Chapter 212: The Cost Of Victory

The Cost of Victory

Rowan’s expression hardened. "Yang energy?"

Lothe nodded. "I couldn’t decipher every rune, but I understood enough from their arrangement. I’ve also memorized the formation’s basic structure."

"Whatever they were planning, that formation was only one part of it," Lothe continued. "We need to report everything to the Arbitration Hall."

"Agreed," Rowan said. "We can’t waste any more time here."

Seana had finished checking the children. Their breathing had stabilized, and the pills Zhao Meiyun gave them were beginning to take effect.

She turned toward the corpse of the plain-masked zombie.

A faint crimson glow gathered around her finger. With a flick, a strand of Blood Qi entered the zombie’s skull and moved through the damaged tissue.

A moment later, the Qi wrapped around something hidden inside.

Seana’s fingers curled. The object was pulled free.

A small, dark crystal emerged from the zombie’s head and floated before her. It gave off a faint glow.

Seana studied it carefully.

During the time she and Lothe had spent recovering in the Glacial Spirit Sect, she had learned more about the changed world’s economy. Ordinary currency still existed, but it was becoming less important.

Resources that supported cultivation were far more valuable.

Among them were beast cores and zombie crystals.

The value of a zombie crystal depended on the zombie’s cultivation realm, the amount of energy it contained, and its purity. Ordinary zombies produced low-grade crystals that could be exchanged for basic resources. Higher-ranking zombies produced much more valuable ones.

A crystal from a Core Formation zombie was considered a high-grade cultivation resource. It could be exchanged for advanced pills, weapons, materials, and other items suitable for cultivators of the same realm.

Of course, crystals from the same realm could still differ in value. A purer crystal with fewer impurities would naturally be worth more.

The crystal in Seana’s hand had come from a Core Formation elite zombie.

It was valuable.

She stored it in her Soul Manor.

Her gaze then moved toward the fallen demonic beasts.

The spoils would need to be divided. The group had already agreed that the spoils of war would be shared among those who had participated in the battle.

Seana had no intention of taking more than her share.

However, she wanted to study the demonic beasts. Their bodies contained Demonic Qi, and she was curious about their internal structures and the way their energy worked.

After considering it, she selected two of the beasts for examination.

The rest would be distributed according to their agreement.

Lothe stood a short distance away.

Seana approached him and extended her hand without asking.

A thin strand of Crimson Blood Qi entered his body.

Lothe glanced at her but didn’t stop her.

The Blood Qi moved through his internal pathways, examining his injuries and the condition of his meridians.

Seana’s brows slowly furrowed.

"You’re more injured than you look."

"They’re manageable."

"That wasn’t what I said."

Lothe remained silent.

Seana withdrew her Blood Qi and gave him a displeased look. "Stop acting as if your body is indestructible."

A faint smile appeared on his face.

"I’ll remember that."

"You’d better."

She turned toward Zhao Meiyun, who had just walked over.

"The children are stable for now," he said. "But they need proper treatment. We shouldn’t risk their condition worsening."

Lothe nodded. "Then we leave."

"Agreed," Zhao replied. "We also need to understand what happened to them before their condition changes."

Lothe turned toward Seana. "I’ll use Spatial Anchor to take us out."

He began circulating his Spatial Qi.

Seana immediately gave him a stern look.

Lothe paused.

"You’re injured," she said. "You’re not using another spatial technique to carry everyone."

"I can manage it."

"No."

Lothe looked at her for a moment.

Then he withdrew his Qi.

Seana released a quiet breath and drew her Blood Moon Sword. Crimson light spread along the blade as her Blood Qi gathered.

"Everyone, get ready."

The others climbed onto their swords or activated their movement techniques. Seana then guided her Blood Qi toward the children.

Crimson strands wrapped around the unconscious children and lifted them carefully from the platforms. Zhao Meiyun added pale-white Qi to stabilize their bodies as the group rose into the air.

Together, they flew toward the area where the others had remained behind.

——————————

The battlefield soon came into view.

The destruction was extensive. Buildings had collapsed, streets were buried beneath broken walls, and deep cracks ran through the ground.

Dead zombies lay scattered everywhere. Some had been pierced through the chest, others had lost their heads, while several had been reduced to mangled remains by powerful techniques.

The air still carried the stench of Corpse Qi.

Seana slowed her sword.

"There."

A group stood among the ruins.

Caelan and Darian were there with the disciples who had remained behind. All of them looked exhausted. Some were treating their wounds, while others helped injured cultivators stand.

The moment they noticed the returning group, several heads turned.

"Elder Rowan!"

Darian hurried forward. His gaze swept over the returning cultivators, and his expression changed when he saw their injuries.

"You’re back!"

Caelan followed. His eyes briefly passed over Lothe before settling on Rowan.

"Elder Rowan."

Rowan nodded. "How is everyone here?"

"We dealt with the zombies in this area," Darian answered. "But we lost several disciples, and many others are injured."

Caelan looked toward the children.

"Are they—?"

"They’re stable for now," Zhao Meiyun interrupted. "But they need treatment as soon as possible."

Darian’s expression tightened as he looked at the children and then at the ruined city around them.

"What happened over there?"

Lothe glanced toward the direction they had come from.

"We found the people behind the ritual. The two elite zombies are dead, but their leader escaped."

He paused.

"And the ritual was completed."

The atmosphere grew heavy.

"Completed?" Caelan asked.

Lothe nodded. "The children’s Yang energy was extracted. We stabilized them, but we don’t yet know the full extent of the damage."

No one spoke.

They had recovered the children and eliminated two powerful zombies, but the people responsible had escaped. Whatever they had been preparing for was still moving forward.

Rowan looked at the others.

"We’re leaving. We have too many wounded, and the children cannot remain here."

Everyone agreed.

The group began gathering the injured and preparing to withdraw. The remaining spoils were divided according to their agreement, while Seana stored the two demonic beasts in her Soul Manor for later examination.

Before leaving, Lothe looked back at the distant formation platforms.

The runes he had memorized replayed in his mind.

The seventh month.

Children between five and seven years old.

The extraction of Yang energy.

And the enormous amount of Soul Power required to maintain the formation.

He still didn’t know how those details were connected.

But they were not random.

There was a reason behind every part of the ritual.

And somewhere beyond the ruined city, Leon and the others were already moving toward their next objective.

Lothe withdrew his gaze.

"Let’s go."

The group departed, carrying the rescued children and their wounded companions away from the battlefield.

Behind them, the broken formation platforms stood silently beneath the dark cavern ceiling.

The ritual was over.

But its consequences had only begun.?