Chapter Forty-Six: Bai Dongfang

“Cough, cough... Haha, I should have listened to you, junior brother, cough...” As Li Zhan spoke, he spat out mouthfuls of blood.

“Don’t speak right now, senior brother. I’ll get you out of here first—you’ll be alright,” Bai Dongfang said, cradling Li Zhan in his arms as he soared away from the battlefield, flying straight toward the teleportation array that would take them off Mawei Star.

“Cough, cough... No need to hurry, junior brother. There’s never been a case of anyone surviving after being pierced by those flying specters, cough, cough...” Li Zhan’s face was pale as he spoke in Bai Dongfang’s embrace.

Normally, a cultivator of Li Zhan’s level—someone who had reached the Out-of-Body stage—wouldn’t bleed endlessly from even the largest wound; they could control the injury with spiritual power, and with the aid of elixirs, the wound would quickly heal. As long as the Nascent Soul remained intact, there would always be hope for recovery. But being wounded by those specters from the Fairy Star System was a death sentence. When those specters attacked, they would spit a dreadful saliva; if it merely landed on you, it wasn’t much of an issue, but if even a tiny wound was touched by that saliva, it would endlessly erode the injury, making it bigger and bigger. Worse still, the saliva would attack the cultivator’s spiritual essence, draining their spiritual power. It would also destabilize their cultivation and realm. That was why Li Zhan said what he did.

“No, no—there must be a way, there must be!” Bai Dongfang was on the verge of tears. He had always regarded Li Zhan as an elder brother, respected and cherished him; aside from the sect master who had raised him, Li Zhan was his only family in the world. Now Li Zhan was dying before his eyes—how could Bai Dongfang not be heartbroken?

“Cough, cough, junior brother... Actually, it’s alright. Look, these past few days, we’ve gathered so many materials, cough... With your talent, you should be able to cultivate all the way through the Tribulation stage. If luck is with you and you survive the heavenly tribulation, cough, you’ll become a top expert in the Great Ascension stage—let’s see who will dare look down on you then, cough, cough...” Li Zhan took out a handful of storage bags—his spoils from these days, nearly twenty of them, all filled to the brim. It was a staggering amount of materials.

“Senior brother, please stop talking. We’re almost at the teleportation array. I’ll beg the sect master for help—his cultivation is so high, he must have a way!” Bai Dongfang kept accelerating their flight.

“It’s useless, cough... My parents died this way years ago. I never thought I’d meet the same fate now—truly, we’re a family, haha... cough...” With those words, Li Zhan could no longer hold on and fainted.

“Senior brother, don’t sleep! We’re at the teleportation array now—don’t sleep, please!” Bai Dongfang saw Li Zhan pass out and burst into tears. Under the specter’s saliva, fainting meant you couldn’t resist its invasion, and the process would only accelerate. Bai Dongfang had no choice but to keep channeling spiritual power into Li Zhan, holding back the worsening of his injuries...

“Sect master, sect master! Please, save my senior brother!” Bai Dongfang rushed into the sect master’s chambers, carrying the unconscious Li Zhan.

“Let me see... Ah, Dongfang, give up. No one has ever survived being wounded by those specters. Stop wasting your spiritual power,” the sect master said, examining Li Zhan’s wounds.

“No, there must be a way to save him!” Bai Dongfang refused to give up, increasing the flow of his spiritual power.

“You’re courting death!” The sect master struck Bai Dongfang, sending him flying away from Li Zhan’s body. He scolded, “Don’t you realize? If you exhaust your spiritual power, the specter’s poison will backlash on you—you’ll die as well.”

“I’m sorry, sect master. I know I was wrong, but surely there must be a way to save him. Didn’t you say everything in the world has its counter?” Bai Dongfang pleaded stubbornly, kneeling before the sect master.

“Ah, stand up. Here, this is a Soul-Stabilizing Pill. Have your senior brother take it.” The sect master took out a small bottle, poured out a pill, and handed it to Bai Dongfang.

“Yes, sect master!” Bai Dongfang took the pill, pried open Li Zhan’s mouth, and fed it to him. He pressed several acupoints on Li Zhan’s neck, allowing the pill to slide down his throat. Li Zhan’s chest wound began to stabilize, the bleeding gradually stopping.

Seeing Li Zhan’s injuries temporarily under control, the sect master took out a small jade box and handed it to Bai Dongfang. “This is a Millennium Ice Pearl. Let him hold it in his mouth. In just a few breaths, it will freeze his entire body. This will halt the deterioration for now, but remember—the effect only lasts for ten months. After that, the pearl will lose its power and thaw him automatically, which will accelerate the worsening of his injuries. Also, unless you’re absolutely certain, never thaw him early or his wounds will worsen even faster.”

Bai Dongfang nodded. “Sect master, I understand.” He opened Li Zhan’s mouth again, placed the Millennium Ice Pearl inside, and closed it. As his hands left Li Zhan’s body, he saw ice begin to form, layer upon layer, from Li Zhan’s face. Within a dozen breaths, Li Zhan was sealed in thick armor of ice.

“As expected, the Millennium Ice Pearl works just like the legends say. Only a bit slower than described,” the sect master sighed, apparently having never witnessed its effects before. Li Zhan was now a test subject...

“Sect master, I’ll take him to seek medicine now.” Bai Dongfang saluted, carrying a rectangular coffin-like object on his back, and strode out. Inside the coffin was the frozen Li Zhan.

Bai Dongfang’s destination was the cultivation realm of the Solar System. Only there could he hope to find the rare treasures that might save Li Zhan—such as Resurrection Grass to bring the dead back to life, or Spirit Flesh Ganoderma to restore flesh to bone. These items were impossible to find in the Pegasus Star System now, so he had to search in the Solar System.

... Changbai Mountain, Divine Peak—

Today was the opening day of the Fast Cultivation Academy’s first term. Tang Yi stood on the podium, facing nearly three hundred cultivators below.

“Testing, testing!” Tang Yi spoke into the microphone, checking the sound quality—yes, it was quite good.

“Fellow students, today marks the first day of Fast Cultivation Academy...” Tang Yi rambled on for quite a while, only stopping when he noticed people were about to fall asleep. “That concludes the opening ceremony,” he finally announced. Applause broke out below; everyone breathed a thankful sigh—the tedious speech was over.

Afterward, Tang Yi produced a space cabin specially prepared for rapid cultivation. With a whirring sound, it expanded until it reached its largest size.

“Listen carefully. Before we begin rapid cultivation, there are several points you must pay close attention to. If anyone doesn’t listen carefully and something happens, the academy will not be responsible!” Tang Yi warned the eager students with utmost seriousness.