What She Thought of Was... Joining Him at the Yellow Springs

After the Ice Fire Ghost Pig fell into slumber, the Ice Fire Yin Yang Pattern lost its medium.

Accordingly, the Yin Yang Two Elements Array no longer had an "array core."

Complete Yin Yang patterns had already appeared across the surrounding stone walls.

Lu Feng activated his Evil-Dispelling Spirit Eyes and saw the flow of spiritual energy within the stone walls with perfect clarity, memorizing this peerless set of strange patterns in its entirety.

After understanding it, Lu Feng found the way out in the southwest corner of the Stone Chamber. Spiritual energy circulated along the patterns on the walls, triggering the mechanism hidden within them.

A heart-shaped archway slowly appeared. Beyond it lay a stone staircase winding upward.

Lu Feng looked at the strange Stone Gate in surprise. "The shape of this exit is quite unusual. The senior who arranged the mechanisms in this Stone Chamber was probably a woman."

Looking at the heart-shaped archway glowing with spiritual light before her, Si Kongtong understood its meaning all too well.

For a moment, she lost her composure again.

Toward the senior who had built this place, she felt both resentment and an indescribable stirring in her heart.

The two followed the stone stairs upward.

Si Kongtong suddenly sensed a terrifying aura coming from ahead. Solemnly, she said, "Be careful. I can sense an extremely terrifying aura ahead."

At this moment, Si Kongtong's strength was restricted by Lu Feng's "persecution," leaving her unable to exert it. She had become much more cautious in her actions.

Lu Feng looked toward the room at the end of the staircase. His Soul Consciousness spread out, and he quickly sensed the terrifying aura Si Kongtong had mentioned.

"That aura seems somewhat strange."

"It doesn't seem to possess the slightest trace of life."

Lu Feng stated what he had sensed. He could not feel the presence of any living person in that Stone Chamber, yet his expression grew even more grave.

An aura like this, produced by something other than a living person, was often even more terrifying.

With no way back, they could only brace themselves and continue forward.

"Stay behind me," Si Kongtong said softly.

Lu Feng stepped over and blocked Si Kongtong, who was trying to squeeze her way to the front. Smiling, he said, "If there really is danger, this one-step distance won't change anything."

With that, he continued onward.

Si Kongtong's heart softened. Following behind him, she murmured gently, "I know you want to protect me from the front, but the gap in our strength is still too great. Stop trying to act tough."

"I just don't like hiding behind a woman."

Si Kongtong froze, clearly surprised by Lu Feng's words. She could not help but laugh and spit lightly. "Such a stubborn obsession with saving face."

"Don't worry. My life is tough," Lu Feng said. By then, he had reached the Stone Gate and sensed the situation beyond it as well.

"That terrifying aura seems to exist only within a fixed area." Lu Feng carefully pushed open the Stone Gate.

The sight beyond the door stunned them both.

Behind the Stone Gate was actually a pool of water, occupying fully half the Stone Chamber.

On the bank beside the pool lay several corpses dressed like blood clan members. They had long since lost all signs of life.

The terrifying aura the two had sensed earlier was emanating from this pool.

A layer of dark gray vapor hovered above the water. Merely looking at it made one's heart tremble, showing just how terrifying it was.

"There are two paths. Which one do we take?" Si Kongtong asked.

On the stone wall directly before them was a Stone Gate, and there should have been another passable route beyond it;

On the opposite bank of the pool was also an opening only wide enough for one person to pass through.

If they chose to proceed through that opening, they would have to leap over this dangerous pool.

The blood clan disciples in the Stone Chamber had most likely died because of that terrifying vapor.

Si Kongtong carefully examined the pool and said, "I remember now. The water in this pool seems to be Nether Void Liquid~"

"Nether Void Liquid?" Lu Feng seemed to have heard that term somewhere before as well.

Si Kongtong explained, "It should be right. That dark gray vapor formed from Nether Void Liquid rising over countless years. It possesses terrifying corrosive properties."

"Even experts at the Heaven Soul Realm must be exceedingly cautious when facing Nether Void Liquid."

Lu Feng asked curiously, "Could such a large pool of Nether Void Liquid really be here just to prevent people from passing through that opening?"

Si Kongtong shook her head. She also did not understand why they would go to such great lengths and use a butcher's knife to kill a chicken.

"Perhaps it has another purpose. After all, Nether Void Liquid can preserve Five Elements Qi, and it can also temper certain weapons, making them sharper."

Lu Feng leaned over and glanced into the pool. "What would happen if someone fell in?"

Si Kongtong said sternly, "The Nether Void Qi alone can damage the strength of a Heaven Soul Realm soulmaster. What do you think would happen if someone fell in..."

"Should we find a way out through this opening, or—"

Before she could finish, an evil laugh suddenly came from the Stone Gate directly ahead.

"You're not going anywhere!"

Lu Kui walked into the Stone Chamber with delight written all over his face, staring maliciously at Lu Feng and Si Kongtong.

Behind him remained four disciples from the Thunder Fire Sect, Beast Taming Manor, Blazing Sun Sword Sect, and Azure Cold Mountain Manor. The others were nowhere to be seen.

Lu Feng's gaze swept over Lan Gu. Seeing her bluish face and injured calf, he immediately understood that the second Wandering Dragon Arrow had struck her.

Surrounded by five people, Lu Feng and Si Kongtong looked ashen.

This was another Dead End, and there was no road left to retreat upon!

A wave of desolation rose in Lu Feng's heart. Looking at Si Kongtong's pale face beside him, he could not help recalling the promise he had made to Si Kongtu.

So what if they were in a desperate situation!

No one could harm the person he wanted to protect!

A miserable yet resolute smile appeared on Lu Feng's face as the Seven Souls Array within his body was completely unsealed in an instant.

