The person, with disheveled hair and wearing tattered clothes, exuded a foul odor as they rushed forward.
"Wife, be careful!"
Nangong Mo held Gu Qianying, shielding her within his embrace.
Lu Zhu drew her sword and slashed at the approaching figure.
The person seemed unfazed by Lu Zhu's sword, lunging directly at Gu Qianying.
Meanwhile, the roars of the monster within the iron cage grew louder.
A pair of bloodthirsty eyes stared intently at Gu Qianying's swollen belly.
No one could understand what she was saying.
The person lunging at Gu Qianying now held a sharp short sword emitting golden light.
Nangong Mo, holding Gu Qianying, dodged, evading the short sword.
Simultaneously, he raised his sleeve, and a powerful force erupted from his palm.
"Whoosh..."
The person was struck by Nangong Mo's palm, retreating several meters. The short sword in their hand remained clutched tightly.
A gust of wind blew in from the cave entrance, lifting the person's hair and revealing their face.
It was a pitted, bloodless face with bulging eyes and a ferocious expression.
"It's Tian Ji Wu Chang, it's him?"
Gu Qianying was the first to recognize Tian Ji Wu Chang.
At this moment, she noticed that Tian Ji Wu Chang had lost an arm, his empty sleeve fluttering in the wind.
Tian Ji Wu Chang's face was expressionless, his eyes reflecting only Gu Qianying.
How strange!
"Kill her, and take the child from her womb!"
He kept repeating words that seemed to have been spoken by someone else.
The monster in the iron cage continued its roars.
Under the immense pressure of the sound, loose stones on the cave walls began to fall.
"He's being controlled."
Gu Qianying, with her keen observation, noticed the vacant look in Tian Ji Wu Chang's eyes and quickly discerned the truth.
"It's Puppet Technique, someone has used Puppet Technique on him."
Nangong Mo also saw through the deception.
He held Gu Qianying, avoiding the falling stones.
Neither of them was harmed.
"Puppet Technique?"
Gu Qianying was quite surprised.
Seeing that the person before her was Tian Ji Wu Chang, Lu Zhu felt a pang of pity and wanted to plead with her mistress and master to save him.
However, the words remained unspoken.
"How can the Puppet Technique be dispelled?"
Gu Qianying glanced at Nangong Mo.
She had heard of Puppet Technique, but she did not know how to break such an evil art.
"Wife, you wish to save him?"
Nangong Mo looked down at Gu Qianying.
Gu Qianying nodded.
She had promised Wu Zhiruo, and she would keep her word.
"Alright, Wife, wait here."
Nangong Mo released Gu Qianying and flew towards Tian Ji Wu Chang.
Since his wife wished to save Tian Ji Wu Chang, he would support her without question.
Approaching Tian Ji Wu Chang, Nangong Mo struck out, capturing him with a few swift moves.
Nangong Mo had already seized the glowing short sword from Tian Ji Wu Chang.
He then pressed acupoints on Tian Ji Wu Chang, rendering him immobile.
"Awooo..."
Tian Ji Wu Chang opened his mouth wide and roared at Nangong Mo, his voice resembling a wolf's howl.
His teeth, stained with blood from raw meat, were bared as he attempted to attack Nangong Mo.
Nangong Mo raised his hand, gathering a ball of spiritual energy in his palm, and then placed his palm on the crown of Tian Ji Wu Chang's head.
The infusion of spiritual energy instantly cleared Tian Ji Wu Chang's vacant eyes.
His ferocious features also began to recover.
Dispelling the Puppet Curse within Tian Ji Wu Chang would require effort and time.
At this moment, Nangong Mo was diligently channeling spiritual energy to heal Tian Ji Wu Chang.
However... at this very moment... with a deafening roar, a massive sound erupted.
The "monster" imprisoned within the iron cage, possessing a human face, a jackal's body, and wings on its back, suddenly broke free from the cage and soared into the air.
"Roar roar..."
Waves of roars pierced the cave, sounding like excitement and triumph.
"Cut open her womb and return my child to me!"
With these words spoken by the "monster," it twisted and flew towards Gu Qianying.
At this moment... Gu Qianying and the others finally understood its words.
"Miss!"
"Wife!"
Lu Zhu cried out in alarm.
Nangong Mo, filled with anxiety, withdrew the spiritual energy from his palm and turned, intending to fly towards Gu Qianying when suddenly...
A short sword was thrust violently from behind him, piercing his chest.
The one wielding the short sword was none other than Tian Ji Wu Chang.
Nangong Mo looked back, meeting Tian Ji Wu Chang's vacant eyes. He frowned, a fierce killing intent igniting in his gaze.
"Damn it!"
With a flick of his sleeve, spiritual energy exploded outwards.
Tian Ji Wu Chang, struck by Nangong Mo's palm, was sent flying backward, his body arching in retreat.
He crashed against the opposite cave wall and slumped down, his fate uncertain.
Without a second thought, Nangong Mo pulled the short sword from his chest, gripping it in his hand, and turned to fly towards Gu Qianying.
The wound on his chest had not yet been tended to, and blood dripped from the tip of the short sword in his hand.
He was flesh and blood, and being wounded by a sharp weapon naturally caused pain.
However, at this moment, his eyes were fixed solely on Gu Qianying, the pain from his wound completely ignored.
Over here.
As the "monster" attacked Gu Qianying.
Powerless to resist, she instinctively clutched her belly.
As she dodged, her back brushed against the cave wall, and the rough stones tore through her clothes.
Blood began to spread across her back.
"Miss, hurry!"
Lu Zhu, positioned close to her, shielded her from behind while thrusting her sword at the "monster."
A sound like an infant's cry reached Lu Zhu's ears.
It seemed to be saying something.
Lu Zhu could not understand.
She swung her long sword, slashing and chopping, leaping and jumping with swift movements.
Suddenly... the "monster" swung its powerful, earth-shattering serpentine tail towards Lu Zhu.
"Ugh..."
Lu Zhu was struck on the shoulder by the "monster's" tail, her shoulder bone instantly shattering.
She clutched her shoulder, staggering back several steps, the hand holding the sword trembling.
A few drops of blood trickled from the corner of her mouth, indicating internal injuries.
The "monster" paid no mind to Lu Zhu. After flinging her aside, its serpentine body slithered forward.
Its target was Gu Qianying.
Nangong Mo had not yet arrived.
In the blink of an eye, the "monster" swung its tail, coiling around the defenseless Gu Qianying and flinging her into the air.
"Wife!"
Nangong Mo was frantic. He shot up like a gust of wind, and as he passed Lu Zhu, he snatched the sword from her hand.
With a flick of his sleeve, the sword tip, imbued with immense spiritual energy, radiated with a brilliant halo.
"Roar..."
The long sword pierced the "monster's" abdomen, and black blood flowed down the blade.
"Roar..."
Another roar.
The infant-like crying from the monster's mouth grew louder.
Its serpentine tail, wrapped around Gu Qianying, did not loosen its grip.
As Nangong Mo was about to grab the "monster's" tail with his bare hands, a fierce river suddenly surged from the edge of the cave entrance, instantly submerging the cave.
At this moment, an unusual golden light suddenly flashed...