert the Soul-Eating Beast. Just as his feet were about to touch down, he felt something thin wrap around his waist several times, pulling him gently forward. Suddenly, he landed safely on the ground, and the Symbol Pattern lit up instantly. The sensation around his waist vanished, easing some of his anxiety. He thought it must have been Fu Sang who helped him; once they were out of the forest, he would be sure to thank her profusely.
Indeed, it was Fu Sang who assisted him. Although she led the way, she kept a vigilant eye on their situation. With her Heavenly Eye capable of 360-degree observation, she noticed that He Guannan's landing spot deviated by ten centimeters from where it should have been. Without hesitation, she activated her Celestial Black Silk and swiftly wrapped it around his waist to guide him to the correct position. Fortunately, her timing was perfect; had she been even a second late, they would have faced a different predicament.
As the Celestial Black Silk flew towards He Guannan, it brushed lightly against Xie Wanjun's hand, sending a chill through her skin that quickly warmed up upon contact. It felt delicate and smooth like silk. She looked in the direction from which the ribbon came and saw that Fu Sang's feet were still illuminated by the Symbol Pattern while holding onto the ribbon. She thought to herself that if Fu Sang had already moved on to the next landing point earlier, then something must have gone wrong behind them. When she glanced back again, she saw that the Celestial Black Silk had already retracted. Since it had been pulled back in, it seemed that whatever issue had arisen was resolved; she quickly turned her attention back to Fu Sang.
They had jumped over forty steps now; each leap covered about three meters, totaling over twelve hundred meters traveled with just over two hundred meters left until they exited the forest. Although only eight or nine steps remained, these final leaps were more strenuous than those before them; fatigue and pressure mounted significantly. If anything went wrong now, all their efforts would be in vain.
He Guannan was most concerned about this very possibility. With each step causing slight pain from his injury, the discomfort only intensified with every leap taken. Now that Fu Sang was moving faster than before and Xie Wanjun had picked up her pace as well, he felt compelled to speed up too—but his body wouldn’t allow it. The pain from his back wound surged again as he halted in place, watching as the Symbol Pattern flickered dimly before fading away.
The worst fear of He Guannan came true—he had lost track of where to land next. He vaguely remembered it being about two o'clock from his position—approximately two and a half meters away—but now he faced a dilemma: should he jump or stay put? Jumping meant risking an uncertain landing that could cost him his life; staying put meant waiting for Fu Sang to realize they hadn’t followed and come back for them. Ultimately, he chose not to jump; it seemed like the safer option.
Pei Huaizhi noticed He Guannan's hesitation and guessed what was happening—he likely couldn’t remember where to land. Seeing him touch his back while swaying like a straw man caught in the wind only confirmed her suspicions. They waited for two minutes without anyone returning; despite being so close—just a few steps away—it felt like an eternity. What if something had happened? Or perhaps Xie Wanjun was in trouble? Anxiety bubbled within her as she realized they were trapped here; moving forward was impossible while retreating held its own uncertainties.
Suddenly, chilling screams echoed from all directions—continuous and haunting—as they reverberated through the forest like a sinister chorus that sent shivers down their spines. He Guannan turned to Pei Huaizhi and gestured frantically to ask what those sounds were about; however, Pei Huaizhi could not decipher his gestures amidst the growing cacophony.
At that moment, they sensed a shift—the coldness surrounding them dissipated and was replaced by an intense heat radiating from below their feet; Pei Huaizhi felt sweat forming at her soles. The surroundings brightened unexpectedly as both stared at each other in confusion—what could this possibly mean? Before they could utter a word, eerie indigo flames erupted beneath them, startling them into retreating hurriedly. The series of bizarre occurrences left Pei Huaizhi feeling both furious and terrified. Just as she was about to vent her frustration further, they found themselves encircled by those indigo flames which began closing in around them.
Fu Sang had warned against firing unless absolutely necessary; now they found themselves in such dire straits that He Guannan immediately fired several shots into the strange fire circle—but it remained unaffected by his attempts. Drawing forth a Spirit Talisman and forming seals with his hands, he unleashed torrents of water toward the flames—there should have been enough water to extinguish them—but instead of being doused out, the fire seemed nourished by it and flared even higher as steam began rising into the air.
He Guannan looked at the strange fire with a mix of fear and surprise, anxiously exclaiming, "What on earth is this fire? Water can't extinguish it!"
"I want to know what this fire is too," Pei Huaizhi replied, noticing that the fire circle was shrinking. Suddenly, an idea struck him. He took out a Spirit Talisman and placed it on the ground, cutting his finger to let his blood drip onto the talisman. After forming a seal and chanting an incantation, ten clay hands rose from the ground, pressing down towards the flames. The fire diminished instantly. Just as they were feeling relieved, one of the clay hands was suddenly incinerated. Realizing the situation was dire, Pei Huaizhi quickly urged, "It can't hold! Hurry, we need to break through!"
Before Pei Huaizhi could finish speaking, He Guannan jumped out of the fire circle, shouting, "Huaizhi, run!" Pei Huaizhi followed suit as they both charged forward. He Guannan ignored the tearing pain from his back; survival was far more important than the pain. The flames chased closely behind them.
