Staring intently at the pale blue metallic fragment in her hands, the serene and composed mistress of Yunlan Sect—uncharacteristically—her usually calm and tranquil features flushed with urgency. Her jade hands subtly tightened, her mind swirling with questions. "How could a fragment of the Sea's Heart Armor have ended up here? Did that young one stay here earlier? If the Sea's Heart Armor has shattered, shouldn't he have sustained severe injuries? This person—why does he always seem to be the one who's involved whenever something goes wrong?" Her gaze, tinged with concern, swept across the ground, yet found no trace of anything out of the ordinary. With her silk robe flowing and brows slightly furrowed, a hint of irritation surfaced. "Master Yun Yun, what is this?" At her side, the elder, having never before witnessed the mistress of Yunlan Sect display such a range of unusual emotions simultaneously, was momentarily startled, astonished. "Ah, nothing at all." Awakened by the elder's voice, the young woman in the brocade robe quickly smoothed out her earlier urgency, instantly regaining her previous composure. She smiled, in front of the elder, and gently placed the fragments of the Sea Heart Armor into her storage talisman, murmuring: "Master Jia, I believe we should investigate the exact identities of those four Sovereign-level warriors from earlier. After all, those two Sovereign-level warriors from other nations entering the Jia Ma Empire likely didn't come merely to visit." "Here is Yancheng. The Mohist headquarters is located right here. Let's gather some intelligence first." The woman with elegant eyes glanced downward at the city beneath the ground, smiled gently, and then descended first toward the outskirts of Yancheng. Following her, the elder moved steadily and calmly. It was after countless door closures that the young boy, lying on the bed like a corpse, suddenly had his fingers tremble gently. After a while, his breathing grew a little stronger, and then, as time passed, his eyelashes trembled and his eyelids struggled, finally parting slightly to open. A soft, gentle light filtered through the room. Xiao Yan’s hand tightened suddenly as he strained to focus, carefully taking in the room—somewhat familiar, though—and only after a thorough inspection did he exhale deeply, collapsing fully onto the soft bed, utterly drained and unable to move. Breathing steadily, as his mind cleared, memories surged forth from deep within his mind, bringing back the sequence of events. “Injured, perhaps…” recalling the intense pain as the wave of destructive flame surged upon him, Xiao Yan smiled faintly, inhaled a breath tinged with sandalwood scent, and felt his thoughts grow sharper. He slowly closed his eyes, allowing his spirit to sink inward. As his mind delved deeper into his body, suddenly, a state of internal condition so shattered that it left Xiao Yan utterly stunned came into clear view under his mental gaze. Gazing at this body as though it had been violently torn apart by some terrifying force, Xiao Yan's heart sank significantly. Although he had anticipated the severity of his injuries, he hadn't expected them to be this severe—this level of devastation. If this condition were found in any other person, the only outcome would likely be a complete transformation into a useless, useless individual. "This is going to be a real problem," he murmured bitterly in his mind. His mind slowly flowed along the broken meridians, eventually reaching the qi vortex in his lower abdomen. Observing the mere droplets of pale green energy still lingering within the vortex, he sighed once again—truly, it was a case of snow falling on snow. At the center of the cyclone, a small dot subtly quivered. Within that dot lay Xiao Yan's most powerful reserve—the Qinglian Earth Heart Fire. Yet at this moment, Xiao Yan dared not draw even a single strand of that blue flame. His internal meridians had reached a critical point; he no longer doubted that if someone struck him hard with a powerful palm now, he would truly be finished. With a heavy heart, he gradually withdrew his spirit from within and slowly opened his eyes, shaking his head with a wry smile and sighing. Staring blankly at the ceiling for a while, Xiao Yan's heart suddenly jolted. It was only now that he realized—he had felt something missing since he had awakened. Now it came back to him: the old doctor had remained completely still. As this thought struck him, Xiao Yan's face instantly grew grave. He quickly called out, "Master? Master?" ... The cry continued for several minutes, as if dropped into the deep sea with no response at all. As the time passed without reply from the Elder Yao, Xiao Yan's heart sank deeper and deeper. "Something's