Chapter 468: Desperate Situation
Ye Xinghan had expended tremendous effort, suppressed for a full six hours before he finally extricated himself from Zanghuayin in a state of utter disarray. After venting his fury on the spot, he remained unwilling to give up, chasing after with all his might, and like Yun Che, entered this inexplicably appearing ancient castle out of curiosity... At this point, he had basically abandoned any hope of finding Feng Xue'er. To his surprise, a huge windfall fell straight into his lap.
But now, a stone door firmly blocked his prey, which was within easy reach. No matter how fiercely he attacked, the force only shook his arm until it ached. The stone door before him showed not a trace of damage, not even a single mark, and its position didn't shift by even half an inch.
When he struck the stone door with all his might, the feedback felt like an ant trying to shake a tree.
Ye Xinghan grew frantic. The feeling of having a cooked duck suddenly fly away was unbearably agonizing. He stared at the stone door, pacing back and forth, trying to find some mechanism that could open it. His low voice carried a deep threat: "Yun Che, if you don't want to die without a burial place, open this door for me!"
Yun Che did not respond. He closed his eyes, regulating his inner breath, slowly stabilizing the injuries within his body. Although he had withstood Ye Xinghan's blow head-on, the damage was certainly not light. Beside him, Feng Xue'er extended her small, snow-white hand, carefully wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth. Her beautiful eyes were full of heartache... He had been wounded so gravely, yet he had ensured that she, who was utterly defenseless, hadn't even a corner of her clothing harmed. This was a touch that would remain etched in her memory for a lifetime.
Ye Xinghan circled the area more than a dozen times but found nothing resembling a mechanism. He had no choice but to give up. Standing before the stone door, his expression shifted rapidly before his voice suddenly became calmer: "Yun Che, you not only ruined my plans but also killed two of my beloved women. Every single thing you've done is enough to make me want to make your life a living death, worse than death itself! Even if you could escape today, leaving the Primordial Mystic Ark... Hmph! I won't hesitate to mobilize the power of the Sun Moon Divine Palace to pursue you relentlessly, never stopping until one of us dies. By then, not only will no one dare to protect you, but countless people will seek to kill you just to curry favor with my Sun Moon Divine Palace. You'll be like a stray dog, without a moment's peace, until you're torn to pieces!"
Though Ye Xinghan's words were a threat, they were also the truth, and Yun Che knew it well. Earning the hatred of the Fenghuang God Sect and incurring the enmity of the Sun Moon Divine Palace were two entirely different concepts.
"If you don't come out, you'll be sealed inside this Primordial Mystic Ark. Even if you could escape, you'd still be walking the path to death!" Ye Xinghan said in a sinister tone. "But now, I can offer you a chance! As long as you open this door and hand over my little Xue'er, then I'll let bygones be bygones—including the matter of you killing my women! Not only will I let you go, letting you leave the Primordial Mystic Ark safely, but I won't pursue you in the future either. I might even give you some benefits."
In a desperate situation, such words carried an undeniable temptation. Yun Che kept his eyes closed, his expression unchanged, and remained silent. Feng Xue'er looked at him worriedly and whispered, "Brother Yun..."
"Let's ignore him," Yun Che said, pulling Feng Xue'er's shoulder closer, speaking just as softly.
"I am the Young Master of the Sun Moon Divine Palace, a man of my word. This is your only chance to survive, a great grace I am bestowing upon you. Don't let your short-sightedness destroy your life and future!" Ye Xinghan spoke in a steady voice, but inside, he was extremely anxious. Because, calculating the time, there was less than an hour before the Primordial Mystic Ark would close. By then, not only would he be unable to touch Feng Xue'er, but his ambition and despicable actions might be exposed for nothing, and he would never have another chance.
He spoke a torrent of words but received no response, not a single sound from inside. Ye Xinghan's eyes grew more sinister. "Yun Che! Are you just going to stay in there and let yourself be buried in this Primordial Mystic Ark? Hmph, your cheap life isn't worth much—dying is dying—but you don't have the right to drag Feng Xue'er down with you! Her life is far more precious than yours! If you truly want to protect her, then honestly hand her over to me. That is your only chance!"
Feng Xue'er used the sternest voice she could muster: "Ye Xinghan! I, Feng Xue'er, would rather die here with Brother Yun than fall into your hands!"
"Oh, my little Xue'er." Hearing Feng Xue'er's voice, Ye Xinghan's tone suddenly changed dramatically. "Why must you reject your Brother Ye so? Though my methods may have been a bit unbecoming, it's only because I like you too much, because I'm too eager to have you."
"Get lost!" Feng Xue'er shouted angrily. "I detest... I detest you utterly!"
"Little Xue'er, you won't always detest me," Ye Xinghan said leisurely. "I, Ye Xinghan, am the Young Master of the Sun Moon Divine Palace. Within three hundred years, I will become the official Palace Master of the Sun Moon Divine Palace, the most supreme figure in the entire Tian Xuan Continent. Only I am worthy of little Xue'er, and only little Xue'er is worthy of me."
"I can promise you now, little Xue'er, that after we marry, I will use everything I have to protect you, to make you the most honored and perfect woman in this world. For you, I could even give up all other women."
"I will never... never like you! My Brother Yun is a thousand times, ten thousand times better than you!" Feng Xue'er cried out indignantly.
