After Zhu Zhuqing was rushed back to the Shrek residence, her condition rapidly worsened.
The Healing Hand Soul Master Yu Xiaogang had invited examined her, his expression turning grim as he shook his head again and again.
"There's no hope... Her ribs aren't merely broken. The one closest to her heart has been shattered, and the fragments are pressing against the meridians near her heart!
"And because she took medicine to forcibly draw out her potential, her injuries have rebounded even worse! She's suffering from severe internal bleeding, her Soul Power is in disarray, and she's fallen into a deep coma... I... I'm powerless to help!" The healer's words were like a splash of ice water, extinguishing the last glimmer of hope in the hearts of the Shrek group.
"How could this happen?!" Dai Mubai's eyes were bloodshot as he grabbed the healer by the collar.
Yu Xiaogang's face was deathly pale. He swayed, nearly unable to stand. He had been the one to decide they should use the medicine...
Ning Rongrong looked at Zhu Zhuqing lying on the bed, her breathing growing weaker by the moment and her face devoid of color. Tears streamed uncontrollably down her cheeks.
She clenched her teeth and spun around, rushing outside.
"Rongrong, where are you going?" Oscar asked hurriedly.
"To find Lin Yi! He's the only one who can save Zhuqing now!" Ning Rongrong shouted without looking back, her voice breaking with tears and determination.
She remembered Lin Yi's precise bone-setting technique and his unfathomable healing abilities, especially his fifth Soul Skill, which could restore the Soul Power and injuries of an entire group! It was their only hope!
Ning Rongrong sprinted all the way to the Heaven Dou Royal Academy's residence. Ignoring the guards' attempts to stop her, she went straight to find Lin Yi.
"Lin Yi! Please, save Zhuqing! She... she's dying!" Ning Rongrong pleaded through her tears. At that moment, she no longer cared about the dignity expected of a young lady from a great clan or the grudges between them.
Lin Yi looked at Ning Rongrong, her face streaked with tears and panic, and furrowed his brow.
His Spirit Detection had already given him a vague sense that Zhu Zhuqing was in trouble, but he hadn't expected her condition to deteriorate so quickly.
"What's her condition now?" Lin Yi asked gravely.
Ning Rongrong quickly repeated what the healer had said.
After hearing her description, Lin Yi's eyes narrowed. A shattered bone was pressing against her heart meridians?
She was truly on the verge of death! Ordinary healing Soul Masters wouldn't dare—and couldn't—treat such delicate and dangerous injuries.
"Bring her here." Lin Yi made his decision at once. "I have all the equipment I need, and it's quieter here. Remember, be gentle. Don't jostle her at all!"
Ning Rongrong ran back as if she'd just received an imperial decree.
The Shrek group was in disarray. Though they were extremely reluctant to seek Lin Yi's help, they could only grit their teeth and agree if they wanted to save Zhu Zhuqing's life. Carefully, they moved the unconscious Zhu Zhuqing to the Heaven Dou Royal Academy's residence.
In Lin Yi's room, Zhu Zhuqing lay flat on the bed, her breathing so faint it was almost imperceptible.
Lin Yi carefully scanned her injuries with his mental power, his expression growing grave. Her condition was even worse than he'd imagined. The bone fragments weren't just pressing against her meridians; they had even pierced tiny blood vessels, and the internal bleeding was ongoing.
"How is she, Lin Yi? Can you save her?" Ning Rongrong asked anxiously. Dai Mubai, Tang San, and the others held their breath as well.
Lin Yi withdrew his mental power and swept a cold glance over the Shrek group. His gaze lingered for a moment on Yu Xiaogang and Tang San, chilling both of them to the core.
"She can be saved." Lin Yi uttered two words, and the group felt their tension ease. But what he said next sent their hearts sinking again. "Her injuries are too severe. Her meridians are ruptured, bone fragments have pierced her lungs, and her Soul Power is congested. Even if I forcibly heal her, she'll be crippled, unable to make any further progress in Soul Power."
"What?" Dai Mubai felt as though he'd been struck by lightning.
"Unless..." Lin Yi continued, "I use my Soul Power and mental power to clear her blocked meridians inch by inch, then piece her shattered bones back together, set them in place, and stimulate them to heal.
"This process will be extremely taxing, and I'll need a top-tier healing Martial Soul to assist me and nourish her continuously."
