Fleeing in panic, scrambling and crawling, what need was there for dignity when fighting for survival.
Having dodged a blow falling from the heavens, amid exploding earth and stone, Yu Qing leapt up, jumped onto the massive descending tentacle, used it as a springboard, and flung himself forward into the eaves of the house. He struck the closed iron door with a palm from mid air, blasting it open, rolled upon landing and sprang up, then in an instant grabbed his sword and rushed to the doorway, gazing outward with anxious, bloodshot eyes.
“Argh…” Nan Zhu, having dodged a strike, came howling and flinging himself forward, crashing himself into the hall with a thunderous roll.
At that moment, Yu Qing kicked off the doorframe and shot out, slicing horizontally through the air with his sword to sever a tentacle. Upon landing, he grabbed Mu Aotie’s arm and flung him, who had nearly been trapped under a barrage of blows, directly into the house.
He then rolled to dodge another blow, leapt up again to kick off for momentum, and catapulted back inside.
Clang! Nan Zhu by the door immediately shut the iron door and swiftly slid the bolt across.
The table and chairs inside had long since overturned into some corner. The seated skeleton had also been scattered by the tidal surge, now mixed among straw debris and loose stones within the room.
The three men held little hope that this iron house would shelter them. They had truly nowhere left to flee, nowhere left to go. It was purely their last desperate straw.
When men fight to survive, they will grasp at any possibility.
Suddenly, a massive whistling sound came from outside. All three looked up in terror toward the roof.
Outside, a massive tentacle descended from the sky, slamming directly toward the ground, toward the iron house.
Boom!
A huge, deep crater marked the ground. The house was gone, only the pointed roof peak visible above.
The attacking tentacle seemed to have underestimated the iron house’s hardness. After the strike it bounced back rapidly, somewhat oddly, and a wound appeared where it had struck the roof.
Inside, Yu Qing and the other two were instantly deafened.
A thunderous vibration roared, accompanied by sudden, violent metal grinding sounds that caught them off guard. All three clapped their hands over their ears in agony. Their bodies suddenly slammed against the roof, then crashed to the floor, while stones that had washed across the floor clattered down upon them.
Yu Qing, writhing on the ground with his ears covered, rolled over and forced himself to endure the discomfort, observing his surroundings. He found the room plunged into total darkness. Through the window lattice, neither starlight nor moonlight was visible. Outside, massive, dull grinding sounds rumbled across the earth.
Nan Zhu and Mu Aotie were breathing in sharp, ragged gasps.
In the darkness, the three martial brothers all had blood seeping from their noses and mouths to varying degrees. They all looked like they were barely clinging to life. That single impact had injured all three.
Upon a hilltop, flames blazed, the fires of the night watch on duty.
Dawn was approaching, the darkness before daybreak.
Besides the night watch, Tian Yu, Xiang Lanxuan, and Meng Po had all appeared, along with key personnel from the three major factions.
After a night of rest, a new day was about to begin. They needed to draft the search plan for the coming day, ready to issue orders once dawn broke.
As they were exchanging views in discussion, Tian Yu, Xiang Lanxuan, and Meng Po beside the firelight all suddenly looked up at the night sky.
The others followed their gaze and suddenly saw a black dot sweep across from above.
Someone immediately exclaimed, “Look, a living creature. Little Cloud Realm has living things.”
“It seems to be some kind of insect.”
“Chirp chirp chirp… chirp chirp chirp…”
The insect in the air suddenly emitted a sharp, fierce chirping, circled in the sky, then flew away.
Among the crowd, a figure in red, Liu Piaopiao, slowly stood up looking at the night sky, her face full of shock and uncertainty.
“Eh, this sound seems familiar.”
“What do you mean seems? Is this not that fire cricket of the Tanhua fellow?”
“Yes, yes, yes. After entering this immortal mansion, we have all heard it.”
Meng Po pondered, “Have the additional search personnel found them, or have they returned themselves?”
The departed Datou suddenly returned, circling above the hilltop again, once more emitting sharp, fierce chirps, “Chirp chirp chirp… chirp chirp chirp…”
Liu Piaopiao immediately sensed trouble. Ever since learning that Yu Qing and the others had escaped, she had been on tenterhooks, constantly fearing something would go wrong. Already anxious, seeing this scene now, she instantly realised something. She quickly walked to Tian Yu’s side. “Third Cave Master, this is A Shiheng’s pet. It would not leave its master casually. It seems to be sounding an alarm. Has something happened to A Shiheng and his group? Look, it comes to chirp twice then flies in one direction, repeating this. Does it not seem to be trying to lead us somewhere?”
Tian Yu’s eyes suddenly narrowed. Xiang Lanxuan and Meng Po both looked thoughtful upon hearing this.
The black dot in the night sky returned. Datou was back again, circling above them, once more emitting fierce chirps, “Chirp chirp chirp… chirp chirp chirp…”
This time, even without Liu Piaopiao’s warning, the group could detect some clues.
After chirping, Datou once more flashed into the darkness, flying in one direction.
Swish! Tian Yu’s figure had vanished from the spot, leaving only a suddenly rising gust of air that swept the surroundings, making the blazing flames sway violently.
He had already risen like a phantom into the air, and with a whoosh shot across the sky into the distance, chasing Datou’s direction.
Swish! Swish!
Xiang Lanxuan and Meng Po vanished from their spots in succession, both shooting toward the night like arrows loosed from a bow, their figures tearing through the airflow in mid flight.
