Chapter 833: Safe in Mother’s Arms

Chapter 833: Chapter 833: Safe in Mother’s Arms

"Hahaha! Look who came out!" a raspy, wicked voice suddenly cackled right in front of her.

Yue Yue’s little face went completely blank. Her heart stopped beating.

Standing right at the ruined entrance was the same creepy old man who had kidnapped her, alongside his wicked companions!

Their clothes were torn from the quake, but their faces were twisted into wild, amused, and insane expressions. They held their dark, smoking crutches tightly, staring at the glowing crystal wrapped in her tail.

"You really succeeded!" the old man laughed madly, his eyes yellow with greed. "You actually brought out the Heart of the Mountain! Good girl! Hand it over to this old man!"

No! Yue Yue’s mind screamed in pure terror. No! No! No!

The little winged spirit snake had sacrificed his very life for her! He had given up his existence so she could escape and see her family again!

I would rather die than give his heart to these evil people!

Without a second thought, Yue Yue turned right around and slithered back into the dark, collapsing cave!

"You little brat! Where do you think you’re going?!" the old man roared, his sweet act instantly dropping.

He lunged forward like a striking viper, his long, withered hand shooting out and grabbing Yue Yue’s tail!

"Let go of me!" Yue Yue hissed frantically. She turned around and bit down hard on his thick hand with her tiny fangs!

"AGH! You filthy snake!" the old man screamed in pain.

He furiously slammed Yue Yue’s small body against the stone wall!

THUD!

"Ah!" Yue Yue let out an agonising cry. Pain exploded through her tiny ribs, and fresh blood dripped from her green scales.

The other old men rushed inside the collapsing tunnel, their faces filled with pure madness as they surrounded her. "Give it here! Hand over the core!"

"Never!" Yue Yue cried out, curling herself tightly around the glowing green crystal, protecting it with her very life.

"Die then, you useless cub!" the old man snarled, raising his wooden crutch to strike her head.

But before his crutch could fall...

BOOOM!

The main cavern ceiling completely caved in!

A gigantic, towering boulder smashed down straight through the mountain roof!

"NO!" the old men screamed in utter horror as the massive shadow engulfed them.

CRASH!

The giant rock slammed down with unimaginable force. The old men were instantly crushed and buried under tonnes of falling mountain debris.

Yue Yue felt a crushing weight slam against her small body, trapping her under the rubble. Cold darkness instantly flooded her vision. She couldn’t move. She couldn’t breathe. Pain throbbed through every single inch of her tiny frame.

As the heavy stone buried her deep underground, Yue Yue felt a wave of hopeless despair wash over her soul.

Spirit Grandpa... I’m sorry... she wept silently in the dark, her consciousness fading fast. Mother... Father... Brother... I’m sorry... Yue Yue couldn’t come home...

She closed her gemstone blue eyes, ready to embrace the cold touch of death.

Outside, Su Qinglan saw the entire mountain peak collapse into a massive pile of rubble.

"YUE YUE!" Su Qinglan shrieked, her heart tearing completely apart as she fell to her knees, screaming in pure agony.

Xuan Long and An Mo roared in complete despair, rushing wildly towards the fallen ruins.

Su Qinglan fell to her knees in the dirt, her chest heaving as she let out a heartbroken, desperate scream.

Xuan Long and An Mo roared in total agony, their minds completely shattered as they prepared to claw through tonnes of solid rock with their bare hands to dig out their daughter.

The despair in the air was suffocating.

DING!

Suddenly, a crisp, mechanical chime rang directly inside Su Qinglan’s mind, cutting through her grief.

[System Notification: Emergency Protective Protocol Activated.]

[Target: Seventh Cub, Yue Yue.]

[Status: Severe life-threatening damage detected. Teleportation successful. The cub has been safely returned to the host.]

Before Su Qinglan could even react to the formal system message, a blinding flash of light erupted right in front of her chest!

The light faded in a split second.

Soft thud.

A tiny, frail weight settled directly into Su Qinglan’s outstretched hands.

Xuan Long and An Mo froze dead in their tracks, their bloodshot eyes widening in absolute shock. They stared at Su Qinglan’s hands, completely speechless.

Lying in Su Qinglan’s palms was Yue Yue. She was not unconscious, but her small scales were cracked and stained with fresh blood. Her blue eyes were dizzy and unfocused, her little body trembling violently from pain and exhaustion.

But despite her terrible injuries, her tiny tail was still coiled tightly around a glowing, plum-sized green crystal.

As soon as her dizzy eyes caught sight of Su Qinglan’s tear-streaked face and Xuan Long’s bloodstained form, Yue Yue’s little face crumpled.

She immediately burst into loud, heartbroken tears. "Waaaaah! Mother! Father!"

"Yue Yue!" Su Qinglan sobbed, pulling the tiny, bleeding snake gently against her chest, kissing her wounded head over and over. "My baby! You’re back... you’re safe!"

Xuan Long dropped to his knees besides them, his massive hands trembling as he gently cradled her tiny body. "Yue Yue... Father is here. Father is right here."

Yue Yue choked on a heavy hiccup, her small tongue flicking out weakly. She fought with every ounce of her remaining willpower to stay awake, her broken words tumbling out in a raspy, desperate rush.

"F-Father..." she whimpered, her tiny voice shaking. "G-Grandpa Teng... Grandpa Teng saved me..."

Xuan Long was completely stunned. His crimson eyes blinked, his mind struggling to understand. "Who? Who saved you, Yue Yue?"

"Can you... can you find his son?" Yue Yue begged, her little body shuddering with another weak hiccup. "Father... please..."

Xuan Long nodded frantically, trying to soothe her. "I will find him. I will find him, Yue Yue. Just calm down, my little scale. What are you talking about? Rest now..."

"N-No!" Yue Yue forced her heavy eyelids open, refusing to fall asleep until she finished her promise. She knew if she didn’t say it now, she might forget.

She lifted her small head, looking straight into Xuan Long’s eyes with absolute, desperate earnestness.

"Father... find his son..." she whispered, her voice fading fast as darkness edged her vision. "He said... his name... his name is Teng Yunxiao. It was... Grandpa Teng Yunxiao who saved me..."

The moment those two words... Teng Yunxiao left her lips; the world seemed to stop.

Xuan Long froze completely. The colour drained instantly from his face, leaving him as pale as a corpse. His hands shook so violently that he nearly dropped her.

Even An Mo, who was kneeling besides them, stiffened in absolute, utter shock. His eyes widened as he stared at the little cub in disbelief.

Before Xuan Long could even utter a single breath, Yue Yue’s small head fell limp against his palm. Her eyes slipped shut, and she completely passed out into his arms, her duty fulfilled.

Xuan Long felt as if the entire sky had crashed down upon his head.

Teng Yunxiao...

Holding his cold, unconscious daughter and the small, beating heart crystal in his shaking hands, Xuan Long stared at the ruined mountain peak in total, horror-stricken silence.