"Summon your weapon, Xiao Yao!" The demon ordered. "Time has come to make your teacher proud, Xiao Yao." He was losing blood. Fast. Even though he had nine lives, he couldn't heal himself instantly, especially not since the damned things were lined with silver, slowing down his healing process. He contemplated that they had a minute at most before the barrier he had created immediately after the arrows had broken skin would give way, leaving Xiao Yao defenseless.

"Fangfeng Bei, don't move. It will make the wound worse," the woman instructed, trying to approach him.

"No!" The demon growled. "Summon your weapon. I will shield you."

Xiao Yao's hand stilled midair as her eyes locked on her friend and widened. But the moment passed all too soon. Nodding, she opened the palm of her hand and whispered something inaudible. A split second later, a bow appeared on it, followed by a quiver of arrows materializing at her side.

Xiang Liu smiled, "Good girl," he muttered under his breath, and with what was left of his spirit strength, threw a ball of energy at his soulmate, creating an almost impenetrable shield around her, and instructed, "Save yourself. I will be fine. Shoot an arrow towards the north and hide yourself well. Tushan Jing will find you."

Unfazed by Fangfeng Bei's words, Xiao Yao nodded and peeped through the cracks; keeping to the shadows, she took aim. She could make out blurry shapes in the sky. Letting her instincts take over, Xiang Liu's student stood up and shot three consecutive arrows toward her targets.

Xiang Liu saw the arrows fly. A moment later, they found their destinations. It made the tips of his lips rise. As his eyes fell shut, his heart soared. 'Xiao Yao, I am proud of you,' the demon thought before the silver arrows finally stole his consciousness.

Chapter word count: 309
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ord count so far: 2586