Huang Feiyu was severely injured, with broken bones and lacerations all over his body that were only minor wounds. What was critical was the raging flame burning unrelentingly on his chest, right over his heart.
It was the Lion Heart Flame, combusting outside of Huang Feiyu's heart, consuming his spiritual power and evaporating his blood.
"The Sect Leader said martial brother is beyond saving..." The alluring yet aloof beauty Tian Wenjin cried sorrowfully, "The Sect Leader said, given martial brother's condition, his cultivation and physique have been damaged beyond repair by the flames, there is no point in saving him..."
Tears welled up in her beautiful peach blossom eyes as she looked at Qin Ran pleadingly, "Qin martial uncle, you are my only hope. I beg you, please save my martial brother!"
Huang Feiyu lay on the grass in front of a wooden house. The first floor had just been rebuilt after being torn down by hurricane, thus still looking rather empty and bare; it was settled that they would let him lie outside.
He was wearing trousers on his lower body which had been badly burnt, while his upper body was naked with nothing left on it--perhaps incinerated by the fire. Other than the blaze on his chest, there were also claw marks on his abdomen, so large that it spanned across his entire abdominal cavity. One could imagine it was a lion's paw, far bigger than a human palm, that had lashed at his abdomen.
His chest was scorched black by the fire, and through the charred ribs one could see a golden flame burning vigorously inside. He resembled a human skeleton lantern in such state.
As a Golden Core cultivator, Huang Feiyu had formidable vitality. Despite his horrendously wrecked look, he hadn't died yet. Be it unconsciously or consciously, the water elemental power inside him was still resisting against the Lion Heart Flame. His heart, not yet scorched, could be seen persisting in beating under the illumination of the flame.
Qin Ran squatted next to Huang Feiyu and studied his condition carefully.
There was a way to save him... After all, as a Golden Core cultivator, his physique had long surpassed that of ordinary people. But there was no point in saving him--that was what the Sword Peak Sect Leader meant.
Given Huang Feiyu's current state, the Lion Heart Flame had ruined both his cultivation and physique. Even if he was cured, the man would be crippled, not only losing all his cultivation but also his physique; he might even be left with illnesses all over his body.
From this perspective, there was no point in saving him... Huang Feiyu himself probably wouldn't want to go on living if he knew what awaited him after being cured.
Qin Ran looked up at Tian Wenjin. This alluring and proud beauty, he asked her, "Do you like him that much?" After all, they had only known each other for a month. Was it worth all that?
"What?" Tian Wenjin was startled. She was pleading Qin Ran to save someone, yet Qin Ran asked her this instead.
"Just as martial brother Liu said, he can be saved but there is no point." Qin Ran said, "Besides, given his current state, perhaps he himself does not wish to keep living."
"Martial brother would never take his own life!" Tian Wenjin shook her head, "As long as he lives, there will be hope."
"So I ask if you like him that much, if you know him that well?" Qin Ran said.
Tian Wenjin fell silent. After a while, she simply said, "Qin martial uncle, since you said he can be saved, I ask that you please save him."
"The treatment is actually quite simple and crude, it just needs two steps..." Standing up, Qin Ran looked at Huang Feiyu and said, "First step, take out the Lion Heart Flame; second step, use elixirs to help him recover." As he was a Golden Core cultivator, his physique was long unlike that of ordinary people."
"Then martial uncle why are you still waiting for anything?" Tian Wenjin urged anxiously, "Hurry and save him first!"
Qin Ran spread out his hands, "I cannot extract the Lion Heart Flame."
"Huh?" Tian Wenjin was baffled.
"Firstly, I have a water spirit root. Secondly, my cultivation is only at Foundation Establishment Stage." Qin Ran explained, "I have no way to deal with the Lion Heart Flame."
Instantly Tian Wenjin lapsed into despair. She felt her legs go soft and plopped to the ground before she knew it. Turning to look at the blackened and reddened face of Huang Feiyu lying on the ground, when she thought of how crestfallen he was, tears began trickling down her cheeks uncontrollably.
Standing by the side watching it all, Li Shiyin found it touching, feeling sorry for Tian Wenjin which tugged at her heart. She walked over to Qin Ran and secretly asked him, "Master, do you really have no other way?" Her saintly disposition made the foolish disciple pipe up again. Qin Ran gave her a look without answering, then went to sit in the rocking chair.
"Master must have other ways, right?" Li Shiyin caught up to ask again.
"What other ways could I possibly have?" Qin Ran chuckled, "Did you really think I was some omnipotent immortal?"
Li Shiyin refused to believe it. She stood by the rocking chair, looking at Qin Ran again and again without saying anything, but her intention was apparent... How could master not have other ways!?
