Chapter 151 — Purgatory
The Sword Questions the Heavens · Page 6 of 6
Lu Xueling's face was ashen, her teeth clenched hard upon her lower lip, her expression shifting through a complex array of emotions—pity, disgust, and, for some reason, a measure of fear. Having been the last to return to the group, she suddenly asked, "Has anyone seen anyone from the Nether King Sect?"
Everyone shook their heads, then paused in unison. Li Xun, standing to one side, suddenly looked even grimmer. Xiao Yichen glanced at him and said to Lu Xueling, "Many ordinary disciples of the Nether King Sect died, but I don't believe we've seen... the corpses of any famed figures."
Lu Xueling's expression eased slightly, but beside her Li Xun's eyes suddenly blazed with light. "Senior Brother Xiao," he said coldly, "have you forgotten that these beasts and demons eat human flesh? All along the way in, how many white bones have we seen? Who knows whether those Nether King Sect fiends might already have been..."
"Waugh!" A cry cut Li Xun off—Yan Fei, unable to hold back any longer, had run to the corner of the wall and was vomiting again. Li Xun paused, then gave a sudden sigh and said no more.
Fa Cheng's face showed compassion, and he and Fa Jing together softly chanted the name of the Buddha. Everyone knew that though Li Xun's words were harsh, the possibility was very real. Xiao Yichen, Lin Jinghong, and the others wore complicated expressions and slowly lowered their heads. Only Lu Xueling, her face bleak and drained of the last trace of color, swayed unconsciously where she stood.
Yet this cold, aloof woman did not bow her head. Slowly she raised it and gazed up at the sky—across that boundless blue expanse, even the clouds above the valley seemed stained the color of blood.
Lu Xueling's lips moved, as though she wished to cry out something, but in the end no sound came forth at all!