At This Moment, There Was Only a Fight to the Death!

"What?" Qin Lang, who had been sitting on the ground resting, sprang to his feet and stared at Bu Lianshi in shock.

Before they had even entered the Hunting Grounds, Bu Lianshi had already proven how exceptional her perception was. If not for Lin Chuan's Byakugan, she would have played an unimaginable role in this trial. But now, her words sent Qin Lang's heart plummeting to the bottom.

Lin Chuan still hadn't woken up!

Seated cross-legged inside the cave, Lin Chuan was still cultivating with his eyes closed, completely unaware that danger was drawing closer with every step.

"What should we do? Their cultivation seems to be higher than ours. That's why I can sense them from so far away. But it won't be long before they reach us!" Bu Lianshi was only eight years old, after all. With danger bearing down on them, she immediately panicked. She tried with all her might to stay calm, but her slightly trembling hands still betrayed her fear.

"Don't panic. Let's calm down first. Those people might not be coming here. They could just be passing by through a neighboring cave." Qin Lang drew a deep breath.

"Go to the cave entrance and try calling Lin Chuan. See if you can wake him up. I'll go take a look up ahead!" After saying this, Qin Lang hurried back the way Bu Lianshi had come.

Bu Lianshi clenched her fists, then turned and ran toward the cave where Lin Chuan was.

"Brother Lin Chuan, twelve people are coming! We're in danger. Can you move? We need to leave here for a while!" Bu Lianshi crouched at the cave entrance, struggling against the waves of heat surging out from within. Sweat had already soaked through her clothes.

But no matter how loudly Bu Lianshi called, Lin Chuan sat there motionless as if he had been turned to stone, without the slightest response.

Suddenly, Bu Lianshi's expression changed again. "They're here. Just as I thought—they're headed straight for us!"

A moment later, Qin Lang appeared at the far end of the passage and ran toward Bu Lianshi. His face was grim as he cursed while running, "Damn it! Those people had already passed the trial. Why did they enter the Hunting Grounds before the time was up?!"

"Even the weakest among them is at the sixth level of the Qi Refining Stage, and there's even someone at the ninth level! How did they get in here? Is that bunch from the Lin Clan full of shit?!"

If it had been a group taking part in this trial, Qin Lang and Bu Lianshi could have used the terrain to hold out for a while. But these people were far beyond their ability to handle. How were they supposed to fight them?

"The weakest is at the sixth level of the Qi Refining Stage? That means they're headed straight for this Lava Cave!" Hearing Qin Lang's curses, Bu Lianshi immediately realized that the Lava Cave was their target. Only those at the sixth level of the Qi Refining Stage or higher could enter the cave briefly without being burned.

"There's nothing we can do. We can't wake Lin Chuan, so all we can do is hold this place. We have no way out now!" Gloom shadowed Qin Lang's face, but even now, he had no intention of fleeing.

All along the way, Lin Chuan had looked after them both. He had shielded them from danger while also finding opportunities to improve their strength. Their breakthrough to the next level in just two or three days had been entirely thanks to Lin Chuan.

Now it was their turn to shield Lin Chuan from danger. Even if it looked no different from walking to their deaths, he wouldn't back down.

"Never... never again will I let anyone I cherish... be hurt by someone else... Even if it costs me my life, I will never retreat..." Qin Lang murmured. His expression had never been more serious.

Bu Lianshi, standing nearby, glanced back at Lin Chuan sitting quietly with his legs crossed. A faint smile touched her lips. "Brother Lin Chuan... Ever since that incident... you're the first person who's made me feel safe... Your mischievous grin can be pretty unreliable sometimes, but besides you and Qin Lang... I have no one else in this world... If even you gave up on me, then I'd have no reason to keep living!"

Qin Lang and Bu Lianshi exchanged a look, understanding each other without a word of encouragement. Only the spiritual energy within each of them surged wildly.

They both knew: at this moment, there was only a fight to the death!

Inside the cave, Lin Chuan, who seemed to be quietly cultivating, was not nearly as calm as he appeared. A storm had already risen in his heart. He had detected the twelve people even before Bu Lianshi. His eyes were closed, but the 360-degree field of view and one-kilometer range of his Byakugan formed his perimeter. Even while cultivating, he kept his Byakugan activated, observing everything around him.

"Damn it! I spent an entire day and only refined half the spiritual energy. Is this thing messing with me?! This cursed Fruit of the God Tree chose this exact place to devour so much Crimson Flame Lotus. Now this thing's going to get me killed!"

Lin Chuan cursed inwardly. But there was still too much spiritual energy filling his body, and he didn't dare move. One wrong move and he'd turn into a bomb, killing himself—and Qin Lang and Bu Lianshi would certainly be blown to pieces too.

"Now I can only hope Qin Lang and Bu Lianshi hurry up and leave. Then even if I explode when I make my move, they won't be hurt..."

But just as Lin Chuan thought this, he saw Qin Lang and Bu Lianshi both begin circulating their spiritual energy, taking up positions on the only path leading to the cave.

It would've been a lie to say he wasn't moved. Few people would still stand in front of their companions in a situation like this. It was no different from asking for death. All twelve newcomers were cultivators at the sixth level of the Qi Refining Stage or higher; the two of them stood no chance. And yet neither had any intention of abandoning Lin Chuan and escaping alone. To Lin Chuan, who had always been utterly alone, this felt both unfamiliar and deeply shocking.

"So someone is willing to stake their life for my worthless hide! Is it worth it?" Lin Chuan smiled bitterly. He had come to this world prepared to remain alone, to go on living in solitude, with no attachments, no weaknesses, and no vulnerabilities—only aiming to reach the very pinnacle of this world one day.

But at this moment, he felt that his life now held something he needed to protect: an unbreakable bond, a splash of color emerging from a world of gray and white. He hadn't expected the feeling to be so strangely wonderful.

"Since you won't leave, what reason do I have not to give it everything I've got? For myself, and for you!"

"There's clearly no time to refine the spiritual energy now. Then I'll force all of it into the 130 trillion cells in my body!" Lin Chuan thought, beginning to squeeze the spiritual energy out of his dantian and meridians without regard for the consequences, sending it to every part of his body.

The piercing pain was unlike anything Lin Chuan had ever experienced. It felt as if the flesh of his entire body were being crushed and reassembled. Agony rolled over him like mountains and seas, but he didn't stop. Instead, he sped up. He had no reason to give up now—not with those two companions outside, staking their lives for him.

He knew that at this moment, there was only a fight to the death!