Chapter 1425: Dao-Dao, I Feel Awful!

The Holy Rakshasa tried to use both wings to kill Yuan Gang, who was locked in a head-on struggle with her, but the wings had been badly damaged. The joints within them could no longer turn smoothly.

She sensed someone behind her as well, but Yuan Gang had both her wrists clamped firmly in his hands.

Niu Youdao flashed in and planted a palm against the Holy Rakshasa’s back, sending into her body the art that dissolved her demon power.

In the past, this would have brought the Holy Rakshasa a sense of comfort and caused her to quiet down. This time it did not. Instead, it provoked fierce resistance, and her tattered wings lashed backward.

The force behind that blow was no small thing. It was enough to kill.

Fortunately, Niu Youdao had anticipated this. He knew that the Holy Rakshasa’s state of mind after leaving the Butterfly Dream Illusory Realm this time was probably nothing like the relative calm of the past. That was precisely why he had deliberately brought Yuan Gang along.

Before the wings could close on him, the sword Niu Youdao carried was already in his other hand. He laid it crosswise against the Holy Rakshasa’s back, the two ends braced against the hard bones of her wings. Again and again the wings tried to clap backward, but the sword kept them from closing.

The Holy Rakshasa seemed to have fallen into a state of madness. Her hands were restrained and could not attack. Her wings were blocked as well. She twisted and swept one leg sideways.

Niu Youdao had already guarded against something like this. He flipped upside down in midair while keeping both hands against her back.

Unable to do anything to him, the Holy Rakshasa grew increasingly frenzied, like a demon gone berserk. She thrashed her body violently. With her strength and the speed of her shaking, Niu Youdao gradually found it difficult to continue.

Yuan Gang seized the moment when she could no longer devote all her strength to contesting him. He suddenly pressed close, scissored both legs around hers, and locked them tightly in place, dragging her off balance as he fell backward with her.

Bang!

The two crashed heavily to the ground.

The Holy Rakshasa opened her mouth and lunged straight for Yuan Gang’s face. Yuan Gang seized both wrists and forced them hard against her chest, keeping her at a distance while she snapped and bit wildly without being able to reach him.

Blood flung from the Holy Rakshasa’s mouth splattered across Yuan Gang’s face, but he clung to her and refused to let go.

Niu Youdao dropped headfirst from above and once again pressed his sword crosswise against the Holy Rakshasa’s back to prevent an attack from her wings. His other palm struck her back again, continuing the art.

“Yaa... yaa...”

The Holy Rakshasa threw back her head and shrieked repeatedly, shaking her body with desperate, maddened force.

The veins on Yuan Gang’s neck bulged as he poured everything he had into restraining her.

Not far away, Lü Wushuang watched in silence, her face filled with startled uncertainty. She had no idea what these two brothers were actually trying to do.

As the stalemate dragged on, the demonically frenzied Holy Rakshasa gradually stopped raging.

Yun Ji had carefully searched the surrounding area and found no one remaining inside the town. She shot back into the sky and landed behind one of the circling flying mounts, keeping a vigilant watch on the surroundings in case anyone approached. Niu Youdao had warned her repeatedly: no outsider could be allowed to see how he dealt with the Holy Rakshasa.

As the Holy Rakshasa gradually quieted, the strength of her resistance also weakened, and Yuan Gang found it progressively easier to hold her.

Her pair of battered wings slowly shrank, withdrawing little by little into her back. Niu Youdao removed the sword that had been pinning them down.

Her fangs, claws, and other monstrous features began shrinking as well.

Lü Wushuang thought her eyes were deceiving her. Unable to resist, she stepped closer to watch. Only then did she realize she had seen correctly. The silver armored bones covering the Holy Rakshasa’s body were gradually softening, and her silver hair was changing color.

The Holy Rakshasa completely lost the ability to resist. Yuan Gang rose and helped her upright, dropping to one knee while supporting her by the arm.

Niu Youdao also knelt on one knee behind her, one palm still pressed to her back.

When her head of silver hair had completely turned black, the savage and terrifying Holy Rakshasa had transformed fully into the appearance of an ordinary woman.

Black hair framed a pure, pretty face that gave off an innocent air. Only her lips showed an unnatural bluish-black hue, while her naked body was covered in wounds.

That naked body was shapely despite the dirt covering it, the soft fullness of her breasts plainly exposed before the two men.

But at a moment like this, how could either man entertain the slightest improper thought? They saw what was there and thought nothing of it. Neither deliberately averted his gaze. Their concern outweighed everything else.

The Holy Rakshasa’s tightly closed eyes slowly opened, revealing a pair of large, dark eyes. They had once been bright and lively, but now looked dim and unfocused as she gazed around in confusion.

Niu Youdao removed his hand from her back and supported her. In a gentle voice, he called, “Yin’er.”

The name made her turn toward him. She saw an unfamiliar face, but she remembered the voice. After staring into Niu Youdao’s eyes, one hand instinctively caught his sleeve. Somehow she recognized the man behind the false face. A trace of dependence appeared in her weak gaze, and her voice came out faint.

“Dao-Dao...”

Shock surfaced in Lü Wushuang’s eyes.

She seemed to understand now why Niu Youdao had saved the Holy Rakshasa. That one call of “Dao-Dao” especially set off waves inside her heart. Niu Youdao and the Holy Rakshasa actually knew each other, and their relationship was clearly anything but ordinary.

Hearing that familiar form of address and seeing Yin’er in this condition filled Niu Youdao with an indescribably complicated feeling.

At the very least, it confirmed something again. This glutton’s memory became poor when she shifted between demonic and human forms, but as long as they had not been separated for too long, Yin’er would not forget everything.

