Chapter 1736: 命不该绝

Yun Jianyue suddenly erupted. Her Crescent Blade appeared behind the monster at some unknown point, and with a swift spin, it arced towards its head.

Xie Daoyun was startled. She thought to herself, *This monster clearly isn't to be trifled with. Why is Cult Master Yun attacking it? If she fails and completely enrages it, we'll both be in deep trouble.*

Yun Jianyue, however, thought differently. Sensing that the monster was far from benign, she decisively chose to strike first rather than wait for it to make a move and put them at a disadvantage.

Her eyes narrowed quickly as the Crescent Blade sliced through the monster's head, instantly tearing it into pieces.

Yet, she couldn't feel pleased, as she sensed that she hadn't truly killed it.

Sure enough, a cloud of black mist quickly coalesced, and the monster reappeared on a ceiling beam on the other side of the room.

Yun Jianyue's expression hardened, preparing to attack again.

At that moment, the monster spoke, "Hehehe, it's useless. Your attacks have no effect on me."

Both Yun Jianyue and Xie Daoyun were surprised to hear the monster speak. Since it could communicate, Yun Jianyue held her attack. "Who are you? What is this place?"

"Usually, I'm the one asking questions; I didn't expect to be questioned today," the monster replied with a grin. "Well, I'm in a good mood today, so I'll answer one question. My name is Sphinx. As for where this place is, you'll have to explore that yourselves... if you can pass my trial, that is."

"Sphinx?" Yun Jianyue and Xie Daoyun exchanged glances, thinking it was a strange name.

However, they immediately caught the hidden meaning in its words: "Pass your trial?"

As they spoke, both simultaneously prepared attacks, this time with much greater power than before.

This time, the sphinx-like monster didn't move an inch, allowing their various luminous attacks to strike it. It remained completely unscathed, as if it didn't exist in their space-time at all.

Yun Jianyue and Xie Daoyun's expressions changed, both becoming as wary as if facing a formidable enemy. This monster was far too bizarre.

At this point, the sphinx-like monster raised a paw and wiggled it. "I told you your attacks are useless. Can you listen to me properly now?"

Yun Jianyue scoffed, "Not necessarily useless. We just haven't found your weakness yet."

Having weathered countless storms, she naturally wasn't intimidated. Her mind raced, considering its possible weaknesses and which of her skills might prove effective.

The sphinx-like monster said, "If I were to truly speak of a weakness, I might indeed have one."

Though they knew it wouldn't so kindly reveal its own vulnerability, both women couldn't help but be drawn in.

"If you can answer my riddle, I will naturally dissipate and leave, and you will have passed," the monster's tone suddenly turned grim. "But if you answer incorrectly, I will take your souls. How about it, is that a fair trade?"

Yun Jianyue snorted coldly, "I don't like playing by others' rules!"

The moment she finished speaking, a vast sea of blood surged around her. Even Xie Daoyun was affected, trembling uncontrollably, her eyes filled with crimson, and her breathing becoming labored.

Yun Jianyue then summoned the Changxin Palace Lantern, and its yellow light descended, locking the monster in place.

She then transformed into a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood, crashing directly onto the monster and engulfing it within the blood-sea.

Anyone submerged in her mountain of corpses and sea of blood would quickly become one with it, enslaved and controlled by her.

A faint smile had just appeared on Yun Jianyue's face when it suddenly froze. She saw that after the blood-sea dissipated, the opponent remained completely unharmed, still in its original spot.

The sphinx-like monster said with a chuckle, "A decent domain ability. If we were truly face to face, that move would indeed be a bit troublesome."

"But we are separated by countless spaces and times. How could your attacks possibly harm me?"

Yun Jianyue's heart sank. She had just realized it herself: the opponent wasn't in their current dimension. Even an Earth Immortal might not be able to harm it.

So, she had no choice but to retract the sea of blood, lest it harm Xie Daoyun who stood nearby.

As the domain dissipated, Xie Daoyun gasped for air, looking at Yun Jianyue with a lingering fear. *No wonder those rumors exist,* she thought. *How many people must this woman have killed to create such a terrifying mountain of corpses and sea of blood?*

The sphinx-like monster spoke, "Since you understand, let's begin the game of riddles. I especially like stubborn, strong souls like yours. You go first."

Without waiting for an objection, it immediately recited, "What animal walks on four feet in the morning, two feet at noon, and three feet in the evening?"

Yun Jianyue's expression subtly changed. She keenly felt an ethereal law subtly encompassing her as the monster spoke. In that instant, she had a sudden realization: if she couldn't answer the riddle, her soul would truly be taken by it.

Cold sweat instantly beaded on her temples. She had experienced countless battles in her life, yet none felt as dangerous or frustrating as this, where all her formidable abilities were utterly useless.

