Just as expected.
After listening, Old Man Gu's skull-like, withered face rapidly shifted through a storm of emotions.
Shock, wild delight, regret, anxiety, hesitation... all manner of complex, indescribable feelings flashed across his face like a revolving lantern.
He had long intended to withdraw from the world and spend his remaining years in peace, unwilling to become embroiled in any further disputes.
All he wanted was to safely pass on his final inheritance to Zhua Yun.
Yet this sudden turn of events today was like a massive boulder, ruthlessly shattering the peace he had struggled so hard to maintain!
He understood better than Zhua Yun what a "Heavenly Eye" meant!
Within the Body Martial Soul system, the strength of a Martial Soul was closely tied to its "importance" and "uniqueness" within the human body.
The brain, heart, skin, blood, and bones were known as superior Body Martial Souls and possessed enormous potential.
Arms, legs, fingers, eyes, noses, and the like, meanwhile, were lower-grade Body Martial Souls and relatively common.
But the "Heavenly Eye"... it had completely surpassed the boundaries of ordinary human organs!
It was absolutely impossible for a third vertical eye to naturally grow on a person!
It did not originate from the human body itself. It was more like an "imprint" or "projection" of the laws of heaven and earth, descending upon one blessed by fate in the form of an "eye"!
It could no longer be defined as either "superior" or "lower-grade."
It was an existence beyond grades!
A legendary "Super Martial Soul," perhaps even the—"God-Level Martial Soul" that existed only in theory!
A youth with a God-Level Body Martial Soul, a genius who ought to have shone with Radiance Ten Thousand Zhang and might one day have led an entire era.
Yet now, because his Heart Martial Soul had been destroyed, he was on the brink of death, kneeling before this "madman" and begging for a sliver of hope...
That immense contrast made Old Man Gu's long-silent heart, once as calm as an ancient well, pound madly once more.
A long-lost thrill, one he had nearly forgotten, suddenly seized him.
In the secret chamber, only the uneven, heavy breathing of the three men remained.
Behind his tangled hair, Old Man Gu's eyes flickered with uncertain light as the scales in his heart swayed and tipped wildly...
After a long while...
Old Man Gu still stood frozen in place, though his thoughts churned furiously in the depths of his eyes.
His thin, bony fingers unconsciously twisted the corner of his clothes, and even his breathing had grown heavier.
Keep him? Save him?!
The thought became clearer and stronger by the moment.
The youth before him possessed the legendary "Heavenly Eye" Martial Soul!
He was an earth-shaking anomaly unseen in the Body Sect for decades—no, perhaps even centuries!
With such talent and such potential, if he were to quietly perish now because his Martial Soul had shattered and his heart meridians were ruined—
That would not merely be this youth's tragedy. It would be an immeasurable loss to the Body Sect, perhaps even a great regret for the entire Spirit Master world!
What a waste! Such an unbearable waste!
Just as Elder Gu's heart was locked in fierce conflict, Long Zhanye had already struggled to his feet.
He raised his head, his face filled with pleading and the last vestige of hope amid despair. "Elder Gu! I know... I know you must have a way!"
"This junior begs Elder Gu to act and save my life! This junior will never forget Elder Gu's great kindness for as long as I live!"
"I am willing to devote this broken body and the rest of my life to serving Elder Gu, attending to your daily needs and obeying your every command without complaint!"
"Hmph!" Elder Gu gave an unreadable snort through his nose.
He seemed unimpressed by this flattery and declaration of loyalty, but the turmoil in his eyes betrayed his unsettled heart.
He cast a sidelong glance at the equally nervous Zhua Yun. "I suppose..."
"That brat Zhua Yun has already spilled every last detail of our Secret of the Body to you?"
Long Zhanye glanced at Zhua Yun, who gave him a slight nod.
Long Zhanye nodded. "Yes, Elder Gu. Senior Brother Zhua Yun has already told this junior."
"Mm." Elder Gu stroked his messy beard.
"Indeed, the Secret of the Body is a theoretical framework that this old man only barely outlined after exhausting the efforts of several generations of predecessors and extrapolating from countless cases."
