Chapter 1020

"They didn't follow…"

Feeling that the aura of the Uyu tribe's First Prince had ceased pursuit, Fang Yue slightly relaxed.

But the Human-Head Tree he carried on his shoulder was in poor condition.

Even far from An Dong'er, You Sisi continued to have her essence drained by the array, her aura growing ever fainter.

Taking a deep breath, Fang Yue increased his speed.

Since Night Rain was blocked by the Ink Immortal Array, no Blood Rain fell from the sky.

But along the way, the entire street was utterly lifeless.

It was as if all the survivors and the Uyu tribe's anomalies had vanished.

If human corpses had littered the streets, one might have assumed they were killed by anomalies—but now, this could only mean every living being within Jingcheng was being absorbed as nourishment for the Ink Immortal Array, becoming An Dong'er's nourishment, aiding her ascension to Immortality!

Only as a Rain-level cultivator, and as You Sisi—who had already been transformed into part of the Spirit Tree—was this effect less obvious.

In truth, if he paid close attention, Fang Yue could feel that each time he used Martial Arts, some of his power leaked out, dragged downward and absorbed by the Spirit Tree's sub-roots, then transferred to An Dong'er.

In a sense, An Dong'er, within the Ink Immortal Array, possessed infinite vitality and power.

All living beings within the Ink Immortal Array would ultimately become her nourishment, her support.

"Such a tyrannical and overwhelming array—how could Lord Mo have even conceived it…"

Fang Yue's perception of Mo Qing still rested on the impression from the Huanggu Yiji, at most viewing Lord Mo as a fanatic researcher, never realizing that Lord Mo had once owed a favor to Qi Ba Jiu Daren in his mortal days, and had orchestrated the grand construction of the Huanggu Yiji—clear signs of Lord Mo's extraordinary nature.

Watching You Sisi's cheeks sink into withered emptiness, Fang Yue grew anxious and accelerated further.

Ahead, the Imperial Palace was now within visible distance.

As he had expected, a curved protective array shielded the Imperial Palace from the Ink Immortal Array's influence, and voices could be heard from within.

But… the voices were cries of battle and desperation—as if something had gone wrong inside the palace.

Fang Yue's heart lurched with dread.

Lord Han, Jing Yan, and Chen Qing were inside the palace; if Captain Wu had followed his orders, he should have arrived there with Xiao Ye as well.

"Please don't let anything happen to you!"

Anxious, Fang Yue pushed his speed even higher.

But when he reached the palace gates, he saw two familiar figures—clearly…

"Xiao Ye? Captain Wu? Why are you both waiting outside?"

Indeed, the two waiting outside were Captain Wu and Xiao Ye.

Both reacted differently upon seeing Fang Yue.

Captain Wu's face lit up with relief—then froze when he saw Fang Yue carrying only You Sisi's head; his joy vanished, replaced by tension and distress, as if forcing himself to speak with a hoarse voice:

"Night Captain… where's An Dong'er? You promised you'd save her…"

Captain Wu knew this was childish, but he couldn't suppress his anger—his emotions were too raw to contain.

Xiao Ye, by contrast, simply lowered his head, unable to meet Fang Yue's gaze, still ashamed of what had happened before.

"I'm sorry, An Dong'er… I couldn't save her, but she's not in immediate danger."

Fang Yue approached the two and briefly recounted what had happened, calming Captain Wu's agitation, then asked: "What's the situation inside the palace? I need to get You Sisi inside immediately—she won't last much longer."

"The palace's array is too complex for us to break. But since you refugees have special ways to communicate, I had Xiao Ye relay the situation to Jing Yan and the others inside, asking Lord Han to find a way to open the array. So far, no reply."

Pausing, Captain Wu's gaze hardened: "Night Captain, you said the First Prince of the Uyu tribe is out there too, right? I don't know why you're so certain An Dong'er is safe. I'll help you enter the palace array to save You Sisi's life—but after that, I'm leaving for An Dong'er's side!"

"…Captain Wu, do as you see fit. I won't stop you."

"Hmm."

It was clear Captain Wu was angry, even regretful.

He had trusted Fang Yue too completely, never considering Fang Yue might abandon others for You Sisi's sake.

It was human nature—he understood that. His regret was that he hadn't thought of this possibility himself, handing over the rescue entirely to Fang Yue.

At this moment, Fang Yue was frantically sending messages to Jing Yan and Chen Qing, trying to establish contact.

But the messages vanished into silence, stirring a sense of dread in Fang Yue.

Looking at the chaotic battle cries from within the palace and the gruesome corpses littering the ground, his anxiety deepened.

He had little understanding of arrays, so if he wanted to enter, only brute force remained.

After An Dong'er's protective stance incident, Fang Yue had begun doubting his own strength—wondering whether his full power could even break through the palace's array.

But with the crisis at hand and no other options, he had no choice but to gamble everything.

He entrusted Xiao Ye with the nearly lifeless You Sisi, who now mumbled incoherently, then drew his sword.

Amid Xiao Ye's complex expression, Fang Yue prepared to strike.

And just then—

"Xiao Ye!!"

From within the palace, a figure staggered toward them, dragging a broken body.

Fang Yue stared—and recognized the figure as "Lord Han"!

Fang Yue's face brightened.

"Lord Han, quickly open the array! Let us in—You Sisi can't hold on much longer!"

The "Lord Han" paused, then gave a bitter smile, pointing to his eyes.

"I'm not Lord Han. I'm Lin Ling. Lord Han exhausted his power and fell into hibernation—I'll explain later."

As he spoke, Lin Ling reached the array barrier, pulled out a Jade Pendant, and pressed it against the translucent wall—the array rippled open a gap. Fang Yue and the others rushed through.

Inside the palace, the relentless pulling force from the ground vanished instantly—he felt lighter than ever.

Simultaneously, the decaying head of the Spirit Tree ceased its deterioration, as if severed from the external Spirit Tree's nourishment, no longer being drained.

"How did she end up like this? Is this really You Sisi—or some anomaly in disguise?"

Lin Ling asked in disbelief.

Fang Yue and the others exchanged a glance and gave a wry smile.

"This really is You Sisi. It's just that the spirit tree An Dong'er transformed into absorbed her nutrients, which is why she ended up looking like this."

"You, you wait a moment! I'm a bit confused…"

Long-press this chapter to re-download

(End of this chapter)