Chapter 70: Serious Injury

After resting for three days, Nie Feng and Qin Shuang stood outside the main gate, waiting for Bu Jingyun and Duan Fengyun to come out.

"Yun, you must return safely."

Chuchu, who was in Bu Jingyun's arms, said.

On the other side, Youruo, who was in Duan Fengyun's arms, said the same thing.

"You must return in one piece; I will be at home waiting for you to come back."

The two men nodded and then departed.

The four martial brothers knew that this trip to Lingyun Cave was fraught with danger, and bringing Youruo and Chuchu along would only add to the burden.

Therefore, they left the two women at home, and after exiting the main gate, the four of them spurred their horses and rushed toward Lingyun Cave.

The four of them, in a great hurry, soon arrived outside Lingyun Cave.

"Brother Shuang, you should stay outside and provide support for us. Brother Yun, Brother Feng, and I are more familiar with Lingyun Cave; if any accident happens, it is better to have someone left behind to provide support."

Duan Fengyun proposed.

Qin Shuang had originally wanted to follow them inside, but thinking that Duan Fengyun's words made sense, he stayed behind.

Duan Fengyun, Bu Jingyun, and Nie Feng, the three who were invisibly linked to the Fire Qilin, walked into Lingyun Cave with practiced ease.

The three of them walked in the cave for a long time without discovering any traces of the Fire Qilin.

Lingyun Cave was intricate and complex with numerous branches, and the three of them did not know where the Fire Qilin was hiding.

Duan Fengyun suddenly recalled that the Fire Qilin had appeared previously because someone was fighting.

That meant the Fire Qilin was usually in a deep sleep and only appeared because it was awakened by the sounds of battle.

Thinking of this, Duan Fengyun immediately had an idea.

He said to the two men, Feng and Yun:

"Brother Yun, Brother Feng, the Fire Qilin appeared both times because of fighting; it must have been the sounds of battle that disturbed it.

So, I ask you two brothers to use your respective weapons to fight each other and lure the Fire Qilin over."

Upon hearing this, Nie Feng and Bu Jingyun took out their respective weapons, and the Peerless Sword clashed with the Snow Drink Saber.

The collision between the two strongest divine weapons of the contemporary martial arts world, created by the divine stones left behind by Nuwa to mend the heavens, was like Mars hitting the Earth, with sparks flying everywhere.

The intense clashing sounds of the two divine weapons did indeed, as Duan Fengyun had expected, awaken the sleeping Fire Qilin.

The Fire Qilin was very annoyed; recently, its sleep had been constantly disturbed, and this time it had to teach these people who dared to affect its sleep a lesson.

The Fire Qilin stood up, shook its body, judged the source of the sound that disturbed its sleep, and then galloped away while roaring.

Duan Fengyun, who had been carefully observing the surrounding environment, felt the temperature around him rising rapidly; he knew that the Fire Qilin must have been awakened and was rushing toward them.

"Brother Yun, Brother Feng, you can stop now; the Fire Qilin should be coming."

He called for the two of them, who were still clashing intensely, to stop.

The two of them quickly put away their weapons and assumed a defensive posture.

A roar reached the ears of the three, and the Fire Qilin had arrived!

The terrifying divine beast, the Fire Qilin, with its terrifying scales and body surrounded by flames, appeared before the three of them.

The target had appeared, and the three of them did not hesitate, charging forward to finish off this monster.

Every strike Nie Feng made was ruthless; it was no wonder, as the Fire Qilin before him was his father's killer, and the hatred of a father's murder was irreconcilable; he had long wished to hack the Fire Qilin to death with his blade.

Nie Feng and Bu Jingyun kept hacking at the Fire Qilin's body with their weapons, but the Fire Qilin's scales were too hard, and the two divine weapons caused sparks to fly everywhere upon impact, yet they caused no damage to the Fire Qilin at all.

However, the force of their hacking still caused the Fire Qilin pain, and the Fire Qilin gradually flew into a rage, wanting to finish off the two people before it.

