The presence of Elder Gu was like a heavy mountain pressing down on Akash's chest. The toxic yellow mist he emitted made the surrounding plants wither and turn black in seconds.
"Meera, the Cloud-Sword Sect's genius... and a nameless brat," Elder Gu sneered, his yellow eyes fixed on the glowing Blood-Soul Lily. "You've done the hard work of killing the serpent. Now, die and let me claim my prize."
[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION: SURVIVAL CHANCE - 15%]
[ADVICE: DO NOT ENGAGE IN DIRECT COMBAT]
Meera tried to stand, her sword shaking. "Elder Gu, if you kill us, the Sect will find out. My life tablet in the Sect Hall will shatter, and they will track my last location!"
"By the time they arrive, I will have consumed the lily and reached the Foundation Establishment realm," Elder Gu laughed, raising his gnarled hand. "I will be long gone."
He moved with a speed that Akash's Level 2 eyes could barely track. A claw made of sickly yellow energy shot toward Meera's throat.
"Sovereign Step!"
Akash didn't think. He tackled Meera to the side just as the claw tore through the air where her head had been, shattering a boulder behind them into dust.
"Run, you fool!" Meera gasped, her voice weak. "He's a Level 9 expert! You can't do anything here!"
Akash stood up, his gaze turning cold. The Sovereign Core began to hum at a frequency so high it made his teeth ache. He realized that running wasn't an option—the old man was too fast.
"Meera, listen to me," Akash whispered, his back to the Elder. "I'm going to create a distraction. When I do, grab the lily and eat the center petal. It's the only way you'll get enough Qi to stop him."
"But what about you?" she asked, her eyes wide.
"Just do it!"
Akash turned to face Elder Gu. He took a deep breath, and for the first time, he opened the floodgates of the Sovereign Core completely.
[WARNING: OVERLOADING MERIDIANS!]
[FORCEFUL QI ACTIVATION: 200%]
Golden veins began to glow under Akash's skin, appearing on his neck and arms. The dirt around his feet began to float upward as a golden aura erupted around him.
"Oh? A hidden technique?" Elder Gu paused, curious. "You're burning your very life force just to buy a few seconds? How pathetic."
"Life force?" Akash smirked, though blood was leaking from the corner of his eye. "No... I'm just showing you what a true Sovereign looks like."
"Sovereign Art: Heaven's Gaze!"
A burst of blinding golden light exploded from Akash's body. It wasn't just light—it was a shockwave of pure, unfiltered authority that momentarily paralyzed the Elder's dark Qi.
"Now!" Akash roared.
Meera didn't hesitate. She lunged for the Blood-Soul Lily. But as her fingers touched the purple petals, the old man recovered faster than expected.
"You dare?!" Elder Gu screamed, his face contorting into a demonic mask. He ignored Akash and threw a poison-covered needle directly at Meera's back.The poison-covered needle hissed through the air like a deadly viper. Meera was focused on the lily, her back completely exposed. She couldn't see the incoming strike, but Akash saw it in slow motion thanks to his overloaded senses.
[SYSTEM ALERT: FATAL PROJECTILE DETECTED]
[ESTIMATED IMPACT: 0.5 SECONDS]
Akash didn't hesitate. Using the last burst of his Sovereign Step, he threw himself behind Meera.
THUD!
The needle buried itself deep into Akash's shoulder. Instantly, a black, necrotic rot began to spread from the wound, turning his golden veins into a sickly purple.
"Akash!" Meera screamed, turning around just as her fingers plucked the glowing center petal of the Blood-Soul Lily. She saw him fall to one knee, his face turning pale as the poison raced toward his heart.
"Eat... it..." Akash wheezed, coughing up a mouthful of dark blood.
Elder Gu cackled, walking toward them slowly. "Such a touching display of stupidity! You saved her life only to die a few seconds earlier. Now, little girl, drop the petal or—"
Meera didn't wait for him to finish. She shoved the petal into her mouth.
BOOM!