She quickly reviewed all the animals she knew, having initially thought the riddle would be simple. To her dismay, upon deeper thought, she couldn't find a suitable answer, and her heart immediately began to pound with anxiety.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk, time's almost up. If you can't answer, I'll take your soul. Oh, how delightful, I can feel the deliciousness of your soul even across all these spaces and times." The sphinx-like monster licked its lips, seemingly unable to wait any longer.

Suddenly, Yun Jianyue's ear twitched, and a look of realization crossed her face. "I know! The answer is a human. In infancy, they crawl like a baby; in middle age, they walk on two feet; and in old age, they need a cane, making them three-legged!"

The sphinx-like monster's face instantly registered surprise, and it looked at her reluctantly. "Consider yourself passed."

Immediately after, it suddenly appeared before Xie Daoyun, saying with a look of pity, "Are you proud of helping her answer correctly? What a pity, what a pity. If she hadn't been able to answer that question, I would have asked you next, and you would have passed easily. But now you've put yourself in danger."

Xie Daoyun's face paled. She still felt a sense of dread towards this unknown, inexplicable entity. "You... you may ask."

Yun Jianyue felt a pang of apology, realizing Xie Daoyun had only been trying to help her.

She had initially thought Xie Daoyun was a burden, but to her surprise, she had turned out to be the one who was a burden herself.

She stood by, pondering how she could protect Xie Daoyun if she couldn't answer the next riddle.

At that moment, the monster spoke again, "Answering my previous question was quite clever. So, I'll give you a harder one."

Upon hearing this, Yun Jianyue's heart sank.

The monster seemed to ponder deeply, then its eyes lit up. "I've got it!"

With a casual wave, a chessboard appeared in the air. This board was peculiar, consisting of a single row with many squares from left to right. The first square on the left held a piece carved in the monster's own image, while the rightmost square depicted a pyramid-like base.

The monster chuckled, "The rules of this game are simple. We take turns moving this piece. Each turn, you can move 3 to 5 steps. Whoever first places the piece on the rightmost square wins. If you win, you pass. If I win, I take your soul. Fair, isn't it?"

Yun Jianyue quickly scanned the board. She thought: *To land on the pyramid square with the final move, the second-to-last move must place the piece six squares away from the pyramid. That way, no matter how many squares the monster moves, it can't reach the final square directly, allowing Xie Daoyun to land on it.* She continued this line of thought, calculating rapidly.

Her mind raced with calculations, leaving her dizzy. She kept feeling that something was wrong, either here or there.

*Ugh, I just want to fight! This brainy stuff is so annoying!*

While Yun Jianyue was exasperated, Xie Daoyun was quickly calculating. The chessboard had 36 squares from left to right...

At this point, the monster said, "If there are no objections, shall I go first?"

Just as it was about to move, Xie Daoyun quickly interjected, "Wait!"

"This isn't fair. Since you set the rules of the board, you already have the advantage. Therefore, it's only fair that I go first," Xie Daoyun stated quickly.

The monster paused, then nodded. "You are indeed a clever girl. I won't take advantage of you. You may go first, after all, I value fairness most."

Xie Daoyun took a deep breath, walked over, picked up the leftmost piece, and moved it three squares to the right.

Although the board was illusory, its texture felt remarkably real. However, the monster-shaped piece was truly unsettling; after moving it, she retracted her hand as if shocked.

"Hmm, interesting," the monster smiled, moving its piece three squares as well.

Following this, they took turns, one after another, and the pace of the game grew increasingly faster.

Yun Jianyue, watching from the side with wide eyes, being an intelligent person, quickly observed the pattern: no matter how many steps the monster took, Xie Daoyun always moved 8 minus the monster's steps. In this manner, the game quickly concluded.

Finally, Xie Daoyun placed the piece on the pyramid at the far right. "I win!" A triumphant glow flashed across her face.

"Drat!" the monster cursed several times. As if affected by a rule-based power, its entire form twisted before it completely vanished.

Yun Jianyue couldn't help but glance sideways at Xie Daoyun, thinking: *This woman looks delicate and frail, but she's incredibly clever. I'll have to warn Honglei to be careful in the future; she might end up selling her and still counting the money for her.*

On the other side of this world, Zhao Hao swiftly opened his eyes, quickly scanned his surroundings, and took a deep breath. A look of ecstasy then spread across his face. This was not the void spoken of by the Libationer; it seemed there had been a slip-up somewhere.

"Hahaha, I am truly favored by heaven; my destiny is not to perish!"

Just then, several groans echoed, and two figures slowly awoke nearby: Li Changsheng and Xuan Bajing.

They were just celebrating having escaped death, when the next second, they saw Zhao Hao.

Their smiles instantly froze.