"Hm? One's awake," Ning Laoxian remarked, somewhat surprised. "I thought the two Foundation Establishment girls would wake first, but it's you. You're an interesting one."
As soon as Ning Laoxian appeared, Su Luowei called out to Xiao Ba in her mind, "Quick, scan him again. Is he still at the Golden Core stage?"
Xiao Ba quickly scanned Ning Laoxian. "I've got good news and bad news. Which one do you want to hear first?"
Su Luowei was irritated, "Is this really the time for that?"
"I was just trying to lighten the mood…" Xiao Ba muttered. "The good news is, he's dropped back to the Foundation Establishment stage."
Su Luowei silently considered this. Even though Ning Laoxian had fallen back to the Foundation Establishment stage, the situation was still grim. Han Yi was missing, and both she and Xie Hanzhu were unable to move.
"What's the bad news?"
"The bad news is, I detected some unusual spiritual fluctuations outside. It seems the altar has been activated."
Su Luowei sighed inwardly. Misfortunes never come singly.
Ning Laoxian's sinister gaze swept around the room before finally settling on Meng Shuying.
"Since you're awake, let's start with you…"
His voice was eerie and hoarse, "You've been here long enough."
As he spoke, he reached out to grab Meng Shuying by the collar.
Meng Shuying seemed paralyzed with fear. She couldn't react as the hand reached for her.
Is this how I'm going to die? Meng Shuying thought in a daze.
Just then, she heard a voice.
Su Luowei opened her eyes and lifted her head to meet Ning Laoxian's gaze. Her expression was calm, and her voice equally so, "You're planning to sacrifice someone, right?"
She glanced at Meng Shuying, who was staring back at her, tears welling up in her eyes out of fear, looking like a puppy awaiting its unknown fate.
Su Luowei sighed softly in her heart and said to Ning Laoxian, "I'll go with you."
"Oh?" Ning Laoxian looked her up and down, his interest piqued.
"You're an interesting girl. You figured out why I captured you and still volunteered to go. But why should I listen to you?"
Su Luowei met his gaze, a trace of mockery in her eyes. "Compared to ordinary people, a cultivator's blood contains spiritual energy. The chances of success are higher. You tied me and my companion here with that very intention, didn't you?"
Hearing this, Ning Laoxian seemed momentarily conflicted.
He had captured those girls to use them as sacrifices.
After his previous attempt to activate the altar failed, he had pored over countless ancient texts and finally found a record in an obscure history book.
The book stated that the Demon Lord favored young and tender girls. From the full moon onwards, by sacrificing one girl each night, the Demon Lord would absorb their essence, and after gathering enough, he would grant the sacrificer's wish.
He had originally intended to save Su Luowei and Xie Hanzhu for last since they were both cultivators from the Qingxu Sect and appeared to be closely connected to Zhan Xuehan. Killing them could bring significant trouble if Zhan Xuehan found out.
However—
Remembering what the Venerable One had told him, Ning Laoxian couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement.
If he succeeded in summoning the Demon Lord and gained his power, what would he have to fear from the Qingxu Sect or Zhan Xuehan?
As thoughts swirled in his mind, Ning Laoxian finally made a decision. His eyes darkened as he grabbed the rope binding Su Luowei and lifted her.
Su Luowei frowned but allowed him to carry her without resistance.
Before leaving, she cast one last glance at Meng Shuying and silently mouthed, "Don't worry."
...
Ning Laoxian dragged Su Luowei to the altar and tossed her onto it. Immediately, someone approached and secured the ropes binding her to the altar.
Su Luowei recognized the person—it was Han Yi!
What's going on? Is Han Yi working with Ning Laoxian?
"Han Yi?" Su Luowei called out softly, but there was no response.
Narrowing her eyes, she scrutinized him closely and realized something was off.
His eyes were dull, his movements stiff, and his expression utterly blank, as if he were not truly alive but a puppet under someone else's control.
"It's no use. He's already been controlled," Xiao Ba's voice suddenly interjected in her mind. "I just scanned him and found a trace of spiritual consciousness in his spiritual sea. It's probably left there by Ning Laoxian."
Xiao Ba was right; that trace of spiritual consciousness was indeed left by Ning Laoxian before his secret technique failed. Using it, he controlled Han Yi, stripping him of his own will and turning him into a mere tool.
After securing the ropes, Han Yi mechanically retreated to the side, lowering his head as he awaited further instructions from Ning Laoxian.
Ning Laoxian strolled to the front of the altar and slowly pulled out a black dagger from his sleeve.
He slashed deeply across Su Luowei's wrist, causing blood to flow instantly.
Ning Laoxian smeared the flowing blood onto the altar, his laughter chilling, "It's your honor to sacrifice your life to the Demon Lord."
The blood dripped from her wrist, quickly being absorbed by the altar, which began to emit a strange glow.
