89: Stranded on a desert island

Fang Lingyao's expression darkened further.

This meant that not only had they lost their bearings, but they had likely also lost all contact with the Sect.

"Let's first figure out the situation on this island." Lin Feng took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down.

After adjusting their breathing for a moment, the two explored along the coastline, one after the other. The island did not seem large; the gravel beneath their feet quickly turned into hard, black rock riddled with honeycomb-like holes.

The woods were terrifyingly silent, save for the occasional, unidentifiable dripping sound coming from deep within the mist. The Spiritual Qi was suffocatingly thin, and the presence of any Spiritual Vein was almost imperceptible.

Resources were pathetically scarce. Apart from those twisted, strange trees and a few types of moss in the rock crevices emitting a faint, bitter scent, there were almost no living things to be seen, let alone spirit plants or materials.

"A dead zone." Fang Lingyao pursed her lips tightly and said softly.

They had to leave as soon as possible. This thought arose in both of their minds simultaneously.

Lin Feng looked toward the sky, locked away by thick fog, and had an idea. "Let's take a look from above."

He formed a hand seal with his fingertips, and the meager spiritual power within him surged toward the Flying Sword beneath his feet. The blade hummed, lifting him slowly off the ground.

However, just as he was barely three feet off the ground, the seemingly calm thick fog in the sky suddenly churned. The spiritual power within him instantly surged out uncontrollably, and a ghastly white bolt of lightning materialized out of thin air, tearing through the mist and striking straight down.

Lin Feng's pupils constricted, and his body plummeted toward the side and back.

"Boom!"

That ghastly white bolt of lightning struck almost grazing his body, slamming into the spot where he had just been hovering, blasting a shallow pit into the black rock, the edges of which were scorched black.

Lin Feng landed heavily back on the ground, stumbling a few steps before steadying himself. His face was slightly pale, his blood and Qi roiled within him, and the little spiritual power he had left was nearly depleted by this impact.

He looked up at the mist-covered sky, which had returned to stillness, and frowned slightly.

"There is… an extremely strong Restriction in the air." Fang Lingyao quickly came to his side. "It seems that not only is flight prohibited, but it also backlashes against flying techniques, triggering heavenly lightning."

Lin Feng slowly exhaled, suppressing the roiling blood and Qi in his body.

Night on the deserted island came quickly. The thick fog seemed to swallow the last traces of daylight, plunging the surroundings into darkness, with only the monotonous sound of the ink-colored seawater tirelessly lapping against the reefs.

Lin Feng sat cross-legged on a relatively flat black rock, silently circulating the Nine Profound Sword Heart Art, attempting to draw a sliver of power from the thin Spiritual Qi. The stagnation and stinging pain in his Meridians made him knit his brows slightly.

Not far away, Fang Lingyao's originally straight back curled slightly. She maintained her meditation posture, but her breathing gradually lost its usual length and steadiness, becoming somewhat hurried.

In the darkness, Lin Feng heard a very slight, irrepressible sound of teeth chattering.

He opened his eyes and looked toward the blurry figure. Fang Lingyao seemed to be shivering slightly; her thin, green robes appeared exceptionally helpless in the cold mist.

"Senior Sister?" Lin Feng called out in a low voice.

There was no response, only more pronounced shivering.

Lin Feng stood up and walked over. By the faint light, he saw that Fang Lingyao's face was frighteningly pale, fine beads of cold sweat even seeping from her forehead, and her lips had lost all color.

She bit her lower lip tightly, seemingly struggling with something with all her might, and those cold, clear eyes now appeared somewhat unfocused, having lost their gaze.

"What's going on?" Lin Feng crouched down, his tone carrying an urgency he himself hadn't noticed. A Cultivator had already long been immune to cold and heat, and even more so for Fang Lingyao, whose cultivation was deeper than his; this should absolutely not be happening.

Fang Lingyao shook her head with difficulty, gritting her teeth, refusing to say a word. Only her slightly trembling shoulders and irrepressible coldness betrayed her extreme weakness.

Lin Feng did not ask any more questions. He leaned down and carefully carried Fang Lingyao onto his back. Her body was frighteningly cold to the touch, and the moment he made contact, her body stiffened, revealing an instinctive resistance. But at this moment, she seemed to lack even the strength to push him away.

With her on his back, Lin Feng walked unsteadily along the coastline, looking for a shelter from the wind. His Divine Sense was severely suppressed, so he could only rely on his eyes and intuition. Eventually, he found a narrow, shallow cave beneath a cliff face that could barely accommodate the two of them to shield them from the cold wind.

He gently set Fang Lingyao down, letting her lean against the innermost rock wall.

Immediately, he did not hesitate to slowly channel the little spiritual power he had just recovered into her, attempting to dispel the cold within her body.

However, the pure spiritual power surged into Fang Lingyao's body like a clay ox entering the sea, only managing to warm her cold body slightly.

Her trembling subsided for a moment, but soon returned even more violently, and her complexion became even worse.

Lin Feng's heart sank. This was definitely not normal.

The cold wind from outside the cave blew in. Fang Lingyao curled up even tighter unconsciously, shivering uncontrollably.

He couldn't hesitate any longer. Lin Feng reached out and gently pulled her cold, stiff body into his embrace, wrapping her in the warmth of his chest and his still-warm physique.

Fang Lingyao's body instantly tightened, and a very slight whimper escaped her throat. She tried to struggle, but weakness and cold left her without even a shred of strength.

"Pardon me, Senior Sister." Lin Feng's voice was low and calm, but his arms remained firmly in place without loosening.

The struggle lasted only a very short time. Perhaps the extreme cold had overcome her reason, or perhaps the little bit of warmth radiating from Lin Feng had taken effect; Fang Lingyao's tense body softened bit by bit.

Eventually, as if she had exhausted all her strength, her head rested listlessly against his shoulder and neck, and she stopped resisting, though the slight trembling continued.

This night was exceptionally long. Lin Feng remained motionless, maintaining the same posture, feeling the coldness and slight trembling of the body in his arms, and listening to her breathing, which gradually became even.

After daybreak, Fang Lingyao's condition seemed to stabilize somewhat; although she was still weak and pale, at least she was no longer trembling so uncontrollably.

After she woke up, she immediately broke away from Lin Feng's embrace, moved to a corner of the cave, and lowered her head, tidying her slightly disheveled clothes. A very faint blush stained her earlobes, and she avoided Lin Feng's gaze the entire time, remaining silent.

Lin Feng did not say anything; he took out the two jade boxes containing the bodhi seeds from his Storage Pouch. He pushed one of them toward Fang Lingyao.

Fang Lingyao looked at his calm yet firm gaze, then looked at the bodhi seed emitting a soft halo of light, and was silent for a moment. Eventually, she reached out, slowly took the jade box, and said softly, "…Thank you."

She gripped the jade box tightly. "The bodhi seed is a top-tier Wood-element spirit item. If I have this to assist me in my closed-door cultivation, my chances of achieving Core Formation in the future… will increase by several fold."

There was a trace of longing for the Dao path in her tone, but then her eyes dimmed again. "It's just that, now that we are trapped here…"

The two were silent.

After a short rest, the two explored the entire island again, attempting to find any clues that might lead to an escape.

They found the stone platform they had arrived on; the ancient teleportation array runes on it were dim and lusterless, and its structure was damaged.

Most critically, it was one-way; it was impossible to activate it to return.