Chapter 141: Rescue Arrives

At the core of the Red Silk, which had originally been suppressed to the extreme, an extremely tiny, unfathomably deep dark red point suddenly blazed! It was not light, but a "point", a point seemingly leading to a deeper, darker abyss!

Immediately, an aura of the abyss far purer, older, and more deathly than before erupted with a boom!

This aura even made Mister Shouji's Extinction Fire at his fingertip twitch violently! It nearly went out!

Mister Shouji's usually calm face showed clear agitation for the first time, even a hint of shock: "This is…… a seal?! No, this is……

Before he finished speaking, the erupting abyssal aura did not attack Mister Shouji but surged back like a thirsty giant whale gulping water, madly devouring the Extinction Fire that was forging it!

Mister Shouji grunted, the gray light at his fingertip flaring as he tried to steady the Extinction Fire. But the dark point at the Red Silk's core was like a bottomless pit, actually forcibly sucking the power of the Extinction Fire's flame!

Two forces, both bearing a sense of death yet essentially opposite, began a perilous clash and devouring!

Shi Ran's pain reached its peak, yet strangely mixed with a thread of icy, not‑her‑own "satisfaction". Her consciousness floated between extreme agony and strange perception, as if it could shatter at any moment.

And this sudden rebellion instantly shook Mister Shouji's suppression of Shi Ran!

In that instant of loosening!

"Now!" Qianmian's eyes flashed with resolve; he seemed to have been waiting for this opportunity!

He abruptly produced something from his bosom—not a compass, but a dark‑gold scale etched with intricate dragon patterns and bearing hidden cracks! He sprayed a mouthful of essence blood onto it; the scale instantly burst with blazing golden light, a mighty dragon's aura spreading forth. Though not pure, even somewhat mixed, it bore an ancient power to dispel evil and quell calamity!

"Sorry, senior!" Qianmian growled low, slamming the blazing‑gold dragon scale hard into Mister Shouji's back!

He wasn't trying to kill Mister Shouji—that was unrealistic. His aim was merely to interfere! At the crucial moment, to disrupt Mister Shouji's control over the Extinction Fire and Shi Ran!

Mister Shouji's entire focus was on contending with the Red Silk's core's strange "seal"; he never expected Qianmian to launch a sudden attack now! Or perhaps he had never truly regarded Qianmian as a threat, thinking he would never dare to rebel.

The Dragon Scale Power struck Mister Shouji's back solidly!

Mister Shouji's body shuddered violently; the invisible aura around him instantly showed a hint of disorder! His control over the Extinction Fire also suffered an extremely brief interruption!

At that very moment of interruption——

The dark point at the Red Silk's core violently mixed the absorbed Extinction Fire with its own abyssal origin, turning into an indescribable, gray‑red intertwined violent energy that exploded fiercely!

Boom!

The tremendous impact shoved Mister Shouji, making him stagger a step!

And Shi Ran, who bore the brunt, felt her wrist as if it would snap; her whole body was hurled by the explosive force, smashing the hut's frail wooden door, she crashed heavily onto the open ground outside, and spat out a mouthful of blood!

The Red Silk on her wrist lost all its luster, even turning somewhat illusory, as if severely wounded; yet that dark red point at its core seemed even deeper.

Inside the hut, the oil lamp swayed violently, its flame flickering erratically.

Mister Shouji slowly straightened his body; the robe on his back was scorched black by the Dragon Scale Power, yet he seemed not to have suffered serious injury. He slowly turned, and for the first time fixed those ancient‑well eyes coldly on Qianmian.

After that strike, Qianmian had already withdrawn, retreating to the doorway; his face was ashen as paper, clutching the dragon scale whose light had dimmed and cracks multiplied, a trickle of blood at the corner of his mouth—both backlash and fear.

"Good." Mister Shouji's voice was no longer flat; it carried a killing intent capable of freezing souls: "It seems you not only delayed the appointment, but also brought…… an unexpected 'surprise'."

His gaze swept over the blood‑spitting Shi Ran collapsed outside, then returned to Qianmian.

"Then, your 'value' needs to be reassessed."

Terrifying pressure, like a solid mountain, slowly seeped from Mister Shouji's small frame, completely enveloping the tiny hut.

Qianmian drenched in sweat, he knew the true life‑or‑death crisis had only just begun; his sole hope perhaps lay with the equally wounded woman outside, her wrist entwined with the strange Red Silk.

Inside the hut, the air congealed like iron.

Mister Shouji's thin, stooped frame now seemed to become a ten‑thousand‑zhang mountain; intangible pressure filled every inch of space, compressing light and swallowing sound.

Qianmian felt hard to breathe, his bones groaned under the strain, cold sweat instantly soaked his back. Gripping the darkened‑gold dragon scale whose cracks worsened, his fingertips whitened from exertion; all his schemes looked pale and powerless before the absolute strength gap.

