The old woman's fingernails slowly traced across my hairline. A searing pain welled up, and I felt utterly humiliated. I was about to die, yet I was still losing face. It was as if I had shamed myself all the way to the Underworld.
I was terrified, my whole body trembling. Tears streamed down my face uncontrollably and happened to fall onto the silver bell.
Suddenly, a silver light soared up behind me, illuminating the once - dark temple like daylight. It was so bright that I couldn't open my eyes.
Following a deafening roar, the dilapidated temple shook violently. I trembled, and a powerful force yanked me into the air. The intense feeling of weightlessness made me gasp. I stared wide - eyed and looked down.
As soon as the silver light landed, the old woman let out a shrill scream. Her body reverted to its original form, and her snake body was torn to pieces, a gruesome sight.
It was Gu Yuan. He had come to rescue me.
In the blink of an eye, after he took care of the snake demon, Gu Yuan transformed into a silver light again. He suddenly appeared in mid - air, firmly grabbing my waist with one hand, and landed gracefully.
I wrapped my arms around his neck. For some reason, although his body was cold, he gave me a sense of security. Just a moment ago, I was scared out of my wits, but now I was captivated by his good looks.
Looking at his flawless and handsome face up close, my heart fluttered.
I stayed in this position, gazing at him, completely forgetting that I had already landed on the ground.
It wasn't until the female snake demon let out an extremely angry shriek that I realized our position was a bit too intimate. I quickly wriggled out of Gu Yuan's embrace.
I saw the female snake demon raise the snake - bone whip in her hand. With a crack in the air, the end of the long whip came whistling towards my head with an evil wind.
Seeing this, Gu Yuan grabbed my arm with one hand and pulled me behind him. He gently raised his sword finger, and a crescent - shaped weapon materialized around his body.
The weapon was like a cold moon, its cold light flashing. It was both offensive and defensive. When it was unsheathed, it made a buzzing sound like a silver bell being struck. It spun halfway, and the dragon patterns on it were clearly visible.
The moment the snake demon lashed out with her whip, the weapon only made a half - circle around Gu Yuan's body. When the two weapons collided, there was a flash of lightning and fire.
Following two loud "clang! clang!" sounds, the snake demon's long whip was cut into several pieces and fell to the ground.
The buzzing grew louder. The weapon hovered in mid - air and was now pressed against the snake demon's neck. As long as she made the slightest move, she would surely end up like the old woman.
"Gu Yuan, you're so cruel!" The snake demon gritted her teeth in hatred. Her blood - red eyes stared fixedly at Gu Yuan, and the muscles on half of her face twitched constantly.
"Jin Yue, I've said before that once you cross certain lines, don't blame me for being merciless."
I never expected that this snake demon named Jin Yue actually knew Gu Yuan and had quite a history with him. What did the "crossing the line" that Gu Yuan mentioned mean? I was curious, but I dared not ask.
Then Gu Yuan said, "Hand over the old beggar's soul."
I thought it might be because she had offended the old beggar's soul that he said she had crossed the line.
"Heheh, the moment you killed my mother, you should have known that you'd never get the old beggar's life back."
Jin Yue's expression was ferocious. As she took a small step forward, the weapon pressed closer to her neck.
"Gu Yuan, if you have the guts, kill me. Just like you killed your younger brother. With just a light swipe, I'll be dead on the spot." Jin Yue's words were a bit crazy. She was playing with fire.
"I don't want to say it a second time." Gu Yuan was already irritated by her. His tone became increasingly gloomy, and the strong aura of violence around him was so overwhelming that even I, standing far behind him, could feel it.
"I hate so much. Why did I save you back then? If I hadn't saved you, would I have avoided this disaster? Would my whole clan not have been exterminated? Gu Yuan, is this how you repay me? My mother is dead. There's no point in my living. I won't hand over the old beggar's soul to you today. If you have the guts, find it yourself."
After saying that, Jin Yue pointed backward. Instantly, flames erupted in the temple. The roaring flames danced wildly, making crackling sounds. Countless human - head lanterns above the dilapidated temple let out mournful wails.
No wonder there was a sound on the beam just now. It turned out to be from these human - head lanterns.
I saw those lanterns with ferocious expressions swarming towards me.
I let out a scream of terror and squatted down, covering my head.
I only heard a buzzing sound above my head, and all the human - head lanterns turned to ashes.
Gu Yuan's weapon was now protecting me, spinning continuously.
Jin Yue had completely ignited Gu Yuan's anger. Gu Yuan's icy eyes flashed, and he threw out a yellow talisman. The raging fire that had just started was instantly extinguished.
"Do you think such tricks can deceive me? The old beggar's soul is not among them."
Gu Yuan took a few steps forward with an air of violence. He flipped his hand domineeringly and held a ghostly fire in his palm. The greenish - blue light outlined Gu Yuan's chiseled features, fully displaying his current violent and unruly nature.
Jin Yue's snake eyes darted around. It was obvious that she was intimidated by Gu Yuan's domineering aura.
"Jin Yue, your evil deeds are well - known. You've already turned into a demon and harmed innocent lives. You should have died more than a decade ago. Considering that you saved me, I let the old beggar spare you and your mother. But I never expected that you would go even further and dare to come and provoke me. Are you testing my patience?"
Jin Yue was so scared that her snake body curled into a ball, and she took a small step backward.
But she still refused to give in: "I didn't die, but look at me now. What's the difference between me and being dead? You say I've committed many evil deeds. Aren't you, Gu Yuan, also a sinner?"
I was completely confused. It seemed that their relationship was quite complicated.
"Hand it over." Gu Yuan's patience had run out.
He placed the ghostly fire in front of his chest.
Suddenly, Jin Yue's face changed drastically: "My mother's soul. She's not dead yet. Give her back to me."
After saying that, she reached out to grab it.
Gu Yuan gently raised his arm and firmly pinched the ghostly fire in his palm. It felt as if he was pinching a balloon. With just a little more force, it would burst.
"Don't! As long as you give me my mother's soul back, I'll give you the old beggar's soul."
In her panic, Jin Yue opened her extremely ferocious mouth, and a white light floated out. When the white light landed, it transformed into the old beggar's soul.
The old beggar immediately knelt down and kowtowed when he saw Gu Yuan. Gu Yuan glanced at him briefly. After confirming that it was really the old beggar, he took a few steps back.
"Please, give me my mother's soul back, Third Master. I'm begging you." Jin Yue pleaded repeatedly, bowing and kowtowing.
But Gu Yuan showed no mercy. Instead of giving it to her, he crushed her mother's soul right in front of Jin Yue.
Jin Yue was stunned. She collapsed to the ground.
Then she turned around and let out a heart - rending roar. Her body reverted to its original form, and a huge spotted python emerged. Its gigantic snake head broke through the temple roof.
Instantly, the tiles flew everywhere.
"Gu Yuan, go to hell!"