Xue Yin stepped over the dry gravel, moving forward.
Behind her, Jin followed with a limp, the blue-black discoloration on his left arm spreading further.
“How much further?” she asked without looking back.
Jin glanced down at the map.
“We’re close. We should arrive before dawn.”
“If you can’t hold on, don’t expect me to carry you.”
“Don’t worry…”
The corner of his mouth twitched as if he wanted to say something, but he swallowed the words instead.
Xue Yin didn’t speak again.
‘It was the first time in three years someone had spoken more than ten sentences to her, and she surprisingly didn’t find it noisy.’
Following the map, the two entered a mine and found a dry rock hall.
Xue Yin crouched down, took out fragments of source crystals from her leather pouch, and began embedding them into the four corners of the floor.
The first was to the southeast, the second to the north.
Every single one had to have its angle calibrated and its resonance tested; the slightest mistake would mean starting over.
Her movements were extremely slow and meticulous.
A magic array could isolate traces of mana, but setting it up required a vast amount of time and energy.
Once the array was complete, a faint light flickered and then vanished.
“Lie down here. Don’t touch the source crystals.”
Jin did as he was told, moving carefully.
Xue Yin knelt to check his left arm; the blue-black stain had nearly reached his heart.
“Listen, I will be channeling mana during the purification. If you have any counter-seals, tracking talismans, or internal bombs inside you, say it now. I’m not an interrogator, but I don’t want to die for no reason.”
Jin shook his head.
“If I said I didn’t, would you believe me, Master?”
“No,” she said, looking him straight in the eye.
“But I bet you don’t want to die.”
The incantation began.
“IN THE NAME OF THE MOON FEATHER, PURIFY THIS BODY.”
In an instant, the Mana Rose on her lower abdomen bloomed violently.
Pink-gold light surged out, and silver stardust fell like snow.
Where it landed on the rock walls, it actually coaxed small patches of fluorescent moss to grow.
Jin’s entire body shuddered — not from pain, but from resonance.
But at that moment, Xue Yin’s brow furrowed, and she pulled her hands back! “There is a seal inside you,” she whispered.
Jin gave a bitter smile.
“When I was a child, my mana went out of control and almost burned down the village. I locked it away myself.”
She stared into his eyes.
There was no evasion there.
Their master-disciple contract was already in effect; if he intended to harm her, the backlash from the contract would be fatal.
Furthermore, throughout their journey, he had never once tried to probe for her weaknesses.
‘Everyone has things they don’t want to talk about.’
“Endure it. I will bypass the seal this time and only clear the infection. It will hurt, but you won’t die.”
A flash of shock crossed Jin’s eyes, quickly turning into gratitude.
The incantation rose again.
Mana flowed like a fine stream, precisely peeling away the corruption.
The purification was completed, and Jin fell into a deep sleep, his breathing gradually steadying.
The blue-black stain receded from his shoulder blade all the way back to his wrist — the infection was fading.
His life had been saved.
Xue Yin leaned against the rock wall to catch her breath for a moment.
Over the last three years, she had grown accustomed to handling everything alone.
She didn’t cry out when injured or speak when exhausted.
During her three years in Ashen Town, she had learned only one thing: to stay alive, one must not leave any traces.
Once a trace was left, what awaited her wasn’t death, but the iron cages of a laboratory, injections for mental stripping, and long days and nights of being brainwashed into a puppet.
She pushed herself up.
Her gaze fell upon the sleeping Jin — it was the first time she had really looked at him.
His black hair was slightly curly, now scattered across his forehead and dampened by cold sweat.
There was an old scar on his left cheek, slashing diagonally from the end of his eyebrow to his cheekbone.
It wasn’t hideous; instead, it gave him an indefinable air.
His dark red eyes were closed, and his eyelashes were unexpectedly long, casting shallow shadows under the faint light of the rock wall.
He had the light olive skin common among the demon race.
His frame was lean but hidden within it was a certain toughness — the force from when he crashed through the roof that night would have shattered a normal person’s spine, yet he had only cracked his left shoulder.
‘He’s younger than I imagined. Maybe in his early 20s, or even younger.’
Xue Yin withdrew her gaze and looked no longer.
She turned, unfastened her cloak, and lightly tapped the rock wall with her fingertip.
Groundwater surged out, turning into a film of water that wrapped around her body, washing away the bloodstains and dust.
Just then, a very slight movement came from behind her.
She didn’t turn around, her voice turning cold.
“Close your eyes.”
Jin’s breathing hitched for a moment before returning to a steady rhythm.
But before he closed his eyes, that scene was already seared into his mind — silver hair like a waterfall amidst the shimmering water, her skin glowing with a lunar radiance in the dim light, possessing a world-defying purity that supposedly only belonged to elves.
The water evaporated and dissipated.
She put her outer clothes back on, her silver hair draped wetly over her back.
Xue Yin’s tone softened slightly.
