Of course, after a brief moment of stunned realization about what had just happened…
All the demon races across the world let out a deafening cheer!
This little demon, Jiang Ke’er, she actually… she really did it!
She accomplished what all humans couldn’t!
Li Shimin was also similarly thrilled, his eyes reddening, wanting to disregard his image and laugh out loud with everyone.
But beneath his fervent joy and boiling blood, a hint of worry lingered.
He looked at the expressions of the surrounding human sword cultivators, which were completely opposite to those of the demons.
The cultivators’ expressions gradually turned cold and fierce, filled with killing intent.
—”She can’t be allowed to leave!”
Countless cultivators had this thought.
Not just for the sake of a sword cultivator’s prideful dispute, but for many other, more terrifying reasons.
If Jiang Ke’er were allowed to leave… the loss to the human race would certainly be far more than just the sword cultivators losing face!
This involved a major upheaval that could potentially lead to the extinction of their race!
If the human race completely lost its prestige and could no longer deter the demons, allowing them to escape the despair and powerlessness that had long been ingrained in their souls…
It would only be a matter of time before chaos erupted across the land.
Of course, even they could realize this, and those powerful beings who constantly monitored the overall situation and allowed no accidents to occur had naturally made contingency plans long ago.
“Pfft—”
Jiang Ke’er had no time to react.
The impact propelled her over the edge of the cliff.
She weakly opened her mouth, feeling her right lung, which had been torn open, and her breath, disrupted by the immense spiritual energy.
Her vision blurred.
A mist of blood drifted into the sky, and the seeping blood stained a large portion of her clothes.
Several more streaks of light assaulted her, and Jiang Ke’er only felt her vision blur again, with bursts of blood mist erupting around her once more.
Jiang Ke’er knew where these attacks came from.
Those immortals, though unable to enter the beginner realm, could control their magical artifacts to do so.
Therefore, as long as she was exposed to their sight, she could die at any moment…
Previously, out of concern for their reputation, and still holding onto a glimmer of hope, they were unwilling to resort to such a desperate measure in front of all the demon races.
This was their last resort, but Jiang Ke’er had ultimately forced them to drop their pretense.
Jiang Ke’er fell into the clouds.
Layers of mist obscured the view from the cliff, and those streaks of light also changed their offensive, transforming into crackling electric nets, rushing towards Jiang Ke’er.
They clearly intended to capture her alive.
“Move, now!”
Jiang Ke’er anxiously felt her uncooperative body.
Although those few attacks carried no killing intent, the incredibly overbearing spiritual energy within them had disrupted her internal cultivation.
After all, these were attacks from immortals; the difference in strength was simply too vast.
Jiang Ke’er instantly lost the ability to control her spiritual energy and could no longer suppress the toxins.
In the final ten levels, the toxins had already begun to spread slightly.
Although not severe, they had reached her shoulder, causing her entire left arm to become numb and powerless.
She had managed to suppress the toxins in time, and the situation was initially under control…
But now, with her spiritual energy disrupted, she could only let the toxins erupt and be carried by the wildly surging spiritual energy to all parts of her body.
The electric net crackled as it enveloped her.
Jiang Ke’er mumbled twice, a hint of unwillingness in her heart.
Although she had foreseen this outcome and was mentally prepared to be captured and sealed away with those ancient foxes…
There were still so many regrets.
Too many wishes remained unfulfilled.
She hadn’t made those high and mighty figures pay a sufficiently painful price, hadn’t developed the tech tree to become the “Jack Ma, Bill Gates, Steve Jobs of another world,” hadn’t tasted all the delicacies of the Divine Land, and most importantly…
She hadn’t killed Qiao Xiao Xian.
Qiao Xiao Xian…
In that moment of life and death, Jiang Ke’er’s mind was a whirlwind of complex emotions.
In a daze, she seemed to see Qiao Xiao Xian’s face.
She flew up from the dark abyss at the bottom of the cliff, her startlingly beautiful face drawing closer, her ribbons fluttering, a hint of anxiety and panic on her pretty features.
