NOVEL NEXT Chapter 82: Laudable [Interlude]
~~~
"True strength lies not in power, but in the ability to endure trials of the heart.
"All of Earth and Heaven may move to confront you, but none will test your resolve as much as yourself. Only you can decide if you will rise before Tribulation.
"Face your fears. Do not run from yourself. Your Dao is the means you shall use to break fate's shackles."
— Unknown source
There were three things the Young Master did as he saw the bulk of the God Beast bear down upon them.
First, Feng prepared himself to die, because this was an opponent he had no chance of winning against.
Second, he resolved to live against impossible odds anyway, because spitting in the face of fate was what a cultivator did.
And third, most important above all…
Feng swore to refuse any outcome that would not see Yunjin free.
[Fiery Comet Step]
The Young Master moved faster than he ever had in life. Scooping the Young Miss up in a bridal carry, he activated the full strength of the Divine Art. Such was the violent surge of power that the meridians and blood vessels around his legs immediately ruptured from the sudden explosion of qi and fire. If any of his Disciples saw his speed, they would have been left stupefied — a starburst acceleration born from sacrificial desperation.
It was not enough.
The Avatar of the Botulvorn Beast did not so much as move as it simply appeared in his path, as if the concept of inertia or distance meant nothing to it. One moment, Feng had a clear passage to the bulbous tree line of the swamp. The next, a hundred-ton God-Leech was blocking his way.
Feng could not halt his momentum. Every outcome told him he was going to slam against the bulk of that slimy giant and break his body upon it. Yunjin would not survive the impact.
Gritting his teeth — with his arm still wrapped tight around the helpless Young Miss — the Young Master pushed his protesting legs to the limit and leapt.
[Fiery Comet Step]
Rather than accelerating forward, this time, the technique propelled Feng upwards. The Divine Art was not meant for jumping or gaining vertical heights; attempting to do so usually severely wounded the legs and feet, for the Art required solid ground to provide acceleration, and open air was a poor substitute.
Yet, Feng saw no other choice. Faced with the choice of certain death and near-certain death, he picked the latter.
His legs were pulverised to bloody mush the moment he activated the Divine Art once more as he leapt. Were he at a higher cultivation level, he could circumvent this wound with rapid regeneration, as his venerable seniors were able to do.
For the moment, he was too weak to heal that quickly, but his gamble still paid off.
The pair soared high above the giant maw of the creature. For a single heartbeat, the wind blew clean air, and Feng could see the end of the Blighted Bog not even a kilometre away. If he could just get to the edge, there was a chance the Dead Divine would not be able to follow him there. Feng prepared himself for one final push, aiming to propel him and the Young Miss to safety in a single technique…
"A laudable effort… But it is not enough."
The guttural groan of the Botulvorn Beast reached his ear. Before he could react, an enormous tentacle — reaching up to impossible lengths — came careening for his side. Feng twisted his body, shielding Yunjin with his back.
The great wave of rotting flesh slammed into him, and the Young Master felt his spine snap.
The pair fell to the earth. It was only due to the sheer thickness of the mud that they survived their fall. The gooey mire softened their accelerated descent. Feng used his body to shield the fragile Young Miss as best he could, but the impact was still horrifying to behold.
They skidded for several dozen metres, ending only when they smashed into the soft bark of a diseased tree. Maggots and brown nectar rained down on them as the entire shrivelled carcass shook violently.
Find this and other great novels on the author's preferred platform. Support original creators!
Feng groaned, his head spinning. He cracked open an eye and sighed with relief when he still felt Yunjin breathing.
"Can you move?" he croaked.
The Young Miss whimpered. Blood leaked from her ears.
"Yunjin!" Feng hissed frantically. The trees ahead of them began to flatten as something massive approached them. The Leech Avatar was coming. "You need to move!"
The Young Miss groggily opened her eyes. She coughed miserably, more blood staining the mud. "You idiot… Why? Why did you refuse?!"
"You can curse at me later once we escape!" The Young Master tried to move, but his body was unresponsive. He could not even wiggle his toes. "You need to get out of here now! Before…"
The words of the Young Master trailed off as he looked down.
