The two were stunned, but under Yuwen Junan’s grim gaze, they pulled Jiang Siyu up and entered the void gate.
Within the violently shaking space, the members of the Wu Tribe surged toward the entrance. On the ground, the characters written in blood had been distorted by the collapsing space; they seemed to possess a sentient will, clawing and snatching as they crawled toward Yuwen Junan.
Yuwen Junan had no time for fear. He stepped aside to let the Wu Tribe members pass through, but his hand, gripping the Holy Spirit Jade, felt a searing pain—the ancient jade was resisting him!
The tearing and crushing grew even more intense. By the time the last member of the Wu Tribe had passed through, the space had been twisted into a narrow passage. It connected the void gate leading out of the mountain to the arched gateway leading to the bottom of the cliff, as if linking two different worlds. Standing in the middle, Yuwen Junan faced a choice: the void gate or the arched gateway?
With a thunderous roar, Yuwen Junan suddenly turned back. The Phantom Wall had shattered, and the arched gateway right next to it was disappearing. Without a moment’s hesitation, Yuwen Junan threw himself toward the opposite side, diving headfirst into the arched gateway.
***
"Go down and take a look," Pei Hengyu said to the Little White Dragon as he stood on the bank. "Has the Ba Serpent escaped?"
Before the Little White Dragon could answer, the pool, which had been as still as a turquoise sea, suddenly churned. Bubbles the size of bowls rolled to the surface one after another, and blistering steam surged toward them.
"Your Majesty, watch out!" An Ming shouted, shielding Pei Hengyu as he retreated rapidly.
Red-hot iron lumps were flung out of the water like a rain of stone, scattering and smashing into the ground amidst splashing water.
*Again?*
Pei Hengyu dared not try to block them. In the split second he dodged to the side, he saw a figure flash past. Before he could make out who it was, the Ba Serpent surfaced.
Its cyan head emerged slowly from the water, stretching and rising, soaring past the cliff to meet the sunlight at the summit. Once freed from the constraints of the chains, the serpent’s already massive head grew twice as large, casting the entire bottom of the cliff under a gargantuan shadow and plunging it into gloom.
The dense black mist had been dispersed by the Ba Serpent, but the serpent's head blocked out all light, making it even harder for Pei Hengyu to see. He hid behind a massive rock and called out to the Little White Dragon, "It’s too dark here. Go up and see what’s happening!"
The Little White Dragon responded and flew up toward the serpent’s head. Halfway there, it abruptly turned, dived down, and shouted at Pei Hengyu, "Human Sovereign, run!"
The bottom of the cliff was pitch black. Hiding beneath the giant rock, Pei Hengyu could see nothing. He only felt a wave of overwhelming heat descending from above, reaching him in an instant. Realizing there was no escape, he thought to himself, *This is it! Time to be reborn again!* Instead of fleeing, he stood up and, as if accepting his fate, closed his eyes.
One, two, three...
Pei Hengyu counted silently.
The searing pain he imagined never came. When Pei Hengyu opened his eyes, he saw that familiar face once more.
Yuwen Junan had spread his arms. His crimson robe ignited on him like phoenix feathers. Amidst the sea of fire, he appeared like a blooming morning glory—intense and magnificent. Without making a sound, Yuwen Junan blocked the downward-gushing heat. Once the tongues of flame had completely vanished, he collapsed into Pei Hengyu’s arms.
After a sudden flash of light, the bottom of the cliff returned to darkness.
"Don't just stand there," the Little White Dragon urged, stepping aside. "The Ba Serpent is at its weakest after spitting fire. Use the Holy Emperor Sword to stab it!"
Pei Hengyu wrapped one arm around Yuwen Junan’s waist, pushed off with his feet, and leaped, carrying Yuwen Junan as he followed his memory to close in on the serpent’s body.
The flames on Yuwen Junan’s body were just dying out. His crimson robe, caught in the rising wind, fluttered away in tatters, carrying bits of charred flesh like falling peach blossoms.
In the brief moment while the Ba Serpent lowered its head to investigate, Pei Hengyu drove the Holy Emperor Sword, now coated with the charred debris, into the serpent’s lower jaw. The rock-hard scales yielded like melting ice against a flame, and the sword pierced straight through.
The Ba Serpent roared in agony, thrashing its head and twisting its body. Stones tumbled from the cliffs; black water churned up from the pool, flooding half the bottom of the ravine; the entire Holy Maiden Mountain rocked and swayed.
Watching the black water surge toward them, An Ming grabbed a thick vine and swung toward the serpent’s body, using his shoulder to brace Pei Hengyu’s feet as he hung in mid-air.
"Human Sovereign," the Little White Dragon said, its eyes gleaming with excitement, "that boy's flesh and blood can suppress the fierce beast!"
Pei Hengyu used the leverage from his feet, and his strength returned to his hand gripping the sword hilt. He did not pull the blade out; instead, he used the blood-stained edge to cut a deep, jagged gash down from the wound.
The serpent’s hide tore open, and black mist billowed out. The Ba Serpent’s massive body crashed down onto the floor of the ravine.
As the serpent’s body fell, An Ming lunged, using his shoulder to cushion Pei Hengyu’s feet. In mid-air, Pei Hengyu leaped once more, clutching Yuwen Junan as he climbed the cliff wall.
At that same moment, in the collapsing space, the distorted blood-characters coalesced into a palm-sized mass the instant the Ba Serpent fell, dragging the rolling Malicious Qi down into the bowels of the earth!
A moment later, in a palace within the Dasheng imperial compound, they crawled slowly out from a floor crack, gathering around a woman in palace attire who possessed a delicate, refined beauty. The sleeping woman’s eyes snapped open. With trembling fingers, she wrote in the void: "I offer my blood to summon the beast, I offer my soul to trade for rebirth!"
The sunlight was no longer obstructed and finally spilled down, clarifying the scene at the bottom of the cliff. Pei Hengyu sheathed his sword, held Yuwen Junan tightly, and trudged up the winding path over the decaying, piled-up serpent skin until he reached the summit.
The horses left behind had long since run off. On the cliff top, there was nothing but scattered stones. Pei Hengyu crouched down and turned Yuwen Junan over. The youth’s back was burned beyond recognition; the raw, pink flesh shimmered with a golden sheen of oil under the scorching sun, and the skin mixed with blood twitched involuntarily. It was agonizing just to look at.
"An Ming," Pei Hengyu called out. An Ming knelt and leaned in.
"Go back to the city. Get a carriage."
"Your Majesty," An Ming said, ignoring the Emperor’s dark, thunderous expression, "I cannot leave you here alone."
"I said, go back to the city and get a carriage!" Pei Hengyu’s voice was unnaturally cold. The gaze he leveled at An Ming was piercing and frost-laden, brooking no disobedience.