Stepping in for the Heroine to Crush the Protagonist Group [Transmigration] - Chapter 48

Gu Sheng knelt before a stone stele, its surface pristine and blank, devoid of any inscription—a Wordless Stele.

Hu Li stood a short distance behind her, her feet not daring to step onto the cemetery grounds.

Hu Li hadn’t expected to find Gu Sheng within the cemetery. She was drenched in sweat, her legs trembling uncontrollably.

In the Demon Abyss, she could at least rationalize her fear by telling herself they were demons. But here, in the cemetery, as she gazed at the flickering green lights through the swirling white mist, Hu Li was already contemplating digging a hole and burying herself alive.

In her Sea of Consciousness, even the System—usually so stubborn—finally snapped out of its daze.

Following Hu Li’s gaze toward the cemetery, the System’s grip on its Electronic Panel instantly went limp.

H-have we navigated into the Underworld?! it thought frantically, then silently deactivated itself, abandoning the Electronic Panel to drift aimlessly within Hu Li’s Sea of Consciousness.

The Electronic Panel tumbled into a place crisscrossed with talismans, each one like a chain, densely interwoven and connected to the crimson flower at the center of the Sea of Consciousness.

*******

With a clang, the electronic panel struck one of the chains. The chain trembled, causing the crimson flower at its center to quiver slightly.

Simultaneously, fragmented memories surged through Hu Li’s mind once more.

This time, the memories were directly related to the cemetery.

Hu Li saw herself arguing with someone, storming out of a bamboo house, and getting lost in the Bamboo Forest.

The forest was vast. She tried to retrace her steps, but the sky grew darker, the path narrowed, and everything became increasingly eerie and terrifying.

She huddled on the ground, clutching herself helplessly, as if begging for someone to come.

But after waiting for what felt like an eternity, the person she longed for never arrived. Instead, another figure appeared.

This person wore a Fiend Mask. When she removed it, her face bore a striking resemblance to the person Hu Li had been waiting for. Like that person, she wore a red dress and had a beautiful smile.

A striking resemblance? Hu Li asked herself. Was it really that similar?

She hadn’t clearly seen the faces in her memories, but her intuition told her that this person who had come to find her was not the one she had been waiting for.

********

Still, she trusted her.

So she took the hand of the person who had found her and followed her slowly, deeper into the Bamboo Forest, until they stopped at the graveyard before her.

At that time, she feared neither ghosts nor gods.

Without fear or suspicion, she listened to the woman’s words, entered the graveyard, and stood within a blood-drawn array.

Then, countless hands erupted from the earth, seizing her.

They were vengeful spirits from the underworld, their sharp claws piercing her Soul, tearing at her, devouring her, until they finally crowded into her body and replaced her.

“Hu Li…” Hu Li’s pupils contracted as fragmented memories coalesced into two words in her mind.

She collapsed to the ground, clutching her throbbing head, unable to move.

Before the Wordless Stele, Gu Sheng sensed something was amiss.

Concealing the “Li Li” she had written on the stone with a bamboo branch, she turned to find Hu Li sobbing softly behind her.

“What’s wrong?” Gu Sheng murmured, her eyes narrowing slightly. She quickly rose and hurried to Hu Li’s side, reaching out to help her up.

********

Instead, Hu Li grabbed Gu Sheng’s leg, burying her face in the hem of her skirt.

“Don’t go, Mother,” Hu Li pleaded, her voice trembling. “Li Li knows she was wrong.”

Hu Li’s memories were completely scrambled. She didn’t even know what she was saying, only that she felt like a drowning person clinging desperately to a piece of driftwood, refusing to let go.

Gu Sheng was startled by Hu Li’s sudden action.

She had always known Hu Li was terrified of ghosts, which was why she hadn’t brought her to the cemetery.

But Hu Li had found her way here anyway, and the situation was far worse than Gu Sheng had imagined. Hu Li seemed to have been scared out of her mind.

After standing frozen for a moment, Gu Sheng awkwardly bent down and patted Hu Li’s back stiffly. She struggled to find the right words, finally managing, “It’s okay. There are no ghosts here. I’m here.”

Hu Li continued to tremble uncontrollably.

Reluctantly, Gu Sheng carefully crouched down and slowly wrapped her arms around Hu Li, pulling her into a hug. She gently patted Hu Li’s back, trying to reassure her of her presence.

After a long while, the electronic panel in Hu Li’s Sea of Consciousness gradually dissolved under the influence of the talisman, and her memories were sealed once again.

