Chapter 127: Severed Wings and Vanishing Dust, A Hidden Resolution to the Predicament

Yet just as the two of them had flown a short distance away, the extraordinarily luxuriant tree suddenly began to thrash about wildly. The branches growing from its trunk stretched endlessly toward the fleeing pair. In the blink of an eye, they reached Feather Sorrow and Night Dust, leaving them no time to react before hooking around their waists and trapping them so completely that they could not move.

The two were startled and immediately began struggling, but the harder they fought to break free, the tighter the branches wound around them. Then countless sharp twigs sprouted from the branches coiled around their bodies. Realizing that something was wrong, they hurriedly summoned their respective divine weapons and hacked at the twigs. Yet no matter how fiercely they cut, the severed twigs seemed capable of regeneration, growing back without pause. For every branch they chopped away, another emerged. There was no way to destroy them all, so they could only protect themselves and prevent the ghastly things from drawing near.

Little by little, Feather Sorrow and Night Dust felt themselves unable to breathe. The branches had wrapped around them so tightly that they showed no intention of letting go. Their bodies had already been twisted by the crushing coils, yet that was not all. They still had to remain constantly alert to the sharp twigs, circling and parrying them without cease to keep the dreadful things at bay. But they had no means of destroying them completely and could only react to each attack as it came.

Suddenly, there was movement in the pool of blood not far away. The blood flowing across the ground was gradually diminishing. Slowly, the white bones submerged within it began to emerge. Scarlet blood soaked the pale fragments, creating a sight that was utterly horrifying. After an unknown length of time, the pool of blood vanished completely before their eyes, leaving only a pile of bones scattered across the ground, gleaming with an eerie light. Yet the two men discovered that the bones were far more lustrous than before. They had become translucent, like priceless white jade, and were impossible to ignore.

Then something utterly unbelievable occurred. The bones scattered across the ground began assembling themselves, as though guided by a soul. Before long, the skeleton stood intact before them once more. It shook its head and rolled its body, and the bones rubbed together with a harsh, creaking sound that sent chills through the air. Feather Sorrow and Night Dust felt a wave of cold run down their backs, and sweat broke out across their bodies. The terror was so great that they momentarily forgot the pain of being bound. Only that bone-chilling, dreadful sound continued to echo beside their ears.

Afterward, new flesh miraculously began to grow upon the skeleton. Slowly, a flawless body appeared before them. Skin as smooth as ice and jade, a beauty of incomparable allure, eyes faintly gleaming as though capable of ensnaring the souls of all who looked upon them, and a graceful figure that could stir the hearts of countless men. The only imperfection was her hands, which should have been tender and pale as water. Now they were nothing but exposed white bones, lending her appearance a desolate air.

The woman transformed from the skeleton suddenly spun around, and a layer of light gauze appeared across her body, veiling her alluring waist. She then walked toward Feather Sorrow and Night Dust, the glow that had once filled her eyes replaced by boundless hatred. Stopping before them, she began to laugh loudly. Contempt and arrogant triumph mingled within her laughter, as though she were mocking them for having fallen into such a state—or declaring that their deaths were near.

“I told you that even if I had to die, I would drag you into the underworld with me. Rest assured, I will not cruelly abandon you. Instead, I will haunt you through every lifetime until death finally takes you. I want you to taste the agony of living worse than death and dying worse than annihilation. Only when I see you suffer until you wish for death will the hatred in my heart be appeased!”

The skeletal woman truly hated them to the core. Death alone was no longer enough to give her the satisfaction of revenge. Only torment lasting through countless lifetimes, an endless and merciless torture, could slowly free her from the hatred consuming her.

“You should know that I am not the true culprit who destroyed your entire clan. At most, I was merely an accomplice who harmed you indirectly. Why refuse to let us go? Why insist on mutual destruction? If you do that, the real culprit will escape justice. Can you truly accept that?”

Feather Sorrow tried to suppress the skeletal woman’s hatred, hoping to find a suitable opportunity to escape. He knew perfectly well that neither he nor Night Dust currently possessed the strength to fight her. Their only choice was to preserve their lives and flee at the first chance. Besides, he did not want to personally push his former companion into an endless hell.

“Given the circumstances, I have no need to perish alongside you. After I deal with the two of you, I can search for that utterly evil culprit myself. Once I have taken my revenge, I can send you both to meet him on the road to the underworld. Would that not be better?”

A murderous glint flashed through the skeletal woman’s eyes. She was clearly growing impatient and wanted to finish the two of them as quickly as possible, lest further complications arise. Could this truly be the day Feather Sorrow and Night Dust met their deaths?

“What do you mean, deal with us first and then take revenge on the true enemy? In my eyes, that is nothing more than an excuse you have invented to comfort yourself! In my opinion, you must be incapable of defeating that person, with no hope of revenge, and so you have seized us insignificant pawns and tortured us to death in order to deceive yourself. You are nothing but a weakling—a pitiful weakling in everyone else’s eyes! All you can do is use despicable tricks against people who have no power to fight back. What kind of ability is that? If you have the courage, release us and fight us openly!”

Night Dust roared furiously. He could not die here, and even less could he accept dying so miserably and without a name. He was unwilling to accept it!

“You say all this simply because you want me to change my mind and release you. Give up that foolish hope. It is impossible! Not to mention that he once endangered my clan with his careless tongue, just consider what the two of you did moments ago. You forced me to cultivate a human form again, leaving me with this mutilated appearance. For that alone, you are both doomed to die!”

