"Zheng——!"
The clear sound of the piano is still lingering, like a pure jade thrown into a dead pool, spreading layer by layer in this dark blue and dead bronze space. The strange power that cleanses the soul has not dissipated, but like an invisible ripple, it continues to caress the chaotic battlefield and the two violent sources of destruction in Li Hua's body.
The Shadow Cult puppets that were just ferociously attacking and flashing geometric spots of light are now like being caught in an invisible giant net, and their movements are completely frozen! Their twisted light and shadow bodies fluctuate violently, and the tiny cracks on the edges spread and expand rapidly like spider webs under the continuous flushing of the piano sound! The cold spots of light that make up their bodies emit silent wails, and the frequency is chaotic, as if the signal is about to be completely interrupted.
Puff! Puff! Puff!
Several light sounds in succession, like bubbles bursting. The two shadow puppets closest to Li Hua trembled violently, and then they completely disintegrated, turning into two chaotic and disordered light fragments, which were completely wiped out by the ripples of the piano sound in the air, leaving no trace. Although the other shadow puppets did not disintegrate immediately, they were like flying insects frozen in amber, frozen in place, with cracks all over their bodies, and the flickering light spots dimmed and almost extinguished, no longer posing a threat.
After escaping death, Li Hua did not dare to relax at all. He suppressed the severe pain in his body that was slightly relieved by the soothing piano sound and the dizziness caused by the backlash, turned around suddenly, and staggered to Mei's side. She was still unconscious, her face was as gray as a jade covered with dust, and the collar on her chest was soaked with dark red blood stains, which was particularly dazzling under the dark blue light. He trembled and stretched out his fingers to probe her breath - it was so weak that it was almost imperceptible, but that trace of warm breath, like a candle in the wind, stubbornly proved that life had not yet left.
"Mei..." He called hoarsely, his voice dry as sandpaper.
"She hurt her heart, and her soul fire will go out." A cold and calm voice sounded, like jade hitting each other, clearly reaching Li Hua's ears.
Li Hua raised his head suddenly, his eyes like lightning, shooting at the green-shirted woman standing on the huge bronze roots. She was still holding the ancient jade zither, and the light veil covering her face fluttered slightly under the blue light, revealing only her eyes as quiet as a deep pool. That look seemed to penetrate the barrier of space, penetrate the changes in Li Hua's body, and clearly saw the dying life fire in Mei's body.
"Who are you?" Li Hua's voice was full of undisguised vigilance and a hint of uneasiness of being seen through. The timing of this woman's appearance was too strange, and the power of the zither sound was even more incredible. She could easily suppress the Shadow Sect puppet, and she was definitely not an ordinary cultivator. Is she an enemy? Is she a friend?
The green-shirted woman did not answer his question. Her eyes moved away from Mei, slowly sweeping across the dome space formed by huge bronze roots, across the huge obsidian skeleton entangled by countless roots and nailed to the central tree seat, and finally fell on the blue core suspended in the chest of the skeleton, emitting the breath of a vast nebula. A trace of extremely complex and indescribable emotions flashed across her eyes, like a stone thrown into an ancient well that had been sleeping for a thousand years, causing a slight ripple, but quickly returning to the deep silence.
"This is the projection of the 'Root of Guixu', and it is also the last battlefield of the 'Gatekeeper'." Her voice was calm, but with a kind of desolation that traveled through time, "This skeleton is the battle body of the first generation of Nuo God. The core is the 'Heart of the Gate' that he stripped off - and it is also the real source of power of the 'Ecliptic Seal' that you are pursuing."
Gatekeeper? Heart of the Gate? The source of power of the Ecliptic Seal?
Every word was like a heavy hammer, hitting Li Hua's heart, resonating strongly with the throbbing of the fragments in his body. He subconsciously looked at his right hand, which was flowing with dark blue blood, and the dim light and ink color were entangled. The fragment mark was facing the direction of the huge core, pulsating extremely violently, conveying an almost fanatical sense of belonging, but with a trace of fear of being suppressed by the powerful origin.
"You..." Li Hua's throat tightened, staring at the woman, "You know the Zodiac Seal? You know the fragments? And... Mo Li?" He spit out the name that brought endless nightmares with difficulty.
The green-shirted woman finally turned her gaze back to Li Hua. Her sight penetrated the veil, as if she could see through the strange blood flowing under his skin and flesh, and see the entangled curse and power clearly.
"Mo Li... the shadow of order, the sigh of Guixu." She gently plucked the strings, making a low humming sound, which seemed to carry a barely perceptible sigh, "And you... carry the ink blood, and the star marks on your palm... you are the chosen 'container', and also... the cursed 'gatekeeper'."
