Volume One, Chapter 88: Hand in Hand, May the World Treat You with Warmth

"Xiaoxiao..."

"Thank you for caring. Could you play a song for me?"

Suddenly, the weeping pregnant woman lifted her head and gazed into the night sky as she spoke.

At that moment, everyone understood that this song was likely her final request before ending her own life.

The length of a song...

It meant...

Two lives lost in one.

The rescue team was prepared. They contacted Ye Weiyang’s team, asking for a longer song to be played, hoping to buy themselves more time.

"Alright, I’ll play a song for you," Ye Xiaoxiao replied, searching for a lengthy track.

But just then, Su Le suddenly pulled out his phone and sent over the song and lyrics he’d just written down...

Her world revolved only around that monk. The monk was not only her family and friend, but also her companion, her plaything, the very meaning of her existence.

When the third prince, Mu Yun, saw Zeng Yan and his companion acting this way, his expression shifted, and he let out a cold snort. The situation was urgent—these two, having witnessed Su Zhong’s formidable strength, had suddenly changed their minds about leaving him behind. Yet, this came as no surprise to him.

He vanished abruptly, his purple figure appearing high in the air. With an earth-shattering momentum, his enormous sword tore through the black-clad figure above. There was no blood, no sign of victory. The man in black watched this assault—one he had already anticipated—with cold detachment.

Beneath the broad green leaves that hung down, after a roar like a tiger’s cry from some strange beast, a chilling hiss like a serpent’s tongue followed. The two sounds rose and fell, as though exchanging secret words, sometimes ceasing, sometimes resuming.

Li Shan paused in shock, staring at Ning Baicao, his expression clearly asking how she knew he’d been poisoned.

"Yes, sir. Mr. Qian Zhuanning, this way please." Yu Lu committed herself fully to her duties. Ever since she’d started working for her boss, Li Hao, her overall income had soared. So she followed Li Hao with unwavering loyalty.

After dinner, Li Hao and Zhou Ruotong headed to the newly opened casino on Saipan Island, intending to have some fun.

"Anger is blind. It does not allow you to see anyone’s true face. That is why hatred is evil—it is so often accompanied by lies." He turned away, murmuring something as if praying for these sinners.

Even the lowest-ranked E-class ability user could bring disaster to a bustling city if they lost control.

Wu Hao’s sword style shifted suddenly; a web of blades appeared overhead. With a sharp crack, his sword shattered in his hands as black and white sword-lights flashed. Hair and flesh flew in all directions.

Neither the Emperor of the East nor the Emperor of the Night would stoop to such trivialities, but the man before them would. He combined the unrestrained spirit of the Night Emperor and the proud, rebellious streak of the East Emperor. He was something new, boldly forging his own path in defiance of fate.

After washing and changing clothes—the weather growing warmer since her return from Yangzhou—she had the household tailors prepare many short-sleeved jackets for her to wear.

Everyone settled into the main hall. Qi Su-niang made her apologies and sat in the center seat. To her left sat Lian Zhenyun, Li Siqin, and Qi Qiang; to her right, Lianxiang. Rui’er and Gengzhi stood at her sides. Ban Ye held a brocade mat, while Zi Ding presented a cup of Fortune Tea.

In a moment of delight, she nearly tucked a blooming wild chrysanthemum into her hair, but, remembering her face, lowered her hand again.

Master Mu of the Wood Mound grew suspicious: Why was Master Jin suddenly speaking well of her? Could this be a trap? Usually, she never yielded an inch before the Great Mound Master. Had the sun risen in the west, that Jin Mound Master now spoke for her?

"Alright! No problem!" Li Jiang was excited—after more than a decade in this line of work, he’d rarely had the chance to discover a genuine ancient site firsthand.

Yuan Tianye pulled a stalk of sorghum from his head and tossed it at Huan’er, who was just getting up from the ground, then turned and left.

Based on the child’s birth date, he lacked earth in his five elements. Remembering his master’s advice, that the child should carry earth from the city walls, Zhang Guozhong pondered a long while before naming him Zhang Yicheng.

In the residence of Lu Jun, in the east wing bedroom, several young men in palace guard uniforms peered inside. Lady Lu waited anxiously outside the silk screen, wringing her hands as she paced. She often paused at the door, listening for any sound from within.

"No need for explosives," Old Liu began carving words into the tomb passage’s wall with his dagger. "I have a rough idea what’s in here! Of all things in the world—spirits, demons, and ghosts—only the path of the Dao is supreme!" Sparks flew wildly from his blade, the carvings a chaotic scrawl, indecipherable as any known script.

With a grand gesture, the Left Envoy flung out his hand; a rainbow-hued feathered robe soared through the main hall, circling like a spirit bird spreading its wings, dazzling all who watched.

"I was once the village chief," the old fisherman said proudly. "My name is Li Yongjia—you must have heard of me."

With not enough rice for the original plan and worried the ox would cause more trouble, she dug out some grass seeds from the fodder and grew a clump for it to eat.

He would not do anything worse to Cheng Anning—not out of compassion, but simply because he refused to lose to his own impulses.

What shocked Ye Jinmu even more was the ancestor’s claim that, in all of China, only the Chu family possessed supernatural abilities; no other families did.

Now, the people of Chishui still harbored deep hostility toward Jiuzhou, even plotting to drive the two into conflict. In reality, Chishui had already fallen to become a subordinate lackey of the Tianyao Kingdom—a mere dog to their master.

First, release Liu Yucheng. Once he’s confirmed unpoisoned, then release Ililian.

Huo Yan fell silent, downing his glass of wine in one gulp. His eyes reddened at the corners, and the oppressive air around him lingered.

Barely two and a half months into becoming a beast master, he had already reached the ninth rank—a talent so prodigious it could not be denied.

"What... exactly is your profession?" Drunken Fortune finally asked. In less than half a day since meeting Zhuang Lan, he still could not discern Zhuang Lan’s true occupation.

It was an animal resembling a horse, covered in yellow fur, with two pronounced humps on its back.

Though he was under attack and trapped, Chang Kong Wuyi smiled, his expression full of playful contempt, as though neither his predicament nor his assailants were worthy of concern.

Jormungandr, the world-encircling serpent of Norse mythology, was called one of the "Three Siblings of Misfortune" alongside Fenrir the wolf and Hel, goddess of death. As the middle child, his power was so dark that Odin cast him into the bottomless depths of the human world’s oceans.

Snake Island lay southeast in the Bay of Brazil, about twenty nautical miles from the coast.

"The secret to the outer realms isn’t with Yi Tian, but it’s related to him." At this moment—

"Hmph, if anyone dares kill a member of the Flame Sect, then they must be prepared to face our wrath!" Yan Tian snorted coldly, a glint of change in his eyes.