Chapter 25

Deep night, dark and dim, sky without light, earth without a trace, dark and obscure, the road is hard to return, life after life, how many souls...

This singing voice seemed far and near, as if coming from all directions in the extreme void, omnipresent yet nowhere to be found. The woman's beautiful, secluded voice sang softly over and over again. Zi Rao was fine after hearing it, but Ye Xuanshang's heart was violently shaken. The breath he had just calmed suddenly went astray, his body swayed, and he choked out a mouthful of blood without warning.

Zi Rao was shocked and pointed her fingertips rapidly, hurriedly conjuring the Flame Butterfly to protect him. Ye Xuanshang stumbled and reached out to support himself against a large tree. The singing voice continued to come as if soul-snatching, illusory and real, drifting and floating. Hearing it in his ears, a dull pain in his chest attacked him, one wave after another, and he nearly vomited blood again.

Soul-Absorbing Heart-Stealing Art! Zi Rao suddenly thought of this. Her True Essence originated from the "Jiuyou Mysterious Penetrating" lineage and she was well-versed in the strange arts of the Witch Clan, so she was naturally immune to this strange method. But at this moment, Ye Xuanshang was seriously injured and had not recovered, so he absolutely could not withstand such an impact.

Ye Xuanshang's hand supporting the tree trunk trembled uncontrollably. Suddenly, he raised his sword-like brows, slapped the tree with his backhand, his spirit suddenly lifted, and he let out a long whistle. At the same time, Zi Rao's clear whistling sound also burst from her mouth.

The two whistling sounds were sent far away. One whistle had not yet ended when another rose, following one after another, continuous and endless. Ye Xuanshang's whistle was vigorous and impassioned, while Zi Rao's was bright and clear. The two used their True Essence to urge the whistling, and the double whistles sounded together, as if a flying dragon and a clear phoenix were breaking through the sky, overturning the nine heavens, shaking the surrounding trees and forests to rustle, and causing strange birds and beasts to fly and run in chaos. The singing voice, upon touching the whistling, was immediately stifled, like a faint flame suddenly encountering a gale, being cut into pieces and unable to continue.

Whistle upon whistle, the vibrations overlapped, and the sound traveled for several miles. The singing voice finally fell into the abyss, and a very low, muffled groan came from the northwest. Ye Xuanshang and Zi Rao moved their figures, simultaneously swept out of the dense forest, and pounced straight toward it.

Rushing out of the forest, an endless lake appeared before them without warning. The light was extremely dark, as if entering the dead of night. The lake surface was covered with a secluded, bright, and hazy mist, as if the starlight of the sky was refracted within it, appearing and disappearing, drifting and never stopping. A small boat by the lake, curved like a golden moon, drifted gently in the water, indescribably charming and elegant.

There was no sign of the singing woman, nor even any sign of breath fluctuation. The two's gazes fell into the beautiful lake, and unknowingly, a sense of relaxation welled up in their hearts, as if the fierce fight just now and the purpose of this trip were gradually becoming blurred. Their souls seemed to want to sink into this charming starlight, unwilling to think or look at anything else...

The thought had just arisen when they were suddenly startled!

Ye Xuanshang's pupils shrank. The habit cultivated over many years tightened like a thin string—always remain clear and vigilant, never relax in front of an unknown environment. He had frequently escaped danger in countless assassinations, and his determination and density of thought were naturally extraordinary. With just a moment of distraction, he gathered his mind and immediately realized that the other party had set a trap with strange arts.

"Mysterious Origin Nine Turns, Eight Directions Enter the Illumination!" Zi Rao formed the Wonderful Lotus Dharma Seal with her hands and gave a low shout. Wherever her True Essence reached, the tourmaline bead string presented an exotic, bright transparency on her snow-white skin. In the darkness, it was clear, dazzling, and beautiful, tranquil and eye-catching. The seven-colored bright radiance was deeply contained in the center of the crystal stone, and the secluded light, as if possessing a soul, rippled and circulated. Once the gaze touched it, it was like touching a piece of clear void, and the heart immediately felt clean and empty.

She turned her head to look at Ye Xuanshang and was somewhat surprised to see that he was not confused by the illusion without the protection of the spirit stone. She asked: "How is your injury?"

Except for his slightly pale face, there was no sign of anything unusual on Ye Xuanshang. His eyes, still looking at the lake, were deep and clear. Hearing this, he turned his head slightly and said faintly: "It is nothing serious."

Zi Rao said: "Someone in this lake has used the Linglong Stone to set up the Great Qimen Nine Palaces Array. There are illusions and strange scenes everywhere. If you are confused, you will suffer damage to your meridians at best, or fall into demonic obsession at worst. Your internal injuries have not healed, so do not try to be brave and resist it head-on." A trace of arrogance flashed in Ye Xuanshang's expression, but his tone was flat, "I originally thought the Wangliang Valley was the world of strange birds and beasts, but who knew it was people playing ghosts. There are only a few people in the world who can set up such an array."

Zi Rao stood quietly by the lake, concentrating and thinking, "The Great Qimen Nine Palaces Array is a very profound array in the Mysterious Sect. The array is set up according to the Nine Palaces technique, and each palace hides the Innate Eight Trigrams, totaling eight-nine seventy-two. Starting from the Rest Gate and Heavenly Canopy Star in the Kan One Palace, the array board changes constantly. Entering the array at different times, the scenes encountered are also different. The array board set up on this lake is very rigorous, and an extra Divine Board has been added in the Kun position of the Central Palace, setting up the Eight Gods: Direct Symbol, Teng She, Great Yin, Six Harmonies, Gou Chen, Zhuque, Nine Earths, and Nine Heavens. It can be seen that the person who set up the array is not only proficient in Qimen Dunjia but also an expert in the Great Six Ren."

