Chapter 59: Demon Power Erupts

Chapter 59: The Demonic Power Unleashed

Shen Lian's hands trembled.

He looked at the man before him.

"You've only known me for such a short time—why go this far to help me?"

Cang Huai met Shen Lian's gaze and spoke softly: "I don't know."

Shen Lian met his eyes, as if burned by them. "Don't move. I'll give you the medicine now."

But when he reached into his storage pouch, the pills were already gone.

Cang Huai knew their situation all too well. In his condition, he wasn't going to make it.

So he murmured, "Listen to me—those two Spirit Transformation cultivators will be here soon—"

Shen Lian cut him off. "I said I'd save you!"

Right in front of Cang Huai, he began refining pills with his palm fire. He intended to refine a high-grade Bone-Growing Life-Restoring Pill.

And Shen Lian forced out a drop of his essence blood. The moment he forced it out, his face went pale, his body trembling, yet he still held the essence blood out.

Cang Huai's eyes narrowed. "What are you doing!"

Shen Lian shook off his hand. "It's none of your business."

Cang Huai frowned. Seeing that Shen Lian was serious and truly intended to use his essence blood to refine the pill, he grabbed Shen Lian's wrist and said hurriedly, "You don't need to worry—I'm just an avat—" Before he could finish, Shen Lian knocked him out.

The words died on Cang Huai's tongue, and he fell into darkness.

He hadn't expected Shen Lian to be this stubborn.

Meanwhile, in the Tianheng Sect, Yan Huaixuan suddenly opened his eyes. A trace of blood-red light flashed across his brow, which was normally cold and pure as snow.

Yan Huaixuan forcibly suppressed it and stood up.

Ling Yun's whole body trembled, his expression grim.

"Master! What are you doing! This is the critical moment for you to break through to Earth Immortal, and the perfect chance to completely sever that thing—you can't leave the cave dwelling!"

Yan Huaixuan remained unmoved. He brushed Ling Yun aside with a wave. "Get out of my way."

Ling Yun gritted his teeth. "Master, I know you sent an avatar to accompany that person, but you really can't leave right now. Once you lose this chance, that thing can never be eradicated."

Yan Huaixuan's gaze shifted, landing on Ling Yun's face.

Ling Yun's body suddenly stiffened—he actually saw a trace of red light in Yan Huaixuan's eyes, and terror gripped his heart.

But Yan Huaixuan was already gone.

Ling Yun had no choice but to follow.

The Eighth Elder of the Tianheng Sect, guarding the entrance to the small secret realm, suddenly opened his eyes thoughtfully. "Huaixuan? What are you doing here—aren't you supposed to be in seclusion?"

But no sooner had he spoken than Yan Huaixuan knocked him out.

The Eighth Elder's eyes widened.

Inside the small secret realm, Shen Lian was drenched in sweat, on the verge of collapsing, yet he looked at the Sword Cultivator whose breath was growing faint.

This man—he had only known him for a single day, and yet he had taken such a heavy hit for him.

He couldn't not repay that debt of gratitude.

Shen Lian steeled himself and began burning his vital essence.

Chen Xue and Shen Mo both cried out anxiously, "Master! Vital essence, once lost, can never be replenished—don't do anything stupid!"

Shen Lian said nothing. As the vital essence was added, the pill was finally completed.

Shen Lian was nearly spent, but he still forced himself to shove the pill into Cang Huai's mouth.

Unexpectedly, Cang Huai woke up even faster than Shen Lian had imagined, and he stubbornly pressed his lips together, refusing to swallow.

"Shen—Lian Song, it's wasted on me. Keep it for yourself."

Shen Lian didn't want to argue with him. He directly gripped Cang Huai's jaw and shoved the pill down.

After forcibly feeding it to him, Cang Huai discovered that his back, which had already been torn open with most of his organs exposed, was beginning to slowly regrow flesh and blood.

A flicker of shock passed through his eyes as he looked at Shen Lian.

But at that moment, Shen Lian's body went limp, and he began to collapse to the ground.

Shen Lian didn't care. He was too exhausted—he had fought all day, and using his own essence blood to refine the Bone-Growing Life-Restoring Pill had completely drained his spiritual power.

If it went on any longer, the demonic energy suppressed within Shen Lian would no longer be containable.

Even now, Shen Lian could feel the demonic energy stirring within him.

But the cold ground he expected never came—he was caught in a pair of arms.

Shen Lian fell into an embrace. It was clean and pleasant, like fresh snow on a heavenly mountain.

