“Miss, there’s something else I must tell you,” Hayden said.
“What is it?”
“Leo isn’t a Martial Cultivator. He should be a Spiritual Cultivator!”
“Spiritual Cultivator?” Amaya felt curious about this term. “You mean those immortal beings from mythology?”
“Not exactly,” Hayden shook his head. “Spiritual Cultivators, like Martial Cultivators, use special methods to transform themselves and gain extraordinary abilities. The difference lies in the way they practice cultivation, which leads to vastly different levels of strength.”
“Hayden, are there many Spiritual Cultivators in this world?” Amaya asked.
“In ancient times, there were many of them. Nowadays they’re extremely rare. In the past decade or so, besides Leo, I haven’t seen any other Spiritual Cultivators,” Hayden replied.
“To become a Martial Cultivator one needs martial roots; what does it take to become a Spiritual Cultivator then?” Amaya asked again.
“I don’t know that for sure; only Leo probably knows the answer to that question. If Orientia people aren’t after Spirit Medicine Immortal Trace then they’re most likely targeting Leo secretly because the origin of their ninjutsu is Atraria’s Daoist arts or Yin-Yang Spellcraft.”
“Miss, besides searching for Spirit Medicine Immortal Trace on our mission here in Atraria, we should also add another objective: no matter what it takes, we must bring Leo into our camp if he wakes up from his coma.”
Amaya nodded solemnly and said, “Hayden, I know what to do now.”
At MediTech University’s First Affiliated Hospital ICU:
Amaya and Hayden walked into the ward together.
When Amaya saw Sophia sitting motionless by the bedside, her heart tightened painfully.
Sophia gave her an impression of fragility as if she could collapse at any moment.
Leaving aside everything else, Sophia was her best friend and confidante which made seeing her back view deeply touching for Amaya who empathized with how she felt.
Looking at Leo lying on the bed with closed eyes as if sleeping heavily made her quickly adjust herself emotionally before calling out softly, “Sophia.”
Sophia’s shoulders trembled slightly before slowly standing up and turning around slowly towards them both.
After seeing Amaya, Sophia’s face was numb with sadness, but she finally showed a hint of warmth. She took a step forward, trying to approach Amaya, but due to not moving or eating for a long time, she stumbled and almost fell to the ground.
Amaya quickly went over and helped her up before asking with concern, “Sophia, don’t torture yourself like this. Leo will be fine.”
Tears of sadness streamed down Sophia’s eyes again as she threw herself into Amaya’s arms.
Amaya held her tightly and comforted her with warm words. After a while, Sophia stopped crying and let go of Amaya’s hand. She wiped away her tears and asked in a choked voice, “Amaya, why are you here?”
“I heard that Leo had an accident so I rushed over,” replied Amaya as she glanced at Leo lying unconscious on the hospital bed.
Sophia shook her head, “I’m not sure what happened either. It was Leo’s friend Bob who called me saying that something happened to him. Since I arrived at the hospital until now he hasn’t woken up yet… the doctors said he might…”
Sophia couldn’t continue speaking any further.
Although Amaya knew that Orientians had injured Leo badly, she couldn’t tell Sophia about it just yet.
Amaya took Sophia’s hand and comforted her once again, “Sophia, Leo will definitely wake up! During his time in the hospital, he relied on you for care, so you first need to take care of yourself, okay?”
From Sophia’s reaction just now, Amaya had already confirmed one thing, that not only did Leo deeply love Sophia, but Sophia also loved Leo deeply and profoundly. Even if Sophia had to sacrifice her life to bring Leo back to consciousness at this moment, she would probably do it without hesitation.
This sincere and pure love was what Amaya had been dreaming of.
Amaya turned to Hayden and asked, “Hayden, can you help Leo wake up?”
“I can try, but I cannot guarantee that I can bring him back. I will do my best,” Hayden replied truthfully.
“Sophia, who is this…?” Sophia finally shifted her attention to Hayden.
Amaya was about to introduce him when Hayden preemptively spoke, “My surname is Hayden Elliott. I was responsible for protecting Amaya during her time in Atraria.”
From Hayden’s words, it was evident that he did not want Sophia to know his true identity.
“Mr. Elliott, please save Leo…” Sophia said, about to kneel down for Hayden.
Hayden quickly extended his hand to stop her, and Sophia felt a mysterious force supporting her legs, preventing her from kneeling.
Amaya quickly assisted Sophia, reproaching her, “Sophia, what are you doing? I won’t be pleased if you act like this. You should take care of yourself. Hayden, you have my signal.”
Hayden walked to the bedside, gazing at Leo’s face for three seconds before raising his right hand.
Extending his index finger, Hayden gently pointed at the center of Leo’s eyebrows.
Then, Hayden mobilized his inner energy, using his arm as a bridge to slowly input it into Leo’s body.
The inner energy flowed from top to bottom, passing through the damaged meridians of Leo and finally converging into the elixir field.
The Spiritual Power in Leo’s elixir field, originally in a dormant state, spontaneously generated an immune protection in response to the appearance of inner energy.
On the surface, Hayden’s right index finger was repelled by a force.
Hayden stepped back, realizing the formidable strength of the Cultivator’s Spiritual Power.
“Hayden, how is it?” Amaya asked.
Hayden turned around, looking at Amaya and Sophia, and truthfully said, “Leo has suffered severe injuries, with the meridians throughout his body damaged to a degree of seventy to eighty percent. I cannot repair his meridians; he can only rely on self-recovery.”
“In addition, I have activated the Spiritual Power in his elixir field. Whether he can wake up or not depends on himself.”
Sophia didn’t fully understand Hayden’s words, but she still thanked him sincerely, “Mr. Elliott, thank you.”
“No need to be polite. You don’t have to be too sad. In such situations, all we can do is our best and leave the rest to fate,” Hayden sighed.
Sophia nodded resolutely and then looked at Amaya, “Amaya, I appreciate your coming here. It’s already very late; why don’t you go back and rest?”
“Sophia, I want to stay here with you,” Amaya replied.
“No need, let me be alone with Leo. Regardless of whether he wakes up or not, I will stay by his side,” Sophia forced a smile and walked towards the bedside.