A few hundred thousand miles away, beside an elegant lake in a quiet forest, Su Yu released Ling Xiaotian and the Master of the Phoenix Cabinet.
Ling Xiaotian's hair had turned white like a dried up corpse. He had only a single breath left within him.
Thump—
Su Yu got down on both knees and kowtowed. Traces of tears could be seen on his face, and his eyes were red and swollen.
"Palace Master!" Su Yu let out a low shout, his heart filled with remorse and guilt.
His new life had not been given to him, but rather exchanged for the life of Ling Xiaotian. Su Yu and Ling Xiaotian were not particularly close, but at the very last moment, he had given his life to save Su Yu's!
Ling Xiaotian's lips shuddered, forcefully squeezing out a smile. "It's great that you are alive…"
Su Yu was in pain. "Palace Master, I'll use my life to save yours!"
Shaking his head, Ling Xiaotian was relieved, saying with a raspy voice, "I have no regrets… Before I die, I hope that you can promise me two things."
Su Yu nodded. "I'll do anything."
"First, swear that you'll never use the Evil Ghost Energy against members of the Empire of Darkness. I am a member of the Empire of Darkness even in death. If you kill any of them that way, I'll be ashamed to meet them down there."
Su Yu was silent. Shen Ying and Bai Luo were all people he needed to kill. "All right! I'll promise! I'll never use the Evil Ghost Energy against a member of the empire!" He might not have to use the Evil Ghost Energy to be able to kill them.
"Second," said Ling Xiaotian, "if the King of Darkness is in danger, please help him, even if it costs you your life!"
Su Yu did not hesitate. "All right, even if it costs me my life!"
Ling Xiaotian wore a look of relief. "Other than these, I have no more regrets."
Su Yu kowtowed in respect. Ling Xiaotian closed his eyes, his breathing shallow. He was still worrying about Su Yu, even on his deathbed.
"If I die, you must live well. Do not try to avenge me. Use the Evil Ghost Energy well…" Ling Xiaotian's lips trembled. "Lastly, be more careful. The initial stages of the Evil Ghost Energy have an evil power that can affect its host. You need a feminine energy to weaken that effect. You must not forget this."
Su Yu said, "What would happen if I cannot find the feminine energy?"
Ling Xiaotian said, "The cultivation level you absorbed would be discarded, and you would drop to your original standard. This only happens in the initial stages. After you have adapted to the Evil Ghost Energy, you will no longer have to depend on it. You absorbed my cultivation level as well as one of Shen Ying's hands. Go find feminine energy quickly."
After saying this, Ling Xiaotian closed his eyes for the last time. Su Yu's nerves were strung taut, immediately transferring a shred of spirit energy to maintain his life. But Ling Xiaotian was like a bottomless pit. The spirit energy was absorbed as soon as it entered the body.
The master of the Phoenix Cabinet stepped forward, her expression serious. "It's useless. His life force has been depleted. You cannot save his life with your spirit energy."
Su Yu's heart dropped, incredibly anxious. Was he going to die? Ever since Li Guang died to save him, Su Yu had lived with a knot in his heart, feeling guilty to this day. Was it going to happen again?
"Let me try." The Master of the Phoenix Cabinet cut her fingers. A drop of blood essence harboring a rich, flaming energy flowed out.
The drop of blood essence fell between Ling Xiaotian's brows and entered his forehead. At that moment, a warm energy flowed through his body.
"This is the power of my bloodline," the Master of the Phoenix Cabinet said. "It can maintain his life for three months. But it can only last for three months, no matter the amount of blood essence. If you cannot save him in these three months, then everything will be over."
Su Yu was elated, kneeling down and thanking the master of the Phoenix Cabinet. "Many thanks, Cabinet Master! I, Yin Yu, will never forget this great favor."
It looked like a simple drop of blood, but the Master of the Phoenix Cabinet turned pale. Blood essence was a limited resource. Furthermore, the Master of the Phoenix Cabinet had suffered heavy injuries; her blood essence was still being used to maintain her cultivation level. Giving it up like this was making her slip into a more dangerous situation. Nothing could repay such a huge favor.
The Master of the Phoenix Cabinet had a look of adoration, helping Su Yu to his feet and looking at his serious and surprised face. She thought that it was rare to meet a person as loyal as Su Yu.
If she was still a youth and had met such a legendary king—such a handsome, virtuous man—she would probably have loved him with all her heart.
Thinking about this, the master of the Phoenix Cabinet smiled. Just a thought.
"Don't be like that," the Master of the Phoenix Cabinet said, full of optimism. "Now that my cultivation level has been destroyed, the power of my bloodline has become a burden. Why can't I use it to save someone else's life?"
But she could not mask the disappointment in her voice. She had been reduced from a Heaven Master to a person who was practically worthless. The great disparity was difficult to accept. Furthermore, she bore the grievances of her countless disciples. Now that her cultivation level had been destroyed, she would no longer be able to avenge them.
Su Yu looked up at that proper, beautiful face, his heart swelling with emotion. From the first time they met, Su Yu had good impressions of this gentle and proper cabinet master. She was kind and pure. Even though she was already over forty, she still looked like she was 20, her appearance beautiful. She was a beautiful lady with a beautiful heart. If such a woman had appeared in Su Yu's previous life, he would have loved her with all his heart.
Being looked at by Su Yu like that, the heart of the master of the Phoenix Cabinet thumped wildly. Su Yu's gaze made her unsure of what to do.
He is clearly a blind man, the Cabinet Master murmured in her heart. How can he have such a captivating gaze?
