novelraw Chapter 728 - 426: The Colorful Shield
Chapter 728 - 426: The Colorful Shield
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When the fourth lightning lamp approached him, Yan Xiaobao summoned his last drop of energy, wrapping himself in his elemental power. In front of him, a multi-colored shield appeared. Some areas of the shield were silver like the Metal Element, others were red like fire, one was yellow like the Earth Element, and there was even a faint green hue visible within. The only color missing was the blue of the Water Element.
Deep within Yan Xiaobao’s Middle Dantian, hovering above his spiritual energy sea, were four flames revolving around themselves. They spun with such intensity that some of the elemental power spilled into his body—exactly the energy Yan Xiaobao had just summoned.
The fourth bolt of lightning struck him. As Yan Xiaobao fell to the ground, the world around him turned black. At the moment he collapsed, a small metallic object that had been attracting the lightning slipped from his hand. When Cou Ling looked up at the sky, she saw how the bolt slammed into the massive boulder before them.
Although Yan Xiaobao was now unconscious and the lightning no longer struck him, Cou Ling’s task was far from over. She resumed hammering the sword that had absorbed so much blood. Pouring all her skill into her work, she shaped the sword quickly. The blade gleamed silver, losing its previous blackness, and even the hilt began to shine as the rust was wholly devoured by the Nine Heavens’ Devouring Blood Metal.
While working on the sword, Cou Ling glanced at the unconscious Yan Xiaobao and shouted, "Wei, quickly pick up that boy and give him some pills!" No sooner had she spoken than that marked young man immediately lifted the unconscious Yan Xiaobao and dragged him away from the blacksmith. After rummaging through some storage stones, he selected various medicinal pills, elixirs, and salves for the teenager.
Applying the salve to Yan Xiaobao’s scorched forehead, he then spread it over other parts of the boy’s body. This treatment helped soothe him and begin healing the burn marks from being struck repeatedly by the fierce lightning. Next, the elixir was prepared. Fang Wei crushed some medicinal herbs, mixed them into the Elixir of Immortality, and fed the concoction to the unconscious youth.
It took Cou Ling half an hour of relentless hammering to reach her breaking point. When she finally placed the sword on the altar and walked toward the two young men, the relentless lightning had already faded. Yan Xiaobao remained unconscious, and the blue skies had returned. A gentle warm breeze wafted across the land as the blacksmith let out a deep sigh. The bloodshed of the Nine Heavens was no trifling matter; throughout the Sun Kingdom, she was the only one capable of forging something with such ancient methods.
Looking at the young man who had managed to endure four out of the nine lightning trials, she couldn’t help but inwardly commend him. She knew just surviving a single bolt was immensely challenging.
"How is he?" she asked, her eyes peering curiously at the young man before her. Fang Wei shrugged in response, glancing back at her. "I believe these remedies should be effective. I assume he’ll regain consciousness in a few days, and after a few more, he should return to peak form. After that, we should be able to proceed."
Hearing this brought joy to Cou Ling. She had worried they might be stranded in this godforsaken place for a month or longer. But with the youth’s evident strength, it seemed they would soon resolve the matter. For the first time since leaving Muchuan City, a smile graced her lips.
"Keep an eye on the boy while I search for food," she said cheerfully, before darting off toward a dense forest they had traversed earlier. It took her an hour to reach the forest and another hour to hunt enough game to bring back for a meal.
Feeling everything falling into place, Cou Ling couldn’t suppress a smile. Creating this weapon for the young man had taken a heavy toll, but he had proven resilient enough, capable of wielding the sword without difficulty.
Back in the desolate area around the stone altar, Cou Ling was utterly stunned to see the young man—whom they had expected to remain unconscious for some time—awake. He sat upright, eyes open, burns still visible on his skin, yet seemingly unbothered. If anything, he seemed relaxed, leaning against a boulder with a blanket draped over his legs and a steaming cup of tea in his hands.
Before him, a campfire crackled, and beside it was Fang Wei. Fang Wei was heating a kettle of water, into which he added medicinal herbs and tea leaves. Although he was initially shocked to see Yan Xiaobao awake, his task was paramount once Cou Ling entrusted him with it. He carefully ensured the salve was applied to Yan Xiaobao’s wounds and that the youth consumed medicines to aid his recovery.
Noticing Cou Ling had returned, Fang Wei smiled at her and pointed to Yan Xiaobao. "My skills with medicinal remedies far exceed your expectations," he declared proudly. "The moment you left, this guy opened his eyes. Even though his body is in immense pain, he’s healing at an astonishing rate. I had no idea my medicine was this potent before."
Watching the excited young man and the calm youth leaning against the rock, the blacksmith was astounded. It was impossible for someone so gravely injured to sit up, let alone open their eyes.
Cou Ling narrowed her eyes and approached cautiously. Her lips tightened, and her fingers twitched as she fought the urge to press against the burn marks to see if the young man would cry out in pain, just as others had in the past.