NOVEL WEB Chapter 12: The Fractured Alliance
The Bridge of Sighs
Li Tian's boots scraped against the black stone as he stood at the center of the Bridge of Sighs. The air was thick with the whispers of the dead, their voices carried on the cold wind. Below, the void churned—a bottomless pit of shadows and screaming souls, a place where the damned never stopped falling.
Across from him, Ling Xue held the Soul-Lock Seal in her hand, its eerie blue glow illuminating her pale face.
Something was wrong.
Her grip on the relic was too tight. Her stance, usually relaxed, was rigid. Li Tian took a step forward, his heart pounding.
"Xue… what are you doing?" His voice was steady, but inside, doubt gnawed at him.
Ling Xue lifted her gaze, her violet eyes colder than the frost she wielded.
"I'm finishing what I started," she said.
A chill ran through Li Tian's spine.
She wasn't just leaving. She wasn't just taking the relic.
She was betraying him.
---
A Truth Worse Than Death
Li Tian clenched his fists. "We fought together. We bled together. Was all of that a lie?"
Ling Xue exhaled, as if sighing at a child who didn't understand. "You were useful, Li Tian. That's all."
The words hit harder than any sword ever could.
She twirled the Soul-Lock Seal between her fingers. "General Xue trusted me. He saw my potential when no one else did. And then the Order betrayed him." Her jaw tightened. "I will bring him back, no matter the cost."
Li Tian's breath came in ragged bursts. He had trusted her. He had thought— no, he didn't have time for that now.
"Yanluo played you," he said. "He doesn't care about General Xue. You're just another pawn."
Ling Xue smiled, the faintest hint of sorrow in her eyes. "Then I'll be the pawn that topples the king."
She turned to leave—toward the edge of the bridge, toward the swirling abyss where the ritual would take place.
Li Tian's grip tightened around his blade.
"Then I'll stop you."
Ling Xue glanced back, and in that moment, all softness vanished.
"You can try."
---
The Battle for the Seal
First Clash
Li Tian exploded forward, his sword cutting through the cold night air. He aimed straight for her wrist, a precise strike meant to disarm her before she could escape.
But Ling Xue spun aside, her white robes fluttering. With a flick of her wrist, the bridge's surface froze beneath his feet, turning the black stone into a sheet of ice.
Li Tian's boots slid, his balance thrown off for a split second—just enough time for Ling Xue to counterattack.
Her Frozen Tempest Blade flashed.
SHING!
A razor-thin arc of ice shot toward him, slicing through the air like a winter storm. Li Tian barely had time to raise his sword before the impact sent shockwaves up his arms. His blade froze on contact, frost creeping along the steel.
He grit his teeth, forcing his corrupted energy through the weapon. With a burst of abyssal power, he shattered the ice and retaliated.
Sword Against Ice
Li Tian feinted left, then struck right, his sword blurring in a deadly arc.
CLANG!
Ling Xue's blade met his in a flurry of sparks and ice shards. She retaliated with a lightning-fast riposte, her sword gliding toward his ribs.
Li Tian twisted, dodging by inches, and countered with a downward slash aimed at her shoulder.
Ling Xue vanished.
For a fraction of a second, she was mist, dispersing like cold breath in the wind—then she reformed behind him.
A dagger of ice erupted from her palm.
Li Tian barely managed to twist away before the ice blade pierced his side, leaving a shallow but burning cut.
Gritting his teeth, he swung back hard.
Ling Xue blocked, but the force sent her skidding backward. She flipped in midair, landing gracefully on the frozen bridge.
For a moment, they stared at each other, panting.
Then, they charged again.
---
Breaking the Ice
Li Tian's sword was a storm of darkness, crackling with abyssal energy. He unleashed a flurry of slashes, each one faster and more brutal than the last.
Ling Xue weaved between the strikes, her movements like flowing water. With a sweep of her arm, she summoned a blizzard, turning the air into a whirlwind of frost and daggers of ice.
Li Tian smashed through the storm, ignoring the cold biting at his skin. He closed the distance and—
THRUST.
His blade struck true.
The tip pierced her shoulder, crimson blooming against white fabric.
Ling Xue gasped, her eyes flashing with pain—but she didn't falter. Instead, she grabbed his wrist and froze it solid.
Pain exploded up his arm.
She used the moment to slam her knee into his stomach, knocking the air from his lungs.
Then, she twisted his frozen wrist and hurled him backward.
CRACK!
Li Tian hit the bridge hard, sliding across the ice. Blood dripped from his mouth. His corruption surged—he was at 98%.
Ling Xue stood over him, her blade glowing with frozen light.
"It's over, Li Tian."
---
The Final Strike
Li Tian forced himself to his feet, his breathing ragged. The pain was unbearable, his limbs heavy.
But he wasn't done yet.
He closed his eyes.
Then—he let go.
The abyss roared to life inside him. His corruption exploded outward, black tendrils of energy coiling around his sword.
Ling Xue's eyes widened in the split second before he attacked.
His strike shattered the ice, sending shockwaves across the bridge.
Ling Xue tried to dodge, but he was too fast.
His blade tore through her defenses.
BOOM!
The force sent her flying. She crashed against the stone, her grip on the Soul-Lock Seal loosening. The bridge beneath them splintered, cracks racing through the ancient stone.
She staggered to the edge—just inches from the abyss.
Li Tian advanced, panting. "Give me the Seal."
She wiped blood from her lip, then glanced at the swirling void behind her.
Then—she smirked.
---
A Fall into Darkness
"Funny," she said. "I was just about to give it away."
And then—
She stepped back.
Li Tian's breath caught as she plunged into the void, the Soul-Lock Seal still clutched in her hand.
"LING XUE!"
He lunged, reaching for her—his fingers brushed hers—
But she was already falling.
For a moment, she was just a speck of white in the darkness.
Then, she was gone.
---
The System's Offer
"You have seen the truth. There is only one way forward."
"Kill Yanluo. Claim his power. Save yourself."
Li Tian's hands tightened around his sword.
He had lost the Seal.
He had lost Ling Xue.
And now—
He had nothing left to lose.