Chapter Ninety-One: A Sliver of Hope

Lying sprawled on the ground, Long Yun was wracked by searing pain all over his body. Every slightest movement dragged open a fresh wave of tearing agony, and he could not help but knit his brows tightly.

This time, he feared, there would be no escaping death.

He gave a bitter smile to himself and glanced behind him. There, just beyond, lay Canglang Gorge, a forbidden place of grim renown. It was said that deep within the gorge stood Canglang Cavern, home to a peerless demonic beast of such cultivation that even the elders of the Divine Dragon Island would marvel at it.

Canglang Gorge had long since become a paradise for beasts. Many fierce and powerful creatures had gathered there, seeking the protection of that unparalleled beast.

If he could break into Canglang Gorge, he might still shake off his two pursuers completely. Though the gorge itself promised only a slim chance of survival amid near-certain death, it was still a chance.

Better than this, spent of true energy and left to be butchered at another’s mercy.

He strained to reach for the Green River Unfettered Sword not far away, but his arm could only lift a little before failing. No matter how he tried, he could not touch the blade.

Perhaps he could not even kill himself this time.

Long Yun shook his head helplessly. He had truly been too careless. It had all come down to Zhong Xuan’s words; he had trusted in the Green Emperor’s authority.

He had never imagined that the head of the Azure Sect, Feng Wuji, would dare openly defy the Green Emperor’s command and instead issue orders to kill him outright. This had been beyond all his calculations.

Long Yun also felt somewhat blameworthy. Had he considered everything more fully, perhaps he would not have ended up in such a miserable state. At the very least, preserving the lives of several fellow disciples, including Xiao Leng, should have been within his power.

As he recalled everything that had happened, Long Yun could not help feeling a pang of sorrow. Though clever enough, he was still young, and his experience, as well as his grasp of human nature, was far from sufficient.

But was this truly how he would die?

Long Yun was unwilling to accept it. From the moment he had been cast into the burial pit of corpses to the rebirth of his life at Jade Sword Gate, he had undergone a true transformation between life and death.

Yet now, at this moment, he was to perish in the tiny Azure Sect at the hands of two useless disciples. His eyes filled with indignation. The humiliation suffered at the Divine Dragon Island had still not been avenged.

What was more, he had fused with the dragon bone of Qiu Niu, and he had also failed to fulfill the request of Senior Bian.

Yes—Senior Bian!

Long Yun suddenly remembered the dragon pearl Bian had once left him, and his eyes lit up at once. If he crushed that pearl, then he would have a chance to survive.

At that thought, a trace of hope stirred in his heart. Taking advantage of Qi Ling’s effort to heal Cheng Rongxiang, he gritted his teeth and endured the excruciating pain, slowly moving his trembling arm to retrieve the dragon pearl from his chest.

Yet his arm felt limp and powerless, trembling violently under the pull of his meridians. Long Yun tried several times to slip his hand into his robes, but he could never manage it.

Cold sweat had already broken out across his forehead. Long Yun was frantic. Seeing Cheng Rongxiang’s condition steadily improve, it seemed he would regain his fighting strength before long.

Damn it!

Long Yun abruptly clenched his teeth and forced his arm into his robes. The pain made him gasp violently, and beads of sweat kept falling to the ground.

His arm had lost all feeling. Long Yun could only vaguely sense that his palm had brushed against something cold. With a vicious clench of his teeth, he hooked it out with the leverage of his arm.

Clatter.

A soft sound rang out as a small, ancient copper flask fell before Long Yun, making a clear ringing note.

Long Yun gave a wry smile. This attempt had not brought out the dragon pearl at all, but had instead drawn out the Heaven-Seizing Elixir that Qiu Lie had once given him.

Truth be told, he did owe Qiu Lie a debt. He had held that elixir for so long and had never once thought of going to the Great Pill Gate. At present, whether he could even remain alive was still uncertain, much less go there to deliver medicine for Qiu Lie.

At the thought, Long Yun could not help but tremble slightly. Indeed, whether he could live was itself an open question. If he died here, the Heaven-Seizing Elixir would likely fall into the hands of the Azure Sect as well.

So be it. Since the elixir would end up in the Azure Sect’s possession once he fell anyway, it might as well be taken by him first. According to Qiu Lie, the Heaven-Seizing Elixir possessed the power to seize heaven and earth themselves; perhaps it could help him escape this trap.

