Several days earlier, Qi Song had given Su Jiu a simple cleaning with a Dust-Cleansing Talisman.
By now, the blood and grime on her body and face were long gone, fully exposing the fragility and pallor of her face.
Chu Luohen gently lifted a few strands of hair from Su Jiu's forehead and carefully tucked them behind her ear.
He stared at Su Jiu in a daze for a long while before murmuring, "Black hair really does look better."
"When do you think she'll wake up?"
Chu Luohen did not turn around, but Qi Song knew the question was directed at him.
"I don't know. By all rights, A Jiu's sea of consciousness hasn't suffered any damage. She only fell unconscious because she exhausted her spiritual qi. But after my treatment over the past few days, her spiritual qi has already been fully replenished, so she shouldn't still be unconscious..."
At this point, a trace of uncertainty crept into Qi Song's voice.
Chu Luohen keenly caught the change. "If you have something to say, say it."
Qi Song sighed. "I suspect it has something to do with the Curse Arts inside her, but I have no way of learning anything more specific. After all, my Heart Discernment alone can't locate the Curse Script."
Chu Luohen opened Su Jiu's hand and took the Red Stone from her palm, then carefully lifted her onto his back.
"We can't stay here forever. Let's open the Barrier first and see what's going on inside that Cauldron Furnace."
As he spoke, Chu Luohen walked over to the recess.
The recess looked rather uneven, its shape irregular. There was no resemblance whatsoever between its shape and that of the stone.
Blood from the fighting had also stained the middle of the recess, leaving it filthy.
Chu