A pillar of pure, violet light erupted from Meera's body, shaking the entire forest. The 1000-year-old energy was so intense that it pushed Elder Gu back several meters. Her broken meridians healed instantly, and her Qi levels didn't just recover—they exploded.
[TARGET ANALYSIS: MEERA]
[LEVEL UP: QI GATHERING LEVEL 8... LEVEL 9... PEAK!]
But while Meera was ascending, Akash was dying. The poison was too strong for a Level 2 body.
[SYSTEM CRITICAL: HOST HEART RATE DROPPING]
[POISON PERCENTAGE: 85%]
[ACTIVATING EMERGENCY PROTOCOL: SOVEREIGN REBIRTH?]
[COST: ALL CURRENT QI AND SYSTEM LOCKDOWN FOR 24 HOURS]
"Do... it..." Akash mentally whispered as his vision began to fade into darkness.
Meera, now radiating a terrifying cold aura, stood up. Her sword was no longer just humming—it was singing a song of death. She looked at Elder Gu with eyes that had turned completely silver.
"You," she said, her voice echoing like a blizzard. "You will pray for a quick death."
She moved so fast that Elder Gu couldn't even raise his hand. A flash of silver light cut through the yellow mist, and Elder Gu's arm fell to the ground, severed cleanly at the shoulder.
"AAARGH!" the Elder screamed, clutching his stump. "Wait! I surrender! I'll give you my—"
"Silence," Meera whispered. She swung her sword again, but this time, the golden light from the dying Akash's body suddenly flared up, wrapping around both of them in a protective cocoon.The silver blade didn't stop. Meera's eyes were cold, reflecting the pale moonlight. With one final, decisive stroke, she silenced Elder Gu forever. The Peak Level 9 expert, who had terrified entire villages, was now nothing more than a memory in the dust.
But Meera didn't celebrate. She immediately dropped her sword and knelt beside Akash.
[SYSTEM STATUS: LOCKDOWN INITIATED]
[TIME REMAINING: 23 HOURS 59 MINUTES]
[CURRENT STATE: COMATOSE]
"Akash! Stay with me!" Meera cried, her silver eyes filling with tears. She could feel the golden light around him fading. The Sovereign Rebirth had stopped the poison from killing him instantly, but his meridians were shattered, and his heartbeat was faint—barely a whisper.
She looked at the remaining petals of the Blood-Soul Lily. She had consumed the core petal, which gave her the power to kill the Elder, but the other petals were meant for healing.
"I won't let you die. Not after you saved me," she whispered.
She picked up the rest of the flower, but she knew Akash's body was too weak to digest it in his current state. If she forced him to eat it, the raw energy would make him explode. There was only one way—Qi Transfer.
Meera sat in a lotus position, pulling Akash's limp body into her lap. She placed her palms against his chest, right over the silent Sovereign Core.
"It's going to hurt," she murmured, even though he couldn't hear her.
She began to channel her newly ascended Level 9 Qi into him, using her own body as a filter to refine the Blood-Soul Lily's energy before passing it to him. Her skin began to glow with a violet hue, while Akash's skin flickered with a faint, dying gold.
Hours passed. The forest was silent, the only sound being the crackle of energy between the two. Meera's face grew pale; she was giving up the very foundation she had just gained to keep his spark alive.
Suddenly, Akash's body jerked.
[REBIRTH PROGRESS: 50%...]
[MERIDIANS RECONSTRUCTING...]
A shockwave of energy pushed Meera back. She collapsed, exhausted, but a small smile touched her lips. Akash's breathing had stabilized. The purple rot from the poison was gone, replaced by a healthy, vibrant glow.
But as the sun began to rise, Meera heard the sound of heavy footsteps and the clanking of armor.
"The energy signature came from here! Search the clearing!" a booming voice commanded.
Meera's heart sank. "The Cloud-Sword Sect... they're here. But Elder Gu was from a rival sect. If they find me here with a nameless boy and a dead Elder, they will take him for questioning—or worse."
She looked at the unconscious Akash. She had to make a choice: take him with her to the Sect as a hero, or hide him and protect his secret?