The stone door of the tomb chamber slammed shut with a deafening roar. Debris rained down like a sudden downpour, clattering against the stone floor; the muffled echoes reverberated through the narrow space, sounding like the war drums of Death himself. Shen Mingyue was sent stumbling by the blast of air, her back slamming heavily against the frigid stone wall.
The Jade Pendant at her waist pressed painfully into her side, a sharp, piercing agony that seemed to strike straight at her heart, causing her vision to blur into darkness. A metallic taste of blood rose in her throat, nearly making her retch. In that hair-breadth moment, Gu Jinghong lunged forward, his bloodied palms slamming against the wall beside her to form a living shield of flesh and bone.
A stifled groan escaped his throat, and warm droplets of blood trickled down his arm, falling onto the back of Shen Mingyue’s trembling hand. The heat of it made her shudder; it felt like a searing brand burning into her skin. The scent of blood in the air grew thick and cloying, mixing with the musty, decaying stench of the Nether Palace puppets.
Chapter 35