Admiration and Worry

After checking Taitino's body and confirming it had not been tainted by the Abyss's aura—and thus ensuring that this prey was truly dead—Ye Chen let out a long breath of relief.

"Phew."

He then lowered himself into a cross-legged seat on the ground, closed his eyes, and focused his mind, swiftly regulating the violently turbulent, utterly disordered state of his blood and vital energy.

Although in the latter half of his desperate battle against Taitino, his natural nemesis, Ye Chen had displayed an utterly crushing and invincible bearing, this fight could still be called the hardest battle he had faced today.

After all, before this, Ye Chen had never encountered such an extreme predicament as having his Innate Spirit Art completely countered.

A terrifying willpower capable of enduring piercing agony for long stretches, a mind and mentality that remained calm yet sharp at every moment, and technical foundations honed to the very peak.

If any one of these three elements had been lacking, Ye Chen, unable to control blood, could never have glimpsed the dawn of victory.

Of course, the emerald radiance that had silently lingered around his heart throughout this process had also rendered invaluable service.

Had Xiya not provided healing support and sustained his energy from behind the scenes, even if Ye Chen had not been defeated, his body would certainly have suffered grave injuries.

While Ye Chen quietly recovered, Little Python scurried back and forth across the surface of his body.

Whenever it encountered blood that had yet to dry, it greedily sucked it away. Whenever it came across clotted blood, it bit it off cleanly.

With the diligent assistance of this little fellow, acting like a scavenger, Ye Chen soon shed his former blood-soaked appearance and returned to his original, normal look.

*(Being unable to use