Chapter 658 545: Racing Against Time, Peng Sword Immortal's Another Parting with Yueqiu

"Senior Sister, please help me take care of them. They can be a handful, so I'll have to trouble you."

He paused, his voice growing deep and firm. "I will go and get answers from that man for you myself!"

Lu Ruoxi met his gaze, nodded slowly, and said softly,

"Junior Brother Pei… you must come back safely."

Just as Pei Yuhang was about to turn and leave, a cool hand suddenly reached out from behind and gently tugged on the corner of his robes.

He turned to see Qing Yueqiu's magnificent, crimson eyes.

The silver-haired girl's red eyes were fixed on him, unblinking, holding a hint of imperceptible pleading.

"Master, I'm no worse than Sister Lin or Shang Miaoyan. Can't you really let me go with you?"

Qing Yueqiu's voice was very soft, yet it tickled Pei Yuhang's heart like a feather.

Pei Yuhang fell silent for a moment, a storm of emotions churning in his eyes.

He lowered his head and drew close to Qing Yueqiu's ear, whispering in a voice only they could hear, his warm breath brushing against her earlobe:

"Yueqiu… not letting you go is because of my selfishness."

"Back then, outside the Abyssal Sea Palace, before I sent Liyuan out, I thought about sending you out first."

His voice carried an unconcealable tenderness and a trace of guilt.

"Yueqiu, you are the person I cherish most. I have wronged you in many ways in the past… Please forgive me. Forgive this selfish desire of mine to always protect you."

Qing Yueqiu's body trembled slightly, as if she understood the feelings Pei Yuhang had hidden so deeply.

She was quiet for a moment, the light in her crimson eyes shifting. Finally, she slowly released the corner of his robes she was clutching, nodded gently, and said no more.

She just silently watched him turn and walk away.

As he passed the cave entrance, Pei Yuhang paused and spoke to the darkness beside him:

"Xiaoxuan…"

"Alright, alright."

Fan Xuan cut him off, her tone deliberately lighthearted, as if to dispel the invisible weight in the air.

"The Holy Daughter is waiting for you outside. When did you become such a nag, Pei Yuhang? Just leave this place to me."

"Mm."

Pei Yuhang hesitated no longer and strode out of the cave.

The daylight from outside flooded in, sharply outlining his tall, straight figure.

He squinted slightly, and once his eyes adjusted to the light, he walked straight toward Shang Miaoyan and Lin Qianyan, who were waiting for him.

"Qianqian, take us to Jin'Er."

...

Meanwhile, the surging blood mist had almost completely engulfed the entire outer maze.

Countless Cultivators, pushed to a dead end, chose to force their way into the Inner Palace.

A few among them—those with powerful Cultivation and exceptionally fast Body Techniques—did manage to succeed. They seized a fleeting moment when Blood River True Monarch and the others were distracted and, by a stroke of luck, slipped into the Inner Palace like phantoms.

However, the vast majority of Cultivators failed to create such a miracle.

Their charge, in the face of the three True Monarchs' absolute power, was as fragile as glass striking stone.

The light of their Magic flashed for but a moment before being crushed by the three True Monarchs' even more terrifying Suppression. In an instant, their flesh-and-blood bodies were ground to dust, staining the area outside the Inner Palace a shocking, scarlet Hell.

Blood River True Monarch indifferently raised a hand, casually enveloping several Cultivators who were attempting to form a battle formation and charge.

Their shrill pleas for mercy stopped abruptly. Like ice and snow under a blazing sun, the cultivators rapidly melted and evaporated, leaving behind only a few wisps of pure blood essence for him to absorb and refine into his palm.

He slowly closed the bottomless, blood-red eye between his brows. His powerful and sinister Perception spread out like a spider's web, meticulously sweeping over every inch of space around the Inner Palace's exterior.

A moment later, his brow suddenly furrowed, forming three deep vertical lines. For the first time, the expression on his face was not one of slaughter, but of confusion.

It was the displeasure of something slipping beyond his control.

"There is still no trace of Pei Yuhang and the others."

He sent this message to Profound Evil True Monarch and the others.

A moment later, Profound Evil True Monarch's voice returned.

"How is that possible... The blood mist has now consumed almost the entire outer maze. This mist is supremely baleful and deadly; it corrodes all things, and a single touch means death."

"Even we wouldn't dare to touch it if our Cultivation wasn't being suppressed by the Abyssal Sea Palace."

"Could it be that the White-clothed Sword Immortal truly has a treasure capable of resisting the blood mist? After all, he is Yuan Tianming's disciple. It wouldn't be surprising if he had an ace up his sleeve."

