A map was spread out on the table; it was a topographical map of the area surrounding the Ziwei Sect. Her gaze swept across the map, and she pointed to several locations marked in red.
"The appearance of these cracks indicates that the damage to the boundary wall is not limited to one or two places, but rather appears in large areas," said Snow Empress. "I want to see it for myself. Only by seeing the condition of the cracks with my own eyes can I determine what kind of power is needed to repair the boundary wall."
Zhang Tianxing hesitated for a moment. "Of course you can go and inspect, but I need to send someone with you. The Demonic Qi around those cracks is dense. If a demon emerges from the cracks, it will be very difficult for you to deal with it alone."
Snow Empress thought for a moment and did not refuse. Zhang Tianxing summoned three young disciples. One was named Li Qingyun, an inner disciple of the Ziwei Sect, whose cultivation was at the Late Nascent Soul Stage and who was skilled in talisman techniques. Another Zhao Wan'er, a girl with a ponytail, who was straightforward and had outstanding swordsmanship. The third was named Zhou Ziheng, who did not talk much but had sharp eyes and always held a short knife in his hand. It was said that he was originally a rogue cultivator who later joined the Ziwei Sect.
The four of them left the Ziwei Sect's mountain gate and flew southeast. Snow Empress rode on her sword, while the other three either stepped on talismans or rode on the wind; their speed was not slow. After flying for less than a quarter of an hour, Snow Empress saw black lines appear on the ground ahead, as if the earth had been torn open by something. The further they flew, the denser the lines became, and black mist rose from them, spreading through the air.
Xue Emperor's Fall beside a crack. The crack was about half a zhang long and two fingers wide, and the soil at its edge had turned scorched black, emitting a pungent sulfurous smell. She crouched down and reached her hand close to the edge of the crack. Before her fingers even touched it, she felt a scorching heat emanating from it, carrying a chilling malice.
"It really is Demonic Qi." The Snow Empress withdrew her hand and stood up. "And the concentration is very high. This is just a small crack; if the larger cracks are more serious, the situation is probably worse than we think."
Li Qingyun leaned closer to take a look, then took out a yellow talisman from his pocket and stuck it next to the crack. The talisman glowed briefly, then quickly turned black and scattered ashes.
"The corrosive power of the Demonic Qi is too strong." Li Qingyun's face turned pale. "My talismans can usually withstand ordinary evil energy for at least half an hour, but the Demonic Qi in this crack completely corroded it in just three breaths. If these cracks continue to expand..."
He didn't finish his sentence, but everyone understood what he meant.
Zhao Wan'er squatted beside another crack and used the tip of her sword to poke at the soil around its edge. The soil turned over, revealing a section of dark red bone. She picked it out, examined it closely, and her expression changed.
"These look like the skeleton of a demon," Zhao Wan'er said. "But how could a demon appear outside the crack? Logically, the boundary wall should only have cracks; a demon shouldn't be able to pass through yet."
Snow Empress walked over to examine the bone fragment. The fracture surface was still fresh, with damp, bloody edges, as if it had broken not long ago. She dipped her finger into the residual liquid on the bone, brought it to her nose, and smelled it, her brows furrowing even more.
"These aren't the bones of a demon," Snow Empress said. "These are human bones. The remaining blood on them smells like human blood. It's just that after being corrupted by Demonic Qi, the bones have turned dark red."
All three of them were taken aback. Zhao Wan'er threw the piece of bone on the ground and took a step back.
"Human bones?" Li Qingyun's voice trembled slightly. "Those... those are people from the Ziwei Sect? Or villagers from nearby?"
Snow Empress did not answer. She stood up and walked several dozen steps forward along the direction of the crack. Along the way, she found three or four more similar bones. Some were buried in the soil with only a small part showing, while others lay on the ground next to the crack, as if they had been thrown from the crack by something.
She stopped in her tracks. Not far ahead, a massive crack, several meters long and a foot wide, stretched across the ground. Black Demonic Qi billowed from the crack, condensing into a thick black mist that blocked even sunlight. Something was writhing at the edge of the black mist.
Snow Empress gripped the hilt of her sword. The three people behind her also became alert. Li Qingyun drew a talisman, Zhao Wan'er drew her longsword, and Zhou Ziheng had already drawn his short knife.
The writhing within the black mist grew increasingly violent. Suddenly, a dark shadow burst forth from the mist, lunging straight at the Snow Empress's face. The Snow Empress dodged to the side, and with a flash of her sword, she cleaved the shadow in two. The shadow landed and transformed into two pools of black water, hissing and emitting wisps of smoke.
But that was just the beginning. More shadowy figures emerged from the black mist, some shaped like wild beasts, some like humans, and some so distorted that they were completely unrecognizable. They let out sharp screechs and surrounded the four people.
Snow Empress's swordsmanship was extremely fast; the tip of her sword drew streaks of silver-white light in the air, each strike slaying a dark figure. Zhao Wan'er's longsword was equally swift, its moves sharp and ruthless, working in conjunction with Snow Empress's attacks to block all the dark figures rushing in from both sides. Li Qingyun's talismans burned in the air, transforming into streaks of golden flames that forced the dark figures to retreat. Zhou Ziheng's short sword focused on attacking the lower body; in the flashes of light, he severed the legs of several dark figures.
The battle lasted for about fifteen minutes. The number of shadowy figures finally began to decrease, and after the last shadowy figure was pierced through the head by Snow Empress's sword, the surrounding black mist slowly dissipated. A mess of charred marks was left on the ground, as if it had been burned.
Snow Empress sheathed her sword and took a slight breath. Her gaze fell on the huge crack. Deep within the crack, a dark red light could be faintly seen flickering, like a pulse of life beating.
"What's that?" Zhao Wan'er followed her gaze and also saw the point of light.
Snow Empress stared at the point of light for a long time. With each flicker of the light, she felt a faint call, as if something was waiting for her deep within the crack, beckoning her to come closer. The feeling was very strange; it was neither danger nor temptation, but more like a... familiar echo.
She shook her head, dismissing the feeling. The priority now was repairing the boundary, not exploring what lay deep within the cracks.
"Make a note of the situation here first," Snow Empress said to Li Qingyun. "You're skilled in talismans, so try to set up temporary sealing arrays on these cracks to suppress the spread of Demonic Qi. Although it won't last long, it will at least buy us a few days."
Li Qingyun nodded and immediately began to act.