Outside the cave, the faint light of the blood moon shone through the jagged cracks in the rocks at the entrance, casting strange mottled shadows on the ground, just like some mysterious totem hiding an ancient secret. Duan Litang stood straight, like a resolute god of war, his sharp eyes vigilantly scanning the surroundings like a night owl, not missing any slight movement. Even the sound of a falling leaf could make his nerves tense like a string. His right hand firmly grasped the hilt of the blood sword, the complex patterns on the hilt deeply embedded in the palm of his hand, but the pain it brought was far less than the worries surging like a tide in his heart.
Ye Li lay quietly in the cave, with hay simply laid out beneath her. Her pale face looked even more fragile in the dim light. Although her wounds had been bandaged hastily, the blood still stubbornly soaked the white gauze red, which was dazzling. She raised her head with difficulty and looked at the tall figure at the entrance of the cave. Her voice was weak but with a hint of concern: "Master Duan, don't worry for now. They won't be able to catch up for a while." Duan Litang did not move, and his voice was low and firm: "Don't take it lightly. The Dark Palace has always been treacherous and hard to guard against. We must be on guard at all times."
At this moment, a dull roar came from afar, like thunder rolling in from the horizon, but mixed with a creepy and strange rhythm. The earth trembled slightly, and fine rock debris fell from the top of the cave. Duan Litang's face suddenly changed, and he rushed to the cave entrance and looked into the distance. He saw a thick black smoke rising from the direction of Yongye Port. The smoke was faintly flashing with a strange dark red light, just like the hideous eyes of a demon, greedily peeping at everything in the darkness. Ye Li also forced himself to sit up with his weak body, his eyes full of worry: "Not good, I'm afraid that the Dark Palace has stirred up a storm in Yongye Port again."
Duan Litang's eyes flashed, he clenched the blood sword in his hand, and said without hesitation: "I have to go back. Su Xueli, Ling Xianer and Tang Xiaotang are still in the city. I can't let them fall into danger." Ye Li struggled to get up, trying to stop him: "It's too dangerous! Going back now is undoubtedly a sheep walking into a tiger's mouth!" Duan Litang looked back at her, his eyes revealing unquestionable determination: "I can't abandon them. Girl, you rest here and recuperate, and wait for me to return." After speaking, his figure flashed, turning into a sharp blood-red stream of light, galloping towards the direction of Yongye Port, leaving only Ye Li's worried eyes in the cave.
As soon as he stepped into Yongye Port, the scene in front of him made Duan Litang gasp. The once bustling and lively streets have now turned into ruins and are in a mess. The stalls are overturned on the ground, and broken magic weapons and magic plants are scattered everywhere, making a mess. On the street, the demons are panicking and running around, with shrill screams and desperate shouts echoing. In the middle of the street, a group of people in dark purple robes are wreaking havoc. The huge black bat pattern embroidered on the robes is even more gloomy and terrifying under the reflection of the blood moon. That is the symbol of the Dark Palace. They are waving weapons that emit dim light in their hands. Wherever they pass, houses collapse, and the strong demonic energy overflows like a surging tide.
Duan Litang was eagerly searching for his companions in the chaotic crowd. Suddenly, a familiar cry came into his ears: "Litang! Over here!" He looked in the direction of the voice and saw Su Xueli holding the Lingxian Sword, fighting fiercely with several members of the Dark Palace. Her hair was messy and her clothes were stained with blood, but her eyes still showed the firmness and courage of the past. Duan Litang was delighted and instantly activated the power of the blood contract. Like a mad lion ready to go, he rushed towards Su Xueli. As the blood sword was swung, blood flashed, and the members of the Dark Palace dodged in fear. He fought his way out of the enemy's encirclement.
