Sorry, master, my junior sister has surrendered to the enemy!

The fourth princess was awakened by the seventh prince, but she was in very poor condition.

Everyone was dressed in a disheveled state, but the Fourth Princess was in much worse shape than the Seventh Prince.

His eyes were red-rimmed and his face was pale, clearly showing signs of internal injury, much like Chu Yu's condition.

"Ahem, Seventh Brother, what a coincidence..." Upon seeing the Seventh Prince, the Fourth Princess had no energy to pretend anymore, her red eyes filled with vigilance.

Upon seeing that Chu Yu was still standing with him, she involuntarily stepped back.

The Seventh Prince only briefly explained the current situation to the Fourth Princess.

The Fourth Princess's face stiffened upon hearing this. She had too little information. She had only been in the evil land for a short time when she was blinded by a white light. Subsequently, Ah Chong's cultivation was suppressed to the lowest level. As expected, they were also chased and killed by a group of infected villagers.

At first they managed to cope, but gradually, as the number of people increased, they couldn't handle it anymore.

First, the body cultivator next to Third Brother unleashed his physical skills, his entire body swelling up like a small mountain, crushing many of the villagers from the evil land who were attacking them.

The next second, Shi Zhen was stunned by a bell and lost his fighting ability on the spot. A leading villager cut his palm and fed his own blood to Shi Zhen, and then actually plunged the knife into Shi Zhen's body!

That was a cultivator! Yet he was injured to this extent by a mortal.

Then, Ah Chong used his concealment technique to lead everyone to escape. As soon as he used his Xuan Qi, he was suppressed by the Buddha Bell and lost consciousness on the spot, while Shi Zhen's fate was unknown.

Before she could rescue the two, the Third Prince was captured.

There were several villagers in the evil land who possessed terrifying strength, unlike that of ordinary people. Yue An tried his best to resist but to no avail, and he could not save the Third Prince.

After Ah Chong woke up, he immediately tried to save her, but at the critical moment, the third bell rang, knocking Yue An unconscious as well.

Yue An had no idea what happened next.

"That third bell toll must have been caused by both Ah Chong and me." Hearing this, Yinming realized it too.

"At that time, we also encountered a group of villagers. I was knocked unconscious as soon as I used my technique."

Then the group looked at Chu Yu, and she did not deny it: "I triggered the fourth one, which was the price for summoning the Sky-Piercing Sword."

Now that she had figured out the pattern of the Buddha Bell's suppression and knew that the Buddha Bell wouldn't ring for no reason, Chu Yu's reddened eyes contrasted sharply with the calmness in her eyes. She looked at Che Kong's gleaming sword and pondered something in her heart.

The fourth princess said anxiously, "Third brother, A-Chong and Shi-Zhen are missing. If something has really happened outside, we must find them quickly."

"And Xiao Jiu," the Seventh Prince added quietly.

The fourth princess paused, her expression complex.

Chu Yu frowned.

Regardless of what the fourth princess and the seventh prince might think, she didn't want them to harbor ill intentions about their younger sister's disappearance.

If the situations were reversed, Ah Ling would definitely save her older brother and sister.

Even though they don't get along.

The person on the ground, whose head was separated from the body, could still speak with his head and his body was writhing, like a mad but still thinking zombie.

His congealed blood exuded a putrid odor.

The torch fell to the ground, getting some blood on it, but it didn't go out completely, making a crackling sound.

Chu Yu stared at the smoking torch, a wisp of black smoke from the burning tar rising straight up before suddenly turning away...

This underground cave even has a draft.

Everyone is discussing where to go.

Chu Yu then went to a secluded spot and gently stroked his right forearm.

"Sister Tree, are you awake?"

A chill ran down her arm; the woman in the tree gave her a bone-chilling response.

"You ghost cultivators shouldn't have any problem passing through walls, right? Since you're currently suppressed and can only appear in spirit form, help me scout the way."

The woman in the tree doesn't talk nonsense; she's a true doer.

The chilling sensation on his hands disappeared, and Chu Yu realized that the woman in the tree had left, even taking the black smoke from the torch with her as she departed.

Chu Yu made a move, picked up a torch, and left following the direction of the black smoke.

The Seventh Prince and Yinming immediately followed.

"Hey, you guys... wait for me."

Yue An was left behind by someone, and having no other choice, she bit her lip and caught up with them.

