Putting Yun Ya’s heart back wasn’t like playing a puzzle game where you just needed to press the missing piece into the gap. This surgery was precise, and complex, and couldn’t afford any mistakes.
Simply put, it was extremely difficult. In the world she had transmigrated from, even well-prepared specialists would need over ten hours to complete it—impossible to finish in less than half a quarter-hour.
But their time was pitifully short.
Feng Miaojun didn’t even have time to use anesthetics before she began operating.
Fortunately, the spirit liquid in the altar was abundant, and she could use it freely. This substance could revive the dead and regrow flesh; for Yun Ya, it was more effective than any cardiac stimulant. Also fortunately, after recovering the chaos demon’s memories, her experience and knowledge were incomparably richer than before, giving her the confidence to tackle this time-limited, highly difficult surgery.
The powerful divine consciousness from the chaos demon leader helped her precisely control every minute change in the wound—a comprehensive, 360-degree mastery of the entire situation, detailed to the point where the flow direction of every blood molecule was crystal clear.
No physician in the mortal realm could achieve this.
She had to ensure every step was swift and correct.
She couldn’t afford any mistakes.
For Yun Ya, who remained fully conscious, the pain was almost comparable to having his heart carved out. Despite his endurance, the veins on his forehead bulged, and the corners of his mouth twitched subtly.
“Indeed,” his whole body trembled, but he forced himself not to move, nearly breaking his steel-like teeth as he gritted them, “should have… should have asked for more!”
She concentrated fully, not uttering a word.
It was fortunate that Yun Ya’s life force was incredibly tenacious; with the help of high-concentration spirit liquid, the blood vessels showed signs of healing as soon as they were connected.
In just half an incense stick’s time, the Ditao’s white hair had burned down to a fraction of its original size.
“Done!” Feng Miaojun stitched the final suture on his chest and let out a long breath. “Move little, rest much, absolutely no exertion!”
Her mind had been intensely focused, and she had bitten her lower lip so hard it left a row of teeth marks, yet her smile was radiant. Without needing to ask Yun Ya, she could feel that the drain of her life force through the Ao Yu mark had greatly diminished. If before it was like an open floodgate, now it was only the flow of a small water pipe.
His heart was beating, its rhythm faster than before, and stronger too. After all, previously he had to divert most of his life force to the stone heart, but now he could keep it for himself.
The heart would need time to fully recover, but the spirit liquid was incredibly potent, and the dragon clan’s heart was astonishingly resilient. Given time, perhaps after one or two more corrections when they had enough time, he would certainly be fine.
They wouldn’t die—neither him nor her! They had finally found a way to survive in this desperate situation.
Even in this unknown void, this realization brightened her mood. Yun Ya reached out to touch the teeth marks on her lips, unable to express the gratitude in his heart: “You’ve saved me again.”
This was a destiny determined many, many years ago. He had believed he would certainly die this time and had prepared himself for it. Who knew this girl would have such ability, forcibly pulling him back from the path to the Yellow Springs?
“You can repay me later,” she wiped the blood from her hands, speaking quickly. “How much longer does the stone heart need to repair?”
In the altar, the stone heart’s volume was continuously expanding, already growing from loquat-sized to tangerine-sized. Its color had also changed from light gray to deep black, emitting increasingly powerful divine aura fluctuations.
“At least ten more breaths.”
Without Yun Ya’s “borrowed” talent of entering the azure void, it would have been extremely difficult for them to withstand the chaotic demons’ attacks outside and endure until the stone heart was restored.
“Take care of my body,” Feng Miaojun exhaled, and several wisps of red smoke escaped from her mouth and nose.
Yun Ya had held on for more than twenty breaths, and had exhausted all his methods; for the remaining time, she would endure no matter what.
As soon as the words left her mouth, the white hair completely turned to ash.
Space rippled like water, and in the next instant, the two appeared in their original position.
The chaos demons had long surrounded them. From the outside, the area was full of shadowy figures. With the two at the center, it had almost formed a black vortex so dense that not even the silhouettes inside could be seen.
As soon as Feng Miaojun and Yun Ya returned to the current world, the chaos demons pounced without hesitation. The cultivators rushing toward them could hear their furious roars echoing through heaven and earth:
“Traitor!”
The leader’s attempt to summon the Realm God was a betrayal of her race!
Chaos demons were unsentimental; when it came to the welfare of the entire race, they had no blind loyalty to Feng Miaojun.
Watching the tempest unfold, Nu Ba raised her leg and charged forward. She wasn’t a living creature and couldn’t be possessed or controlled; the chaos demons had no way to deal with her.
Other cultivators also gritted their teeth, brandished their magical artifacts, and strode forward.
Earlier, when the Yan King went berserk and the formation broke, they had lost all hope and could only flee to save themselves. Now that the altar had been successfully activated and the crucial task of summoning the Realm God was racing against time, everyone had hope again.
Reopening the celestial realm—wasn’t this the ultimate dream of generations of cultivators? Even contributing a small effort would be a glory to share!
Six more breaths.
But before the crowd could get close, a point of light emerged from the center of the black vortex.
Though just a dot, the light was blindingly bright, with a crimson hue tinged with golden red.
With a “whoosh,” it seemed to ride the wind, rapidly spreading throughout the entire vortex.
From the outside, the whole vortex looked like a massive fire tornado, black and red colors tightly intertwined, neither able to escape the other.
Success or failure would be determined in these few breaths.
Nu Ba steadied her stance and looked up, finally showing respect in her wooden eyes.
The contest of soul power was most primitive, a direct clash requiring no embellishments, unlike the thousand transformations of divine techniques. Yet this was also the most brutal and dangerous approach; once entangled, victory or defeat must be determined.
The Chaos Demon Queen truly had incredible spirit, daring to oppose the power of the entire tribe with her individual will. Judging from the confrontation between the black and red smoke, she had not yet been completely overpowered!
At the very center of the storm, in a space no larger than a bullet, was a place of tranquility where not even a wisp of shadow could penetrate.
She used herself as a barrier, firmly keeping all chaos demons outside, including her self.
Finally, in the altar in Yun Ya’s hand, the stone heart expanded to the size of a coconut.
Then, like a living person’s heart, it contracted slightly.
Though it seemed only a negligible movement, the sound it produced resonated throughout the universe:
“Thump!”
Everyone’s hearts seemed to be firmly gripped, pulsing in unison.
Yun Ya’s expression turned solemn as he placed the altar on the ground.
Immediately, it sank, as if beneath it was not solid earth but a surface unable to support objects, like water.
The chaos demons in the air shouted:
“No!”
They diverted much of their power from opposing their leader and attempted to dive into the ground to seize the stone heart.
However, after several attempts to burrow, they met obstacles everywhere—for them, the ground had suddenly become as hard as diamond, impossible to penetrate no matter how much strength they exerted.