Into The Sea

From Yandu to the exit of the demon realm, the endless three hundred miles of yellow sand were now blanketed in snow. The pursuing soldiers grew in number behind them. Lan Yuan flicked the blood off her sword and casually tossed aside a severed head, turning to shout, “Keep moving! Don’t stop!”

Feng Yi’s eyes widened. “Your Highness, how can we let you stay behind?!”

“If you stay behind, do you think you can escape?” Lan Yuan grabbed her collar. “Duck!”

After narrowly avoiding a blade that whistled past her, Lan Yuan shoved Feng Yi toward the retreating group and raised her voice. “Protect Lan Wu and that human! You must get both of them out safely!”

Feng Yi pursed her lips and nodded. “Be careful, Your Highness. We’ll be waiting for you ahead.”

Lan Yuan grunted in acknowledgment, then turned and thrust her sword into the dark iron shield of a pursuing demon. With a metallic clang, the blade pierced through, sinking into flesh. The demon behind the shield didn’t even make a sound before collapsing. Lan Yuan yanked her sword out, looking up at the Eagle Guards descending from the sky to surround her.

She bit her lip hard, summoning water mist under her feet, propelling herself into the air. As she rose higher, the mist beneath her condensed into the majestic form of a dragon.

Her robes billowed fiercely as she stood alone, blocking the incoming wave of black figures. On her fair, jade-like cheeks, faint silver scales shimmered into view.

“None of you,” she said coldly, “will get past me.”

The biting cold wind stung her face. . Ji Lingyue was almost dragged along as they fled across the sands. Her body had gone numb from the freezing cold, and bloodied clothes clung stiffly to her skin. She couldn’t even feel the pain from her wounds anymore.

Suddenly, a voice shouted, “We’re almost there! Just a little further!”

The merfolk immediately perked up, quickening their pace. Like arrows released from a bow, they shot out of the barrier. As soon as they stepped out, the violent wind disappeared, replaced by the quiet of the desert under the bright moonlight. Ahead was a bottomless, pitch-black abyss.

The merfolk at the front let out a sigh of relief and turned to say, “Alright, we…”

Whoosh!

A sharp whistle split the air. The merfolk’s smile froze on his face. After a moment, he slowly looked down at the sharp weapon protruding from his chest.

Feng Yi exclaimed, “Meng Qi!”

Before their horrified eyes, the merman coughed up blood, his body falling heavily to the ground. An arrow feather was still shaking lightly on his back.

On the cliff across the abyss, lights began to appear. Ji Lingyue looked up, recognizing many familiar faces among the flickering lights.

They stood together in silence, their angry faces shadowy in the firelight, weapons in hand, radiating killing intent.

Startled, the merfolk instinctively took a step back, raising their guard. A young man holding a longbow lifted his tearful eyes, his voice filled with hatred. “You demons! Give me back my brother’s life!”

Feng Yi said angrily, “What are you talking about? What does your brother’s death have to do with us?!”

“You’re still denying it?! You killed him and dumped his body with the others in Wangliang City!” the boy screamed. “How dare you?!”

“Ridiculous! We would never do something like that!”

The young man chuckled. “You dare to act but not admit it. My brother… he actually believed we could coexist peacefully with you…”

“Enough!” a voice from the crowd shouted. “Kill them! Avenge our fallen comrades!”

“Kill them!”

Feng Yi clenched her sword, glancing at the dozens of people opposite her, lowering her voice to her guards. “There are only a few of them. They must have slipped out of Wangliang City. Protect the Princess. We can fight our way out.”

“Yes.”

At her command, the merfolk launched themselves forward, surrounding Lan Wu and Ji Lingyue in the center and speeding eastward. The crowd on the cliff stirred, quickly chasing after them. “Stop!”

The fallen merman’s body was slung over a companion’s back. As they ran, his long fishtail slipped out and dragged across the sand. A gasp came from their pursuers. “They’re merfolk!”

As soon as he spoke, the crowd seemed to be injected with adrenaline, and excited voices spread rapidly like ripples. “They’re merfolk! They’re merfolk!”

“Merfolk!”

“Capture them! They’re merfolk!”

In an instant, a rain of swords and arrows poured down upon the fleeing group. Feng Yi had to turn back to fend off the attacks, but even so, a blade nicked her sleeve, drawing fresh blood.

She gritted her teeth, forcefully repelling a long sword that was thrust at her, shouting, “Protect the Princess!”

