Chapter 2346: Return

At this moment, the Dread Shadow Fiend laughed. "That startled me. It seems she's also suppressed by this world, her power not at its peak. If we join forces, we can attack what she must defend!"

The Bloodthirsty Crocodile Ancestor wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. "I was just thinking the same thing!"

If her strength were no less than theirs, then even a two-on-one fight wouldn't guarantee a quick victory. But it's different if she has someone to protect. Zu An was like a dead man at the moment, and Shang Liuyu was also at the end of her rope. With these two burdens, she would easily be overwhelmed in a fight, unable to protect both.

As expected, the two, wielding demonic weapons, continuously attacked Zu An and Shang Liuyu. Jing Teng had to turn back to save them each time, and quickly found herself at a disadvantage.

Shang Liuyu felt grateful. Although the woman spoke coldly, she had intentionally protected her several times. So she reminded her, "Miss, you don't need to worry about me. Just protect Ah Zu."

Jing Teng snorted coldly. "There's no difference whether I protect you or not, as they're going to attack Zu An anyway. Besides, if you really die here, how can I explain myself to Brother Zu?"

Hearing her naturally call him "Brother Zu," Shang Liuyu thought their relationship was indeed extraordinary. *Yes, if it were just an ordinary relationship, why would he always have her by his side…*

"I'm afraid you don't have the ability to protect both of them," the Bloodthirsty Crocodile Ancestor snorted. Then he simply stopped attacking Jing Teng, instead directing every move towards Zu An and Shang Liuyu.

The Dread Shadow Fiend also cooperated from the side with a grim smile, always ready to find Jing Teng's opening and deliver a fatal blow.

Just then, a soft hum sounded. Jing Teng's hands flashed with afterimages as she formed seals, chanting, "Lin, Bing, Dou, Zhe, Jie, Zhen, Lie, Qian, Xing! Black Tortoise, heed my command!"

As soon as her voice fell, a phantom image of a snake-headed turtle appeared, enveloping the three of them. The attacks of the Bloodthirsty Crocodile Ancestor and the Dread Shadow Fiend struck the phantom image, and were immediately repelled by a powerful recoil force.

"Who is this woman, that she can command a Black Tortoise manifestation!" The Bloodthirsty Crocodile Ancestor flexed his aching wrists, a look of horror on his face.

The Dread Shadow Fiend's expression was grim. "No matter her origin, we must kill the one named Zu today. Otherwise, we'll be the ones who die later."

Previously, when they heard that the War Priest had been killed by the natives of this world, all the demons were stunned. However, most of them generally thought the War Priest had been careless, or had fallen into some trap or ambush. But later, as powerful demons died one after another by Zu An's hand, their complacency vanished. The one named Zu An was indeed formidable.

But the demons weren't overly panicked. After all, they were all restricted by the laws of this world, preventing them from unleashing their true power. In other places, it would be easy for them to kill Zu An. But this close encounter… The fact that he impersonated the Lord of Myriad Transformations and led them on a wild goose chase was one thing; at most, it just showed he was cunning.

But now, he wasn't even here. Yet he casually set up dozens of formations, and with a seemingly weak woman, they actually managed to block them for three days and three nights. Moreover, he had such a powerful and mysterious woman hidden with him. The two demons even felt that her true strength was not inferior to theirs, and she was also restricted by the laws of this world. What's more crucial, she seemed to possess a special aura that made their souls tremble slightly, as if she were their natural predator.

If they allowed Zu An to return, they would surely face certain death. Thinking of this, the Dread Shadow Fiend roared, "Bring out all your hidden trump cards! If we don't use them now, we might not get another chance!"

As soon as he finished speaking, his entire body suddenly transformed into a black shadow tens of meters tall. The world immediately grew dim as the black shadow surged towards the three at the edge of the cliff from all directions. The three seemed like a lone boat in a raging sea, ready to be completely swallowed by the darkness at any moment.

The Bloodthirsty Crocodile Ancestor cursed angrily, "Damn it! You said we wouldn't hold back, but you still kept a move hidden. It seems you originally planned to use it against me."

Though he cursed, he knew what was important. With a roar, his entire body also swelled up, turning into a giant crocodile hundreds of meters long. The crocodile-mouth scissors he used earlier directly combined with his mouth. Judging by that posture, even a giant dragon in front of him could be bitten in half with a single snap.

The two peak Earth Immortal demons attacked with all their might, holding nothing back, yet the Black Tortoise phantom remained as steady as a rock.