Container... gatekeeper... cursed...
These words were like cold nails, wedging into Li Hua's mind. He thought of the bronze claws under the Nuo Temple, the cold words of Mo Li's judgment, and his body that was becoming less and less human. A huge sense of absurdity and anger surged in his heart.
"What a shitty container gatekeeper!" Li Hua stood up suddenly, coughing up a mouthful of black blood with a faint blue spot due to the violent movement. He pointed at the huge skeleton core, his voice hoarse with excitement, "I just want to know! How to save her! And... how to get rid of this damn curse!" He raised his right hand, which was intertwined with dark blue and exuded an ominous aura, and his eyes were full of resentment of being played by fate.
The green-shirted woman watched his intense reaction quietly, her eyes were still calm, as if she had already seen through his anger and unwillingness at the moment.
"Save her?" Her eyes fell back on the unconscious Mei again, her voice was still cold, "Her blood is one of the 'keys' to open the seal here. Her life is the firewood to ignite the 'heart of the gate'. Her soul... is the last 'anchor' to stabilize the Guixu rift."
Every word was like an ice cone, piercing Li Hua's heart fiercely!
Key? Firewood? Anchor?
He suddenly looked at Mei's pale face, her weak and almost dead breathing. What did this woman mean... was she going to sacrifice Mei's life and soul to that damn core? !
"Bullshit!" Li Hua's face changed color, and a violent anger instantly broke the brief peace brought by the sound of the piano! The ink-colored and dark blue light on his right arm suddenly surged, and the chaotic energy gathered wildly in his palm, stirring the surrounding air and making a low whimper! "Who dares to touch her! I will destroy this damn place first!" His eyes were full of murderous light, and his dark blue right hand was aimed at the huge skeleton core in the center of the platform, as if he was going to detonate the destructive power in his body at all costs in the next moment!
The woman in green seemed to be indifferent to his rage. She just slightly raised her slender fingers pressing on the strings, and a faint green light lingered on her fingertips.
"Destroy?" She shook her head gently, her voice carrying a hint of indifference that was almost pity. "You can't do it. The Gate Heart coexists with this projection of the root of Guixu. If it is destroyed, this world will collapse, and you will also fall into nothingness forever. What's more..." Her eyes penetrated Li Hua again and fell on his arm that was boiling with destructive power. "Your power comes from this heart and is also controlled by this heart. Forcible resistance will only accelerate your own collapse and let the ink poison completely devour your remaining "humanity." "
Li Hua's body suddenly stiffened! The chaotic energy gathered in the palm of his hand was like being bound by invisible chains, and it was really difficult to explode! The invisible pressure emitted by the huge core was like a mountain, suppressing the restless fragmented power in his body! What made him even more palpitating was that the erosion of the ink poison on his wrist suddenly intensified under the anger. The cold and dead feeling was like a poisonous snake biting the soul, bringing a strong dizziness and a kind of... crazy impulse to destroy everything!
"Humanity..." Li Hua panted, forcibly suppressing the urge to destroy, staring at the green-shirted woman, "What do you want to say?!"
The green-shirted woman did not answer directly. She held the jade zither, and her green shirt moved slightly, floating down from the tall bronze roots, like a weightless feather, lightly landing on the bronze platform covered with ancient patterns, only a few feet away from Li Hua and the unconscious Mei. She carried a clear, grassy scent like the forest after rain, which was incompatible with the strong metal rust smell in this space.
"My name is Qingluan." She finally spoke and said her name. Her voice was still cold, but it seemed to be less alienated than before. "I used to serve the first generation of Nuo God as a zither attendant, and also... the keeper of the tomb here."
Qingluan? A zither attendant serving the Nuo God? A keeper of the tomb?
Li Hua was shocked! This woman was actually related to the fallen Nuo God? How long has she lived? Hundreds of years? Thousands of years?
Qingluan's eyes once again turned to the huge skeleton, with a trace of reminiscence in her eyes: "Back then, in order to block the Guixu rift, Lord Nuo cut off his divinity and humanity. His divinity turned into the 'Shadow of Order' (Mo Li), and his humanity..." Her eyes fell on Li Hua, with a kind of insight into everything, "...scattered into reincarnation, waiting to be carried by the container. And his fighting body and blood turned into the seal and core of this place. I follow the will to maintain the balance here with the sound of the piano and guard the 'heart of the gate' until the new 'gatekeeper' arrives."
Cut off his divinity and humanity! Divinity turned into Mo Li! Humanity scattered into reincarnation...carried by the container...
