Chapter 115: The Wounded Li Su

As she gradually approached the place she had sensed, the woman in white smiled. It was him, indeed! Following her instructions, the white fox turned right at the foot of a mountain, and a figure came into the woman's view.

She leaped from the fox’s back and hurried toward the figure. He was curled up into a ball, seemingly trying to preserve his own body heat. The woman in white walked over, saw his face clearly, and smiled softly. She extended her right hand, and a surge of spiritual power flowed out. She helped the man up, revealing his face—it was exactly as she had anticipated: it was Li Su!

Feeling the influx of spiritual power into his body, Li Su felt a trace of warmth enter his freezing frame, and his stiffened limbs began to recover slightly. Someone had helped him up!

Opening his eyes slightly, Li Su saw "Yin Yao"—the person he missed every night. The radiance of her smile, falling into his eyes, left him completely intoxicated. The feeling was so unreal that he wondered if she was merely a figment of his imagination. He had, after all, exhausted all his strength to forcibly break the laws of the parallel world to reach her side as quickly as possible, bypassing his intended destination to arrive here in the Spirit Fox Tribe’s territory instead.

This gamble had nearly cost him his life. Having felt the approach of death time and time again, he could not believe that the person he longed for was appearing so clearly before his eyes.

"Yao'er, is it really you? Am I dying?" Li Su asked in a soft, squinting voice.

When the woman in white heard the name "Yao'er," she realized he had mistaken her for someone else. A complex, obscure look flashed in her eyes. Seeing her reaction, Li Su offered a bitter smile: "I knew it—you aren't her, how could you be? I must be dying."

Clearly, Li Su had forgotten the warmth that had just flowed into his body. His consciousness had not fully returned, and while his heart was stirred, he was also filled with dejection.

The woman in white turned her head away, but a second later, she looked back at him and beamed. "Li Su, I didn't expect to run into you while out investigating tonight! What happened to you? How did you get so badly hurt?"

Although she knew the reason for his injuries, she asked as if following the natural course of events. Hearing her address him by name and express concern for his wounds, Li Su smiled, though the movement pulled at the injuries on his face, causing him to gasp in pain.

The mysterious woman, who possessed the exact face of Yin Yao, neither denied nor confirmed her identity. Because of this, Li Su became convinced that she was indeed the Yin Yao he had been searching for.

"Yao'er, I'm fine. It was just an accident while crossing through the dimensions. I'm so happy to see you here! I didn't think I'd see you again so soon. Don't you think it's fate? I must be the first acquaintance you've met in the Void Continent!" Li Su said with a relaxed tone as he felt her continue to channel spiritual power into him.

*No, the first person she met was Ji Xuanyu. That sudden appearance of Ji Xuanyu—even I don't know how he showed up in the Spirit Fox territory!* The woman thought to herself. She had nearly everything under control, but Ji Xuanyu's presence was not in her calculations; his arrival was an anomaly. Li Su’s appearance was another. Ji Xuanyu had progressed rapidly and arrived before Yin Yao unscathed, whereas Li Su had been battered and bruised for violating the laws of space. This was worth investigating.

Supporting Li Su, the woman led him toward the white fox named Ling'er. "You should get some rest. This is the first time I've seen you look so pathetic."

She spoke with a playful tone, causing Li Su to blush. He hurriedly replied, "It will only happen this once—it won't happen again."

"Hehe," the woman’s bell-like laughter rang out. Following her laughter, Li Su also revealed a genuine smile. This version of Yin Yao was wonderful; he liked her very much. There was a faint touch of cuteness about her.

"Alright, Li Su, I can see you're badly injured. Let's find a secluded place to hide for a while. You must recover quickly! You know I don't want someone who will hold me back." She directed the white fox to speed up, then glanced at Li Su and slowed down, fearing that too much speed would tear his wounds.

Li Su didn't speak; he simply offered her a reassuring smile before drifting off to sleep on the fox's back, having exhausted his strength just to talk to her.

Seeing that he was asleep, the woman looked up at the sky. *Yin Yao, what would your reaction be if one day I brought Li Su before you? And how would he react? But don't worry, I bear you no ill will. It's just that I haven't been out for too long. Now that I'm out, I don't intend to go back. I pray I can find a way for us both to exist in this world.*

The woman sighed at the crescent moon, then looked down at Li Su. She reached out and touched his face, a strange feeling rippling through her heart. Her gaze toward him became increasingly blurred.

The white fox beneath them seemed to sense something wrong with its mistress. Considering the man's injuries, it gave its body a calculated shake. The woman was startled back to clarity, realizing her own strange state. She shook her head and began to heal Li Su, though she regretted that she carried no medicinal pills with her.

...

Ji Xuanyu carried Yin Yao’s unconscious body toward her room, making sure to have a passing maid notify Bai Yun and the others.

