Chapter 20: Chapter Twenty: Yue Zhuan

No one dared to move recklessly.

Hong Qisheng had just been decapitated before their eyes, his head still rolling near Meng Han's feet.

Feng Sanchu looked at his senior brother in terror, not daring to make a sound.

Meng Han's expression was also extremely solemn. His lips moved as he spoke in a low, hushed voice: "Foundation Establishment stage!"

Everyone's expression changed drastically, their hearts leaping into their throats. The Liao siblings were trembling like sieves; everyone knew deep down that their lives would likely end here.

Zhao Chun was drenched in cold sweat, the sound of her own thundering heartbeat ringing in her ears. Suddenly, her vision darkened, as if she had been plunged into an endless void.

"Senior Brother Meng!"

It was Feng Sanchu's voice!

Meng Han replied, "Don't act rashly. We should be inside some kind of containment-type magical artifact!" He paused, then added, "If you are there, say something."

Zhao Chun answered, "Zhao Chun is here!" She then heard the Liao siblings respond, and a moment later, a woman's trembling, sobbing voice rang out: "I am Hong Qian, my mother and I are both here!"

They were targeting the Hong family; otherwise, they wouldn't have brought these two along. In that case, if they could negotiate properly, there might still be a chance to survive! Zhao Chun knit her brows, hoping the opponent would be wary of the Lingzhen Sect and listen to them.

Feng Sanchu offered brief comfort to the Hong mother and daughter, then reassured the others: "Senior Brother Meng is an official disciple of the Lingzhen Sect and is close to breaking through to Foundation Establishment. For the sake of Senior Brother and our Lingzhen Sect, that senior surely won't make things too difficult for us."

There was no reply from Meng Han, only the sound of his heavy breathing.

Zhao Chun sensed something was wrong, and her confidence grew even thinner.

After an unknown amount of time, a spark of light flickered in the darkness.

As the candlelight flickered, her nose twitched; she smelled the metallic scent of rust. They were actually in a dark chamber!

Only two white candles were lit in the room, their holders thick with two fingers' worth of melted wax. Her feet stepped into a shallow puddle; looking down by the dim candlelight, she saw it was nearly viscous blood plasma.

Such a sight would make even an ordinary cultivator lose their breath, let alone the Hong mother and daughter. The two screamed and hid their faces in their hands, shifting their feet repeatedly, unable to find a single clean spot.

Zhao Chun and the others had no time to tend to them; they all held their breath and focused their minds, ready to strike immediately if anything went wrong.

"Relax, everyone."

No one appeared, but an old voice filled the dark chamber. They dared not relax even more, pulling all their spiritual energy to their dantian in a state of extreme readiness.

As if amused, the person let out a short, shrill laugh and mocked, "So terrified, you bunch of swine."

Meng Han clenched his fists and bowed forward. "I do not know which senior is here. We are disciples of the Lingzhen Sect of the Hidden Valley. Senior..."

"This Dao naturally knows you are from the Lingzhen Sect, but what does that have to do with me?"

As soon as these words were spoken, Zhao Chun and the others felt their hearts sink to the bottom of a valley.

"As for this Dao? I have no status. Perhaps I did once, but it no longer matters now." The voice carried a hint of loneliness, then turned into a strange, manic joy. "Let me see... what wonderful children. To think there are even fellow countrymen of the same origin!"

Liao Xiaoyi shrank behind her brother, her face filled with horror.

"Don't be afraid, no one escapes," he comforted her gently. Seeing the two embracing and weeping, he said with great interest, "Let this Dao start with an appetizer!"

A square opening rotated open at the top of the dark chamber, and light poured in. The Liao siblings screamed violently as their bodies floated upward, gradually being pulled out through the opening.

After the two disappeared, the opening closed again.

Zhao Chun felt a chill run through her entire body. The fates of those two were unknown; even if they miraculously survived, the outcome would not be good.

Feng Sanchu was also wide-eyed, his hands gripping each other to force himself not to cry out, his face deathly pale.

Only Meng Han remained relatively calm, his eyes closed and his brow furrowed as he carefully contemplated a way to escape.

Time raced by in the stalemate. Although Zhao Chun did not dare close her eyes, maintaining such intense concentration was exhausting. By the time she woke up, only Meng Han was still awake; the others had already fallen asleep.

