Jingyu

"The Thunder-Devouring Falcon Demon King is truly here?" Surprise flickered across Qin Sang's face. He stared at the Thunder Rosary, unable to make sense of anything, and waited patiently for Fat Chicken to finish the secret art. Yet at some point, two streams of clear tears had begun rolling from the corners of Fat Chicken's eyes, and his entire body was trembling. Mother and son had been separated for two hundred years. Having finally found word of his closest kin, Fat Chicken was weeping tears of joy. Unable to suppress the turmoil in his heart, Fat Chicken hurriedly opened his eyes the moment he completed the secret art. Looking at Qin Sang, he blurted out in desperation, "Master..." "Can you pinpoint your mother's location?" Qin Sang asked in a heavy voice. Fat Chicken nodded furiously, like a chick pecking at grain, and stammered, "It's a bit faint, but I can determine the general direction! The closer we get, the clearer the Thunder Rosary's guidance will be!" Qin Sang pondered for a brief moment, put away the sword talisman, and said, "Let's go! We'll rescue your mother first!" Back then, the Thunder-Devouring Falcon Demon King had been capable of fighting two opponents at once, yet she had remained trapped here for two hundred years without being able to break free. It seemed there were dangers lurking within the Black Pagoda Array that they knew nothing about. She would certainly understand the Black Pagoda Array intimately. If they could rescue her, she could also help them deal with Old Demon Ye. The Nascent Soul cultivators of the Lesser Cold Domain had basically all arrived; helping her break free shouldn't be too difficult. Even so, Qin Sang planned to assess the situation first before deciding whether to call for aid from the others. If he could rescue the demon king on his own, that would naturally be best. Having been trapped for so many years, there was no telling what state she was in. If someone saw that she was weakened and harbored wicked intentions, it would only ruin things. Qin Sang instructed Fat Chicken to focus on channeling the Thunder Rosary. Enveloping both of them in sword light, he plunged into the blood mist. *** Meanwhile, within an unknown space. Pitch-black and chillingly cold, the space was exceedingly narrow—barely enough to accommodate one person. Two people standing here would feel cramped. The space was enclosed on all sides by black walls. There were no stone slabs overhead; instead, a blood-colored vortex churned endlessly in the void above. Not a wisp of blood mist drifted inward from the vortex. On the contrary, wisps of spiritual energy seeped through it. At this moment, a woman sat cross-legged inside this cramped chamber. She wore no powder or rouge. A mane of silver hair cascaded naturally over her shoulders, her nose was delicately straight, and her figure was graceful and slender. She wore a soft, silver robe, and only upon closer inspection could one see faint arcs of lightning flickering across its fabric—it was woven from threads of lightning. However, a pair of wings grew from her back, marking her as a member of the demon race. This woman was none other than the Thunder-Devouring Falcon Demon King, who bore the Daoist name Jingyu! She had no idea how long she had been trapped here. Having long grown accustomed to the confining space, she kept her eyes closed with complete indifference, immersed in meditative cultivation. Imprisoned in such a place, she knew of nothing else to do besides cultivate. After so many years, she had been forced to resign herself to fate. The only thing to be thankful for was that the restriction here had suffered prior damage. It was only capable of trapping someone, without subjecting them to torturous punishments; otherwise, she would have failed to endure it long ago and been reduced to ashes. Even so, these years had been unimaginably arduous. What was even more terrifying was not knowing whether the day would ever come when she could walk out. What had kept her holding on until now was the deepest tie in her heart—her only kin. Yet cultivation was fraught with hardships, and the world changed in the blink of an eye. Deprived of her protection, had that frail child, who had barely been born, managed to survive? Inside the pitch-black space, a deathly silence reigned. One could not even feel the passage of time. Suddenly, Jingyu was jolted awake. She sprang to her feet, her hair almost brushing against the blood-colored vortex above. It was as though she had sensed something, and an expression of utter disbelief appeared on her face. The feeling was so faint that she even doubted whether it was merely an