……

Yue Ling slowly woke up, her face was frighteningly pale, and there was blood on the corner of her mouth.

Surrounded by several villagers from the evil land, Yue Ling cautiously moved and found herself entangled in thick tree roots, suspended in mid-air.

How far is this place from the Earth's surface?

Why were the tree roots able to penetrate those stone walls and spread here?

Two human-shaped roots were wrapped around her head, and the smell of blood could be faintly smelled from beneath the tree roots. Only a corner of her clothes was visible.

Who are these two people?

Yue Ling was startled. The fabric of the clothes was ordinary and did not belong to a cultivator, so it should not be someone she knew.

Then she smelled a strange fragrance.

The space she was in was very spacious, with tree roots wrapped around the stone walls all around, but in the center of the ground there was an offering table with a stove on it.

An alchemy furnace.

A strange incense stick was stuck in the ground, surrounding the stove and the offering table, as if they were offering sacrifices to a stove.

Upon seeing the somewhat familiar stove, Yue Ling's eyes widened in surprise.

There was also a stove on the offering table in front of Chunling Niangzi, but everyone's attention was focused on the toon tree, and they overlooked the stove.

There's even a cursed land here...?

I originally thought that this alchemy furnace was just placed there randomly to help everyone find an alchemist, but who knew that it would meet Yue Ling again in such a way.

In the dim light, the stove glowed with a strange, grayish-green light.

At that moment, she vaguely saw a group of villagers from the evil land cheering as they brought three unconscious men.

Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be the Third Prince, Ah Chong, and that body cultivator.

That body cultivator was a size larger than everyone else, requiring several people to carry him; he was the last one brought in.

Yue Ling continued to feign unconsciousness, noticing that the villagers had tied the three men to the tree roots next to her.

The tree roots wriggle and twist on their own, which is quite disgusting.

"Where's the other woman?" a hoarse voice asked.

"Hmph," someone kicked the unconscious Ah Chong and said viciously, "This kid used all his strength to send that woman away, and our people are still looking for her."

"Hurry up, don't miss the auspicious time," the hoarse voice commanded.

"Yes." The man accepted the order and dragged his thin body away, his eyes terribly numb.

The Third Prince was tied to the tree roots below Yue Ling. After the little leader left, the hoarse-voiced villager from the evil land sneaked up to the Third Prince, cut his own hand, and smeared blood into his mouth.

“I saw it. That person drank your blood, and all his illnesses were cured…”

"Let's start with you."

Upon hearing this, Yue Ling unconsciously held her breath.

Then the man actually slit the Third Prince's throat, and blood gushed out on the spot!

He greedily licked the Third Prince's blood, but after only one sip, his eyes widened, he gasped for breath, the scars on his body began to fall off and new flesh grew, then his pupils dilated, and his body, like a walking corpse, finally returned to dust.

He drank a mouthful of blood and ended up killing himself!

Yue Ling was anxious as she watched, not for the man, but because if the blood continued to flow like this, the Third Prince would die.

Someone discovered that the man with the hoarse voice was dead and quickly reported it to the leader.

After noticing that the people around her had moved away, Yue Ling opened her eyes.

"Third Brother..." Yue Ling called softly. The Third Prince was bleeding profusely and had fainted, unconscious.

The Third Prince lowered his head and opened his mouth slightly. Yue Ling was above him, her hands restrained on either side. She dug her nails into her fingertips and dripped her blood onto the back of the Third Prince's head.

Hopefully, the blood will flow down his cheek into the Third Prince's mouth, or onto his wound.

Yue Ling had no choice but to try anything, even if it seemed hopeless. She only breathed a sigh of relief when she saw the wound on the Third Prince's neck heal.

For those with the ability to restore life, the higher their cultivation level and the purer their bloodline, the better the healing effect.

Her bloodline is very pure, and she should have saved the Third Prince's life this time.

Yue Ling was somewhat relieved that she was tied up high, otherwise she would probably be the one with her throat slit.

She touched her bloodied and mangled fingertips, noticing a gaze scrutinizing her. Looking up, she saw it was Ah Chong, the guard who served her fourth sister.

Ah Chong's gaze was complicated, as if he did not understand the Ninth Princess's actions.

But after all, the Ninth Princess saved Yue An's own brother.

Logically speaking, given their relationship, she shouldn't have saved him, as that would have weakened Yue An's support.

"I should at least call him 'brother'." Yue Ling glared at him, annoyed.