Yunjin's right leg was gone.
Perhaps it was the bludgeoning strike of the Plague Leech. Or perhaps the limb came off when they crashed across the Bog. Either way, Yunjin's right leg was reduced to a ruined stump that ended around her thigh, leaking vitae and maggots.
Forget about running. She was going to die like this soon due to blood loss.
"Idiot…" She was crying now. Her hands clenched into fists and thumped feebly against his chest. "Why?! You can't win! And now you are going to die…"
"I promised I would get you out," he whispered hollowly. He racked his brain, trying to think of a solution. "We were going to see the world together. Heal you from your poison. I…"
"I was a dead woman anyway!" she snarled, her remaining eye red with tears and blood. "Idiot! Fucking Fool! What use is there in throwing your life away for trash like me?! Where is the sense in that?! Any sane human being would have run! Any true cultivator would have murdered me a thousand times over to get the trade you were offered!"
"But then, you would die," he mumbled, watching as the enormous God Beast approached. "And I… I don't want that."
"I would have been fine with that…" she sobbed, all hope leaving her as she slumped against him. "If my death could have given you something useful… If it at least meant something… And you ruined it! I… I don't… want you to die, either…"
The shadow of the Plague Leech approached, its horrendous bulk grinding all beneath its weight.
"You shouldn't die here," Yunjin cried, hands feebly grasping his. "Not like this. Not in this place. And not for me! Someone like you… destined for so much more…"
Death came for them. A towering behemoth of rot and decay. Though it held only a sliver of its original divinity, the Plague Leech that roiled before them was no mere Spirit Beast. Not any more.
"Surrender her to me. Her soul… is mine to cherish. Not yours…"
"Let it have me," Yunjin begged Feng. "I owe it a debt. You might be safe."
"Not a chance," he snapped.
"There is nowhere left to go. We… are out of time." Her words felt painful to hear. There was a plea there. She wanted him to survive — that much was true.
But her fingers clenched tight to his hands still, unwilling to release his warmth.
She still wanted to live. And so Feng could not leave her.
The tentacles of the Plague Leech came closer. The surrounding foliage rotted to ever greater degrees. Yunjin's skin shrivelled and peeled. Her whimpers grew fervent, her tears reduced to viscous pus as the malignant energies of her God came close. Feng could do nothing but hug her closer.
This sensation… This was new. This mingling of hopelessness and grief. And him, bearing this foolish pride. Greed compelled him to hold on to her even when every rationale told him to surrender.
"Don't challenge it," Yunjin wept. "You'll die."
In the utter silence of death, as the shadow of a god loomed over them — where their end seemed certain, and where even the winds grew still — he heard his own words all too clearly.
"So be it."
He heard a sigh, not from the God Beast nor Yunjin. It came from his head. Exasperated. Annoyed.
But fond all the same.
"You never change, Zhong."
Will you help me? He thought.
"You merely need to surrender her."
No. I would rather die.
"Are you certain of that? Is she truly worth that much? You are not that much of a fool. Be rational."
Feng looked up. His eyes bled to behold the enormous creature moving towards him. He smiled.
You love me for my foolish kindness. I would not be who I am if I were not a fool. Find another way. You are my guide. Show me the way so that I can save us all.
My Pride accepts nothing less.
More chuckles. More sighs.
"Greedy God… Very well. To be the guide of impossible Paths is the role you gave me." The pretty lady appeared, impossibly lovely to behold, and tapped her neck. "Step one, my Lord: Kill yourself."
Feng sighed. "Yunjin."
The Young Miss turned to look at him. The moment she did, he bent down and kissed her.
It was a chaste thing, quick and pure. Still, when he pulled away, a flush of colour had returned to her cheeks.
Feng grinned at her, his eyes bright and bold.
"The moment we get out of here, I'm marrying you," he declared. "And when we do, I won't allow you to ever give up again. So I hope you're ready to live a full life, because I won't accept any other outcome."
The moment he finished those words, Feng raised a hand, looked up at the Botulvorn Beast…
And slashed across his neck, severing off his own head.