All I could do was to fly toward the teleportation formation at top speed. The air current was so strong that I could barely open my eyes, but what else could I do with Lin Na and countless experts chasing behind my back? It would be all for naught if we failed to escape!
……
Lin Na’s ugly face burst through the clouds as he gripped his Starlight and roared, “Do you really think you can escape my clutches with the Wind Singer, boy? All cultivators on all planes, heed my command! Stop Xinran and the human boy from escaping the Purgatory at all costs! Otherwise, this will become an eternal mark of shame in all our lives!”
I shot a glance at the figures rising from the distant horizon and swore inwardly—
Extreme Lands Sword Saint Lin Shi (Quasi-Divine Rank Boss)
Star Devourer Burren (Quasi-Divine Rank Boss)
Purgatory Tomb Keeper (Quasi-Divine Rank Boss)
……
Three Quasi-Divine Rank bosses had risen from the Immortal Realm to chase after me. Weren’t they giving me too much credit? One of them could’ve made my life an absolute hell. Three? Are they trying to one-shot me?
However, Xinran looked up from my chest and gave me a kiss on the cheek. She then said smilingly, “Don’t worry, big brother. Leave those rotten potatoes to me and just focus on flying as quickly as you can!”
I asked, “Are you sure you have the power to do it?”
“Yes, I do!”
I nodded, kicked off the air and sped up even more.
A bloody sheen ran over Xinran’s eyes as she opened her palm and chanted something under her breath. Then, three Spirit Piercing Umbrellas appeared right in front of the three Quasi-Divine Rank experts and caused them to collide headlong into them. I had no idea she had the power to conjure a Spirit Piercing Umbrella so far away from us, much less three. Moreover, they were tough enough to literally break the foreheads of the Quasi-Divine Rank experts.
The Purgatory Tomb Keeper wiped away the blood on his forehead while screaming in anger, “Dammit. It is said that the gods who enter the Banished Lands gain the blessing of the ancient power hidden within, and it’s starting to look like it’s true! The Wind Singer’s strength is far greater than what it was before! We must stop her from escaping the Purgatory, or no one will survive her future counterattack!”
Lin Na simply uttered, “Keep chasing, you trash!”
……
Swhoosh!
My body abruptly felt warmer after I passed through the barrier. The next moment, I was back in the Redemption Realm once more. I could still see Dihai’s body right where we had left it. Instead of pausing to admire my handiwork, I continued toward the next exit with all my might as a matter of course. None of us was safe until we had left the Purgatory completely.
It wasn’t long before two more Quasi-Divine Rank experts appeared from the horizon. I had never seen them before, but then again, the Purgatory was a huge place. Even considering all the maps I had passed through, I couldn’t have explored more than 10% of them.
I looked behind me once more and immediately broke out in cold sweat. Lin Na was very close to me now, and he was accompanied by 5 Quasi-Divine Rank bosses. I had to be the first player in history to be chased by such a stacked party!
“Die, boy!”
Lin Na abruptly closed the distance and swung his Starlight at me.
I shot a glance at the teleportation formation above me before turning around to face Lin Na. Then, I clashed swords with him with all my might!
Chiang!
A terrific shock wave exploded between our swords as we lost 3.97 million HP. That was exactly what I needed though. I allowed the knockback to send us flying through the teleportation formation and into the fifth floor of the Purgatory like a cannonball!
Swhoosh!
I burst out of a bloody cloud and continued toward the sky when a gigantic paw suddenly blocked my way. Now that I thought about it, I hadn’t killed the guardian boss of this floor. How troublesome…
“Allow me, big brother…” Xinran assured me.
She opened my palm and easily knocked the paw out of our way. Xinran’s strength was nothing like my own. The beast tried to attack a second time, but I had already left it behind, so all it managed to hit was air—oh wait, Lin Na was right behind us, so…
……
“Get lost, trash!”
Lin Na’s Starlight flashed intimidatingly, and the poor beast’s paw was sent flying into the air. What a ruthless bastard!
I continued to travel at full speed while suppressing the chill in my heart. At the same time, I thanked the extra movement speed provided by the Ancient Divine Dragon from the bottom of my heart. Without it, both Xinran and I would be dead already.
Swhoosh swhoosh swhoosh…
I continued to fly through barrier after barrier while Xinran stalled Lin Na and the five Quasi-Divine Rank bosses with her Spirit Piercing Umbrellas. The clashes between their energies actually left behind ripples that looked surprisingly similar to fireworks.
Swhoosh!
Finally, I exited the last barrier and returned to the first floor of the Purgatory. A ton of Soul Collectors were gathering souls at the distance just like before. After we flew about a couple hundred meters into the sky, Lin Na and his cohorts exited the barrier as well. Shocked and terrified, the Soul Collectors hurriedly dropped to their knees and chanted, “We greet the Purgatory Ruler!”
Lin Na didn’t even glance at them. He was fully concentrated in his objective to kill me and Xinran before we escaped the Purgatory.
……
Our hope was right before our eyes. I stared at the sky—the spot I had emerged from when I first entered the Purgatory to be exact—and whispered to Xinran, “Be ready to open a spatial rift in a minute, Xinran.”
She nodded. “Got it. Don’t slow down, big brother. We’re going to get out of here in one rush!”
“Yeah!”
A while later, Xinran opened her palm and summoned a ball of cackling lightning. The next moment, it transformed into a lightning spear that she threw straight toward the void. She would open a spatial rift to the Human Realms with this attack!
Behind us, the Extreme Land Sword Saint Lin Shi growled, “This is bad, Lord Lin Na. They’re going to create a spatial rift any time now. What do we do?”
