THE LEGEND OF SHENLI

CHAPTER 24

Based on Xíng Zhǐ’s words, of the two seals remaining, one was guarded by the stone statue below the training platform at camp. Once they returned, she ordered the troops to vacate the vicinity, leaving about a mile between them and camp. She turned to follow the troops out after giving her orders, but Xíng Zhǐ beckoned her over before she could run away.

“It will take some time to manage this seal. Stay and guard over me; ensure that I’m not disturbed.”

The troops already left the area. Which one of them would dare disturb him? The words were there, but Shěn Lí choked them back as she stood motionlessly watching Xíng Zhǐ.

He pressed his hand on top of the statue’s head. As with the previous seals, a gradual light spread out while the land underneath trembled. Shěn Lí focused solely on Xíng Zhǐ’s face, trying to size him up.

The once dry soil gradually darkened with moisture, and tiny green sprouts wiggled out of the dirt even between the nooks and crannies of the tents. The air cleared. Unlike with the previous seals, this time Shěn Lí’s heart didn’t feel light and free but was instead heavy and weighted down by the clean air.

The feeling was fleeting and she didn’t dwell on it. She sensed Xíng Zhǐ was almost finished, so she walked towards him while avoiding his eyes. “Once matters regarding the Ruins are complete, I will return to the palace to receive my punishment.” She turned and walked away after saying this.

Xíng Zhǐ’s eyes darkened following her receding back.

. . .
[Some time later in front of the Ruins.]

The spot Shěn Lí battled the scorpion-tailed fox was some distance away from the Ruins, so this was her first time being so close to it. She was shocked at the dark crack in the air above the chain.

Dense black miasma seeped out of it, spreading all around. Very quickly the three seals activated and stopped the spread, roughly keeping the miasma contained, however, the miasma still managed to affect the emotional state of those nearby in the short time it flowed unchecked. It was fortunate the seals activated so quickly, else the impact of the cracked seal would have been devastating.

Unlike the Cold Palace of Atonement, which was created naturally through the forces of nature, the Ruins was an immense artificial space created by tearing out a piece of the world and isolating it in its own space. Xíng Zhǐ had created it as a cage to hold monsters hundreds of times more powerful than the single scorpion-tailed fox she fought against.

Shěn Lí’s eyes took on a grim light. She glanced to her side as Xíng Zhǐ stepped over to her. The miasma scraped against his clothes and hair, yet his expression remained calm and unworried.

This man. . .  he really was the same.

She came out of her daze when she noticed a furrow creeping up on his brow. “What is it?”

“This place is in worse condition than I thought.” Xíng Zhǐ took two steps forward after speaking. He raised his right hand and slowly curled his fingers closed in a fist as he said, “But it doesn’t matter,” while smiling. A rattling rumbling sound came from the ground as a bright beam of light shot out, fiercely slamming into Xíng Zhǐ’s fisted hand and wedging itself inside his grip.

Shěn Lí stood transfixed. It was a chain completely covered in rust. Xíng Zhǐ held one end while the other end lay anchored in the ground. He moved his wrist and recited something to cause the rust to fade away and the chain to become taut in his hand.

Shěn Lí heard an explosive rumble from deep underground. Chains rose on either side of the crack. They further blocked the miasma, thinning it out and preventing it from obscuring their vision. With a clear view she was able to see that the gash in the air was about two feet wide and slowly decreasing in width as the chains squeezed in on it.