"I get it!" Li Yun suddenly exclaimed. "The golden light on his body — it's a dark talisman!"
Even Yan Zhengming looked startled. "Flowing water and drifting clouds can serve as dark talismans, but… can such a thing really be engraved onto a person?"
"It's definitely not on a living body," Li Yun said firmly. "It's on a soul. I once read in a strange chronicle about a spellmaster who could record and observe the three souls and seven spirits. He branded invisible talismans onto people's souls, binding them to his will for life. Lord Beiming must have such a method…"
"Li Yun." Yan Zhengming finally snapped back to his senses. Catching sight of Han Yuan and Cheng Qian listening wide-eyed to tales of demonic sorcery, he immediately cut him off. "Enough. Let's go."
Linxiantai and the surrounding valleys were shrouded in black fog, sealing off the slaughter within. From the mountain peak, they could no longer hear the sounds of killing or smell blood.
Suddenly, a spark flared in one corner of the altar and spread at an astonishing speed through the mist.
Yan Zhengming's heart tightened. "Close your eyes!"
They obeyed instantly. Even through closed lids, the fierce light burned red, as if the world had been dragged into a sea of fire.
It was impossible to tell how long it lasted. When the light finally subsided, only the unmoving black fog remained.
Cheng Qian cautiously opened his eyes. His vision blurred, then slowly cleared.
Something stood before them.
An egg.
And it was rolling straight toward them.
Han Yuan had eaten nothing all night. Seeing the egg — nearly two feet tall — he instinctively swallowed. "Th-this… what is it?"
"I don't know." Yan Zhengming stepped back half a pace and shot Han Yuan a warning look. "Don't touch anything from the demon horde. Wipe your drool. We're leaving — Master will worry."
It was growing dark, and Demon Valley was perilous. Without Lord Beiming escorting them, the return journey would be even more dangerous.
They hurried back the way they had come, unusually silent.
But the egg refused to give up.
It carefully avoided rocks, rolled itself into a determined whirlwind, and chased after them relentlessly.
Li Yun glanced back in surprise. "What kind of monster's egg is this? Why is it following us?"
Cheng Qian, still holding the bear demon's fang, said coolly, "Perhaps it wants to become a boiled egg."
The egg shivered as if sensing his malice. It hesitated, then rolled away from Cheng Qian and stopped pitifully at Yan Zhengming's feet.
Yan Zhengming walked around it with deliberate indifference. After a few steps, he couldn't help but look back.
The egg seemed… deeply disappointed.
He stopped again, hesitated briefly, then pointed at Han Yuan. "Go. Pick it up."
Han Yuan blinked. "Didn't you just say not to touch it?"
Li Yun also looked puzzled. "Senior Brother, why?"
Yan Zhengming frowned. He certainly couldn't admit the egg looked pitiful.
An excuse came to him at once. He said loftily, "Didn't True Zipeng ask us to bring her whatever was on Linxiantai? Demon cultivators can't approach it. She probably doesn't even know what's on the altar. We'll use this to fool her."
Exhausted, they accepted the explanation.
Strangely, although Lord Beiming no longer escorted them, the return journey proved smoother than before. They encountered only a few minor spirits and arrived safely at Zipeng's residence.