*******

Hu Li gradually regained her senses, her body relaxing completely as she leaned against Gu Sheng’s shoulder, her eyes slowly opening.

“Gu Sheng, is that you?” she asked, her hands clutching the hem of Gu Sheng’s skirt.

Gu Sheng rested her chin on Hu Li’s head. Hearing her voice, she replied, “It’s me.”

Hu Li completely relaxed, her entire weight pressing against Gu Sheng.

Gu Sheng supported her, waiting patiently until Hu Li had fully recovered. Only then did she help her up from the ground, asking, “What happened just now? Why were you so terrified?”

Hu Li gripped Gu Sheng’s hand tightly, shaking her head with downcast eyes. “I don’t remember. I was just so scared, so very scared.”

Seeing her distress, Gu Sheng didn’t press further. “It must have been the fog,” she said. “Don’t dwell on it.”

Hu Li nodded silently, her head bowed.

Gu Sheng pursed her lips, glancing at Hu Li several times before retrieving a red string from her Storage Bag. She tied one end around Hu Li’s wrist and the other around her own, then led her away from the cemetery.

As they left the cemetery, Hu Li’s thoughts gradually returned to normal.

*******

Hu Li raised her hand, glanced at the red string tied around her wrist, then looked at Gu Sheng walking ahead of her. She paused, remembering what had happened in the cemetery earlier, followed by the realization that they were still trapped within the Bamboo Forest Maze.

“Where are we going now?” Hu Li asked, her eyes darting between the constantly shifting bamboo stalks on either side.

Gu Sheng paused, glancing back at the now-normal Hu Li. She couldn’t help but feel a wave of relief, though her tone remained cold as she replied, “The Gloomy Bamboo Bell.”

“The Gloomy Bamboo Bell? Why there?” Now that Hu Li was back to her old self, she immediately launched into her usual barrage of questions.

Gu Sheng slowed her pace, this time patiently explaining, “The key to the Bamboo Forest Maze lies in its ‘maze’ aspect. To break the formation, we must target this ‘maze’ itself. And the ‘maze’ is centered on the Gloomy Bamboo Bell.”

Hu Li remained puzzled. “How do you know the ‘maze’ is centered on the Gloomy Bamboo Bell?”

Gu Sheng smiled faintly. “Through careful observation and deduction, of course.”

Seeing Hu Li’s continued confusion, she simplified her explanation: “When we entered the Fox Clan, I overheard those eager to enter the Bamboo Forest Maze, as well as Hu Si’s remarks. I pieced it together from that.”

Understanding dawned on Hu Li’s face, and she was about to praise Gu Sheng’s deduction skills when…

*******

Before Hu Li could even open her mouth, a water-blue shadow flashed past her eyes. In the next instant, golden light erupted beneath her feet, and an array materialized.

The array spanned roughly thirty paces, covering an immense area.

Hu Li and Gu Sheng stood at its exact center, surrounded by nine figures, all Chen Yidong—positioned at cardinal directions around them.

Chen Yidong was a demon transformed from a Snow Fox. Unlike the Red Fox Clan’s mastery of mind-manipulating techniques, she specialized in trapping opponents within Illusion Arrays.

“Young Highness, it’s not too late to surrender,” one of the nine Chen Yidongs murmured.

Hu Li exchanged a glance with Gu Sheng. With a swift motion, she flipped her hand, transforming the Red Jade Hairpin into a longbow. Three Spiritual Arrows shot toward the Chen Yidong who had spoken.

The arrows pierced through her body, and the figure dissolved into swirling snow—a mere clone.

Hu Li raised an eyebrow, gathered her Spiritual Power, and conjured three more Spiritual Arrows, aiming them at Chen Yidong’s figures in three other directions.

This time, the clones didn’t allow Hu Li’s attacks to go unanswered. They drew their swords, parried the arrows, and with a flick of their toes, lunged forward, swords raised to strike.

Hu Li’s combat skills had improved somewhat through recent training. She swiftly reversed her grip, transforming the bow into a sword. With practiced ease, she blocked Chen Yidong’s initial assault, then retaliated with a counterattack.

Standing behind Hu Li, Gu Sheng, skilled in spells, closed her eyes briefly. When she opened them again, the Insight Technique had revealed Chen Yidong’s true form in mere moments.

“Due east,” she said.

Hu Li understood instantly. She dodged the attacks of Chen Yidong’s clones and thrust her sword straight at the Chen Yidong standing due west.

Gu Sheng had always enjoyed giving directions in reverse, a habit she’d mentioned to Hu Li during their earlier battle against the Shadow Demon.

