The wind had died down, and the snow had eased as well. Chen Wuya stood where he was, a crack stamped into the hard snow beneath his feet. He raised a hand to wipe the blood from the corner of his mouth. His fingertips trembled slightly, but he did not stop walking.
Bai Zhi braced herself against her sword and straightened up, her breathing much steadier than before. She glanced at Chen Wuya, then toward the fissure stretching across the frozen earth in the distance. Dim light still flickered along its edges, as though something were flowing beneath it.
Mo Feng picked up his backpack from the ground and rummaged through it. Most of the mechanism panel had shattered, leaving only one corner that still glimmered with a faint blue light. He said nothing, merely took out the jade token fragment and held it in his hand.
The three of them slowly made their way toward the fissure. With every step, the air grew colder—but this cold was different. It did not cut to the bone; instead, it carried a heavy, stifling pressure.
As he drew near, Chen Wuya reached out to test it. Before he could touch it, a rebounding force struck his palm, as though he had slammed into an invisible wall. He frowned and circulated Ice Misaligned Force: Final. A thread of blue light extended from his fingertips.
The runes lit up.
Dark-red patterns surfaced across the fissure, crooked and twisted like bloody scars carved by a blade. The instant the blue light touched them, it was sucked inside and vanished.
System vibration: [High-risk restriction detected] [Remnants of the Demonic Cult's "Blood Sacrifice Curse" detected. Royal blood is required to break it.]
Chen Wuya withdrew his hand, his brow still furrowed. "This thing recognizes bloodlines?"