Chapter 199: An Inadvertent Flutter of the Heart

Chapter 199: Chapter 199: An Inadvertent Flutter of the Heart

Yun Sheng spread her spiritual power out even wider, trying to trace the source of the energy affecting the little wolf.

Soon, she discovered that the power was also coming from behind the small hill. The Spiritual Pollutant that specialized in spiritual attacks had found the little wolf and was now attacking it.

Just then, the little wolf abruptly unleashed a mass of black flames, which blotted out the sky as it blasted toward the ground!

The things hiding underground couldn’t withstand the searing black flames. They surged out from the soil in a dense swarm, their carapaces glinting with a cold, sinister light in the fire’s glow.

"Oh my god, what are those?!" Cheng Nian’s voice, full of shock and fear, came from the other side.

"I can’t believe there were so many Pollutants hiding under the open ground!"

"It’s a good thing we didn’t go over there!"

The others cried out in alarm as well.

Zhao Heng’s face was ashen. He had guessed there would be Pollutants after hearing Xing Che and Yun Sheng’s warning not to cross.

But he never imagined they would all be hiding underground. If his group had gone straight across, the consequences would have been unthinkable!

Yun Sheng heard their voices but didn’t look back.

She stared intently at the Pollutants emerging from the ground. Forced out by the little wolf’s black flames, they should have scattered and fled. Instead, they were pinned down by fluctuations of spiritual power coming from the hill. As if herded by invisible reins, they charged in unison toward her and Xing Che.

An idea suddenly flashed in Yun Sheng’s mind.

She suddenly gripped Xing Che’s sleeve. "If that thing can control them, can my spiritual power interfere with its control?"

Xing Che paused, a flicker of surprise in his eyes, but it was quickly replaced by admiration.

"Give it a try," he said.

Yun Sheng nodded, condensing her spiritual power into a fine thread and quickly probing the nearest Pollutant.

Her goal wasn’t to attack, but to create chaos.

The Pollutant’s body went rigid. It began spinning in place as if drunk, then dizzily crashed into one of its own kind. The two creatures became a tangled, struggling mess.

"It really works!"

Yun Sheng exclaimed, looking up at Xing Che.

Her eyes were sparkling, filled with the excited and proud look of someone who had just discovered a new continent.

Xing Che was momentarily dazzled by her brilliant gaze, and his heart skipped a beat for no reason.

He looked away, but the corners of his lips curled up uncontrollably.

"Keep going." His voice was a little softer, laced with a gentleness he himself hadn’t noticed. "Make them kill each other."

Yun Sheng didn’t notice anything unusual about him and turned to continue her efforts.

Once, twice, three times—she grew more and more proficient.

The Pollutants she interfered with began to behave foolishly. Some spun in circles, some hopped up and down, and others simply crashed headfirst into their comrades, sowing utter chaos.

Just then, a piercing shriek came from behind the small hill.

The Spiritual Pollutant that specialized in spiritual attacks had sensed something was wrong. Its shriek suddenly grew shriller, sharp enough to make one’s scalp tingle.

Xing Che’s expression didn’t change, but the arm he had around Yun Sheng tightened unconsciously.

Yun Sheng also glanced subconsciously toward the other group.

The continuous shriek had drained the color from Guo Kai and the others’ faces; some were already half-kneeling on the ground.

She gritted her teeth, split off a few threads of her spiritual power, and sent them probing directly toward the hill in an attempt to attack the Pollutant.

The creature was struck. Its shriek grew even louder as it frantically drove the Pollutants on the ground to charge at Yun Sheng and Xing Che.

Xing Che’s eyes turned sharp. His spiritual power surged, and an invisible barrier erupted into existence, firmly blocking the Pollutants and preventing them from advancing another inch.

But Yun Sheng’s forehead was already beaded with sweat.

The drain on her spiritual power was too great. There was a limit to how many Pollutants she could interfere with on her own.

She turned her head to Xing Che. "I’m not enough on my own. We need Cheng Nian and the others to help. Xing Che, your Spirit Barrier can hold them off, right? I’ll stay right here. Can you bring them over?"

Xing Che hesitated for a moment, but meeting Yun Sheng’s exceptionally determined gaze, he finally nodded.