Just as the Fire Qilin was flying into a rage, Duan Fengyun, who was on the side, discovered a scar on the Fire Qilin's abdomen; this scar had no protection from scales and was completely bare.

Duan Fengyun thought of how Yu Yue had also once stabbed the Fire Qilin in the original story; it seemed this scar was likely caused by the loss of a scale.

And this very scale was the key to his Duan family forging the Fire Scale Sword.

Having a plan, he shouted to the two of them:

"Brother Yun, Brother Feng, help me distract the Fire Qilin; I have a way to obtain the Qilin Blood."

Upon hearing this, the two of them continued to engage with the Fire Qilin.

Duan Fengyun took out the Jue Sword, which was wrapped in layers, holding the Jue Sword in his right hand and the tip of the Fire Scale Sword in his left, waiting for an opportunity.

Finally, the opportunity came; the Fire Qilin raised its forelimb, and Duan Fengyun stabbed the tip of the sword into the Fire Qilin's scar with his left hand.

At this moment, he immediately released his left hand and aligned the Jue Sword with the interface of the Fire Scale Sword.

Instantly, the Fire Qilin's scalding blood flowed into the Jue Sword through the Fire Scale Sword, and the Jue Sword devoured the Qilin Blood joyfully.

Having devoured the Qilin Blood, the Jue Sword radiated blood-red light, and its color became increasingly eerie.

The Fire Qilin, in pain, went mad, shaking its body frantically, wanting to shake out the tip of the Fire Scale Sword that was inserted into its body.

Under the Fire Qilin's violent shaking, the sword tip flew out, and as it flew out, the Fire Qilin's blood also gushed out.

Although Duan Fengyun had been prepared, his right hand was sprayed with Qilin Blood.

The crazed Fire Qilin ran away roaring, and Duan Fengyun, whose right arm was stained with Qilin Blood, was also roaring in pain.

"Junior Brother Duan, what is wrong with you? Where are you uncomfortable?"

Nie Feng asked.

"Ah, my hand, my hand feels like it is going to explode."

Duan Fengyun roared in pain; he now had the urge to chop off his right arm.

The intense pain caused him to faint immediately; Nie Feng hurriedly carried him on his back, and Bu Jingyun wrapped the Jue Sword, which had been thrown aside, in layers once again.

Then the two of them rushed out of Lingyun Cave with lightning speed.

Seeing the two of them come out with Duan Fengyun on Nie Feng's back, Qin Shuang asked with concern:

"Junior Brother Feng, Junior Brother Yun, what did you encounter inside? How did Junior Brother Duan end up like this?"

Only then did Nie Feng and Bu Jingyun notice that because Duan Fengyun's right arm was covered in the Fire Qilin's scalding blood, his right arm was now a mass of cooked meat.

Now is not the time for idle talk; the three of them immediately mounted their horses and galloped back to Huo Family Manor without a moment's rest.

Hearing the sound of hoofbeats within Huo Family Manor, Youruo was overjoyed, knowing it was Duan Fengyun and the others returning.

She happily opened the main gate to look, but the result nearly made her lose her footing.

She saw Nie Feng holding Duan Fengyun in his arms; Duan Fengyun was flushed bright red all over, especially his right arm, which looked as if it had been cooked through.

"Feng, what happened to Duan? What on earth occurred?"

Youruo walked up to Duan Fengyun and touched his scorching forehead as she spoke.

"When Junior Brother Duan was retrieving the Qilin Blood, he was accidentally splashed by the gushing blood, and he ended up in this state."

Nie Feng replied with deep regret; had they known the outcome would be this, they should have firmly stopped Duan Fengyun and not let him go to retrieve the Qilin Blood.

Qin Shuang stepped forward at this moment and said:

"Don't just stand outside the door; hurry inside and find a doctor to see if there is any way to help, as Junior Brother Duan has been running a high fever that won't break."

