One more catty, one more attribute point

This elder was named Wu Hanhai, a descendant of the distant hope sacrificial lineage.

In the times before the distant hope was destroyed, the status of the sacrificial lineage was not beneath that of the king.

Thus, the sacrificial lineage managed the location of the Golden Crow Mausoleum, while the king's bloodline was the key to opening the mausoleum.

Normally, both were indispensable. However, it had been thousands of years since the fall of distant hope, and many changes had occurred, which was to be expected.

"Thank you, Lord Hanhai!" Qin Shunying nodded slightly.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Then, as a metallic tremor sounded, she unbuckled her gauntlet. Her fair, slender fingers exposed to the air, Qin Shunying bit into a finger and pressed it against the illusion of the Golden Crow in front of her.

Blood flowed profusely from the tip of her finger.

First, it dyed the nearest few runes red, and then rippled outward. Enjoy new chapters from empire

As more blood flowed, the entire illusion of the Golden Crow quickly turned bright red, followed by a crisp cry. It pierced the clouds and shattered the white clouds in the sky, making it seem as if the guardian Golden Crow beast of yore had revived and descended upon this world.

Qin Shunying's face remained calm, though her normally rosy lips turned pale from excessive blood loss.

Behind her, Wu Hanhai and the other elders were visibly excited, their eyes blurry and shoulders trembling uncontrollably.

"The Golden Crow once fought and died to protect our ancestors, yet we must destroy its last vestige of life!" Wu Hanhai's emotions grew more intense, and he, too, eventually wept, tears staining his clothes. His murky tears slid down his deeply lined face, dropping to the ground and evaporating under the harsh sunlight.

Many people lost control of their emotions and wept on the spot.

However, a young man behind Qin Shunying bowed his head, shrouding his face in shadow. He too made crying sounds, but his eyes were dry, instead revealing a hint of greed, almost impatient.

"No matter what, we cannot let the Golden Crow Secret Store fall into the hands of Demon Country." Qin Shunying patted the old man's shoulder, as a gesture of comfort.

"As long as we are still alive, there's always a chance," Qin Shunying said calmly.

"Well said," Wu Hanhai dried the tears from the corner of his eyes, looking at Qin Shunying with a bit of relief, "It's sad that the royal bloodline has withered, yet such an outstanding figure appears in this generation. It's a pity some old men left too early, they would have been so pleased to see you."

Wu Hanhai sighed, "All right, let's hurry!"

Muttering an incantation, he pointed forward, and a blazing golden flame burst forth from his fingertip.

The vivid bloody illusion of the Golden Crow in the air seemed to ignite in an instant, its entire body blazing fiercely like a sun rising, stirring up a tempest of heat waves in the desert.

Hiss!

A long cry.

The Golden Crow flapped its wings, soaring into the sky.

Then it changed direction, dragging a long trail of flames.

It crashed like a falling star into the desert, exploding on impact and burrowing into the myriad grains of sand.

"Rumble rumble!" The ground hummed and trembled, undulating and causing ripples. In the center of the desert, a fiery ring-shaped portal appeared where the illusion of the Golden Crow had vanished, glowing brilliantly and radiating infinite light and heat.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

"Through that portal, we can enter the Golden Crow Mausoleum," Wu Hanhai turned to Qin Shunying and said.

"I understand," Qin Shunying nodded, "then let us now..."

Thud!

A sharp, piercing whoosh came from behind her.

Qin Shunying immediately felt a chill running up her spine.

Her expression changed dramatically, she tiptoed and leaped up, but was still a step too slow.

A streak of black light pierced into her waist from behind, exiting through her abdomen, carrying a large amount of fresh blood, and a black gas spread from the wound all the way to her neck, rushing onto her face, creating a beautifully sinister pattern of black web.

Qin Shunying clenched her teeth hard, bleeding from the gums, her strength burst forth, and the True Power of the Fiery Sun Sect was driven to its limit.

Boom!

Her body seemed to transform into a solar furnace.

Heat waves rolled, pressing down the injury, breaking free from the shackles.

Qin Shunying's face was as cold as frost, she turned back and saw a black scorpion's tail stained with blood, flashing and disappearing into the body of a man in white, unseen. The man in white had a cold smile, "Worthy of being the elder sister of the Fiery Sun Sect, your reaction is quite fast."

He ominously said, "I wanted to stab your heart, but you managed to dodge the fatal blow."

Everyone was shocked by this sudden turn of events.

After a brief silence, Wu Hanhai erupted in anger, "Lan Yichen, have you lost your mind, what are you doing!?"

"He's not Lan Yichen." Qin Shunying said coldly, her aura filled with killing intent.

"Such a clever girl, more interesting than those old fools," the man in white giggled, his voice now soft and coquettish, like a woman flirting on a bed. Yet, paired with the young man's robust, masculine body, it made everyone present feel uneasy.

The young man's body writhed, his forehead split open to reveal a bloody crevice. Then, his entire skin was ripped off, revealing a voluptuous woman with purple eye shadow, and three black scorpion tails at her back, appearing before everyone.

"Shadow Scorpion Lord!" Wu Hanhai recognized the person's origin, his face turning slightly pale, "when did you..."

"That doesn't matter, kill her first!" Qin Shunying struck first.

Boom!

She gently tapped forward with her spear.

Instantly, the firelight expanded and exploded, shaking the earth.