Page 757

The sky grew darker, and gradually nothing could be seen clearly in the forest anymore.

During the day, the visibility in this valley was quite good, but at night one couldn’t see their own fingers in front of them.

The man in black, carrying the girl, had been walking all afternoon, over mountains and ridges, encountering various birds and beasts.

Just as the man in black struck down a fierce, evil rat with a single blow. The nearby mountains and forests rustled with movement.

He instinctively closed his eyes; upon identifying the source of the footsteps, his expression changed drastically.

When he opened his eyes, he didn’t hesitate to jump onto the large tree behind him, clutching the girl in his arms.

Then, a wolf’s head emerged from the dense bushes, its fierce eyes glowing with a greenish light.

Then two, then three, then four... more wolves walked out of the bushes.

The man in black instinctively gripped the longsword in his hand and looked fiercely at the pack of wolves swarming towards him, easily thirty or forty of them.

He bent down gently to lay the girl on a tree branch, then leaped down, raising the longsword in his hand towards the pack of wolves not far away.

An immense killing aura spilled out from him, and soon the entire forest was permeated with the smell of blood.

As the longsword was raised, its sharp blade flashed by, instantly splitting the attacking wolves in half, the fresh blood staining the night forest red.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

The pungent scent of blood turned the forest into a place as horrifying as hell.

Lan Xi covered her chest, nauseated by the smell of blood, and coughed lightly before slowly opening her eyes.

She saw nothing but pitch-black darkness and the endlessly nauseating scent of blood.

Lying atop the treetop, she had no strength to even move.

"Roar!"

Suddenly, a beastly roar made her ears rumble, causing her mind to go blank momentarily.

Lan Xi tried to sit up with force but didn’t expect to move slightly and fall straight from the branch.

"Ah Qing!" she instinctively called his name. She didn’t know what had happened, why she couldn’t summon any of her Spiritual Energy. As she saw herself about to crash to the ground, she was unable to move.

Just as she panicked, she felt a tight grip around her waist and immediately fell into a warm and broad embrace.

In the darkness, although she couldn’t see his face, she could feel his familiar warmth.

"Lan Xi!" The man in black’s voice was slightly agitated. She had woken up, which was truly a relief. Only hearing her voice could he feel a bit at ease.

"Ah Qing, it really is you," Lan Xi said with a faint, weak smile on her face. "Where is this? Why is it so dark around us?"

"It’s alright! I’m here, don’t be afraid!" The man in black said as he landed on the ground with the girl in his arms.

Lan Xi wrapped her arms around the man’s neck, her breath weak, "I’m not scared! ... But why... why is there such a strong smell of blood... Ah Qing, are you hurt?"

"No! It’s the wolves’ blood. There are so many fierce beasts here!" The man in black explained. "Lan Xi, I will take you to a place to heal. You have to hold on."

Lan Xi, with her sparkling eyes wide open, nodded heavily. "Yes! Lan Xi doesn’t want to die yet!"

With the girl’s assurance, the man in black, who had been tense as if he were about to explode at any moment, finally breathed a sigh of relief. He held the girl tightly and strode forward.

No-return Valley, even if it was a purgatory in the Mortal World, he would carve out a blood-stained path.

From night until morning.

His breathing became heavier and heavier.

Lan Xi lay on the man’s chest, listening to his steady and strong heartbeat, never feeling so saddened before. It was as if a heavy mountain weighed on her chest, its immense weight increasing with each breath he took.

"Ah Qing! Rest for a while!"

By dawn, they had arrived in an even deeper part of the forest.

The towering ancient trees concealed the sky, leaving the forest dimly lit. As they ventured deeper, the number of ferocious beasts dwindled, but every beast that emerged was incredibly strong.

Even lions that stood three to four meters high appeared.

The man in black drove his sword into the ground and sat on a stone, holding the girl in his arms.

"Lan Xi, don’t worry. We’ll find the Spirit Vein soon," the man in black said tenderly.

Lan Xi nodded and lay in his embrace.

She thought her Ah Qing looked so handsome today.

His sword-like eyebrows slanted into his temples, his dark eyes always showing a rare tenderness, his black hair flowing like a waterfall, and though his black clothing lacked some Immortal qi, it gave him a sense of stability and restraint.

Perhaps it was the Seal’s power within the Qiankun Gu that shattered her spiritual power, making her remember the memory she had forgotten.

Her Ah Qing had stabbed himself with the Heavenly Sword to protect her, to prevent her from suffering even the slightest injury.

She had gone to the Blood Demon Sea to fetch the Blood Third Seven, leaving a drop of Primordial Spirit Blood in the Demon Realm, resulting in the Demon Lord now being so powerful that no one can match him.

"Ah Qing, I’m not worried when you’re with me," Lan Xi said weakly, trying hard not to fall asleep.

This world was so lonely. He held her while facing so many ferocious beasts.

He was but a mortal man, and every time she saw him, her heart ached.

"Lan Xi, if you’re tired, sleep for a while! When you wake up next time, we will surely find the Spirit Vein to heal your wounds," the man in black tightened his embrace around the girl and stood up again.

The Heavenly Sword had long been soaked in blood, and his clothes were even more stained with fresh blood, leaving bloody footprints behind him as he walked.

Lan Xi clung to his clothes. She couldn’t sleep, for she was afraid that if she fell asleep again, she would forget Ah Qing.

He would hide from her and not see her.

The man in black gripped the sword and walked towards the deepest part of the valley.

Finally, they emerged from the dense forest.

In front of them was a flat meadow.

Bright, colorfully vibrant flowers bloomed, with beautiful butterflies flying around in flocks.

Not far away, a milky lake emitted rich Spiritual Energy. Thick mists of Immortal qi rose even from the flowers and shrubs.

Lan Xi slowly lifted her head to look at the lake not far away and could tell at a glance that it was where the Spirit Vein resided.

Only an Earth Spirit Vein could nurture a Spiritual Lake.

The man in black’s heart leaped with joy as he gripped the sword in his hand, holding the girl tightly and striding towards the lake.

Just as his feet were about to reach the lake, suddenly, a disturbance came from beneath the ground.

The man in black instinctively moved back, and immediately, countless cracks opened in the earth before him.

Numerous vines, like wildly growing weeds, surrounded him in the blink of an eye.

A startling Tree Spirit with a human face abruptly appeared, blocking their path.

"I never imagined that after hundreds of thousands of years, someone could make it here," the Tree Spirit’s hoarse voice rang out, its menacing features indiscernible as either male or female.

"I brought her here to heal, without any intention of harming the plants or trees here. I implore the distinguished Immortal to be accommodating," the man in black pleaded earnestly.

The Tree Spirit, however, raised its head and let out a loud laugh.

"I’ve cultivated here for hundreds of thousands of years, unable to ascend to Immortality due to certain prohibitions and even unable to form a body.

I find the woman in your arms very beautiful, so why don’t you give her to me?

I can possess her body, and in return, I’ll spare your life. What do you say?"

The man in black had not expected a Tree Spirit to be so audacious.