Shu Yao remained calm, his expression unchanged. He simply stretched out his fair and slender wrists from his long sleeves. As his cold, red eyes took on a sinister look, black veins emerged on his skin, which then transformed into green vines. Sharp thorns grew from his rounded fingernails.
His white robe fluttered in the wind. Suddenly, countless vines shot out from behind his inky black hair. The vines seemed to be an extension of his body as they quickly reached straight out towards the approaching evil spirit beast.
At this moment, the vines coiled around the huge body of the evil spirit beast like wriggling snakes, thus blocking the beast's attack.
The distance between them was only about half an arm's length. The evil spirit beast writhed and struggled, letting out a deafening roar that shook the very core of one's being.
Shu Yao, calm and composed, curled his red lips into a cold and cruel arc. Throughout the whole process, he remained as calm as if he were playing an ordinary game.
His eyebrows and eyelashes were distinct, but his features were too cold. His peach - blossom eyes, as smooth as ink, were as charming as the moonlight and as aloof as ice and snow.
Under Shu Yao's control, the vines tightened their grip. The veins on the beast's limbs bulged as the constantly twisting vines resembled a giant python, covering the huge body of the evil spirit beast with dense layers of green vines.
Shu Yao was confident of victory. Just as he was about to use a surge of demonic energy to spread through the vines and deliver a fatal blow, the evil spirit beast seemed to absorb the power of heaven and earth. It let out a soul - shaking howl and instantly broke free from the vines.
The vines instantly collapsed and snapped. Shu Yao staggered a few steps backward under the impact, and the vital energy in his body was also disrupted.
At that moment when he looked up, the arrogant evil spirit beast stared at him with blood - thirsty eyes. It raised its strong front paw and gave a powerful swipe through the air. The Illusionary Yin Mountain trembled, and a mass of black smoke gathered and rushed towards the weakened Shu Yue.
Without hesitation, Shu Yao quickly turned into a green afterimage and rushed towards the black mist to shield Shu Yue from the fatal attack.
The gale blew by. Shu Yue instantly widened his eyes and watched as a white figure fluttered to the ground like a kite with a broken string.
"Dad, Daddy..." Panic filled his nerves. The blood spurting out of Shu Yao's mouth instantly turned his eyes red.
He didn't have the strength to stand. He could only crawl on the ground full of gravel, step by step, with great difficulty and effort, towards the frail white - robed man lying not far away.
The poison on his body was no match for the pain in his heart that felt like being gnawed by ten thousand insects. Shu Yue used only his hands to speed up his crawling. Before long, his hands were covered in blood from being pricked by the gravel on the ground.
As for the seriously injured Shu Yao, his upturned peach - blossom eyes were half - closed. His black hair spread over one shoulder, half - covering his snow - white and pale cheeks. The red blood at the corner of his lips only added to his air of fragility and pity.
On his white robe, dark and enchanting flowers had already bloomed on his chest, spreading out in all directions. At first glance, it was truly shocking!
He watched as the man who was poisoned still approached him without hesitation. A warm feeling welled up in his heart, and his red lips curved into a smile.
Finally, Shu Yao also stretched out his pale hand and tightly grasped the injured hand.
His breath was right in front of him, and his eyes were filled with concern for him.
"Shu, Shu Yue..." He murmured his name from his blood - stained lips and saw the uncontrollable tears streaming down those deep eyes.
"Roar!" Another long howl cut through the night sky, interrupting their tight grip.
Shu Yao turned his head from the moment of tenderness. Although his features were weak, the arrogance and unyieldingness in his bones were still evident.
"Today, if you have the guts, come and take my life. Otherwise, don't even think about getting the celestial herb!" Proud as he was, Shu Yao always stood alone in his pride.
The evil spirit beast seemed to understand his words. It raised its paw again, and a mass of black mist filled with evil energy rushed towards Shu Yao and Shu Yue.
Without thinking, Shu Yao leaned over to protect Shu Yue. He hugged him tightly, almost lying on top of Shu Yue.
Before death, they looked into each other's eyes. Gazing at the tenderness in each other's eyes, they even thought it would be good to embrace each other as they left this world.
Shu Yue also hugged Shu Yao back, with a faint smile on his lips.
It turned out that there was someone willing to accompany him. It was really good. He had no regrets in this life...
However, the expected pain did not come. Instead, there was a tremor in the world, accompanied by a shrill wail.
Shu Yao looked up. In his blurry vision, he saw a white - robed immortal with his hands behind his back.
The snow - white robe was connected to his snow - white hair. A hazy mist of immortality seemed to surround his body, highlighting his majestic and handsome appearance.
Although it was only a vague side view, Shu Yao easily recognized this person: "Honorable, Honorable Elder?!"
The Honorable Elder just tilted his head slightly, revealing a pale and cold face. His long white eyebrows hanging down covered the fleeting look of worry in his eyes.
He looked down at the fallen evil spirit beast from a high position and slowly said, "Evil spirit beast, I will spare your life today. From now on, guard the Illusionary Yin Mountain well and don't do any more evil deeds."
After saying that, the Honorable Elder raised his right hand, gathering a white light and projecting it towards the evil spirit beast. He also extracted the evil spirit from the beast, leaving only its kindest nature.
Struggling for a long time under this white light, the beast's ferocious blood - red eyes instantly dimmed and turned into a pure golden color. It shed its killing aura and became more docile instead.
It bowed slightly to the Honorable Elder, as if thanking him for curing its injury.
It let out a long howl to the sky, then turned and leaped away, disappearing into the Illusionary Yin Mountain.
The wind swept across the world, bringing a sense of desolation. A cold - blooded killing finally ended, giving way to a moment of calm.
"Thank, thank the Honorable Elder..." Shu Yao weakly expressed his gratitude. Then, under the Honorable Elder's exclamation, he couldn't hold on any longer and fell into darkness.
Hidden Spirit Mountain.
After taking the celestial herb, Shu Yue regained some consciousness. Although he was still a bit weak, the pain from his wounds had subsided.
At this moment, he didn't see the expected sight of his father when he woke up. Instead, he saw Shu Yao lying there, pale and unconscious.
"Honorable Elder, please, no matter what, make my father wake up. I can't live without him."
He grabbed the Honorable Elder's robe and knelt on the ground covered with green vines. Originally a valiant man, he was now crying like a child abandoned by the whole world.
But he still held on to hope. Shu Yao was a demon. He wouldn't die.
However, a single sentence from the Honorable Elder plunged him from hope into the abyss: "The battle between Shu Yao and the evil spirit beast cost him half of his cultivation base. Even if I heal his wounds, it will be very difficult for him to return to his former state."
"What do you mean by 'it will be very difficult to return to his former state'?"
The Honorable Elder let out a long sigh and helped Shu Yue up. His hoarse voice uttered words that almost drove Shu Yue to despair: "Shu Yao's cultivation was originally shallow. He only managed to transform into a human form. Now that he has lost half of his cultivation base, it will be very difficult for him to transform into a human form at will."
"You mean, from now on, it will be very difficult for him to live in human form like before, right?"
Shu Yue's mind was in a complete mess. All he knew was that his father had become like this because he had saved him.