Breach of Promise

Qin Sang could not decipher the restriction upon the door, but through the beast soul, he could vaguely sense changes unfolding within. The beast soul seemed to have been refined specifically to counter the restriction on the pagoda's doors, targeting its weaknesses precisely. No sooner had it sunk into the earthen wall than it triggered violent fluctuations. The beast soul roared, throwing the restriction into turmoil. Suddenly, countless tendrils of black Qi surged out from the earthen wall like chains, twisting and tangling in every direction. Once the black Qi manifested, Dongyang Bo and Chenyan made their move. The vajra ring and the phoenix sword severed layer after layer of the black chains, gradually uncovering a door buried beneath the darkness. Even with two Nascent Soul cultivators joining forces to break the restriction, the effort proved remarkably grueling. As the beast soul's roar grew fainter and fainter, sundering each chain of black Qi demanded an enormous toll on their energy. Finally, the last strand of black Qi shattered, and the door was laid bare before everyone. The scene beyond surprised them once more. It was not a vast, desolate realm like the seven floors beneath. The ground was completely flat and paved with tiles; this appeared to be the true interior of the Black Pagoda. A faint black mist filled the air, strikingly similar to the chains on the door. It not only obstructed their sight, but also kept spiritual sense from probing very far. “Wait here.” Leaving behind only that command, Dongyang Bo walked into the depths of the black mist alongside Chenyan. Qiu Mubai was in terrible shape. Having overdrawn his potential, his aura was feeble, and he had to be helped down onto the ground to recover. Qin Sang and the others were much better off. They shielded Qiu Mubai in their midst, not daring to wander. The Black Pagoda was an ominous place. The seven floors below were blanketed in bleached bones; who knew what lingered on this one? They were terrified of crossing paths with something inauspicious. The two advanced deep into the black mist. After walking some distance, an ancient bronze door blocked their way. Tightly shut, the ancient bronze door was solemn and imposing. Dongyang Bo looked at Chenyan with keen anticipation and asked, “Miss Chenyan, what do you sense?” His voice was barely above a whisper, terrified of disrupting her thoughts. Chenyan gazed at the ancient bronze door for a long while before suddenly slashing her wrist with the phoenix sword, splashing essence blood across its surface. The blood did not slide off. Instead, it wriggled over the door as though coming alive, resembling crimson worms. Chenyan channeled a secret art, forcing out more essence blood to form a massive blood array upon the ancient door. The blood array formed a seamless whole, gleaming with an eerie crimson radiance. Right after, a blood-red halo welled up from deep within the ancient door, fusing with the blood array. At this sight, both Chenyan and Dongyang Bo’s eyes lit up. “Your esteemed master truly possessed wondrous means!” Dongyang Bo praised in admiration. “Worthy of a great cultivator from a top sect. An ancient bronze door that no one in the Lesser Cold Domain could breach was opened by his solitary strength. And the countermeasures he left behind are still effective after two hundred years! To tell the truth, I was somewhat skeptical at first...” The blood light grew brighter, dyeing the surrounding black mist blood-red. When it reached its thickest, the ancient bronze door shuddered violently and slowly swung open. *Creak...* The massive door ground against the floor, letting out a grating, eerie noise. The sound echoed through the entire space, heard clearly by Qin Sang and the others guarding the entrance. Hearing that sound, an inexplicable sense of unease flickered across Qin Sang’s mind, vanishing in a flash. He figured it was simply because the place was too bizarre and full of the unknown, making it hard to feel at ease. A glance at the others showed they were equally distracted and unsettled, eager to leave this place behind. Before the ancient bronze door, the two watched for a moment. Seeing nothing amiss inside, they eagerly stepped through. Beyond the bronze door lay a vast bronze hall, cast as a single entity. A layer of mottled green patina coated its surface. Having weathered countless vicissitudes, this hall still could not defy the march of time. The hall was cavernous. In the exact center stood a towering sacrificial altar, atop which a light barrier still shone brightly to this day! Astonishingly, the hall was laced with crimson threads, like countless bloody spiderwebs draping the entire bronze chamber. Even the tall altar in the middle was no exception, its light barrier crisscrossed with blood threads. After entering the hall, Chenyan’s gaze was immediately drawn to the altar and the light barrier, and she walked toward it as if pulled by an unseen force. In the center of the altar lay a massive, bottomless pit billowing with black Qi. The black Qi resembled demonic energy, seemingly capable of devouring a person’s mind and soul. This was a demonic pit! The light barrier rested precisely over the gaping hole, locking the black Qi firmly inside. Chenyan looked down into the demonic pit with a deeply conflicted gaze, excitement and dread warring in her eyes. She gently lifted her right hand. As if answering a summons, the blood threads throughout the bronze hall receded and converged toward her palm. In her grasp, the threads gathered into a single drop of blood. As more and more threads poured in, the drop became increasingly crystal-clear, turning into a blood-colored pearl! Finally, all the blood threads vanished from the hall, melting into the pearl. Gripping the blood pearl, Chenyan was just about to cast it toward the light barrier. Unexpectedly, Dongyang Bo, who had been watching in silence, suddenly darted forward to block her. Under her furious glare, he pointed at the blood pearl and said, “Miss Chenyan, before saving your master, how about lending this item to me first so I may retrieve something?” “Dongyang Bo, you want to break your promise!” Chenyan was incensed. Dongyang Bo had harbored sinister designs all along, biding his time until now to strike at the most critical juncture. Dongyang Bo shook his head. “It is not breaking a promise, merely altering the order of things. Help me obtain the treasure first, and then rescue your master. Though it will consume a portion of the blood pearl’s power, I guarantee that once I have that item, saving your master will be as easy as flipping over a hand!” With that, Dongyang Bo sighed. “Back then, your master sent you away in time, so you never witnessed the horror of this demonic pit. Even if he is still alive, his state is likely grim. What will happen once the light barrier opens will be beyond our control. Better safe than sorry; I have no wish to be driven away by the demonic pit and end up with nothing to show for it...” “You despicable wretch! Do you think I would ever trust you again?” Chenyan’s fury blazed. Grinding her teeth, she pointed her sword at him. “If you want this blood pearl, you’ll have to kill me first!” Dongyang Bo shook his head as if helpless. “I know you possess self-defense treasures left by your master, and though you have only recently broken through to the Nascent Soul stage, your strength is out of the ordinary. What is more, I am bound by the blood pact left by your master and cannot take your life. However...” Dongyang Bo paused, a trace of mockery playing across his face. Suddenly, he reached out toward the entrance of the bronze hall, and the vajra ring shot away with a sharp whistle. Seeing this inexplicable move, an ominous premonition surged in Chenyan’s heart. *** Outside the bronze hall. Qin Sang was meditating in silence when the vajra ring abruptly locked onto him. His body tightened violently, and in the next breath, an immense force locked down his entire body. Powerless to resist, he was dragged straight into the darkness. *Whoosh!* It happened without the slightest warning. Mu Yifeng and the others watched helplessly as Qin Sang vanished into the depths of the black mist, their faces draining of color. Just as they scrambled to their feet, Dongyang Bo’s voice transmission rang in their ears, ordering them to stay put obediently. They exchanged glances, filled with dread and suspicion, having no idea what was happening. The most bewildered and terrified of all was Qin Sang. He had already recognized that the object binding him was Dongyang Bo’s life magic treasure, the vajra ring. What in the world had happened inside? Why had his own sect's patriarch turned on him?