Some personnel on the hilltop immediately flew off in pursuit. Liu Piaopiao stood atop the peak, gazing silently.
Meng Po and the other two successively caught up with Datou in the night sky.
Seeing people had come, Datou chirped “chirp chirp” from its mouth. No one knew what it meant, but this time it no longer circled back to the hilltop. It suddenly vibrated its wings to accelerate, its tiny wings flapping so fast even their shadows vanished, and with a swish it shot ahead of the three.
The three flying side by side in the air exchanged glances. Xiang Lanxuan laughed, “They all say this fire cricket is hard to catch. It seems rather interesting indeed.”
Tian Yu: “The direction does not change. It seems we need only fly straight. You watch this insect to avoid misjudging the path and going wrong. I will go first to see what is happening.”
Finished speaking, he accelerated with a whoosh, rapidly overtaking Datou.
Datou, flapping its wings urgently, clearly turned its head to look at him, then watched helplessly as Tian Yu rapidly surpassed it, gradually disappearing ahead.
Xiang Lanxuan and Meng Po also accelerated to fly above Datou. Meng Po suddenly reached out, controlling Datou from a distance with a grab, pulling it directly toward him.
Datou was about to resist, but then realised the other bore no hostility, merely placing it upon his shoulder without any restraint. So it settled down, only constantly tilting its head to observe, seeming curious, apparently experiencing for the first time how weak Yu Qing truly was.
At this moment, Xiang Lanxuan and Meng Po accelerated again, flying at full speed, chasing in the direction where Tian Yu had vanished.
Tian Yu had told them to watch the insect here while he went first to investigate. How could that be possible? The two certainly could not agree. Without keeping watch, who knew what tricks Tian Yu might play? Naturally they had to pursue.
Of course, they also truly worried about taking the wrong path, so they simply brought the guide Datou along.
To put it plainly, they simply thought Datou flew too slowly and looked down upon it.
“Are you all right?”
In the darkness, Yu Qing, slowly climbing up, finally made a sound. He felt that eating so many immortal peaches beforehand had been a fortunate mistake. His flesh and bones were now filled with spiritual energy, which had excellent healing effects for injuries.
Nan Zhu’s sighing voice rang out. “We must have had too much to eat, coming here. We knew that Yun Xi’s words might be problematic, yet we still rushed here to die. Alas!”
“Mm…” Mu Aotie rolled over to lie on the ground, shook his head, and responded with a vocalised tone.
His cultivation was the lowest, making him the one who suffered most. Fortunately, he had trained his body for a long time, so his flesh was stronger than ordinary people.
Nan Zhu sighed again. “We have not been separated from Master for long. I never thought we would go to see him so soon.”
Yu Qing reached about his body, wanting to find healing medicine, but then seemed to discover something. He suddenly cried out and sat up. “Damn it, my banknotes are all gone!”
Nan Zhu: “Anyway, Old Nine and I have no money either. Alas, stop searching. We must all be completely stripped bare. That tidal wave’s scouring force. It was already polite not to strip our trousers off. How could your scraps of paper possibly remain? I say, Old Fifteen, we are about to be killed, and you are still thinking about your money. Is that meaningful?”
His last several tens of thousands of taels of silver, his entire fortune! Yu Qing was unwilling to accept it. He felt all over his body and found nothing, then reached around the floor feeling everywhere. “I would rather die than be a pauper!”
Nan Zhu reached toward where the breathing came from, touched Mu Aotie, and patted him. “Old Nine, are you all right? Say something.”
Mu Aotie finally spoke. “I am fine. I will recover after a brief rest.”
The words had barely fallen when the ground shook and swayed violently again, and more fierce grinding sounds came. The three immediately panicked and began fumbling everywhere for their swords.
With a thunderous rumble, the massive tentacle forcibly pulled the house that had been driven underground back out, then with another crash planted it back on the ground.
Starlight and moonlight finally reappeared through the window. The three, swaying unsteadily, steadied themselves. By the light, they quickly each grabbed a sword, not caring for the moment whose it was.
The three immediately stood back to back, alert to their surroundings, yet all could not help examining the house. Finding that this iron house seemed still intact, they were somewhat surprised.
They had not found any signs of deformation at all. The house’s sturdiness exceeded their imagination. Originally an act of desperation, grasping at the only straw available, they had never expected it would truly become their sole refuge.
Nan Zhu turned back and muttered to his two martial brothers. “As expected of an immortal mansion’s possessions. Who would have thought this house itself is a treasure? Take a piece and forge it into a sword, and it would be a precious blade. Forge it into protective armour, and it would be even more incredible.”
Huo… huo…
Heavy, massive grinding sounds rang outside the house. The people inside could see through the windows the massive tentacles churning like millstones.
Suddenly, the churning tentacles parted to form a gap, and a person walked out. A woman in white walked gracefully forward, precisely the appearance of Yun Xi.
Yun Xi walked to the door, pushed it, and found it bolted shut, impossible to open from outside. She stood outside the door, staring at the three inside through the lattice upon the door, and sneered. “How does it taste? This is only the beginning. You killed my husband. I will not let you die too easily. I said before, I will make you understand what it means to be unable to live yet unable to die.”
Actually, there was no need to vent with harsh words. Yu Qing could understand how much she hated him. In the ancient tomb, he had repeatedly tricked her like a fool, and finally buried her alive underground. It would be strange if she did not hate him. Having fallen into her hands, he had not planned on a good end.
But some questions he could not understand, and he had to verify them. “Did you not already die? Why have you appeared in Little Cloud Realm?”