Who Told You I'm Not a Monster?

Yan's mouth twitched as he reminded her, "These children can't take it. Don't mess around."

"So that's the image I have in your heart?" Nether Empress arched a brow, her eyes flirtatious. "Yan, your subconscious still hasn't changed."

"Well..." Yan was momentarily at a loss for words. As Nether Empress pressed forward step by step, Yan retreated again and again.

"Xiao Ming, that's enough." Bear Lord covered his face and said, "There are so many children watching."

"Who asked you to meddle?" Nether Empress glanced at Bear Lord and said coolly, "Old Bear, since when did you become so fussy and timid?"

"Hehe." Nether Empress toyed with a lock of hair before her forehead and admitted, "I sent those two children into the Dark Rift."

Jiang Mian could not help asking, "The Dark Rift? What is that?"

"It's an extraordinarily wondrous place. Even with my mastery over the power of darkness, I still can't control the endless darkness beyond that rift," Nether Empress said. "Moreover, that place naturally repels soul beasts. I simply can't enter and investigate it."

"So you took Xie Yue and Yan away to use them as lab rats?" Bear Lord demanded.

"It's also a tremendous opportunity." Nether Empress smiled alluringly. "I was only willing to offer up this opportunity out of consideration for you and Yan."

Nether Empress's expression suddenly turned extremely grave as she said coldly, "It would be best if what lies inside remained undiscovered forever."

"Could it be a divine relic?" Jiang Mian's words stunned everyone, and they all turned toward him with disbelief written across their faces.

"You're very clever." Nether Empress nodded, affirming Jiang Mian's guess. "There's a high chance that it's a divine relic, which is why soul beasts can't enter."

"I started observing you three little ones after the battle against the goblins and found that all of you were quite capable." Nether Empress pointed at Jiang Mian. "You were the most astonishing of them all. I originally wanted to send you in as well, which would have made success nearly certain, but something you said changed my mind."

Jiang Mian asked, "Why?"

"A young man favored by both Di Tian and Snow Empress has limitless prospects." Nether Empress chuckled. "Why shape him too early?"

Jiang Mian looked at Nether Empress and smiled helplessly.

"I originally wanted to take you to the entrance so you could receive those two little ones whenever they came out," Nether Empress said calmly. "Even if something truly went wrong inside, we could forcefully drag them out."

Bear Lord asked in surprise, "Didn't you say that place naturally repels soul beasts?"

"With the strength of the three of us working together, we should be able to forcefully pull those two little ones out." Nether Empress said confidently, "Don't worry. The Dark Rift's energy is quite weak now. I'll definitely return your two little ones to you intact, all right?"

In the silent night, Xie Yue carefully walked along a forest path. It was so dark that he could not see his own fingers, and he had already slammed into tree trunks several times.

"What the hell is this place?" Xie Yue clutched his swollen, aching forehead as he blindly searched for a way out.

Xie Yue had long since lost his sense of direction. He could only hunch over and move forward cautiously. After an unknown amount of time, he felt the surrounding air becoming increasingly thin, while an invisible resistance seemed to stop him from advancing. Xie Yue was now truly struggling with every step.

"My Soul Power seems to be increasing." Feeling the changes within his body, Xie Yue exclaimed, "It's rising even faster than when I'm beside Jiang Mian!"

Xie Yue had only just broken through level fifty and had not even absorbed a soul ring yet, so he was still essentially a Soul Ancestor. The resistance seemed tailor-made for him—not too much, not too little, but every single step required all his strength.

"What's going on?" Xie Yue could not make sense of it. How could there be such a miraculous place in the world, one that could adjust its difficulty according to a person's condition?

Xie Yue's Night Blade was inherently darkness-attributed, so he possessed a natural advantage in a place like this. If Jiang Mian had arrived, he would likely have been repelled, because the ultimate light within him stood directly opposed to darkness.

"Interesting." Xie Yue gritted his teeth and took another step with all his strength. After that step, he felt as if his entire body were about to be torn apart.

But after that step, heaven and earth became clear!

Although the darkness around him had not faded, Xie Yue could inspect everything around him within his mind, much like the legendary Mind's Eye.

People had once specifically trained in this art, using not their eyes but their hearts to observe all things in the world. Once mastered, even if one lost one's sight, one could still see everything in the world. Xie Yue vaguely felt that he had gained something similar.

