Journey to the End of the Night Chapter 1508 - 940: Meeting Gift

The sky’s dark veil parted, allowing a sliver of light to pierce through, slowly unveiling the first hint of dawn. Wisps of smoke meandered, and a chill wind rustled the reeds outside the city walls.

Starlight cascaded from the distant mountain summits. A white heron took flight, while a figure, moving with the fluidity of mercury across the desolate expanse, advanced resolutely forward.

Yu Xiuji, traversing the plains at a breakneck pace, suddenly halted, as if an unseen force had arrested his movement.

He stood with a grim countenance, extracting a pale blue, hexagonal crystal from his chest. With fierce determination, he plunged it into his arm once more, seeking to quell the encroaching Witch Plague within his body.

This crystalline artifact, known as Source Liquid, offered a means to suppress the Witch Plague's advance, yet its efficacy was far from absolute.

It merely served to postpone the inevitable, its power diminishing with each subsequent use until it became increasingly feeble.

Furthermore, Source Liquid was an exceedingly rare commodity. Each individual, transformed into a half-puppet, carried merely ten such crystals when venturing outside. Should these be depleted,

and return to Yinghuo City prove impossible, they would face the same fate as the automatons in the pits—perpetually enslaved, reduced to mere low-level monsters for slaughter.

Consequently, Yu Xiuji’s mood was exceptionally foul at this juncture, leaving him with little tolerance for any imbeciles who dared obstruct his path.

"Cough... cough..."

Directly before him stood a man clad in attire as inky black as the night itself.

Beneath this vast, open sky, a verdant Qiong Tree bloomed behind him, its deep emerald shade casting a stark contrast against the surrounding wilderness.

He appeared to inhabit a realm apart, his noble bearing utterly natural, though his face bore the pallor of delicate ill health.

Yet, despite this seemingly frail appearance, Yu Xiuji did not dare to let his guard down upon seeing this individual devoid of any discernible aura.

His expression contorted into a snarl as he fixed his gaze upon the man, his hand already gripping the longbow slung across his back: "Who dares impede my way?"

The man’s features registered weariness. He raised his eyes, remnants of the night’s fading moonlight catching within his dark irises, reflecting an unsettling, layered depth—a double pupil.

He emitted another soft cough, his voice carrying a distant echo: "Moments ago, were you not about to kill Qingxin?"

Yu Xiuji faltered, instantly recognizing the individual before him as likely a member of the 'One Drop of Blood' faction.

His brow furrowed deeply, though a surge of contempt rose within him.

"And if I was? Do you intend to seek retribution on her behalf?"

The Demon Clan, by nature, revered power. The leader of 'One Drop of Blood' was a sickly youth, too weak to withstand a single blow.

Even if two or more members appeared, what difference would it truly make? A congregation of insignificant demons held no weight in his eyes.

Was this truly a den of infirmity? First, a sickly leader, and now this black-clad specter, bearing all the hallmarks of consumption.

Were they so eager to meet their doom?

The man in black offered no reply to his taunt. Under the dim celestial glow, his face was ashen, a profound sense of impending doom etched upon his brow.

Were it not for his open eyes, one might mistake him for a corpse recently exhumed from its grave.

His twin pupils shifted subtly, his gaze seeming to pierce the very void:

"My unseen 'master' pondered, since your departure from Wusu County, how many miles have you traversed?

You offered no answer to his inquiry, so allow me to perform the calculation for you."

As he spoke, he tilted his head slightly, as if assessing the distance with his eyes for a brief moment. He then declared, "Since leaving the county, you've traveled approximately ten miles. However, in my estimation, it remains merely ten steps to fell a man."

With that, he raised a pale, slender finger and flicked it casually.

The nascent divine light of dawn instantly receded, and an overwhelming demonic force, as if drawn from the deepest reaches of the Nine Heavens, coalesced, reforming a boundless celestial realm.

Yu Xiuji felt an inexplicable sensation before his body was violently wrenched from the ground, propelled backward with a speed that defied comprehension.

The landscape of Wushan County rapidly receded, expanding like a colossal shadow behind him, and in the blink of an eye, he found himself back beneath the city's walls.

The distance from the city gate was neither too great nor too close—precisely the span of ten paces.

A cold sweat erupted on Yu Xiuji’s skin. The arm holding his bow trembled uncontrollably, his heart churning with tumultuous emotions.

This... this was no mere weakling demon!

Escape...

He had to flee with the utmost urgency...

Even if returning to Shifang City was out of the question, he must expend every ounce of his being, at any cost, to disappear from this person's sight.

At this moment, Yu Xiuji felt no vestige of anger, only an inexpressible dread, like a colossal mountain collapsing, threatening to crush him.

Just as he initiated his movement, the black-clad man, who had been miles away, reappeared as suddenly as before, now at the identical distance.

The same pale moonlight, the same ashen complexion, the same flourishing Qiong Tree casting its deep emerald shade—a scene as static and immutable as a painting, now fixed directly in his path.

A chilling gaze descended, and Yu Xiuji felt utterly ensnared, as if trapped within an unyielding iron cage.Unable to move even a finger, let alone shift from his current spot, he was completely immobilized from head to toe. A purple arrow, emerging as if by its own will from the quiver resting on his back, shot forward. Tang Di observed him with an emotionless gaze. The purple arrow, imbued with a casual air, leisurely burrowed into his shoulder. Its agonizingly slow progress seemed deliberate, designed solely to inflict torment. As poison flooded the human portion of his being, Yu Xiuji experienced a pain akin to his heart being ripped asunder, yet he was utterly incapable of even a single cry. The Witch Plague commenced its furious assault within him, its purple intent permeating every fiber, as if some monstrous entity were savagely annihilating his fading consciousness. The Source Liquid, safely contained within a crystal vessel, tumbled from his chest. His eyes widened in disbelief, nearly bursting from their sockets as he fixated on the Source Liquid lying on the ground. Tang Di advanced deliberately, his palm upturned, scooping those few drops of precious Source Liquid into his grasp.