"Now!" Xiao Ba shouted.
"This honor, you can keep for yourself," Su Luowei suddenly smiled coldly at him.
A sense of unease surged within Ning Laoxian. Before he could react, Su Luowei made a hand sign and shouted, "Break!"
Ning Laoxian's expression changed dramatically, and he quickly retreated.
But it was too late. The moment Su Luowei uttered the word, countless talismans suddenly appeared around the black altar, and the moment she finished speaking, they all ignited!
Most of the talismans Zhan Xuehan had given her had been placed around the altar. Originally intended to destroy the altar, they ended up being used in this unexpected way.
The countless attack talismans activated simultaneously, crackling like fireworks.
But the power of these attack talismans was far greater than that of mere fireworks. Sitting on the altar, Su Luowei watched as several fire dragons surged toward Ning Laoxian, some even mixed with flashes of lightning…
Ning Laoxian had lived long enough to have several life-saving treasures on him. But no matter how many treasures he had, they couldn't withstand such a sudden and fierce attack. Had he been at his peak, he wouldn't have paid such tactics any mind. But with his cultivation severely weakened and having recently used a secret technique that damaged his core, his current strength was less than a tenth of what it once was.
He frantically tried to defend against the attacks, his heart aching as the defensive treasures he had painstakingly accumulated over the years were expended like water. Naturally, his resentment toward Su Luowei grew stronger.
The cave trembled violently, and the fierce impact caused cracks to form along its walls.
Su Luowei heard a strange noise from above and knew it was bad news. Looking up, she saw a large crack forming at the top of the cave! The crack widened and deepened rapidly, and soon water began to drip through, falling into the cave.
How could she have forgotten? There was a pond above this cave!
Before she could react, the water surged in, flooding the entire cave.
It was unclear where the pond connected to, but the water continued to pour in endlessly, soon submerging half of Ning Laoxian's body.
Realizing his defeat, Ning Laoxian snorted coldly, summoned a shield to temporarily fend off the talismans' attacks, and then dashed toward the crack in the cave ceiling.
"He's escaping!" Xiao Ba screamed.
Su Luowei knew he was trying to escape, but she had exhausted almost all her spiritual energy controlling the talismans. She was barely holding on. As Ning Laoxian's figure disappeared through the crack, Su Luowei withdrew her attack and used the last of her energy to direct the fire dragon to smash open the door in the corner.
...
Meng Shuying sat in the corner, hugging her knees, utterly dazed.
When Ning Laoxian grabbed her earlier, she thought she was going to die. Everyone fears death, and she was no exception.
But…
She clenched her fists, her nails digging into her palms.
Senior Sister saved her, sacrificing herself in the process. That's why she was still safe here.
Why? Why would Senior Sister save her?
Meng Shuying had always assumed that while Su Luowei wouldn't abandon her, it was only because she needed to complete her trial.
In a moment of true danger, she expected to be abandoned without hesitation.
But the truth was that Su Luowei had chosen to sacrifice herself to save her.
Even though Ning Laoxian had intended to take her.
If Senior Sister hadn't stepped forward…
Meng Shuying's mind was in turmoil, replaying Su Luowei's final look at her over and over again.
The more she thought about it, the more painful it felt, until she even tasted the bitterness of blood in her throat.
She crawled to the corner of the room, found the item Senior Sister had mentioned, and grasped it tightly in her hand.
"Senior Sister… you must be okay."
She buried her head in her knees, biting her lip hard to stop herself from crying.
Just then, a loud explosion echoed from outside. The sound was so close it felt like thunder in her ears, snapping her mind into clarity!
She stood up and stumbled toward the door, pounding on it with all her strength. The door didn't budge, so she stepped back a few paces and hurled herself against it, trying to break it down.
Her frantic movements roused Xie Hanzhu, who sat up groggily and shouted, "What are you doing?"
Choking back tears, Meng Shuying replied, "Senior Sister Su… She's been taken away."
Xie Hanzhu froze, then panicked, trying to get up, but with her hands and feet still bound, she only managed to roll around on the floor before flopping back down.
Struggling helplessly, Xie Hanzhu suddenly heard the sound of quiet sobbing from Meng Shuying's direction.
Already anxious, Xie Hanzhu assumed she was crying out of fear. This only fueled her frustration, and she snapped, "Stop crying! Senior Sister isn't dead yet!"
For some reason, those words struck a chord with Meng Shuying, and she immediately stopped crying, biting her lip as she once again hurled herself at the door.
Once. Twice. The door resounded with dull thuds as Meng Shuying threw herself against it with all her might. Her body went numb, blood trickled from the corner of her mouth, and still, the door didn't budge.
Just as she was about to give in to despair, she suddenly heard Xie Hanzhu shout, "Get out of the way!"
Meng Shuying instinctively moved aside, and with a loud crash, the wooden door suddenly burst apart.