Xie Yue had now discovered where he was. Before him stood a temple reeking of death and decay. Temples should have been sacred places, yet this one constantly exuded an evil aura.

"What place is this?" Xie Yue wondered. He took another step and found that his body had become light as a swallow, with none of the heavy resistance from before.

"Could that have been the temple's protective barrier? Now that I've entered the inner layer, has it disappeared?" After making his guess, Xie Yue hurried into the temple.

"Is anyone here?" Xie Yue stood at the temple entrance and called softly.

The temple gates were already rotten beyond repair. It clearly did not look like a place where anyone lived.

Xie Yue called out several more times. Aside from the echo of his own voice, there was no other sound. He gathered his courage and cautiously walked inside.

"This place is huge." Xie Yue could not even sense the temple's boundaries. This ability he had suddenly gained was practically a second pair of eyes. From outside, the temple looked no larger than a single house, but once inside, it was a completely different world.

"Who are you?" A timid voice came from behind one of the hall's pillars. Xie Yue turned and saw that, at some point, a little girl with twin ponytails had appeared there.

"Who are you?" Xie Yue asked curiously. "Are you here alone?"

"Big brother, I was thrown in here. Can you take me home?" the little girl asked, her voice tinged with tears.

"Little sister, what's your name?" Xie Yue had already become wary. In a godforsaken place like this, where could a little girl have come from?

"My father and mother don't want me anymore." The little girl wept pitifully as she said, "Big brother, it's so dark here. I'm begging you, take me away. I'm scared."

"The main hall entrance is right there. Why don't you leave by yourself?" Xie Yue instinctively looked toward the hall entrance. That one glance left him completely stunned.

The entrance through which he had come had vanished without a trace. The only thing visible to his Mind's Eye was boundless darkness stretching as far as it could perceive.

"Big brother." The little girl wanted to hug Xie Yue's leg. Xie Yue shuddered and instinctively dodged her embrace.

"Are you afraid of me, big brother?" The little girl froze where she stood and asked coldly.

"No, no." Xie Yue looked apologetic as he comforted her in a low voice. "Big brother was just startled. Little sister, how long have you been here?"

"I don't know either." The little girl honestly shook her head. "After I came in, I could never find the way out again."

"What?" Xie Yue felt as though he had been struck by lightning. His whole body trembled. Was he going to be trapped here for the rest of his life? How could that be? Everyone was waiting for him outside!

Xie Yue steeled himself and said, "Little sister, follow me. We'll get out together."

"Big brother, you have to be careful. There are big monsters wandering inside the temple." The little girl moved behind Xie Yue, her voice trembling. "I've seen them before."

"There are monsters too?" Xie Yue took a deep breath and said softly, "Stay behind me. Big brother will make sure you stay safe."

The little girl grabbed Xie Yue's sleeve, and he carefully walked through the completely empty hall.

The hall was utterly empty. All around stood pillar after pillar that seemed to reach straight into the heavens, with nothing else in sight.

Xie Yue bit his lip and forced himself to focus. In an environment where the enemy lurked in the shadows while he stood exposed, anything less than complete concentration was a death wish!

"Look, this is the rift." Nether Empress led the group before a stone wall surrounded by rubble and thorny brambles. A crack in the middle of the wall led straight into that space.

"Ah!"

Yan suddenly leaped out from the rift and crashed directly at Scarlet King's feet.

"Master, Master." Yan looked around and discovered that he could see again. His teacher and companions were still before him. He immediately hugged Scarlet King's leg and cried, "Master, I was scared to death! I thought I would never see you again."

"Get up." Scarlet King grabbed Yan and lifted him up, saying with some disappointment, "It was such a small matter. Was there any need to be this scared?"

"It felt like I was in there for a very long time. There wasn't anything inside to use as a reference." Yan's teeth chattered as he said, "I thought I was going to be trapped to death in there."

"He must have failed." Nether Empress said indifferently, "Now we'll see how that little one does."

"Failed?" Scarlet King sighed, looked at Yan with some despair, and said nothing.

"Everyone has their own path." Jiang Mian comforted him. "Scarlet King, you needn't be like this."

"Ah!"

"Can I go in and take a look?" Jiang Mian asked curiously.

