Chapter 367: Distributing the Spoils

The battle concluded, leaving the ground in a mess.

Li Luo sat under a tree, while Lu Qinger took out bandages to carefully wrap the wounds on his palms; although the former possessed healing power, his palms had been severely eroded by energy earlier, and it would likely take several days to recover.

Qin Zhulu, sitting on the ground nearby, didn't even have the strength to move; covered in blood, he looked extremely miserable, as he had acted as a meat shield during the intense battle, bearing the brunt of Lin Suo's attacks, and he had paid a heavy price for it.

At this moment, he was completely drained, covered in wounds.

It was only because Qin Zhulu's fighting spirit was incredibly tenacious, combined with the formidable defensive power of his Black Obsidian Battle Armor, that he hadn't been crushed by Lin Suo long ago; after all, the gap between the third pattern of the Resonance Pattern stage and the third transformation of the Resonance Transformation stage was simply too vast.

With his own severe injuries, Qin Zhulu had to watch the man and woman before him, his heart filled with a complex mix of emotions.

It wasn't envy, but a clear realization of just how much of an eyesore his presence was.

Qin Zhulu's body slowly tipped backward, his chest heaving, too lazy to even move a finger.

This great battle had clearly exhausted all three of them; although they held a numerical advantage, it was nowhere near enough to bridge the gap in strength between them and Lin Suo, so the three of them were currently recovering their strength in silence.

After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Li Luo finally caught his breath and walked over to Qin Zhulu, placing a hand on his shoulder.

Qin Zhulu glanced at him and said mockingly, "Are you going to use that little bit of Resonance Power to heal me?"

"You've paid such a high price, I have to squeeze out a couple of drops for you at least. Get into position and catch it well!" Li Luo laughed, then circulated the little remaining Resonance Power in his body, forming a healing force that surged into Qin Zhulu.

Qin Zhulu curled his lip, but the warm current brought by the healing force made him groan in comfort.

However, the comfort only lasted for about ten seconds before the warmth vanished.

Qin Zhulu looked at Li Luo with dissatisfaction and complained, "That's it?"

Li Luo retorted, "I told you I only had a few drops left."

He stood up, ignoring the grumbling Qin Zhulu, and walked step by step toward Lin Suo, who was embedded in the mountain rock; seeing this, Qin Zhulu gritted his teeth, stood up, grabbed his heavy spear, and followed.

Li Luo reached Lin Suo's side; the latter's chest was somewhat sunken, his upper garments were completely torn, and a gruesome blood hole was visible on his chest, through which one could even see his beating internal organs.

Lin Suo's breath was as thin as a thread; he was clearly critically wounded to the point of near-death.

But because of the protection of the Golden Dragon Secret Key, he still had a breath left.

In his hazy state of mind, he sensed Li Luo standing beside him, and his drooping eyes looked over with difficulty, the resentment within them impossible to hide.

It seemed that this defeat had driven Lin Suo absolutely mad.

He never imagined that he, with the dignified strength of the third transformation of the Resonance Transformation stage, would be reduced to this state by Li Luo, who was only at the third pattern of the Resonance Pattern stage!

Li Luo didn't care about Lin Suo's resentful gaze; instead, he patted his shoulder in a friendly manner and said, "Brother Lin, since we came together, we must return together—isn't it better to be neat and tidy? After we return, if there's a chance, I'll treat you to a meal."

Qin Zhulu couldn't help but look at Li Luo; this guy was truly a black-hearted maggot. Once Lin Suo returned to the Great Xia, Yu Hongxi would likely make him wish he were dead; with that in mind, a chance for a meal? He probably wouldn't even get a farewell meal.

This guy Li Luo was truly ruthless.

Pfft.

Sure enough, the already delirious Lin Suo was so enraged by this remark that he spat out a mouthful of blood and passed out cold.

"Can't even take that?" Li Luo was somewhat dissatisfied. This guy had been so arrogant before, and now, since he wasn't taking his life—just sending him back to the Great Xia Golden Dragon Treasury—he was acting as if he were dying of anger. His mental fortitude was truly lacking.

Li Luo reached out and snatched the space ball from Lin Suo's wrist.

After a quick search, he found the black jade gourd that contained the half of the Golden Dragon Qi stolen from Lu Qinger.

"Qinger, here." Li Luo tossed the black jade gourd to Lu Qinger.

Lu Qinger hurriedly caught it, and the moment the black jade gourd was in her hands, a mysterious golden light suddenly erupted from within, and wisps of golden aura rose up, flowing into her body through her breath.

This change lasted only a dozen breaths before everything fell silent.

The black jade gourd returned to stillness.

Lu Qinger sensed herself and said, "There doesn't seem to be any special change..."

Li Luo laughed, "This so-called Golden Dragon Qi is profound and mysterious; how could we, mere Resonance Master stage cultivators, possibly perceive its true mysteries?"

Lu Qinger nodded.

Li Luo rummaged through the space ball again and found the octagonal golden shield; now, there was an arrow mark piercing through it, and its energy was dim, clearly damaged in the previous battle.

However, it was a high-grade White Eye treasure after all; spending some resources to repair it would still make it an excellent defensive item.

Li Luo thought for a moment, handed the octagonal golden shield to Qin Zhulu, and said, "Take this."

All three of them had contributed to defeating Lin Suo, and Li Luo didn't want to hog all the spoils. Lu Qinger had retrieved her Golden Dragon Qi, so she didn't need a share, but Qin Zhulu, as the meat shield who bore the greatest pressure from Lin Suo, was entitled to a share of the loot.

Qin Zhulu glanced at the octagonal golden shield but didn't take it, saying, "You contributed the most; you take the shield. Besides, you might need this kind of defensive treasure more than I do. I already have the Black Obsidian Battle Armor, so I don't have much need for it."

Li Luo scratched his head and said, "I intend to keep this space ball."

He had originally planned to take Lin Suo's space ball back to give to Jiang Qing'e, which was why he didn't choose the octagonal golden shield.

"It's all yours. Just owe me a million Heavenly Gold later," Qin Zhulu said with a wave of his hand, looking quite carefree.

Li Luo said with emotion, "Little Lu, you're truly a good person. I feel bad for you; I still had a few drops left when I was healing you earlier—should I give them to you now?"

"Get lost."

Qin Zhulu's face darkened, and he turned and walked away.

Li Luo smiled; he knew this was Qin Zhulu's kindness, but he didn't act overly modest. After all, he did need the octagonal golden shield, and as for the space ball, its value was around a million, so Qin Zhulu asking him to make up a million was quite reasonable.

Li Luo tucked the space ball into his sleeve with satisfaction and said to Lu Qinger, "Next, it's time for you to get the most important thing."

His gaze turned toward the summit of the mountain, where a beam of golden light shot into the sky; within the golden light, a golden invitation could be seen floating quietly.

The Golden Dragon Mountain-Visiting Invitation.

Lu Qinger also gazed at the golden invitation within the light, leaped up, walked into the golden light without any obstruction, and grasped the golden invitation in her hand.

She toyed with the invitation; a lifelike golden dragon was coiled upon it, its golden scales shining brilliantly. The golden dragon seemed like a living creature, and a low, faint dragon roar could be heard from time to time.

There was curiosity and joy in Lu Qinger's eyes; although she hadn't come specifically for the invitation, it was something Yu Hongxi had strongly requested. Now that she had obtained it, surely her mother would look at Li Luo in a new light, right?

Thinking of the surprise on Yu Hongxi's face when she returned, Lu Qinger couldn't help but feel a little smug and proud.

So you looked down on Li Luo, huh? How does it feel to be proven wrong this time?