He erected a thicker barrier to protect Yun Sheng in the center, then turned and sped toward the other side.

Cheng Nian and the others were staring nervously at the open ground. When they saw Xing Che approach, they heard his ice-cold voice before they could even speak.

"Come with me."

There was no explanation, no room for negotiation. When his amber-gold eyes swept over them, they seemed frosted over with ice.

Cheng Nian and Li Wen followed without a second thought.

Zhou Ying and He Yi exchanged a look and nodded as well.

Zhao Qian, however, took half a step back, her voice trembling. "Why should we go over there? It’s so dangerous..."

"You don’t have to go," Xing Che interrupted, his tone so flat it was almost devoid of inflection. "Stay here. When those Pollutants charge over, no one will save you."

Zhao Qian’s face instantly went pale.

She opened her mouth, wanting to say ’Who do you think you’re scaring?’ But when she met his frigid, emotionless eyes, her legs went weak. She swallowed her words and obediently followed the group.

Xing Che led them back to Yun Sheng’s side. Seeing her slightly pale face, a flicker of heartache he himself didn’t even notice crossed his eyes.

He said nothing, merely adding another layer to the barrier without a word. Then he moved to stand by her side, a little closer than before.

Following Yun Sheng’s instructions, Cheng Nian and the others also began to exert their spiritual power.

Cheng Nian succeeded on her third try, so excited she nearly jumped for joy.

Li Wen, He Yi, and Zhou Ying had much more refined control over their spiritual power. They figured out the trick after hearing Yun Sheng explain it just once.

Threads of spiritual power probed the surrounding Pollutants, throwing them into confusion. Then, just as Yun Sheng instructed, they began herding them toward the small hill.

Zhao Qian reluctantly gave it a try and, to her surprise, also succeeded.

She froze for a moment. The look of resistance on her face shifted to one of concentration, and her movements quickened.

Everyone’s spiritual power was being constantly expended, pushed to its absolute limit, yet none of them stopped.

’If they could just drive all these Pollutants to the hill and successfully suppress the Spiritual Pollutant, then Guo Kai and the others could cross. They could all get through this open area and leave as quickly as possible.’

But at that moment, the Pollutant behind the hill could no longer hold back.

It poked its head out from behind the hill, slowly revealing itself.

It wasn’t large and was pitch-black all over. Several curved bone spurs grew from its head, and a pair of eerie, green, slit-pupiled eyes stared intently at Yun Sheng and her group.

Just as Yun Sheng and the others were bracing themselves, its spiritual attack suddenly intensified. Its shrieks grew louder and louder, as if making a desperate, last-ditch effort, or as if it were being controlled by something and forced to use all its strength.

Xing Che shielded Yun Sheng as he retreated, but his body suddenly faltered.

The Pollutant’s shriek had pierced his barrier and was directly assaulting his spiritual landscape.

He let out a muffled groan. His face paled for an instant, and a trickle of blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.

Yun Sheng’s heart clenched.

’I always thought the spiritual attack wasn’t affecting Xing Che much. Now it looks like he’s been enduring it this whole time.’

’We’re too close to the hill. He’s taken several waves of attacks, and he still has to maintain a Spirit Barrier to protect everyone... ’

Yun Sheng was instantly filled with remorse. She hurriedly sent out her own spiritual power, condensing it into a transparent barrier in front of Xing Che.

But just then, a strange sound suddenly rang out, something like the audio frequency of an electromagnetic wave.

The Pollutant instantly flew into a rage. A crazed light burned in its eerie green eyes as it condensed all its power into one final blow and slammed it viciously toward Yun Sheng!

Yun Sheng’s spiritual power met the attack head-on. Her spiritual landscape rocked violently, as if someone had smashed it from the inside with a sledgehammer.

Excruciating pain exploded from the depths of her mind. Her vision went black, and her body went limp.

"Yun Sheng!"

Xing Che’s voice seemed to come from far away, filled with a panic she had never heard before.

The last thing she saw was the Pollutant’s spiritual landscape being pierced by the spiritual power she had sent out. Terror flashed in its eerie green eyes, its body swayed heavily, and then it collapsed with a crash.

And in that same instant, Yun Sheng’s consciousness plunged into darkness.