Jiang Zhiwei, Luo Shengyi, Qi Zhengyan and Ruan Yushu were not able to regain their strength within dozens of breaths so they were not capable of attacking again. It was only Meng Qi who was capable, but the fire surrounding Meng Qi's skin became dimmer and dimmer. Even with the fire dimming, the monster guarded against him while flying towards Zhang Yuanshan.
"This opportunity is our only chance to enter the Holy Mountain." Zhang Yuanshan driveled based on his knowledge.
It seemed that the background introduced by the Dominator of Samsara in Six Realms was definitely useful.
"Well, we could cooperate." The monster sightly nodded.
Zhang Yuanshan was still hesitant. Should he take the risk in believing the monster and giving up resistance?
Seeing the monster being sincere, he was inclined to collaborate with them.
"But you have to die!"
Suddenly, the demon yelled. He swiftly stabbed Zhang Yuanshan with the Long Spear, which was horrific and hot with surging fire.
The pain in his left arm reminded him to seek for revenge relentlessly!
For ordinary monsters, the 'overall plan' meant nothing. It was not like they could eat it.
Zhang Yuanshan did not expect that the demon would suddenly break its promise. The spear was already pointed at him.
At this moment, a figure bumped in and pushed Zhang Yuanshan away. However, it was stabbed and went ablaze.
"Zhenzhen!" Zhang Yuanshan was petrified, he only had Fu Zhenzhen's firm eyes which seemed both happy and sad.
"Composed and capable, you act like a leader, which is excellent. But you're bothered by your own thought and concerns. You lack the neccessary gut to adventure..." He always beared the Ancestor's words in mind. Even after so many years, he could still remember it clearly.
Qi Xia was hesitant at first, but then he firmly stepped forward to reveal the secret of the Dominator of Samsara in Six Realms unfolded before his eyes.
"Yes, I don't have the guts to take risks."
"But today, I'll remove that part of me!"
Fu Zhenzhen's eyes were filled with love for Zhang Yuanshan. Zhang Yuanshan was suddenly filled with courage and his love transformed into flames which sprouted swordwill.
His blood was boiling. Zhang Yuanshan's Blood Essence and Vital Spirit seemed to be burning.
The sword's light broke through the sky which was dim. Flying birds and monsters were caught from the heaven and the earth. Bloody scars quickly showed on their skin, one after another. The sword quickly stabbed into their bodies, cutting through their flesh and bones.
"Pang pang pang!" The bodies of flying birds, with their eyes filled with shock, fell down to the ground one by one.
The wind from the mountain blew. There was no monster around so it was peaceful.
"Senior Brother Zhang!" Qi Zhengyan screamed sadly while struggling to stand up.
After being stabbed, Zhang Yuanshan was pale and terrified. He staggered towards Fu Zhenzhen and sat down with his legs crossed. Then, he helped her up and held her with his right arm to let her recline on his chest.
The spear of the Half-step Exterior Scenery had hit Fu Zhenzhen's heart, therefore she had already died. Only her eyes, filled with softness, were wide open.
Trembling, Zhang Yuanshan lifted up his left hand to caress Fu Zhenzhen's face. He was so gentle.
The fire surrounding Meng Qi's skin and the effect of the Sacrifice Formula both disappeared. He struggled to stand up, he then gulped down a Recover Pill and stumbled towards Zhang Yuanshan.
"Senior Brother Zhang..." He did not know what to say. When they became friends, Zhang Yuanshan was like an older brother to him. He was calm, reliable, and cared for everyone.
Zhang Yuanzhan smiled and then said, "Since it had happened, it is useless to say anything. If I have not made that final stab, I would never forgive myself for the rest of my life. But finally, I trumped myself."
He was in the final moments of his life.
After a pause, Zhang Yuanshan took out his own Recover Pill and Fu Zhenzhen's healing elixir and hand it to Meng Qi. "I don't need this anymore."
"Senior Brother Zhang..." Meng Qi's eyes were filled with tears, he was too sad to say anything.
Zhang Yuanshan slowly closed his eyes and faintly said,
"Please survive for us and walk out of the Samsara."
"Senior Brother Zhang, we shall resurrect you two if we are given the chance!" Meng Qi blurted out.
Jiang Zhiwei also came by their side and promised him, "If given the chance, we shall resurrect you."
"Don't bother. If you really want to, you should walk out Samsara and become the top big powers then you will be able to resurrect us by your own strength." Zhang Yuanshan did not want to put pressure on Meng Qi and the others.
"It's a pity..." He still had many concerns in mind but he did not said anything.
Meng Qi's vision was blurred. Suddenly a thought came into his mind. He seriously said, "Senior Brother Zhang, I will willingly risk my life to help your families if they ever have any troubles!"
A man always keeps his promise!
Zhang Yuanshan smiled and closed his eyes. Holding Fu Zhenzhen tightly, he sat still with his legs crossed.
Meng Qi took a deep breath and repressed his sadness. "We should deal with their bodies immediately and then leave."
They did not know if there were any monsters.
Jiang Zhiwei found a package of poison from Fu Zhenzhen. She strewed it on their bodies and sadly said in a low voice, "I could not let your bodies be destroyed by monsters... I hope you two could be together forever..."
"Tiss, tiss, tiss." The bodies of Zhang Yuanshan and Fu Zhenzhen quickly melted into blood and converged with each other. Only the Life Time Acquaintance Sword and Winged-python Sword, which were crossed together, that remained there.