"Your Brother Yun?" Ye Xinghan squinted his eyes and sneered disdainfully. "You actually compare me to a lowly mortal? In my eyes, he's not even worth a grasshopper by the roadside. Crushing him is easier than crushing a grasshopper. My little Xue'er, you are so intelligent—how could your heart be so easily deceived? Following me is your perfect destination. If you won't think of your own future, at least consider the future of the Fenghuang God Sect. Do you... really want the future of the Fenghuang God Sect to be destroyed by your selfish and mistaken decision?"
Ye Xinghan's last words undoubtedly struck a heavy blow to Feng Xue'er's heart. Yun Che opened his eyes, gently clasped her somewhat cold hand, and shook his head. "That despicable bastard doesn't deserve a single word of trust. No matter what he says, we'll just ignore him."
"Mm." Feng Xue'er nodded softly.
Yun Che closed his eyes again, focusing all his energy on recovering his injuries. Before the Primordial Mystic Ark closed, Ye Xinghan would definitely leave this ancient castle. That would be their only hope of escaping. To ensure his own safety, Ye Xinghan would certainly not stay too close to the castle after leaving. Although it would come with great risk, if Yun Che timed his rush correctly, the chances of success were definitely not low.
The more his injuries healed, the greater the chance of survival.
Yun Che and Feng Xue'er were inside the stone chamber, Ye Xinghan outside. The situation had become a stalemate where neither side could advance or retreat. Ye Xinghan used all his strength but couldn't break the stone door. He could only resort to continuous verbal temptation, cajoling, and threats. Eventually, he even descended into furious cursing, but Yun Che and Feng Xue'er never responded to a single word.
Boom...
The ground beneath their feet, the walls behind them, and the entire space suddenly trembled slightly, as if an earthquake had struck.
This tremor sharpened Yun Che's focus, and Ye Xinghan's expression changed drastically.
"Ah..." Feng Xue'er suddenly realized what it meant and exclaimed, "Brother Yun, this is bad! My imperial father told me that when the space of the Primordial Mystic Ark starts to tremble, it means there's less than two quarters of an hour left before it closes."
"Two quarters of an hour..." Yun Che looked up at the stone door, his expression turning serious.
Ye Xinghan's voice also became noticeably more impatient: "Yun Che! In another two quarters of an hour, the Primordial Mystic Ark will close. If you don't come out by then, you won't be expelled by the Ark's force field. Both of you will die inside, your very corpses vanishing with the Ark!"
"Come out, and you both live! Otherwise, you'll both die!"
"You'd better worry about yourself," Yun Che said coldly. "You're inside the castle too. Even if we're forced to stay here, you'll be buried with us."
"Buried with you? Hah! What an ugly word. All you have to do is obediently open the door. With one simple action, you can live, and my little Xue'er can live. But you persist in your folly. Not only are you stupid yourself, but you want to drag my perfect little Xue'er down with you. In all my life, I've never seen such a fool!"
"If I believed your words, that would be the real foolishness," Yun Che sneered.
Boom...
The space shook again. According to past experience and records, the closer the Primordial Mystic Ark came to closing, the more frequent the spatial tremors would become. Finally, there would even be continuous, intense tremors as if space itself was about to collapse. Ye Xinghan's face grew darker and darker. He turned to look outside the courtyard, rapidly calculating the time needed to escape from his current position to outside the castle. Gritting his teeth, he said, "Yun Che, I'll give you one last chance. Either open the door, or... both of you die together!"
Time passed second by second, each tick carrying the approaching footsteps of death. Yun Che's face remained calm, but his forehead was covered in cold sweat. This final stretch determined the life or death of him and Feng Xue'er. Going out now meant death; failing to get out before the Ark closed meant death as well.
Another half quarter of an hour passed, and the spatial tremors became noticeably more frequent. Ye Xinghan's agitation grew. He kept turning his head, repeatedly confirming his escape route and time from the castle. Taking a deep breath, he roared again, "Yun Che, I'll give you one final chance! If you don't want to die... open the door for me!!"
Inside the stone chamber, Yun Che furrowed his brows tightly, gritting his teeth in silence. Feng Xue'er gripped Yun Che's hand tightly, her gaze a mess of confusion.
Boom rumble...
A violent shudder caused even Ye Xinghan's body to sway significantly. At this point, there was only a final quarter of an hour left before the full twelve hours were up.
Even if Yun Che opened the door now and handed Feng Xue'er over, given the time needed to escape, there would be no chance left to accomplish his goal. Ye Xinghan's face darkened. His whole body trembling, he said through gritted teeth, hatred and ferocity in his voice: "Very well, then I'll grant your wish! Since I can't have her, destroying her with my own hands isn't bad either!"
Ye Xinghan's words made Yun Che suddenly realize what he was about to do. He shot up and roared, "Stop!"
Before his voice faded, Ye Xinghan's palm had already slammed heavily into the right side of the stone door, right at the small profound formation that controlled its opening.
Violent force surged into the profound formation. The formation flashed with sudden light, then completely shattered, the scattered profound radiance slowly fading in midair.
The formation was destroyed, and the stone door was completely locked, unable to be opened from either side.
"Haha... hahahaha! Rot in there... forever!!"
The destroyed formation cut off all hope of escape for Yun Che and Feng Xue'er, and also completely severed Ye Xinghan's hope of laying a finger on Feng Xue'er. Letting out a laugh of cathartic fury, Ye Xinghan leaped up with a face full of hatred, charging outward at top speed. He quickly descended the stone steps and bolted straight for the castle's exit.