The underground magma bubbled and gurgled.
On a rock high above it, the sleeping Su Jin slowly awoke.
She stared at the uneven layers of rock overhead, dazed and bewildered.
"Where am I? What happened? My head hurts..."
Suddenly, she sprang up from the ground, took the guzheng from her inner world, and assumed a defensive stance.
"Senior Sister Su, we're safe for now."
A gentle, steady voice sounded nearby, filling her with a sense of security.
Su Jin turned and saw Jiang Ping An sitting cross-legged some distance away, cultivating.
She finally remembered what had happened before she lost consciousness:
"Thank you, Junior Brother Jiang. If you hadn't come to my aid, I'm afraid I... would already have met a terrible end."
Relaxing, Su Jin plopped down on the ground.
When the two Second-Order Void Gods had captured her and left her unable to escape, she had nearly detonated her own soul.
Fortunately, Jiang Ping An had appeared in time to save her.
Jiang Ping An smiled faintly. "You've helped me so many times, Senior Sister, and never let me thank you. Why are you thanking me now? Besides, we're fellow disciples. Helping each other is only right."
Su Jin took out a crystal-clear pill and swallowed it to restore her weakened soul.
She stared fixedly at Jiang Ping An's right eye.
She remembered seeing a blood-red character for "death" appear in his right eye before she fainted. It was the mark of the Death God Curse Seal.
The character was no longer visible. He must have concealed it.
"Junior Brother Jiang..."
"Yes, I comprehended the Death God Curse Seal."
Jiang Ping An knew what Su Jin was curious about and admitted it outright, hiding nothing.
Once she received confirmation, Su Jin's heart raced for a couple of beats.