Chapter 789: My Mo Li (Part 2)
Yun Che gripped the ground with his palms and slowly stood up. His pupils were constricting, but after standing, he still looked toward those four Brahma flower petals releasing their Netherworld purple light.
"What I want is to get close to it…" he muttered lowly, his voice hoarse. "Why did I involuntarily… use my remaining strength to retreat… and moreover, I'm actually afraid…"
"Could it be… that my so-called resolve is just this… fragile?!"
Yun Che's voice was blurry and drifting, as if he was already somewhat delirious under the soul-severing power of the Netherworld Brahma Flower. Mo Li immediately said, "This has nothing to do with how firm your resolve is! No one in this world can endure the pain of soul severance, and no one is unafraid of that pain!"
"No, it does have a connection!" Yun Che stood fully upright. He stared at the Netherworld Brahma Flower, his arms trembling, and in his pupils, besides the fear he couldn't dispel, a cluster of madly gathering ferocity appeared. Then he lifted his feet and step by step, walked toward the Netherworld Brahma Flower again: "Rebuilding your body… that was the request you made to me on the first day we met, and it has always been your only request!"
"Mo Li, because I met you, I, who was originally just a waste, was reborn and also regained my dignity… Because of you, I could protect my grandfather and little aunt from being bullied… Because of you, I learned my origins and found my birth parents… The power, status, dignity, and reputation I now possess are all because of you. If I hadn't met you back then, I might have already died tragically… Even if I were still alive, I might only be a lonely ghost wandering on the edge of despair…"
"And yet I have always been unable to fulfill even your only desire…"
Mo Li: "You…"
"Now, before my eyes, is perhaps the only hope. So, no matter what… no matter what…!!"
"You… don't try again, even if you…"
"AHH!!"
Mo Li's shout had just left her mouth when it was suppressed by Yun Che's roar. With flames and killing intent all over his body, he charged for the fourth time toward the Netherworld Brahma Flower… His strongest aura was his killing intent! He was using his most extreme killing intent to suppress the fear brought by the pain of soul severance.
With two body flashes, Yun Che once again rushed to a distance of fifteen zhang. This position was like the edge of a demon's forbidden zone—absolutely not one step further inside!
The indescribable pain of soul severance struck. Yun Che's entire body convulsed and spasmed, but this time, he forcibly did not collapse. Instead, gritting his teeth, he stepped into the demon's forbidden zone for the first step…
"AAAAAHHH!!"
Yun Che's cry seemed like a scream under the pain of soul severance, but more like a desperate roar. He guarded his soul and mind tightly, continuing forward one step… two steps… three steps…
THUMP!!
As if by a miracle, he managed to move forward a full zhang amidst half-roars and half-screams, closing in on the Netherworld Brahma Flower to a distance of fourteen zhang. He finally collapsed heavily to his knees, his features twisted into a ball under extreme pain, the fingers gripping the ground contorted like two withered beast claws…
Pain and fear filled his soul. The desire for death overwhelmed the will to live, and the urge to escape at all costs swallowed all his will. His body twisted, rolling and crawling frantically away from the pain…
The pain began to lessen bit by bit, and his torn soul finally found peace. Yun Che's consciousness cleared. He lay on the ground, looking toward the direction of the Netherworld Brahma Flower… That purple light was already far away at twenty zhang again.
"Heh… hehe… hahaha… hahahahaha…" Yun Che slammed his fist fiercely into the ground and laughed bitterly: "I ran back again… I'm actually this… useless…"
"Yun Che! How stupid are you going to get!" Mo Li cursed angrily: "If you're risking your life just to repay my kindness for the reasons you just mentioned, then you don't have to! Everything I did was also for myself! I don't need you to risk your life for a mere Netherworld Brahma Flower! Even if you could succeed today, I wouldn't be grateful; I'd only think you are utterly foolish!"
"Re… pay… kindness?"
Yun Che pushed himself up with his arms and stood again. His body swayed, and his voice was weak: "How could it be… repaying kindness… Mo Li, to me… you could never be just a benefactor."
Mo Li: "…"
He turned toward the location of the Netherworld Brahma Flower and said softly: "In my life, Yun Che, I have experienced many storms and countless life-and-death ordeals. Even a demon from a million years ago in the ancient era died by my sword!!"
"How could I… be so utterly defeated by a mere Netherworld Brahma Flower!!"
Mo Li shouted in alarm: "Are you still going to try?! Have you been tortured to the point of losing all basic reason?!"
"No! On the contrary, I am more clear-headed now than ever!" Yun Che roared: "I am not afraid of demons, not afraid of death—how can I be scared into retreating again and again by a flower!!"
ROAR!!!
A majestic dragon roar shook the heavens. In the pitch-black world, a pair of azure-blue eyes suddenly opened. An overwhelming pressure also descended, covering heaven and earth.
Dragon Soul Domain!!
Mo Li: "…!!"
Releasing the Dragon God Domain, all the fear in Yun Che's heart and eyes completely dissipated. He looked at the Netherworld Brahma Flower and showed a calm yet determined smile: "This time, I will not allow myself to be afraid or retreat… because I have no way back!!"
