Transmigrating Into a Fantasy World: Signing in During Pregnancy, Reaching the Summit with My Childhood Sweetheart

160: Chapter 160: Parting Ways in Desperate Circumstances and the Blood Oath of the Star KeyDemonic shadows on the horizon pressed down like dark clouds over a city, and the sharp sound of breaking air tore through the sky, rapidly approaching with a suffocating, tyrannical Killing Intent. Those were no mere stragglers, but a well-trained hunting legion with clear orders to kill! Their auras merged, faintly forming a military Formation; their power was far more than the simple sum of their parts, and among them were at least several powerful individuals comparable to the Late Golden Core Stage or even the Peak Golden Core Stage!

The Dark Gold Mark inside Nangong Xuan’s body was like a red-hot iron, frantically eroding his Meridians and Golden Core; it was like a bright lamp, providing a clear and unmistakable guide for the approaching pursuers. His face was pale and dripping with cold sweat, yet he forced his spine straight, his eyes as sharp as an eagle’s as he instantly scanned the surrounding environment.

”There’s no time to remove it!” His voice was urgent yet exceptionally calm. ”Mu Xue, listen! Their target is me, this mark! Staying with me will only drag you both into a dead end!”

”Then we’ll die together!” Su Muxue’s beautiful eyes brimmed with tears, yet they flashed with an unquestionable resolve. Her Taiyin Star Power surged recklessly into Nangong Xuan’s body, attempting to suppress the rampaging alien energy, even if it was only a drop in the bucket.

”Mother! Father!” Lin Mo’s thoughts carried a sob as his chaos star core flickered wildly, attempting to analyze the mark’s structure to find a weakness, only to discover that the energy level was extremely high and the structure bizarre; there was no way to start within such a short time. ”That mark... it’s not just eroding; it’s also constantly absorbing Father’s power to strengthen itself while sending out an even stronger signal!”

The pursuers drew closer, and it was now possible to see three hideous dark gold flying monsters, shaped like giant bats with wingspans that blotted out the sky. On the back of each monster stood several Cultivators clad in uniform dark gold armor, their faces cold as they held runic war halberds! These Cultivators had hollow eyes and cold, tyrannical auras, completely different from Human Race Cultivators; they were more like completely controlled Puppet soldiers! The knight at the head held a battle flag burning with black flames, and his aura had remarkably reached the Peak Golden Core Stage, far surpassing the others!

This was a small but elite Dark Side Hunting Squad! Their objective was clear—eliminate the marked one and seize the Source Key!

”It’s too late!” Nangong Xuan shoved Su Muxue away, his eyes as resolute as iron. ”I must lead them away! This is the only chance for survival!”

”No—” Su Muxue still wanted to step forward.

Right then, Nangong Xuan slapped his Dantian, forcibly drawing upon the power of the Dark Gold Mark while simultaneously injecting a strand of pure Nirvana Sword Intent into it!

”Pfft!” He spat out another mouthful of blood, his face instantly becoming several shades more haggard, but the mark’s light suddenly intensified several times over, emitting coordinate signals that were clearer and stronger than ever before!

”What are you doing?!” Su Muxue was horrified.

”Since it can’t be hidden, let it burn completely and become the brightest target!” Nangong Xuan’s voice was hoarse, but his eyes flashed with a mad yet rational light. ”This way, their perception of you will be temporarily covered! Go!”

He turned and transformed into a dark gold streak of light—much dimmer than before but still resolute. Instead of fleeing into the distance, he charged toward a side flank where the terrain was more treacherous and the residual Evil Qi was more concentrated—a stone forest! He deliberately released his cultivation, his Sword Intent piercing the sky, turning himself into the most dazzling lamp in the darkness!

”Target confirmed! Highest priority! Pursue!” The Hunting Captain holding the flag ordered coldly. With a wave of the battle flag, the three Bat Demons immediately changed direction and, carrying billowing demonic flames, chased after Nangong Xuan! Sure enough, they were completely attracted by the incredibly strong mark signal on Nangong Xuan. As for Su Muxue and Lin Mo, whose auras had been briefly obscured by Nangong Xuan’s Nirvana Sword Intent, the pursuers only gave them a cursory glance before ignoring them!

”Brother Xuan—!” Su Muxue watched the silhouette that had resolutely led the pursuers away. Her heart felt like it was being twisted by a knife, and tears fell like rain as she prepared to chase after him regardless of everything.