As they fled, Pei Huaizhi occasionally used his short sword to slash at nearby branches to block the fire's path, but it was futile. The fire moved like a blue serpent, swift and relentless, igniting everything in its wake. The Fire Serpent danced fiercely through the forest, leaving its mark behind. He Guannan glanced back at the Fire Serpent, which was now only a meter away from them. Fear gripped him at the thought of it biting his leg; just then, it almost happened. Fortunately, he noticed in time and quickened his pace.
"This won't do," Pei Huaizhi thought urgently. They were running aimlessly in the forest, completely off course. If they couldn't find their way out soon, they would be burned alive. He quickly checked the Wind Evil Disk; its needle pointed behind them. They were heading southwest—essentially backtracking. "Guannan, we have to turn back; that direction leads to safety."
After exchanging glances, He Guannan pointed to the right. They nodded in agreement as he counted down: "One, two, three." As soon as he finished speaking, they dashed toward the right and continued following the direction indicated by the Wind Evil Disk while the Fire Serpent pursued them relentlessly.
Suddenly, Pei Huaizhi stumbled over a rock and fell to the ground. In a panic, he looked back and saw that the Fire Serpent was only two meters away. Even if he got up now and ran, there would be no chance of escape. When He Guannan turned around to help him up, the rapidly approaching Fire Serpent had already surrounded them. The flames towered above their heads as the fire circle continued to shrink; they had become trapped with no way out. He Guannan asked urgently, "Are you afraid of dying?"
Pei Huaizhi replied firmly, "I'm not afraid of death; I just can't die now." He hadn't yet found those who killed his father—how could he die? As the fire circle closed in on them by half a meter, Pei Huaizhi glanced at his bracelet, hoping it would somehow save them.
In that moment of desperation, a silver light descended before him. Looking up, he saw that the fire circle had been extinguished. A dark figure stood before him; then a piece of white glowing satin suddenly wrapped around them and yanked them out of the fire circle. At that moment, he recognized their savior: Fu Sang.
"Follow me," Fu Sang commanded before turning to run ahead. They followed closely behind him and encountered many dark Soul-Eating Beasts lying on the ground—clearly electrocuted—while some were even strangled by vines mid-air with blood dripping down; it was evident that a fierce battle had taken place here.
As they ran on, suddenly a shadow darted past Pei Huaizhi's side—Fu Sang had moved from leading to trailing behind them in an instant. With a powerful strike of his palm, dust flew everywhere and stunned the Fire Serpent for a moment. This commotion caused them to halt momentarily as He Guannan looked back at the Fire Serpent with a hint of fear in his heart and muttered, "This fire just won't quit."
Pei Huaizhi took a step toward Fu Sang and said, "I can't extinguish it with water or earth."
The Fire Serpent swiftly charged at Fu Sang. At that moment, she chanted an incantation while forming hand seals. Instantly, a glowing circular star formation appeared on the ground, its edges adorned with star patterns. Suddenly, white glowing branches sprouted from within the formation, radiating warmth and a sense of safety. They gently wrapped around the midsection of the Fire Serpent, which seemed to be calmed by the branches, ceasing its thrashing and becoming still. The branches then coiled upward, entwining the Fire Serpent like a twisted pastry, and together they were drawn into the formation.
With the Fire Serpent dealt with, the ground shook violently, and trees around them began to fall. Fu Sang glanced around anxiously and urged, "We need to get out of here; it's going to collapse!"
They hurried toward the exit as the ground continued to cave in behind them. Looking down at the collapsing areas revealed a bottomless abyss of black mist.
Finally, they managed to escape.
He Guannan knelt on the ground, gasping for breath. Once he steadied himself and looked back, he was surprised to see a forest. "Wasn't it just collapsing here? And it was so strange inside; we were just standing there when it inexplicably caught fire."
Pei Huaizhi turned to look as well and confirmed it was indeed a forest. Considering everything that had happened within, he concluded, "We must have triggered the activation switch for the formation, which is why we encountered all that."
Pei Huaizhi was right; they had inadvertently touched the switch that activated the formation. During their escape, each step had to follow the correct path, and they had to complete it within eight minutes. If they took a wrong step or failed to finish in time, the formation would activate. Did Fu Sang know about this time limit? Of course she did; she just hadn't told them because she was worried they would become too anxious during their escape and overly concerned about He Guannan's injury.
Fu Sang and Xie Wanjun waited outside the forest for them. When more than a minute passed without any sign of them, Fu Sang sensed something was wrong. Using her Heavenly Eye, she saw that they were surrounded by a ring of fire. Determined to rescue them, she instructed Xie Wanjun to stay put while she re-entered the woods. Upon her return, she was immediately besieged by Soul-Eating Beasts. Prepared for battle, she unleashed her techniques and formations, causing many of the beasts to fall or be injured. Afterward, she successfully rescued them and emerged from the forest.
He Guannan looked around but didn't see Xie Wanjun. He asked, "Fu Sang, where is Deputy Minister Xie?"
She turned indifferently toward a dilapidated ancient temple before her and replied, "She should be inside. Before I rescued you, I told her to wait here; she's not outside but inside."
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