35: Chapter 35 The Teahouse Beam Broken, She Replacing It

The morning light, like a sharp blade, tore through the last wisp of night shrouding the long street.

Chen Fan's steps were heavy; every footfall felt like treading on shattered tiles and the ashes of hope.

On his back, Su Shuang's body was as light as a feather, yet as heavy as a mountain. Her faint breaths brushed against his neck, carrying a bone-chilling coldness mixed with a barely perceptible orchid fragrance.

The tragic state of the Frost Moon Teahouse was even more shocking than he had imagined.

The familiar 'frost moon' plaque had been severed in the middle. Half hung precariously from the lintel, while the other half was deeply embedded in the mud, its calligraphy obscured by blood and dust.

In the courtyard, the offering table used to support the Fox Fire barrier had crumbled into countless pieces of wood scattered on the ground. The array core, which once burned with the ghostly blue Fox Fire, was now just a lifeless, hollow pit.

The barrier was completely extinguished.

In the corner, on a straw mat, Xiao Tao lay quietly. Her chest only rose and fell with imperceptible movement, her breathing as thin as silk.

The bizarre red markings on the back of her neck seemed like living things, flickering with an ominous light in the morning sun.

"Put me down," Su Shuang's voice was hoarse, yet carried an undeniable resolve.

Chen Fan carefully set her down. Su Shuang staggered a step, regained her balance, and walked straight toward the broken offering table.

Ignoring the mess on the ground, she squatted down, her pale fingers probing gently into the hollow of the array core.

The next second, her fingertip seemed to be stung by a scorpion, and she snatched it back violently.

Chen Fan saw her pluck a piece of black metallic residue from the pit.

"Hmph," a cold laugh escaped Su Shuang's lips, carrying an icy chill and endless mockery. "The Vanguard... To break my formation, they actually melted down the insignia of their own team members into spell-breaking nails to pin down my array core. What a grand gesture, daring to tamper with the rules even for the dead!"

Chen Fan did not understand the 'rules' she spoke of, but he could grasp the immense hatred in her tone.

The words 'Vanguard' burned like a branding iron on his heart.

Chen Fan stepped forward, intending to help her sit down and rest. "You are too heavily injured, first..."

"No need," Su Shuang shook her head, but her gaze was fixed tightly on the array core, like a dying lone wolf guarding its last territory. "The barrier can be mended... as long as someone is willing to bleed for it."

Before her words even faded, Chen Fan didn't even have time to react before Su Shuang raised her hand and fiercely bit the tip of her own index finger until it bled!

Crimson blood beads immediately welled up, carrying a strange, delicate fragrance.

Without any hesitation, using her blood as a guide and her finger as a brush, she rapidly sketched a complex and bizarre blood-colored rune in the center of the shattered array core.

The rune seemed to be composed of countless twisted lines of light. As soon as it took shape, it emitted a terrifying aura of disruption and rebellion.

"Life-Reversing Light Mending Array!" Su Shuang hissed, her voice filled with a resolve as if burning her very life away.

An alarm blared in Chen Fan's mind. He could feel a massive amount of life force being frantically drawn from Su Shuang's body and poured into that blood-colored rune!

[Warning! High-risk spellcasting detected!]

[Cooperative Alert: Spellcaster 'Su Shuang's' life value will drop by 50% in 10 seconds, life danger exists!]

The critical hit system's red alert flashed wildly in Chen Fan's mind, piercingly sharp.

He instinctively reached out, trying to grab Su Shuang's wrist to interrupt this mutually destructive formation.

"Don't move!" Su Shuang didn't turn around, but her voice seemed to have already anticipated his action.

She slightly turned her face. Her cold eyes, in the morning light, were tinged with such complex emotions for the first time. "Chen Fan, when you saved me from the 'Crimson Corridor,' did you ever ask me if it was worth it?"

Her single sentence froze the hand Chen Fan had extended in mid-air.

Was it worth it? He had never considered that question. He only knew that she could not die.

In the instant he was stunned, Su Shuang's finger pressed heavily onto the center of the rune!

"Boom—!"

