Tan Yin instinctively took a few steps forward but suddenly felt as if something lightly tugged at her from behind. Startled, she looked back only to find no one there—Yuan Zhong was standing nearby, looking at her in confusion.
Was it just an illusion?
She turned around, her eyes beginning to glow with clarity as she reached into her storage pouch and gripped a talisman tightly. She wasn't sure if this talisman could handle the demon before her, but she couldn't just let it escape under her watch.
The demon was so gluttonous that its body had become too heavy to fly, forcing it to crawl clumsily toward the depths of the apricot forest. Tan Yin followed closely behind, but once again, something lightly tugged at the hem of her dress, as if trying to stop her from pursuing. Alarmed, she looked down—there was still no one.
"Hehehe..."
A faint, ethereal voice drifted from behind her, followed by a cold breath blowing gently through her hair. The chill sent shivers down Tan Yin’s spine as cold sweat began to seep through her back. Whatever was happening here was far too strange, even for her.
Could it be the demon? But that creature was still struggling to crawl away, incapable of such a feat.
Tan Yin retrieved the talisman from her storage pouch and stood cautiously, scanning the area.
Suddenly, the demon ceased its frantic movements. It appeared as though an invisible hand had grasped it, holding it tightly despite its violent thrashing. The translucent, mist-like creature convulsed violently, letting out a sharp screech before its massive body was abruptly pulled into the air and hurled violently toward the west.
The sudden turn of events left Tan Yin frozen in shock. But just as she was processing what had happened, she felt another cold breath brush against the back of her neck, sending a wave of unease through her.
"A young goddess who has not yet passed the trials of mortality," the same ethereal voice murmured softly by her ear.
Without hesitation, Tan Yin swung her talisman in the direction of the voice, but it hit nothing. At that moment, she felt as if countless invisible threads had wrapped around her, binding her tightly. She stood frozen in fear, unable to move.
"Come closer... let me see you..." The voice was soft and otherworldly, devoid of any warmth or emotion.
Tan Yin felt cold hands penetrate her body through the top of her head, gripping her divine essence. Her eyes flared brightly, but in the blink of an eye, all her divine power was suppressed. She let out a short, terrified cry as her spirit was forcefully drawn from her body, with no means to resist, and pulled toward the direction where the demon had disappeared.
As her spirit was dragged away, she saw her borrowed body collapse to the ground, only to be caught by Yuan Zhong, who had no idea what was happening. Everything else faded from her view. Her spirit, surrounded by countless cold hands, was yanked through the air with dizzying speed, making her feel nauseous and disoriented.
The wind howled in her ears like the wails of tormented ghosts as she was dragged through layers of mist. Then, she was suddenly plunged downward. The scene before her shifted drastically, and she found herself seemingly pulled into a massive lake.
Barely managing to lift her head, she saw a vast red palace rising from the center of the lake. Its walls were painted with vermilion and carved with flames, also dyed with vermilion, giving the palace the appearance of being set ablaze.
This was ancient and powerful sorcery!
Tan Yin only had a moment to take in these details before her spirit was lifted high and then flung through the towering gates of the crimson palace. Inside, the halls were pitch black, but as she was dragged through, ancient oil lamps on the walls flared to life one by one, only to extinguish as quickly as they had ignited.
At the end of the hall, a dark wooden door slowly creaked open. Tan Yin's spirit was pulled through, and with that, everything went black. The forceful shock overwhelmed her, and her consciousness faded into unconsciousness. The last thing she heard was the soft creak of the door closing behind her.
Tan Yin had no idea how much time had passed when she jolted awake. She found herself staring at a beautifully carved, ancient ceiling. It was ornately decorated, and the ridge beam had been shaped into the form of a menacing dragon, carved from peachwood. It was strange—peachwood was traditionally used to ward off evil spirits, yet here it was being used as the palace’s ridge beam.
Her head throbbed painfully, and beneath her, it felt as though she were lying on a bed of burning coals. The heat was unbearable, even for someone as resilient as a goddess. She could feel the searing pain down to her core.
Forcing herself to sit up, she scanned her surroundings. The palace was vast and dimly lit. The walls were covered in mysterious runes, and lifelike statues of gods stood on the columns, exuding an overwhelming aura of majesty. She could even sense faint traces of divine energy emanating from the statues.
The soft sound of water lapping against the walls reached her ears. Her mind raced back to the moment before she had lost consciousness, when she had been dragged into the palace held together by cursed flames. The realization struck her, and she leapt from the scorching floor. At that moment, the ethereal voice spoke again.
"You, young goddess who has yet to pass the trials of mortality—come closer."
Tan Yin spun around and saw a small wooden window open in the western corner of the palace. The sound of the water came from there, and she realized the palace was built over the lake. The water had risen so high that it was almost level with the window.
Beneath the window was an enormous bed, veiled in layers of thick curtains. A shadowy figure lay on the bed, though the details were obscured. Near the bed was a small, glowing blue pond, no larger than a well, in which translucent red-headed carp swam lazily. Occasionally, they would leap silently into the air, their bodies transforming into blue mist before returning to the water as fish once more.
Where was she? And who was on the bed? Tan Yin extended her spiritual senses to their limit, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t see through the curtains to determine the figure's identity, whether it was a god or a demon. This had never happened to her before.
"Come closer," the voice called again, beckoning her.
Against her better judgment, Tan Yin found herself drawn toward the bed. The closer she got, the stronger the unsettling feeling grew. Everything about this place was too strange, and with no sense of the demon’s presence, her wariness only deepened.
Just as Tan Yin approached the large bed, her eyes widened—right next to it was the same demon that had been devouring the evil spirits earlier! Instinctively, she reached for a talisman from her storage pouch, only to realize her pouch was still attached to her mortal body. She was here only as her spiritual form, dragged to this place by some unknown force.
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