Because his elder brother was still in the sect, he wanted to pass the news on. But the moment he opened his mouth, the last breath of true qi that had been keeping him alive came pouring out. The Grand Protector's eyes rolled back, and he died with his eyes wide open, departing this world still unwilling to accept it.

Wei Zhao frowned. He had meant to threaten and coax the Grand Protector, to wring some useful clues out of the old man, but he had never expected the old bastard to just drop dead on him!

Well, dead was dead. Wei Zhao had no time to bother with him. As it was, Wei Zhao was like a spent arrow—every last scrap of strength in his body had gone into those few words just now, and once he had finished speaking, he collapsed to the ground and, with the very last of his strength, bellowed: "Thunder Pig..."

"Squeak, squeak!" Thunder Pig leaped out and darted straight into Wei Zhao's arms.

Seeing Thunder Pig appear in an instant, Wei Zhao was rather taken aback. This little creature—it had been nearby all along? Had he known that, Wei Zhao would never have called out to it with such a torn throat, wasting so much strength!

After all, there was not a trace of true qi left in Wei Zhao's body; all he had to rely on now was pure physical strength.

Of course, what Wei Zhao did not know was that Sun Jingyan had been waiting anxiously in the cave. Wei Zhao had not returned, nor had the Heaven-Rank monstrous brute, and Wei Zhao had never sent out the warning howl. So Sun Jingyan had grown frantic with worry. Unwilling to go herself, she had sent Thunder Pig to scout the situation. The little thing was small and good at hiding, so once it went, it likely would not be discovered easily.

Sun Jingyan intended to wait for Thunder Pig to find out what was going on and come back to report.

And that was exactly how it had played out. Thunder Pig was tiny and had hidden itself at a distance. After it arrived, neither the Heaven-Rank monstrous brute nor the Grand Protector, locked in battle, had sensed Thunder Pig nearby—even Wei Zhao had not seen it... The little thing was clever, wasn't it?

However, Wei Zhao did not waste time analyzing any of that. He scooped up Thunder Pig and began absorbing its true qi, converting it for his own use to heal his injuries! Though Thunder Pig looked to be in great pain, it still let Wei Zhao absorb the true qi from its body.

Thunder Pig was very clever. It knew Wei Zhao needed to heal, so it kept gritting its teeth and enduring.

Wei Zhao first used the true qi from Thunder Pig's body to repair his own meridians. This was already second nature to him. But after Wei Zhao had repaired his meridians, he did not go on to repair his internal organs or his broken bones. Instead, he ran swiftly over to where the Heaven-Rank monstrous brute lay.

"Master, how are you?" This master before him was a fake, yet in Wei Zhao's heart he had already come to regard him as someone he respected. He was very likely Qing Bo's master, and he had stepped forward to stand in the breach when Wei Zhao was in danger, so Wei Zhao was deeply concerned for his condition.

"I... I'm afraid I'm done for. Li'er, what move was that you used just now? How was it so powerful?" A flicker of confusion crossed the murky eyes of the Heaven-Rank monstrous brute. "Why don't I remember you having such a formidable move?"

"I learned it later on," Wei Zhao said evasively. Seeing that there was still a breath left in the Heaven-Rank monstrous brute, he let out a sigh of relief. So long as the man was not dead, things could be managed.

"That's right... I'm about to die, so what am I asking these things for... I still have a few important words to say to you, about the enemy... cough, cough..." Here the Heaven-Rank monstrous brute suddenly broke into coughing, hacking up mouthful after mouthful of fresh blood—clearly he could not hold on much longer...

"Master, don't speak for now. I'll heal you!" Wei Zhao was startled. He knew there was no time to delay. He hurriedly seized the Heaven-Rank monstrous brute's hand, pressed his fingers to the man's pulse, and began circulating the second layer of the Xuanyuan Dragon-Taming Art, starting to heal the Heaven-Rank monstrous brute while instructing Thunder Pig: "Thunder Pig, go tell Jingyi we're fine and have her come over. I'll restore your strength for you afterward!"

Most of the true qi in Thunder Pig's body had been absorbed by Wei Zhao, but Thunder Pig also knew this was only temporary—that Wei Zhao would help it recover in a little while. So it squeaked twice and dashed swiftly off in the direction of the cave...

The true qi Wei Zhao had absorbed from Thunder Pig had first been used to restore his meridians. But in healing the Heaven-Rank monstrous brute, he first helped repair the man's shattered internal organs and bones! Wei Zhao's meridians were meant for circulating his mental cultivation method and transmitting true qi, and it did no harm to leave the Heaven-Rank monstrous brute's meridians unrepaired for the time being. Wei Zhao had to preserve the man's life first and foremost.

Drawing energy directly from the jade pendant's space and channeling it into the Heaven-Rank monstrous brute's body, Wei Zhao swiftly repaired the shattered internal organs and bones. This miraculous effect made the Heaven-Rank monstrous brute's eyes go wide. "Li'er, when did you learn to cultivate the mental cultivation method and oral formulas of Yue'er's family? You can actually heal your master?"

"Master, don't speak for now—it wastes true qi," Wei Zhao reminded him.

Although the Heaven-Rank monstrous brute would not die with Wei Zhao there, speaking now still wasted a great deal of true qi. Wei Zhao himself was only barely holding on; once he finished healing the man, he would still have to heal himself.

The Heaven-Rank monstrous brute nodded. Though puzzled at heart, he reckoned that Yue'er had most likely taught him, so he stopped doubting and lay there quietly, enjoying the healing Wei Zhao was giving him.

Thunder Pig raced back to the cave. Sun Jingyan had heard that earth-shattering boom earlier as well. Not knowing what had happened, she dared not go forward, yet that sensation of mountains shaking and the ground trembling had left her badly shaken.

She did not know whether someone had taken explosives to blast the mountain, and her heart grew even more anxious. Seeing Thunder Pig return, she hurriedly asked: "Thunder Pig, how is it? Are Wei Zhao and... that Heaven-Rank freak all right?"

"Squeak, squeak!" Though Thunder Pig had seen that Wei Zhao was injured, it also knew that after killing the Grand Protector, Wei Zhao could heal himself and heal the Heaven-Rank monstrous brute, so there was not really any danger. To set Sun Jingyan's mind at ease, Thunder Pig nodded directly.

"They're fine? That's wonderful!" Seeing Thunder Pig nod, Sun Jingyan immediately breathed a sigh of relief, and the great stone weighing on her heart finally dropped.

"Squeak, squeak..." Thunder Pig stretched out its front paw and pointed outside, meaning for Sun Jingyan to follow it.

Sun Jingyan did not hesitate. She followed Thunder Pig out of the cave and headed in the direction of the mountaintop. But the closer she drew to the summit, the more shocked she became! That great hall, once so magnificent beyond compare, had utterly vanished!

True, it had been battered and broken before, with collapsed walls and ruined remnants everywhere, but at least the overall outline had still stood there, giving anyone who looked at it a sense of grand majesty.

But now it was nothing but a vast heap of rubble, broken blue bricks and shattered stone strewn everywhere, and the great hall no longer existed—not even its outline could be made out...

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