Upon hearing that Yin Yao had fainted for no apparent reason, Bai Yun jumped up in alarm and shouted to Bai Yong, "Brother, go notify Mother and the elders! Zi Ye and I will go ahead to see what's happening. Go!"

Bai Yun pushed Bai Yong and pulled Bai Ziye in the other direction. Bai Yong did not hesitate; he sped off, his feet moving like the wind, hoping to arrive as quickly as possible. Though his heart was filled with countless questions, he knew those were matters only the elders could answer.

After dinner, Bai Ling had gone to the courtyard where the six elder brothers lived to discuss how to reveal Yin Yao's true identity, when they suddenly heard Bai Yong's anxious cries outside.

Bai Yong appeared before them, breathless and uncharacteristically urgent. Bai Ling stepped out, followed by the six elders.

"Yong'er, what's wrong? What is all this?" Bai Ling asked. She knew her son was not the type to be easily rattled, but given the circumstances, it seemed he had encountered something truly dire.

"Yin... Yin Yao has fainted!" Bai Yong panted, looking at the group.

"What?" the Second Elder exclaimed.

Before anyone else could react, a gust of wind brushed past them—it was the Third Elder, who had already rushed off. It seemed the Third Elder was becoming increasingly concerned about Yin Yao. The others, guessing that Bai Yong didn't know the specifics either, followed suit.

Bai Yun rushed into the room to find Yin Yao lying flat on the bed, motionless, as if she were in a deep sleep. But Ji Xuanyu had said she had fainted for no reason.

"Ji Xuanyu, what happened to my sister?" Bai Yun asked, staring at Yin Yao.

"I'm not entirely sure. After we parted ways, we were just walking in the garden when she suddenly felt weak and incredibly drowsy, then she just passed out. It’s very strange; she was perfectly fine a second ago, how could she suddenly be so exhausted?" Ji Xuanyu didn't hide anything, though he decided to keep the mysterious woman to himself for now, waiting for Yin Yao to decide for herself once she woke up.

Hearing his description, Bai Yun shook her head in frustration. This situation was unheard of. Could it be a side effect of advancing too quickly? That seemed unlikely.

Bai Ziye stepped forward to check Yin Yao's pulse, but the result was that her body was completely normal—perfectly healthy. What was going on?

The three young people were at a loss and could only wait for the elders.

The Third Elder burst into the room like a whirlwind. He sat at the bedside, touched Yin Yao's forehead with the back of his hand, and checked her eyes—there were no signs of anything abnormal. He grabbed her hand and closed his eyes, channeling his own spiritual power into her body to investigate her condition.

"Her spiritual power is near exhaustion, enough only to sustain her life," the Third Elder said in a deep voice. By then, everyone had arrived. Hearing this, they were all shocked.

The Third Elder swept a cold gaze over the young people. "Tell me everything that happened, bit by bit. I want to see how Yin Yao ended up in this state!"

Ji Xuanyu stepped forward, bowing apologetically. "I'm sorry, I failed to look after her properly."

"Hmph!" The Third Elder shot him a sidelong glance but said nothing more, knowing that Ji Xuanyu would never harm her.

Bai Yun spoke up timidly, "Ji Xuanyu is innocent; this happened suddenly. And you said her power is exhausted—how? She hasn't been using any magic!"

Her whispered observation resonated with everyone. It was impossible for someone to lose their power for no reason.

The Third Elder looked at Bai Yun but did not speak. He turned back to Yin Yao and shook his head. "I truly cannot find the cause. I have never encountered such a situation. Her power is near depletion, yet it doesn't threaten her life; it only causes this temporary coma. I feel as though her power should be plentiful. Let's observe her overnight and see how she is tomorrow."

As the Third Elder was the authority on such matters, everyone agreed unconditionally.

In a place no one noticed, Ji Xuanyu's eyes flickered. It seemed the mysterious woman had been telling the truth. And that phrase, "Your nights will belong to her from now on," likely meant that every night, Yin Yao would fall into a coma and her power would vanish—presumably into that mysterious woman.

Ji Xuanyu suddenly felt that the books he had read over the past few days were insufficient. He couldn't even diagnose Yin Yao's current state, and he felt a sense of inadequacy; he knew too little to protect the person he cared about.

Bai Ling and the elders left to discuss the situation. Bai Yong, not knowing what else to do, also departed, leaving only Bai Yun, Bai Ziye, and Ji Xuanyu behind. "Bai Yun, I’m sorry to trouble you to stay and watch over her. Bai Ziye, could you lead me to the library? I want to look through more ancient texts to see if I can find anything similar to Yin Yao's current condition," Ji Xuanyu said with humility.

Bai Yun didn't refuse. Bai Ziye nodded at Ji Xuanyu, "Of course, let's go together. Two heads are better than one."

"Thank you."

The two left the room and headed for the library.