Chapter 78

Chapter 78: Willing to Sacrifice Himself

It felt like a lifetime before the aftershock finally faded.

When the roar died and the thick devil clouds thinned enough to see again, the disciples lay scattered across the street, stunned, ringing, half-deaf from survival.

The Devil-Sealing Barrier had shattered. Dust floated in the air like ash. The smell of scorched wood and bitter residue stung the throat.

Bai Meng Xing clutched his head and, for a moment, genuinely thought he had ascended.

With his pitiful cultivation, if his elder sister hadn’t protected him—slapping defensive talismans onto him like they were free—he would have collapsed long before now.

A devil heart detonation of that scale should have killed him.

But his head was still attached. His limbs were intact. His body… was fine.

He sprang up with wild joy. “I’m alive! I’m alive! I’m fine!”

His hoarse shout snapped others back into motion. They scrambled up, checked their bodies, and then laughter broke out in shaky bursts—some relieved, some half-hysterical.

Until the question hit like cold water.

“Where’s the devil heart detonation?” someone demanded. “That blast was huge. Why didn’t we feel it?”

“Look!”

A disciple pointed upward.

Under everyone’s gaze, a golden barrier swayed, its light wavering like a candle at the end of its wick. It trembled, cracked—and finally dispersed into nothing.

“That barrier… it blocked the detonation?”

“Who cast it? A Golden Core can’t do that.”

“Nascent Soul? Even that shouldn’t block a same-realm devil heart detonation…”

“Did a senior arrive?”

People pushed forward, drawn by dread.

The Devil Creature’s body had been obliterated. In its place, someone knelt on the torn earth, another person supporting him from behind.

A disciple’s voice cracked. “Yo-young Sect Master?”

The silence snapped.

Everyone crowded in, questions spilling over each other.

“What’s wrong with the Young Sect Master?”

“Was he hurt by the detonation?”

“No—he’s not bleeding. He shouldn’t be injured…”

“Wait, he rushed in just now—then the barrier appeared. Did the Young Sect Master do that?”

“No way. The Young Sect Master can’t cultivate!”

A voice cut through, startled and sharp. “Did you all forget? The Young Sect Master has Divine Transformation Stage cultivation in his body!”

The street went still.

If the barrier had been released by a Divine Transformation Stage cultivator, everything made sense.

Protecting everyone. Protecting Flowing Moon City.

Only a Divine Transformation Stage cultivator could do it.

But… the Young Sect Master?

All this time, in the hearts of many disciples, “Young Sect Master” had been a title and nothing more—a puppet hanging in the air. Some had even wished he would be replaced.

And yet—

Thinking back, Ling Bu Fei hadn’t done anything cruel.

He attended classes with the disciples, sitting quietly, listening.

He fooled around on Limitless Mountain, but he never bullied anyone.

He was spoiled sometimes, yes, but he didn’t vent his temper on juniors.

Tonight, he had even been saving people on the perimeter.

He had always been this kind of Young Sect Master.

It was only Severed Meridians that had shackled him.

“Young Master!”

Bai Li Xu rushed forward and helped Ling Bu Fei up.

Ling Bu Fei’s eyes were closed. His face was pale. He looked lifeless, as if his soul had been shaken loose.

Bai Li Xu’s voice trembled. “Miss Bai—what happened to Young Master?”

Bai Meng Jin’s expression stayed calm. “He forced his cultivation to move and suffered backlash from the devil qi. You know he can’t circulate his power.”

That explanation landed like a stone.

Of course. With Severed Meridians, how could Ling Bu Fei release a Divine Transformation Stage barrier without paying an enormous price?

Ning Yan Zhi stepped forward, a flicker of emotion crossing his usually indifferent face. He took out a pill bottle. “I have pills that protect the heart meridians. Let Young Sect Master Ling take one first. This is close to the Limitless Sect. If you send him back immediately, he should be saved.”

Bai Li Xu shook his head quickly. “Thank you, Immortal Lord Ning, but there’s no need. We have pills.”

He poured one out and slipped it into Ling Bu Fei’s mouth with practiced care.

Ying Shao Guang stepped in. “Let me see.”

He took Ling Bu Fei’s wrist, fingers pressing to check his pulse. He had been trained under Martial Uncle Yang; his medical sense was solid.

The instant he touched the pulse point, Ying Shao Guang jolted.

His expression went strange. His gaze flicked to Bai Meng Jin—sharp, assessing.

“Senior Brother Ying,” Bai Li Xu said urgently, “how is he?”

“No danger to his life,” Ying Shao Guang said at last, letting go. “His qi is chaotic. It needs smoothing out.”

He paused, then added, voice lower, “And his meridians are badly damaged. He’ll need careful recovery.”

Relief surged through the crowd. Some disciples actually teared up.

“That’s good. As long as the Young Sect Master is alive.”

“It was for us that the Young Sect Master took such a risk…”

“The Sect Master and the elders will heal him. They have to.”

Ying Shao Guang stood stiffly, swallowing his own tangled emotions.

From an angle no one else noticed, he caught Bai Meng Jin’s brief look—approval, sharp as a blade.

He drew a slow breath and refused to look back at her.

Fine.

Since they had saved people, he would give them this face.

He’d endure it.

Bai Li Xu didn’t notice any of it. He only tightened his grip on Ling Bu Fei and said, “We need to send the Young Sect Master back immediately.”

He looked at Ying Shao Guang. “Senior Brother Ying, can we leave cleanup to you?”

Ying Shao Guang opened his mouth—

Then his gaze snapped to the horizon.

A streak of escape-light tore across the sky and arrived in an instant.

Flowing Moon City was still stained with devil residue, plants polluted and dying. With a sweep of his sleeve, the arriving elder gathered the remaining heavy devil qi as if scooping smoke into his palm, then purified it in a wash of golden light.

The sky cleared. Stars returned. Moonlight gleamed cold and clean.

Bai Li Xu’s face lit up. “Grandmaster!”

An old man stood there, hair and beard half-white, features severe, expression stern.

The higher-ranked disciples bowed low. “Greetings, Grandmaster Ku Mu.”

The younger disciples followed quickly, voices overlapping. “Greetings, Great-Grandmaster Ku Mu.”

Ying Shao Guang clasped his hands. “Grandmaster Ku Mu.”

Ning Yan Zhi bowed as well. “Ning Yan Zhi of the Cinnabar Cloud Palace greets Venerable Ku Mu.”

Venerable Ku Mu nodded, his gaze lingering on Ning Yan Zhi for a heartbeat before shifting. With another sweep of his sleeve, he wrapped Ling Bu Fei, Bai Meng Jin, and Bai Li Xu into his escape-light.

“You’ve worked hard,” he said, voice firm. “I will report this to the Immortal Alliance. Merit will be recorded.”

His eyes cut to Ying Shao Guang. “Kid Ying. I’m taking the Young Sect Master back to heal. Can I leave the rest to you?”

Ying Shao Guang straightened. “Yes. This disciple will handle cleanup properly.”

Venerable Ku Mu nodded once and turned away.

The disciples watched the retreating escape-light, hearts caught between the joy of survival and worry for the Young Sect Master.

Tonight had been twisted and terrifying, and when they returned to the sect, they would talk about it for months.