The glow of the pearl in the domed ceiling steadied again.
Dim and yellow as candlelight, it made the breathing of the three people in the stone chamber seem especially distinct.
Lin Shisan's Divine Sense split silently into two threads.
One swept across the center of the stone chamber toward Zi Yuner, while the other skimmed along the floor toward Bai Youyou.
"Princess, can you hear me?"
His Divine Sense transmission was kept so quiet that it could circulate only among the three of them.
Zi Yuner's lashes trembled faintly. She did not raise her head, but the finger she had curled around the bedpost tightened slightly.
"I can."
"How much longer can you hold on?"
"Less than an hour."
Lin Shisan said nothing more. He slowly sank his Divine Sense inward and sent it roaming, locating the Little Black Cauldron.
Since the Little Black Cauldron could purify all things and refine Spirit Pills, it could naturally strip the Yin-Yang Union Powder from their bodies as well.
But this method had a prerequisite: he had to pretend the drug had already overtaken him and make Mo Jiao lower his guard. Only then might he find an opportunity to act.
He glanced at Zi Yuner, then at Bai Youyou.
He took two steps toward the center of the stone chamber and sat down on the floor spread with red brocade.
His movements looked perfectly ordinary, except that his breathing had grown somewhat heavier.
He raised a hand and pressed his brow, his fingers trembling slightly.
It was the most instinctive reaction of someone trying to remain clearheaded while being overtaken by the drug.
"Young man, stop forcing yourself to hold on."
Mo Jiao's voice came from the dome, carrying an air of lofty certainty.
"The Yin-Yang Union Powder was prepared with