Ye Xuanshang crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against a huge rock nearby, "In that case, breaking the array will take some trouble."

Zi Rao glanced obliquely at the center of the lake, "Although this array is well set up, it is nothing remarkable. If my brother were here, he would be able to see the location of the seventy-two life and death gates at a glance, and breaking the array board would be as easy as turning over his hand."

Ye Xuanshang closed his eyes slightly, "And you?"

Zi Rao laughed: "Although not as fast as him, I can naturally calculate it too. However, just the seventy-two situations, eight gates, and nine stars have 1,224 changes, and adding the Divine Board in the middle, it is exactly 1,800. I am too lazy to rack my brain." She narrowed her charming eyes, and a bit of cunning flashed under her shallow smile, "Let me tell you a secret: the Great Qimen Nine Palaces Array is very powerful, but unfortunately it has a fatal flaw. Every eighteen situations, there must be a moment when the Heavenly Stem overcomes the Daily Stem. Once the array operates to this point, the Heavenly, Central, and Divine Boards form the momentum of 'White Entering Fire', and there will be a momentary pause, which is favorable for the guest and hinders the host."

Ye Xuanshang had been listening with his eyes lowered. At this moment, he raised his gaze and nodded, "Good, call me when that time comes." After saying this, he closed his eyes and leaned against the rock to rest quietly.

Zi Rao knew that he had just forcibly raised his internal breath to resist the Soul-Absorbing Heart-Stealing Art. Although he had injured the enemy with his whistle, his meridians had been shaken again, and he was definitely not as relaxed as he appeared. So she did not disturb him and silently calculated the array in her heart. Unknowingly, an hour passed. Once the Gui-Mao time arrived, the Heavenly, Earthly, and Divine Boards intersected and replaced each other, and the Great Qimen Nine Palaces Array indeed showed a pause that was not easy to detect. The two immediately unfolded their movement techniques and swept toward the center of the lake at an extremely fast speed.

Zi Rao continuously called out the landing spots, from the Zhen position in the due west, obliquely seven and straight nine, as if winding and turning. It looked like they were walking around the lake, but when they reached the 304th step, they saw a light shine in the center of the lake, and a shimmering radiance flashed in the air. The scene before them suddenly changed. The lake was still a lake, but that secluded and strange mist disappeared without a trace, replaced by an unexpected beautiful scene.

Near mountains covered in dark green, smoke lying across the water. On the boundless lake surface, the misty waves were vast. There was an island in the center of the lake, a few dots of deep ink falling on the clear waves. On the opposite shore were peach blossoms. The entire peach forest, like clouds and fire, was in its splendor. The thick, gorgeous colors drifted into the clouds and water, making the lake and mountain scenery reveal a rouge-like softness. A small boat, gently rippling, seemed to want to row yet stopped amidst the boundless peach colors.

It was indeed a boat, but not the strange small boat by the Nether Lake. There was someone on the boat—a young girl in silver-red bright gauze and crimson silk clothes, who looked only fourteen or fifteen years old, sitting quietly at the bow. As if sensing something, she suddenly opened her eyes. Seeing the two of them, she was truly shocked, stood up abruptly, and shouted: "Who are you? How dare you break into the forbidden land of Chi Ze!" Her voice was delicate, crisp, and pleasant to the ear. It was precisely the person who had just used the Soul-Absorbing Heart-Stealing Art and nearly caused Ye Xuanshang to fall into demonic obsession.

Zi Rao had already seen that the girl had suffered a secret loss from resisting their whistling together. If she hadn't been quick-witted and stopped in time, Ye Xuanshang's Heavenly Sect Heart Method alone would have been enough for her to suffer. She smiled lightly, "Girl, your sneak attack failed. If you had known to use the Xiangfei Stone to stabilize the Great Qimen Nine Palaces Array in time, it would have been inevitable for us to spend some trouble getting in. It's just a pity that you were negligent."

The girl's heart tightened, knowing that she had been taken advantage of by the other party due to a moment of carelessness. She snorted coldly: "So it was you who hurt my cranes, and you still dare to come here to die!"

Zi Rao shook her head and smiled lightly, "We entered the valley to seek medicine. As for dying, we have no interest."

"Seeking medicine, is it?" The girl raised her willow brows and looked them up and down with her pretty eyes, "Sure enough, you are here for Zhu Jiuyin again. Good, my cranes were killed by you, and the array was broken by you..." As she spoke, she whistled softly, and the snow-feathered white birds in the peach forest flapped their wings in response, circling and flying around her. The snow-white feather color set against the colorful and gorgeous peach red was an extremely beautiful picture. She reached out to tease the birds, her expression leisurely and languid, "With such great ability, it seems I cannot stop you even if I want to. If you want to seek Zhu Jiuyin, do as you please."

Zi Rao pondered slightly, her tone softening, "We accidentally hurt your cranes, and we are truly sorry. But my brother is suffering from a serious illness and needs the gall of this Zhu Jiuyin to seek medical treatment and save him. If you are willing to give us some guidance, we will be infinitely grateful."

"Oh?" The girl's smile was delicate and lovely, her bright eyes glancing around, and she repeated word for word, "You really want me to give you some guidance? This is what you said. Since you have begged me, I cannot stand by and watch you die. Finding Zhu Jiuyin is easy enough, but I'm afraid you will regret it once you find it!" As she spoke, she flicked her fingers, and the white birds beside her flew up and swept toward the lake. She turned around, stepped off the small boat, and walked lightly across the water toward the island where the two were.

(End of chapter)