Page 242

6 chapters will be updated today.

And 1 extra for the delays.

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"Yino, you’ve already upheld the righteousness with your own blood and life. How could your Senior Sister ever blame you…? I’m just glad you made it back alive."

Unconsciously, Yuyan seemed to have worked through her grief. She offered a faint smile, cupping the boy’s face gently with her jade-like hands, her gaze filled with comfort and relief.

For a moment, Yanran, observing quietly from the side, caught a trace of something off in Yuyan’s words.

"Price… What price are you talking about?"

"..."

Yuyan fell silent.

Taking a deep breath, she glanced back at Yanran and said softly, "It seems that Yino’s core has shattered… Sister Yanran, I’m not skilled in medical arts, so I might be wrong. Can you take a look to see if there’s any chance of recovery?"

Yanran crouched down, narrowing her eyes as she extended her spiritual energy to sense the boy’s condition. After a long moment, she sighed.

"There really isn’t any trace of a core left…"

"But this doesn’t make sense… Unless someone deliberately crippled his cultivation, anyone consumed by the Demon Abyss would either die outright or transform into a demonic entity…"

"In all these years, I’ve never seen a survivor of the Demons of Abyss who came out alive but ended up with a broken cultivation. This is… highly unusual."

After Yanran’s inspection, she knelt in front of Yino, unbuttoned his shirt, and placed her icy fingertips on his abdomen, tracing up to his chest, carefully examining his body. In fact, Yanran had a decent understanding of medical techniques.

After a thorough examination, she too concluded that his cultivation had been utterly crippled. However, she noticed far more peculiarities and abnormalities than Yuyan had.

But for Yuyan, these details didn’t matter.

Yuyan didn’t understand the Demons, nor did she have the heart to investigate it. What mattered to her was that Yino’s cultivation was indeed ruined and whether there was any hope of recovery.

"Sister Yanran… Do you think there’s any chance of curing him?"

Yuyan bit her lip gently and asked in an anxious tone after what felt like an eternity.

Emotionally, Yuyan could accept Yino’s loss of cultivation and talent.

But in the world of cultivation, if a cultivator possessed neither talent nor spiritual power, what difference was there between them and a corpse?

Ever since Yino had demonstrated his swordsmanship at the Mountain Temple, Yuyan had been looking forward to the day when he might gradually catch up with her. It wasn’t just for the sake of teaching him and having something to look forward to—it was so that in the future, when Yino had achieved something remarkable himself, they could continue to play chess together without being separated by the cruel realities of their world.

They had even made such promises to one another.

During their free time at Ranmo Peak, Yino often pestered Yuyan about her ideal partner. She had always given him vague, encouraging replies, indirectly motivating him to strive harder in his cultivation so he could one day stand alongside her.

But now... The hope and enthusiasm for the future hadn’t even lasted a few months before Yino had gone from a rising star to a crippled cultivator.

Yuyan didn’t know how to process the emotional whiplash.

It felt as though life had pulled her into one of those dramatic tales where the junior brother who had promised to roam the world alongside her under the setting sun one day ends up losing everything the next day, his dreams of immortality shattered. The long road ahead turned into a lonely one once more, with Yuyan walking it alone.

"I’m not sure… The burns from the Abyss Demons on Yino’s body are unusual. It’s possible they function as some sort of demonic seal."

"Because of the burns’ corrosive nature, Yino is unable to cultivate."

"But don’t lose hope, Yuyan. While Yino’s cultivation is indeed crippled for now, if he focuses on recovery and consults the right masters, there’s still a chance he could heal and begin cultivating again in the future."

Yanran tried to sound optimistic, even forcing a small smile.

But deep down, she knew how fragile spiritual meridians were. The righteous cultivator and demonic sects had battled for centuries, and there were only a handful of cases where cultivators corrupted by demonic energy managed to survive, let alone fully recover.

Still, wanting to ease both Yino’s and Yuyan’s fears, Yanran spoke as positively as she could.

Yet, Yuyan wasn’t gullible. Though she didn’t know much about medicine, her years of cultivation had honed her ability to read others. From Yanran’s forced smile alone, she could already guess the grim reality of Yino’s condition.

In truth, Yuyan thought to herself, if her own body had been so thoroughly corrupted by the Abyss’s malevolent energy, she wouldn’t have much hope of continuing as a pure and righteous cultivator either.

"Senior Sister… Senior Sister?"

At some point, Yino noticed that the fairy holding him had tears welling in her eyes.

He looked up and froze, startled by the scene before him. It was as if they had gone back to the Mountain Temple months ago.

Back then, Yuyan had also cried while holding him. But now, her embrace was tighter, and her eyes glistened with even more tears than before—silent witnesses to her inner turmoil.

That day had been a matter of life and death.

But today, Yuyan was simply standing here, overwhelmed by Yino’s suffering. Her thoughts swirled, and the tears she had been holding back spilled over, shimmering at the corners of her eyes.

For a moment, Yino felt his heart quake.

As if inspired by something, he gently raised his hand to cup Yuyan’s face, leaning in closer. Staring into her stunning, tear-streaked features, he smiled softly and said:

"Senior Sister, why are you crying…"

"If you cry, it makes me feel guilty. I won’t even be able to cry myself."

"How about I tell you something happy instead?"

"Even though I ran into troubles in the Secret Realm, your junior didn’t come back empty-handed. I managed to bring back something great from the Azure Forest!"

"Look, Senior Sister! Ta-da!"

As Yuyan blinked through her tears, trying to make sense of his words, Yino pulled out a delicate white flower from his robe as if performing magic. Discover hidden tales at Lokepub

"Even though I failed to stop the Holy Maiden from escaping the ancient temple, I stumbled upon this rare spiritual herb deep inside. It’s brimming with spiritual energy—looks like a top-tier medicinal ingredient, doesn’t it?"

"Although your junior can’t use it anymore, maybe this flower can help you break through your Nascent Soul stage!"