She had assumed that Su Yu had lost his vision and was using his sense of hearing to act.
"What are your plans?" the master of the Phoenix Cabinet asked, changing the topic to ease the awkwardness.
Su Yu said, "I'll return to the northern continent sub palace in search of something that can save the palace master."
"What about Xianer?" the Cabinet Master gently questioned. She was envious of Xianer for having a future husband like him.
Su Yu was silent for a moment. His tone was deep as he said, "The palace master has given me a second life. While he is in grave danger, I cannot concentrate on my affairs of the heart. If I cannot save the palace master, I will not be able to find peace… or spend the rest of my life with Xianer. This is a regret I cannot afford to have in my life."
There was already a precedent in the case of Li Guang. How could Su Yu let this happen to Ling Xiaotian, too?
The Cabinet Master's eyes were filled with admiration, visibly moved by Su Yu. He could go against heaven for the person he loved, but he could also fight for his benefactors, not tied down by love. A man like this was truly noble. Why had she never crossed paths with someone like this?
"What about you?" Su Yu asked in concern.
The expression of the cabinet master dulled as she forced out a laugh. "My cultivation level has been destroyed, what can a cripple like me do? I'll harbor my regrets and become an ordinary person, find someone to marry, and live out the rest of my life."
Find someone to marry? Su Yu felt a sense of pity that such a beautiful woman had been reduced to such a state.
"I'm sorry that I cannot help you," Su Yu said, genuinely apologetic. The effects of the Nine Death Elixir had seeped into every crevice of the Master of the Phoenix Cabinet's body. How else could it be dispelled other than finding the antidote?
The Cabinet Master smiled. "You saving my life is already a favor I cannot repay. How can I also force you to help me dispel this poison?"
The two of them were silent for a moment.
Su Yu silently placed Ling Xiaotian back into the Eternal Mask. Extending his hand to the Master of the Phoenix Cabinet, he said, "Let's go. I'll take you somewhere safe."
The Cabinet Master felt a little unnatural extending her soft, fair hand into Su Yu's warm wide palm. She felt the surprising warmth from his palms, and her heart pounded. She then laughed at herself, wondering, What am I doing? He is just a child.
Furthermore, he was the fiancé of her disciple. The gulf in status between them was too wide; she should never have entertained such uncouth thoughts.
Collecting herself, the Cabinet Master said naturally, "Let's go."
Nodding his head, Su Yu squatted down, prepared to lift Ling Xiaotian up. But unexpectedly, Su Yu suddenly shuddered, his expression turning rigid as he stood frozen on the ground.
Large beads of sweat fell from his forehead. His expression was one of extreme pain. His face was turning swollen and red at a visible rate. A faint blood-red vapor enveloped his body. The entire situation was unprecedented!
"This is bad! It's the Evil Ghost Energy!" Su Yu let out a low grunt, understanding the reason behind this phenomenon.
He immediately searched for any treasure on him that could harbor feminine energy. According to Ling Xiaotian, obtaining the Bloodline of the Evil Ghost for the first time made it extremely difficult to control. He needed a treasure that harbored feminine energy in order to neutralize the effects of the Evil Ghost Energy. Otherwise, his cultivation level would plummet. Or worse—his life would be threatened! But there were only two or three things on him, none of which were feminine objects.
"Cabinet master, may I ask if you have any treasures containing feminine energy?" Su Yu asked for help.
At this moment, his entire body had turned red, his cultivation level unstable. If there was any delay, his cultivation level would definitely plummet.
The Master of the Phoenix Cabinet was also there when Ling Xiaotian gave his instructions. When she heard of this, her expression also changed. It would all be wasted effort if the cultivation level Ling Xiaotian had given Su Yu with his life were to plummet here. Furthermore, Su Yu was facing a crisis and urgently required a high cultivation level. Dropping back to Immortal realm Level Three would spell certain doom for him. He might not even escape the central continent.
The cabinet master's heart skipped a beat, not daring to dally as she searched, but she did not have any treasures harboring feminine energy.
"I do not have anything, either!" she lamented.
She had been captured, after all, and had not had time to prepare the treasures she usually carried with her. Seeing Su Yu's cultivation level start to fall, the Cabinet Master felt anxious.
Su Yu's expression was that of a deep disappointment and bitterness. "The cultivation level the palace master gave me is going to be… wasted just like this!"
Seeing Su Yu's expression, the cabinet master felt a strange sense of sympathy. He clearly felt a deep sense of self-blame, but she could not conjure a treasure harboring feminine energy.
Wait…
Suddenly, a spark of inspiration flashed through the Cabinet Master's head, her expression changing slightly. After a moment's hesitation, it seemed as if she had made a difficult decision. Finally, she shifted her feet and clenched her teeth, her entire face flushed.
"If you do not mind…" she said. "I can help you."
Su Yu was surprised but only uttered, "Thank you, Cabinet Master."
Facing his plummeting cultivation level, Su Yu was greatly relieved by the words of the Cabinet Master. But the Master of the Phoenix Cabinet hesitated, biting her lips as she stared at Su Yu, her eyes filled with a complicated light. There were even traces of tears in her eyes.
Su Yu was shocked. "Cabinet Master… what is it?"
The cabinet master was expressionless. "Close your eyes."
Su Yu froze, closing his eyes.
He had just closed his eyes when a fragrance assaulted him. Su Yu was startled, but his consciousness faded as he suddenly slumped to the ground.
In his daze, all he could hear was a light sigh as well as some indistinct noises. After which, he was enveloped by a peculiar warmth before consciousness left him.