illusion born of her pining thoughts. After freezing for a moment, Jingyu abruptly realized that it was real—it was not an illusion! Lightning suddenly erupted all over her body, showering like rain before gathering in front of her. At last, it coalesced into a longan-sized lightning sphere, which she drew into her glabella. The sensation grew much clearer. "Xiao Pang! It really is Xiao Pang!" Jingyu's face was filled with pleasant surprise. For one, she finally knew her child was still alive; for another, she sensed that the Thunder Rosary was drawing closer and closer, clearly coming to rescue her. The Thunder Rosary connected the bloodline between mother and son. Only one of direct blood kinship could evoke such a response; even if another member of their clan channeled the Thunder Rosary, it would never resonate with her. *How did he get in? Has he already undergone transformation? Or has some change occurred in the Blood Lake?* Trapped inside, Jingyu could only vaguely sense the Thunder Rosary and knew nothing of Xiao Pang's circumstances. She couldn't help but worry whether the child was facing some threat. Transforming within two centuries—even though she had nurtured him for many years in the womb and he had been born at the Demon Spirit stage—would still make him a peerless genius. Moreover, this place was an area of extreme peril. Xiao Pang was unaware of the truth; if he charged in recklessly out of eagerness to save his mother, the danger would be catastrophic! Back then, she too had fled into this space only under dire duress, escaping a deadly fate. Though she had escaped disaster, she discovered that once inside, there was no way out. No matter what methods she exhausted, she could not breach the vortex. "No!" Her thoughts in turmoil, Jingyu could no longer sit still. Gritting her silver teeth, she looked up at the blood-colored vortex overhead. She abruptly reverted to her true demon form, spreading the wings on her back wide as countless arcs of lightning surged forth without a sound. The next instant, she turned into a bolt of lightning, boldly hurtling toward the blood-colored vortex. *Boom!* The blood-colored vortex churned wildly into chaos. Spinning furiously in reverse, countless beams of blood light converged toward the center. Blood light surged inside the vortex as streaks of lightning flashed intermittently. The two forces clashed with violent momentum, yet the space beneath remained entirely motionless. The outcome was decided in an instant. Outmatched, Jingyu crashed down heavily. At this moment, she was in a wretched state, many of the feathers on her body frayed and broken. She had lost count of how many times this scene had played out. *** Inside the Black Pagoda Array. Qin Sang advanced through the formation with Fat Chicken. The direction sensed by the Thunder Rosary shifted constantly. The grand array rotated incessantly, and the black pagodas were by no means static, though there was no telling what pattern governed them. Nevertheless, as time passed, the Thunder Rosary's guidance grew ever clearer, indicating that they were drawing closer to where the Thunder-Devouring Falcon Demon King was trapped. *Whoosh!* Just as they passed through a patch of blood mist, Qin Sang's figure halted abruptly. He then slowly retreated, pulling Fat Chicken back with him. Before them, more than a dozen giants nearly two zhang tall were roaming back and forth. The giants were extraordinarily hulking and burly, each holding a massive battle-axe in each hand, their expressions savage and menacing. Their bodies and their greataxes were all dyed entirely in blood-red, as if condensed from thick gore, resembling puppets of flesh and blood. Not long after entering, Qin Sang had discovered these flesh puppets wandering through the grand array. Fortunately, his Heavenly Eye divine ability had spotted them in advance. These flesh puppets possessed extremely keen senses; had Qin Sang drawn even slightly closer, he would nearly have been detected. They did not appear to possess much intelligence, yet Qin Sang could clearly sense danger from them. The feeling was somewhat familiar, reminding him of that unknown monster he had disturbed at the bottom of the blood river. There was no telling whether there was any connection between them, or whether they had been crafted by whoever originally built the Blood Lake or had formed naturally. It seemed the Blood Lake harbored dangers far beyond what met the eye. Qin Sang had no desire to taste the bite of their blood axes. Steering clear of them with great care, he continued searching for the Thunder-Devouring Falcon Demon King alongside Fat Chicken.