Chapter 476: Long Qi and Bao Yan Exchange Blows

"It's you!"

Unwillingness, remorse, sorrow... a multitude of emotions mingled together, and in this single glance, they transformed into a surge of resentment that welled up into blood-red eyes.

Bao Yan raised his hand to throttle Lingxiang, his killing intent so fierce that even Lingxiang, with her vision darkening, sensed the danger.

Lingxiang was truly exhausted; even though she could see a faint outline and knew danger was near, she could not move a single inch.

So be it, so be it; what needed to be done had been done, and the rest would be left to fate...

Although Lingxiang had never believed in fate, at this moment, she still closed her eyes, accepting it.

The killing intent drew near, and Lingxiang's neck seemed to already feel the pain, but just at this moment, a hand rose and gripped the Demon Lord's wrist tightly.

Not far away, Adao was extremely anxious; he watched as Lingxiang's face turned haggard and listless, yet he did not know what she had done, nor did he know what he could do now.

The Demon Lord pressed closer, and Adao was caught in a dilemma.

Nearby, Xin Yi had long since been unable to withstand the medicinal power and had fallen into a deep sleep; Adao wanted so much to go to Lingxiang's side, but he could not bring himself to leave Xin Yi unattended.

Looking at Chiyanzi and Liu Xia, the two were entangled by monsters and were unable to look after themselves; how could they have any hands free?

Adao was frantic, watching the danger draw ever closer to Lingxiang, but just as he could not help but rush forward, the Demon Lord stopped.

The Demon Lord's hand was mere inches from Lingxiang, yet it could not advance a single fraction further; he looked down in astonishment, his blood-red eyes wide, shedding a trail of bloody tears.

It was Long Qi, in Lingxiang's arms!

He had actually returned from the dead!

Bao Yan could not believe it; this kind of thing had happened for the second time right under his nose, and all of this was supposed to be his painstaking layout for Tumi.

Not far away, Adao was also confused; he had clearly seen his master stab Long Qi to death with his own hands, yet in this short while, Long Qi had actually revived, looking much clearer in his consciousness and seemingly no longer affected by the Demon Miasma.

This...

What on earth was going on?

Long Qi did not know what had happened either; the moment he opened his eyes, he sensed a killing intent approaching and instinctively raised his hand to block it, without any thought.

But once he regained his senses, he saw Lingxiang's face was pale, her lips devoid of any color, as if she would disappear the very next moment.

Long Qi's heart tightened; he reached out to stroke Lingxiang's cheek, but touched only icy coldness, like the frost of deep winter, which chilled him to the bone.

"Lingxiang..."

Although Lingxiang's vision was blurred, she still looked toward Long Qi at the sound, her eyes curving into crescent moons.

"You're awake."

Just a faint greeting like a sigh, yet it seemed to use up all her strength; as soon as the words fell, her body went limp, and she collapsed backward.

Lingxiang truly could not hold on any longer.

Long Qi struck the Demon Lord with a palm; the Demon Lord, caught off guard, took the heavy blow and flew away like a kite with a broken string.

Just as Lingxiang was about to fall, Long Qi shifted his form and caught her in his arms.

Only then did Long Qi discover that Lingxiang's wrist was a mass of blood-red; the cloth wrapped around her pulse point had long been soaked through, dripping, dripping, as blood continued to seep out.

"You are..."

Long Qi's heart ached terribly, as if every drop of blood were dripping onto his own heart; he hurriedly tore off his inner lining, replaced the blood-soaked cloth, and wrapped Lingxiang's wound tightly once more.

It was not that Long Qi did not want to be gentle, but if he did not do this, he feared Lingxiang would bleed to death.

The Demon Lord had taken a heavy blow, his mind clearing significantly; he pushed aside the broken wood and stone debris and stood up steadily.

The force of Long Qi's palm just now was not small, but it had not caused much damage; it was purely to push the Demon Lord away.

Although Lingxiang's vision was dark, she was very clear-headed; she knew the Demon Lord's ability...

No...

It was the ability of her father's physical body.

Therefore, now was not the time to say goodbye, even though she was about to die...

Lingxiang gathered all her strength, gripping Long Qi's hand that held hers, forcing herself to stay alert.

"I'm fine, it's just a bit of dizziness from blood loss."

Lingxiang said, forcing a smile.

"Go, go and put an end to this."

Long Qi's brows were tightly furrowed; if he could, he truly did not want to leave Lingxiang's side for even a step, but Lingxiang was right—only by ending all of this could they go back together.

Back together to those days of "watching the clouds roll and unfurl, listening to the flowers bloom and fall."

Long Qi picked up Lingxiang and, with a leap, brought her to Adao's side, gently leaning Lingxiang against the wall.

Adao's eyes were filled with tears; he choked as he hurriedly stepped forward, and upon seeing Lingxiang's sleeve soaked through with blood, he wept until he was gasping for breath.

Lingxiang wanted to rub Adao's little head and tell him she was fine, but Lingxiang was truly too tired; she could only shake her head lightly, then closed her eyes.

"Take care of her," Long Qi said to Adao, then leaned into Lingxiang's ear: "Wait for me."

Just a light sentence, and then he walked toward the Demon Lord without looking back.

Adao watched Long Qi's back, feeling that he seemed different somewhere, yet he could not say exactly where.

It must be an illusion...

Watching Long Qi stride toward him, the Demon Lord laughed instead of getting angry.

"An ant, daring to provoke this Lord!"

Long Qi merely picked up the Longyuan Sword, brushed the cracks on the blade, and said calmly:

"Our lives are short, indeed like ants, but precisely because of this, we know what it means to cherish. To cherish every inch of time with the one we love, even if it is only for a morning or an evening; every blade of grass, every tree, the thick clouds and the clear breeze—all are each other."

The Longyuan Sword was no different from before, yet what he had seen in the Qi Pool was clearly longer and thinner; why was that?

But now was not the time to think about such things.

Long Qi cast the thoughts aside, his brows and eyes resolute; he swung the Longyuan and slammed it into the ground at his feet, sparks flying amidst the clanging sound.

"And you, you will never understand that."

A faint sentence, yet it instantly enraged the Demon Lord; he rushed toward Long Qi like an angry beast, roaring.

Long Qi was not flustered, gathering Spirit Qi between his hands before his chest; as Longyuan spun rapidly within the Spirit Qi of his hands, the blade became scorching red, as if it had just been tempered in fire.

As the Demon Lord's momentum closed in, Long Qi spread his arms, and Longyuan shot out like an arrow released from a bow, transforming into a fire dragon that let out a long cry.

The fierce momentum of the fire dragon made even the flames burning in the hall seem inferior, and they all lowered their tongues of fire.

With the heat wave scorching his face, the Demon Lord realized something was wrong; wanting to dodge, it was already too late, so he hurriedly pinched a finger seal and recited the Bolan Buqing Jue.

Water vapor burst forth with a boom, filling the entire Yinxu Hall; warm winds rose up, and the already weakening flames were all extinguished by the warm winds and overflowing water mist, leaving only patches of wreckage to prove they had once existed.

Everyone's eyes were blurred by this water mist, and none dared to act rashly for fear of accidentally harming their own people, so they could only listen for sounds to discern positions, remaining cautious of their opponent's movements.

As the water mist gradually dissipated and everyone regained their senses, they heard Adao gasp.

Long Qi had actually raised his sword and stabbed toward the Demon Lord's chest!