Caught off guard by their seamless coordination, Chen Yidong didn’t have time to react before Hu Li’s sword grazed her cheek. Immediately afterward, Gu Sheng cast an Immobilization Spell, pinning Chen Yidong in place due west.

With her true form restrained, Chen Yidong’s clones and the Illusion Array dissipated in short order.

Hu Li sheathed her sword, clapped her hands triumphantly, and stuck her tongue out at Chen Yidong before returning to Gu Sheng’s side, slinging an arm around her shoulder.

“Left Protector, you can still concede now, you know~” she teased.

Gu Sheng glanced at Hu Li, shaking her head with a helpless sigh. After setting the duration of the Immobilization Array, she immediately dragged the other end of the red thread, pulling Chen Yidong along, and continued toward the Gloomy Bamboo Bell.

The Gloomy Bamboo Bell stood at the heart of the Bamboo Forest Maze. For centuries, whoever struck the bell first, breaking through the maze, would be crowned Champion.

********

This year, apart from the three Fox Clan youths who had just engaged in combat, the others had been unfortunate or simply incapable. One by one, they had been disoriented by the white mist that had recently filled the maze, now trapped in vivid dreams from which they struggled to escape.

“Is that the Gloomy Bamboo Bell?” Hu Li asked Gu Sheng, tilting her head back to point at the massive bell atop the high platform before them.

Gu Sheng glanced up at the Gloomy Bamboo Bell and nodded in confirmation. “Yes, that’s the Gloomy Bamboo Bell.”

As she spoke, she mentally calculated the duration of the Immobilization Array she had cast on Chen Yidong. Confirming that Chen Yidong had already broken free, she turned to Hu Li and said, “Wait here. I’ll go ring the bell.”

With a flicker of movement, she executed Instant Travel, shrinking the distance between steps to mere inches, and materialized beside the Gloomy Bamboo Bell.

Hu Li wanted to follow, but the earlier battle had completely drained her spiritual power, leaving her unable to use Instant Travel. She could only watch helplessly as Gu Sheng approached the bell.

Three resonant strikes from the Gloomy Bamboo Bell shattered the Bamboo Forest Maze.

Standing on the high platform, Gu Sheng immediately spotted Chen Yidong racing toward her.

Chen Yidong was running with desperate urgency, wishing each stride could cover ten times the distance, desperate to reach Gu Sheng before she could ring the Gloomy Bamboo Bell.

*******

For Chen Yidong, winning this trial wasn’t just about maintaining her position of superiority; it was her only chance to make the Young Highness notice her.

Therefore, she couldn’t afford to lose, nor did she dare to.

Gu Sheng understood this perfectly, but as she looked down at Chen Yidong from her elevated position, she had no intention of giving her that opportunity.

She slowly gathered her Demonic Power, and the moment it coalesced, she struck the Gloomy Bamboo Bell for the first time.

The bell’s resonant chime reverberated across the heavens and earth. Chen Yidong, who had just reached the base of the high platform, saw her pupils contract sharply. With a swift movement, she seized the moment before Hu Li could react and leaped onto the platform in a single bound.

At the same instant, Gu Sheng struck the Gloomy Bamboo Bell a second time, right in front of Chen Yidong’s eyes.

One strike remained, and Chen Yidong would lose.

Their gazes locked, and in that instant, reason was consumed by impulse.

“Get out of my way,” Chen Yidong demanded, raising her hand. A Bone-Eroding Spike materialized in her palm.

Gu Sheng raised an eyebrow, tilted her head slightly, and ignored Chen Yidong’s command. Instead, she deliberately provoked her opponent by gathering Demonic Power into a swirling vortex in her palm.

Seeing this, an inexplicable rage ignited in Chen Yidong’s chest. Abandoning all restraint, she hurled the Bone-Eroding Spike directly at Gu Sheng.

She had deliberately controlled the spike’s speed, calculating that Gu Sheng, with her exceptional reflexes, could easily dodge it with a mere shift of her shoulder.

*****

Unexpectedly, Gu Sheng didn’t dodge at all. Instead, she stepped forward, deliberately taking the Bone-Eroding Spike.

The spike pierced her collarbone, sending a violent tremor through her soul. Her body buckled uncontrollably, forcing her to her knees as she coughed up a mouthful of blood.

Chen Yidong hadn’t anticipated things would escalate like this. Her heart froze, a deafening ringing filled her ears, suffocating her.

She lunged forward to help Gu Sheng up, but Gu Sheng trapped her in place with an Immobilization Array. Gathering her demonic power, Gu Sheng struck the Gloomy Bamboo Bell a third time.

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