"You can close your eyes for a while longer to recover your energy."

Zhao Chun could not accept his kindness and advised, "Senior Brother, you should rest. I have already slept a turn." He was the pillar of this group; if he fell, all hope would truly be lost.

Meng Han leaned against the wall. Seeing that she was relatively calm and composed, he said in surprise, "You little girl, you are braver than the others!"

Was Zhao Chun afraid?

To be honest, she was indeed afraid.

Who wouldn't be afraid of death? She had lived in this world for less than eleven years. For the first ten years, she had lived in a daze; it was only after stepping onto the path of immortality that she had made friends and gained things to care about. Although breaking through to the second level of Qi Refinement at such a young age didn't make her a top-tier genius, Zhao Chun was confident she could go higher and further. She was unwilling to die here!

"Fear is useless. I don't want to die, so I don't want to be afraid."

Meng Han tilted his head back and curled his lip. "No wonder Junior Brother values you so much."

After a long silence, he added, "A limitless future..." followed by a light chuckle, "Provided you can stay alive."

Zhao Chun was speechless. She sat quietly, circulating her spiritual energy to begin her breathing exercises.

The crackling of the candlelight was the only sound in the dark chamber. Without that sound, the extreme silence would drive a person mad.

The small opening above rotated open again. The piercing white light left no one in the dark chamber hidden. The voice now carried a sense of satisfaction, yet it chilled people to the bone for no reason: "Two with triple spiritual roots—quite a heavy dish. It seems Heaven favors this Dao, granting me such great fortune!"

"Triple spiritual roots" referred to Zhao Chun and Meng Han.

The two exchanged a glance. A powerful pulling force surged through their bodies, dragging them out through the opening.

Zhao Chun felt as if her vision was spinning in a kaleidoscope. Her mind was dazed for several breaths until her feet finally touched the ground and her vision cleared.

This was a simply furnished stone cave. In the middle sat a dusty prayer mat, and a row of cabinets had been knocked over in disarray.

The yellow-browed old Taoist stood before them, his body hunched, his sallow skin clinging tightly to his bones, and his eye sockets dark, looking like a skinned skeleton.

Zhao Chun noticed several familiar small spheres buried in the dust beneath the cabinets and gave Meng Han a meaningful look.

"Are you a disciple of the Changhui Sect?" Meng Han also recognized the origin of the spheres and asked.

The yellow-browed old Taoist laughed sinisterly. "Quite knowledgeable. However, this Dao left the sect many years ago; I am no longer a member of the Changhui Sect."

"You are Yue Cuan!" Meng Han said with certainty. Zhao Chun saw his face turn deathly pale, showing a rare expression of terror.

"The outcast of the Changhui Sect."

The world mostly referred to Yue Cuan by this name because he had stolen the sect's secret techniques, harmed his fellow disciples, and associated with evil cultivators, leading the sect to strip him of his cultivation and exile him into a small world.

And now, he stood in the Hengyun World, standing before the two of them...

"It was I who abandoned the Changhui Sect! Not them who abandoned me!" Yue Cuan stood up. He was only as tall as Zhao Chun, showing signs of being at the end of his life. His turbid pupils shrank within two hollow eye sockets. He leaned closer to the two: "Forget it, you're going to die anyway; there's no point in saying more to you two."

"Where are the siblings you captured earlier?"

Yue Cuan turned his head toward Zhao Chun, who had asked, and said slowly, "Little girl, why do you care so much?" He raised his hand and placed it on Zhao Chun's shoulder. Even through her clothing, Zhao Chun felt a surge of icy, chilling energy.

"Come, this Dao will take you to see them. You can keep your senior brother and sister company!"

His grip was unnaturally strong. As he dragged Zhao Chun toward the inner chamber, two crisp cracks echoed from her shoulder blades—they had been crushed by sheer force!

Meng Han swung his fist to attack, but was blocked by Yue Cuan's sleeve. Then, from nowhere, Yue Cuan summoned a bundle of golden ropes, binding Meng Han's hands and feet tightly.

"I can't take your life just yet. Stay put! Once this Dao has dealt with this little girl, I'll find a good place for you!"

Half of Zhao Chun's body was submerged in intense pain. Everything below her broken shoulder was completely immobile, and she could only be dragged along by Yue Cuan toward the interior.