Su Xi and Lin Qing, standing inside the invisibility mussel, flew rapidly towards the opposite shore. Seeing the blood-colored mist outside growing thicker, they felt a knot of tension tighten in their hearts.
For them, the most important thing now was to escape. If they were enveloped by this red mist, their mortal bodies would surely not be able to withstand it.
For her own safety, Su Xi prayed incessantly to Taishang Laojun, the Jade Emperor, Jesus, and the Tathagata Buddha, begging them to protect her through this ordeal.
But perhaps it was because Su Xi had prayed to too many deities at once, causing a signal jam, that none of her pleas were heard.
She could only watch as more and more Yin souls gathered around them, their mouths agape, constantly devouring their invisibility mussel.
Although the invisibility mussel was large, under the relentless consumption of so many ghosts, it clearly could not hold out for long.
At the rate these ghosts were devouring, if no solution was found, it was only a matter of time before they too were consumed.
And it would take at least the time it takes for an incense stick to burn to pass through the blood-colored mist, but surrounded by these ghosts, they clearly wouldn't last that long.
Once fully exposed, they would be swallowed whole by this blood-colored mist. Even if later generations came searching, they wouldn't find so much as a corpse.
"What do we do?" Su Xi looked at Lin Qing beside her, her face etched with anxiety.
She felt like a rootless duckweed, with ten thousand methods at her disposal but none she could employ. After all, the skills she possessed were useless in this situation.
Hearing Su Xi's words, Lin Qing frowned and replied with some difficulty, "In this situation, the most important thing is to first disperse these ghosts."
With that, Lin Qing took out a pile of talismans from his person, preparing to use their power to drive away the surrounding ghosts.
The use of the talismans did indeed cause the swarming ghosts to retreat temporarily.
However, the use of talismans inherently relied on the spiritual energy between heaven and earth. In the underworld, there was no supply of spiritual energy, so it all depended on Lin Qing's own magic power. Consequently, the effect was not very strong.
While the low-level ghosts could be repelled, the high-level ghosts seemed unaffected, instead charging forward directly.
Such a delectable meal had long since attracted them. With no one else interfering, their movements naturally became faster.
These high-level ghosts were inherently more powerful, and thus they devoured the invisibility mussel at an even greater speed.
This rapid consumption caused the invisibility mussel to begin showing signs of damage.
Inside the invisibility mussel, Su Xi trembled slightly as she faced all this.
This situation clearly indicated that a sense of danger was growing around them.
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Seeing this, Su Xi knew they couldn't continue like this, or they would die here today. If the invisibility mussel shattered, they would be finished.
Thus, she swiftly moved her Meteor God Sword, enveloping the invisibility mussel in a layer of flame as a protective measure.
The True Sun Fire was the most potent flame in existence, and it inherently had a restraining effect on ghosts, which were creatures of extreme Yin.
Therefore, the moment the ghosts came into contact with the True Sun Fire, they turned into dust, scattering on the ground.
However, despite the True Sun Fire's effectiveness against the ghosts, Su Xi felt no joy. Instead, she was somewhat dejected.
Because there was no supply of spiritual energy from heaven and earth, every attack required her to draw magic power from her own body.
Su Xi herself only had the cultivation of the Soul Transformation stage. To use magic power on such a large scale now was no easy feat.
A slight misstep could deplete all her strength.
Yet, Su Xi also understood clearly that without using the True Sun Fire's exorcising power, facing the onslaught of these ghosts, once exposed to the air, they would be doomed.
Lin Qing also realized the seriousness of the situation and instructed Su Xi, "Hold on for now. I will cast a spell to hasten the invisibility mussel's movement and get us through this place as quickly as possible."
"Okay."
Su Xi nodded and began to control her power, ensuring the invisibility mussel was thoroughly protected.
Since Lin Qing had made a promise, she disregarded the depletion of magic power from her body, focusing only on ensuring the invisibility mussel's safety until Lin Qing finished his spell.
The invisibility mussel was covered in True Sun Fire. The ghosts, despite their desire to devour, could not get close.
Every time they neared the invisibility mussel, they were engulfed by the scorching flames, followed by the sound of explosions in the air.
Yet, even though countless Yin souls perished, it did not deter the ghosts from their intent to devour the invisibility mussel and consume Su Xi and the others.
They continued to surround it layer by layer, searching for an opportunity to break through.
Although Lin Qing had increased his speed, he was still unable to move very quickly.
Seeing more and more ghosts blocking their path, Lin Qing looked at Su Xi and said, "There are too many of these things now. You need to exert more magic power."
Su Xi's eyes widened at Lin Qing's words, unsure of what he meant.
She was already expending so much, how could she possibly exert more magic power?
What was she supposed to do?
