Sauren did not draw his sword, because these were undead, beings of pure energy, completely impervious to blades and weapons.
His choice was to shut his eyes and charge madly towards the temple three hundred metres away.
But within moments, he was completely overwhelmed by countless undead.
How did the undead attack? They rushed straight into your body, seizing your soul and turning you into a walking corpse.
Dozens, even hundreds of undead slammed into Sauren.
In an instant, his entire body was immobilised.
All his nerves and consciousness were under assault, and the connection between his mind and body was severed.
Countless wails echoed in his mind and around him.
His body began to darken, then rot.
Anyone invaded by undead would not only lose their soul but also have their body corroded by death energy, turning into a decaying corpse that could still move.
His pupils began to change colour, from dark brown to a terrifying green.
Black mist started rising from his entire body.
Meanwhile, the demonic star within him frantically devoured the attacking energy of the undead.
The undead were indeed energy, and they could be consumed, but it was negative energy. Absorbing it would not strengthen him, it would instead erode his existing power.
To keep him alive, the demonic star kept absorbing the attacks, while its stored dragon power and mental energy were steadily depleted.
The undead swarmed in greater numbers.
If not for the demonic star, Sauren would have perished many times over.
But its energy reserves were being consumed rapidly. Once depleted, it would no longer protect him, and would instead begin draining his own energy.
At that point, death would be inevitable.
The black mist spread across his body, climbing from his legs to his chest, then his neck and face.
Once it covered him completely, he would become a mindless corpse.
Three hundred metres away, the temple began to emit a sacred light, and the undead instinctively kept their distance.
If he could reach it, he would be safe.
But those three hundred metres felt impossibly far.
Just as the death energy reached his face—
A streak of purple-red sword light burst through the darkness, like a beam of holy radiance.
Where it passed, the undead disintegrated instantly.
The light struck Sauren, and the undead clinging to him screamed and vanished.
At the same time, he heard something like the roar of a divine dragon, echoing from beyond the heavens.
It was the sound of a sword.
A figure appeared in a flash, seized Sauren, and carved a path through the undead with a blade of light, carrying him back into the temple.
The undead surged after them, but as soon as they neared the entrance, they were annihilated.
They could only circle the temple, shrieking.
After throwing Sauren inside, the figure glanced at him briefly, then lay down elsewhere, unconcerned whether he lived or died.
Once the attacks ceased, the demonic star began clearing the death energy from Sauren’s body.
Gradually, the black mist receded.
After about an hour, it was completely gone, and warmth returned to his body.
The experience had been terrifying beyond words.
If not for the demonic star, he would have died countless times.
“Why didn’t you warn me about the temple?” Sauren asked inwardly.
“I do not know everything,” the demonic star replied.
Sauren looked towards the figure lying in the temple.
Who was he?
Someone strong enough to save him from that swarm.
The man spoke without turning.
“I saved you because you are human. Do not thank me. Do not ask who I am. You have your secrets, I have mine. Let us remain strangers.”
“And stay on your side. I dislike people getting close. I also dislike conversation.”
He was strange, and proud.
Sauren bowed in thanks and kept his distance.
The next morning, the man was gone.
Sauren continued forward.
At dusk, he encountered a powerful reptilian warrior.
Outmatched, Sauren fled into another temple.
But the creature followed.
Just as it was about to kill him—
Another flash of sword light.
The creature fell instantly.
The same man had returned.
This time, Sauren saw his face.
He was astonishingly beautiful, beyond ordinary standards, with a presence both powerful and strangely alluring.
Yet he ignored Sauren and rested as before.
Days passed.
They encountered each other in temples at night, never speaking.
By the fourth day, Sauren finally reached a vast blood sea.
At its centre stood a great temple, where the Dragon Seal relic lay.
But there was no bridge.
At that moment, the man appeared again.
“Do you know how to cross?” Sauren asked.
The man shook his head.
“I’m Sauren. Your name?”
After a pause, he replied, “Jiang Xue.”
Sauren’s mind stirred.
Then another thought emerged.
Even if they crossed—
There was only one relic.
And if it came down to strength…
Sauren had no chance against Jiang Xue.