Lin Na replied through gritted teeth, “We chase them! The Wind Singer must die even if we must chase her to the Human Realms to do so! Otherwise, she will become a deadly threat to all of us!”
Bang!
There was a crack of thunder, and a gigantic spatial rift that nearly looked like a black hole appeared in front of us. It would seem that Xinran had used a bit too much power to create it.
Swhoosh!
I flew right into it with everything I had!
The moment my body entered the black hole, I felt its energy pulling me apart and reforming me again on the other side of the black hole. My vision brightened, and a familiar snowy land greeted me once more. It was Sainthelm Ruins! Finally, we had escaped the clutches of Lin Na!
However, I suddenly felt a hand catching my boot and preventing me from flying further. It was none other than Lin Na himself! Just how fast was this fucker?
“Fuck off!”
I kicked out with my right foot repeatedly before treating him to a Xuanyuan Slash to the face. The attack was enough to slacken his grip and push him away, but he immediately chased after us again while shouting, “Put Xinran down so I can kill you both, boy!”
……
“Not today, Lin Na.”
Suddenly, a melodious voice cut through the air. I looked up and saw none other than Dragon Speaker Binglan herself. Her silver blade was glowing brightly with power, and I saw Sky City and Violet Empire’s NPC armies readying their arms a short distance away. Dozens of dragon knights were circling the air as well. Binglan must’ve had faith that I would bring Xinran back and prepared accordingly for it!
Buzz!
The Dragonslaying Sword rang loudly as Binglan struck Lin Na with a full-powered attack. She cried, “Heaven Strike!”
Bang!
There was an explosion of light, and Lin Na was thrown back into the darkness with blood gushing out of his mouth. Binglan had clearly been gathering her power for some time, and it wasn’t something a seriously injured Lin Na could endure right now. Right before the spatial rift disappeared however, a figure wielding a spear rushed out in an attempt to chase us. It was none other than the Quasi-Divine Rank boss, the Purgatory Tomb Keeper.
The Purgatory Tomb Keeper froze at the sight of the army in front of him and glanced back at the vanished spatial rift behind it. Then, he swore vehemently, “Oh, what have I done? Why had I rushed out without thinking?”
……
Xinran smiled and stabbed his chest with a manifested icicle. Binglan arrived as if on cue and beheaded the boss in one clean strike. There was no way a mere Quasi-Divine Rank expert was a match for Xinran or Binglan, and even if he was, the nearby dragon knights and NPC armies could rush to their aid immediately. The poor guy had lost his chance to live the moment he exited the spatial rift.
At the distance, the undead army led by Queen Sophia herself dropped to their knees and chanted loudly, “You’ve finally returned, Lady Wind Singer!”
Xinran smiled at them and said, “Rise! It’s big brother who brought me back…”
I let out a proud chuckle.
Binglan walked up to me and said, “I had faith, but I wasn’t really sure if you would succeed, young warrior. I am very impressed. Now that Xinran has returned to us, we no longer need to fear Lin Na’s counterattack!”
I gave her a nod before facing toward Sophia. “Your Majesty, I encountered this bright lady when I was venturing in the Purgatory. She’s er, on my back right now. Her name is Uldan. Would you like to take her in?”
Sophia’s mouth fell open. “Is… is she the Twilight Wanderer?”
“Yep!”
“Of course I would!”
I put down Uldan and allowed Xue Wei to pull her up her warhorse. This was the best way to help Uldan settle in the Human Realms, especially since Xinran would be recuperating in the Violet Empire as well.
……
The NPCs soon withdrew since their mission was complete. While riding the carriage Sophia had prepared for me, I also let out a sigh that I had kept cooped up inside my lungs for a whole week. Still carrying Xinran on my lap, I looked out of the window and saw the Winged Silver Dragon shooting me a cheeky, vulgar grin. I had no idea when or even how the bastard had escaped the Purgatory with us. Perhaps Lin Na himself had no clue. It was why it had survived until now when countless others had died.
I looked inside my bag to check out the loot Night Fury had dropped, but it was extremely disappointing. The mysterious Ancient Divine Rank boss had only dropped one piece of Ancient Immortal-grade equipment, like are you kidding me? Still, I shouldn’t complain. It didn’t drop any good equipment, but it did drop nine Perfect Divine Crystals in total. It was enough…
Beep!
It was at this moment I received a message from He Yi: “I can send messages to you now, Lu Chen. Have you exited the Purgatory?”
I nodded. “Yeah. Long story short, it’s a perfect ending. What are you and Yiyi doing?”
“Nothing in particular. How is Xinran doing?”
“She’s slightly wounded, but she’s doing pretty well overall. I haven’t brought up the reality stuff yet because we just escaped. I’m also afraid that she won’t be able to accept it immediately.”
“Got it. Shusheng, Ling Xue and the others are urging though. Try not to delay it for too long.”
“Yeah!”
……
At a certain room inside Violet Empire’s castle.
Xinran was lying on top of a bed and smiling at me. The Winged Silver Dragon was curled up beside her like a very big dog.
I stared at the beautiful scenery outside the window for a moment before looking back at Xinran. I was thinking of a way to start when Xinran pre-empted me by asking,
“Do you have something to tell me, big brother?” She really was a smart girl.
……
I knelt on one knee beside her bed and held her small, delicate hand. Then, I said in a gentle voice, “To tell you the truth, Xinran… I’ve already met you yesterday…”
“You… met me yesterday? What do you mean by that?” Xinran asked in confusion.
I stared at him and said slowly, “I saw you in the other world; the real you. Do you understand what I mean?”
“I…”
Xinran suddenly burst into tears.
