Chapter 218: Body Inspection II

Body Inspection II

"is it you serious? How serious?" Seana asked worriedly

Before she could send more Qi into him, he caught her hand.

"Serious enough that I might need you to stay beside me tonight."

She froze.

Then she looked up at him.

"Lothe!"

He laughed and gently pulled her into his arms. "All right, all right. It was only a joke."

"You—"

"But you were worried."

"Of course I was worried! You’re injured!"

His smile softened. He lowered his forehead against hers.

"I know."

For a moment, neither spoke.

Then Lothe kissed her forehead. "I won’t make light of it again."

Seana studied his face before sighing. "You’d better not."

He gave her another smile, this time without teasing.

She resumed the examination, carefully checking his meridians and using her Blood Qi to draw out the remaining Corpse Qi. After some time, the irritation in his internal circulation began to ease.

When she finished, she helped him put his robes back on.

"That’s enough for tonight. You need to rest."

"What about you?"

"I’ll regulate my Qi before sleeping."

"Then I’ll accompany you."

"Seriously? You should regulate your own Qi. Your spatial energy was overdrawn, and your meridians need time to recover."

Lothe nodded, though his gaze remained on her.

The two of them returned to the reception area.

The earlier playfulness had eased the heaviness left by their thoughts of Old B, but neither had forgotten the day’s events.

Lothe glanced toward the courtyard.

The city was still unusually quiet. Even with the Four Great Sects gathered in the Neutral City, there was little movement beyond the occasional patrol.

No bustling streets.

No distant voices.

Not even the usual sounds of cultivators moving between residences.

It was as though the entire city had fallen asleep.

"Tomorrow will be busy," Seana said. "The four sects are still here. I doubt they’ll leave before discussing what happened."

"Most likely."

"They’ll have to decide what to do with the children, the evidence we brought back."

"There are also the discoveries made by the other investigation teams," Lothe added. "I doubt everything will be settled in one meeting."

Seana looked toward the garden. "Something still feels wrong."

"What do you mean?"

"The city. It’s too quiet."

Lothe’s expression became thoughtful.

He had noticed it as well. The silence wasn’t merely the absence of ordinary activity. Even the Spiritual Qi around the city seemed subdued.

"Do you think it’s related to the zombies?" Seana asked.

"Perhaps. But we don’t have enough information to know."

Seana nodded slowly.

"We’ll find out tomorrow."

"Yes. Tomorrow."

Lothe accompanied her to the corridor leading to her room.

Before entering, Seana turned toward him.

"Don’t stay up all night."

"I won’t."

"Regulate your Qi properly. Don’t try to force the remaining Corpse Qi out."

"I understand."

She narrowed her eyes. "I’m serious."

"I know, love."

Satisfied, Seana entered her room and closed the door.

She removed her outer robe and sat on the cultivation cushion beside the window. Before taking her bath, she intended to regulate her breathing.

Moonlight spilled across the floor.

Seana took a slow breath and guided the Spiritual Qi within her body through her meridians. The day’s battles had consumed much of her strength, and treating the children had placed additional strain on her.

Before dealing with tomorrow’s affairs, she needed to recover.

Across the courtyard, Lothe returned to his own chamber. He glanced once toward Seana’s room before sitting down to regulate his spatial energy.

Then a thin line of blood ran from the corner of his mouth.

Lothe quickly swallowed it.

The Corpse Qi from Leon’s palm had been more dangerous than he expected. He had blocked the attack a fraction too late, and the force had penetrated deeper than he had realized.

Throughout the journey, he had used his internal Qi circulation to keep the damage under control. When Seana examined him, he had isolated a large portion of the Corpse Qi with [Void Devour], preventing her from noticing how severe the injury truly was.

Now he was paying the price.

He hadn’t wanted to worry her more than necessary.

Lothe took a slow breath and steadied his mind.

[Void Devour] activated.

The Corpse Qi inside his body began moving through his veins and meridians. Wherever it passed, his flesh burned, as if decay were spreading beneath his skin.

At the same time, Void Qi surged through his pathways.

The two forces collided.

Corpse Qi tried to corrode and contaminate his internal circulation. Void Qi swallowed, compressed, and broke it apart. Every clash sent pain through his body.

Lothe’s muscles tightened.

His wounds reopened.

Blood seeped from the cracks in his skin, but he remained silent.

He continued circulating the technique.

The Corpse Qi surged toward his Core, only to be intercepted by Void Qi. The two forces collided again, creating a violent pressure that shook his meridians.

[Warning!]

[Foreign energy detected.]

[Corpse Qi is damaging the host’s internal pathways.]

[Host is attempting refinement.]

[Refinement process unstable.]

Lothe ignored the notifications.

He guided the Void Qi around the corrupted energy, slowly separating it from the parts of his body it had contaminated.

The pain became worse.

His breathing grew heavier, but he refused to make a sound.

The Corpse Qi fought like a living poison. It clung to his meridians and resisted being drawn out, while the Void Qi devoured it piece by piece.

Another surge passed through him.

Lothe’s back arched slightly.

Blood ran from his nose and ears.

He continued.

The Void Qi compressed the Corpse Qi into a small, unstable mass before refining it further. The corrupted energy gradually lost its dark, rotten quality and became a faint stream of refined energy that merged into his circulation.

[Corpse Qi refinement: 31%]

[Internal damage: Stabilizing.]

[Meridian irritation: Decreasing.]

Lothe clenched his teeth and pushed the technique harder.

Void Qi spread through the damaged pathways, consuming the remaining traces. The burning sensation slowly weakened.

The wounds across his body began closing.

The swelling beneath his chest subsided. The dark traces beneath his skin faded, and his flesh gradually returned to its usual smooth, pale appearance.

Another wave of pain struck.

Lothe’s fingers dug into the edge of the cushion.

He endured it without making a sound.

[Corpse Qi refinement: 68%]

[Foreign energy resistance weakening.]

[Void Devour efficiency increasing.]

He guided the last remaining traces toward the center of his circulation.

The Corpse Qi tried to resist one final time. Lothe’s Void Qi closed around it. ’Devour’

The corrupted energy vanished.

[Corpse Qi fully refined.]

[Internal circulation stabilized.]

[Damage caused by foreign energy has been repaired.]

[Void Devour has completed the refinement process.]

Lothe remained still for several breaths.

His body was exhausted, but the pressure inside his meridians had disappeared. The injury in his chest no longer throbbed, and the remaining wounds had closed completely.

He opened his eyes.

A faint light passed through his black gaze.

"It’s really been a while since I last checked my status," he murmured.

He settled his breathing and spoke mentally.

’System, show my status.’

’Ping.’

A translucent purple interface appeared within his mind.?