Her chest burned with pain, and she spat out a mouthful of blood uncontrollably.
"Miss Tang!"
Lu Xing rushed to Tang Xiaomin's side.
"Miss Tang, get up quickly, run! I'll hold them off!"
Bang!
Lu Xing was sent flying by Song Xin's blow, and immediately lost consciousness, his life in doubt.
"Lu Xing!"
Tang Xiaomin stumbled to Lu Xing's side. The cracks on his body were even more obvious than before, with glimpses of his white bones within. Another blow like that, and Lu Xing would be truly finished.
Song Xin, his face filled with rage, approached Tang Xiaomin.
"I told you, I want one of your hands. If you're smart, you'll offer it."
Tang Xiaomin had never felt so powerless. One-on-one, she might have held a slight advantage. But against three, she was no match for them. Should she just resign herself to fate? Impossible. Even if she were to be utterly destroyed, her pride would never allow her to willingly let Song Xin sever her hand. Sudan Novel Network.
She slowly rose from the ground, but every movement sent waves of pain through her body, forcing her to grit her teeth.
"You three grown men, bullying a woman, don't you feel ashamed?"
Song Xin pointed his sword at Tang Xiaomin.
"You're no ordinary woman. You're the infamous demoness of the Underworld. Enough talk, offer your hand."
"Heh... hehe..."
Tang Xiaomin chuckled.
"If you want my hand, come and take it if you have the guts."
Song Xin's anger blazed. He ceased his talk and attacked the injured Tang Xiaomin, intending to take revenge while she was weak.
Bang!
A dark figure suddenly stepped resolutely in front of Tang Xiaomin. Clad in the armor of a Death Warrior and wielding a great saber, he stood his ground defiantly.
Seeing that it was merely a common Death Warrior, Song Xin sneered. With a swift chop of his blade, he ended the figure in a single move.
"Xiaomin! Run!"
Bang!
Tang Ye could not withstand Song Xin's assault. His fate was as tragic as Lu Xing's.
"Tang Ye!"
Tang Xiaomin watched in despair as Tang Ye fell, but Song Xin's attack struck again. This time, the cleaver in her hand was knocked away, and she herself was sent flying by Song Xin's kick, landing not far from Tang Ye.
"Tang Ye!"
Gasp!
Tang Xiaomin coughed up another mouthful of blood. She was already severely wounded, unable to even stand. She crawled desperately to Tang Ye's side. Though Tang Ye was protected by his armor, the cracks on his body were reaching a breaking point.
"Tang Ye, relax, hold on. With proper rest, you'll slowly recover. You'll be alright."
Ding!
A clear, brittle sound echoed in the midst of the battle, piercingly distinct. It shattered Tang Xiaomin's hope completely. Tang Ye's cracks had given way, and he was slowly fragmenting, turning into dust. This process would not last long, until his current soul form completely disintegrated into powder, merging with the Underworld's soil and vanishing forever.
"No... don't..."
This was the second time Tang Xiaomin had witnessed Tang Ye slowly die and disappear before her eyes. The first time, Tang Ye owed her a life, and he died saving her. This time, he owed her nothing, yet he had thrown himself in harm's way to save her, meeting such a fate. With his soul shattered, he could not be reincarnated, truly and utterly gone.
Tang Ye raised his cracked, disintegrating hand, attempting to wipe away Tang Xiaomin's tears.
"Xiaomin, I... I saved you again."
"Last time, we exchanged one life for another. This time, it's your turn to owe me a life."
"Tang Ye..."
Tang Xiaomin's voice choked, and the tears in her eyes could no longer be held back, spilling over. Each drop fell upon Tang Ye, stirring the fine dust that was his body, turning to powder.
"Why did you rush out? Why wouldn't you listen to me and enter reincarnation?"
"Why must you make me owe you? Why this endless entanglement?"
Why, time and again, did he sacrifice himself without hesitation to save her? Why did she have to experience such powerlessness, watching someone she cared for disappear? At that moment, her heart ached to the point of breathlessness.
Tang Ye caressed Tang Xiaomin's face, his expression devoid of fear or regret, but filled with a sense of peace.
"If, as a child, Mom and Dad hadn't sent you away, if you had stayed with me, how happy we would have been as siblings."
"I would have doted on you as you grew, and you would have been a carefree, innocent girl."
That unchangeable past was Tang Ye's regret.
"Don't cry, you won't look pretty if you cry."
"Before I go, let me see you smile at me one last time."
"Tang Ye..."
A thousand words were replaced by tears in her eyes, flowing like a broken string of pearls. In Tang Ye's final moments, Tang Xiaomin forced a smile that was more akin to crying. Tears continued to stream down her face.
"My little sister... her smile is truly..."
Beautiful...
Before he could utter the last word, Tang Ye's body slowly dissolved into dust. Only Tang Xiaomin's choked sobs echoed. No one had expected that the fearsome demoness of the Underworld would weep tears of sorrow and grief for a mere specter.
Taishan and the others exchanged glances.
Song Xin pointed his sword at Tang Xiaomin again, repeating his demand.
"I said I want one of your hands. You'd better offer it to me willingly, or I'll turn that one over there into dust as well."
Song Xin's gaze fell upon the dying Lu Xing. Tang Xiaomin, still lost in the pain of Tang Ye's destruction, slowly rose to her feet, tears still streaming down her face.
"You killed my brother."
Song Xin said dismissively, "So he was your brother? And what are you going to do about it?"
Tang Xiaomin said faintly, "I will behead you and turn you into dust, just like him."
Hearing this, Song Xin burst into laughter.
"Hahaha..."
"You can barely save yourself. Do you really think you have that ability now?"
"Empty threats are truly laughable."
As they stood at an impasse, a significant commotion began to approach. Du Yan frowned. "Not good, Yan Jue is chasing us. All seven of them couldn't stop him!"
Seeing this, Song Xin no longer hesitated.
"Let's take her down together. Capture this demoness."
Though ganging up on someone was dishonorable, for the sake of the larger objective, they cast all reservations aside. What surprised them even more was that the severely wounded Tang Xiaomin picked up her fallen cleaver again, black mist swirling in her eyes, her fighting spirit ablaze. She moved before they did, a vibrant red blooming on the battlefield as she unleashed her full power. Tang Ye's departure had shattered Tang Xiaomin's composure. She now had only one conviction: to behead Song Xin and avenge the blood debt.