A pillar of blood-colored light shot into the sky, tearing through the morning mist above the Teahouse!

The light was not scorching, but it carried an unyielding will, as if it intended to punch a hole right through the heavens!

The debris of the broken offering table began to vibrate, and the fragments of the formation scattered throughout the courtyard actually began to emit a faint fluorescent light, as if answering a call.

The damaged barrier, amidst a mournful cry, actually started to slowly repair itself!

Simultaneously, the critical hit system within Chen Fan seemed to be completely detonated by this heaven-defying will, letting out an unprecedented roar!

[Guardian Action Judged Successful!]

[Cooperative Partner 'Su Shuang's' life-reversing will detected, system resonance achieved!]

[Reward: Experience Gain Rate x2 (Lasts 10 minutes)!]

[Level Up: Bronze Tier 9 → Bronze Tier 10!]

A warm current instantly surged through his body, the sense of power growth being crystal clear, but Chen Fan had no time to pay attention now.

He only saw Su Shuang's body go soft and collapse backward, her face as white as paper.

He rushed forward in one stride and gathered her into his arms.

"Madwoman... you really are a madwoman!" he growled, his voice trembling in a way he hadn't noticed himself.

Just then, hurried footsteps sounded from the alley entrance.

Stone Skin arrived with several capable subordinates, carrying large bags of medicinal herbs and repair tools.

When he saw the blood-red light shooting into the sky and the faint glow of the slowly lighting barrier, his entire body froze in place.

"This... this is a Life-Mending Array?" Stone Skin muttered to himself, his eyes filled with disbelief. "With so many people in the organization, so many strongholds, I've never seen anyone willing to risk their life for a broken Teahouse..."

He looked at Su Shuang, who was gasping for breath in Chen Fan's arms, then at Chen Fan's face, a mixture of lingering fear and anger. He whispered with a complex expression, "You let her live, and she mends your life... Chen Fan, do you realize that the two of you are about to turn this dead place into a 'Land of Reversal'?"

Land of Reversal.

Chen Fan chewed on those four words, and a sudden surge of heroism filled his heart.

He looked down at Su Shuang in his arms, then at the barrier light screen which, though faint, was stubbornly expanding. He remained silent.

He reached into his embrace and pulled out the warm blood judge seal. He walked to the array core and, under Stone Skin's shocked gaze, unhesitatingly pressed this seal, which represented his identity and power, into the center of the rune drawn with Su Shuang's blood!

"Buzz—!"

The blood judge seal seemed to have found its perfect home, instantly merging with Su Shuang's fox blood.

A stream of domineering pale gold ripples suddenly erupted amidst the originally pure blood-red light!

If Su Shuang's blood was the 'Seal'—to suppress the evil spirits and curses of this place—then Chen Fan's seal was the 'Command'—to command the rules and order of this place!

Blood seals the evil, the seal commands order!

The combination of the two miraculously stabilized the barrier light screen, which had been slightly flickering before. Although the light was still dim, it exuded an indestructible texture.

"Hiss..." Old Bronze, who happened to be passing by leaning on his cane, sucked in a sharp breath. A sharp glint flashed in his clouded old eyes. "Good heavens... truly good heavens... the two of you have truly brought this dead place back to life."

"Mmm..."

Just then, Xiao Tao on the straw mat in the corner suddenly let out a faint groan.

Chen Fan and Stone Skin immediately looked over. They saw that the hideous red markings on the back of Xiao Tao's neck were actually beginning to slowly recede at a visible rate!

Although the speed was slow, it was indeed fading!

Su Shuang, weakly in Chen Fan's arms, managed a slight smile and softly explained: "My blood... mixed with that... critical energy on you... has a purifying effect on the contamination in her body..."

Her words struck Chen Fan's heart like lightning!

So that's how it was!

"Cooperative Critical Hit" wasn't just an amplification during combat. When Su Shuang's power was used for protection and healing, his critical energy could also cooperate with it, producing the miraculous effect of purification!

He had always thought his ability was only destructive, but he never expected that being with Su Shuang could also bring about new life!

