Chapter 54: The End of the Labyrinth (Bonus Monthly Tickets!)

“You’re truly wicked.”

“You clearly didn't even know them before,” Ao Chuan said in her mind.

Shao Heng, however, felt neither guilt nor shame.

“If I were in a world with strict laws and discipline, I wouldn't claim to be virtuous, but I would at least convince myself to follow the rules. But this isn't that. This is a great era of cultivation where myriad races contend and immortals fight for supremacy. The very essence of the Immortal Path is struggle.”

“So why should I be forced to only react passively when others come to infringe upon me?”

“And besides, little white dragon, you’re hilarious. It’s like when you’re hungry for meat—if I fed you Spirit Dolphin meat, would you refuse to eat just because you didn't recognize the pig demon it came from? Who else could eat as heartily as you!”

The little dragon did not respond, clearly stunned by her coaxing.

Shao Heng smirked inwardly.

As the four of them stepped steadily forward, Jiang Feng’s expression suddenly changed drastically. He pulled the compass from his sleeve again; its needle was spinning wildly, and the entire device had turned a deep crimson.

“Not good! It’s an Yin-Ghost warning!” he shouted sharply.

Bai Hong turned to Shao Heng and said, “Junior Sister, Yin-Ghosts fear fire-element spells...”

*Slap!*

Before Bai Hong could finish, Jiang Feng was sent tumbling by a gust of Yin wind. He stumbled into the labyrinth wall, and the compass flew from his hand; without his spiritual power flowing into it, its glow dimmed.

“Invoke Essence, Summon Fire!”

Bai Hong immediately barked the command, chanting a spell to enhance its power. Crimson flames erupted from her palms, surging toward the mass of black mist.

*Sizzle.*

With a sound like water hitting a hot oil pan, the black mist dissipated significantly. Concentrating her spiritual power into her eyes, Shao Heng could see a blurry, illusory human figure—the so-called Yin-Ghost.

Having just suffered a setback and lost face in front of Shao Heng, Jiang Feng was seething with rage.

He immediately steadied himself, and a flame sigil emerged between his brows like a pupil. It shot out a beam of fire that instantly pierced through the Yin-Ghost, burning it to ashes.

“It seems we are on the right path. We are nearing the end of the labyrinth,” Jiang Feng said excitedly, his thoughts clearing after venting his anger.

Bai Hong nodded and picked up the thread: “The closer we get to the exit—which is to say, the closer we get to the Shattered Moon—the more normal it is for Yin-Ghosts to gather.”

“Junior Sister Shao Heng, you are truly impressive. To be able to memorize such a complex labyrinth in its entirety.”

Shao Heng smiled back. “Senior Sister, you flatter me. I was merely lucky.”

Yu Wen, however, kept his chin tilted, casting a glance at Shao Heng with nothing but a cold snort.

The four continued forward, though their formation shifted. Shao Heng, who had originally been trailing at the end, now found herself at the front because the other three had slowed their pace.

The three of them were traveling together and shared a natural rapport; Shao Heng noticed this but did not react.

After about another quarter of an hour, Shao Heng stopped, crossed her arms, and rubbed them. “It’s so cold here. Will there be many Yin-Ghosts ahead?”

As creatures born from extreme Yin energy, Yin-Ghosts possessed an inherent frigid power. The cold they emitted when gathered in groups was something even cultivators who were long immune to the seasons could not ignore.

The compass in Jiang Feng’s hand had been warning them frantically for a while, glowing so red it looked as if it might explode on the spot.

“Junior Sister, are we almost at the end of the labyrinth?”

“I believe so,” Shao Heng replied, acting as if she were terrified, leaning against the wall and huddling her body.

Excitement immediately flashed across Jiang Feng’s face, but then the sound of footsteps suddenly approached. He turned to look, and his expression instantly turned into one of embarrassment.

Yu Wen also turned around, his eyes widening as he cursed under his breath, “Why is it Zhao Qingtu again! Does he insist on competing with us for everything?”

Hearing this, Shao Heng also looked toward the newcomer. It was a male cultivator dressed in pale blue robes, tall and thin, with a youthful appearance that even carried a certain vitality unique to adolescents—an effect that even Youth-Preserving Spells could not achieve.

“Zhao Qingtu?” she murmured to herself.

Shao Heng had never heard the name, but seeing the change in the expressions of Jiang Feng and the others, she knew this person would not be easy to deal with.

She sighed inwardly: *An extra variable. How troublesome.*

The man named Zhao Qingtu also spotted their group and looked surprised.

“To think you could actually find the true exit? Truly astonishing.”

Zhao Qingtu glanced behind him. Seeing a green-clad girl in addition to the three familiar faces, he said with a hint of speculation, “So you’ve brought an outside helper? I see.”

Yu Wen could no longer restrain himself and roared, “What, Zhao Qingtu? It’s true you’ve reached the perfection of the First Realm, but you only broke through this past month. Don't be so overbearing. You already snatched the Shattered Moon that was about to be ours; do you intend to steal it again? Do you even understand the concept of 'first come, first served'!”

Zhao Qingtu gave him a faint glance. As his sleeve flicked, an octagonal array plate descended from his right palm, shimmering with light.

“Heavenly treasures belong to the capable.”

“Even if you managed to get your hands on it, I am stronger than you. What if I simply take it back?”

Without further words, the exquisite mechanisms on the octagonal array plate began to move, and a strange fluctuation immediately radiated outward.

Shao Heng shouted instantly, “Senior Brother, Senior Sister, follow me!”

Though she did not use a movement technique, her footwork was incredibly skillful, moving like a leaping leopard.

Despite Yu Wen’s previous fierce words, Jiang Feng and the others followed her commands nimbly, choosing not to engage in a direct fight with the blue-robed man.

The four of them vanished from sight in the blink of an eye. Zhao Qingtu frowned and gave chase.

The Yin energy grew heavier and heavier, and several clusters of black mist rushed toward them continuously. Although their aura did not exceed the First Realm, it was still troublesome if a cultivator allowed Yin-cold energy to invade their physique.

The three no longer let Shao Heng lead the way. Instead, Jiang Feng took the lead, the flame sigil on his brow flashing repeatedly as he shot out several beams of fire, incinerating all the approaching black mist.

Bai Hong, finding Shao Heng too slow, wrapped her right arm around the girl's waist and activated a spell, sweeping forward rapidly together.

Yu Wen shouted loudly, “Hurry up and give directions!”

“Go straight, then turn left, then left-right-left-left-left!” Shao Heng answered, her lips pressed tightly together to prevent them from curling into a smirk.

Zhao Qingtu’s arrival was actually quite a stroke of luck.

Competition breeds urgency, and the more urgent one becomes, the easier it is to make mistakes in the heat of the moment!

If it weren't for Zhao Qingtu, just as Ao Chuan had said earlier, the three would certainly have remained wary of her. The reason they had unconsciously let her walk at the front earlier was likely because they wanted to "protect her in the lead."

But now that Zhao Qingtu, who already held a grudge against them, had arrived, it saved Shao Heng a great deal of effort.

After passing through the turns Shao Heng had described, they finally saw the exit of the labyrinth.

A vortex of white light hung in the air, surrounded by floating crystals of various shapes, all appearing grayish-white. If one looked closely, one could see dust-like particles swirling around the crystals, much like stardust clustering around a comet.

“The Shattered Moon!”

First came Jiang Feng’s cry of pleasant surprise, followed immediately by Bai Hong. She had unconsciously released her grip on Shao Heng’s waist, her voice urgent: “There are actually four Shattered Moons! Let's move, quickly!”

(End of Chapter)