Chapter 2085: Compensation

At this moment, Shi Bingxiu approached Zu An. "We've driven back these demons as agreed. It's time for you to fulfill your promise."

Seeing the undead soldiers staring intently at him, their eyes burning with eagerness, Zu An suspected that if he couldn't deliver, these creatures would immediately turn on him and tear him to shreds.

He looked up at the rift. The demons were lurking behind it, observing, ready to rush in the moment the undead soldiers disappeared.

However, it wasn't realistic to have the undead soldiers chase the demons beyond the spatial rift. Zu An pondered for a moment before quickly saying, "Wait, let me deal with these demons first."

Shi Bingxiu looked somewhat doubtful. "How will you deal with them?"

From his perspective, the current situation was far beyond human ability to salvage.

Staring at the ever-widening rift in the sky, Zu An quickly pondered how to react. He did know some demon-sealing arrays, but those were only effective for small areas, and the vast expanse above was clearly too large.

Thinking of demon-sealing arrays, an idea struck him. He quickly summoned the jade coffin. Upon opening it, Qiu Honglei's ice sculpture remained quietly inside.

However, Zu An wasn't looking for her this time. Instead, he took out an ancient and elegant talisman from the other end of the jade coffin.

Earlier, when Mi Li suggested placing Qiu Honglei in the jade coffin, he had been somewhat worried, as Jing Teng had also been in a dormant state within the coffin.

Yet, thinking the jade coffin was large enough to accommodate her, he still opened it.

To his surprise, Jing Teng had transformed into a talisman. He figured that reverting to her true form might allow her to recover more easily.

Looking at the delicate talisman in his hand, Zu An's expression was quite something. After all, the two of them had shared the most intimate of relationships back then...

As if sensing the commotion, the talisman suddenly moved, and a clear light shimmered, transforming it into Jing Teng's likeness.

She sleepily opened her eyes. Upon seeing Zu An, she immediately broke into a smile. "Oh, it's time for healing! I thought you'd put me aside and forgotten about me. Come quickly!"

With that, she enthusiastically hugged Zu An's arm, rubbing against him.

Seeing the bright and alluring Jing Teng playfully clinging to Zu An, almost as if soliciting intimacy, Shi Bingxiu's eyes immediately widened in surprise.

"This guy certainly has it good with women," he thought. "Ah, this is the true joy of being human."

Mi Li, meanwhile, stood by with a faint, knowing smile. She, of course, understood what Zu An's "healing" entailed.

Feeling the strange gazes from the two beside him, Zu An felt quite embarrassed. He glanced at Jing Teng's legs. Hmm, she was wearing black stockings. Indeed, it was "Black Jing Teng," no wonder she was so passionate and uninhibited.

He quickly said, "Now, a more serious problem has arisen..."

Pointing to the spatial rift in the distance, Zu An briefly described the situation: "An ancient seal has been broken, and demons from beyond are about to invade this world. I want to repair the seal. Do you have any ideas?"

She had once suppressed countless powerful beings in a great tomb, so her power level should be higher than this seal's. This task should be right up her alley.

Black Jing Teng immediately let out a cold chuckle. "I thought you missed me. Turns out you only called me out because you needed something."

Zu An had no choice but to coax her. "Oh, I really did miss you! But who knew I'd keep running into these world-ending crises lately? I haven't had any free time at all."

"Heh, keep making things up. Do you think I'm as easily fooled as my sister?" Black Jing Teng scoffed repeatedly. Zu An had a headache. This Black Jing Teng had once been a Ghost King with many powerful subordinates; she wasn't so easily tricked.

He could only say, "If the skin is gone, where will the fur attach? After I save this world, how about I make it up to you properly?"

Hearing him deliberately emphasize the words "make it up to you," Black Jing Teng's face flushed, though she didn't seem to know why, and she snorted. "If this world is destroyed, so be it. With your current abilities, we can just go to another world."

Zu An frowned. "This world has too many loved ones and friends. And even without them, I can't just stand by and watch a world be destroyed by demons."

"Hmph, why are you being so fierce? You finally call me out, not for romance, but to talk about such depressing things. If you're so capable, save the world yourself then." After all, Black Jing Teng had been a Ghost King; she couldn't tolerate such an attitude and quickly stiffened against him.

Just then, Mi Li suddenly spoke. "A'Zu, with such a huge hole in the sky, it's too much to ask a young lady to fix it. Why not ask her sister? Perhaps she has a solution?"

"Who said I'm like this because I don't have a way?" Black Jing Teng was instantly provoked. She glared at Mi Li. "Auntie, who are you? Don't sow discord around A'Zu."

Mi Li's eyes narrowed, her gaze instantly turning unfriendly.

Black Jing Teng wasn't to be outdone and glared fiercely back.

Zu An had no choice but to introduce her. "She is my master."

Black Jing Teng's face froze, then she immediately smiled sweetly. "Oh, so it's Master! You should have said so earlier. I thought you were one of those glamorous hussies lusting after A'Zu. Master, please don't be offended. I'll offer you tea as an apology."

