Chapter 22: Coma

Li Qingxuan braced the Thunder Pattern Iron Spear against the ground, barely stabilizing his stance, gulping air, each inhalation tugging at his chest as if it would burst.

Blood mixed with sweat streamed down his forehead, blurring his vision, yet he couldn't help but crack his mouth into a grin bordering on delirious joy.

Behind the fortress window, Li Feifei clutched her mouth tightly, tears streaming uncontrollably, the anxiety in her heart finally sinking heavily.

She saw the terrifying black goat, as huge as a small hill, now behaving like a tamed beast, kneeling before Li Qingxuan, its savage aura dissipated, leaving only docility and submission.

Li Qingxuan struggled to raise his hand, wiping the blood from his face, and through the newly formed Spiritual Link issued his first command: "Rise."

The kneeling black goat's body trembled slightly; its intact right foreleg pushed up first, then the other two legs, and finally its severely wounded left hind leg shuddered as it straightened, barely supporting its massive frame.

Its fearsome head turned toward Li Qingxuan, slightly lowered, emitting a low, gentle whine from its throat.

"Good, very good……" Li Qingxuan's voice hoarse, thick with fatigue.

With a "bang," Li Qingxuan collapsed to the ground, falling into unconsciousness, as if he had only forced himself to stay awake to confirm the black goat's submission.

Li Feifei's startled cry caught in her throat, turning into a broken whimper.

She watched helplessly as the figure that had just subdued the terrifying beast like a war god now seemed to have all its bones drained, pitching forward limp and slamming heavily into the mire mingled with rotten blood, splashing filth.

"Li Qingxuan!" That repressed scream finally burst from her throat, filled with heart-rending terror.

She shoved open the fortress's heavy door and rushed out without hesitation.

Icy air carried a thick, unbearable stench of blood that hit her face, nearly suffocating her, yet her feet didn't pause as she staggered toward the figure lying in the filth.

The black goat's massive body twitched slightly as she charged out, its ferocious dreadful head turning toward her, beneath its withered mane a faint energy seemed to stir.

A soul-born icy thought, laden with warning, flashed into Li Feifei's mind, making her feel as if plunged into an ice cellar, her steps involuntarily freezing.

It was guarding Li Qingxuan!

Its huge, strange form now lay like a silent mountain ridge between her and the unconscious Li Qingxuan.

Its left hind leg, still severely wounded, continued to ooze sticky black blood, while its flesh constantly regenerated and reorganized, slowly recovering, with blood continually dripping to the ground.

From its throat came a low, continuous whine, no longer a frenzied roar but carrying an undeniable sense of possession and protective will, all stemming from the newly formed Spiritual Link that was unusually tenacious.

Li Feifei's heart pounded wildly, nearly bursting her chest.

She stared at the black goat's body, covered in withered mane and twisted like ancient wood, and at its lowered head bearing a torn maw that, though no longer spewing corrosive saliva, remained horrifyingly ferocious.

Fear coiled like icy vines around her limbs, rendering her unable to move an inch.

She had no doubt that if she took another step forward, this newly subdued monster would unhesitatingly tear her apart to protect the "master" it recognized in its consciousness.

"Qingxuan… Qingxuan…" she could only stand outside the suffocating stench and invisible pressure, trembling as she called, her voice choked with tears.

Her gaze swept over the black goat's massive body and locked anxiously onto Li Qingxuan.

He lay on his side in the icy mire, the Thunder Pattern Iron Spear having slipped from his grasp to lie beside him, its shaft congealed with dark red blood and black grime.

His face was smeared with mud, sweat, and dried blood crusts; the bleeding from his seven orifices was shocking, his complexion deathly pale from exhaustion, and the rise and fall of his chest so faint it was barely visible.

Only the slight furrow of his brow hinted that even in unconsciousness he was still enduring the immense pain of Spiritual Power depletion.

The black goat seemed to sense Li Feifei's pure worry and fear; its massive body shifted slightly, opening an angle, and its withered-mane-covered, deformed forelimb gently touched Li Qingxuan's arm.

The motion was clumsy yet careful, carrying an indescribable concern.

Its throat's whine lowered, as if soothing, yet also as if confirming its master's condition.

Its ferocious head slowly turned toward the fortress, then immediately turned back, as if weighing something in silence.

Li Feifei cautiously stepped closer, seeing that the black goat did not launch an attack immediately, only that its low whine suddenly rose in pitch, carrying a warning.

The withered mane covering its whole body stood up like a startled porcupine's quills, and the intangible pressure emanating from its massive frame resembled an actual ice wall blocking her path.

Its head tilted slightly toward Li Feifei; though the torn maw remained closed, she could clearly feel an icy scrutinizing gaze locking onto her, like a needle piercing her spine.

Fear, like icy vines, tightly wound around her heart, making each beat feel unusually heavy.

She could almost smell the corrosive odor of the translucent saliva lingering deep in the maw, mixed with rot and blood stench, making her stomach churn.

But she forced herself to stay put, neither retreating nor charging forward, merely fixing her gaze on the unknown figure in the mire.

"Qingxuan……" she called again, her voice hoarse, trembling after tears, "Wake up… please……"

The black goat seemed moved by the persistent sound and the sorrow in her gaze, its mane-covered body twitching imperceptibly.

The wounded leg that continually dripped corrosive black blood bent slightly, the massive body lowered a fraction, and its throat's whine grew low, as if hesitating.

That icy scrutinizing sensation seemed to lessen a bit, but its protective stance remained unchanged.

Li Feifei drew a deep breath; the air reeking of death and decay made her cough, tears streaming uncontrollably.

She fixed her gaze on the black goat and pleaded desperately, "Let me pass…… I must save him! He needs me! He subdued you…… you are his…… now he needs help!"

She didn't know whether this monster of chaotic flesh could understand human speech, but the strong emotion in her words and the gesture toward Li Qingxuan seemed to penetrate the barrier of the Spiritual Link.

The black goat slowly turned its head again toward the unconscious Li Qingxuan, its mane-covered body faintly trembling, as if sensing something.

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