"But—" His tone abruptly shifted, becoming exceedingly grave.
"It remains only a theory! Empty talk on paper! This old man has never, and never dared to, truly put it into practice on a person! Much less..."
"Your injury is to the heart! One slight misstep, even the tiniest deviation in the execution of Soul Power, could cause your heart meridians to rupture on the spot and your soul to scatter!"
"This responsibility, this infamy of killing what may become the sect's future genius—this old man... cannot bear it!"
"Elder Gu!" Long Zhanye hurriedly said, his gaze burning. "Since this junior has made this decision, I have already cast life and death aside!"
"Whatever the result may be, whether I live or die, succeed or fail, this junior will bear no resentment! I will bear all consequences myself!"
"Bear them? What can you use to bear them?" Elder Gu interrupted him without ceremony, irritation creeping into his voice.
"This is not about whether you dare to play the hero! It is because this old man has no confidence at all! Your injuries have nearly become irreversible!"
"This old man knows you are still young, that your great vengeance remains unavenged, and that you cannot accept this. But precisely because of that, this old man must advise you."
"Let the sect elders use the finest resources to treat you conservatively. Perhaps that can extend your life a little longer and lessen your suffering."
"This Secret of the Body... carries far too much risk. The chance of success is minuscule. It is like walking a tightrope over a cliff—no, like jumping into a fire pit in search of survival!"
After speaking, as if to cut off the restless urge for risk-taking in his own heart, Elder Gu shook his head forcefully.
He turned his back, waved a hand at Zhua Yun, and walked toward another tightly shut wooden door without looking back.
His steps were even somewhat hurried, as though he were fleeing this dilemma that had left him torn.
"Elder Gu! Elder Gu!" Long Zhanye knelt on the ground and shouted urgently at his retreating back.
But the wooden door had already slammed shut with a bang, sealing Elder Gu's figure and every possible response behind it.
The faint ray of hope he had so painstakingly grasped in the darkness was once again mercilessly extinguished.
In the end, Elder Gu was unwilling—or rather, did not dare—to bear the potential everlasting infamy that might come with saving a "dead genius."
He chose the safest refusal, and the most despairing one.
Beside him, Zhua Yun looked at the closed wooden door, then at Long Zhanye kneeling there in despair, and anxiously scratched at his head and ears.
He paced in circles, muttering endlessly under his breath, "How could this happen... how could this happen..."
The light in Long Zhanye's eyes completely faded. He slowly rose from the ground and brushed the dust from his knees.
As though his soul had been ripped away, he staggered out of the underground cavern step by step like a walking corpse.
After returning to his quiet room, Long Zhanye threw himself onto the bed.
He pulled the blanket over his head, wanting to completely shut himself away from this world filled with despair.
Sharp-eyed Elder Xu quickly noticed that something was wrong.
The old man gently pushed open the door. Seeing the lifeless figure curled up on the bed, his heart could not help but ache.
He walked to the bedside and sat down, lowering his voice until it was almost a whisper. "Child, what is wrong? Did something upset you?"
There was no movement beneath the blanket.
Elder Xu sighed. "Is it still... because of that matter?"
Those words seemed to pierce through Long Zhanye's final facade.
He suddenly flung off the blanket, tears and snot streaming down his face as he screamed hoarsely at Elder Xu, "My great vengeance has yet to be avenged! I cannot die! I still cannot die!!!"
Seeing the nearly crazed despair and unwillingness in the youth's eyes, Elder Xu's face filled with sorrow, yet he did not know how to comfort him.
Suddenly.
A flash of inspiration struck Elder Xu. He abruptly slapped his thigh.
"Zhanye! Didn't you say a few days ago that you met a temperamental 'Mad Old Man' in the sect?"
Long Zhanye nodded and told Elder Xu everything, from how he had accidentally discovered the underground cavern over the past few days to how Elder Gu had refused to treat him.
After listening, Elder Xu's expression first grew even darker. The room sank into deathly silence as the two sat facing one another without a word.
Before you continue