The sky gradually darkened as bright stars emerged one by one overhead.
Tian Wenjin still sat slumped there, desperate and lost with no idea what to do next.
Li Shiyin went into the house to fetch her a cup of water, which she declined. Still holding onto the cup, Li Shiyin walked over to Qin Ran's side again. She heaved sighs while drinking water, sighing with every sip.
When the night had completely fallen and lights came on from the second floor corridor, Qin Ran finally could not stand Li Shiyin anymore. He went over to Tian Wenjin and stood looking down at her, saying, "I do have a way to save him, one that can not only keep him alive, but also preserve his cultivation."
In an instant, hope ignited within Tian Wenjin. She raised her head to look at Qin Ran as her eyes lit up in the dark.
"It's true that I have no way of extracting the Lion Heart Flame..." Qin Ran said, "But since I can't take it out, then just leave it inside him and don't remove it."
Tian Wenjin did not understand how this constituted a treatment. She waited for Qin Ran's explanation.
"His physique and cultivation have been wrecked by the Lion Heart Flame beyond salvation." Qin Ran said, "Then just let them be, leave the Lion Heart Flame inside him as his heart."
"Would that work?" Li Shiyin asked.
"To use the Lion Heart Flame as his heart, one condition needs to be met..." Qin Ran explained, "The Lion Heart Flame is an energy substance without physical form, therefore the human body must also become an energy body."
"Turn the human body into... an energy body?" Li Shiyin's big round eyes were full of puzzlement.
"That's right." Qin Ran nodded. "The Mad Flame Crystal of the Lionheart Raging Flame Beast can accomplish this. But before the Mad Flame Crystal turns his body into an energy body, the Demon Pill of the Lionheart Raging Flame Beast needs to remodel his body to be compatible with the Mad Flame Crystal."
"So... to save him this way, we need both the Mad Flame Crystal and Demon Pill of the Lionheart Raging Flame Beast."
"Where to find those?" Li Shiyin asked.
"It's the Mad Flame Crystal..." Qin Ran corrected her, "The flames spewed by the Lionheart Raging Flame Beast are different from ordinary cultivators' Inner Fire, they are not Inner Fire but flames discharged from the Mad Flame Crystal in its body. They are flames unique to the Lionheart Raging Flame Beast--that's why it is so powerful."
"The one Huang Feiyu went to hunt this time was precisely the Lionheart Raging Flame Beast..." He looked to Tian Wenjin and asked, "Did they succeed?"
"Yes!" Tian Wenjin nodded.
"Then you need to purchase both the Mad Flame Crystal and Demon Pill of the Lionheart Raging Flame Beast." Said Qin Ran.
"Alright!" Tian Wenjin promptly got up, about to fly to Sword Peak.
"Wait!" Qin Ran shouted for her to stop.
"What's the matter?" Tian Wenjin turned back.
"The Mad Flame Crystal and Demon Pill are the most valuable parts of the Lionheart Raging Flame Beast. How are you going to buy those two things from them?" Qin Ran asked.
Tian Wenjin did not know, she could only say, "I... I'll plead with them."
"Other than new disciples like you all, pleading does not work on cultivators!" Qin Ran stated, "Things like requests, feelings, brotherhood--none of that matters to them!
"Cultivators are even more terrifying than capitalists, because cultivators can truly suck blood dry, they can also disregard profits altogether."
Tian Wenjin fell silent.
Qin Ran sighed. In a hushed voice, he instructed Li Shiyin, "The left drawer under the desk in the study room... go take the spirit stones."
"How many to take?" Li Shiyin asked.
Qin Ran considered briefly, then said, "Bring all the low grade ones."
Li Shiyin fetched the spirit stones. Qin Ran signaled for her to hand them to Tian Wenjin, saying, "These are personally lent to you by me, 4,500 pieces in total."
"Thank you..." Other than uttering these two words, Tian Wenjin did not know what else to say. With Li Shiyin's assistance, she put away the spirit stones and bowed repeatedly in gratitude.
But Qin Ran still shook his head pessimistically. He said, "4,500 pieces--if they still retain a shred of humanity, you may be able to buy one of the Demon Pill or Mad Flame Crystal. But what about the other one?"
Tian Wenjin did not know, yet she finally flew off on her sword.
"To be able to see such true and pure emotions in the Immortal Cultivation world..." Qin Ran praised, "It's really rare, it can even be called great."
"Master is also very loving!" Li Shiyin disagreed. Didn't Master help them out of love and emotion?
Qin Ran's face darkened as he glared at her and harrumphed before turning back into the room. If it wasn't for this little girl, would he have helped?
"What's wrong with Master again?" Li Shiyin was puzzled and asked Long Qiqi.
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