“Start a fire outside. Use your own mana; no one is going to track a demon’s scent anyway.”
Jin scrambled up in response and walked five steps away.
With a twist of his palm, a ball of crimson flame ignited steadily.
He pulled half a dried sand lizard from his pack.
“I hunted this yesterday. Do you eat meat, Master?”
Xue Yin frowned.
“Is this the ‘feast’ you mentioned?”
“It’s not ready yet.”
He skillfully peeled the skin and removed the entrails before propping it over the fire.
“Add a little rock salt and it’ll smell amazing.”
She didn’t speak again but fished a small jar of wild thyme from her bag and tossed it to him.
“Use less salt.”
Jin grinned and sprinkled the spices.
The aroma of meat soon filled the air.
The two finished eating in silence.
Xue Yin stood up and brushed the dust off her clothes.
Jin stood up as well, packed his things, and they continued deeper into the mine tunnels.
After walking for a while, he suddenly asked in a low voice, “Have you always been alone, Master?”
Xue Yin didn’t stop or answer.
Just as Jin thought she wouldn’t speak, she finally did.
“Sometimes when I wake up, I even forget that I still know how to talk.”
***
The sun had not yet fully risen, and the wind and sand were beginning to pick up.
Xue Yin sprinkled the last handful of masking powder over their footprints, her fingertips feeling slightly cold.
She looked toward the faint light at the end of the mine tunnel, her heart relaxing slightly.
Another ten miles and they would be in the heart of the Red Desert, where even the wind was free.
She was certain — this place should have been safe.
Then, she abruptly froze.
At the same instant, Jin, who was three steps away, also slowly stood up, his dagger silently unsheathed.
“You felt it too?” His voice was extremely low.
It was impossible.
She had sprinkled masking powder the entire way, set up an isolation array during the purification, and the fire had used Jin’s mana.
How did they find this place? Yet, there wasn’t a trace of panic on her face.
She simply turned her head, her voice as cold as iron.
“People from the Red Scorpion Merchant Guild. I’ll go lead them away. You hide and wait for my signal. I’ve placed collapse runes in the middle section of the mine.”
At the entrance of the mine, seven Red Scorpion riders flipped off their horses.
The leader wore a deep red cloak with a golden scorpion embroidered on the shoulder.
In his hand, he held a silver-gray crystal that throbbed like a heartbeat.
The mercenary captain sneered, “My Lord, are they really in here? That little wench was roasting meat just last night!”
The cloaked man sneered, silver light rippling from the source crystal in his palm.
“Roasting meat? She thinks she’s safe hiding in an abandoned mine? Fool! No matter how clever her masking powder is, it can’t block the black market’s forbidden art, ‘Star-Trail Harmonic Positioning.’ This is a treasure that costs 3,000 gold just to use once!”
The enemies burst into the fork in the path.
Xue Yin was already standing on a high platform, her incantation ready.
The Mana Rose on her lower abdomen suddenly lit up, and pink-gold light bloomed like a flower!
She swung her hands repeatedly.
The fluorescent moss in the rock crevices grew explosively, the mycelia snaking out like living serpents, instantly wrapping around the ankles of two team members and slamming them to the ground.
Before the pair could even hit the floor, they were wrapped into cocoons by the fungi, unable to move.
“WATER CURTAIN!” she barked.
Groundwater was drawn out, weaving into three layers of rotating water barriers in front of her.
The enemies’ crossbow bolts lost speed as they pierced the first layer, toxins were neutralized in the second, and by the third, only the iron shafts remained to fall helplessly to the ground.
Where the water droplets fell, tiny green sprouts germinated and then immediately withered; even her killing carried the lingering scent of vitality.
But there were more enemies.
The remaining four were closing in.
Two of them held silenced short spears with shimmering blue tips, clearly coated in paralytic poison.
They coordinated perfectly — one feinted while the other attacked from the side, forcing Xue Yin to retreat repeatedly.
Her footwork grew messy as she narrowly dodged a horizontal sweep, but the tip of a spear still grazed her forearm.
The wound wasn’t deep, but a wave of numbness immediately began to spread.
She gritted her teeth and waved her left hand, sending a wind blade whistling out to force the nearby enemies back.
“The casters are in the back!” Jin shouted from near the exit.
“They’re waiting for you to exhaust your strength!” Out of the corner of her eye, Xue Yin saw the cloaked man holding the source crystal high, chanting under his breath.
Silver light gathered in his palm, growing brighter and brighter.
She couldn’t let him finish the spell.
She reached back, drew the dagger from her waist, and threw it with all her might! The dagger turned into a streak of light, aimed straight for the cloaked man’s face.
But a guard threw himself in front of the man; the dagger sank into his shoulder blade.
He let out a muffled groan but didn’t retreat an inch.
“Little elf, save your mana!” The cloaked man laughed maniacally.
The silver light in his palm finally took shape — “Star-Soul Aurora!” A beam of silver-white light tore through the air, heading straight for Xue Yin!