Once he released the Dragon Soul Domain, his soul power would be consumed rapidly in a short time. If he retreated again, it would take an extremely long time for his soul power to fully recover… By then, the Netherworld Brahma Flower would inevitably have withered.
So, this time, he truly had no way back!
"No!!" Mo Li shouted at the top of her voice to stop him: "Even if you use the dragon soul, you absolutely cannot get close to the Netherworld Brahma Flower! Moreover, the Dragon Soul Domain will rapidly deplete your soul power. When your soul power weakens, your soul will be quickly devoured by the Netherworld Brahma Flower, and you won't even have the chance to resist or retreat!!"
"I can do it…" Yun Che's teeth were about to shatter: "Because it's for you… so I definitely can do it!"
"…" Mo Li's heart was fiercely struck by something unfamiliar.
ROAR!!!
With a dragon's roar, Yun Che surged with all his profound energy and pounced toward the Netherworld Brahma Flower once more… and for the last time!
Because there would be no chance for another time!!
Under the Dragon Soul Domain, Yun Che's soul power surged. As he approached, the swaying of the Netherworld Brahma Flower quickened, and even the ghostly wailing it emitted became abnormal.
Yun Che came from afar, rapidly closing in to a distance of fifteen zhang. His entire body tensed, but the tearing force attacking his soul was fiercely resisted by the dragon god soul power, bringing Yun Che less than half the pain and will dissipation he had felt before.
His strength and consciousness rapidly lost control and dissipated under the soul-severing power of the Netherworld Brahma Flower. Yun Che's speed slowed, his steps became unsteady and swaying. Gritting his teeth, he pushed forward desperately… Under the suppression of the Dragon Soul Domain against the Netherworld power, he forcibly closed in to a distance of ten zhang!!
Pain beyond Yun Che's endurance limit struck madly. Yun Che fell heavily to his knees, every pore trembling in agony. But within his pupils, there was still a trace of terrifying clarity…
Under such circumstances, being able to maintain even this minuscule amount of clarity could only be described as "terrifying."
"Even if… it completely tears… my soul apart… I will not retreat half a step!"
"AAAAHHHH!!"
He moved his trembling, powerless arms, crawling in the direction of the Netherworld purple light. The tearing pain of his soul made him begin to lose sensation in his arms and even his entire body. He was only squeezing the last shreds of faith and will, driving his body forward… With every inch of progress, the pain of soul tearing and the terror of separation doubled.
But he… must not retreat!
Inside the Heavenly Poison Pearl, Hong'er was asleep. The fierce battle with Shiyue Mojun seemed to have exhausted her. During the two days Yun Che had focused on healing, she had been sleeping soundly. Mo Li stood by Hong'er's bed, her gaze wooden, staring blankly at Yun Che struggling and crawling under the shroud of Netherworld purple light, from a distance of ten zhang, gradually closing in to only nine zhang. The immense pain twisted his entire face into a ferocious ghost-like grimace.
And behind him, the Dragon God phantom was weakening bit by bit…
At that moment, the Dragon God phantom flickered suddenly, and its weakening speed accelerated, as if it were on the verge of collapse.
Mo Li's delicate brows twitched sharply. She exclaimed in alarm: "Yun Che, don't persist any longer. Retreat immediately! Before your Dragon Soul Domain fully collapses, you can still escape! Otherwise, you will truly die here forever!!"
"…" Yun Che did not respond, nor did he retreat. His arm trembled as it reached forward, his fingers all covered in blood. The blood from his tightly clenched teeth also flowed profusely, constantly dripping from the corners of his mouth, but he was completely unaware. His body moved inch by inch in a hell that ordinary people could not imagine, crawling deeper into that hell.
"… Yun Che! Listen to me!" Mo Li's soul body also trembled, trembling almost as violently as Yun Che: "If I cannot regain a physical body, I can only exist attached to your life force! You live, I live; you die, I die! Now that I have shed the demon poison, I can freely use my power! If I don't die, I must ensure you don't die. With my power, even if all of Tian Xuan Continent were gathered together, they couldn't kill you! You can still rely on my power to do anything you cannot accomplish!!"
"If I can never rebuild my body, I must forever depend on you to exist, and thus must forever protect your safety!"
"But if I gain new life, you will have lost an extremely powerful protective charm for nothing! Moreover, my nature is cruel and bloodthirsty, I kill without mercy. I might even kill you directly because you know too much about me! Yes… Once I rebuild my body, I will definitely kill you immediately! Because you not only know too much about me, but you are also the type of person I most hate and detest!"
"You are paying an enormous price to do the most foolish thing in this world! You can still stop now… retreat immediately!!"
Mo Li shouted and roared, her small hands' knuckles already pale as snow.
CRACK!
Yun Che's hand grabbed a black rock protruding from the ground, pulling his body forward a little more. The corners of his mouth twitched as he emitted a hoarse, weak voice: "You… won't…"