Qingluan's words were like thunder, exploding in Li Hua's mind! Countless fragmented clues were instantly connected! Mo Li's weird attention and disgust for him, the resonance of Mo Du and his blood, the instinctive attraction of the fragments to him... and the rejection and familiarity of Mo Li from the depths of his soul!
Could it be... could it be that I am really... the reincarnation of the so-called fragment of humanity that was stripped away by the Nuo God? ! That damn "container"? !
A huge sense of absurdity and anger of being fooled surged into my heart again!
"So what?!" Li Hua's voice trembled with excitement. He pointed at the unconscious Mei and then at the huge core, "So I deserve to be cursed? So she deserves to be the firewood for sacrifice?! Is this the arrangement of you high-ranking 'gods' and 'tomb keepers'?!"
Qingluan quietly endured his angry questioning. The expression under the veil covering her face could not be seen clearly, but her eyes remained calm.
"It's not an arrangement, but the trajectory and price of fate." Her voice was filled with the desolation of the past. "The reason why Lord Nuo stripped away humanity was because it could not withstand the erosion of the power of Guixu. The weakness, fear, and persistence in human nature... will eventually lead to the collapse of the seal. Only pure divinity can control order and suppress chaos. However..." She changed her tone with a barely perceptible sigh, "He underestimated the pollution of Guixu, and underestimated the absolute order that would grow after the divinity was stripped away. It is another source of chaos - Mo Li."
She looked at Li Hua's dark blue hands: "The reincarnation of human nature is a backup plan. If the divinity gets out of control, the human nature container will serve as a new 'lock' to reintegrate the divinity, or... destroy it completely. But you... came into contact with the fragments in advance, and were deeply contaminated by Mo Li's 'shadow poison'. Your 'humanity' is on the verge of collapse."
Fate? Container? Lock? Collapse of human nature?
Li Hua listened to these cold words and looked at his hand that was flowing with inhuman blood. A bone-chilling chill rose from his spine. He was neither a human nor a god, but just a "part" that was made and could be replaced at any time? A tool to deal with another "part"?
"As for her..." Qingluan's eyes fell back on Mei again, with a complexity that Li Hua could not understand, "The blood of Nuo Wu is not accidental. Their ancestors were the most loyal warriors of Lord Nuo God, and they voluntarily branded their blood and oaths and passed them down from generation to generation. Their blood is the medium for awakening and communicating with the 'heart of the gate'. Their souls... are the cornerstones for repairing the cracks in Guixu and stabilizing the seal. This is the 'old oath' branded deep in the blood, which cannot be violated by human power."
Old oath! The shackles of blood!
Li Hua looked at Mei's frowning brows in a coma, as if he saw countless generations of Nuo Wu ancestors struggling in blood and fire and finally going to sacrifice. A huge sense of sadness and powerlessness seized him.
"So... there is no other way?" Li Hua's voice became low, with a tremor and... pleading that he himself did not even notice, "Save her... stop Mo Li... is there only one way to sacrifice her?"
Qingluan was silent. The faint blue light flowed on her blue clothes and the light gauze covering her face, appearing particularly cold and mysterious. The strings of the jade zither in her arms trembled slightly in the invisible airflow, making an almost inaudible low hum.
"Maybe." She finally spoke, her voice still calm, but it seemed to have an indescribable heaviness, "But the price... is far beyond your imagination. And..." She raised her eyes, her clear eyes seemed to penetrate the heavy bronze dome and look into the unknown distance, "Time... is running out. Mo Li has sensed the loosening of the seal here, and the real power of the Shadow Cult... is gathering."
As if to confirm her words, those geometric light spots of shadow puppets imprisoned by the sound of the piano and covered with cracks suddenly flickered very faintly and synchronously! An extremely obscure but icy will wave, like a stone thrown into the water, swept across the entire bronze space in an instant!
Li Hua's heart sank suddenly!
Mo Li... is watching!
Qing Luan seemed to have sensed that wave as well, and the corners of her lips under the veil seemed to purse very slightly. She said no more, but slowly raised her spotless jade hand, the green light lingering on her fingertips became more solid, and gently pressed on the strings.
"Zheng..."
Another clear sound of the piano sounded, like an invisible barrier, instantly isolating and dispelling the obscure fluctuations of will.
She looked at Li Hua, and her eyes finally fell on his right hand, which was intertwined with black and blue, symbolizing fate and curse, and her voice had a meaning of ending the topic:
"The choice is yours, gatekeeper Li Hua. Will you follow the old oath, light the firewood, and complete the seal? Or... bear all the curses and take that almost impossible detour?"
"But no matter what choice you make, you must remember-"
"The ink blood is done, and the fate has begun. The countdown to the gate of Guixu... will not stop for anyone."