It was a bright sunny day, but in an instant, night fell. Suddenly, a sky densely packed with stars appeared above our heads. What shocked me even more was that the well-like structure vanished without a trace in that moment—leaving only the platform where the Ten Guides sat. Except for Mo Jue, who had just attacked me and John Chou, the other nine remained calmly seated in their chairs.
"What on earth is happening?" I asked. Dozens of meters away, Mo Jue scrambled to his feet and spat on the ground.
"John Chou, after all these centuries, you're still as formidable as ever. However..."
Mo Jue said this and suddenly burst into laughter, clutching his stomach and looking at John Chou with utter disdain.
"You're too weak now. Far too weak. John Chou, since you’re here today, don’t even think about leaving."
"Everyone, listen up. Act as we discussed before," Hu Tianshuo said, glancing at Rachel Lan. She remained silent. Then Hu Tianshuo adjusted his glasses and continued speaking.
"If my guess is correct, as long as we get Rachel Lan out of here, the influence of Hades' Will on her won’t be so severe."
I nodded, looking at Rachel Lan, who still said nothing. Just then, John Chou grabbed me suddenly, while Yuna Ji hoisted Hu Tianshuo, Vivian Maple caught hold of Rufina Howard, and Old Eccentric and Vincent Swallow each leapt aside.
The reason was Rachel Lan—her body began to crack and emit a yellow glow. I felt a surge of immense power.
I roared in anger, reaching out as Rachel Lan’s body gradually swelled. With a thunderous boom, a deafening explosion erupted.
"Ruo Xi..."
I screamed in shock. As soon as I hit the ground, I shoved aside Yin Choujian's hand and dashed straight into the lingering smoke of the explosion.
There was nothing—everything had disappeared before my eyes. My head buzzed, and I couldn't hear a thing. An overwhelming wave of grief surged through me. I stood there, hand raised, motionless in the swirling dust.
Even after the dust settled, I stood there in silence, unmoving. My mind was blank, as if something inside me was about to burst out. I couldn't tell if what had just happened was a dream or reality.
"Brother, is your Specter Web just for decoration? Open your eyes and see clearly."
Yin Choujian's reproachful tone snapped me back to my senses. I immediately unfurled my Specter Web, sensing everything around me.
The thing that had exploded just now wasn't Lan Ruo Xi. Only now did I realize—this thing wasn't her at all. It was utterly devoid of emotion, cold and lifeless. I jolted awake, scanning my surroundings, hoping to find any trace of Lan Ruo Xi.
Just then, Yin Choujian picked up Mo Lin, who lay unconscious and bleeding beside the Trial Marriage Stone, and gave a chilling smile.
"You think we're toddlers? Here, take this back."
With that, Yin Choujian tossed Mo Lin toward Mo Jue.
Suddenly, I saw Miles Mo reach out his hand. As Martin Lin flew toward him, his body began to emit a yellow glow, then transformed into a swirling yellow current that was absorbed into Miles Mo's palm.
"The First Hall Yama King Qin Guang, Second Hall Yama King Chu Jiang, and Third Hall Yama King Song Di have issued the highest order of the Three Halls. Yin Choujian, Yuna Ji, today you won't leave the Yellow Springs alive."
As soon as Miles Mo finished speaking, a piercing female scream echoed from the sky.
"Yin Choujian, I want your life..."
It was Wendy Hsieh. Her entire body was engulfed in Vermilion Bird flames, wrapped in a blazing Vermilion Bird armor. Yet this armor was unlike anything I'd seen before.
The Vermilion Bird armor encasing Wendy Hsieh wasn't burning with flames, but seemed tangible—like a suit of Vermilion Bird armor covering her body.
A wave of heat blasted toward us, accompanied by a sharp, piercing sound. Smoke curled in the air. Everywhere Wendy Hsieh flew, the ground ignited, leaving a trail of flames behind her.
A creaking noise rang out. Suddenly, I saw a mass of green light, and then Yuna Ji was enveloped in white bones. Nine long bone tails sprouted from her back. In a flash, Yuna Ji brandished two bone daggers, intercepting Wendy Hsieh's blazing claws with precision.