He looked at Cang Huai, who was holding him, and froze for a moment.

Shen Lian pressed his lips together, then gently reached out and tentatively rolled up Cang Huai's sleeve.

The next moment, his wrist was grabbed.

"What are you doing?"

Cang Huai's voice was rough.

Shen Lian endured the sharp pain, immediately propped himself up, and examined Cang Huai's body. There was no danger to his life, but he was far from well.

Cang Huai pressed his lips together. "Why go through all this trouble."

Meeting his dark eyes, Shen Lian said, "You helped me, so it's only right that I help you back."

Shen Lian stood up. "Can you still stand?"

Cang Huai nodded.

He fell into step beside Shen Lian.

The two of them walked on together, only to find themselves in what seemed like an endless stone corridor, stretching endlessly in both directions. The air was so still it was almost completely silent.

Shen Lian couldn't help feeling a knot of anxiety in his chest.

No one knew he hated the dark.

Just like every over-the-top protagonist, he'd had his own experience of being locked in a dark little room.

Cang Huai quickly noticed his unease. "What's the matter?"

Shen Lian shook his head. "I'm fine. Let's just find a way out first."

Cang Huai suddenly stopped in his tracks. He pressed a hand to the wall, brow furrowed in thought. Just as Shen Lian was about to ask what was up, he suddenly yanked Shen Lian back.

That's when Shen Lian noticed the whole wall starting to writhe slowly.

A second later, a long, fleshy worm burst out of it, barreling straight at them.

The worm was utterly grotesque, with countless tiny legs underneath that let it scurry across the ground at alarming speed.

It seemed to be at the Void Insight stage, tearing recklessly through the narrow passage, heading directly for Shen Lian and Cang Huai.

Shen Lian threw a bolt of spiritual energy at it, but the worm just gobbled it down in two quick bites.

Seeing this, Cang Huai drew his longsword. "Shen Lian, get out of here."

Shen Lian kept his face calm. "No."

He half-carried Cang Huai, running and attacking at the same time.

But Shen Lian's attacks were completely useless against this thing.

Especially with Cang Huai weighing him down.

Fed up with being chased, Shen Lian suddenly had an idea—might as well try anything.

A faint blue flame flickered to life in his palm, and he flung it at the worm.

The second the flame touched the worm, its massive body went up in flames.

Before long, the whole place smelled like cooked meat.

Shen Lian hadn't expected his palm fire to work that well.

Well, no surprise—that Demon Dragon had sent those demons scattering in terror back then.

A faint smile finally tugged at Shen Lian's lips.

But the moment they burst out of the passage, they spotted two figures up ahead.

It was those two Feiyun Sect cultivators from before, both wearing vicious looks.

"Where the hell do you think you're running?"

The second the words left his mouth, the two cultivators charged. Shen Lian and Cang Huai got slammed against the wall.

The pain was so bad it felt like every bone in their bodies was breaking.

The four cultivators then walked straight toward Shen Lian. "Damn you, you filthy piece of shit, think I won't torture you to death? Hand over all your treasures!"

Just as he was about to kick Shen Lian, a hand caught his ankle.

Shen Lian opened his bloodshot eyes and saw Cang Huai gripping the cultivator's leg. "Cang Huai!"

The Feiyun Sect cultivator tried to shake him off but couldn't. With a cold sneer, he stomped down on Cang Huai's hand. A crack rang out, and the pale wrist shattered instantly.

Shen Lian's eyes went pitch black in an instant.

It hurt so bad.

That feeling was back—everything he tried to hold onto slipped away, everything he wanted he couldn't have.

Even Cang Huai—he had to watch him die right in front of him.

The Feiyun Sect cultivator saw the hand was broken but the guy still wouldn't let go, so he decided to stomp on Cang Huai's head next.

But the next second, he froze. Even the other cultivators turned their heads slowly, only to see—

The slender young man who'd been leaning against the wall had his eyes slowly turning blood-red.

Cang Huai sensed something and looked up, his pupils shrinking.

"Shen Lian!"

But Shen Lian couldn't hear anything anymore. His eyes had gone fully crimson, and his once-pale face was now covered in black demonic markings.

He should never have fought this power in the first place.

The two Feiyun Sect cultivators were terrified. "A demon? You're a demon!"

And not just that—the aura radiating off Shen Lian was climbing higher and higher: Void Insight, Spirit Transformation, and even—Void Immortal?!

Seeing how bad things were getting, the two Feiyun Sect cultivators turned and bolted.

"A demon! There's a demon!"