When Lian entered the house, he began meditating to replenish his internal energy. He closed his eyes and started inspecting his body.
"Sword–Body Fusion, ha… It's something else. All my Qi feels like a sharpened blade, and when I hold Guǐ Shā Shǒu, it doesn't feel like I'm holding a sword anymore—it's become an extension of my body."
As Lian sat with his eyes closed, consolidating his breakthrough, the Qi around Wang Gu suddenly began to spasm violently.
"Shit—his Qi is rampaging through his meridians; they might bust at any time."
Lian leapt from his spot and rushed to Wang Gu, who was lying on the ground. He quickly positioned him into a lotus posture. Using his own Qi, Lian began guiding Wang Gu's Qi streams, forcing them to slow down.
"Damn it, that's too much Qi," Lian hissed. "Did the seal that he unlocked flood his body with Qi? It's violent and dense. Now that he's reverted, he can't control it. If this continues, his dantian will shatter for sure.
I have to do something—"
Just as panic set in, the Qi inside Wang Gu suddenly shifted. It was being drawn into Lian's hand.
"It's the lotus again… It's taking Wang Gu's Qi. What's more, it's refining it and sending it to both our dantians."
The Qi surged and swirled. Layer by layer, the Qi of both boys began to rise,
"Oho… oho," Wang Gu coughed as his consciousness began to return.
"莲花印 — Lotus Seal."
Lian moved instantly. Using his palm strikes, he tapped Wang Gu's acupoints one after another. The Qi that had been absorbed earlier stopped flowing into Lian and instead surged back through Wang Gu's body.
With each strike, meridians burst open, allowing larger and purer streams of Qi to circulate.
One strike.
Then another.
Then another.
Wang Gu's Qi finally began to stabilise.
Crack!
Wang Gu's skin split like shattered glass.
Lian stepped back, eyes wide, as Wang Gu's Qi roared violently around him. What began as a single crack spread rapidly across his entire body. It looked like clay that hadn't been properly tempered—fractured, unstable.
And then, from those cracks, a white light began to shine through.
Boom!
An explosion of light engulfed the entire house. Lian felt every trace of surrounding Qi rush toward Wang Gu, drawn in as if by an irresistible force.
......
Silence followed.
Everything that had been levitating slowly descended, landing gently on the ground. Wang Gu rose from where he had been sitting and opened his hands, inspecting them calmly.
"I've gone through Body Rebirth," he murmured.
"I've become a Sudo Martial Sovereign. My domain has even stabilised. Now all that remains is to refine my martial arts… and I will be a full-fledged Martial Sovereign."
Lian stood behind him, watching.
Wang Gu was so immersed in his breakthrough that nothing else registered.
"Congratulations, brother."
Lian finally spoke. Wang Gu turned to see him watching with a wide grin.
"Thank you, brother. I owe it all to you," Wang Gu said seriously, giving Lian a proper martial salute. "I truly thought I was going to end up crippled."
"Hahaha, don't say that" Lian waved it off. "Helping you helped me too. My Qi has grown as well—and it's extremely pure. Once I refine it further, I'll be able to break through myself."
"That's great knew I will wait for you, brother."
As he spoke, Lian reached into his spirit book and tossed Wang Gu a fresh set of robes. Wang caught them and quickly changed; they fit him perfectly.
"Mm…" Lian narrowed his eyes slightly. "The air around him has changed. So this is what happens when someone breaks through."
"Wait—what's this?"
Both of them spoke at the same time.
"You can feel it too?" Wang Gu asked, frowning. "Now that I've broken through, I can use Divine Sense. Something is rushing toward us."
"Yeah," Lian nodded. "I set up a Qi detection array earlier. I can feel it as well—someone's being chased."
Without another word, both of them dashed out of the house, heading west. Moments later, the scene came into view.
A girl from the South Sword Sect was sprinting desperately across the wasteland. Behind her, two Blood Sect cultivators chased her relentlessly, with huge bodies, long crimson hair, demonic blood Qi rolling off them in waves.
Lian and Wang Gu moved at the same time.
They appeared in front of the demons in a single flash.
One strike each.
Two heads flew into the air.
The demonic bodies collapsed before they even realised what had happened.
Lian turned toward the girl.
"Hey—are you alright?"
It was the twin-bladed girl with the large chest.
She was badly injured, blood streaked down her arms, and her clothes were torn so badly they barely clung to her body. Without a word, Lian removed his outer robe and tossed it over her shoulders, turning slightly away as it covered her exposed chest.
She stiffened for a moment, then relaxed.
"Thank you," she said quietly.
"Where are the others? Were you being attacked by the same demonic cult people from last time?" Wang Gu asked.
"No!" she said sharply.
"Its not them..."
"We were ambushed," she continued, her voice cracking as the adrenaline faded. "After we killed the demons on the ship, Xiao Bao activated the teleportation array. It sent us to the city gates—but when we arrived… people were already waiting for us there."
Her fingers clenched around the robe.
"They claimed they wanted Bao Lian." She spoke, glancing up at Lian.
"Me... why were they looking for me?" Lian thought, puzzled.
"Before we could even respond, they attacked. They were working with the demons—they hunted us together." She paused, taking the pill Lian handed her and swallowed it with a shaky breath. "We split up. Everyone ran in different directions."
Her eyes darkened.
"Before he was captured, Xiao Bao said he thought they were from Heaven's Gate."
Lian and Wang both exchanged sharp eyes.
"Don't tell me it is because of Wang Fu, they came all the way here to get revenge—"
"—on me." Lian thought.
"—On you." Wang Gu said.
Both are talking at the same time.