Although they lacked Karma points, Meng Qi, Jiang Zhiwei and the others adhered to the morality. They dug a hole and buried the blood and the two swords together.
They returned the Recover Pill and Fu Zhenzhen's healing elixir to Ruan Yushu. Since they would be fighting on the front lines, they could break the porcelain by accident.
The two swords of the monster were also caught in Space Ring.
Then, they helped each other to continue their march. After a long time, orange clouds appeared in the sky, dawn was coming.
The light shined before them, comforting those who suffered from the tiring battle and sadness of their companions' deaths.
The light was getting brighter. Meng Qi suddenly opened his eyes widely and his tears kept on gushing.
On the top of the hill, they saw a shabby temple at a distance. It was so familiar that it look exactly like the temple where they left.
Basking in the sunshine, it shined with a solemn and bright golden light. It was grand but peaceful.
Back again?
Is it the confinement set by the Dominator of Samsara in Six Realms or the natural changes following by chance?
"No wonder that Ge Huai'en forcasted that it was extremely ominous in each direction. For we will return here anyway..." Meng Qi suddenly understood the real indication of Ge Huaien's forecast.
But why are we moving west again?
"At this moment, all the monsters are chasing after us. It may be best for us to return to the temple, maybe we could stay safe for a day." As Recover Pills took effect, Luo Shengyi, Jiang Zhiwei and Meng Qi all recovered and regained their fighting strength.
Meng Qi repressed his despearation and slightly nodded. "Yes, it may be the most dangerous place but also it is the most safe now."
He pretended to be confident for it totally depended on luck. "Maybe there are monsters on guard in the temple? Maybe the real Monster King hurried here?"
Since they could not directly confront with the monsters, they tried hard in order to move on. To survive the last day, they also need find a secretive place to hide instead of the temple.
After a long time, Luo Shengyi found a hidden crpyt and arranged Meng Qi to hide inside it.
Inside the crpyt, strange stones were everywhere. They looked like demons in the dark. The sound of the flowing river reached their ears.
"I hope the monsters don't find this place..." Luo Shengyi said with hope. When he had gone on his first death task, he had been overlooked due to his weak strength. At that time, he found a cave to hide himself in to survive the last day. So he still has his hopes up.
Meng Qi, Jiang Zhiwei, Qi Zhengyan and Ruan Yushu did not have the habit of praying. They checked the crpyt to find out where it lead to and whether they could fight with monsters there. Those monsters could fly outside, but they could not fly if they enter here!
Of course, Murky, the Great King of Emerald Waves should not come here. Otherwise, with his strength of the Exterior level, he would definitely kill all those who have no weapons.
Suddenly, Meng Qi saw a black figure flashed past. Its movement was not quick.
"Who?" Meng Qi displayed the Hallucination Body Movements and rushed toward it. He caught a skinny old man.
"Monsters, aren't you monsters?" In his declining years, the old man was haggard. He was shocked but suddenly calmed down.
Jiang Zhiwei and the others came to Meng Qi and the old man. Meng Qi said in a low voice. "Old man, we are humans who were chased by the monsters. We hide here to protect our lives. What about you?"
The old man squeezed out a smile. "Of course, I'm a human. Since the food in my clan is limited and I'm very old, I ran out to wait for my death and give the youngsters the hope to live."
There were many similar recordings about the period when monsters destroyed the world. The old men of every clan would leave the safe places to wait for their own deaths to save food. Because of their sacrifice, humans could live for generations after generations and became the ruler of the world.
"Where is your tribe?" Meng Qi gave some water and food to the old man and asked.
The old looked at him warily. "What are you planning to do? The place where my tribe hides is far away from here."
"Don't worry. I would not bother you." Meng Qi exhaled, understanding the guard of the old man.
The old man sighed. "You're good men. But I can't say too much for there are too many monsters. They have many people in their captivity and there were some who are loyal to them. Alas, the ancient time was better for there were Immortals, Heavenly Army, Buddha and Bodhisattva, and Luohans at that time. Although monsters ate people, they were never as rampant as today's monsters. We, the Human tribe, built many countries and are not worried about our food at all..."
He was desirous for that kind of life. It was a beautiful description that had been passed down.
"Ancient? What Earthen Realm did this place belong to in ancient time?" Meng Qi was surprised.
Only the name of this place in ancient times could enable him to pinpoint their location. Maybe they could find a way to survive.
The old man frowned and thought. "In ancient times? Emm, it's said that this is the area of the Holy Mountain."
"The area of the Holy Mountain?" Meng Qi blurted out as he was shocked.
This was the area of the Holy Mountain? But how were they able to find the area of the Holy Mountain?
The old man slightly nodded, puzzled about why Meng Qi was surprised.
"This is the area of the Holy Mountain..."
"Big Leiyin Temple's horizontal board..."
"Ge Huai'en's forecasts were all toward the west..."
"Where to find the Spirit Mountain?"
"The small jade joss... it is like a symbol, a landmark or a key..."
Numerous thoughts bumped into Meng Qi's mind. Suddenly he realized something.
"The 'west' forecast by Ge Huai'en is actually the symbolic 'west'. It is the 'west' of 'Journey to the West'. The destination of Journey to the West was Holy Mountain and the landmark of Holy Mountain is the Big Leiyin Temple... The forecast was to say that the 'direction' is 'the horizontal board of Big Leiyin Temple!'"
"The small jade joss is the key to open it!"
They had returned to the starting point after going around many times.