Chapter 458: How Did You Draw the Pattern?
Qiao Xixi looked up to see a dark red halo hurtling toward her.
Her pupils contracted. ’It’s the aura of a monster!’
’So there really is a monster hiding in the royal palace!’
Qiao Xixi grabbed the Beast King and shoved her toward the approaching halo.
"Ah!"
The Beast King slammed hard into the halo, letting out a pained scream.
The moment it collided with the Beast King, the dark red halo solidified, taking on the form of Kunlin.
His dark red pupils landed coldly on Qiao Xixi. Her brows furrowed, and she quickly retreated, putting a safe distance between them.
"So you weren’t caught by the Beast Guards."
A sinister smile touched Yun Ming’s lips. He stuck out his tongue and licked his sharp claws. "That’s right. And I have that male Black Phoenix to thank for it. I used his beast soul energy to cover my aura."
Yun Ming’s feet were suspended in mid-air as he slowly drifted toward Qiao Xixi.
"You... you’re the Spring. Once I destroy you, no one in this world will be able to stop me."
As Yun Ming drew near Qiao Xixi, a sudden force blocked his path.
"Damn it!"
Qiao Xixi seized the opportunity to retreat to an exit, ready to flee. ’Little Yao, can I reach the secret passage in the Beast King’s inner sanctum from here?’
’Yes, Host. If you wish to go, I will plot a new route for you.’
’Good. I’m going.’
"DING!"
Little Yao quickly sent the plotted route to Qiao Xixi. After checking it with her mind, she realized the secret passage was much closer than the main exit.
’Killing me won’t be so easy!’
Qiao Xixi silently chanted an incantation, her hands forming a seal.
"Wind, arise."
A gust of wind swept Qiao Xixi up, carrying her toward the secret passage.
Seeing Qiao Xixi flee, Yun Ming’s expression darkened, and he gave chase.
Just as they left, Han Lie emerged. He helped the Beast King to her feet and untied the vines binding her.
"Your Majesty, are you alright?"
The drug’s effects hadn’t worn off, and the Beast King’s entire body ached. She gripped Han Lie’s arm tightly, gritting her teeth. "Han Lie, help me. I don’t know what Qiao Xixi fed me. You have to help me."
Han Lie glanced in the direction Qiao Xixi had fled, tempted to give chase. But when he looked down at the Beast King’s pained expression, he gritted his teeth and lifted her into his arms.
"Don’t worry, Your Majesty. Let me see what’s wrong."
Qiao Xixi was fast, but Yun Ming was faster. He soon cut her off.
Qiao Xixi’s eyes narrowed. "Wind."
A powerful gust of wind shot toward Yun Ming.
Yun Ming instantly spread his wings and dodged.
"I may not be able to touch you, but he can."
As he spoke, the dark red of his pupils faded considerably, and black pupils slowly became visible.
"Go. Kill her."
The man with the now-black pupils froze, staring at Qiao Xixi in astonishment.
"Xixi..."
Kunlin looked at Qiao Xixi as his sharp claws shot out toward her.
"No!" he screamed internally, but he couldn’t control his body at all.
"Hehehe. Kill her!" Yun Ming’s hoarse voice quickly replaced Kunlin’s.
Resistance was written all over Kunlin’s face, but his claws still slashed toward Qiao Xixi.
Qiao Xixi dodged swiftly. She glanced at the spatial map. ’Almost there,’ she thought. ’I’ll reach the secret passage soon.’
The monster couldn’t get near Qiao Xixi, but he could force Kunlin to harm her.
Qiao Xixi had no desire to fight. After dodging another of Kunlin’s attacks, she spun around and dove into the corridor leading to the secret passage.
"She went in! After her!"
Just as Kunlin was about to enter the corridor, he dug his hands into the stone walls, stopping himself from advancing.
"I... cannot... let you... hurt... her!"
Yun Ming sneered. "Oh, really? You think you have what it takes to stop me?"
A dark red mist rapidly coiled around Kunlin. In the next instant, his pupils turned dark red once more, and his hands fell from the stone wall.
"Today, the Spring must be extinguished!"
Yun Ming spun around and chased after Qiao Xixi. But halfway there, his body was suddenly overcome with a strange discomfort. He wanted to move forward, but his body was frozen in place.
Yun Ming roared, "You alone think you can break my hold? Dream on!"
In an instant, the dark red pupils turned deep black once more.
"No matter what, I will never let you hurt her!"
"Ahhh!"
The dark red pupils overwhelmed the deep black. He sneered, "I told you. You’re not strong enough."
Meanwhile, Qiao Xixi had reached a stone door.
’Little Yao, this is a dead end.’
’No, Host. The mechanism is to your right. Open it, quickly.’
"BANG!"
Qiao Xixi triggered the mechanism, and the stone door rumbled open.
Once inside the secret passage, she quickly shut the stone door behind her and ran. She soon arrived at the secret passage connected to the Beast King’s inner sanctum.
The walls of the stone grotto were illuminated by the refracted colors of sea pearls.
Qiao Xixi took out the parchment and spread it open. The pattern on it was complete, but it was still missing the color sequence. She couldn’t do anything to Yun Ji right now, so she would just have to try it herself.
"Wind, arise."
A gust of wind lifted her into the air.
She looked up at the sea pearls covering the grotto walls. She tentatively reached out, touching a crimson pearl. Then, starting with the crimson pearl, she began to trace the pattern in sequence.
As her palm traced the correct pattern across the sea pearls, Qiao Xixi noticed that the pearls she touched began to glow crimson. ’Does this mean I’m on the right track?’ she wondered.
"BANG!"
A loud impact echoed from the stone door. Qiao Xixi didn’t dare to stop, her hands moving even faster.
When her hand reached the part of the pattern for the snow-white color, those pearls lit up as well.
But just as her hand was about to complete the final step on the multicolored pearls, a powerful electric current shot through her palm.
"Ah!"
Qiao Xixi cried out, her entire body numb from the shock. She lost her balance and plummeted from the air.
Qiao Xixi tried to chant an incantation and form a seal, but her hands and lips were paralyzed by the electricity. She couldn’t move. Just as she was about to hit the ground, a figure rushed in and caught her in his arms.
"Shuishui!"
Yun Ji held Qiao Xixi tightly, landing steadily on the ground.
Qiao Xixi’s lips trembled. She stared at him blankly, taking a moment to recover.
"Yun Ji, what are you doing here?"
"Xijing found me and said you were in trouble. After I got the gist of it, I figured I could enter the underground palace from this side and might run into you sooner. So I headed this way."
He hadn’t expected to find Qiao Xixi here for real.
After steadying herself with his help, Qiao Xixi said, "Yun Ming is hiding in the royal palace. He’s right outside. We need to quickly find the source of the Dark Origin Stone and take him down once and for all."
Qiao Xixi took out the parchment, unfolded it, and told Yun Ji about her earlier theories.
"I’ve already traced the pattern, but I don’t know the color sequence. Every time I get the order wrong, I get punished. I’m trying to figure out how to determine the correct sequence."
Yun Ji’s gaze shifted from the parchment back to Qiao Xixi. "First, tell me... how did you get this pattern?"