"Xue Li, are you okay?" Duan Litang quickly rushed to Su Xue Li's side and asked with concern. Su Xue Li panted slightly and shook her head: "I'm fine. Ling Xian'er and Tang Xiaotang are over there, we have to go support them!" Duan Litang looked in the direction of her finger and saw Ling Xian'er casting ice spells to build crystal clear ice walls on the street, trying to block the attack of the Dark Palace members. Tang Xiaotang controlled the spirit butterfly to weave gorgeous light curtains in the air to harass the enemy. However, the Dark Palace members were numerous and the offensive was overwhelming. They gradually became powerless and fell into a dilemma.
Duan Litang and Su Xueli quickly joined the battle. Duan Litang used all his strength to activate the power of the blood covenant, and the blood sword shone brightly. Every time he swung the sword, it brought out a bloody storm, and the momentum was terrifying. Su Xueli cooperated closely, and the sword energy crisscrossed, and she fought a desperate battle with the members of the Dark Hall. With their support, Ling Xian'er and Tang Xiaotang's pressure was reduced. The four of them formed a battle formation back to back, like an indestructible fortress, and jointly resisted the enemy's attack.
Just as the battle was getting more intense, a black shadow swooped down from the sky like a ghost and rushed straight to Duan Litang. Duan Litang reacted quickly and raised his sword to block it. There was a loud "bang" like the sound of a huge bell. The powerful impact made his arm numb and his palm hurt. He looked closely and saw that the man was tall and burly, with a cold face, his eyes flashing with a strange purple light, and his body exuded a chilling and gloomy aura.
"Blood Contract Host, today is your death!" The man's voice was cold, as if it came from the Netherworld, full of strong murderous intent. Duan Litang snorted coldly, not showing any weakness: "You alone are far from enough!" After saying that, he used all his strength, the power of the blood contract surged wildly, and the light of the blood sword became more and more dazzling, like a blazing blood sun. The two of them fought in a group in an instant, the sword light flashed, the devilish energy was everywhere, and the air around them seemed to be torn by a pair of invisible giant hands, making a harsh whistling sound.
During the fierce battle, Duan Litang was shocked to find that this man was extremely powerful, and his attack was fierce and tricky, and every time he attacked, he went straight to the vital point. What was even more shocking was that the opponent seemed to know the power of the blood covenant very well, and could always cleverly avoid his attacks and find opportunities to counterattack. Duan Litang was secretly shocked and realized that this man was definitely not an ordinary member of the Dark Palace, and was very likely a core figure in the Dark Palace.
Just as Duan Litang was fighting with the man, a powerful and secret force suddenly attacked from behind. He was shocked and wanted to dodge but it was too late. At the critical moment, a black figure rushed over like lightning and pushed him away. Duan Litang looked closely and found it was Ye Li. Her wound was still bleeding and her face was getting paler, but her eyes were firm and resolute.
"Miss Yeli, why are you here? Your injury." Duan Litang asked anxiously. Yeli forced a smile: "I can't watch you get into danger." Before she finished speaking, the long whip in her hand was like a black dragon, and she lashed at the member of the Dark Hall who attacked Duan Litang. The long whip drew a beautiful and sharp arc in the air, and with a "snap", it directly knocked the opponent several feet away.
The joining of Ye Li slightly improved the situation. However, the offensive of the Dark Palace was still fierce. They seemed to be completely disregarding casualties and only wanted to kill Duan Litang and others. Duan Litang knew that it was not a good idea to continue to stalemate like this, and he had to find a way to break through as soon as possible. While fighting hard, he paid attention to the surrounding environment. Suddenly, he found a tall tower standing at the end of the street. The top of the tower was flashing with strange light, which vaguely looked like a teleportation array.
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"Everyone follow me!" Duan Litang shouted loudly, "Let's go to that tower, maybe we can find a way to escape!" Su Xueli, Ling Xian'er and Tang Xiaotang followed him immediately. Under Ye Li's cover, the four of them made a full-scale breakout in the direction of the tower. Seeing this, the members of the Dark Palace would not let them go easily, and they chased after them like hungry wolves. A thrilling chase battle unfolded fiercely on the streets of Yongye Port.