—Could this panic be for me?
—Is she worried about me?
Jiang Ke’er suddenly began to let her imagination run wild.
Qiao Xiao Xian waved her hand, tossing out a small bronze cauldron.
The cauldron rapidly expanded, instantly swallowing the electric net around Jiang Ke’er.
“Eh, eh, eh?!”
Immediately after, Qiao Xiao Xian wrapped an arm around Jiang Ke’er’s waist.
A surge of raw and pure spiritual energy poured into Jiang Ke’er’s dantian, merging with her gentle spiritual energy.
It instantly cleared Jiang Ke’er’s chaotic aura, and even her wounds largely healed!
The poor toxins were even suppressed by Qiao Xiao Xian’s brute force, once again forced back around the wound, not daring to cause any trouble.
She actually… came to save her!
Jiang Ke’er’s heart was a mix of emotions, as if enveloped by a strong warmth.
Hope born in despair so easily cultivates affection.
Despite Jiang Ke’er’s strong reluctance to admit it, she was still… incredibly touched by Qiao Xiao Xian this time, and her favorability skyrocketed.
“What are you doing here… Are you… are you out of your mind?!” Jiang Ke’er angrily snapped.
“Hmm…” Qiao Xiao Xian paused slightly, then smiled gently, “Without you, what’s the point of being alive?”
Jiang Ke’er was stunned, her face flushed with embarrassment, her mind blank, completely overcome by this sudden declaration of love.
Even the most hardhearted person, no matter how much disdain they held, would find it difficult to remain unmoved when saved in such a selfless manner.
However, Qiao Xiao Xian retrieved the bronze cauldron and glanced at the cliff abyss below her.
She then quickly flew upwards with Jiang Ke’er in her arms, a hint of urgency in her movements.
“We can’t go back! Going up will expose us, and we’ll surely die!” Jiang Ke’er quickly warned.
Yet, Qiao Xiao Xian ignored her, still flying aggressively towards the top of the cliff.
Is she… trying to get revenge for me?
Jiang Ke’er’s heart immediately felt both warm and worried.
“Hmm?”
Unintentionally, Jiang Ke’er’s peripheral vision caught sight of the bottom of the cliff.
She wondered if her eyes were playing tricks on her, but she saw a faint red light emanating from below the cliff.
“Don’t look.”
Qiao Xiao Xian flew faster, covering Jiang Ke’er’s eyes with her hand, and said, “Your eyes will be burned blind.”
Suddenly, the entire Hanye Island began to shake violently, and waves of scorching hot air burst forth from the bottom of the cliff!
Like the birth of a new scorching sun, in Jiang Ke’er’s stunned gaze, brilliant light erupted from beneath them!
Along with it came an earth-shattering roar!
“Little rogue, how dare you! How dare you steal the Nine Provinces’ great artifact right under my nose!”
Huh?
Huh, huh, huh?
Jiang Ke’er looked at Qiao Xiao Xian.
Qiao Xiao Xian’s expression remained calm and composed, without a hint of embarrassment.
Oh, so that’s it, I knew this scoundrel wasn’t that kind-hearted!
It turns out she stole something from someone and was also on the run.
She just happened to run into herself and casually rescued her!
And she even pretended to risk her life to save her, shamelessly using the opportunity to gain her favor… Bah!
Jiang Ke’er’s momentary gratitude instantly vanished.
Her favorability towards Qiao Xiao Xian immediately plummeted back into the negatives, even lower than before.
I’ll kill you sooner or later, you scoundrel!
“What on earth did you provoke?” Jiang Ke’er felt her liver tremble as she sensed the surrounding cosmic phenomena.
This display of power was even comparable to the Dragon Vein Tribulation from before.
“The sun,” Qiao Xiao Xian said.
“?”
“One of the suns tricked down by Da Yi over three thousand years ago. There’s one here, responsible for guarding the Underworld Cauldron, one of the Nine Provinces’ divine cauldrons.”