"You don't like fighting women, do you, Yin Choujian? Let me handle this."
Three crisp snapping sounds rang out. Yuna Ji's three bone tails struck Wendy Hsieh's body, then all nine bone tails coiled around her, flinging her violently to the left before surging after her.
"Wendy, leave Yin Choujian to me."
A tiger's roar thundered. I saw Troy Duan leap off the platform, while Yin Choujian turned into a streak of blood-red light and charged forward.
Two metallic clangs rang out. Yin Choujian wielded his Bloodbane, and Troy Duan raised a sword etched with blue and white patterns, its hilt shaped like a tiger's head.
"Tiger's Roar, huh? Haven't seen that in years."
Yin Choujian spoke. Troy Duan sneered. Suddenly, Yin Choujian's body was slashed, blood spraying everywhere.
"Tiger Surge..."
In an instant, Troy Duan charged at Yin Choujian, whose body was already shrouded in bloody mist. Troy Duan's sword, named Howl, slashed fiercely, its white-transparent blade leaving streaks in the air.
Two more metallic clangs. The blood mist quickly reformed into Yin Choujian, who blocked Troy Duan's sword with Bloodbane. Suddenly, Yin Choujian released Bloodbane mid-air and appeared above Troy Duan, kicking him in the face and sending him flying to the right.
The two battles lasted only seconds. The other eight Guides didn't act immediately—they watched silently from the platform.
"Qingyuan, find Lan Ruo Xi's location. Let's go, girl, to the back."
Hugh Thompson spoke. Rufina Howard nodded, then pulled out two blue talismans and chanted a spell. The talismans glowed fiercely as she combined them. With a rush of water like a serpent, Rufina Howard grabbed Hugh Thompson's hand, and together they rode the torrent toward the rear.
I quickly spread my Specter Web in all directions—I had to find Lan Ruo Xi fast, before something changed. Suddenly, I noticed thirteen stars shining brightly in the sky, their shapes resembling the thirteen buildings I'd seen before.
Those thirteen glowing clusters connected with bright lines, forming oval patterns that filled the sky, turning night into day below.
Meanwhile, Yuna Ji had completely overpowered Wendy Hsieh. As I glanced over, I saw Yuna Ji's nine bone tails pierce Wendy Hsieh's body, suspending her in midair.
"What's wrong? Done so soon? If your dead man saw you like this, he'd cry for you."
Yuna Ji's taunting voice made me uneasy, but I had to focus on finding Lan Ruo Xi. Hugh Thompson had said yesterday that finding her was key.
I feared that only the Lan Ruo Xi I'd met on the Ten Hall Road was real. After returning, she spoke to me once, then left. What happened next, I have no way of knowing.
But thinking back, yesterday, after leaving Lan Yin's place, I ran into Lan Ruo Xi's mother. She told me to look out for myself. At first, I didn't pay much attention, but remembering her expression—hesitant, as if holding something back—she never mentioned her daughter at all.
I don't have time to dwell on it now. Tunjiu and Old Freak have already followed Hugh Thompson and the others, leaving only Vivian Maple and Samantha Simons at my side.
"Let me help you." In a flash of gold, Jason Su appeared, his body radiating golden light as he headed toward Yuna Ji. Wendy Hsieh screamed in rage, but Yuna Ji's nine bone tails held her fast, unable to move.
"Yuna Ji, many of my Su clan died by your hand. Today, it's time to settle that debt."
As Jason Su approached Yuna Ji, he stretched out both hands. With two sharp cracks, golden threads flashed. I saw two golden silk ribbons strike Yuna Ji's bone armor.
"Yuna Ji..."
I shouted. With a creak, Yuna Ji's bone armor shattered, and she crashed hard to the ground.
Then I saw Jason Su hefting the golden silk as if it were incredibly heavy.
"Young Master Qingyuan, they're coming—be careful."
As Samantha Simons finished speaking, Vivian Maple and I dodged aside. The pale-faced scholar approached, wielding Longyin. A deep groove in the ground marked where he'd struck.
"Forgive me, ladies. Since everyone else has made their move, I have no choice but to join in."