The red liquid before us flowed slowly, glistening within the transparent jar—a blaze of fiery crimson. The Vermilion Phoenix Spirit stood beside us as Sylvia Blue walked up to the jar, reaching out to gently caress its surface.
"You look so much more beautiful in person than in the photo."
Sylvia’s lips curled into a sweet smile. She bent forward, bringing her head close to the jar, gazing intently with a hint of longing in her eyes.
I had no intention of asking unnecessary questions—about the reasons, Sylvia’s origins, or when we first met.
"How old are you this year?"
I asked, but Sylvia didn’t turn around, as if she was already captivated by Rachel Lan inside the jar.
"Eighteen."
The Vermilion Phoenix Spirit beside me seemed hesitant to speak. I asked another question.
"Do you know about the existence of the Forsaken? 001."
The Vermilion Phoenix Spirit shook its head.
"Only found out recently. Let Ethan Zhang let this little girl stay here quietly for a while."
I responded with a simple "oh." Flames ignited beneath me, lifting me gently into the air. The Vermilion Phoenix Spirit spread its wings, carrying me in a sweeping arc past the Whitewind Domain toward the Umber Domain.
I could feel strange gazes from all around, especially from the female Saints—some looked at me with a kind of pity. Considering my current form, I could only shake my head helplessly.
Even the Four Guardians couldn’t change the quality of my soul. Soon, I saw the massive island in the center. We landed, and immediately there was a splash—when I turned, a dark brown Spirit Snake shot out of the lake. I swallowed hard; I recognized it as the Spirit Snake, but it had grown so much in just a few days. Although my connection with the Spirit Snake was now severed.
It was over ten meters long, thick-bodied, and quickly swam up to me. Its cold eyes fixed on me, then suddenly it opened its mouth, flicking its tongue and grinning.
"What happened to you? Why do you look like this now?"
I turned to look at it, puzzled, but saw no sign of Zhu Tang anywhere.
"Where is Zhu Tang?"
The Spirit Snake said nothing, instead glancing at the Vermilion Phoenix Spirit who had brought me here. At that moment, the Black Tortoise rose and walked over slowly.
"You shouldn’t ask about this for now."
Seeing the grave expression on the Black Tortoise’s face, I looked to the Vermilion Phoenix Spirit, hoping she could explain.
The Vermilion Phoenix Spirit let out a faint sigh and shook her head.
"Though he is a Saint, he has already become a helper to the ghosts. So now I’ve placed him somewhere special, hoping to dissolve the ghostly power within him."
"But he clearly..."
I was about to speak when the Spirit Snake interrupted me.
"That damned bird did it willingly. Don’t worry about this, Ethan."
The Spirit Snake quickly cut me off. Judging by their expressions, things weren’t going well. I had no idea what the Vermilion Phoenix Spirit had done to Zhu Tang, but the atmosphere was tense.
"Ethan Zhang, don’t worry about Zhu Tang. He’ll be fine."
The Vermilion Phoenix Spirit rose into the air and soon disappeared into the distant sky. I nodded and walked over to the Azure Luan Egg, standing up and hugging it with both paws.
"It’s still dangerous. Lan Yin will be here soon."
I murmured in response, continuing to feel the egg—cold and stone-like, utterly devoid of warmth. The chill seeped through my palms and into my body, making me shiver.
"There’s not much time left. If this egg sinks and dies, there will never be another chance."
The Black Tortoise spoke anxiously. I recalled what John Chou had told me and looked seriously at Black Tortoise, asking a question.
"Master Black Tortoise, do you plan to go to the Living World when you can no longer hold out here?"
After a long silence, Black Tortoise nodded.
"Are you going to abandon this place?"
"Ethan, there’s no other way. The Four Guardians and us, the Twelve Zodiac, are somewhat alike, but we’ve existed since before the signs. The curse here can’t be resolved so easily. The current state is only a temporary suppression, and now the Forsaken outside are so powerful. The original Four Sacred Realm has shrunk to almost nothing. This barren, desolate land is on the brink of death, so..."
"So you’re just going to abandon it? Everything here... You should know what’s truly going on with this place."
I stared quietly at Black Tortoise. There was a trace of guilt in his eyes. I looked up and shook my head.
"It doesn’t matter anymore. What’s in front of us is more important."
In the distance, a dazzling golden light flared. Lan Yin plummeted down, landing beside me with a crash, then poked his head around, looking for something.
"Where’s that little girl?"
Black Tortoise shot him a glare, and Lan Yin chuckled, then walked over, his smile fading.
"Go on, Ethan. I’ll be watching you. If any ghost power leaks out, I’ll stop you immediately."
I crawled over to the stone where the egg was placed, hugging it with both hands. The egg’s piercing chill made me shudder violently as I closed my eyes.
"Instinct... coexistence..."
A gentle white stream of energy evaporated from my body, slowly flowing into the egg. Instantly, my mind felt frozen, and my consciousness began to blur.
The wind howled past my ears, a wave of cold snapped me awake. Snow drifted everywhere—a world of white. The sky was thick with clouds, not a trace of light. I looked at my furry paws. Still the same, entering the egg’s space hadn’t changed me.
Luckily, my thick fur offered some protection against the cold. But all I could see was endless snow. I started walking.
After a few steps, I looked back—my footprints were already vanishing in the snowstorm. Head down, I pressed on, drawn by a strange scent. It was familiar, as though I’d sensed it before.
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I never expected my nose to be useful at a time like this. I followed the faint scent, moving slowly—it was so weak in the wind, it must be far away.
I started to worry I wouldn’t last in this freezing snowstorm, but soon I felt a warm current surge through me—Lan Yin’s power, flowing directly into my body. I relaxed; it seemed my instincts really had awakened.
As I walked, I pondered why the egg was so cold. It was clearly unusual—this egg was born from the combined powers of the Four Guardians, called the Azure Luan. It shouldn’t be like this, and I couldn’t sense any curse within it.
In other words, the vortex of curse power in the center of the Four Sacred Realm hadn’t affected the egg, and I couldn’t sense any Forsaken either. If anything in this world could threaten the egg, it would be those two forces.
Gradually, the strange scent grew stronger. I quickened my pace. The cold outside couldn’t penetrate my fur, so I raced through the snow.
"Maybe it’s their own problem."
That was my conclusion after careful thought, but the Four Guardians didn’t seem willing to tell me more. I kept running, and soon I saw other colors besides white—some faint, almost green.
After running for a while, I finally saw it clearly—it was blue-green, like a cloud of mist swirling around a snow-white mountain. I swallowed hard.
I started to climb. The ground was slippery, and every step sank into the snow. I couldn’t feel any rocks beneath me, and the scent grew even stronger.