The group finally found their resolve and hurriedly carried Duan Fengyun inside.

Bu Jingyun turned and went straight to the market to find doctors; not knowing how to describe the condition, he simply brought back all four doctors from the market.

He rushed to Huo Family Manor with the four doctors in a flurry; the first three doctors examined Duan Fengyun's symptoms and shook their heads, stating that the Fire Poison had attacked his heart and he was beyond saving.

Hearing this, Youruo was on the verge of a breakdown, but the remaining doctor smiled and told Youruo not to worry.

This mysterious doctor laughed and said: "The fresh blood of the Fire Qilin is the most rigid and scorching substance in this world; how could a Mortal's flesh and blood possibly withstand it?"

The group could not help but be shocked, as no one had ever mentioned to the doctors that Duan Fengyun's condition was caused by contact with Qilin Blood; who exactly was this mysterious doctor before them?

However, everyone understood that since this person could identify the cause of Duan Fengyun's illness at a glance, they must have a way to treat it.

Youruo thought for a moment and knelt down directly:

"Senior, I beg you to save my husband. You can make me work like a beast of burden, I only ask that you save my husband's life."

The mysterious person hurriedly helped Youruo up and said:

"I am no senior, I am just an old man. Meeting is fate; in fact, the person who can save Duan Fengyun has been by your side all along, you just haven't noticed."

The group could not help but be puzzled; who among them could possibly save Duan Fengyun?

Seeing this, the mysterious old man stopped being cryptic and looked at Bu Jingyun with a playful expression:

"Bu Jingyun, do you remember when you were competing for the Peerless Sword at Sword Casting Villa, which left you covered in scars and Fire Poison? How was it cured later?"

Bu Jingyun was stunned at these words; he thought for a moment, raised the Peerless Sword, and replied: "Senior, are you referring to the Peerless Sword?"

The mysterious old man smiled: "Indeed."

"The Peerless Sword was forged from the Black Cold God Stone left behind when Nuwa mended the heavens."

"Legend has it that the Black Cold God Stone can absorb all the power in the world and make it its own; likewise, the Peerless Sword forged from Black Cold can also absorb the world's power for the wielder to use."

"Have you not noticed all this time that you rarely run out of strength when fighting with the Peerless Sword?"

Upon hearing this, Bu Jingyun hurriedly walked to the bedside and placed the Peerless Sword into Duan Fengyun's left hand.

After Duan Fengyun grasped the Peerless Sword, a miraculous scene occurred.

The red glow on Duan Fengyun's body slowly faded, and his skin gradually returned to its original color.

Bu Jingyun touched Duan Fengyun's body and found that his temperature had also returned to normal, yet his right arm remained in the same state.

Bu Jingyun asked:

"Senior, why has there been no change in Junior Brother Duan's right arm?"

The old man shook his head and said:

"His right hand was directly contaminated by the Qilin Blood; I said before that a Mortal's flesh and blood cannot resist the extreme rigidity and heat of Qilin Blood. His right arm is already ruined."

Youruo, who was about to rejoice seeing the Peerless Sword absorb Duan Fengyun's Fire Poison, broke down upon hearing the mysterious old man's words.

Duan Fengyun's goal had always been to become the greatest legend in the martial arts world, unprecedented and unrepeatable.

Now that he had lost his right arm, what could he use to compete with those of the past and those of the future? If nothing unexpected happened, his path of martial arts had reached its end here.

Chuchu comforted her:

"Youruo, losing an arm is better than losing a life; perhaps after this, you and Junior Brother Duan can live a simple and peaceful life."

The mysterious old man smiled upon hearing this: "Good, a fine saying that simplicity is the truth."

Having said this, the old man left directly.

With no other options, the group could only let the remaining doctors amputate Duan Fengyun's limb to prevent the necrosis of the right arm from causing the deterioration of his entire body.

The surgery was successful, but Duan Fengyun had lost his dominant hand; barring any surprises, his martial arts path had come to an end.