"This..." Mu Jinyu originally wanted to refuse, letting them keep it to protect themselves, but hearing what they all said, he hesitated for a moment, and finally accepted it.
Indeed, by holding this magic treasure, he wasn't just protecting himself, but also Wen Rou and Jian Ruyan.
That day, had he possessed the Dragon Bone Magic Treasure during his fight with Ye Wushuang, he would have whipped Ye Wushuang to death much earlier, sparing Jian Ruyan and Wen Rou such pain.
Having accepted the Dragon Bone Bracelet, Mu Jinyu put it on his wrist, then cast a deep look at everyone before he left with Wen Rou and Jian Ruyan.
…
In a room.
"Ugh... huff..."
Lying on the bed, his complexion deathly pale and his body drenched in cold sweat, Ye Wushuang let out a low growl and suddenly woke from the nightmare, helplessly sitting up straight, leaning against the headboard and gasping for breath!
"Heh heh..."
Having been unconscious for four or five days, Ye Wushuang's first action upon awakening was to check his own physical condition.
In the nightmare, Mu Jinyu shattered his Dantian with a sword and then beheaded him. Thus, upon awakening, and discovering he wasn't dead, he wondered whether his Dantian was damaged.
After this examination, Ye Wushuang's eyes went blank, cold sweat continuously trickled down his forehead and into his eyes, but he did not feel the sting; his mind buzzed, feeling as though the sky had collapsed.
Because his Dantian was indeed shattered!
The Dantian, serves as the container storing the body's True Qi and True Yuan. Once shattered, True Qi and True Yuan will gradually leak out, eventually turning a cultivator into a mere mortal.
Having checked, Ye Wushuang knew that his True Yuan level had dropped to about the Fifth Layer of the Divinity Transformation Realm, and, due to the True Yuan sticking in his body's meridians and unable to flow into the Dantian to be locked and preserved, his True Yuan was constantly escaping; perhaps it wouldn't be long before he fell to the Early Stage of the Divine Realm!
"Have a drink of water."
As Ye Wushuang sat pale-faced, feeling that his life was bleak, Li Zhexiong, who was sitting in a rocking chair nearby, brought a cup of boiling water to him and handed it over with a calm tone.
Upon hearing Li Zhexiong's words, Ye Wushuang then remembered that it was indeed Li Zhexiong who had saved him!
"Brother!" Ye Wushuang suddenly looked up at Li Zhexiong, his voice tense and filled with excitement, "Brother, my Dantian is ruined, you must help me!"
"So it's ruined, what's wrong with being a mortal?" Li Zhexiong, hearing Ye Wushuang's words, his eyes shifting from confusion to emptiness, coldly said, "At least your life was saved."
"It's not that simple!" Ye Wushuang, unable to accept becoming a cripple, spoke as if Li Zhexiong was his enemy, "The Dragon King is one to hold a grudge. I killed his woman; he will not let me go. Even if I retire from Jianghu, with the power of Dragon King Hall constantly pursuing me, how long can I hide?"
He still had a sense of lucidity, for if his grudge with Mu Jinyu was merely over his two disciples dying at Mu Jinyu's hands, and his own defeat turning him into a cripple, Mu Jinyu might not necessarily come after him!
But he had been overcome by anger at the time and had used Sword Control Technique to wield the Leopard Gall Sword to attack Jian Ruyan, clearly destroying Jian Ruyan's heart, and she couldn't possibly still be alive. How could Mu Jinyu let him go?
Besides, spending the rest of his life as a cripple, silently fading away, was not in Ye Wushuang's nature!
He was not content, he still sought revenge, and he still aimed to reach the absolute pinnacle of the martial path!
"Senior brother, please help me!!" Ye Wushuang pleaded weakly, his eyes red.
Li Zhexiong sat quietly on his rocking chair, utterly unmoved, his vacant eyes seemingly lost in thought as he indifferently said, "I will not intervene in your vendetta, nor will I help you seek revenge. My intervention to save you this time was only out of our past fellowship. In the future, I will not keep watch over you either."
"Senior brother!!" Upon hearing Li Zhexiong so heartlessly sever their ties, Ye Wushuang grew angry, losing control of his emotions as he shouted, "Senior brother, if it weren't for the calamity that befell my family forcing me to leave the sect, our ailing master had intended to impart all his cultivation to me. In the end, he had no choice but to pass it on to you. If I had received our master's teachings back then, how could I have fallen to such lows today? You just want to sever ties with me like this; do you think you're being fair to our master who entrusted you with my care, or to the 'Yijian Gate' you've let down?"
Upon hearing Ye Wushuang's words, Li Zhexiong, previously as still as an ancient well, suddenly regained clarity in his hollow eyes, showing a hint of pain and guilt!
The memories he had suppressed in the depths of his heart were now unveiled like a scroll being unrolled by Ye Wushuang's words.
Back then, both he and Ye Wushuang trained in the powerful ancient martial sect known as "Yijian Gate," where they were the two disciples with the most exceptional talent and aptitude.
After much consideration, their master decided that Ye Wushuang would take over the position of Sect Leader and intended to transfer all his cultivation to Ye Wushuang when his time was near.
It wasn't that Li Zhexiong had less aptitude than Ye Wushuang, but compared to the martial-obsessed character of Li Zhexiong, Ye Wushuang was more suitable for the position of Sect Leader. He could manage "Yijian Gate" well and lead it to thrive.
If it were passed to Li Zhexiong, his temperament might very well lead to the decline of "Yijian Gate."
Li Zhexiong actually had no objections to the master's decision.
But fate played its cruel hand.
One day, a tragedy befell Ye Wushuang's family, and he had to leave in haste. Then, somehow, their master suddenly fell ill, and not long to live. Without Ye Wushuang around, he reluctantly had to pass all his cultivation to Li Zhexiong.
He asked Li Zhexiong to assist Ye Wushuang afterward and help the sect flourish. After agreeing, their master passed away.
By the time Ye Wushuang settled his family affairs and returned, the master had already died and imparted his cultivation to Li Zhexiong, a fact Ye Wushuang could not accept.
After all, his own cultivation aptitude wasn't as good as Li Zhexiong's. Without the master's imparted cultivation, how could he surpass Li Zhexiong in cultivation? He might have been named the new Sect Leader of Yijian Gate, but with lesser strength than Li Zhexiong, how could he command respect?
How could he make Li Zhexiong obey his orders?
Moreover, he suspected foul play in the death of their master, believing it to be the work of Li Zhexiong!
And Li Zhexiong, having received the benefits that should have belonged to him, refused to take up the responsibilities of Sect Leader. Where was the justice in that?
In the end, after endless arguments with Li Zhexiong, Ye Wushuang angrily left Yijian Gate.
Li Zhexiong was forced to assume the position of Sect Leader of Yijian Gate, and as their master had predicted, he failed to manage the sect well, leading to its gradual decline, until it finally became the now desolate "Yijian Gate" consisting of only him!
As Li Zhexiong appeared troubled by his words, showing pain and guilt instead of his usual indifference, Ye Wushuang calmed down slightly and said:
"Senior brother, I am not asking you to take revenge for me or to kill the Dragon King. I just need your help to heal my Dantian. After that, we can be clear of each other. From now on, you walk your sunny path, and I'll cross my log bridge. Even if I die later, you don't need to intervene. How about it?"