Not Long to Live

Sun Moon Empire, Mingdu, the Hongchen residence.

In the top-tier treatment room specially prepared for Bao Liang, seven or eight healing-type Soul Masters gathered around the bed, casting all manner of healing Soul Skills on him.

Jing Hongchen and Ye Yulin stood to one side, both looking grim.

Jing Hongchen had even brought out a pile of Soul Tools, running them all over Bao Liang as he measured him again and again-a Soul Power detector, a mental fluctuation meter, a vital signs monitoring Soul Tool... All kinds of precision instruments took turns, data flickering across their screens, but none could give him a reassuring conclusion.

"Hall Master Hongchen."

An old Soul Master with graying hair slowly rose to his feet. He was Sun Zhongyu, Mingde Hall's chief healer.

He had followed Jing Hongchen for many years and seen countless Soul Masters on the brink of death from grievous injuries, but he had never encountered a case like Bao Liang's.

"Please, may I have a word with you in private?" Sun Zhongyu looked at Jing Hongchen, his voice hoarse.

Jing Hongchen's heart sank. He followed Sun Zhongyu into the corridor outside the treatment room, with Ye Yulin following them.

"Elder Sun, how is he?" Jing Hongchen did his best to keep his voice steady, but his slightly trembling hands betrayed his anxiety.

Sun Zhongyu pondered for a long moment before slowly speaking. "Hall Master Hongchen, based on the assessment we made while treating him together, your grandson-in-law's condition... is not very promising."

"What do you mean? Explain yourself!" Jing Hongchen's brows drew sharply together, and the pressure of a Titled Douluo escaped him without his realizing it.

Sun Zhongyu seemed oblivious and simply continued, "Inside your grandson-in-law's body, both his blood and Qi and his Soul Power are undergoing drastic changes in a manner we cannot understand.

"The changes... are as if tens of thousands of Soul Guidance Bombs were exploding nonstop inside him.

"We've never seen such a violent yet orderly flow of energy. It is both destroying and reshaping him, but the destruction is clearly happening faster than the reshaping."

The old man paused, professional regret in his voice. "Based on our current understanding, if this continues, I'm afraid he won't live past twenty."

"Bullshit!"

Jing Hongchen practically leaped to his feet. The roar that burst from him made the entire corridor hum. "You're all fucking talking bullshit! That little bastard is guaranteed to live to twenty-five! Quacks! You're all fucking quacks! Get out! All of you, get the hell away from me!"

Sun Zhongyu's expression did not change. He seemed to be accustomed to this reaction from Jing Hongchen.

He merely took a small porcelain bottle from his robes and placed it on a cabinet nearby. "These pills regulate blood and Qi. Remember to have him take them on time.

"Also... from now on, let him eat whatever he wants. Don't let him go without."

With that, Mingde Hall's chief healer quietly left with his team.

Only Jing Hongchen and Ye Yulin remained in the corridor.

Jing Hongchen leaned against the wall. His face, usually stern or smiling, now looked haggard in a way that did not suit his age.

His legs felt weak, and he had to brace himself against the wall to stay on his feet.

In more than ninety years of life, he had witnessed countless deaths and weathered countless crises, but none had been like this-a deep sense of helplessness welled up from the bottom of his heart, nearly leaving him unable to breathe.

"Old Toad..." Ye Yulin patted his shoulder, wanting to say something, only to find that he too had no idea what to say.

When he returned to the room outside the treatment room, Xiao Hongchen and Ye Yulin were already waiting there.

Xiao Hongchen leaned by the window with his arms folded, his face so gloomy it could drip water; Ye Yulin sat in a chair, his fingers tapping unconsciously on the armrest.

They had heard the entire conversation outside the door just now, and every word had stabbed into their hearts like a knife.

"Good thing Meng had plans with a classmate today. Otherwise, who knows what kind of uproar she'd make if she found out this guy was like this?" Xiao Hongchen said mildly, unable to keep the irritation out of his voice. "I told that little brat not to push himself like this, but he just wouldn't listen.

"Look at him now. He's pushed himself to death's door."

"Xiao... is it really all right for you to curse me like that?"

A weak voice, tinged with teasing, came from the bed.

All three turned at once-Bao Liang had woken up at some point and was propped against the headboard, the faintest hint of a smile on his lips. His eyes were still a little tired, but their usual liveliness had returned.

"Heh, I'm cursing you?" Xiao Hongchen sneered and walked over to the bed. "I wonder who got himself into such a state that he won't live past twenty, and who ran off with my sister only to leave her a grass widow."

Bao Liang blinked, looking innocent. "I think Sister Meng will be checking out handsome guys while she's a grass widow."

"..."

Xiao Hongchen opened his mouth, only to discover that he couldn't argue.

After struggling for a long moment, he finally squeezed out, "...Damn, I actually think that makes a lot of sense!"

Ye Yulin couldn't help laughing, but he quickly stopped. After all, Jing Hongchen's face was still as black as the bottom of a pot.

"So, is it really all right for you two little bastards to slander my granddaughter like that?" Jing Hongchen glared at them both, then looked at Bao Liang with concern. "Little Bao Liang, do you know what's happened to your body?"

Bao Liang was silent for a moment before he spoke with regret. "I do. I'm dying.

"And it's not that I won't live past twenty. I won't live past sixteen."

"Bao Liang, was it worth doing this?" Jing Hongchen took a deep breath, suppressing the panic in his heart and doing his best to keep his voice steady.

"Grandpa Jing, it's not about whether it was worth it, only whether I was willing." Bao Liang smiled openly. There was no fear or regret in his smile, only relief and resolve. "Whether it was for Sister Meng, for Xiao, or for the future, this was a step I had to take.

"And I've taken it. I even took two steps at once, and now there's only one last step left! I can't stop now, Grandpa Jing."

"Should we tell Meng about this?" Jing Hongchen's voice was a little hoarse.

"...Forget it. There's no need." Bao Liang shook his head.

Jing Hongchen was silent for a long time before he finally sighed. "Tell us what your fourth Soul Skill does, and about that new heart of yours."

Bao Liang nodded and sat up a little straighter. Though the movement pulled at his wounds and made him suck in a sharp breath, he continued, "Um... how should I put it... The principle behind my fourth Soul Skill is a little complicated. It's called Chain Explosion.

"Basically, it turns Soul Power into countless tiny 'Soul Power neutrons' and bombards the energy particles inside the target that are like uranium nuclei.

"When a particle is split by Soul Power, it doesn't just dissipate. Instead, it bursts apart, releasing violent explosive force while shooting out several brand-new Soul Power fragments-new 'Soul Power neutrons.'"

Bao Liang paused, then continued his explanation. "These newly created fragments then strike the other energy particles around them, shattering more particles one after another.

"One sets off two, two set off four. Like a row of dominoes, the explosions multiply like a surging wave.

"That's a fission chain reaction, and it's the essence of my fourth Soul Skill, Chain Explosion.

"As for what it actually does... you can just think of me as a walking, human-shaped Level 9 Fixed Soul Guidance Bomb."

"What the hell?"