How cruel.
In the night sky, a beastly, piercing howl suddenly echoed, and a large white cat leaped into the Divine Fire Pillars.
“What is that?” Fu Ronghua’s eyes narrowed.
“It’s that witch’s spirit beast,” Rong Shuang said. “Quite loyal, indeed.”
“Hmph, seeking death,” Daoist Lingxin sneered. “Once Yang Zanxing is dead, I’ll send this beast to join her in the grave!”
“Mimi!” Men Dong called out anxiously.
Daoist Yueguang sighed and shook his head. “It’s a spirit beast. The Ten Thousand Killing Formation doesn’t harm non-demonic creatures. Don’t worry, it won’t die, but…”
But Yang Zanxing, I’m afraid, won’t survive.
Mimi leaped into the Ten Thousand Killing Formation. This large white cat, which usually only ate, slept, and played with fluff, stretched its body, trying to shield Zanxing beneath it. Unfortunately, while the Ten Thousand Killing Formation’s Divine Fire Pillars couldn’t kill the Silver Moon Lion, they also couldn’t be stopped by the lion. The flames still seeped through the gaps, entering Zanxing’s body.
Seeming to be anxious for its master, the Silver Moon Lion let out a long roar. This roar was different from its usual lazy sounds, it was deep and resonant like a beast’s roar. Xuan Lingzi’s heart leaped with joy. “Could it be that the Silver Moon Lion is awakening?”
If Mimi awakened at this moment, it might be able to help Zanxing escape.
He secretly hoped for an awakening, but Mimi did not fulfill his wish. The large white cat, its form unchanged, suddenly turned and pounced on a flame beside Zanxing, opening its mouth and swallowing the flame.
“What?” Daoist Lingxin’s gaze faltered. “What is that beast doing?!”
Mimi was consuming the Divine Fire.
The snow-white cat arched its body, struggling to devour the flames around Zanxing. With each flame it swallowed, the cat’s fur became increasingly scorched, seemingly bearing the brunt of the fire’s damage.
“That spirit beast might be somewhat formidable,” Rong Shuang remarked dismissively. “But the power of the Divine Fire is beyond what any mere beast can endure. The Ten Thousand Killing Formation isn’t over yet, that beast will likely die soon.”
To prove her point, as the killing moves increased, the cat’s movements grew slower. Its once nimble form became sluggish, its snow-white fur turning into a dark, charred mass, its original appearance almost unrecognizable. Despite this, it continued to laboriously consume the flames around Zanxing, resting and panting after each flame it swallowed.
Zanxing could see nothing and hear nothing, but the bond she shared with her spirit beast seemed to allow her to sense what was happening around her. She desperately wanted to see how Mimi was doing, but her entire body remained utterly immobile.
Only the eternal blaze and endless pain remained.
Perhaps due to the overwhelming discomfort, she suddenly recalled the city of Wufan in the desert. The mirage woman used human fears and desires to weave a beautiful dream. At that time, she had shattered the illusion without hesitation. If she were in the same situation now, she would likely choose to accept it immediately.
Zanxing wondered if illusions could deceive oneself, and suddenly a thought occurred to her: she should have learned illusion techniques properly from Gu Baiying.
Gu Baiying…
The image of the impatient young man surfaced in her mind. She could almost imagine how, once Gu Baiying emerged from his seclusion, the cultivation world would exaggerate her identity to him. The demonic spy who infiltrated the Taiyan Sect, the cruel killer of Ziluo, the scheming and treacherous villain… She had wanted many times to explain the truth to Gu Baiying, but at the critical moment, she had been too scared to confront him, and now she was finally suffering the consequences.
How would he view her? With the same disdainful and disgusted eyes as in the dream? Zanxing’s soul wandered in confusion, thinking that the young man, who was so clear in his likes and dislikes, who could not tolerate even a grain of sand in his eyes, would surely not forgive a demonic sect member who had committed many heinous acts.
The stars shone brighter and brighter. This summer night on Gufeng Mountain was clearer than any previous night.
The light of the Divine Fire Pillars had gradually dimmed by more than half, and the struggling figure within the formation also slowly began to calm. Like a burnt rock or a withered piece of wood, vitality was being gradually stripped away.
“Almost to three thousand kills,” Fu Ronghua observed the Ten Thousand Killing Formation.
“The witch is indeed formidable,” Daoist Lingxin said coldly. “Ordinary demons usually can’t withstand more than a few hundred kills, but she has endured a thousand killing moves from the Ten Thousand Killing Formation. Fortunately, we are dealing with this tonight, otherwise, if she remained in the sect, it would eventually lead to disaster.”
Rong Shuang glanced at Shaoyang Zhenren. Shaoyang Zhenren’s eyes were slightly closed, not showing whether he was unwilling or indifferent. She turned her gaze back to the figure within the formation. After a long while, she spoke, “The Divine Scatter Pill has been used. All five senses are lost. She is at her last breath. She will not survive the next kill.”
From one kill to a thousand, the killing moves grew more severe, while the person within the formation grew weaker. The fact that Zanxing had managed to hold on until now was already a miracle. Her life was like the remaining ashes in a dying flame, it would take just a little more to extinguish it completely.
Mimi seemed to sense something, struggling to get up. The central Divine Fire Pillar suddenly blazed brightly, and the light from countless fire pillars converged into one. It burst from the clouds, heading towards the figure in the formation.
Boom—
A tremendous surge of spiritual power erupted from the center, tossing the disciples around the formation and causing them to crash and fall.
“Miss—” The mountain echoed with Hong Su’s heart-wrenching cries.
“Dead?” Fu Ronghua paused in his fan-waving.
In the distant Ten Thousand Killing Formation, the fire pillars continued to burn and had not yet extinguished. Against the vast night sky, it appeared as if the fire-colored disaster clouds had been turned upside down.
“The Divine Fire Pillars are still burning,” Rong Shuang frowned. “She’s not dead.”
Not dead? How could that be? The Ten Thousand Killing Formation contained Gui Diaotang’s heart blood. Unless Gui Diaotang was resurrected, it was impossible for a demon to survive the killing formation.
“What level of cultivation does she possess? How is she so powerful?” The surrounding disciples were astonished.
“Look, what is that?” Pu Tao beside Rong Shuang’s gaze froze as he pointed towards the figure in the formation.
Zanxing, who could no longer be identified as Zanxing, had her skin scorched by the intense fire, her appearance unrecognizable and her body covered in wounds. Her once black hair was burnt yellow and tangled by the Divine Fire Pillars. Yet among her hair, a bright star was adorned.
Even the intense fire of the Divine Fire Pillars could not diminish the star’s brilliant light.
Suddenly, the star fell from her hair and landed on the ground, breaking into two with a crisp sound.
“It’s a hairpin,” Rong Shuang’s brow furrowed.
The star fell to the ground and soon vanished, but was quickly replaced by countless silver-white light orbs that floated around. These glowing orbs, like luminous snowflakes, drifted into Zanxing’s heart. The woman who had been motionless within the formation gently moved a finger.
She had awakened.