Chapter 457: Taking You Down With Me
"Xixi!"
Qiao Yi and the others’ faces paled as they rushed toward Qiao Xixi.
Qiao Xixi knew the Beast Queen had malicious intentions and was already prepared. The moment the queen pushed her, she grabbed her sleeve and pulled her down from the round platform.
The Beast Queen lost her balance, and she and Qiao Xixi tumbled off the platform together.
The instant they fell, the stone slab above the platform slid shut.
"Xixi!"
"Beast Queen!"
Yue Li and the other beastman soldiers were terrified when they saw the Beast Queen fall with Qiao Xixi, and they charged forward.
Qiao Yi and Sangze rushed up and slammed their fists on the platform, but it didn’t budge.
A bloodthirsty light glinted in Sangze’s eyes. He seized Yue Li by the neck and lifted her off the ground.
"Talk. Where were you taking the young female?"
Yue Li’s eyes rolled back in their sockets as she was choked. She flailed her arms, trying to resist, but she was no match for Sangze.
"Talk!"
"A sac... sacrifice... at the... Underground Altar..."
Hearing this, Qiao Yi’s pupils constricted. "The Underground Altar!"
Jin Ling looked at Qiao Yi. "Sire, do you know where that is?"
Qiao Yi grunted in affirmation. "Let’s go."
Qiao Yi and the others turned to head for the main gate, but just as they were about to leave, beastman soldiers appeared and blocked their path.
The lead soldier’s eyes were cold. "By order of the Beast Queen, kill them!"
Jin Ling let out a tiger’s roar, transforming into his beast form and pouncing on the soldiers.
A cold, bloodthirsty light flickered in Sangze’s dark pupils.
"You’re really... courting death!"
Qiao Yi roared in fury, his sharp claws swiftly tearing through a soldier’s throat. The sacrificial ceremony descended into a bloody melee.
Outside the Sacrificial Hall, Sunxiao and his men heard the roars from within, and their expressions darkened.
"I heard Jin Ling’s roar," Sunxiao said, his brow furrowed.
’If everything was fine inside, why would Jin Ling roar for no reason?’
"You guys go in and see what’s happening. I’ll go find Yun Ji."
Yun Ji was the Holy Priest. Bringing him over was a precaution against any uncontrollable situations.
"Okay."
Inside the Sacrificial Hall.
Qiao Xixi dragged the Beast Queen down as they plummeted from the round platform.
Their bodies were in freefall, the only sound the whistling of the wind in their ears.
The Beast Queen tried to take the opportunity to push Qiao Xixi away, but Xixi clung to her, wrapping herself around the queen’s back.
"Qiao Xixi, let go of me!"
"I’m dragging you down with me to break my fall. Why would I be willing to let go?"
"You, damn you... AHH!"
Before the Beast Queen could finish her sentence, her body slammed hard onto the ground.
But Qiao Xixi wasn’t foolish enough to fall all the way down with her. The moment she felt something was wrong, she had used her wind ability to support her body.
Qiao Xixi landed steadily on her feet and took out a luminous sea pearl, dispelling the surrounding darkness.
The Beast Queen had fallen not far from her feet. Qiao Xixi walked over and saw that the area below was padded with thick beast hides and a very soft, elastic fruit.
She wasn’t dead, but a fall from that height must have been rough. She had passed out completely.
"System, where is this place?"
"Host, this is the Underground Altar. Its function is the same as the Sacrificial Hall’s."
Qiao Xixi understood immediately. Something must have provoked the Beast Queen, causing her to change her mind and try to sacrifice her instead.
Heh!
"Where’s the exit? Can I go straight up?"
"No, Host. I’ll send you a map of the exit route."
"Okay."
After hearing a DING from her dimensional space, Qiao Xixi opened its interface. A clear route map appeared before her eyes.
"Why is it so far?"
"A bit. This is basically a catacomb that stretches across more than half of the royal palace, so the path isn’t short."
Qiao Xixi frowned, thinking about how her father and the others must be worried sick about her fall.
She looked down at the unconscious Beast Queen, squatted, and used some vines from her dimensional space to tie the queen’s hands behind her back. Then, she took out some Spiritual Spring water and splashed it on her face.
The Beast Queen’s eyelids twitched, and she slowly regained consciousness.
The moment she opened her eyes, she saw Qiao Xixi. After a brief daze, she remembered what had happened, and her face filled with rage. Just as she was about to explode, Qiao Xixi slapped her hard across the face without any hesitation.
"Shut up. You’re in my hands now. If you don’t want to die, you’d better behave."
The slap stunned the Beast Queen. In her entire life, no one had ever dared to treat her this way.
"Qiao Xixi, you..."
SLAP!
Qiao Xixi frowned impatiently. "I’ve disliked you for a long time. If you can’t understand plain language, I’ll just kill you right now."
’The Beast Queen was furious. How dare Qiao Xixi!’
But she didn’t miss the murderous intent that flashed in Qiao Xixi’s eyes. She had no doubt that Xixi would actually kill her.
Qiao Xixi pulled her up from the ground and forced her to walk ahead.
"Lead the way out."
The Beast Queen’s eyes darted around as she walked in front.
When they reached a fork in the path, the Beast Queen hesitated for a moment before heading left.
Qiao Xixi sneered, yanking on the vine and pulling her back.
The Beast Queen looked up and met Qiao Xixi’s cold, blue eyes.
"Where are you going, Your Majesty?"
The Beast Queen’s expression shifted slightly. She hadn’t expected Qiao Xixi to be so vigilant.
"Don’t you want to get out? That’s the way."
’If it weren’t for the map the system gave me, I really would have been fooled by her.’
"Is it the exit, or a sacrificial altar? Has the Beast Queen forgotten the difference?"
The Beast Queen was startled and blurted out, "How did you know?"
Qiao Xixi sneered again, pulled her up, and pried open her mouth, forcing a pill inside.
The Beast Queen struggled, trying to spit it out, but Qiao Xixi held her jaw tightly, forcing her to swallow the pill.
"You, what did you make me eat?"
Qiao Xixi raised her eyebrows innocently. "Oh, nothing. Just a pill that will kill you if you’re disobedient."
"What did you say?"
The moment the words left her mouth, a sharp pain shot through the Beast Queen’s stomach. She writhed on the ground in agony, cold sweat beading on her forehead.
"AH! It... it hurts so much!"
The heart-piercing, bone-chilling pain was unbearable for the Beast Queen.
"Help me! I... I’m your mother! You can’t do this to me!"
Qiao Xixi watched her coldly. "When you sent people to hunt down my sire and tried to sacrifice me without a second thought, why didn’t you remember then that you’re my mother?"
"What... what do you want? If... if you dare... to kill... kill me, none of you will ever leave the royal palace alive!"
Qiao Xixi looked down at her, her gaze cold. She did want to finish her off right then and there, but she didn’t plan on taking the Beast Queen’s life here.
"Kill you? After all the evil things you’ve done to us, letting you die so easily would be getting off too lightly. Tell me, how were you planning to sacrifice me today? Who is waiting for you in this direction?"
Hearing this, the Beast Queen’s face grew even uglier. Her eyes flickered as she said, "No one. It was just me. There’s no one else here."
Qiao Xixi sneered. An instant later, she heard the system’s anxious voice. "Host, be careful! Danger is approaching!"