He looked at the Shrek group, his tone cold and resolute. "I can save her and guarantee that she recovers completely.
"But from this day on, Zhu Zhuqing will have nothing more to do with Shrek Academy!
"She was saved by me, Lin Yi!"
"Don't even think about it!" Dai Mubai roared. "You're taking advantage of her while she's helpless!"
Tang San clenched his fists as well, his eyes icy. "Lin Yi, don't push things too far!"
"Too far?" Lin Yi sneered. "I warned you that she couldn't fight.
"You made one bad decision after another—for the Soul Bone, for fame and glory—without caring whether she lived or died. You drove her to the brink!
"Now, either agree to my terms and let me do everything I can to save her,
"or let Chief Meng throw you out."
He ignored the Shrek group's anger and struggle, and spoke directly to Meng Shenji, who was standing guard outside. "Chief Meng, please have them leave. I need absolute quiet to treat her. Also, have Ye Lingling come and assist me."
As a Soul Douluo, Meng Shenji let his imposing aura spread as he said gravely, "Everyone, please leave. Don't interfere with Teacher Lin Yi saving your classmate."
Faced with overwhelming strength and the reality that Zhu Zhuqing's life was hanging by a thread, all the Shrek group's anger and resentment turned to helplessness.
Yu Xiaogang's face was ashen.
Dai Mubai glared at Lin Yi, then let out a beastlike growl and slammed his fist into the wall before turning and storming out.
Tang San took a long look at the unconscious Zhu Zhuqing on the bed, then at Lin Yi. His expression was unbearably complicated. In the end, Flender and Liu Erlong pulled him away.
At last, the room fell quiet.
When Ye Lingling arrived, Lin Yi said to her, "Lingling, follow my instructions in a moment. Keep using your Nine Heart Begonia to nourish her heart meridians and injuries, and stabilize her life force."
"Yes, Team Leader." Ye Lingling nodded solemnly.
Lin Yi took a deep breath and brought himself to peak condition. First, he released his fifth Soul Skill, "Pure Lotus Bloom." A gentle yet immense life force enveloped Zhu Zhuqing, stabilizing her rapidly worsening injuries and keeping her last breath from fading.
Then he extended both hands. One hovered over the injury on Zhu Zhuqing's chest as he released Spirit Detection.
The pure Snow Lotus Soul Power mingled with his powerful mental energy, like the finest surgical blade and guiding thread, carefully probing into her badly damaged meridians and bones.
His other hand rested against her back, using his own Soul Power to protect her heart meridians.
It was an extremely delicate process that took tremendous concentration.
He had to locate every fragment of bone, return each to its proper place, and temporarily hold it there with Soul Power;
He had to clear the punctured, blocked meridians and guide the congested Soul Power back into circulation;
He also had to keep track of Ye Lingling's healing energy, making sure it didn't clash with his own Soul Power and that the two worked together perfectly.
Sweat soon soaked Lin Yi's fringe, and his face grew slightly pale.
Ye Lingling was just as focused. The light of the Nine Heart Begonia fell steadily over Zhu Zhuqing, mending her tiny wounds and replenishing her life force.
Time passed bit by bit. The only sounds in the room were the faint hum of flowing Soul Power and the two of them breathing heavily.
The two hours felt as long as two years.
When Lin Yi had returned the last tiny bone fragment to its proper place, guided Ye Lingling's healing energy to envelop and nourish it, and cleared the final blocked section of meridian, he let out a long breath. His body swayed, and he nearly collapsed from exhaustion.
On the bed, a trace of color finally returned to Zhu Zhuqing's face, which had been as pale as paper. Her breathing, faint but steady, resumed.
Her long eyelashes fluttered a few times, and slowly, with great difficulty, she opened her eyes.
At first, her vision was blurred. Then it gradually came into focus.
The first thing she saw was the face right before her—sharply defined and tired, beads of sweat clinging to his temple, yet his eyes remained deep and calm.
It was Lin Yi.
Memories surged back like a tide: the brutal blow on the arena, the soul-rending pain, the endless darkness...
Then there was this warm, powerful force, pulling her back bit by bit from the icy depths...
She looked at Lin Yi, her gaze filled with complicated emotions and the daze of someone who had returned from the brink of death.
Seeing her wake, Lin Yi spoke calmly. "You're awake. Remember, from now on, your life belongs to me.
"You're mine now."
Before you continue