wrong?" A slight twitch crossed his lips. Suddenly, he felt parched, his mouth dry, and a wave of panic quietly surged from the depths of his heart—just as he had felt when, years ago, he had gone from a prodigy to a mere waste overnight. Since he had known the Elder Yao, whenever the Elder was present, Xiao Yan had always felt secure, knowing that as long as Yao was there, he would never truly perish. But now, with Yao suddenly silent and unresponsive, Xiao Yan, who had always relied on him, truly felt an unmistakable wave of fear. Holding his lips tightly, Xiao Yan strained with all his strength to lift his hand. Only when he saw the black, ancient ring intact on his fingers did he finally exhale, calming his growing panic. He then closed his eyes again, weaving his soul energy into a thin strand before gently touching it to the black ring. ...Gazing at the elder's form, the weight pressing on Xiao Yan's heart finally eased. Though he felt a bit lighter, he wasn't a fool—previously, whenever the elder spoke to him, their conversation flowed directly in his mind. Now, however, he had to enter the black ring in order to speak. This clearly indicated that the elder's condition was not good. "I have a good news and a bad news," the elder smiled, gently patting the ethereal figure of Xiao Yan, formed by his soul energy, and added with a satisfied tone, "The good news is that I deeply admire you. The Buddha's Fury Lotus you created possesses such devastating power that even I am amazed. Should you continue to refine and perfect it, I believe you will be unmatched among peers of your level." Xiao Yan's face remained composed. While the power of the Buddha's Fury Lotus was indeed formidable, the cost of wielding it was equally daunting, almost unbearable. "As for the bad news, perhaps you've already begun to notice the wreckage within your body?" the Elder of the Medicine laughed. "Yes, it's quite serious," Xiāo Yīn nodded, sighing, "basically on the verge of collapse." "Heh, though the injuries are severe, as long as you take proper care, they'll gradually heal. I've already arranged a recovery program for you. I'll pass it on to you shortly—just follow my instructions, and you'll regain your peak condition," the Elder smiled. "Then, what about you?" Sensing a subtle undertone in the Elder's voice, Xiāo Yīn quickly asked. "Me? Perhaps this is the real bad news. You've successfully created a truly perfect explosion spectacle, but that came at the cost of nearly seventy percent of my soul energy. And then, in the final moments, I had to shield you from the fiery surge—my soul energy is now nearly depleted," the Elder sighed with a pained expression. Hearing this, Xiao Yan's face went pale, and the ethereal figure formed by his spiritual energy suddenly trembled. "Don't worry," the Ye-Lao gently stared at Xiao Yan, who was tightly biting his lips, with a warm smile. "Although my spiritual energy has been nearly depleted, it's not completely gone—it can be restored, though I might need to enter a deep sleep for a while, just as I did before. For the time being, perhaps I won't be able to protect you as before; everything will have to rely on you." Gazing at the serene expression of the Ye-Lao, Xiao Yan's eyes suddenly glistened with tears. He clenched his fists tightly and whispered softly, "I'm sorry, Master..." Xiao Yan knew clearly that if he hadn't insisted on fusing the hetero-flames, the Ye-Lao's spiritual energy would never have been completely absorbed. Now, he wouldn't need to sleep in order to recover his strength. "Hehe, don't worry—just a period of slumber, not completely vanished. I'm very satisfied with the Buddha's Wrath Lotus you've created. Your student truly is no ordinary one!" Drug Elder chuckled, patting Xiao Yan's shoulder. "Alright, my spiritual energy is nearly depleted. Go now—don't worry about Qinglin. The Green Barbarians won't treat her as the墨family does. Rest assured." Suddenly, Drug Elder's form grew increasingly ethereal. He waved gently at Xiao Yan and smiled. "Master, take care!" With slow, steady movements, Xiao Yan knelt on the void, his eyes glistening with emotion, and bowed deeply before Drug Elder. With a satisfied gaze upon the now mature, resilient young man who had weathered this ordeal, Drug Elder nodded gently, and his ethereal form finally dissolved completely into the radiant glow. "Little one, I hope when I awaken, I'll see a disciple who has truly become a strong warrior. In my ring, I've stored some bone spirit cold flames—should the situation grow critical, I can draw upon them. Also, since I first met you, I've been increasingly satisfied with you... A quiet, hopeful laugh, echoing gently within the shimmering light circle, lingering on and on."