"Senior……" Qianmian strained to speak, trying to make amends: "There are hidden circumstances! This Red Silk anomaly is not my wish; junior would……

"Shut up." Mister Shouji's voice was not loud, yet like an icy awl piercing Qianmian's sea of consciousness, making his soul and spirit shudder; he could not utter another word.

Mister Shouji's ancient‑well eyes showed no ripple, only killing intent. He slowly lifted his withered hand; at his fingertip, the thread of Extinction Fire that had almost been swallowed by the Red Silk's core flared up again faintly, though it seemed more condensed and colder than before.

"Your value lies in having drawn 'it'. Its power… will let him become his true self," Mister Shouji's gaze swept over Qianmian and fell on the incapacitated Shi Ran outside; the greed in his eyes surfaced again, but quickly turned into deeper cold: "But now, you have become a variable. A variable that needs to be eliminated."

The Extinction Fire at his fingertip twitched lightly.

Qianmian turned pale with fright; a strong sense of impending death made him almost suffocate. He had no doubt that in the next moment that seemingly weak flame would fall upon him, burning his soul and body to the most primordial ashes of extinction.

He glanced wildly at Shi Ran outside the door, a flash of madness and hope in his eyes—if she still had consciousness, if that strange Red Silk could……

However, Shi Ran's condition at this moment was extremely dire. She was hit head‑on by the violent blast's shockwave; her internal organs felt displaced, her chest ached fiercely, and even her breathing tasted of blood.

Worse still, the soul‑shaking agony transmitted from the clash between the Red Silk and the Extinction Fire, together with that final strange explosion, almost tore her consciousness apart,

She lay limp on the ground, her vision blurred, her ears ringing, only able to barely make out the suffocating standoff inside the hut, lacking even the strength to lift a finger.

The Red Silk on her wrist dimmed, as if fallen into slumber; only the faint dark red at its core pulsed faintly beneath her skin, like a sleeping demon's heart.

Mister Shouji evidently also sensed that Shi Ran and the Red Silk had temporarily fallen into silence, but he didn't care. The prey was already gravely wounded; dealing with it later would be fine. Yet this ant before him dared to defy and ambush him—he must be exterminated at once.

His fingertip twitched.

Qianmian despondently closed his eyes.

At this critical moment——

Hum——!

A clear, ringing sword note sliced through the area shrouded in deathly stillness without warning!

Immediately, a silvery‑white sword light descended from the dim sky! Its target was not the hut, but the intangible, formless yet firmly sealing space's strange force field surrounding the hut!

Screech!

A piercing sound like fabric being torn rang out!

That impregnable barrier, which even night patrollers dared not approach, was torn open by this sword into a long narrow gap!

A white‑clad figure drifted down with the sword light, posture straight as a pine, face cold as ice—it was Qi Chengshuang! He held a long sword, its blade flowing with light, cold air emanating, eyes sharp as blades, instantly locking onto the thin figure exuding terrifying pressure inside the hut, and the heavily wounded, faint‑breathing Shi Ran collapsed outside.

"Shi Shi!" Immediately after, a moon‑white figure flashed in through the gap; Ruan Xinli saw Shi Ran's miserable state, her face turned deathly pale, she cried out, and without hesitation rushed over.

"Huh?" Mister Shouji's motion paused, the Extinction Fire at his fingertip flickering slightly. He slowly turned his head to look at the intruding interloper; his ancient‑well eyes first showed a hint of surprise, but more so a weariness at being bothered again and again by ants.

"Who dares disturb my tranquility?" His voice was hoarse and icy, carrying a lofty indifference.

Qi Chengshuang didn't answer, instead scrutinizing this Mister Shouji from the far‑reaching clouds who made people tremble at his name. He felt a sense of familiarity mixed with oddness; he seemed to have met him before, but couldn't recall when or where.

"Take her away!" Qi Chengshuang said to Ruan Xinli, shaking the long sword in his hand, the sword tip pointing directly at Guardian of Silence Mr., a piercing sword intent surged out, turning into a visible gleaming white cold current that actively swept toward Guardian of Silence Mr.! He actually intended to attack instead of defend, buying Ruan Xinli time to save someone!

"Arrogant!" Guardian of Silence Mr. gave a cold snort, facing the sword intent cold current capable of freezing the soul and marrow of a Foundation Establishment cultivator, he merely flicked his sleeve casually.

A gloomy, death-laden power surged forth, silently colliding with the gleaming white sword intent.

There was no earth-shattering explosion, no violent clash of energy. That sharp sword intent, upon encountering the gloomy power, quickly melted and faded like ice under the scorching sun, ultimately turning to nothing, not even raising a ripple.

Qi Chengshuang's pupils contracted sharply, his sword-wielding arm slightly numb. The opponent's power was strange and mighty, far beyond his expectation!