At that moment, a light suddenly appeared in the distant desert. A merfolk saw it in the midst of battle, exclaiming, “Feng Yi! The watchtower in Wangliang City is lit!”

Feng Yi’s heart skipped a beat. She realized that the commotion had been discovered by the humans at the watchtower. “Don’t engage! Hurry!”

“Where do you think you’re going!” A burly man, wielding two axes, came crashing down on Feng Yi. “Wangliang City knows you’re here. Today, none of you filthy merfolk are getting out alive!”

Feng Yi hastily raised her sword to block the axes, but she was forced to grunt from the impact. Her feet sank into the sand. She looked up, her voice sharp. “We didn’t kill your people!”

“Does it matter if you killed them or not? It’s all because of you demons!” The man said, his face contorted in a crazed smile. “Besides, you’re merfolk!”

“You…” Feng Yi’s lips were stained with blood, each word sharp. “You… wish!”

With a furious cry, she flung the axes aside and charged into the crowd with her sword. Another merfolk quickly took her place, continuing to shield Ji Lingyue and Lan Wu in the center.

The cool moonlight bathed the land, but blood soon painted the sand red. Cries of agony and shouts of rage echoed from all directions.

Ji Lingyue knelt numbly in the soft sand, cradling the unconscious Lan Wu in her arms. The sounds around her blurred into a distant hum.

After a long silence, she raised her hand and lightly traced Lan Wu’s brow, murmuring, “Why?”

“Why is it that I, who has never committed a single evil deed in my life, lost everyone I ever cherished?”

She closed her eyes, burying her face in Lan Wu’s neck, whispering tenderly, “I’ve hunted demons, sought immortality, and followed the path of righteousness. Why has it come to this?”

“I did everything you told me. I tried my best to be good, but what did I get?”

She repeated softly, “What did I get?”

Somewhere, blood spattered across her face, its sickly heat jolting her senses. Her long lashes trembled, and for a fleeting moment, the chaotic noises returned to her ears.

“Hold them back! Protect Her Highness at all costs!”

“Feng Yi! Chang Geng and Duan Chao are dead! We can’t hold them!”

“You merfolk, what are you hiding?!”

…

“So… there really is no difference between humans and demons after all…”

Ji Lingyue buried her head deeper against Lan Wu’s neck and whispered, “I’m done listening to you.”

Boom!

A violent clash of spirit power and demonic energy rocked the desert, kicking up a sandstorm that blotted out the sky.

Feng Yi’s face was covered in blood, her vision filled with red mist. Her body was covered in wounds, but she stubbornly protected Lan Wu with the last few merfolk, stubbornly shielding Lan Wu from the onslaught.

At that moment, a green vine covered in barbs silently wrapped around her ankle, pulling her down. She grunted, being dragged for several feet before painfully cutting the vine.

As she gasped for breath, a spear as thick as her forearm, carrying a powerful wind, thrust towards her.

Feng Yi’s pupils shrank. Her injured body couldn’t dodge quickly enough. It looked like she was about to be impaled.

Clang!

Suddenly, a sword swept past her nose, deflecting the spear.

Feng Yi shuddered, her eyes wide, her body frozen. The sword, having knocked the spear aside, flew back to its owner.

She got up, turning back in shock. The weak human, who they had been dragging along, had somehow managed to stand.

Ji Lingyue held her long sword, her messy hair sticking to her blood-stained face. Her tattered white robes were fluttering in the wind, her thin frame trembling but somehow still upright.

In the sky above, a storm of black energy was gradually blocking the moonlight. Feng Yi looked up in alarm, seeing a serpent-like storm swirling down from the sky, rushing into Ji Lingyue’s body.

The howling wind that passed through the crowd sounded like a mournful cry, sending shivers down their spines. Finally, someone reacted, exclaiming, “A demon! She’s a demon!”

As soon as the words left his mouth, he let out a blood-curdling scream. The figure standing calmly in the eye of the storm suddenly appeared before him, crushing his throat with a single hand.

Ji Lingyue raised her blood-red eyes, coldly staring at the next man. “Die.”

“Stop her!” a desperate roar came from behind. “Demon! I’ll kill you!”

Ji Lingyue didn’t turn around, but countless dark sword shadows suddenly emerged from the surging demonic energy, piercing through the man’s body.

The screams of agony rang in her ears, but Ji Lingyue only smiled wider. There was a kind of savage joy welling up in her chest.

One by one, bodies fell to the ground.

Facing those furious and terrified faces, Ji Lingyue spread her arms and gave a radiant, bloodstained smile.

“Kill!”