Xue Yin rolled to the side.
The beam grazed her left arm, instantly scorching her sleeve and searing her skin like a branding iron.
She stumbled to her feet and looked down; the flesh on her left arm was torn, and blood dripped from her elbow.
This was the first time she had faced a true caster’s attack.
The monsters she had hunted in the past could only bite, spit poison, or burrow… how could they use such precise, high-speed, and highly penetrative magic? Her “survival skills,” of which she was so proud, were as fragile as paper before a disciplined military force.
But she didn’t retreat.
Instead, she turned and sprinted toward the middle section of the mine.
“Come on!” She looked back and sneered, the light of her Mana Rose illuminating her entire face.
“Don’t you want to capture me alive?”
The cloaked man took the bait and waved his hand.
“Follow her! Don’t let her reach the exit!” Though the six Soul-Binding team members had already lost two people, the remaining four fanned out to surround her.
Crossbows were cocked and aimed at her legs — they wanted her alive, so they couldn’t hit anything vital.
Xue Yin cast spells as she ran; vines erupted from beneath her feet, trying to entangle the pursuers, only to be sliced apart by their blades.
Wind blades whistled through the air but only left shallow scratches on their dark-scaled soft armor.
Her mana was depleting rapidly, her breathing becoming heavier, and the Mana Rose on her abdomen began to flicker.
Finally, she reached the area below the collapse runes.
She turned, her hands held high.
The Mana Rose on her lower abdomen burst open completely, pouring out the last of her mana! “In the name of the moon feather — release!”
The dormant fungi underground were forcibly awakened, erupting from the earth like giant pythons.
They coiled around the legs of two crossbowmen and slammed them violently into the ground.
The moisture in the rock layers was instantly sucked dry, causing the support pillars to let out an overburdened creak as cracks spread like spiderwebs.
Hot air surged from the fissures in the rock walls, and several tongues of fire leapt from the cracks in the ground.
Wind blades exploded around her like a storm, severing the pursuers’ bowstrings and arrows.
Finally, a stone spike lunged from the ground, piercing the calf of an axeman who was trying to charge forward, pinning him in place!
Jin’s pupils shrank.
It was the first time he had seen Xue Yin like this — her silver hair flying in the mana surge, the light of her Mana Rose as brilliant as the sun.
Five types of magic exploded at the same instant, pinning everyone from the Red Scorpion Merchant Guild into the middle of the mine.
The airflow, carrying silver stardust, poured into the cracks.
This was the energy elves were supposed to use to coax new sprouts, but now it became the fuse for the collapse! The entire mine tunnel let out a deafening groan.
Rubble fell from the ceiling, and dust filled the air.
But her vision began to blur.
Her mana was completely exhausted.
In her final moment of consciousness, she screamed with all her might:
“Jin—!!!”
A fireball from Jin’s palm slammed into the runes on the ceiling — a precise ignition! BOOM!!! A chain reaction of collapses began! The ceiling, the side supports, and the foundation all shattered simultaneously! 10,000 tons of rock closed in like a giant mouth! Dust swallowed everything.
Xue Yin collapsed forward.
At the last moment, she felt a pair of hands catch her — warm and powerful.
It wasn’t an iron cage, nor a needle; it was a person’s arms.
***
Carrying the unconscious Xue Yin on his back, Jin squeezed out of a hidden crack in the side wall — an escape route he had discovered the night before.
The morning light of the Red Desert was blinding.
He gently laid her down on a sand dune and knelt on one knee to check her breathing — it was steady.
The light of the Mana Rose on her abdomen had faded.
He slumped to the ground, panting heavily.
The wound on his left shoulder had burst open, blood soaking through his clothes.
He ignored it, staring at her face instead.
The morning sun bathed the wilderness and illuminated his profile — his black hair was a mess, and the old scar on his left cheek stood out clearly amidst the blood and grime.
The reflection of her form in his dark red eyes seemed to hold a softness he had never shown before.
He stared at that dust-covered yet still clear face and remained silent for a long time.
Then, he spoke, his voice very soft.
“Master… no, True Master.”
In the ancient language of the demons, “True Master” meant “the only one I will recognize as my master in this life.”
He paused as if savoring the weight of the title, or perhaps making a vow to the sleeping woman.
“You gave me a place to belong. As long as you don’t drive me away, I will always be by your side.”
After saying that, he was the first to chuckle.
He caught his breath and added, “Next time you decide to blow up a mountain, could you give me a heads-up? I almost thought you wanted us to die together in love.”
Xue Yin didn’t wake up.
Several strands of her silver hair were tossed by the morning breeze, falling across the back of his hand.
He froze for a moment but didn’t pull away.
He took off his outer coat and covered her with it.
The wind and sand swept over the dunes, swallowing all the noises from the night before.
But he knew she wasn’t unafraid; she simply couldn’t afford to be.