As she spoke, she conjured a cup of tea from somewhere and obsequiously handed it to Mi Li.

Mi Li smiled faintly. "So, you do have a way?"

"Are you kidding? I once reigned supreme throughout the ages, suppressing countless indescribably powerful beings. How could I not have a way to deal with a mere seal like this?" Black Jing Teng declared proudly.

Seeing her boastful demeanor, Zu An felt a pang of regret. "If I had known, I would have called you out sooner."

Perhaps then, Chuuyan and Honglei wouldn't be in their current state.

"The timing is just right now," Black Jing Teng said, feeling a little guilty. Her previous words had been mostly boasts; in her current state, even if she had appeared earlier, she wouldn't have been able to accomplish much.

To hide her embarrassment, she quickly added, "From what I can tell, this seal seems to have just broken, so there's still a way to mend it. However, it requires a few artifacts that originally bore the seal. Just like my sister and I, a seal needs key formation eyes or divine artifacts. If we can't find them, even I can't do anything."

An idea sparked in Zu An's mind, and he took out the Sky Cloud Sword. "Will this work?"

Black Jing Teng took it and gently ran her finger over it. "Oh, it is indeed related to this seal. But its power alone doesn't seem to be enough; a few other items are still missing."

"Wait a moment!" Zu An closed his eyes, sensing the locations of the two snow mountains from before. Then he outstretched his hand and called, "Come!"

In the distance, two streaks of light rapidly flew towards him—they were none other than the Nine-Foot Mirror and the Soul-Hooking Jade!

It turned out that the spatial anomalies caused by the powerful being's arrival had loosened the seal, shaking the two artifacts out of the snow mountains. The three divine artifacts were naturally drawn to each other, which was why Zu An could summon them so easily.

Black Jing Teng held the three divine artifacts in her hand. "Hmm, it feels complete now."

With a casual wave of her hand, the three divine artifacts floated around her. Then, she formed various complex hand seals, and streaks of clear light dissipated into the surrounding void.

A moment later, faint clear lights became visible across the entire sky, and a large array began to shimmer into existence. The three divine artifacts flew to three different positions within the array, continuously providing energy for it.

At this point, the demons, who had been watching the spectacle, realized something was wrong and cried out, "Quick, stop that woman! She's repairing the seal!"

Unable to hold back any longer, many demons rushed out again, lunging towards Jing Teng.

Zu An looked at Shi Bingxiu. "They're yours."

Shi Bingxiu felt a surge of indignation. *You're here enjoying your flirting, and we're the ones risking life and limb?*

*Are we supposed to help you wipe your butt next?*

However, at this point, he didn't dare argue. He could only glare at Zu An resentfully. "If you break your oath, I'll make sure you die a terrible death."

Anger points from Shi Bingxiu: 444,444,444...

Immediately, he summoned his soldiers, who once again charged forward, intercepting the surging demons.

After a while, Black Jing Teng finally completed her hand seals, uttering a single word: "Seal!"

The shimmering lines in the sky instantly glowed brightly, and a massive magical array appeared. The three divine artifacts positioned themselves at three points, forming a gigantic "Seal" character with the array!

The array then swiftly pressed down towards the enormous rift in the void.

Behind the spatial rift, the unknown demons grew frantic at the sight, struggling desperately to emerge.

Soon, a massive claw extended from within. In that instant, the entire world was filled with the oppressive aura of a primordial beast.

Zu An's expression flickered. He watched the rift nervously. Although this aura wasn't as potent as that of the Lord of Slaughter, it was quite close. If this creature truly descended, no one would be able to handle it.

The giant claw latched onto the spatial rift, attempting to tear it wider. The rift indeed expanded slightly, even revealing the dense forms of colossal beasts behind it.

Just then, the enormous "Seal" array appeared over the spatial rift.

The entire spatial rift began to heal at a visible rate. More claws extended from within, and under the interplay of the two forces, the rift alternately stretched open and contracted shut.

Black Jing Teng let out a cold snort and activated another spell. A clear light shot onto the array, and the three divine artifacts suddenly shone brightly, making the entire array twice as luminous as before.

From behind the spatial rift came countless furious, unwilling roars. They could no longer prevent the rift from healing. After a tug-of-war that lasted about the time it takes an incense stick to burn, the entire sky healed as if new, restoring complete tranquility.

Seeing the blue sky and white clouds, Zu An and the others were naturally overjoyed. The demons that had entered, however, let out desperate roars, scrambling towards the sky, trying to reopen that great door.

Shi Bingxiu, however, did not miss such a prime opportunity. He led his undead soldiers in a one-sided slaughter, ultimately annihilating all the demons that had made it through.

"Thank you," Zu An said, excitedly approaching Jing Teng.

Jing Teng was about to say something, but her face turned incredibly pale, and she involuntarily fainted into his arms. Her last words before losing consciousness were, "This time, I lost big. You have to compensate me. Ten days, no, a month! Every single day!"