Chapter 57: The Woman in Green

Amidst the dense forest of the mountains, several figures slowly "emerged" from the air.

Their bodies were filled with a surging energy so immense that it was unimaginable to ordinary people, or even to a Martial Artist; if a mortal were to look at them, their eyes would be instantly reduced to charcoal!

Yet, merely by standing there, the billions of layers of space around them could not withstand their existence, collapsing and restoring themselves countless times!

"Baize, did you truly not miscalculate? How could that snake possibly have escaped here? This is the territory of the human race!"

The first to break the silence was a bald man as massive and imposing as a mountain, his exposed upper body covered in scars of all sizes.

Hearing this challenge, another youth, dressed in white and resembling an elegant scholar, gently shook the folding fan in his hand and said indifferently:

"Feixiong, apart from a few existences, there is no one in this world whose divination ability surpasses mine. Are you certain you wish to question my strength?"

Hearing this retort, the bald, burly man did not answer directly, but merely let out a cold snort: "Hah, who knows if your instinct for 'seeking good fortune and avoiding disaster' is even working!"

Seeing the tension between the two growing, a masked woman holding an umbrella said coldly:

"If you wish to attract the gaze of King Yong, then by all means, keep arguing. It would be best if you fought each other and razed everything within ten thousand miles to the ground!"

Hearing this "reminder," the white-clad youth closed his folding fan, chose a direction at random, and began to walk:

"Since Fairy Qiongqi has spoken, I shall go and search in this direction."

The bald, burly man let out a muffled grunt and said indignantly: "How stifling. We have five Immortals in total, yet we still have to account for that so-called King Yong?"

Before he could continue complaining, a crisp, delicate voice came from behind the burly man:

"If you are truly tired of living, go to King Yong's royal court and die yourself; do not drag us into it."

The burly man looked toward the sound and saw a little girl, as exquisite as if carved from jade.

The burly man clearly did not agree with this opinion, but he dared not act out in front of this little girl.

In the end, the bald, burly man simply chose a direction completely different from the white-clad youth and said in a muffled voice: "I will search this direction."

Having said that, his figure gradually drifted away.

Seeing the two depart, the masked woman turned around and asked respectfully:

"Senior Qiongqi, Sister Jiuwei, is that legendary 'King Yong'... truly so terrifying?"

The one who answered was not the little girl, but another elder who had "suddenly appeared," leaning on a cane:

"Young Qiongqi, you must know—King Yong was among the first batch of Immortals to attain the Dao in this Tianyuan World, and all those who ascended at the same time as him have broken through that mysterious and profound realm.

"And the only reason King Yong did not advance further was due to bad luck; one must not simply view him as an opponent of the same realm as us!"

The little girl also added casually: "Even if King Yong were truly a waste, he has lived for a million years; his hidden moves and trump cards are countless.

"Now that he has failed to break through his realm and is plagued by Dao wounds, with a Lifespan of at most less than a thousand years, he is already prepared to die. If he discovers us sneaking into the human territory..."

The little girl did not continue, but the masked woman had already understood the implication and could not help but shiver:

"Thank you for the guidance, Senior. I will be careful and will not cross this Zangyaoshan by even a fraction!"

With that, the masked woman flew away.

After only a moment, only the elder with the cane and the little girl remained.

Listening to the rustling of leaves in the wind, the elder was the first to break the silence: "Senior Jiuwei, do you believe we can still find Senior Qinglin?"

To this question, the little girl was silent for a moment, then shook her head:

"Qinglin is a snake Demon on the verge of becoming a dragon; her methods of concealment and combat are equally masterful—

"Since we have already lost her trail, it will be very difficult to find her again. Unless she deliberately exposes her own tracks, we... can only do our best."

Hearing this answer, the elder's expression dimmed significantly: "Senior, you say we have already paid such a great price; can we truly kill Senior Qinglin?"

The little girl was silent for a long time, then helplessly shook her head again: "I do not know. Apart from the two Sovereigns, no one knows the answer."

Afterward, there was another long and awkward silence.

In the end, it was the little girl, who usually did not like to start conversations, who broke the silence:

"Qiongqi, I remember that Qinglin was your protector; you could not have achieved what you have today without her help—

"You have always been one to repay kindness, so why did you choose to join the operation to intercept and kill Qinglin?"

Hearing this question, the elder's expression was very complex.

But in the end, he did not answer the question directly, instead responding with a question: "Senior Jiuwei, forgive my presumption...

"Compared to me, you and Senior Qinglin were inseparable, even willing to die together; it seems you have even less reason to 'betray' your closest friend, do you not?"

Although neither of them stated it clearly, both understood the other's implication.

After another long silence, the little girl shook her head helplessly and flew toward the north: "Follow me along the path we came, and let us search once more."

This was, of course, a perfunctory change of subject; the elder did not expose it and hurriedly followed: "I shall assist you, Senior."

A long silence once again enveloped the forest; there was not even the sound of birds or insects, as if some natural predator had never left.

Gradually, a beautiful figure in a green dress, covered in wounds, slowly appeared.

Every time a drop of blood from the woman's wounds seeped into the earth, the lush plants would instantly turn into rotten wood, and poisonous flowers would bloom on the lifeless soil!

"The two Demon Sovereigns can lie as well... saying I would have a great opportunity related to a breakthrough in the near future.

"Hah, 'opportunity' indeed. As soon as the two Sovereigns went into seclusion, I was about to lose my life."

Although the green-clad woman's voice was already hoarse, it remained as melodious as a blood-weeping oriole.

Her slender fingers gently stroked her wounds, the tips glowing with a soft green light, as if she were treating herself.

But the woman's self-rescue efforts yielded no results; the wounds, which were already deep enough to see bone, showed no signs of closing.

The green-clad woman clearly realized this and simply gave up on the futile effort, leaning against a long-withered tree trunk:

"Hah... are you all so afraid of me becoming the third Demon Sovereign?

"It is clear that my reputation in the Demon Realm is so good, yet once there is a possibility of breaking through that realm, I am attacked by all the Immortals, and even my closest friends have betrayed me..."

Her dark green pupils gradually dilated, and the "terrifying" and surging vitality within her body was fading at an extremely rapid speed; her voice grew softer and softer:

"I have never been afraid of death; it is only a pity for my few kin, who have suffered this unprovoked disaster just to let me escape alive."

Realizing that she was already powerless to turn the tide, the woman in green robes had no choice but to resort to her final measure, murmuring:

"If there truly were a chance to live another life... I would only wish that the person I love is forever worthy of my trust."

Having said this, the woman's aura gradually dissipated; the towering trees beside her withered one after another, yet countless beautiful, cyan-green flowers sprouted from the earth.

Apart from a barely perceptible rise and fall of her chest, this woman in green robes no longer had any aura, like a living corpse.