So what if his Soul Plate shattered completely!

He pointed a finger at Si Kongtong beside him, sealing her movements.

It all happened too quickly. On top of that, Si Kongtong's strength was currently restricted, leaving her with no time to react.

Lu Kui and the others all stared blankly at Lu Feng's actions, unable to understand why he would launch a sneak attack against one of his own.

"I won't be able to protect you on the road ahead anymore."

Lu Feng took several "splints" from his robes and threw them toward Lu Kui and the other five.

They were the Four Scenery Screen Bai Li had given him back then.

At this moment, a barrier condensed from spiritual energy stood between Lu Feng and Lu Kui's group.

Lu Feng knew that the Four Scenery Screen's power could not hold Lu Kui and the others for long, but for now, it was enough to give him the chance to send Si Kongtong away.

Lu Feng crouched down and reached one hand into the pool, crazily absorbing the terrifying Nether Void Qi.

"No..."

With her acupoints sealed, Si Kongtong could not move. She screamed desperately in her heart, crystalline tears slipping from the corners of her eyes.

At this moment, her anguish and grief were no less than when her father had died.

The Nether Void Qi above the pool thinned somewhat.

"Go!"

All the spiritual energy in Lu Feng's body poured forth. Wrapping Si Kongtong within it, he hurled her into that opening.

After successfully sending Si Kongtong away, Lu Feng struck backward with his palm, blasting the entire pool onto the stone walls. The opening was corroded by the Nether Void Liquid and collapsed, sealing off the path.

Standing deep within the opening, Si Kongtong looked through the cracks and saw a scene she would never forget for the rest of her life.

With spiritual energy enveloping his entire body, Lu Feng leaped into the Misty Void Pool. As though he were merely splashing in the water, he flung large amounts of Nether Void Liquid toward Lu Kui and the others.

Watching Lu Feng gradually sink and fall into the pool, Si Kongtong felt as though her entire being had been hollowed out.

Her heart was filled with despair and deathly silence.

When her father died, all she had thought of was avenging him.

But as she watched Lu Feng die, what she thought of was... joining him at the Yellow Springs.

She had never considered the possibility that Lu Feng might survive.

That was Nether Void Liquid, something even Heaven Soul Realm experts could not withstand!

How could Lu Feng, a soulmaster not even at the Five Elements Realm, possibly survive?

Nearby.

The Four Scenery Screen completely collapsed and shattered the instant it came into contact with the Nether Void Liquid, sending liquid splashing everywhere.

Every one of Lu Kui's group was stained with quite a bit of it. Lan Gu, the weakest among them, was struck squarely in the face by a small splash of Nether Void Liquid.

Without spiritual energy protecting her body, her face twisted in an instant.

The five no longer cared whether Lu Feng lived or died. They believed he had absolutely no chance of survival, and immediately sat cross-legged one after another to suppress the Nether Void Qi.

Chi Yuanqing of the Blazing Sun Sword Sect had never held much hostility toward Lu Feng. He had also stood at the back of the group earlier, so he suffered the least damage, with only a few drops of Nether Void Liquid splashed onto his clothes.

At this moment, Lu Feng's ruthlessness had deeply shocked him; calling it fear would not be an exaggeration.

Not only had he never encountered such a thing before, but even if a blade were held to his throat now, he would not dare become enemies with such a madman again.

Chi Yuanqing rose and said to Lu Kui and the other four, who were still recovering, "Everyone, this secret realm is far too dangerous. The treasures within are no longer something the Blazing Sun Sword Sect can covet. We shall part ways here."

Ever since first encountering Lu Feng, Chi Yuanqing had already considered withdrawing. Along the way, the several Blazing Sun Sword Sect disciples he had brought had died until only he remained.

If not for his obsession with avenging his friends and family, he would not have persisted until now.

Now, the dangers of the secret realm had once more intimidated him.

He had completely recognized the limits of his own strength.

Retreating in the face of difficulty was not shameful; as long as the green hills remained, there would be no lack of firewood!

Chi Yuanqing's principles of cultivation were upright, and he had his own standards for dealing with people and the world. Otherwise, he would never have become the Blazing Sun Sword Sect's Second Senior Brother at only twenty years old.

Not long after Chi Yuanqing left the Stone Chamber, another figure with disheveled hair and frenzied behavior suddenly burst inside.

"You're actually not dead!"

Lu Kui stared at the newcomer in shock. It was Qing Huanzi, whose shoulder had been more than half corroded away. Not long ago, they had accidentally entered a dangerous place. The Phoenix Feather Gate disciples had died on the spot, while Qing Huanzi had fallen into the Poisonous Cave as well.

They had thought both sides had perished, yet Qing Huanzi had unexpectedly walked out alive.

Due to their injuries, Lu Kui and the other four remained seated cross-legged where they were. If they interrupted their recovery, their injuries would inevitably worsen.

Qing Huanzi's mind was already somewhat deranged as he looked madly at the four people in the Stone Chamber.

Suddenly, he spotted Lan Gu behind Lu Kui.

Perhaps recalling the scene of Lan Gu's earlier sneak attack, Qing Huanzi abruptly lunged at her, and the two began grappling together.

Lan Gu's treatment was forcibly interrupted. Blood spilled from her mouth and nose as she tried to break free from Qing Huanzi's entanglement.

"No..."

Lan Gu's expression changed drastically, and her twisted features became even more terrifyingly savage.

Qing Huanzi clung to her tightly, kicked off the wall, and used the force to leap toward the pool.

No one knew whether he had truly gone mad, or whether he deliberately intended to perish together with her.

By then, Lu Kui had already suppressed the Nether Void Qi within his body and had the chance to save them, but he made no move whatsoever, watching helplessly as the two fell into the pool.

Without even a splash, the two sank beneath the water.