Tang Xiaotang's spirit butterfly suddenly chirped sharply and her face changed drastically: "Be careful! The Dark Palace's demonic beasts are coming!" As soon as she finished speaking, three demonic beasts with tiger-like bodies but bat wings rushed out from the shadows. Their fur glowed with a strange blue luster, and the black flames spewed out of their mouths were like the curse of the devil. Wherever they went, the ground was instantly corroded into deep black holes, and the pungent smell of burning spread. Ling Xian'er reacted quickly and instantly erected a circle of thick ice shields around everyone. The ice shield collided violently with the black flames, making a "sizzling" sound, and white mist quickly rose and spread, blurring everyone's vision.
Duan Litang wielded the blood sword and slashed at a demon beast with all his strength. However, as soon as the blood sword touched the black fog surrounding the demon beast, it seemed to fall into a thick quagmire and its speed dropped sharply. He was shocked to realize that the black fog surrounding the demon beast could actually weaken its spiritual power. Seeing this, Su Xueli's immortal energy on the Lingxian Sword surged, turning into a dazzling sword light, instantly splitting the black fog, and working closely with Duan Litang to successfully kill a demon beast. At the same time, Ye Li's long whip turned into countless black phantoms, tightly wrapping around the wings of another demon beast. Tang Xiaotang took the opportunity to command the spirit butterfly to launch an attack. The flashing fluorescent powder on the wings of the spirit butterfly fell on the demon beast, instantly corroding a piece of hideous wounds, and the demon beast let out a painful roar.
At this moment, the mysterious man in the Dark Palace suddenly formed seals with his hands and muttered something. In an instant, countless dark red chains broke out of the ground like dormant poisonous snakes from the buildings on both sides of the street and quickly wrapped around everyone. Ling Xian'er hurriedly cast an ice spell to try to freeze the chains. However, the high temperature emitted from the chains instantly melted the ice layer and turned it into a pool of water. Duan Litang used the power of the blood contract to the extreme, and the blood sword glowed violently, like an indestructible blade, cutting off the chains that approached one by one. But the chains continued to pour out, gradually interweaving into a huge and gloomy cage, trapping everyone inside.
"We must not be trapped!" Duan Litang roared, and the power of the blood contract burst out. A dazzling blood-colored light column shot straight into the sky, instantly smashing the chains above their heads. Everyone took the opportunity to continue to break out in the direction of the tower. However, before they ran far, the support troops of the Dark Palace arrived like a tide. These new members of the Dark Palace held a strange-shaped horn in their hands. They blew the horn hard, and the sharp and piercing sound suddenly resounded around. Everyone felt a splitting headache, and the circulation of spiritual power became sluggish and unsmooth, as if they were imprisoned by an invisible force.
Seeing this, Ye Li quickly took out a small and exquisite black bell from his bosom and shook it gently. The bell made a clear and pleasant sound, which collided and intertwined with the sound of the horn, forming a strange and powerful sound wave. Wherever the sound wave reached, the members of the Dark Palace showed pain on their faces, covered their ears, and fell to the ground struggling. But this move also attracted the attention of more Dark Palace masters. An old man in a golden robe walked slowly with steady steps. With every step he took, the ground trembled slightly, and the surrounding demonic energy surged wildly, condensing into ferocious ghost faces with bared fangs and claws. The scene was extremely terrifying.
