jdhmnovel Chapter 549
Chapter 549
While unconscious, Ye Jiuchen felt a sharp pain in his fingertips—a warning sign of the silver needles vibrating within his sleeve. The wind and rain outside the cave had ceased, replaced by the rustling sound of something heavy dragging vines, like a venomous snake flicking its tongue, crawling close to his ear. Dongfang Wan'er suddenly held her breath. She saw the boy's eyelashes flutter violently, and his eyes, snapping open, reflected the swaying shadow at the cave entrance—an arm covered in iron-scaled gauntlets, slowly parting the dew-covered vines.
"Get behind me!" Ye Jiuchen's low shout carried the smell of blood and rust, but his right hand slipped as he braced himself on the ground, dark red blood seeping onto the stone surface. Dongfang Wan'er's soft whip was already drawn like a serpent, the tip of the whip sweeping past his knee, catching half a piece of gravel, and then she lashed it at the first black-clad man to rush in. With a muffled thud, the man's breastplate shattered, but it also stirred up more reflections of cold blades—at least seven blades of light drew deadly arcs in the moonlight at the cave entrance.
The young wolf's howl sent pebbles tumbling down from the cave ceiling. Its arched back almost touched the ceiling, and the black-clad man's ferocious face was reflected in its amber pupils. Dongfang Wan'er counted the trajectories of the whip's shadows. As the third whip wrapped around the enemy's ankle on the left, she suddenly heard Ye Jiuchen let out a suppressed groan—the internal force he had forcefully summoned had reopened his wounds, and the blood he coughed up splattered on the back of her hand, feeling even colder than the rain outside the cave.
"Jiuchen!" Her exclamation was drowned out by the sharp sound of a blade slicing through empty air. The scarred man at the head of the group approached, stepping over the corpses of his companions. The moment his ring-pommel sword grazed a strand of hair near her temple, Ye Jiuchen's silver needle pierced a pressure point in his elbow. But the sound of the silver needle hitting the ground was so weak, like an autumn leaf falling into water, leaving no echo. Only then did Dongfang Wan'er realize that the blood from the young man's fingertip had dripped down the silver needle, drawing the shape of a dying candle flame on the stone surface.
The wind deep within the cave suddenly changed its scent. It was a chilling mix of moss and minerals, carrying the resonance of ancient metals. The wolf cub was the first to notice; it abruptly turned to look at the stone wall, its front paws gripping the uneven rock surface, a confused whimper escaping its throat. Then, Dongfang Wan'er saw the silver ornaments on her whip begin to heat up; the ancient runes etched on them trembled gently in the faint light emanating from the depths.
The light seeped from a crack in the cave ceiling, initially as faint as fireflies, but suddenly surged the moment the man in black raised his knife. Within the blue-green glow, patterns resembling a star map spread along the stone walls, and wherever the light passed, bas-reliefs of coiled dragons and snakes appeared on the rock surface. The scarred man's blade hovered three inches above Ye Jiuchen's head, unable to fall even an inch further—his pupils reflected the gradually clearing portal, behind which floated crystal pillars, withered vines entwined between them, yet gleaming with a revitalizing green in the glow.
"That's... the scent of Spirit Heart Grass?" a man in black exclaimed in surprise. Dongfang Wan'er then noticed that the Spirit Heart Grass in the brocade pouch in her bosom was getting warm, and the withered yellow on the grass leaves was fading in the light, revealing the flowing light patterns in the dark blue veins. Ye Jiuchen suddenly grabbed her wrist, his fingertips drawing ancient symbols on her palm—the ancient restriction marks they had seen in the library.
"Don't come any closer!" His warning was abruptly cut short by a deafening roar. A blinding light suddenly erupted from the portal, shattering the suspended crystal pillar. Thousands of points of light surged forth like fireflies, coalescing into a massive tree-like shadow on the cave ceiling. Dead vines sprouted new shoots amidst the radiance; the moment these tender shoots touched the men in black, their weapons rusted and broke, painful groans seeping from beneath their helmets. The scarred man retreated in terror, only to have his ankle entangled by vines, watching helplessly as patterns resembling those of the Spirit Heart Grass appeared on his arm.
The wolf cub suddenly raised its head and howled, its voice carrying a reverent, almost worshipful, devotion. Dongfang Wan'er felt Ye Jiuchen place something into her hand—half a leaf of the Spirit Heart Grass, now gleaming with a warm light. "Use it to touch the gate of light," his voice was as soft as dissipating smoke, "This is the trial of an ancient spiritual plant...only those with compassionate hearts can pass."
The sound of flowing water echoed from the depths of the cave, as if an ancient spring was awakening. When Dongfang Wan'er pressed the Spirit Heart Grass leaf onto the portal, the entire stone wall suddenly transformed into transparent glass, revealing a winding underground river behind it. The river reflected the star map on the cave ceiling, and at its end, an arched bridge made of crystal and vines slowly unfolded. The men in black were utterly routed, fleeing in terror through the bright light. As she turned, she saw Ye Jiuchen supporting himself with silver needles, giving her a bloodied smile.
“I said… I would take you to see the sea of clouds and the sunrise.” He tapped his knuckles on the stone wall, and the arched bridge emerging from the light carried the scent of morning dew. The wolf cub stepped onto the bridge first, and the vines automatically parted to create a path, revealing the distant horizon—where a faint light was already breaking through the clouds, just like the Spirit Heart Grass stubbornly growing in the darkness.
Dongfang Wan'er's fingertips trembled slightly on the sword scar on Ye Jiuchen's wrist, the scar now warming slightly with the boy's pulse. She counted the rise and fall of his chest with each breath, afraid that the slightest pressure would tear his bleeding clothes. When the vines on the arched bridge first rustled softly beneath her feet, she heard Ye Jiuchen let out a very soft laugh: "Don't be afraid, they're humming a tune of morning dew."
The boy's pupils reflected the gradually clearing morning light ahead. The crystal pillars on either side of the arched bridge lit up with their footsteps, each pillar containing dew in different forms—some condensed into ice crystals, some gathered into swimming fish, and most wondrously, a dandelion suspended at the heart of a pillar, its dewdrops refracting a rainbow of colors, like a captive rainbow. Dongfang Wan'er suddenly recalled the records in the library: "In the realm of spiritual plants, sincerity brings results." It turned out that the Spirit Heart Grass they had protected through life and death had truly opened this ancient secret realm.
As they reached the center of the bridge, a golden crack suddenly appeared on the horizon. Ye Jiuchen stopped and used his bloodied fingertips to brush away the vines from her hair. This action aggravated his wound, yet he still smiled gently: "Look, the rising sun will always stop for those who are on their way." When the first ray of sunlight brushed against his eyelashes, Dongfang Wan'er saw her reflection in his eyes—tears still wet at the corners of her eyes, yet radiating unprecedented vitality in the morning light.
The sea of clouds beneath their feet suddenly surged, churning like white flames. Before Dongfang Wan'er could react, Ye Jiuchen had already tackled her to the side of the crystal pillar. The moment the enormous water python burst forth from the water, she heard the sound of tearing fabric—the wound on the boy's back was ripped open, and fresh drops of blood dripped onto the back of her hand, hotter than the morning sun. The water python's scales gleamed with a ghostly blue luster, each etched with patterns resembling those of the Spirit Heart Grass. From its open mouth spewed a mist carrying the smell of decaying leaves, instantly turning the nearby vines withered and yellow.