”Mother! Don’t go! Father is risking his life to buy us time!” Lin Mo’s thoughts suddenly pulled her back, carrying unprecedented urgency and a sliver of forced, rational analysis. ”The pursuers are too strong; going there now is just throwing our lives away! We would be failing Father! We must survive! Only then can we find a way to save him!”

The star core trembled violently, transmitting the results of Lin Mo’s full-effort calculations: ”That mark... Father used a method of damaging his own Origin to forcibly enhance its signal to cover us, but this also accelerated the erosion! He won’t be able to hold out for long! We must find a way to deal with that mark as soon as possible, or find powerful reinforcements!”

Su Muxue stopped abruptly, her fingernails digging deep into her palms, blood seeping out without her even noticing. She watched the light disappear into the depths of the stone forest and the demonic shadows chasing after it, a strong sense of powerlessness and grief nearly drowning her. But she knew Lin Mo was right. She was a mother; she still had a child to protect. She could not fail the opportunity Nangong Xuan had traded his life for!

”Go!” She abruptly wiped away her tears, her eyes becoming determined and cold once more. Taiyin Star Power wrapped around herself and the star core as she sped away without hesitation in the opposite direction of Nangong Xuan, toward the depths of the relatively unfamiliar wasteland they had passed through on their way here! She had to get away from here, find a place to hide, and plan her next move!

However, misfortunes never come alone.

Just as Su Muxue had flown less than a hundred miles and was about to enter a continuous mountain range—

The damaged, dimly glowing platinum star key in her arms, along with the emerald key of living beings, suddenly began to hum on their own! This time, it wasn’t to protect their master, but to produce an abnormal, uncontrollable resonance!

At the same time, from deep within the mountains below, in a seemingly ordinary valley, a weak but incredibly pure pillar of platinum light suddenly shot up, creating a strong resonance with the sharp metal star key in Su Muxue’s arms!

”What’s happening?!” Su Muxue was shocked and tried to suppress the star key’s movement, only to find it useless! That resonance power was overbearing, directly pulling the Taiyin Star Power within her body and causing her to fall toward that valley against her will!

”Mother! There’s something below... summoning the star key! It’s... it’s the same source of power! But something seems a bit off!” Lin Mo said urgently, his star core frantically scanning the area below, only to be blocked by a layer of mist.

*Whoosh!*

As if pulled by an invisible hand, Su Muxue instantly fell into the valley. The expected impact did not come; instead, she seemed to pass through a barrier like a film of water, and the scene before her eyes changed abruptly!

Inside the valley, it wasn’t the barren wasteland seen from the outside; instead, it was covered in profound platinum runes, forming a massive sealing Formation. In the center of the Formation was no treasure, but a mass of... liquid metal that was constantly writhing, trying to crash against the Seal, and emitting pure Sharp Metal Qi mixed with a strand of eerie black lines.

This mass of liquid metal seemed to possess a simple consciousness; sensing the aura of the star key, it became exceptionally excited and violent, crashing against the Seal until the light flickered wildly!

At the edge of the Formation, an old man in tattered white robes with white hair and beard sat cross-legged. His aura was withered, yet his cultivation was clearly unfathomable. He was constantly striking out hand Seals to stabilize the Seal, with blood still at the corners of his mouth, clearly at the end of his rope.

Seeing Su Muxue burst in, and especially sensing the aura of the two star keys in her arms, the old man was first startled, but then his eyes erupted with unbelievable wild joy and... a final sliver of hope!

”Providence! It is providence!” The old man’s voice trembled with excitement. ”I have guarded this ’Golden Essence Evil Spirit’ for hundreds of years; have I finally waited for a destined person carrying a star key?! Young lady! Quick! Lend me a hand! Use the power of the star key to completely purify this Golden Essence Evil Spirit eroded by the power of the dark side, otherwise, once it breaks the Seal, thousands of miles of land will be turned into a Sharp Metal Desolate Domain, and all living beings will suffer!”

Su Muxue stopped in shock, looking at the sealed, terrifying, and unstable liquid metal, then at the anxious old man. Her heart instantly fell into a massive struggle and contradiction.

On one side was her Dao Companion, surrounded and in mortal danger, desperately needing her to find help or a solution; on the other side was the precarious Seal before her and the seemingly righteous request, and... this old man seemed to have some understanding of the star keys and the power of the dark side?

How should she choose?