The air fell silent.
At that moment, even Dragon Duke and Snake Granny, standing not far away, froze in place, at a loss for words.
Before long, everyone finally accepted reality. The one flying in the sky was Lin Yan... and the one lying on the ground was Tang San!
That was right! Tang San had gone missing for an entire night too. When everyone first started searching, they'd all been focused on Lin Yan, so when that half-dead figure was carried over, they'd instinctively assumed it was Lin Yan...
Ning Rongrong, who had been kneeling on the ground, seemed to suddenly come back to her senses. She sprang up and rushed toward the figure in the air.
"Lin Yan! Wuuu~"
The girl leaped up as if she were jumping into heaven. Lin Yan naturally couldn't leave her hanging, and so, under everyone's watchful eyes, the two of them embraced tightly.
"You scared me to death... Where did you go? Why couldn't we find you, even after searching for an entire day and night? Wuuu~"
Ning Rongrong's forthright nature, which made her love and hate without reservation, kept her from holding back her affection. She already liked Lin Yan very much; everyone present knew it.
Especially the night before, when Zhu Zhuqing had to deliberately hide her relationship with Lin Yan in front of Dai Mubai. Ning Rongrong, on the other hand, had no such reservations. While searching for Lin Yan, she had been the most anxious of them all.
[Detected that Ning Rongrong's affection for the host has reached 100%. Reward issued. Please claim it later.]
The system notification rang out at an inopportune moment. Lin Yan furrowed his brow slightly, but quickly accepted reality.
"The little princess's affection maxed out all at once!"
"Looks like his disappearance really gave her a scare!"
The system reward could wait. Holding Ning Rongrong, Lin Yan looked around at everyone and finally spotted Zhu Zhuqing, sitting slumped on the ground.
Lin Yan smiled, as if to say: I'm fine. Everything's all right.
Reading his expression, Zhu Zhuqing gradually unclenched the hand that had been gripping the grass, and silently let out a sigh of relief.
Just then, Zhao Wuji, Dai Mubai, and the others all gathered around.
"Lin Yan, where did you go? You had us searching for you all day and night!"
"If the Blue Silver Grass leaves you gave us hadn't seemed normal, I would've thought a Soul Beast had eaten you!"
"..."
Everyone spoke over one another. In essence, they were asking where Lin Yan had been, reproaching him for suddenly disappearing, and expressing concern for his well-being...
Lin Yan slowly descended to the ground. Holding Ning Rongrong in his arms, he began reciting the explanation he'd prepared in advance.
"Yesterday, I went after Tang San and found him facing a thousand-year Man Faced Demon Spider. In my desperation, I used the abilities of my Second Martial Soul to help him."
"When Tang San saw me holding off the Man Faced Demon Spider, he went on to continue chasing Xiao Wu."
"I fought the Man Faced Demon Spider until heaven and earth were spinning. After finally taking it down, I got targeted by other Soul Beasts."
"After barely escaping the Soul Beasts chasing me, I was on my way back to find you when I happened to see a nest of unconscious hundred-year fire-attribute Soul Beasts. I figured I might as well absorb the Soul Ring first, and ended up delayed until now."
"Oh, right! Do these wings look cool? External Soul Bone. I found them!"
After speaking, Lin Yan paid no attention to everyone's astonished, wide-mouthed expressions. He even twirled around, showing off his gorgeous purple Dragon Wings.
The air fell silent once more. The group exchanged glances, unsure whether the magnificent Dragon Wings had left them speechless or Lin Yan's bizarre tale had stunned them into silence.
After a long while, Lin Yan began to feel the awkwardness in the air. Only then did he take the initiative to get the conversation going again.
"But speaking of which, shouldn't you go check on Tang San? I think he might be about to die."
"And Xiao Wu. Hasn't she been lying on the ground for ages?"
At Lin Yan's reminder, everyone finally remembered that two people were still lying on the ground.
There was no time to question Lin Yan about the details. Zhao Wuji hurried over to Snake Granny.
"Elder Sister Chao, Brother Meng, thank you both for bringing this boy back. If it weren't for you, he probably would've lost his life."
"I, Zhao Wuji, owe you two another huge favor."
Dragon Duke said nothing. Snake Granny instead offered a polite smile.
"Don't mention it, Brother Zhao. It was no trouble at all."
"As it happens, the Man Faced Demon Spider your disciple killed last night was also my granddaughter Meng Yiran's target for her Soul Ring."
"What?"
Zhao Wuji frowned, his face showing his astonishment.
Had they snatched two of their Soul Rings in a row? And now Dragon Duke had come too? Could this still be settled peacefully? He silently clenched his fists and summoned every ounce of vigilance, looking as though he were already prepared to fight.
Dragon Duke, who had noticed these subtle movements, let out a disdainful snort.
"Hmph. What are you so nervous about?"
"We never said we'd hold it against you. We saw that Man Faced Demon Spider last night. It was at least two thousand years old. Even if the two of us had hunted it, we wouldn't have let Yiran absorb its Soul Ring. Consider yourself lucky. Otherwise, we wouldn't have been kind enough to bring this boy back to you."
"Remember, Zhao Wuji: you owe Dragon Duke and Snake Granny two huge favors."
There wasn't a trace of kindness in Dragon Duke's tone. That was probably the arrogance of a Soul Douluo facing a Soul Saint.
Across from him, Zhao Wuji looked as if he were being scolded, while forcing a painfully awkward smile onto his face.
Fortunately, the two had no intention of deliberately picking a fight. After Zhao Wuji offered several more ingratiating thanks, they finally left.
Once the two were gone, Zhao Wuji let out a long breath.
With his back to the others, he lifted one corner of the rag covering Tang San. The bloody sight met his eyes, and Zhao Wuji felt his stomach churn.
He was the mighty Immovable Wisdom King. In his early years, countless powerful foes had surrounded and hunted him down, yet he'd never so much as furrowed his brow. But seeing the state of Tang San's waist now made him physically ill.
He hurriedly covered Tang San again with the rag, then turned to Lin Yan.
"How do we save him? You're the only healing-type Soul Master on our team."
"Can you save him?"
Lin Yan didn't understand what he meant. He set Ning Rongrong down, walked over to Zhao Wuji, and took a look at Tang San just as Zhao Wuji had.
"Yikes~"
"Then I'd better save Xiao Wu first."
Just one glance, and he snapped the rag shut as if he'd seen something indescribable. Without another word, he pressed a hand to his forehead and moved away from Tang San.
It was too horrifying. The wound was a grotesque, terrifying mess, marked by both scorching flames and the tearing of sharp teeth.
More importantly, Tang San had become Tang Er now. The most crucial part of his body had long since been left empty—and far more than just that part was missing...
With injuries this severe, there was absolutely no way he could recover completely.
Before you continue