Embracing Amidst the Thunder

Just as Lu Xueqi's consciousness was about to fade, a warm, solid embrace pulled her in tight.

It was Li Xiaoyu!

While using his gourd to absorb a portion of the lightning, he had recklessly charged in front of her, catching her falling body firmly in his arms!

"You..."

Lu Xueqi opened her eyes weakly, staring at the handsome face inches from her own, her eyes filled with shock.

Why would he do this?

Li Xiaoyu did not answer her.

He simply held her tightly, using his own back to meet the most violent of the lightning strikes!

A wild, crazed smile played across Li Xiaoyu's face.

BOOM!

A brilliant purple light swallowed the entire world.

Before everyone's eyes, nothing remained but a blinding, piercing white.

Their ears, too, were temporarily robbed of hearing.

The violent energy, like a bursting flood, swept madly in every direction with the arena as its center.

The ground of the Heaven-Reaching Peak plaza was ripped up by a full layer!

Surrounding structures shook violently under the shockwave, as if they might collapse at any moment.

Disciples standing nearby were sent flying, spitting blood and landing in a wretched state.

Daoist Daoxuan and the other elders of the Upper Purity Realm acted in unison, casting a massive defensive light barrier to barely protect the viewing platform and the majority of the disciples.

Yet, every one of their faces was filled with horror.

They stared at the center of that energy storm.

Time seemed to stretch in that moment.

A long while later.

The light finally began to dissipate.

The roaring gradually subsided.

When everyone could see the scene in the arena once more, they all gasped in unison.

The originally flat central arena had completely vanished.

A charred, deep pit ten zhang in diameter appeared in its place.

Tiny electric arcs still flickered along the edges of the crater, radiating an aura of destruction.

And at the very center of that giant pit.

A figure still stood perfectly straight.

It was Li Xiaoyu.

But he looked miserable.

His green Daoist robe had long since turned to ash, revealing his toned upper body.

His back was a mass of mangled flesh, charred black, with white bone visible beneath.

Blood flowed continuously down his body, staining the earth beneath his feet red.

Yet, he still stood!

Like a spear that would rather break than bend, he held up this patch of heaven and earth.

And in his arms, the girl in white was shielded tightly by him, completely unharmed.

Aside from her pale complexion and weak breath, not even a single strand of her hair had been damaged.

He had used his own flesh and blood to block everything for her!

Shock!

Utter shock!

Dead silence.

The entire Heaven-Reaching Peak plaza fell into a deathly hush.

Everyone's gaze was fixed in a daze upon that deep pit, upon that mangled yet upright figure.

Their minds were a complete blank.

They could not comprehend the scene they had just witnessed.

Under such world-destroying lightning punishment, not only had he endured, but he had also protected his opponent?!

What kind of courage did this require?

What kind of will did this require?

What kind of bond could require such a sacrifice?

No one could fathom it.

On the viewing platform, Shang Zhengliang's body trembled violently. He watched his disciple covered in blood, tears streaming down his aged face, his lips quivering, yet he could not utter a single word.

Master Shuiyue was bathed in tears.

She looked at the young man who held her beloved disciple in his arms, his figure seemingly overlapping with one from her memories.

"He..."

Tian Buyi and Tian Ling'er, father and daughter, were ashen-faced and utterly devastated.

It was shock.

And it was also a touch of regret.

Inside the massive crater.

Lu Xueqi slowly opened her eyes.

Her consciousness was still somewhat blurred.

She only remembered that in the instant she was about to be swallowed by the thunder, a warm, solid embrace had shielded her.

Immediately following that was the earth-shattering explosion.

Lu Xueqi instinctively raised her head, and what met her eyes was a pale face bearing a gentle smile.

His breath was faint and warm, brushing against her hair.

She could clearly feel the arms with which Li Xiaoyu held her trembling slightly.

She could also smell the thick scent of blood and charred flesh emanating from him.

Her mind cleared in an instant.

Lu Xueqi struggled, wanting to pull away from his embrace.

She saw his mangled back, saw the wounds that were deep enough to reveal bone.

"Why?"

Lu Xueqi's voice remained cold, yet it carried an indescribable gentleness.

Li Xiaoyu slowly lowered his head. He opened his mouth, wanting to say something.

But a mouthful of blood surged up first.

"Pfft!"

The blood stained his lapels and splattered onto Lu Xueqi's white skirt, like desolate, beautiful plum blossoms.

"Don't speak!"

Lu Xueqi panicked. She reached out with trembling hands, wanting to cover his mouth, yet she was at a loss for what to do.

"I'm fine."

Li Xiaoyu smiled weakly.

Forcibly enduring the backlash of the Divine Sword Thunder Control Technique really was not easy to bear.

"Are you alright?"

He asked softly.

What a fool!

He was nearly dying himself, yet he was still concerned about her!

"I'm fine."

Just then, the deacon disciple responsible for refereeing, along with Shang Zhengliang, Master Shuiyue, and the others, finally snapped out of their shock and rushed down into the deep crater.

"Xiaoyu!"

"Xueqi!"

Anxious shouts echoed through the pit.

Seeing the scene before them, they were deeply moved once again.

Shang Zhengliang looked at the miserable state of his disciple and hurriedly pulled out high-quality healing pills from his robes, wanting to step forward and feed them to him.

At this moment, a cold, firm voice rang out across the entire plaza.

"I concede."

It was Lu Xueqi.

Everyone was stunned.

Concede?

When everyone assumed she would be the victor, she had actually chosen to concede?

Just then, Li Xiaoyu's body went limp, and he collapsed backward.

"Xiaoyu!"

"Senior Brother Li!"

Cries of alarm rang out once more.

Watching his falling figure, Lu Xueqi felt as if the entire world had lost its color.

Disregarding everything, she broke free from her master's embrace and lunged to Li Xiaoyu's side, clutching him tightly as if to merge him into her own body.

The night deepened.

Moonlight flowed like water, casting a cold, clear radiance.

Li Xiaoyu lay quietly on the bed, eyes tightly shut and breathing steady, as if he were merely asleep.

Yet his pale complexion and the thick bandages wrapped around his body still spoke of the brutal intensity of the day's battle.

Shang Zhengliang and Chu Yuhong kept watch by the bedside, their faces etched with worry.

"Master, is Senior Brother really going to be alright?"

Looking at Li Xiaoyu's bloodless face, Chu Yuhong could not help but ask.

Shang Zhengliang sighed, his voice raspy: "I have already administered the Three Purity Pill, the sect's finest medicinal treasure for healing, which has finally preserved his heart meridian."

"His physical body has been tempered far beyond that of an ordinary person over the past six years, and combined with the purity of his internal spiritual energy, his regenerative ability is exceptionally strong; his life should no longer be in danger."

He paused, a flicker of lingering fear flashing in his eyes.

"However..."