"Of course you can." Nether Empress said, "But if you go in, the opportunity that originally belonged to that little one may disappear because of your presence. It's better to leave him alone to explore it."

Nether Empress's meaning could not have been clearer. Jiang Mian was valued by Di Tian and Snow Empress, with Scarlet King and Bear Lord acting as his protectors. His future was bound to be limitless, so why involve himself in such an opportunity?

Jiang Mian nodded and no longer considered entering the Dark Rift to have a look. He could let Xie Yue have such a good opportunity. After all, Xie Yue was his brother, not some outsider.

"Big brother, are we just going to keep walking?" the little girl asked as she followed behind Xie Yue.

"As long as we keep walking, we'll definitely find an exit." Xie Yue said confidently. As he walked, he had left marks on the pillars. Since he had not seen any of them again, it meant he was not simply going in circles.

Rumble!

A deafening boom rang out. Xie Yue hugged the little girl tightly and hurried behind a pillar. A huge, bloated, horrifying monster slowly emerged from the darkness.

Its entire body was covered in eyes, while its face had no features at all. Its belly was as swollen as a woman ten months pregnant, and it carried a butcher's cleaver in its hand. Its appearance was utterly terrifying.

"What kind of monster is that?!" Xie Yue felt as if his understanding of the world had been overturned. In all his years, he had never seen such a hideous monster!

"That's one of the temple's monsters." The little girl held Xie Yue's hand, terror written across her face. "They eat every outsider they find."

"Don't be afraid. I'm here!" Xie Yue forced out a smile and stroked the little girl's cheek, intending to continue on after the monster left.

"Ah!"

The little girl suddenly let out a hysterical scream. Xie Yue jolted in fright and followed her gaze. The monster that had seemingly left was now standing directly behind him, staring at him.

The monster's body was densely covered in eyes, all staring at Xie Yue and the little girl as though they were exquisite delicacies!

"When did it get here?!" Xie Yue was horrified. He picked up the little girl and prepared to flee.

The monster raised its butcher's cleaver. Though the movement looked slow, it was actually incredibly fast. The blade came crashing down at Xie Yue, intending to split him and the little girl in two.

"Damn it!" Two yellow and two purple soul rings appeared beneath Xie Yue's feet. Holding the Moon Blade, he raised it to block the attack. As the weapons collided, a powerful hum erupted.

The impact made Xie Yue's palm ache sharply. Taking advantage of the slight delay in the butcher's cleaver, he quickly carried the little girl on his back and sprinted away.

"Ah!"

The monster roared, brandishing its cleaver as it charged viciously after Xie Yue.

In this endless darkness, how could it possibly see me?

Xie Yue hesitated inwardly. He had awakened Mind's Eye by chance, allowing him to walk through the darkness as if on level ground. But no matter how he looked at it, that monster did not seem capable of possessing Mind's Eye.

"That looks like an exit!" Xie Yue vaguely saw a glimmer of light appear ahead.

The little girl's expression suddenly became extremely terrified. Covering Xie Yue's eyes, she shouted sharply, "Get out quickly! This temple is cursed!"

Xie Yue had not been using his eyes to see in the first place. He only felt that the little girl was incredibly strong, squeezing his eyes until they throbbed with pain.

"What curse?" Xie Yue asked instinctively.

"If you don't leave the temple before the sun rises, you'll permanently become one of the temple's monsters and never be able to leave it for eternity," the little girl said shockingly.

Xie Yue's body trembled. He broke into a full sprint toward the light. At that moment, he did not even consider whether the little girl was telling the truth. After all, when a man truly focused on something, he had no intelligence left for anything else.

Xie Yue raced onward like the wind and finally reached the temple entrance. Seeing dawn about to break at the horizon, he did not hesitate in the slightest. He hoisted the little girl onto his back and tried to rush outside.

A dull collision echoed through the hall. Xie Yue fell flat onto the ground, clearly having hit something hard.

"There's actually a barrier here? What do we do?" Xie Yue gripped the Moon Blade tightly, intending to shatter the barrier by force.

"Who told you there was a barrier at the entrance?" The little girl rose to her feet without any panic and said quietly, "Didn't I tell you? Monsters can never leave the temple."

"But we aren't monsters, are we?"

"Who told you I'm not a monster?"