Hearing this, Blood River True Monarch looked at the endlessly churning blood mist in the distance, the veins on his clenched fists bulging.

If Profound Evil True Monarch was right, and Pei Yuhang was protected by a treasure from Yuan Tianming, then he would have no way to force his way through the blood mist to avenge his grandson.

How… could he possibly accept that?!

"Old fiend Xuan Sha, old fiend Wan Long, I'll entrust the gateway to the Inner Palace to you for now."

"I'm gathering my men to search the Inner Palace Tower again. I won't be able to eat or sleep in peace until I find Pei Yuhang!"

With that, Blood River True Monarch strode back toward the Inner Palace Tower, his henchmen Cultivators following close behind.

Among them, the pupils of one Cultivator shimmered with magenta, heart-shaped Runes. He secretly activated a Secret Technique to send a voice transmission to his "master."

...

「Inside the Inner Palace.」

Shang Miaoyan, who was flying on a treasured lotus platform, suddenly frowned.

She hurried over to Pei Yuhang and quietly relayed the intelligence she had just received from a spy enslaved by her Charm Technique.

'Blood River True Monarch has returned to the Inner Palace with his men? And for some reason, his power is barely suppressed by the Abyssal Sea Palace, leaving him with a Cultivation close to the Nascent Soul realm…'

Upon hearing the intelligence, Pei Yuhang immediately sensed the danger.

An enemy who could wield power close to the Nascent Soul realm… if they were to face him, the odds of victory would be slim!

"We have to speed up. Qianqian, what floor is Jin'Er on right now?"

"She's on the ninetieth floor… We're currently on the thirtieth. It'll probably take a very long time to fly there."

"But I still have a good amount of Jade Pool Spiritual Milk. If we use the Spiritual Milk to replenish our Spiritual Qi and travel at full speed, we should be able to shorten the time considerably."

Hearing this, Pei Yuhang immediately stopped.

With a thought, the Silent Sword beneath his feet let out a low hum. The blade flared with Spiritual Light and instantly widened until it was large enough to steadily hold all three of them.

Pei Yuhang then opened his arms, his gaze sweeping over Shang Miaoyan and Lin Qianyan.

"Qianqian, and… Shang Miaoyan. Come here, stand by my side. I'll carry you with my Sword Control. My speed is the fastest."

Hearing that she was to be held by Pei Yuhang, one on each side, along with her "arch-rival" Lin Qianyan,

A flicker of unnatural hesitation crossed Shang Miaoyan's beautiful face. Her White Jade-like earlobes flushed a faint pink. The whole situation felt incredibly strange and awkward.

But then she glanced at Lin Qianyan. With only a slight blush on her pretty face, Lin Qianyan showed no hesitation at all. She walked forward decisively, nestled meekly into Pei Yuhang's firm embrace, and even gently pressed her cheek against his chest.

Shang Miaoyan's eyes narrowed, and her minor reservations were immediately overwhelmed by a stronger sense of urgency.

She hesitated no longer. Moving forward, she extended a slender, jade-like arm and gently wrapped it around Pei Yuhang's waist from the other side.

Now, with a soft, fragrant beauty in each arm—two Holy Maiden Fairies of vastly different styles yet equal, world-toppling beauty pressed against his left and right—Pei Yuhang's heart was free of distracting thoughts, his clear eyes filled only with intense focus.

He took a deep breath, wrapped his arms powerfully around the two Saintesses' slender, fragrant waists, and grunted in a low voice:

"Hold on tight. I'm moving!"

Before his voice had even faded, the Silent Sword let out a sharp sound that tore through the air.

The silver-white sword light flared, like a bolt of lightning freed from its shackles. It carried the three of them, transforming into a streak of light too fast for the naked eye to follow, and shot toward the deeper parts of the palace, vanishing at the end of the corridor in an instant.

...

Meanwhile, under Blood River True Monarch's lead, a group of his men were also rapidly searching the Inner Palace.

Blood River True Monarch turned back to his men and said, "Your speed is too slow. You're dragging me down."

"I will now go directly to the thirtieth floor and above to search. You are responsible for the floors below the thirtieth."

"Yes, Lord True Monarch!"

Seeing Blood River True Monarch transform into a streak of Escape Light and fly away, the Cultivator in the crowd with the heart-shaped Runes in his eyes began to secretly send a signal to his "master."

But at that very moment, a hand landed on his shoulder, freezing him in place, unable to move.

"Little friend, who are you tipping off?"