Chapter 1352 - 1028: Dead End

With a thunderous "boom," the blazing fire instantly skyrocketed!

In that moment, Shang Ruyi’s eyes turned red. She hurriedly stepped forward twice, but before she approached, the flames began to frenzy like unleashed demons, nearly burning her.

With a torch in hand, yet powerless to prevent it, Wo Xue swiftly rolled on the ground, evading the flames that threatened to engulf her.

At the same time, she quickly jumped up, pulling Shang Ruyi back several steps.

Just barely managed to dodge it!

Meanwhile, Zuo Tian, the closest to the tung oil, failed to react in time. He could only gape as a wall of fire suddenly surged upwards with an explosive sound. He felt a heat on his face as his beard and brows were singed.

"Ah—"

He cried out in shock as the flames burnt his face, but quickly regained clarity, retreating several steps and desperately slapping his face. Fortunately, it was just a flicker of flame, which he extinguished by himself shortly after.

However, quite a bit of his facial hair was burnt, and his face blistered terribly, looking fearsome and grotesque.

But there was no time to worry about his injuries. After Wo Xue pulled Shang Ruyi away, she struggled to walk forward again, yet the Fiery Fire fiercely blocked the stone chamber’s entrance at once. The fire followed the path of the previously spilled tung oil, quickly burning inward. Instantly, those who had stepped on the oil barrels became engulfed, turning into human torches!

They scrambled, wildly swinging their arms as they ran, screaming in horrifying anguish: "Ah! Ah—"

Screams and cries filled the stone chamber!

The crowd around was startled by the flames and avoided the flaming individuals, stepping back in a chaotic rush.

But Lei Yu left all this behind.

As the fire ignited, standing at the forefront of the crowd, Lei Yu instinctively retreated, but just one step. In the next moment, she felt a tumultuous spinning sensation—a strong arm swiftly wrapped around her waist, lifting her up, and a large hand pressed her head into a sturdy chest emitting a familiar scent and warmth.

"Don’t be afraid!"

It was Ashina Zhuxie.

He held Lei Yu and, amidst people’s cries and chaos, unhesitatingly charged through the fire directly into the inferno!

At that moment, Lei Yu’s heart seemed to stop!

She felt the surrounding air turn to scorching heat, as flames became countless venomous snakes, climbing over her body, tearing at her clothes, gnawing at her skin. The excruciating pain surged like a tidal wave, yet disappeared just as quickly!

She felt herself heavily lowered onto the ground, securely.

"Lei Yu!"

Beside her rang Shang Ruyi’s urgent voice, followed by hands gently and carefully patting her back. At her calves, she took a deep breath, recalling herself to realize her feet were planted firmly on the ground. Her body wavered before she watched the man retreat a step, desperately patting at the flames on his own body.

Ashina Zhuxie’s clothes and hair were ablaze.

She was too.

Though Ashina Zhuxie’s actions were swift, he still couldn’t escape the relentless fire. Both of them got burned, but Lei Yu fared better. Shang Ruyi and Wo Xue rushed in to quickly extinguish the flames on her body, only a portion of her hair at the back was burnt, leaving traces of soot on her face, making her appear somewhat disheveled.

Yet disheveled, still surviving.

Ashina Zhuxie had more flames burning on him. He slapped at them frantically, yet the fire at his collar continued to blaze. Lei Yu abruptly moved forward and embraced him fiercely!

In their tight embrace, the flames went out!

Ashina Zhuxie stood there, stunned.

He seemed astonished, or perhaps still in shock. He instinctively reached out to touch Lei Yu’s back, but as soon as he touched her, she instantly stepped back, looking up at him with a complex expression before lowering her head.

Shang Ruyi beside them looked at them, equally perplexed.

She seemed to sense something.

But now was not the time.

The next moment, as she raised her head, the fire raged even fiercer. The fiery tongues almost licked the tomb passage’s ceiling, sealing the stone chamber completely. Occasionally, through the flickering flames, one could glimpse the chaos of people inside, coupled with rolling thick smoke that quickly filled the stone chamber, causing continuous coughing within.

"Lu Xiao! Lu Xiao!"

Shang Ruyi shouted, but her voice was quickly swallowed by the screams and cries inside.

At this moment, Wo Xue stepped forward, cupping her hands around her mouth, shouting into the chamber, "Li Miao! Gao Chen!"

Sometimes, during a fire, people perish in the blaze seemingly without struggle, but it’s not always because of resignation. Half the reason is the ferocity of the flames making escape nearly impossible, and the other half is the smoke that swells the brain, causing disorientation. Even if one wished to escape, uncertainty about what lies beyond the flames might lead to being overcome or burnt. However, at this moment, those inside the stone chamber understood that beyond the tomb passage lay a flame-free area. This was why Ashina Zhuxie decisively carried Lei Yu through.

Now, if only Li Miao and Gao Chen seize the moment and dash through the flames before they spread, they can survive!

In the midst of chaos, Li Miao and Gao Chen couldn’t hear them clearly, yet they elbowed each other in the face to minimize smoke inhalation, despite smoke pervading the stone chamber. The air felt scorchingly close to igniting their clothes. The two exchanged a glance but didn’t immediately charge through the flames. Instead, they turned toward Lu Xiao.

She was covering her nose and mouth, tears streaming as smoke turned her eyes red.

Yet she showed no intention of escaping, nor any sign of panic; standing there, she looked down at the figure collapsed on the floor.

In contrast to the panic around them, Wang Shaoqiu seemed to understand he had no escape route left, remaining motionless—of course, also due to being unable to move. Most likely overcome by toxins, he could no longer breathe, his complexion changing from pale to red, then gradually to bluish-gray. His lips were blackened, with dark blood trickling from his eye corners and mouth, trembling all over from suffocation, involuntarily twitching his limbs.

He was already at the end of the road.