Oblivious to the crowd’s fear and apprehension, Ah Sha walked toward Gu Han, tears rolling down her cheeks. “Young Master...”

Suddenly, she stumbled and nearly fell. Tearing through space and killing two Transcendent realm experts in a row had consumed too much of her soul power. She could barely hold on. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Suppressing his terror, a man shouted excitedly, “This is our chance! She can’t hold on much longer!”

His words instantly alerted the others. That’s right! How could such an incomprehensible, heaven-defying ability not have any cost? How could such a little girl use it so effortlessly? The consumption must be unimaginably immense!

However, speculation was one thing. No one was foolish enough to be the first to make a move. The deaths of the previous two had scarred them. What if she still had some strength left? Still, their cowardice didn’t mean Ah Sha would simply sit back and do nothing.

The glow in her eyes flickered for an instant, then landed on the man who had just spoken—cold, merciless, and indifferent to all. It seemed that in her eyes, all living creatures were no different from the dirt, stones, and rubble on the ground.

Upon meeting Ah Sha’s gaze, that man felt as if he were facing the giant eye that had appeared on the sky veil before. His Dao heart nearly shattered completely.

Suddenly, the man let out a miserable shriek. Specks of light continuously drifted out from him, vaguely giving off a sense of ethereal transcendence. His face aged at a visible speed.

The crowd’s pupils contracted once more. It’s his Transcendent Substance!

As if weathered for countless years, his body soon crumbled to the ground, turning into a pile of dust.

By now, Ah Sha had already arrived before Gu Han. “Young Master...”

As she gently extended her finger, the glow in her eyes swirled unceasingly. She intercepted a small portion of the Transcendent Substance, which should have returned to the heavens and earth, and gathered it at her fingertip. It formed a mysterious, radiant speck of light, shimmering with divine power.

The speck of light seeped into Gu Han with a soft tremble. Like parched land soaking up a clear spring, it reinvigorated his originally withered and decayed body. However, his eyes remained tightly shut. He stood motionless as if entirely oblivious to the world around him.

With that, Ah Sha seemed to have reached her limit. Her eyes flickered twice then dimmed, revealing her weary and exhausted face. Yet no one dared to move. They were completely terrified by Ah Sha’s bizarre and unpredictable methods.

The man beside Luan Ping was full of fear. “What do we do? The situation is beyond our control.”

Luan Ping took a deep breath. “Notify the Holy Master! We can’t do anything to her by relying on our strength alone.”

The man hesitated for a moment, then agreed. “Alright.”

The other two families quickly followed suit, transmitting news of what had happened back. After all, Ah Sha’s abilities were too strange and overbearing. For them to act rashly would be nothing but a futile suicide mission.

Ah Sha paid them no more attention and gently embraced Gu Han. Not caring whether he could hear her or not, she just gazed at him infatuatedly, murmuring to herself, “Young Master, I saw the demoness just now. It turns out her story’s quite tragic too. On her, I also saw a thread that was deeply connected to you. I wanted to break it, but I was afraid it would affect you, so I let her go...”

Her gaze grew dimmer but she held Gu Han tighter and tighter. Tears rolled down her face, dampening Gu Han’s clothes and falling onto his hand.

“Young Master, remember that dream, right? The dream was real. Now, it’s just like in the dream. Young Master, I...” She glanced toward the endless sky veil. Though it remained calm and peaceful, she seemed to see something different. “I might be taken away soon, but I don’t want to go. I don’t want to leave you. I’m afraid that if I leave, I’ll never see you again. I’m afraid that I’ll forget you.”

Suddenly, she looked toward Gu Han’s forehead. “You’re very powerful, right? Could you please not hurt Young Master? If I’m not here, help him, okay? I will properly thank you.”

Inside the sword cage, the black shadow felt Ah Sha’s gaze and spun around. Last time, Ah Sha’s gaze had been curious, innocent, and slightly fearful. Now, he felt that it held bewilderment, helplessness, and a trace of pleading.

Though he couldn’t hear Ah Sha’s words, his heart ached from the sadness in her gaze. “My dear disciple, tell me, who bullied you?! I will kill him—no, kill his whole family. I’ll exterminate his entire clan!”

Seemingly able to see the shadow’s reaction, Ah Sha felt a bit more at ease. “Thank you.”

Then, she turned to Gu Han.

“Young Master, I know when I’m not here, that demoness will definitely seduce you. Young Master, promise me.” She clutched Gu Han’s clothes tightly as if afraid he would fly away. “No matter where I am, you have to come find me. Promise me, promise me... you have to find me...”

These words seemed to drain her last ounce of strength.

Her eyelashes fluttered twice, then gently closed. “Young master... I’m so sleepy... I’m just going to sleep for a while, okay...?”

Two teardrops fell, once again landing on Gu Han’s hand.

***

In the depths of consciousness, amid the silent, dark soul power, a faint speck of light flickered in and out of existence. On a closer look, one could see that the speck was vaguely in the shape of a seed.

Within, Gu Han’s last thought lay dormant. Is it raining? But isn’t rain cold? How can it have warmth?

As if sensing something, the speck of light flared up. At the same time, an overwhelming wave of grief enveloped the consciousness space, reaching even the black shadow.

“Hmm? Why is this brat so heartbroken? Could it be...” Connecting it to the previous situation, his tone changed. “Oh no! Something must’ve happened to my precious disciple! No wonder... I thought that little girl was acting so strange earlier! You little bastard, how did you take care of her! Let me out now! If anything happens to her, I’ll kill you, believe me!”

However, there was no response whatsoever.

Completely frantic, he pointed at the sword cage and cursed loudly, “Damn it! Are you asking for a beating? Either you let me out, or just strike me dead with your sword right now! Choose one! It’s up to you!”

Unexpectedly, his words actually had an effect. The sword cage, which had never changed before, trembled briefly and vanished.

The shadow was even angrier now. “Damn it! You need a good kick to move!”

Even as he spoke, he was already rushing out in a panicked frenzy.

At the same time, Gu Han’s eyes snapped open outside.