Besides, Qiu Lie had once said that this elixir could bring the dead to life and restore bone to flesh, seizing the marvels of heaven and earth with boundless power. The Small Pill Gate had been wiped out because of this very pill.

From this, one could see just how coveted the Heaven-Seizing Elixir was, and how it silently testified to its immense power.

Having made up his mind, Long Yun silently apologized to Qiu Lie in his heart. After taking a few deep breaths, he extended his right hand once more and firmly grasped the copper flask on the ground.

The mouth of the flask was sealed with red wax, upon which was engraved a strange talisman.

An arcane force pulsed from the talisman, and Long Yun could only smile bitterly inwardly. It seemed that breaking this seal would still be somewhat difficult.

With that thought, he steadied his mind and held his breath. His body no longer had the strength to exert itself at all, so breaking this seal was essentially impossible.

Fortunately, the seal was not terribly strong. It seemed designed merely to confine the Heaven-Seizing Elixir within, rather than to protect it. Otherwise, Long Yun would have had yet another headache.

A vast sword intent surged out from his body and immediately enveloped the Green River Unfettered Sword. The blade lay only a few zhang away.

At this moment, Long Yun was merely attempting to communicate with the sword, to awaken its spirit through his sword intent and draw it to his side, so that it might help pierce this seal.

To drive a sword with sword intent sounded simple, but in truth it was far, far harder, especially when it came to controlling and grasping that intent. For Long Yun, this was no small challenge.

Under the infusion of his sword intent, the Green River Unfettered Sword began to emit a faint halo. Green light flowed along its blade, entwining with Long Yun’s sword intent as though the two were trying to communicate.

Long Yun slowly closed his eyes, allowing his mind to sink completely into the tranquil, fathomless state of the Sword Dao. With all his being, he drove his sword intent to the utmost limit, and at that moment there was nothing else in his heart.

As though this body of flesh and blood were itself a sword, filled only with a sky-piercing sharpness of blade aura.

Hum.

The Green River Unfettered Sword on the ground began to tremble violently. Then, unexpectedly, it rose of its own accord and flew toward Long Yun.

Though its speed was not great, it was unwavering, with not the slightest tremor.

Long Yun had already gripped the copper flask in his palm, the mouth facing outward toward the tip of the Green River Unfettered Sword. Though his eyes were closed, under the control of his sword intent, the sword quickly reached the flask’s position.

Success or failure, all hinged on this one strike.

Long Yun’s brows were locked tight. Without hesitation, he drove his sword intent forward another few notches, thrusting it into the wax seal on the flask. Combined with the keen edge of the Green River Unfettered Sword and Long Yun’s own sword intent, it directly pierced the seal on the copper flask, without the slightest deviation, not even touching the flask’s mouth.

Long Yun suddenly opened his eyes, and his face brightened with delight. The mouth of the flask had already been opened, and an inexplicable force burst forth from within, like a savage beast finally escaping its leash.

The tremendous force sent a stab of pain through Long Yun’s arm, and the copper flask fell to the ground.

Clang.

Deprived of Long Yun’s sword intent, the Green River Unfettered Sword also dropped weakly to the earth. Looking at the flask so close at hand, its dark mouth now pointed directly toward him, Long Yun had no strength left to seize it again.

He could only slowly move his head toward the flask while opening his mouth and inching closer and closer to the mouth of the vessel.

At this moment, the copper flask was like a thread of hope. Long Yun was forcing himself with all his might toward that slender chance of survival. If he could swallow the Heaven-Seizing Elixir within, he believed life would return to him once more.

But could he do it?

Just as Long Yun kept edging toward the flask, Qi Ling also slowly finished channeling his power. With the aid of his true energy, Cheng Rongxiang had finally recovered somewhat, and the damage to his meridians had been mostly repaired.

He abruptly opened his eyes, a flash of hatred passing through them. Cheng Rongxiang rose sharply to his feet and immediately spotted Long Yun inching toward the copper flask. At first he was startled, then he understood Long Yun’s intent.

“So you want to take a pill to heal yourself? Hah. Unfortunately, you will never get the chance.”

With a flick of his finger, Cheng Rongxiang sent a streak of light shooting straight toward the copper flask.