Chapter 1471: Twists and Turns

Jiang Fan and Xu Yining: An Unsolvable Substitute Marriage

The anomalous energy was sealed within the black profound ice, making it difficult for Jiang Fan to activate.

Now that the Black Lotus of Salvation had released a portion of this anomalous energy, its power was naturally on a different level.

Yue Mingzhu also tightened her grip on the Tianshan silkworm thread.

Ordinary void rifts would self-repair in the Middle-earth world, often closing in an instant.

The opportunity was fleeting!

If they failed, unless Jiang Fan could produce a second piece of black profound ice, they would be trapped in the void forever.

The deep, lingering chime of an ancient temple bell resonated.

The black profound ice struck the spatial barrier, creating wide ripples.

The anomalous energy swirling around seized the opportunity to permeate the spatial barrier, corroding it into a patch of white ripples.

It was clear that Middle-earth had been breached.

But the rift was too small, nowhere near enough for anyone to pass through.

And as expected, the Middle-earth world's self-repairing ability activated.

The patch of white ripples quickly vanished.

Jiang Fan's expression flickered. The Black Lotus of Salvation couldn't release all the anomalous energy, which meant the rift wasn't large enough!

This was their only chance!

Glancing at Yue Mingzhu, who was close by, a resolute determination flashed in Jiang Fan's heart.

A mirror dropped from his sleeve; it was unmistakably a spatial mirror.

He had already considered this scenario.

If the rift wasn't large enough for him to leave, he would at least send Yue Mingzhu and the little Qilin out.

The spatial mirror was the best method.

The rift was large enough for the spatial mirror to pass through; he just needed to put Yue Mingzhu into it.

In a flash, Jiang Fan spoke rapidly, "Quickly, let's enter the spatial mirror. This is our last chance."

Yue Mingzhu didn't suspect anything amiss and didn't resist the spatial mirror's pulling force. The next moment, she was swept inside.

Jiang Fan, of course, didn't follow her in. He merely tossed his Heavenly Thunder Stone inside.

Then, he mustered all his strength and hurled the spatial mirror towards the rift.

A powerful spatial force hindered the spatial mirror from passing through the rift.

Jiang Fan gritted his teeth. Disregarding the maddening anomalous energy within the black profound ice, he snatched it from the Black Lotus of Salvation and slammed it hard onto the spatial mirror.

Only then did the spatial mirror break through the spatial force.

Just as the white rift was about to disappear, it precariously passed through.

A ripple spread, and the white rift vanished.

The void returned to darkness.

Jiang Fan was also swallowed by the void, but a look of genuine relief appeared on his face.

"Live well, Mingzhu."

As for himself...

An uncontrollable madness surged in his mind, stirred by the anomalous energy.

Jiang Fan instinctively wanted to use the Sage's Blood within him to dispel it, but seeing the pitch-black void, he gave up.

There was no need to distinguish between sobriety and madness anymore.

Dying withered in madness within the void was even better than dying soberly in despair.

Just as he resigned himself to death.

The Black Lotus of Salvation, however, slowly floated towards him, its tendrils twisting and writhing like snakes, as if it were angry.

It was clear its intentions weren't good.

Jiang Fan's heart tightened. He had witnessed the power of those tendrils; they had easily crushed the black profound ice by coiling around it.

This was something even the Golden-Scaled Venerable couldn't shatter.

If it coiled around him, the consequences were obvious.

However, after a brief moment of dread, he gradually regained his calm.

He gave a self-deprecating laugh, "We are both people lost in the world, why rush to kill each other?"

As if understanding his words, the Black Lotus of Salvation's writhing tendrils quieted, but it still moved towards Jiang Fan.

He didn't know what it intended to do.

Jiang Fan observed the peculiar Black Lotus of Salvation carefully for the first time, pondering:

"What exactly are you? Why are the demon race so afraid of your arrival in Middle-earth?"

"Also, I was swept into the interlayer world; that wasn't your doing, was it?"

He had always found it very strange.

Back then, he had clearly been far from the spatial fold's range, yet it was as if he was targeted, swept in by a sudden spatial fluctuation.

Now, it seemed that the strange spatial fluctuation was not unrelated to the mysterious Black Lotus of Salvation before him.

But why did it seek him out?

Was there something on him that even the Black Lotus of Salvation coveted?

Suddenly, his heart trembled slightly.

The Primeval Void Tree!

As fellow spiritual plants of heaven and earth, the Black Lotus of Salvation's perception of the Primeval Void Tree must be far stronger than that of other beings.

So, it summoned him to the interlayer world with two purposes.

First, to use Jiang Fan's help to leave the interlayer world.

Second, to seize his Primeval Void Tree!

Watching the Black Lotus of Salvation slowly drift towards him, Jiang Fan narrowed his eyes:

"Your heart is truly venomous."

"To escape the interlayer world, you're willing to sacrifice all the beings of the underworld!"

If the Black Lotus of Salvation left the interlayer world, it would cause that world to collapse.

Yet, it still proceeded.

Its ruthlessness was outrageous.

It seemed the Golden-Scaled Venerable's prohibition against its arrival in Middle-earth was not without reason.

Fortunately, this thing was with him, doomed to wither and die in the void, unable to harm anyone else.

As for the Primeval Void Tree being taken...

What use was the Primeval Void Tree when his life was gone?

If it wanted it, it could take it. They would all die in the end anyway.

At this moment, the Black Lotus of Salvation had reached Jiang Fan.

Large swathes of black yin energy sprayed from its lotus pod, engulfing him.

Jiang Fan felt his body growing colder, rapidly losing vitality.

He didn't resist, slowly closed his eyes, too weary to struggle in the void.

But, at that very moment.

A moon appeared in the void above, without any warning!

A graceful figure dropped from it.

A Tianshan silkworm thread shot out from her hand, wrapping around Jiang Fan and dragging him out of the yin energy.

Jiang Fan opened his eyes and saw a beautiful face filled with anger.

It was Yue Mingzhu!

And the moon above was none other than the wide-open bottom of the Nine-Dragon Demonic Cauldron!

Jiang Fan was stunned.

He suddenly noticed half a furry head peeking out from the moon, with fiery red fur and large, clear black-and-white eyes.

Who else could it be but the little Qilin?

Only then did Jiang Fan understand that it was the little Qilin's idea.

It must have seen the Nine-Dragon Demonic Cauldron connecting to the void before, thus it had a flash of inspiration and opened it.

Yue Mingzhu pulled Jiang Fan close, and without a word, punched towards him.

But just as her fist was about to land, she stopped.

Instead, she forcefully embraced Jiang Fan, her previously angry face now streaming with tears:

"You scoundrel! How could you deceive me?"

"Did you think acting so grand and manly would make me very moved?"

"You're wrong, I'll hate you to death!"

"How could you abandon me and go die alone?"

When Yue Mingzhu successfully returned to Middle-earth, she finally understood that Jiang Fan had sacrificed himself to ensure her survival.

In that moment, she felt no happiness whatsoever.

All she felt was the crushing pain of despair.

If Jiang Fan died for her, how could she live on alone?

Fortunately, the little Qilin had thought of a way, catching Jiang Fan just in time before he was swept away by the spatial energy.