And in that brief opening, Ruan Xinli had already rushed to Shi Ran's side. She quickly crouched, checked Shi Ran's condition, and upon seeing it, her heart sank to the depths. Shi Ran suffered severe internal injuries, her breath chaotic, worst of all her spirit was unsettled, with at least four forces contending within her body.

"Ranran! Hold on!" Ruan Xinli hastily took out the finest healing pill from her storage bag, carefully fed it to Shi Ran, and used her own gentle spiritual power to help dissolve the medicine's potency. At the same time, she warily glanced at the interior of the shabby house, seeing Qian Mian also retreat to a corner with a deathly pale face, while the gaunt old man's attention seemed wholly drawn to Qi Chengshuang.

"What I wrote... isn't bad." Guardian of Silence Mr.'s gaze swept over Qi Chengshuang, seemingly somewhat interested in the surprise of him not dying, but this interest was quickly overwhelmed by greater indifference: "A pity, ignorant of the rules, then you'll all stay behind."

He raised his hand again, this time with fingers slightly spread, a force of annihilation far greater than before coalesced into a grayish giant hand, sweeping across the sky to grasp Qi Chengshuang! Wherever the giant hand passed, even light seemed to be absorbed, and space emitted a strained, distorted sound.

Qi Chengshuang's face grew extremely solemn. He knew he could not match force with force, so as he hastily retreated, he waved his long sword, tracing profound trajectories.

"Frost Descent!"

Following his low shout, countless gleaming white frost blossoms, entirely condensed from ultimate icy sword intent, bloomed before him, layer upon layer, instantly filling the space ahead. Each blossom contained astonishing defensive power and counteracting sword qi; this is one of his strongest defensive sword techniques currently available!

The grayish annihilation hand plunged into the frost blossom thicket without hesitation.

In the next moment, a heart-pounding scene unfolded. Those sword-intent frost blossoms capable of blocking magic treasure strikes, upon contacting the grayish annihilation hand, withered, faded, and dissipated at visible speed! Not shattered, but as if all their "vitality" and "life force" were drained, directly returning to annihilation.

The grayish annihilation hand's speed hardly slowed, continuing to grasp toward Qi Chengshuang!

Qi Chengshuang let out a muffled groan, his sword technique forcibly broken, suffering backlash, a trace of blood trickled from the corner of his mouth. In his eyes flashed resolve, he was about to burn his sword essence at any cost to unleash a forbidden art—

"Old demon! Take this!"

Ruan Xinli on the side gave a delicate shout, having barely stabilized Shi Ran's injury, seeing the situation she hesitated not to lend aid. She swiftly waved both hands, and in an instant, dozens of talismans flashing with various spiritual lights shot like arrows from a bow toward the grayish annihilation hand!

These talismans included Flame Talismans, Ice Spear Talismans, Geng Metal Talismans, and even two rather precious Lightning Talismans! Ruan Xinli was well-off; before setting out, Feng Ying had given her many precious talismans, and now, to save a life, she spared none, scattering them all.

Boom boom boom!

Various attribute attacks exploded upon the grayish annihilation hand—flames, ice shards, golden light, lightning snakes raging wildly! Although the power of these low-grade talismans was likewise swiftly dissolved by annihilation force, their sufficient quantity and diverse attributes ultimately produced a certain interference, causing the grayish annihilation hand's movement to lag for a moment.

It was precisely this moment!

Qi Chengshuang seized the opportunity, uniting body and sword, transforming into an extremely thin gleaming white stream of light, barely slipping through the gaps between the giant hand's fingers!

"Oh? Talismans?" Guardian of Silence Mr.'s gaze first formally fell upon Ruan Xinli, seeing her bulging storage bag at her waist and the incessant motion of pulling out talismans, his ancient-well-like eyes flashed with a hint of realization, "This is Ruan Xinli?... Quite troublesome."

He had some understanding of Ruan Xinli's background, and showed a hint of wariness, but this wariness was quickly overridden by the present situation.

"It seems today cannot be settled peacefully." Guardian of Silence Mr.'s voice turned utterly cold. He no longer held back; the gloomy annihilation power surrounding him began to truly surge, filling the shabby house and the open ground outside with an aura of despair, as if all things were reaching their end.

"Be careful! He's about to get serious!" Qian Mian shouted hoarsely from the corner, he knew better than anyone how terrifying this Guardian of Silence Mr. was.

Qi Chengshuang and Ruan Xinli, facing a formidable foe, stood back to back, one's sword intent rising to the utmost, the other's hand clutching talismans and several items that looked like extraordinary protective magical artifacts.

Guardian of Silence Mr. slowly spread his arms; the oil lamp behind him flared its flame suddenly, the dim yellow light casting the entire shabby house in an eerie hue. The dried herbs and beast bones on the walls seemed to come alive, emitting soft rustling sounds.

"Annihilation... Domain."