Ah Chong looked down and saw that the Third Prince had resumed breathing and his complexion had improved, so he said no more.

It doesn't matter. After all, the Third Prince is alright, which spares Yue An the heartbreak of losing his brother.

Ah Chong silently surveyed his surroundings, recalling everything that had happened before he completely lost consciousness, hoping that Yue An had hidden in a safe place.

Suddenly I heard a rustling sound behind me.

Turning around, it seemed that the Ninth Princess was torturing her other hand again, trying to do the same thing to save Shi Zhen's life next to her.

"What are you doing now?" A-Chong asked, puzzled.

"This body cultivator used a magic artifact to protect his heart meridian, so he's not dead yet. Can't you tell?" Yue Ling replied.

Simply saving lives was clearly not the answer Ah Chong wanted; he didn't believe the Ninth Princess had such good intentions.

"What are you planning to do, saving the people around the Fourth Princess one by one?" A-Chong went straight to the point, claiming to have torn off the Ninth Princess's hypocritical mask.

"Is there any point in explaining to someone like you who doesn't understand the compassion of a healer?" The Ninth Princess didn't stop what she was doing.

Shi Zhen had a penetrating wound in his chest; he had been stabbed through by a villager. In such a difficult moment, this severe wound actually made it easier for the Ninth Princess to save him.

As blood dripped into the wound, Shi Zhen slowly began to breathe again.

Seeing this, A-Chong scoffed, "Heh, don't think you can turn them against you with a few small favors. Yue An can save them without you."

"They're not saving you, so why are you getting so worked up for them?" the Ninth Princess retorted.

Ah Chong was speechless with emotion.

"...What good is it to claim to be a healer with a benevolent heart? I despise such kindness if you save people with ulterior motives and ulterior motives." Ah Chong retorted after a moment of silence.

"Hmm, saving anyone else wouldn't save you, so stop yelling." The Ninth Princess calmly continued dripping blood.

After he finished speaking, the scene fell silent for a while.

A short while later, Ah Chong heard a noise behind him again.

The Ninth Princess seemed to have come up with some idea and began to act on her own.

Looking back, I saw that she was scratching the bark of a tree with her fingernails.

"What a waste of effort," Ah Chong complained. These tree roots were extraordinary; how could they possibly be broken free with such an ordinary method?

After being doused with cold water, Yue Ling fell silent.

Ah Chong hadn't realized the seriousness of the situation, and thought it was all just a challenge set up by the small world.

"You're still wary of me on behalf of Fourth Sister? Don't you even see our current situation?"

A-Chong was unaware that the Third Prince and Shi-Zhen were in mortal danger, so why weren't they eliminated? He even wondered if he could eliminate the Ninth Princess on his own.

He even considered that if the Third Prince still dared to harbor disloyalty towards Yue An, he would also deal with him and then shift the blame onto the villagers of the evil land.

In short, none of them can be kept.

At this moment, Yue Ling's voice interrupted A Zhong's thoughts:

"Ah Chong, where is my fourth sister? Is she still alive?"

Ah Chong remained vigilant and refused to reveal the whereabouts of the Fourth Princess.

"Do you know that we're in this together now...?"

Yue Ling carefully chose her words. She already suspected Ah Chong's background and that it involved matters of national importance. She wouldn't reveal too much to Ah Chong and only wanted to reach a short-term cooperation with him.

Before Yue Ling could finish speaking, A Zhong scoffed and interrupted, "Of course, you all have a common goal, which is to compete for the throne."

"Don't think that saving the Third Prince will have any effect on me, even if he is the Fourth Princess's biological brother."

"You think you can get any news about the Fourth Princess from me? No way!"

"Is she still alive?" Yue Ling asked, ignoring his rebuttal.

"Why are you so concerned about this?" Ah Chong couldn't help but ask, puzzled.

Yue Ling lowered her eyes and pondered.

The anomalies within the small world continue, indicating that the issues outside have not yet been resolved.

If even Master Diming cannot solve this problem, then if things continue to develop this way, it may shake the foundation of the nation.

Judging from the situation, it's unclear how many royal family members are still trapped in the small world.

Not to mention that under the suppression of the Buddha Bell, Shi Zhen and A Zhong both perished in the cursed land, so Chu Yu alone is certainly not safe either.

She must live now. Chu Yu must still be trying his best to find her. She can't let her down, and she can't let her mother and brothers outside hear bad news when they hear about her again.