The skeletal beauty extended her hands, the white bones exposed, and spoke with vicious hatred. Nothing good ever came of encountering that brat. This time, she would certainly kill him and eliminate the danger once and for all.

Her gaze suddenly turned cold. Using her hands as twin blades, the skeletal woman thrust them simultaneously into the collarbones of Feather Sorrow and Night Dust. Blood immediately poured forth. In the blink of an eye, their clothes were dyed scarlet, and the air filled with the metallic scent of blood.

The skeletal woman burst into delighted laughter and abruptly withdrew her hands. The horrifying wounds appeared before her eyes, bringing her immense satisfaction. This was the fate of those who harmed her. This was the consequence of offending her. She had endured for so many years. It was time for her to unleash everything.

Suddenly, she stopped laughing and stared strangely at the two men. She raised both hands and drove them forcefully toward their hearts.

The two closed their eyes in despair, waiting for death. By then, they were powerless to struggle. The tree branches had locked their hands firmly in place, leaving them unable even to raise their weapons. They could only draw a helpless breath and console themselves with the thought that, years from now, they would surely return from the dead and reclaim everything.

But events changed in an instant. Just as the skeletal woman’s palms touched their clothes, several streaks of red light shot toward her. Startled, she hurriedly dodged aside, yet one of the red beams still struck her, slicing across her neck. A vivid red wound appeared upon her snow-white skin. The sight was beautiful beyond words, yet tinged with a faint sense of desolation.

The skeletal woman glared furiously toward the source of the red light. But when she saw who had arrived, her expression changed at once, and a trace of panic appeared in her eyes.

Feather Sorrow and Night Dust, having regained their senses, turned in the same direction. The grass rustled violently, and the tremendous disturbance even caused the earth to tremble. After the commotion, a savage beast burst from the forest. Its body was covered in strange and beautiful patterns, while its sharp fangs seemed capable of tearing anything apart.

Only after looking carefully did they realize that the beast was the Blood-Red Serpent Spirit, a legendary creature that had once shaken the world—and Feather Sorrow’s closest companion, Little Hidden, who was almost like a part of his soul.

“Little Hidden!”

Upon seeing that familiar figure, Feather Sorrow cried out involuntarily. Moments ago, that little serpent had even flashed through his mind. Truthfully, the only being in this world he could not bear to leave behind was Little Hidden. Feather Sorrow did not dare imagine how the ill-tempered serpent would survive without him, or how he could face the Immortal Realm alone if they came seeking revenge. Fortunately, he was still alive and had lived long enough to see him. That alone was enough.

“You rotten brat, you still remember me? I thought your wings had grown strong enough for you to abandon me and run off on your own! Just wait. Once I finish dealing with this beast, I will teach you a proper lesson!”

Little Hidden’s anger flared at the thought. Feather Sorrow truly had some nerve—daring to leave him behind and come to such a dangerous place alone, and with that wicked brat called Night Dust at that. It was completely unforgivable. He would show Feather Sorrow later exactly how he intended to punish him.

“You should worry about yourself first, little snake. If you fail to save us, you might end up dying alongside us,” Night Dust joked as he looked at the seemingly fierce and savage Blood-Red Serpent Spirit, who was in fact deeply loyal and affectionate.

He had long heard that the Blood-Red Serpent Spirit belonged to an ancient sacred-beast clan and appeared only once in a century. He had never expected to witness its true form today—and it was actually the companion of that fellow Feather Sorrow. This was truly interesting. It seemed he would feast his eyes before dying.

“You were the one who encouraged this rotten brat to come to such a dangerous place. I have not yet settled that score with you! Do not provoke me. If I lose control and lash out with my tail, you may end up separated from your head. And when you become a ghost, do not blame me!”

At a glance, this fellow called Night Dust was clearly no good. They had already fallen into such dire circumstances, yet he still had the leisure to make jokes. To Little Hidden, however, those jokes were nothing but irritating noise that made him angrier. Night Dust had best learn to keep quiet, or he could not blame Little Hidden for showing no mercy.

“Both of you, shut up! Do you think I am not here? So what if you came? You are merely adding another wandering soul to the dead!”

With that, the skeletal woman swung her palms and lunged toward the Blood-Red Serpent Spirit, who had revealed his true form.

Back when the Blood-Red Serpent Spirit had dwelled within Feather Sorrow’s body, the skeletal woman had already sensed his existence. At the time, however, she had been no match for him and had been forced to submit to his might, so she had not revealed the matter to anyone. She had never expected that he would one day break free of Feather Sorrow’s body and continue protecting him. The discovery had genuinely shocked her.

But she was no longer the little butterfly who could be slaughtered at will. She no longer needed to fear this little serpent. Regardless of anything else, she would avenge the grudge formed when Feather Sorrow exposed her whereabouts. Let alone a mere Blood-Red Serpent Spirit—even if an ancient god appeared, she would destroy everyone present and leave not a single survivor.

She was no longer the person she had once been. There was no need to consider those so-called bonds of the past. This time, she would settle her old and new grievances all at once.

The Blood-Red Serpent Spirit swiftly dodged aside and then addressed the skeletal woman.

“Little Butterfly, we are old acquaintances, so I will offer you one piece of advice: release them while you still can, or you will die without a burial place. You should know how powerful I am. I am not that rotten brat, and I have no deep affection for you. If I strike, it will mean that you will never see tomorrow’s sun. Think carefully. Do not leave yourself with regrets.”