Lin Qing pointed to the ever-increasing number of ghosts ahead and said, "I need to use your True Sun Fire as the magic power to clear the path. But my magic power is stronger than yours, so I need to draw more of your magic power to cooperate."
Upon hearing Lin Qing's words, Su Xi immediately nodded, indicating she understood.
For her now, as long as the current problem could be solved, nothing else mattered.
Seeing that Su Xi understood, Lin Qing said no more and immediately set to work.
He rapidly manipulated what he held in his hands, and Su Xi felt her magic power uncontrollably flow towards the True Sun Fire, quickly merging into it.
Simultaneously, nourished by the magic power, the True Sun Fire instantly grew larger. It then transformed into a blade made of flame, thrusting forward with immense force.
"Bang!"
A violent explosion erupted ahead, and then everything around them began to clear.
Everything in the path of the flame blade was reduced to ashes and scattered on the ground.
Lin Qing did not miss this opportunity to escape and immediately urged the invisibility mussel forward.
Several consecutive attacks had eliminated a significant number of the surrounding Yin souls, greatly increasing the speed at which the invisibility mussel flew.
However, due to the sudden depletion of magic power, Su Xi felt a throbbing in her head, as if she had been struck by something heavy, leaving her disoriented.
If not for her high physical resilience, she would have collapsed on the ground.
"Are you alright? We're almost there," Lin Qing said reassuringly as he looked at Su Xi.
"I'm fine," Su Xi shook her head, indicating she could still persevere.
"We've arrived."
Just as Su Xi was about to collapse, Lin Qing suddenly announced.
Hearing Lin Qing's voice, Su Xi let out a long sigh of relief.
They had finally arrived. If she had to hold on any longer, she didn't know if she could have made it.
Another moment like that, and her life would truly be over.
Seeing this, Su Xi did not dare to be careless. She quickly exited the invisibility mussel and used a pill to restore her stamina.
Besides blocking external scrutiny, the invisibility mussel also affected the recovery of one's own energy.
Therefore, she could only expend energy and not recover magic power just now.
Lin Qing put away the invisibility mussel and walked up to Su Xi, asking with concern, "Are you alright?"
Hearing Lin Qing's concern, a hint of surprise appeared on Su Xi's face.
Why was this person so verbose now, spewing so much nonsense at her?
Didn't he know whether she was alright or not?
Although she couldn't understand, Su Xi still replied, "I'm fine, I'm doing quite well."
Lin Qing nodded upon hearing Su Xi's words and said with a hint of regret, "I thought you wouldn't make it. I didn't expect you to exceed my expectations."
After speaking, Lin Qing's lips curled into a wicked smile, and his tone instantly turned cold, "But even if you exceeded my expectations, it's impossible for you to live now."
"The truth of the matter dictates that you cannot survive."
Hearing Lin Qing's words, Su Xi showed no surprise. Instead, a look of "as expected" appeared on her face.
She had found it strange when she saw Lin Qing at the Bridge of Forgetfulness earlier, and what's more, she had noticed some abnormal situations around him.
This change made her even more astonished.
After some probing, Su Xi naturally realized that her suspicions were not unfounded.
Seeing Su Xi's calmness, Lin Qing asked in confusion, "Could it be that you discovered me long ago?"
He refused to believe that he had hidden himself so well, yet could still be discovered.
However, Su Xi's reaction was indeed abnormal.
Su Xi smiled at Lin Qing's disbelief and said, "You hid it very well, but you overlooked one fact."
"What?" Lin Qing's eyes widened as he looked at Su Xi, eager to hear her explanation.
He absolutely refused to believe that Su Xi could see through his disguise.
After all, these matters were incredibly subtle. Even someone several levels higher in cultivation than Su Xi would not have been able to see through it.
"You did disguise yourself very well, and I didn't notice it before. It was only your question just now that made me realize you are not my master."
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Lin Qing looked at Su Xi with confusion, recalling whether he had said anything inappropriate.
Before impersonating Lin Qing, he had observed Lin Qing many times. His every move had been imitated quite closely; where had he gone wrong?
"The real Lin Qing was never so talkative," Su Xi said with a smile, revealing the truth.
Hearing Su Xi's words, Lin Qing paused for a moment, then burst into laughter.
So that's how it was.
Even if Su Xi had discovered him now, what difference would it make? It was of no consequence to the outcome.
He had already successfully depleted Su Xi's magic power. Now, Su Xi was defenseless, a lamb waiting to be slaughtered.
Whether she saw through him or not was no longer important.
Su Xi smiled at the arrogant Lin Qing.
Did he really think she was rambling on so much just for the fun of it?
Also, looking down on her pills meant he would inevitably pay a price.
Seeing the scene before her, Su Xi's aura suddenly erupted, showing no sign of magic power depletion whatsoever?