Just as he was about to say something, the system prompt in his mind sounded again. This time, the voice was solemn and grave.

[S-Rank Chain Mission Updated!]

[Mission Name: Oath of Protection]

[Mission Objective: Use the 'Land of Reversal' as the core to maintain stable barrier operation for 72 hours.]

[Mission Reward: Cooperative Critical Hit Multiplier permanently +0.5!]

[Failure Penalty: 'Land of Reversal' anchor collapses, blood judge seal suffers permanent damage.]

72 hours!

Chen Fan's eyes instantly became sharp.

He glanced at the heavily sleeping Su Shuang in his arms, then at the Judge Seal emitting a golden-red light in the array core. Finally, he cast his gaze toward the severed lingering bell in the courtyard.

He walked over, picked up the half-broken bell, and held it tightly in his hand.

"This time, it's my turn to guard you," he said softly, as if speaking to Su Shuang, and also as if making an oath to himself.

Night fell again.

A micro monitor painted with optical camouflage silently slid over the alleyway above.

The blue light on its head scanned below in a rhythmic pattern, collecting every trace of abnormal energy fluctuation in the city ruins.

When it reached the location of the Frost Moon Teahouse, the blue light seemed to hit an invisible wall, deflecting violently, emitting a harsh electrical current sound before fleeing in panic.

Simultaneously, within Black Gold City, on an underground forum accessible only to New Players, a post was quietly pushed to the top.

"[Sighting] Coordinates D13 District, the light in the Frost Moon Teahouse seems... to be lit again."

Below the post, replies that had been silent for a long time began to emerge one by one, filled with shock and confusion.

And in the courtyard enveloped by the pale gold light screen, Chen Fan was silently clearing away the broken walls and ruins.

He lifted a relatively intact new wooden beam he had found from another ruin and forcefully hoisted it onto his shoulder, preparing to replace the broken main beam.

Sweat slid down his temples, dripping into the dust at his feet.

Su Shuang leaned against a relatively intact corridor pillar, covered by a blanket Stone Skin had brought. Her complexion was still pale, but her breathing had become much steadier.

She quietly watched Chen Fan's busy back and asked softly, "Tired?"

Chen Fan turned his head, revealing a row of white teeth, and grinned. His smile was full of vigorous vitality: "What's broken, I'll mend it piece by piece. Whether it's people or this Teahouse."

The moment his voice fell, unnoticed, in the shadow of a skyscraper several kilometers away, a figure wearing a pure White Mask stood silently on the edge of the eaves.

On the terminal in his hand, the energy readings for the Frost Moon Teahouse were forming a stable and bizarre vortex.

"Target 'Anomaly Body No. 7' has successfully constructed the 'Land of Reversal' anchor..."

The White Mask's voice was devoid of emotion. He looked down and entered the final line of instructions on the terminal.

"Threat level increased. Recommendation... activate 'Heaven's Punishment Protocol'."

Time passed, and two days and two nights flashed by.

Under Chen Fan's almost sleepless guardianship, the Frost Moon Teahouse's barrier grew increasingly stable. That layer of golden-red light had become barely visible to the naked eye, yet it acted like an impassable chasm, isolating all prying eyes and malice outside.

Su Shuang's body was slowly recovering, and Xiao Tao could already sit up, though she was still somewhat weak.

Everything seemed to be developing in a positive direction.

Late on the third night, all was silent.

Chen Fan sat cross-legged in the center of the courtyard, his eyes tightly closed, his senses merged with the entire barrier.

He could clearly feel the flow of every wisp of energy, feel Su Shuang's steady breathing, and even feel the unbreakable connection between the blood judge seal and the formation.

The energy flow between him and Su Shuang was unprecedentedly stable and harmonious.

However, at the very moment this tranquility reached its peak, he suddenly opened his eyes.

Something was wrong.

Everything in reality was perfectly normal, but in his mind, the data stream in the [Cooperative Perception] column of the constantly running critical hit system interface began to violently fluctuate and distort without warning, as if an invisible hand was roughly plucking the strings, emitting chaotic and sharp noise!