Niu Youdao gave a faint smile and gestured for Yuan Gang to help support her.

Yuan Gang immediately took hold of Yin’er’s arm, but she kept clutching Niu Youdao’s sleeve and refused to let go.

Niu Youdao ignored that for the moment. He quickly stripped off his outer robe and draped it around Yin’er, wrapping her body and helping her put it on. He tied the sash and covered what should not be exposed. Then, yielding to her dependence on him, he half-cradled her in his arms again.

Reclining against him seemed to put Yin’er somewhat more at ease. Both hands caught at his clothes, and she murmured weakly, “Dao-Dao, I couldn’t find you.”

The others did not know what period she was talking about.

Niu Youdao did.

He had ridden through the jianghu, sword in hand through grudges and debts. Though he had always placed righteousness first, across two lifetimes he had still inevitably failed quite a few people.

Perhaps because he was too rational, he never spoke of those old affairs. In his heart, all of them had long since become like the vast sea of worldly vicissitudes and the endless tide of human affairs. Right and wrong, guilt and innocence—at this moment, all of it became a faint smile on his face.

“Don’t be afraid. I came to find you. You’re all right now.”

But the moment the comforting words left his mouth, something went wrong.

Yin’er’s body suddenly began trembling violently. Faint silver markings appeared across her face again. Both hands abruptly clenched Niu Youdao’s arm, and she forced out, “Dao-Dao, I feel awful!”

Niu Youdao already had one palm against her body, circulating spiritual power to examine her condition. Gradually, he understood what was happening inside her.

And precisely because he understood, he realized they were in trouble.

He no longer knew whether dissolving Yin’er’s demon power had helped her or harmed her.

Niu Youdao could sense that once Yin’er returned to human form, her body simply could not endure the poison ravaging her. By contrast, when she was in demonic form, the aberrant demon power within her could resist the poison to some extent.

That was probably why Yin’er had survived the poisoning until now.

At this moment, the poison’s erosion was causing her intense suffering, and the demon power resisting it was rapidly forming again inside her body. This was probably an instinctive act of self-preservation by Yin’er’s flesh, something even she herself could not suppress.

But that left Niu Youdao trapped between two dangers.

If he could not remove the poison in time, then continuing to use the Qiankun Art to purify the aberrant demon power within her would amount to accelerating her death.

Yet if he allowed that aberrant demon power to continue growing, Yin’er would eventually lose control and transform again. Even then, the poison would still kill her sooner or later.

Worse, the speed at which that aberrant demon power was now forming inside Yin’er far exceeded anything Niu Youdao had seen before.

With no other choice, he used one hand to circulate the Qiankun Art again and purify it, but he did not dare cleanse it completely. He deliberately left a certain amount of aberrant demon power inside her to resist the poison and delay the arrival of an irreversible outcome, while keeping it low enough that she would not transform.

“Dao-Dao, it hurts. Help me.”

Yin’er was visibly suffering. At last both arms wrapped around Niu Youdao’s neck, and her ten fingers began scratching uncontrollably across his back.

Niu Youdao held her and soothed her. “It’s all right, it’s all right. Yin’er, nothing will happen. Endure it for a little while. Just a little while. Trust me.”

Yin’er obediently gave a soft “Mm” and stopped speaking.

But the agony caused by the poison was real. She remained trapped in torment and could only cling tightly to Niu Youdao without letting go.

Lü Wushuang suddenly said, “She’s probably been poisoned!”

“I don’t need you to tell me that,” Niu Youdao replied coldly. He had little patience for her at the moment.

His hands were already moving. He first took out an ordinary antidote pill and forcibly placed it in Yin’er’s mouth, though he knew the poison had to be unusual. Otherwise, he would not have been unable to identify it.

Then he rapidly told Yuan Gang, “Xi Haitang shouldn’t have gone far. Contact him immediately. Have him find out what poison they used and whether there’s an antidote. If there is, make sure it reaches us within six hours. She won’t hold much longer...”

He suddenly swept his gaze around the surroundings, making a rapid and precise judgment.

“They poisoned the entire street. With the quantity involved, it can’t be some rare poison. There must be an antidote. Ask him directly for it. Tell him to get it at any cost. And remind him that if he dares delay, don’t blame me for turning on him!”

“Understood!” Yuan Gang nodded and immediately rose. He waved toward the sky, signaling Yun Ji to come down.

Their Goldenwings and similar communication tools were still on the flying mounts. To contact Xi Haitang, they needed one of the Goldenwings.

Lü Wushuang’s eyes shifted again at the side.

Hearing the name “Xi Haitang” stirred another wave inside her heart.

Now she knew Xi Haitang was colluding with this man.

In other words, Xi Haitang knew Niu Youdao was still alive.

She could not understand what madness had seized Xi Haitang. Did he not know how serious Niu Youdao’s false death was? Yet he dared involve himself and help conceal it. Was he tired of living?

Then there was the human-form Holy Rakshasa before her, along with everything involving the Fifth Domain.

Lü Wushuang’s uncertainty deepened. She had no idea how many secrets this man was hiding.

Niu Youdao slid one arm beneath Yin’er’s legs and lifted the shivering woman into his arms. He walked over to Yun Ji as she landed and said heavily, “We can’t stay here. Leave immediately. Find somewhere secure to hide first. We’ll deal with Yin’er’s poison after that.”

“All right!” Yun Ji nodded, stepped forward, and seized Lü Wushuang by the arm. “Move!”

Before long, the group climbed aboard their two flying mounts and rose from the burning town, vanishing into the sky.

[End of Chapter 1425]