Everyone around Shen stiffened, frozen by the sheer weight of his aura. His expression was cold—no, beastlike, a silent declaration of murder.

  His footsteps were soundless yet heavy, as if the air itself bowed in submission with every step. He walked toward the still figure lying amidst the blood-soaked ground. Though Jin Yu's body was almost unrecognizable, something about his lingering aura confirmed it.

  Chen Haoran and Haozi, following Shen’s gaze, opened their mouths in stunned silence. As their minds caught up, realization slammed into them—if Shen was reacting like this, then it had to be Jin Yu.

  Eldora, sensing the killing intent in Shen’s soul, immediately signaled her clansmen to fall back. She too stepped away, sweat beading down her back.

  This human… he’s as strong as me… maybe stronger.

  Shen knelt beside Jin Yu. His breath caught in his throat. Jin Yu’s body was a wreck—his flesh torn, blood pouring from holes too deep to close. His body trembled, desperately trying to heal itself, but it wasn’t enough.

  With trembling hands, Shen cupped his face gently, rage burning silently in his eyes. He said nothing—only pressed his palm to Jin Yu’s chest and pushed his Qi into him.

  But it vanished.

  His vitality disappeared on contact, like a drop of rain swallowed by the sea.

  Again. Again. It dissolved every time. Shen’s fury grew. Without hesitation, he rose to his feet, unsheathing his sword as he stared murderously at Eldora.

  “What have you done to him?” His voice was calm—too calm.

  Eldora held her ground, but her gaze flicked to the field of corpses behind him. “Your human boy… pushed himself beyond his limits.”

  Shen didn’t move, didn’t blink—only stepped forward slowly, his killing intent coiling like a storm around him.

  “I told you the truth,” Eldora said firmly. “He lost control. He turned beastal. I had to stop him.”

  Her voice was steady, but her fingers curled. She knew if he didn’t believe her, it would come to blood. Even if he outmatched her, she would fight to the death.

  Chen Haoran’s eyes turned red with fury at the sight of Jin Yu’s broken body. Haozi simply dropped to his knees beside him, trembling as tears fell from his cheeks.

  “Y-Young Master…?” His voice cracked.

  Chen Haoran walked past Shen, sword drawn, his face twisted in rage.

  “I’m going to kill you today.”

  With a roar, he charged at Eldora. She didn’t even glance at him. A single flick of her finger—

  WHAM!

  A thick vine slammed into his chest, sending him flying back into a pile of dead beastmen.

  He stood up immediately, gasping, blood on his lips.

  “I will kill you, you monster!” he roared again, charging—

  But Shen grabbed him by the collar mid-sprint. Chen Haoran flailed, shouting wildly.

  “Let me go! I said LET ME GO! I’LL KILL HER!”

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  A sharp chop to the neck silenced him. Shen caught his limp body and gently laid him beside Jin Yu.

  His gaze never left Eldora’s face.

  “Heal him,” he said quietly, each word laced with an unspoken threat.

  “Now.”

  Eldora hesitated for only a second before she stepped forward and knelt beside Jin Yu. She placed her hands over his chest, gathering her Qi.

  Warm, emerald light shimmered from her palms as she poured vitality into him. But the moment it touched his skin, it flickered—and vanished.

  Surprise flickered in her eyes

  Again, she summoned more Qi, guiding it with precision and care. But just like before, it disappeared, absorbed into the boy’s body as though it had never existed.

  A crack formed in her calm expression. She gritted her teeth and tried again—this time pushing harder, flooding him with as much as she could spare.

  Nothing.

  Desperation took hold. She turned sharply to her clansmen.

  “Lend me your Qi.”

  Without hesitation, the elves formed a circle, placing their hands on her shoulders. A steady stream of vitality poured into her, and she funneled it all into Jin Yu’s body—her arms trembling from the effort.

  Still, it dissolved into nothing.

  Over and over, she tried, sweat glistening on her brow. Her breathing grew ragged. The air was thick with tension and the scent of blood, and no one dared interrupt. Not even Shen.

  “Why isn’t it working?” Haozi whispered hoarsely, clenching his fists beside Jin Yu’s body.

  “It’s like he’s... devouring it,” Chen Haoran muttered, now awake and leaning on his sword, face pale with frustration.

  Eldora's hands trembled as she withdrew them, lips parted in disbelief. She looked at Jin Yu—no, stared at him, as though hoping an answer would reveal itself.

  Then, from the back of the group, the red-haired woman stepped forward, her voice calm but firm.

  “Stop. It’s useless.”

  Everyone turned toward her.

  “The boy’s body rejects Qi. Any energy you feed him will vanish. It’s not a wound or an injury—it’s his nature.”