"I didn't expect that there would be such an interesting person beside the blood covenant host." The old man smiled sinisterly, and with a wave of his hand, those ghost faces pounced on everyone like hungry ghosts. Tang Xiaotang's spirit butterfly hurried forward to resist, but was instantly swallowed by the ghost faces and disappeared without a trace. Seeing this, Ling Xian'er released her ice spell with all her strength, freezing a large number of ghost faces. However, the old man just waved his hand lightly, and the ice layer shattered with a bang, turning into countless ice chips that flew everywhere. Duan Litang knew that he had to deal with this old man first, otherwise everyone would be in danger today. He quickly cooperated with Su Xueli tacitly, perfectly integrating the power of the blood covenant with the fairy spirit, and performed a powerful combined attack. A huge light blade wrapped in the momentum of destroying the world swiftly slashed towards the old man.
The old man looked calm, and quickly formed seals with his hands. A huge black shield instantly appeared in front of him. The light blade and the shield collided violently, bursting out dazzling light and extremely powerful air waves. The air wave was like a raging tsunami, blowing everyone away. Duan Litang quickly adjusted his body shape in the air, and after landing steadily, he rushed towards the old man again without hesitation. Just as he was about to approach the old man, the old man flashed and disappeared in an instant. The next second, a dry palm appeared behind him and slapped his back fiercely.
Ye Li was quick-witted and quick-handed. His long whip instantly wrapped around the old man's arm like a black lightning and pulled hard. The old man was slightly startled, and looked at Ye Li with a look of confusion and surprise: "You actually." Before he finished speaking, Su Xueli's Lingxian Sword had already stabbed at him like a cold light, and the old man had to let go and dodge. Duan Litang took the opportunity to launch another attack, and the blood sword pierced the old man's vitals with an unstoppable and fierce momentum.
Under the combined siege of the crowd, the old man gradually became unable to hold on, and several wounds appeared on his body. But he suddenly laughed up to the sky, his laughter full of madness and pride: "Do you think you can escape like this? The teleportation array of Yongye Port has long been controlled by my Dark Palace!" As soon as the voice fell, a violent vibration came from the direction of the tower. The teleportation array that was originally flashing with strange light suddenly turned blood red, and an evil and powerful force surged out from it.
Duan Litang and the others felt depressed. They were very close to the tower, but the change in the teleportation array put them in a dilemma. If they continued to move forward, they would most likely step into the trap carefully set by the Dark Palace; if they retreated, they would be surrounded by the members of the Dark Palace and would be unable to escape. At this critical moment, Ye Li suddenly said, "I know there is another secret teleportation point that may help us escape, but you need to trust me." Duan Litang looked at Ye Li's determined eyes and nodded without hesitation, "We trust you!"
So, under the leadership of Ye Li, they made a difficult breakout in another direction. The members of the Dark Palace would not let them go easily, and they chased them all the way, like a maggot on their tarsal bones. On the way, they encountered various traps set by the Dark Palace, including sharp spikes that suddenly broke out of the ground, holes that sprayed poisonous fog, and strange formations that could make people fall into hallucinations and lose their minds. But with the concerted efforts and mutual cooperation of everyone, they resolved them one by one.
When they finally arrived at the secret teleportation point that Ye Li mentioned, what came into view was a dilapidated hut, filled with an old and decayed atmosphere, as if it had been sealed for countless years. Ye Li walked straight to the corner of the wall and gently moved a seemingly ordinary brick, revealing an ancient magic circle hidden in the wall. She danced her hands quickly on the magic circle, muttering to herself, chanting ancient and mysterious spells. The magic circle gradually lit up with a faint light, flickering, as if it could go out at any time.
"This teleportation array has been in disrepair for a long time. I'm afraid it can only be used once." Ye Li said hurriedly, "Everyone hurry up!" Duan Litang made a prompt decision and let Su Xueli, Ling Xian'er and Tang Xiaotang enter the array first. He and Ye Li stayed outside, ready to prevent the members of the Dark Palace from chasing them. Soon, the figures of the members of the Dark Palace appeared in the field of vision. Duan Litang held the blood sword tightly, and the sword body trembled slightly, as if he was eager to drink the enemy's blood. He took a deep breath, stared firmly ahead, and prepared to face this final life-and-death battle.