Shang Liuyu couldn't help but feel impressed. "Miss, you're truly amazing. Despite such fierce attacks from the other side, your defensive manifestation shows no reaction at all." Previously, when she used the power of the Human Emperor Seal to control the defensive formations, they would usually be left tottering from the attacks of the two demons, unlike now, where there was an inexplicable sense of security.

Who knew that Jing Teng suddenly said coldly, "I can't hold on much longer."

Shang Liuyu had just breathed a sigh of relief, but the smile on her face immediately froze. "???"

Jing Teng calmly stared at the attacks of the two demons outside. "I'm severely wounded and need... to fall into a deep sleep to recover my strength." Her face suddenly flushed slightly. Actually, there was another way that could help her recover, but of course, there was no need to tell the other party about that.

"I woke up once a few days ago, and what little I had managed to recover before was mostly depleted. If not for Zu... *cough, cough*, I probably wouldn't even be awake now." Jing Teng couldn't help but glare at Zu An as she spoke. "I feel like I must have owed him in a past life. Every time I manage to recover a little, he immediately drains me."

"Make him compensate us! Make him compensate us!" Black Jing Teng's tone was somewhat excited.

"Shut up!" White Jing Teng's expression changed, fearing that her sister would reveal how Zu An would compensate them without restraint. Although she herself rather liked that method of compensation, if other women found out, she didn't have a face as thick as her sister's.

As expected, Shang Liuyu stared at her curiously, her heart filled with intense curiosity about how they intended to make Zu An compensate them. Of course, she also knew that this was not the time to ask such a question. She hastily asked another, more important question: "How much longer can this manifestation last?"

Jing Teng stood with her hands behind her back, watching the two ferocious-looking demons continuously bombarding the Black Tortoise manifestation with their massive forms. Her expression was exceptionally calm. "Ten..."

Seeing her calm expression, Shang Liuyu immediately breathed a sigh of relief. "Are there still ten *shichen*?" She certainly wouldn't think there were still ten days. After all, the two demons opposite them were incredibly intimidating; if she could last ten days in this situation, she wouldn't have said what she did earlier.

"Nine!" "Eight!" Jing Teng didn't answer her, only continued counting down.

Shang Liuyu: "???" "Sister, are you joking? With so little time left, you're still so calm?"

The ten-second countdown passed in an instant. With a loud boom, the Black Tortoise phantom around them directly shattered.

The Dread Shadow Fiend and the Bloodthirsty Crocodile Ancestor rushed over with grim smiles. Jing Teng took a deep breath. "I don't think I can hold them off much longer. You take Zu An and run as far as you can."

The Bloodthirsty Crocodile Ancestor burst into laughter. "Run? None of you will escape today!"

Shang Liuyu glanced at Zu An and gave a bitter smile. "You take Ah Zu and run. I can't run anymore." Guarding Zu An's physical body these past days had already exhausted her last bit of strength. How could she still run?

Jing Teng frowned. "Then, my apologies!" She could only try her best to take Zu An away, and even then, it wasn't certain they would escape.

Watching the other person leave with him, Shang Liuyu smiled, no fear on her face. Only a slight reluctance as she glanced at Zu An. She took out the *xun* from her waist and played "Original Scenery of My Hometown," the song Zu An had given her back then, calmly embracing death. She hoped that even after death, her soul could return to her hometown…

However, thinking of the hatred of the two demons, she knew that if she fell into their hands, she would likely suffer a fate worse than death. So, while playing the last song of her life, she stood at the edge of the cliff and leaned backward. The dark abyss below was a forbidden zone of life. No matter how powerful the two demons were, they wouldn't dare go down there.

She hoped the young woman could escape safely with Ah Zu. She no longer had the strength to finish the entire song, so she simply closed her eyes, waiting for the moment she would fall into the abyss of death.

However, after a while, she felt something strange. She seemed not to have fallen into the endless abyss, but had stopped falling, her entire body now lying on solid, substantial ground. Yet, she felt no pain at all. Instead, there was only boundless warmth and a sense of peace.

She opened her eyes in confusion. What met her gaze were a pair of familiar eyes and a familiar face. She was completely dazed. "Ah Zu, have we reunited in the Underworld?"

Zu An tenderly brushed aside the slightly messy hair on her face. "Sister Shang, I'm back." In fact, he had sensed the anomaly here and was about to return much earlier, but for some reason, he had been forced to silently observe everything. He only appeared now. Seeing her so disheveled and weak, a boundless sense of guilt and pity immediately rose in his heart.