  Eldora stared at her. “Why didn’t you say anything sooner?”

  “I wasn't sure,” the woman said. “Until now. But I’ve seen it before—during the fight. Our techniques, our healing, even our pressure—it all melted away around him.”

  A heavy silence fell.

  Jin Yu’s body remained motionless, still writhing faintly on its own, as if his flesh was trying to patch itself back together without help.

  Eldora looked at him helplessly, this boy turned to a beast earlier, now he also has a strange constitution?!,why is he so different!

  Shen clenched his fists, his eyes locked on the boy’s face.

  If Qi wouldn't save him…

  Then what would?

  Everyone wracked their brain for a solution until a young elf at the back of the group stepped forward hesitantly. “Maybe... we should use herbs. Ones without Qi. I remember the old healer saying some elves respond better to that when their cores are unstable.”

  Eldora’s eyes flickered and something clicked in her brain,

  That's true!... Qi resistance. Complete nullification.

  Only something without Qi can save him!.

  Her gaze hardened in understanding. “Carry him,” she said, voice clipped but determined. “Follow me.”

  Shen didn’t question her. With careful hands, he lifted Jin Yu and followed her as the elves made way. Chen Haoran, stood up quickly and followed, Haozi also trudge behind with eyes still damp.

  The path they took curved through the forest, and though Eldora said nothing, the other elves glanced at Jin Yu with a strange mix of fear and awe.

  After about twenty minutes, they reached a building nestled within a thicket of glowing trees—a structure shaped like a blooming flower, its petals formed of woven branches and glowing sap.

  It wasn’t their main settlement. Not yet.

  “This is our war infirmary,” Eldora said, stopping at the entrance. “Only used when one of our own is nearly destroyed in battle. She’s inside—our herbalist.”

  As they stepped in, a middle-aged elf woman with streaks of silver in her green hair looked up. “He’s human,” she said bluntly, but her eyes softened as she saw Jin Yu.

  “No Qi,” Eldora said. “Use only what’s natural. No energy. Just herbs. Everything that would work on a crippled core.”

  The healer frowned but nodded, motioning Shen to lay Jin Yu on the bed. “It’ll be slow,” she warned. “But if his body has even a sliver of life left, this will keep it burning.”

  Anc

  She moved quickly, pulling out a bundle of dark-green herbs that glistened faintly under the lamplight. They had no trace of Qi—just raw, untouched vitality drawn from nature itself. She ground them swiftly, mixing them with warm water and other tinctures before applying the paste gently over Jin Yu’s wounds.

  At first, nothing happened.

  Then, a faint twitch ran through his arm.

  The healer paused. Jin Yu’s body shifted slightly, as if stirred by something deep within. The bruises that mottled his skin lost some of their angry color. One of the gashes on his side darkened, the blood clotted and the skin subtly knitting over.

  Not a miracle. But not normal either.

  “He’s responding,” the healer muttered, surprise flickering across her features. “Stronger than I thought.”

  Shen stepped closer, his eyes narrowing. Jin Yu’s breathing—still shallow—had grown smoother, more rhythmic. A low warmth filled the room, not from Qi, but from something older, something more primal.

  “He’s… accepting the medicine,” she added, almost in disbelief. “It’s like his body recognized it. Like it was waiting for it.”

  No one spoke. Eldora’s arms were folded, her sharp gaze fixed on Jin Yu, while Chen Haoran and Haozi stayed just behind Shen, tense and silent.

  Minutes passed. The healer leaned back with a breath, wiping her hands. “His body is healing—better than I expected. But he’s not ready to move. Whatever’s anchoring him inside… hasn’t let go yet.”

  Shen nodded. “We’ll stay the night.”

  And so they did.

  The three men remained outside the room as the night deepened. The elven healer left a lantern burning low, its flickering light casting soft shadows across the floorboards. Shen sat with his back to the wall, eyes closed but senses sharp. Chen Haoran leaned against a pillar, arms resting on his knees. Haozi curled beside the door, chin on his arms, occasionally glancing toward the bed.

  None of them slept.

  Time crawled on, heavy and slow, as the forest outside whispered in the dark.

  By the time dawn broke, spilling golden light through the window slats, Jin Yu’s body was whole again. His chest rose and fell in steady rhythm, and the tension in his muscles had vanished.

  But he did not wake.

  The healer sat quietly at her table, her expression drawn. “His body’s done healing,” she said. “But the spirit… it’s still wandering.”

  Chen Haoran stood and rubbed his face. “What does that mean? That he might not wake up?”

  Shen didn’t answer.

  He just looked at Jin Yu—long and hard—as if willing him to return.