Taking the opportunity of traveling through books

The road becomes more difficult when adversity strikes again

Hao Yang's figure blurred before my eyes. He rushed towards the thick darkness without hesitation, the dagger in his hand gleaming faintly, like a firefly competing with the bright moon, appearing so powerless. My heart tightened and I almost suffocated.

"Hao Yang! Don't!" I screamed and wanted to rush over, but I was restrained by an invisible force and couldn't move.

The Shadow Demon roared deafeningly, waving its massive black claws in a gust of wind. Hao Yang's figure seemed so small before it, like a falling leaf in the wind. His attacks were like a mayfly trying to shake a tree, inflicting no substantial damage.

Instead, the Shadow Demon's counterattack struck Hao Yang hard. He flew backward like a kite with a broken string, falling heavily to the ground, gushing out a mouthful of blood, staining the ground red.

"Hao Yang!" I broke free, stumbled over to him, and helped him up. His face was pale, his lips were bloodless, and his breath was weak.

"How are you?" My voice trembled and tears blurred my vision.

He tried hard to force a smile and said weakly, "I'm fine... cough cough..." Another violent coughing fit came and more blood flowed out of his mouth.

My heart was broken as I watched his vitality slip away, but I was powerless to do anything.

At this moment, the elf who had fallen to the ground struggled to stand up. She said to me weakly, "The Shadow Demon... is too powerful... We... are no match for it..."

"What should we do?" I asked in despair. Are we really going to die here?

The elf's gaze fell on a direction behind me, as if something there had caught her attention. Her eyes flickered, and with her last remaining strength she spoke, "Deep in the ruins... perhaps... there's a way..." With that, she passed out.

Deep within the ruins? What lies there? Is there any hope?

I looked at the unconscious elf and then at the dying Hao Yang, my heart full of contradictions and struggles.

The shadow demon did not pursue us. It seemed to be afraid of something. It just stood there, letting out a low roar, staring at us with its blood-red eyes, like a demon from hell.

I have to do something!

I took a deep breath, gently placed Hao Yang on the ground, then stood up and looked at the Shadow Demon with a determined gaze. Even if it means death, I will fight to the death!

My hands tightly grasped my waist...

My hand tightly gripped the system launcher at my waist. At that moment, I was incredibly grateful for my gift of gold from the book. Otherwise, facing the dangers of this ancient ruin, I would have perished long ago. I tried to boot up the system, searching for information on the Shadow Demon's weaknesses. However, the system interface flickered, sometimes clear, sometimes blurry, clearly being interfered with by some force within the ruins. Damn it! It had to fail at this crucial moment!

I gritted my teeth. It seemed I had no choice but to rely on myself. I quickly concentrated my spiritual energy, and a dazzling white light gathered from my fingertips. I hurled it fiercely at the shadow demon. The light struck the shadow demon, and it let out a piercing hiss. Its massive body swayed slightly, seemingly injured, but quickly recovered. My heart sank. It seemed my attack was a drop in the bucket against it.

Just as I was about to gather my spiritual energy to attack again, the Shadow Demon suddenly let out an earth-shattering roar. The black mist surrounding it surged and quickly spread out, forming a huge black barrier that enveloped Hao Yang and me. Terrified, I tried to escape, but found myself firmly trapped within the barrier.

The barrier was completely dark, and I couldn't see my hand in front of me. I could only feel Hao Yang's weak breath beside me. "Hao Yang, how are you?" I asked anxiously.

"I...I'm fine..." He replied weakly, a hint of pain in his voice.

I felt a powerful suction force constantly draining the spiritual energy from Hao Yang and me. Our bodies grew weaker and weaker, as if our vitality was slipping away bit by bit. I tried to attack the barrier with my spiritual power, but found that my strength was so suppressed that I couldn't shake the barrier at all.

"Damn! What the hell is this thing!" I couldn't help but curse.

"Yaoyao... don't be afraid... I... I will protect you..." Hao Yang's weak voice sounded in my ears, but it made me even more heartbroken.

I held his hand tightly, feeling his cold warmth, my heart filled with despair. Are we really going to die here?

I vaguely heard a rapid cry from outside the barrier, seemingly the voice of the mysterious elf. She seemed to be trying to break the barrier, but it was too strong, and her efforts seemed futile.

As time passed, Hao Yang and I lost more and more spiritual energy, and our consciousness began to blur. I felt like I was falling into a bottomless abyss, surrounded by darkness, coldness, and despair...

"Yaoyao... I... I'm so sleepy..." Hao Yang's voice became weaker and weaker, and his hand gradually let go of mine...

I tried hard to open my eyes, but they felt heavy as if they were filled with lead. Using my last bit of strength, I clutched the corner of his shirt tightly and said in a trembling voice, "Hao Yang... don't sleep... we... will definitely... get out..."

My eyes were completely dark, with only Hao Yang's gradually cooling hands... and the words echoing in my ears: "Deep in the ruins... perhaps... there is a way..."