"What does Dandan suggest?" Chu Feng asked immediately.
If there was a way, he didn't want to use the protective formation his father had left behind. It wasn't that he couldn't use it — it was simply too wasteful to deploy it against this seventh old monster of Immortal Slaughter.
"Chu Feng, hide inside that jar. He won't be able to get in," the Queen said.
"Hide inside the jar? But inside there…" Chu Feng knew perfectly well that once he hid inside the jar, the seventh old monster of Immortal Slaughter would have no way of reaching him. However, that was hardly a long-term solution, and the things inside were extraordinarily dangerous.
"Didn't I say before that I had some impression of what's inside, but couldn't recall exactly what they were?"
"I still can't remember what they're called, but I've remembered their purpose. Those things contain considerable power that can be used for my cultivation. If you hide inside, I can refine all of them and guarantee they won't harm you," the Queen said.
"Dandan, this is no small matter. Are you really capable of it?" Chu Feng wanted to confirm.
Not for any other reason — he could genuinely sense how dangerous those things were. If there wasn't absolute certainty, he didn't want Dandan to take the risk.
"Trust me. Go in now. I guarantee I'll refine all of them and won't let them touch a single hair on your head," the Queen said.
"Then… I'm going in." Chu Feng still hesitated.
"Oh, stop dithering and get in already. Would I lie to you?" the Queen urged.
By now, the sealing barrier was continuing to shrink. If this kept up, there really wouldn't be much space left for Chu Feng to maneuver.
Seeing Dandan so certain, Chu Feng took out the jar. He first layered a concealment barrier over it, then willed himself inside.
The moment he entered the jar, those bizarre objects radiating black light pounced toward him like beasts spotting prey, all at once.
But Chu Feng had come prepared. The instant he arrived inside, he had already opened the Gate of the World Spirit. The Queen transformed into a streak of light, shot through the gate, and charged straight at those eerie objects.
Moreover, a strange black glow began to radiate from the Queen's body.
Those eerie objects, as if receiving some kind of guidance, stopped attacking Chu Feng and instead flew toward the Queen one after another.
The glow on the Queen's body grew more and more intense, becoming so blinding that Chu Feng could barely keep his eyes open.
When the searing light finally faded, the space returned to silence.
Chu Feng opened his eyes. All of the eerie objects were gone.
He saw the Queen hovering in midair with her back to him, but something was wrong — cracks had appeared across her body, one after another. At this moment, she no longer looked like a living being at all, but rather a crumbling statue. And those cracks were still spreading rapidly.
"Dandan, what's wrong?" A sense of dread surged through Chu Feng. He rushed to her side but didn't dare touch her. He could tell the situation was dire, and he was terrified that any misstep would make things worse.
Hearing Chu Feng's voice, Dandan turned around — yet even that simple act of turning seemed to require enormous effort for her in this state.
When she finally faced him and Chu Feng saw her expression, his heart clenched even tighter. In that instant, tears welled up in his eyes.
Dandan's face was deathly pale, utterly unlike that of a living being. And yet, despite everything, she still forced out a smile.
But that smile was filled with guilt.
"I'm sorry. I forgot something earlier, and I've only just remembered. Those things can indeed be refined by me, but… they are also incredibly violent. I refined too many at once, and I… don't think I can withstand it. I… may be about to leave."
"Dandan, don't be afraid. I can save you. I can save you!" Chu Feng hurriedly released his barrier energy, trying to stabilize her form. But he was truly panicking. Techniques that were second nature to him on any ordinary day had now become clumsy and fumbling. His entire body was trembling violently.
Chu Feng had always been fearless. Even when facing mortal danger, he rarely felt afraid.
But right now, he was afraid. He was terrified beyond measure.
He could feel Dandan's life force draining away at an alarming rate, and there was truly nothing he could do about it.
Dandan seemed to know her fate as well. She kept that smile on her face, but her eyes were filled with nothing but reluctance to part.
"Chu Feng, you fool. If I can't make it back, you need to take care of yourself from now on."
"If you manage to find your father, don't let him leave again. Have him protect you as you grow."
The moment those words left her lips, a sharp crack rang out. Her entire body shattered, dissolving into black flames that rapidly dissipated before Chu Feng's eyes.
In that instant, Chu Feng stood frozen in place, petrified as though he had turned to stone. The only sounds were his labored breathing and the soft patter of tears falling to the ground.
Because in that moment, he could sense that neither his World Spirit's realm nor this space held even the slightest trace of the Queen's presence.
The Queen had vanished from this world as though she had never existed at all.
Chu Feng's breathing grew more and more ragged. His gaze remained fixed on the spot where the Queen had just been, his eyes not blinking even once.
Suddenly, a tremendous force erupted from within his body.
There was no wind here, yet Chu Feng's long hair began to whip wildly about. His robes snapped and billowed, and at the same time… a murderous intent of overwhelming ferocity swept across the entire space.